Traveling Through Those Years Of Farming (Quick Transmigration) - Volume 4 Chapter 21

Sanhua still did not get its beloved little ginseng. The ginseng whisker Ge Shiyan had prepared for her daughter had already been secretly switched by Baobao into Fu Shinian’s bowl.

The little boy had been studying very diligently. He had only attended the private school for less than two months, yet his cheeks had already thinned a little, no longer soft and springy like before.

Baobao thought she did not yet need any tonic, but Fu Shinian could use some ginseng to replenish his vitality.

As for the casual angry remark she had made earlier in the day, she had long thrown it to the back of her mind.

In high spirits, Ge Shiyan cooked the entire old hen. Besides the ginseng whiskers, she added many kinds of dried mushrooms she had collected from the mountain during the rainy season. She simmered everything in a clay pot for half the day. The meat was exceptionally tender; the moment the lid was lifted, a rich, thick fragrance rushed out.

The sorrowful Sanhua drank half a small bowl of soup with tears in its eyes. Its belly swelled round like a ball before it finally stopped. Even though it did not eat ginseng, drinking chicken soup that carried the faintest trace of ginseng flavor still tasted wonderful.

Whether it was that ginseng inherently held strong medicinal power, or whether the background of this world granted ginseng an even greater potency, just that trace amount of ginseng whisker—dissolved into a big pot of chicken soup—still produced medicinal effects that the family almost could not withstand.

Ge Shiyan had suffered too much hardship when she was young. In earlier years she planted rice seedlings in cold water fields, broke ice in winter to wash clothes, and left behind many lingering ailments. Whenever it rained or grew cold, the joints in her hands and legs would ache faintly. As she aged, winter nights became especially hard to endure; no matter how many blankets she used, her legs remained as cold as ice, an ache penetrating right into the bone, leaving her unable to sleep through the night.

Although it was not yet late autumn, nighttime temperatures had already dropped. Ge Shiyan had brought out the thick winter quilt early. At night she even wore the sheepskin knee warmers her sister gave her.

But tonight felt different. After she put on the knee warmers, she actually felt hot. Under the heavy winter quilt, a light sheen of sweat rose across her back. Even the joints that usually ached felt numb and itchy instead, no longer intolerably painful.

She immediately thought of the ginseng’s medicinal effect.

But the ginseng whisker was so small. The longest piece was no longer than her little finger.

“Oh heavens…”

Unable to bear the heat, she threw off her quilt and pulled off the sheepskin knee warmers.

Just as she reached for a thinner blanket, she suddenly realized—if even an adult like her could not fully withstand the ginseng’s potency, then what about the children?

She dropped everything and hurried straight to the children’s rooms.

Since they had moved houses, Baobao and Lin Yu each had their own room. But Baobao was clingy and preferred to sleep in Lin Yu’s room at night. Especially now that the weather turned cold, the two girls shared a blanket and warmed each other. This was far more comfortable than heating coal.

Ge Shiyan was always the last in the household to sleep. 

By the time she reached the girls’ room, the two had long fallen asleep.

They were clearly hot. The blanket was kicked to the floor, and even so, both girls were tugging at their collars.

Ge Shiyan used the back of her hand to feel their foreheads, cheeks, and backs. Their temperatures were normal, only slightly higher than usual. Her heart finally settled.

Before leaving, she placed the thick quilt at the foot of the bed and pulled out a thinner blanket to cover them.

Ginseng truly was a wonderful thing. Elders always said sweating was good for the body. With the medicinal effect not yet fully absorbed, letting the girls sweat thoroughly was beneficial.

Fu Shinian’s condition was similar, so Ge Shiyan only switched him to a thinner blanket before returning to her room.

Not long after she left, the sleeping Fu Shinian kicked off even the thin quilt under the heat and a trickle of blood slid down from his nostril…

Early the next morning, the entire household was awakened by Fu Shinian’s loud crying.

Ge Shiyan jolted awake. The sun was already high. All the sweat from the night had evaporated, and she felt unusually refreshed. But she had no time to think about her own condition; she ran barefoot toward her son’s room.

She saw Fu Shinian sitting on the bed, staring wide-eyed at his pillow, face pale.

He was bleeding. A lot…

He cried even harder. 

Indeed, scholars would die young—was he about to die?

He was only seven, a bit more sensible than other children, but still just a child. Faced with such a shock, his first reaction was tears. If he died, how sad would his mother and sister be?

“Mother, I am going to die!” Fu Shinian clutched his chest, weak and pitiful.

Baobao and Lin Yu rushed in after Ge Shiyan, both having run over the moment they heard his crying. Lin Yu wore only one shoe; Baobao had only thrown on a coat, her hair messy like a little bird’s nest. The carefully combed wisps of hair at her forehead now stood up like silly little tufts.

“Baobao, I am going to die.” Seeing his cousin, Fu Shinian stopped wailing aloud, but continued speaking in a crying tone. “Cousin, I am going to die.”

Lin Yu had been living in the Fu household for some time. Fu Shinian’s attitude toward her remained distant, mainly because he felt she stole Baobao’s attention. But after living under the same roof, at least some affection existed.

Thinking he was about to die, Fu Shinian felt old grievances should dissolve.

After greeting her, he glanced behind the girls.

Where was Sanhua? Why hadn’t Sanhua come?

His heart sank. He wanted to bid farewell to Sanhua too.

“You little fool!” Before he could sink deeper into emotion, Ge Shiyan smacked the back of his head. “What nonsense. Who goes around talking about dying?”

She had already checked him from head to toe. No injuries anywhere, only dried blood at his nostril and the bloodstain on the pillow. Clearly, it was just a nosebleed.

“It must be the ginseng being too nourishing—it made your nose bleed. It’s nothing serious.”

Of course, this was only her guess. To be safe, she still needed to call for a physician.

She felt some fear. She had not known the ginseng was this potent. Good thing she had used only a very small amount. Otherwise the situation might not have been so simple.

People who were weak could be harmed by excessive tonics—sometimes fatally.

“I… I am not going to die?” Fu Shinian blinked. He wanted to look at his nose but could not see it without a mirror. Even crossing his eyes didn’t help.

He rubbed around his nostrils. Since the blood had dried, what came off were only red flakes.

It was indeed a nosebleed!

Fu Shinian broke into a smile. He wasn’t going to die.

“Baobao, it was just a nosebleed. Don’t be scared. I will not die.”

Thinking of all the commotion he caused, he felt embarrassed.

With the sun already high, no one would go back to sleep. Ge Shiyan planned to send someone to the neighboring village to tell the private school teacher that her son would rest at home today.

While Lin Yu prepared breakfast—or rather, lunch—Ge Shiyan brought the physician over to take everyone’s pulse.

“Excessive internal heat. Nothing serious. Eat light food for a few days and drink calming herbal soup.”

After listening, Ge Shiyan finally relaxed.

The two girls had similar pulses. In refined medical terms, they had simply over-supplemented and needed cooling remedies.

“What strong tonic did you feed them?”

The physician, having checked their pulses, could not help asking.

“A tonic? No. Yesterday I just slaughtered a hen and made chicken soup, and added some dried mushrooms from the back mountain. Maybe the hen was especially nourishing.”

Ge Shiyan feigned ignorance. She could not possibly say they consumed ginseng. A few whiskers had caused such effects—if people knew she kept an entire root, thieves would swarm the house.

“I see…”

The physician was thoughtful. Chicken could be nourishing, but he had never heard of chicken soup causing such strong reactions. Perhaps the mushrooms played a part?

“It’s a pity the four of you finished the soup yesterday. Otherwise I could examine it.”

She lied, of course. The remaining soup still sat in the kitchen. She only said this to block the physician’s interest. Otherwise he would notice the faint ginseng aroma.

Just as she expected, he looked regretful.

“I’ll prescribe cooling herbs. Boil them into water and drink it as a cold soup.”

While packing his medicine box, he glanced again at Lin Yu.

The Fu family’s division had been a major event. This was the first recorded instance in a century where a household split while both parents remained alive and the youngest child had not yet married—and involving a stepmother at that.

Rumors ran wild. Some said Fu Shichun and his wife were at fault. Ge Shiyan’s words during the separation had been influential. People recalled the drowning incident years ago and paired it with the recent rumor that the twins had lured the adopted daughter to the deep pond. Many began to doubt Fu Shichun and his wife.

A person who could harm a child—especially a half-blooded younger brother—would not spare outsiders.

Others insisted the stepmother must have treated them poorly; otherwise why would Shichun harbor such hatred toward her and her child?

Dark-minded people further speculated that if she were so virtuous, why did she take so much property during the split?

The physician had heard his wife repeat these rumors numerous times. He had not judged earlier, but now, seeing Lin Yu, he felt certain—Ge Shiyan was no cruel stepmother.

During the separation, Lin Yu—daughter of the Fu family’s already-married aunt—stayed not with her own uncle, but instead with her uncle’s wife. That alone had caused much gossip.

Some said Shichun and Ma Meifang could not tolerate this niece. Others said Ge Shiyan intentionally took her in so she could have someone else to work.

He had seen Lin Yu two months ago—thin, dark, and scrawny.

But now she was still dark, yet visibly fuller, with a less pointed chin, rounder wrists, and a far livelier spirit.

Appearance, demeanor, vitality—everything was different.

Anyone could tell. No vicious woman would treat her husband’s niece this well. Chicken was precious—few would give it to a child outside the immediate household.

Thinking this, the physician believed firmly that Ge Shiyan was kind and generous.

Who said men didn’t gossip? He planned to tell his wife everything later.

Thus, without meaning to, Ge Shiyan again improved her reputation in the village, while Fu Shichun’s household would soon face yet another wave of criticism.

After sending the physician off, Ge Shiyan stared at the remaining half-pot of chicken soup.

Since all of them were suffering from over-supplementation, they obviously could not drink any more. With the weather turning cold, the soup could only last two days before spoiling.

She considered sending it to her brother’s family or her sister’s, but gifts should not be made from leftovers.

After pondering, she came up with a good idea.

During these days, the Tao family had grown accustomed to working in the fields for Ge Shiyan.

That morning, Ge Shiyan had not gotten up early. The Tao family waited and waited, but breakfast never arrived. 

They panicked—did she no longer intend to employ them?

With the weather turning cold, returning home now meant facing starvation and perhaps freezing to death halfway.

They had just enjoyed a few days of steady food and shelter, and their ambitions had begun to grow—but one missed meal had beaten them back into reality.

They were not worried about lodging. Two li outside the village stood an abandoned earth god shrine. When they came to seek relatives, they had brought all their quilts, clothes, pots, and bowls on their backs. The shrine sheltered them from wind and rain.

Food was their only concern, and because of this work, that problem had been solved. So they would never allow this job to slip away.

Thus, when Ge Shiyan and Lin Yu finally arrived with the delayed breakfast (or lunch), no one dared complain. They were terrified that any grumbling would get them fired.

Instead, they worked harder, afraid of making mistakes.

In truth, Ge Shiyan felt guilty about the missed breakfast. She had expected complaints. Instead, these laborers—who had caused such trouble earlier—showed no dissatisfaction and worked even harder. Even her thick skin felt embarrassed. 

She wondered whether she should start giving them some wages.

But she did not forget the real task.

After delivering the food, Lin Yu carried a large bowl of chicken soup toward her uncle, who was about to head home.

“Uncle, Aunt boiled this chicken soup for you. It is very nourishing.”

Lin Yu had lived two lifetimes, but she was still not as sharp as Ge Shiyan, who had awakened after great hardship.

She assumed her aunt sent soup because she cared about her uncle. Lin Yu grew delighted—did this mean her aunt and uncle might reconcile?

Thus, hiding the fact that it was leftover soup, she offered it with hopeful sincerity.

Not only had Lin Yu misunderstood, but Fu Dayan misunderstood as well.

“This… your aunt asked you to bring this?”

He took the bowl. It was filled with chicken pieces—generous in quantity, not stingy at all.

“Yes. Aunt said that it is busy farming season and you should not exhaust your body.”

These were indeed Ge Shiyan’s words. Her main purpose, however, was to strengthen this old man. She still needed him to labor for her and her son.

Also, she knew exactly what was happening in the Fu household. Those two had been leaving cold leftovers for him every night. Sending him a hot bowl of meat-filled soup would clearly show him what kind of people they truly were.

“She is the only one who thinks of me…” Fu Dayan murmured softly. Even Lin Yu did not hear him clearly.

Remorse filled him, and the more he regretted, the more ashamed he felt. He had no face to seek out Ge Shiyan or admit he had been wrong, no face to say how much he wished to return to her side.

He drank the entire bowl in one go. He had never eaten ginseng in his life, and the few whiskers had been scooped out, leaving only a faint trace of scent masked by chicken and mushrooms. He did not detect anything unusual.

Half from the pleasure of good food, half from the warmth of being cared for, he felt brimming with strength. In that afternoon alone, he finished an entire day’s worth of work.

Ge Shiyan was satisfied. From now on, all their leftovers could be given to this old man.

She wanted him to live long, work hard for her and the youngest son, and weigh like a mountain upon those two ungrateful ones. 

In this era, filial duty reigned supreme. Once the old man understood the truth, the other two would never be able to stir up trouble again.

Fu Dayan, of course, did not know his wife’s true intent.

After drinking such a large bowl of chicken soup, he spent the afternoon burning through energy like a young ox. Even at night, he remained energetic.

He knew—it was the power of love.