After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

Xiao Yong managed to clean up the mess left by last night's chaotic battle.

Early in the morning, the muddy ground in the yard was swept flat and neat. Lin Qingqing got up early and was cooking porridge in the kitchen.

When Gu Qiangying came in, she was carrying a leather medicine box.

"All ready?" He leaned against the door frame, his gaze lingering on the apron straps Lin Qingqing was wearing.

Lin Qingqing sprinkled the last handful of chopped scallions into the pot, put the lid on, and asked, "Third Brother, are you leaving so early?"

"There's an elderly patient in the next village who's been sick for days. If we don't go see him, he might not make it through the summer." Gu Qiangying walked over. "Take off your apron, change into some clean clothes, and come with me."

Lin Qingqing was taken aback for a moment, "Me too?"

"Didn't we say we were going to learn some skills?" Gu Qiangying put the medicine box on the stove. "What's the use of just reading books? Will rote memorization turn you into a Hua Tuo (a legendary Chinese physician)?"

Lin Qingqing didn't dare to delay. She went back to her room and changed into a durable dark blue cloth shirt. Instead of braiding her hair as usual, she neatly put it up in a bun.

When he came out, Xiao Yong was sitting in the courtyard sharpening his knife, preparing to go up the mountain to check the traps.

Seeing the two about to leave, Xiao Yong continued what he was doing without looking up and said, "Watch where you're going, don't let your cousin fall."

Gu Qiangying pushed up his glasses and smiled somewhat casually: "Don't worry, Second Brother, if you fall, I'll carry you back."

Xiao Yong paused, glanced at him, and continued sharpening his blade.

Once you leave the village, the road becomes difficult to travel.

Qingshan Village was already remote, and the neighboring Daliushu Village was even more nestled in the mountains. The two of them trudged along the muddy dirt road, their steps uneven.

Gu Qiangying, despite her long legs and large strides, always walked half a step ahead of Lin Qingqing, shielding her from the thorny branches growing by the roadside.

"Third Brother, what's wrong with the patient we're going to see?" Lin Qingqing asked, slightly out of breath as she carried a small cloth bag containing gauze and alcohol that Gu Qiangying had asked her to bring.

Gu Qiangying's voice drifted over on the wind, "Poverty sickness."

Lin Qingqing was taken aback, not understanding what he meant.

It wasn't until she stood in front of that dilapidated thatched hut that she understood the weight of those two words.

This can hardly be called a house; it's just a few pieces of wood supporting some mud, with a sparse thatched roof and dark, gaping beams visible inside.

Before even entering the door, a pungent, musty smell mixed with the stench of excrement and urine, along with the odor of an old person, assaulted my senses.

Lin Qingqing felt a churning in her stomach and instinctively covered her nose.

Gu Qiangying stopped and looked back at her.

"Feeling unwell?" he asked.

Lin Qingqing nodded, her face pale.

Gu Qiangying reached out and pulled her hand down. "There will be far more disgusting things in the future, like rotten flesh, pus, blood, and dead people. Put your hand down. You have to get used to it, even if it's uncomfortable."

His hands were cold, and when he held Lin Qingqing's wrist, it felt like an ice band.

Lin Qingqing took a breath of the nauseating air and couldn't help but feel nauseous. Before she could even vomit, Gu Qiangying took a step forward and held up her wrist in front of Lin Qingqing.

"If you feel unwell, smell my scent. If you feel uncomfortable, just think of me as someone who is by your side."

Lin Qingqing looked up, and their eyes met. Gu Qiangying couldn't help but ruffle her hair: "Let's go."

Gu Qiangying released her and stepped across the threshold first.

The room was as dark as a cellar.

It took Lin Qingqing a while to get a better look before she could see the bed in the corner. It was actually just two door panels placed on a stone, covered with blackened, tattered cotton wadding.

An old man, so thin he was unrecognizable, was curled up in the quilt. Hearing the noise, his cloudy eyes rolled around, and he made a wheezing sound like a bellows in his throat.

"Dr. Gu... Dr. Gu..."

A little girl was squatting under the greasy table next to them, her big eyes looking over timidly: "Brother Gu."

Gu Qiangying chuckled and said "Mmm," then opened her medicine box, took out a stethoscope, and hung it around her neck.

His expression didn't change much; there was neither disgust nor excessive pity.

"Pull back the blanket."

Lin Qingqing steeled herself and walked over.

When the blanket was lifted, the smell became even stronger. The old man had a large sore on his leg that had rotted down to the bone; the surrounding flesh was rolled up and oozing yellow fluid.

Lin Qingqing's hand trembled slightly.

"Hold his leg down." Gu Qiangying put on gloves, took out a scalpel and tweezers, "Don't shake. If you shake, even an inch off-target, he'll bleed half a bowl more."

Lin Qingqing gritted her teeth and pressed her hands against the old man's dry, brittle thighs.

The texture was rough, stiff, and cold, like touching a piece of dead wood.

Gu Qiangying acted with lightning speed; the blade sliced ​​through the rotting flesh, and pus and blood gushed out. The old man convulsed in pain, letting out a piercing scream.

Lin Qingqing felt as if she were pressing down not on a leg, but on a fish struggling for its life. She used all her strength, and sweat streamed down her face.

The whole process lasted half an hour.

After Gu Qiangying finished sewing the last stitch and tied the knot, Lin Qingqing was completely exhausted and leaned against the wall, panting heavily.

Gu Qiangying took off her gloves and threw them into the dirty bucket next to her. While packing up her medicine kit, she said to the little girl standing by the bed:

"Change this medicine once a day, and don't let it get wet. We'll pay you the consultation fee later; you can pay when you have it, otherwise it's fine."

The little girl looked to be only six or seven years old. Her hair was dry and yellow, and she was wearing an ill-fitting long gown. She stood barefoot on the muddy ground, looking at them timidly and nodding frantically.

Stepping outside, the sunlight stung Lin Qingqing's eyes.

She glanced back at the dark doorway; the little girl was still standing behind the threshold, gazing at them expectantly.

Lin Qingqing felt in her pocket and pulled out a handful of White Rabbit milk candies. She didn't know how far it would be before she left, and she had brought them specially in case she and Gu Qiangying had low blood sugar.

She walked back quickly, grabbed the little girl's dirty hand, and stuffed all the candy into it.

"Take it and eat it." Lin Qingqing's voice was a little hoarse.

The little girl froze, looking at the candy in her hand, then at Lin Qingqing, and suddenly grinned. In that instant, a beautiful radiance appeared on her dirty little face.

Lin Qingqing felt a pang of sadness and turned to run back to Gu Qiangying's side.

Gu Qiangying was standing at the door waiting for her. When she saw her running over, her gaze swept over her empty pockets, and then she reached out to help her tuck her messy bangs behind her ear.

"Let's go, it's going to rain."

The sky in the mountains is like a child's face, changing in an instant.

Just moments ago the sun was shining brightly, but before we'd gone two miles, a dark cloud had descended overhead.

A rumble of thunder rolled through the valley, followed by a deluge of large raindrops.

"Run!"

Gu Qiangying grabbed Lin Qingqing's wrist and dragged her into the woods by the roadside.

Not far ahead is an abandoned cowshed, which was originally used by the production team to guard the crops. It has been abandoned for many years, and the thatch on the roof is half rotten, but at least it can still provide shelter from the wind and rain.