A century of poverty

Chapter 96 Old Illnesses Are Hard to Cure

After returning home, I went straight to the vicinity of "Liaohe Bathhouse" and found the clinic by following the signs.

When the doorbell rang, a short woman in her thirties with a high-pitched voice and a face covered in freckles answered the door, speaking with a Sichuan accent.

The doctor was a man in his forties with a strong Sichuan accent, and we couldn't understand him very well during our conversation. The woman next to us was trying her best to repeat her Sichuan accent in "Mandarin" over and over again.

Two boys, around ten years old, watched us intently from the side, then continued playing as if nothing had happened.

There was a round table on the floor with a small pulse pillow on it.

"Let me take your pulse." Dr. Zhang gestured for me to place my wrist on the pulse pillow. After taking my pulse, he used a set of traditional Chinese medicine terms to explain my condition. I didn't quite understand, but since he was recommended by an acquaintance, I had a basic level of trust in him and he prescribed some medicine.

The doctor went to the front gatehouse to get the medicine. I asked the woman, "How long will it take for me to recover?"

She replied, "About a month!"

The doctor brought the medicine over. Zhiqiang asked, "How much?" The doctor replied, "Forty-six yuan and seven jiao."

After paying, we left. We went home to brew and drink the medicine. We were mentally prepared for a "long-term battle."

The second time I came to get the medicine, the price was different; three doses cost 160 or 170 yuan.

A month has passed, and I've spent over a thousand yuan, but my illness hasn't improved at all.

I asked the doctor's wife, "You said it would be better in a month, but I don't feel any better at all!"

The doctor's wife said, "If I didn't say it would be better in a month, could you cure it? I'm doing this for your own good. You're so young, suffering from this disease is so painful! Just hang in there, he can cure you!"

Dr. Zhang also said, "We don't lie to people. If we say we can cure someone, we really can. We've cured many cases. Dong Shulan from your Da Liujia brigade, wasn't she cured by me? Her building materials shop is just around this corner on the way you came. Go back and ask her; she'll tell you how she got better."

My surname is Zhang, and yours is Zhang too. We can't write two Zhang characters in one stroke, so you can call me "Big Brother" and her "Sister-in-law." We'll treat you like a younger sister.

Starting today, come twice a day, once in the morning and once in the afternoon, for acupuncture, cupping, and oral medication. Combining these will enhance the effects.

From then on, Zhiqiang brought me for acupuncture for five days every week. This time, I had difficulty walking and couldn't ride a bicycle. I had to rely on Zhiqiang to carry me around on his bicycle, and I had to get on first. So, when I heard that it could be cured, I was determined to spare no time or money to get better.

That year, I was only twenty-seven years old.

At the bend on the way back, Zhiqiang stopped the car, and I got out. I carefully stepped onto the curb, watching my feet. If I stepped on a small stone, my foot would twist, and my whole body would be in pain. So I walked very carefully. If someone called me, I would have to stand still and turn around before answering, because I didn't dare to turn my neck freely. There was no part of my body that didn't hurt or that I dared to move freely.

I entered the building materials store and peered around the entrance for a while, spotting someone nearby. I walked over, and before I could even speak, Dong Shulan recognized me and said warmly, "What a rare guest! What brings you here?"

Me: "I came here on someone's recommendation. You left the Liu family these past few years and came here to make your fortune?"

Dong Shulan: "What's the point of making money? Just trying to make a living. We weren't allowed to come out when we were in the production team, but now we're allowed to work. Let's come out and earn a little. Your second brother is a carpenter; it would be a waste if he didn't come out and earn some money!"

When we started talking about our recent situation, I explained my purpose.

She said, "Okay! This doctor can cure me, he's the one who cured me. It's been three or four years since then. I was still living at Da Liu's house when this doctor Zhang came from Sichuan. He was all alone, and his family hadn't moved here yet, so he stayed at my house and prescribed medicine for me. We went to the city to get the medicine ourselves, and he also did acupuncture and moxibustion, and he cured me. Look, I'm all better now and I can do everything again!"

After hearing her words, my confidence grew even stronger.

Dong Shulan continued, "You do the math, he's been here for three or four years, empty-handed. Now he's bought a house in town, his whole family has come, and he's also stocked up on medicine. He's made a lot of money! It's just because he's cured so many people!" I said, "Yeah, I always see people getting medicine and acupuncture. Several sales clerks from the Liaohe Department Store always go there for acupuncture; I often run into them."

Dong Shulan: "Don't worry about the treatment, don't be half-hearted."

"Okay! Let's feel more at ease. We won't give up until we cure him!"

The treatment was effective, but the medicine was really expensive; three doses cost over a hundred yuan, and acupuncture cost five yuan a day.

After three months of continuous treatment, by the time I could finally take off my heavy winter clothes, although I still dared not exert myself, I could move around freely and even turn my neck. I continued to take the medication and receive acupuncture as prescribed by the doctor.

After more than three months of contact, we have become very familiar with Dr. Zhang and his family. When there are many patients and Dr. Zhang is busy, his eldest son will come to pick up the needles. I asked him if he could do the needles, and he said yes.

Dr. Zhang noticed my accent and asked where I was from, saying it sounded like Tangshan. He also mentioned that he was serving in the military in Qian'an during the Tangshan earthquake. After the earthquake, his unit participated in the disaster relief efforts, and he, as a medic, used a combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicine to treat many wounded soldiers, earning him a commendation from the military newspaper!

He also possessed the dashing demeanor of a soldier, which further solidified my trust in his medical skills and character. I asked him how long it would take for the illness to fully heal, and they said six months to a year.

According to Dr. Zhang's theory of treating winter diseases in summer, we have now reached a critical stage in the treatment.

This week's medicine costs over 600 yuan, and I can't afford it all at once; I still owe some.

Zhiqiang works diligently every day, riding his bicycle with a boat net on his back, traveling over a hundred miles to catch fish. When he returns in the afternoon, he doesn't have time to go home and goes straight to the market. I take my fish-selling tools and wait for him at the market.

One rainy night in June, at midnight, a loud clap of thunder woke us up. At that moment, there was thunder and lightning, torrential rain and strong winds, and the weather was extremely bad.

Zhiqiang: "I'll get up and go hang the fish." He said, sitting up and getting dressed.

"What did you say? Hang fish in this weather? It's midnight! Hang fish? Are you out of your mind?!"

Zhiqiang: "No, it's nearby, just up the bend in the Raoyang River. There are fish there. If I don't go now, I'll be caught by the people living by the river by tomorrow morning!"

"Fine, let it be. We're not going. This thunderstorm is too dangerous!"

Zhiqiang: "I'm not afraid of thunder."

"There are graves by the river, aren't you scared in the middle of the night!" I sat up and shouted at Zhiqiang, who was moving the boat net in the corridor.

"Don't be afraid! It won't dare come out in this heavy rain!"

"Squeak—bang bang!" Zhiqiang had already gone out, closed the door, and left.

I got up and went to the window. Streaks of lightning illuminated the torrential sky. The wind and rain pounded against the glass, and water rushed swiftly across the ground and roads, heading towards a large pit.

"Crack! La la—" A burst of thunder exploded overhead. Was this person courting death? Going out to catch fish at this hour.

I paced back and forth by the window, looking out anxiously.

The rain came in bursts, then subsided, and by daybreak it was a moderate drizzle. Zhiqiang, wearing a raincoat and rain pants, pushed his bike back. I quickly opened the door to greet him: "You're back! Are you alright?"

"It's all right, nothing's wrong!" He parked the car by the window, took out net bags and fish bags from the boat and handed them to me, then carried the boat into the house himself.

This trip was worthwhile; I caught several carp, catfish, and crucian carp weighing over half a pound each. I put the fish in a large basin to keep them alive, hoping they'd sell better. These fish were caught at great risk!

The dosage of medication has been reduced; it's taken for a week and then stopped for three days, but the acupuncture and cupping therapy continues.

Zhiqiang is trying his best to hang and sell fish, and as long as it's possible, I have to do the needlework myself.

My body isn't strong enough to ride a bicycle, so I wore big boots and walked. Even the shortcut was two or three kilometers long. I carried an umbrella, using it to shield myself from the rain and then putting it away when it stopped, using it as a stick in the potholes and puddles. A normal person could walk this distance in half an hour, but it took me two and a half hours.

I felt bitter and disheartened. Even after arriving at the doctor's house, I remained depressed.

My sister-in-law, Wang Ju, asked me, "What's wrong? Why are you unhappy?"

Me: "What's there to be happy about? I've been treated for half a year, how much money have I spent? I drink herbal medicine three times a day, and I feel like vomiting just from the smell of it. And it's still like this. A half-hour journey takes me two and a half hours."

Thinking about the debts incurred from building the house, Zhiqiang fished desperately, but to no avail. When would this end?

Ever since I was old enough to understand things, my legs have ached, and I've suffered from medical treatment. I can't wear skirts in the summer, and I look like a cotton ball in the winter. Can you believe how I've lived my life?

The Su family looks down on me. They all have jobs and money. We have nothing, and we're sick and facing famine!

Wang Ju: "You're thinking the wrong way. You should think about how you used to come to see a doctor. It would have taken you five hours, let alone two and a half hours. Compare that to what you did. Have you gotten much better? This is a chronic illness, so don't worry about it."

Money is not a problem. As long as there are people, there must be money. You are so young, you will earn money later.

"Old Su's family, don't hold grudges. Once you're healthy and your family is doing well, everything will be fine. As long as Xiao Su treats you well, who does anyone else matter? Just ignore him."

Me: "It's not that I'm being petty. I feel like I don't even have the right to be petty with people. They didn't even give me a chance to be petty. The old folks didn't keep their word. I feel like they were just playing me for a fool."

Wang Ju, no longer looking relaxed, asked seriously, "How am I going to mess with you?"

I didn't keep the promise I made before the wedding—the promise of 99 yuan for visiting relatives. They said I'd take over the business, but at the last minute it became Su Kai's turn. They promised five rooms and land, but like Su Zhichun, we lived in half and sold the other half—that didn't count. They also told his second son to build three rooms outside, while we built two inside. Regardless of my disagreement, they suggested having the eldest son borrow money so we could shoulder the huge famine. They wanted us to move in and live under the outside window, but then Su Zhiru used barbed wire to block our way. When I talked to him about it, he talked back, etc.

I went over it in detail from beginning to end.

Wang Ju: "You're just too honest. Haven't you heard the saying, 'The squeaky wheel gets the grease'?"

Me: "My dad often told us to talk less and work more, and my grandma also often said to listen to the elders."

Wang Ju: "Listening to the elders isn't wrong, but we also need to be flexible!"

Days pass by.

In late autumn, his condition improved, and he was finally able to stop drinking the herbal decoction three times a day. He continued acupuncture five days a week.

The doctor said, "Traditional Chinese medicine works slowly. Even after you stop taking it, the effects will continue to linger in your body for a while. Acupuncture and cupping need to be continued for more than a year to achieve a full recovery. You've had this illness for too long, so it will take time to heal. Don't think that you're all better now that you're cured. You need to take good care of yourself and avoid cold and dampness, as this illness will flare up if you get cold. You need to be extra careful at all times."

Me: "How do we protect ourselves? Just like before, even in the hottest days of summer, we have to wear long pants and avoid getting our clothes wet!"

Doctor: "That's a good idea. After washing your hands with warm water, your pores open up, and the air that comes in will feel cool."

Me: "Oh dear! This is really not easy. I sell fish and always have to deal with water!"

In our predicament, how can we be picky about what we do? But we can't ignore the doctor's advice either.

The harshness of life forced me to start reflecting. If we just continued to live in these two rooms, no one would pay any attention to us. If we sold these two rooms and went back to the back to embarrass ourselves and wait for the right opportunity, perhaps there would be a chance for things to turn around.

When I shared my thoughts with Zhiqiang, he said he was fine with whatever I said, without offering any opinions.

I started trying to sell the house and talked to many people, but no one responded. I still persisted in trying to sell it.