Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

  Even though the journey was very short, it was really uncomfortable. Later on, Mu Jingzhe didn’t have time to think about these trivial things. After bidding the director farewell, Ji Buwang didn’t put her down. Instead, he carried her to the car before putting her down.

  “Let’s go to the hospital first.” As he recalled that Mu Jingzhe had vomited blood previously, Ji Buwang’s expression was tense.

  “I’m just a little uncomfortable and weak. It doesn’t really hurt. Don’t be so worried,” Mu Jingzhe quickly said upon seeing Ji Buwang’s nervousness.

  “Mm.” Ji Buwang reacted by relaxing his facial muscles, afraid that he would make Mu Jingzhe feel pressure.

  The county city was very small, so they quickly arrived at the hospital. However, other than the fact that Mu Jingzhe seemed to have suffered a heat stroke, they couldn’t find anything else.

  If even the big hospital in Ocean City couldn’t diagnose what was wrong, it was normal that the hospitals in the county city were unable to. In the past, it was only because the hospitals in the small county city couldn’t diagnose what was wrong that they had gone to big cities like Ocean City.

  Ji Buwang discussed it with Mu Jingzhe. “Let’s go to the city hospital for a checkup. Maybe the doctors in the city will find something. We can also visit a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) physician.”

  “Alright.” Mu Jingzhe didn’t object. “Then let’s go tomorrow.”

  “Let’s go today. Before it gets dark.”

  Ji Buwang took Mu Jingzhe to pack her luggage and told the five kids. When Xiao Wu heard that Mu Jingzhe was sick again, his face turned pale. He insisted on going with her.

  The five kids weren’t at ease, but they couldn’t all go. In the end, they discussed it and decided that Shao Dong, Little Bei, and Xiao Wu would go with them.

  That night, she went to the hospital in the city for a checkup, but the doctors still didn’t manage to figure out what was wrong. The TCM Department of the city hospital was famous. Alas, when she went to consult the TCM physician, he couldn’t tell what was wrong either. The TCM physician only said that she didn’t have enough blood and qi. “I can’t tell much more. My father isn’t around either. Otherwise, he could have taken a look at you.”

  This TCM physician could be considered to have inherited his father’s skills, but his medical skills were far inferior to his father’s. His father was considered the best TCM physician in the province and was also ranked among the top ones in the country. However, because his medical skills were brilliant, he was very busy. He wasn’t around now and would only be back after half a month. “You can come over for a checkup when the time comes.”

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  “Alright, if I haven’t recovered by then, I’ll come back. Thank you.” Mu Jingzhe thanked him.

  Although the results in the city were disappointing, it wasn’t so unexpected, as they had somewhat anticipated it.

  Ordinary people would go to the city if the county couldn’t treat their condition, and if that still didn’t work, they would then go to a big city to seek treatment. Mu Jingzhe, on the other hand, had gone to get an examination in Ocean City right from the start. In the end, they decided to return home for now.

  Shao Dong, Little Bei, and Xiao Wu looked at Mu Jingzhe and felt indescribable panic and fear for the first time ever. They had never thought that Mu Jingzhe’s body would continue to weaken and that no doctor would be able to treat it.

  In the past, Mu Jingzhe had always been in good health. She had never been sick. She was extremely strong and had always given them an unlimited sense of security. She was still young, so they had never thought that she would collapse.

  Shao Dong, who had always been the steadiest, couldn’t quite steady himself for a moment. “Mommy, why don’t we go to the capital to have you checked again? This won’t do. Maybe another hospital will be able to cure you.”

  Mu Jingzhe wanted to say something but hesitated. The hospital in Ocean City should be similar to the hospitals in the capital. In this day and age, medicine couldn’t compare to modern medicine, be it medically or equipment-wise.

  Little Bei also perked up. “That’s right. If you can’t be treated in the country, we can always go overseas. We don’t lack money now. Mommy, we can definitely get you treated. There must definitely be a place that can treat your condition.”

  No matter what, they had to get their mother cured.

  Ji Buwang glanced at them in the rearview mirror and tried his best to calm down. “Yes, there must be a place that can cure you.”

  Xiao Wu looked at them and took a deep breath before nodding. “Yes, we can always think of a way.”

  “But let’s not go to the capital for the time being.” Mu Jingzhe nodded. “We’ll observe my condition for two days and see how it goes.”

  She was rather tired and really didn’t have the energy to rush around.

  Although Mu Jingzhe tried her best to pull herself together, she was so tired that she couldn’t help but fall asleep.

  When Ji Buwang and the three kids saw Mu Jingzhe fall asleep, they shut their mouths and finally revealed true worry.

  The three children sitting in the back row stared at Mu Jingzhe without blinking, as if they were afraid that she would disappear.

  The news that Mu Jingzhe was sick and the cause of the illness had yet to be determined spread quickly. The five kids weren’t in the mood to go to school but didn’t want Mu Jingzhe to worry about them in her sick state, so they could only force a smile and go to school obediently.

  Shao Qihai didn’t expect Mu Jingzhe to still be sick. “Did you insist on getting the paperwork done because you’ve been feeling unwell?”

  “No, I thought I had recovered at the time.” Mu Jingzhe was helpless. “Don’t overthink. It has nothing to do with me being sick.”

  Shao Qihai pondered it for a moment. “Why don’t we go to the military hospital? I’ll ask around.”

  Since some military hospitals were especially good, Mu Jingzhe nodded. “Okay.”

  She wanted to live more than anyone else, so she didn’t stand on ceremony. It was better to let Shao Qihai help than to let his thoughts run wild again.

  Li Zhaodi and Mu Teng were the ones who couldn’t accept that Mu Jingzhe had fallen sick the most. “Why is she sick? Plus, they can’t even diagnose what’s wrong with her. This is killing me! Why is Jingzhe, who is so young, sick when even an old woman like me isn’t sick?

  “Why is my life so bitter? It wasn’t easy for life to finally get good, and now my daughter’s sick. Do I have to use my child’s life in exchange for riches? In that case, I’d rather be poor until the end.”

  She would rather starve to death than let her two children fall sick. Li Zhaodi’s eyes were red from crying, but she didn’t dare cry in front of Mu Jingzhe. She only dared to cry in front of Mu Teng.

  “Stop crying. If it was possible, I’d want that illness to be transferred to me. Even if the heavens want a life, they can take mine. But can I make that happen? It’s useless to cry now. We can only hope that she’ll be cured. How much money do we have on hand to treat Jingzhe’s illness?”

  If this had happened in the past, when they didn’t have money, he would probably have had to sell his blood to pay for Jingzhe’s treatment.

  “Of course. We have to get her treated even if it means going bankrupt.” Li Zhaodi wiped her tears. “I’ll go and count how much money we have. If all else fails, we’ll sell the shop. Although the children are filial and won’t want us to fork out money, we can’t act dumb.”

  “Mm, look, I’ll contact Xiao Han. I have to get him to come back and gather the money. I’ll also ask around about good doctors and hospitals. Xiao Han’s Jingzhe’s biological brother, so there’s an unbreakable bond between them.”

  The two of them asked around. Li Zhaodi even went to pray at the temple that others often said was particularly efficacious. She didn’t ask for anything but for Mu Jingzhe to recover. If all else failed, she asked that the illness be transferred to her.

  Everyone worked hard for Mu Jingzhe’s illness, and many people knew about it. Everyone from Great Eastern Village came to visit, bringing eggs and brown sugar to replenish her blood.

  Li Fang was even more impressive. She had found donkey skin somewhere and gave it to Mu Jingzhe to eat. “Donkey-hide gelatin is made from donkey skin. Everyone says that donkey-hide gelatin replenishes blood. Eating the skin of a donkey also replenishes blood.”

  Just like that, there was a constant stream of people coming to the house. They brought all sorts of strange gifts, but they were all a token of their sincerity.

  Mu Jingzhe watched as families came one after another, giving her gifts and recommending doctors and hospitals…… Although some of the recommendations sounded unreliable and possibly fraudulent, the villagers were sincere.