Chapter 727 Packing
Dou'er burst into laughter and her fingers unconsciously stroked the corners of the blue cloth bag.
Wang Jianguo noticed the bruises on his sleeves and thought of the sticks raised by the gangsters a few hours ago. His smile became more serious:
"Last month, Widow Zhang's child had a rash, and she traveled 20 miles to the town to get medicine overnight. If you had gone there..."
His voice suddenly became muffled, and his throat rolled to swallow the unfinished words.
"The beds in the clinic have been heated up for you. The medicine cabinet is also made of new elm wood, just waiting for Brother Yang to put the precious medicinal materials in it."
Yang Huaixi rubbed his face with his sleeve and frowned slightly when he touched the scabbed wound.
He looked at the fragments of medicine jars scattered on the ground, and suddenly turned around as if remembering something, and dragged out a sandalwood box from under the collapsed medicine cabinet.
The lock was broken, revealing neatly stacked yellowed medical books. At the bottom was a faded silk cloth wrapped with a half-finished manuscript of "On Epidemics".
“You have to take these with you.”
Yang Huaixi's voice trembled.
"There is also the unopened jar of ice in the corner. Burying it in the ash pile can keep it away from moisture..."
"That's too late!"
Wang Jianguo suddenly looked out the window. The night sky was already turning pale.
In the distance came the sound of a night watchman's clapper-beat; five rapid and crisp sounds startled him so much that his whole body trembled.
"The Black Tiger Gang is vindictive and will come looking for revenge at dawn!"
He stood up suddenly, and the wind he created overturned the half-bowl of cold water on the table.
"Grab the important things and throw away everything you can! There's still time to catch the early train!"
Dou'er rushed to the inner room without saying a word. When he came out, he was carrying a bulging bag and there was grass debris in his hair.
Yang Huaixi stuffed the sandalwood box into her arms, and picked up the mottled jujube wood cane in the corner - it was his old companion when he practiced medicine, and the iron rings on the cane made a crisp sound when they collided.
The three of them walked quickly through the messy hall. Wang Jianguo tore off the upper half of the scroll of "Huangdi Neijing" on the wall and stuffed it into his arms. Then he heard Dou'er gasp softly.
"Wait until we settle down in the Great Northern Wilderness,"
He turned and grinned at the boy, the morning light gilding his outline.
"Let's hang ten bigger ones!"
Before he could finish his words, a dog barking was heard in the distance. The sound of footsteps approaching from afar startled everyone and made them tense up.
Wang Jianguo suddenly grabbed the two men and ran towards the dilapidated back alley.
Behind him, the broken plaque of the drugstore swayed in the wind. The last stroke of the word "doctor" could not withstand the tearing of fate and fell to the ground with a loud bang.
Dou'er raised her head and looked into Wang Jianguo's determined eyes, with tears still on her eyelashes, but she nodded vigorously.
At this moment, he seemed to have turned back into the little boy who was rescued by Yang Huaixi in the snowstorm, his heart full of anxiety and anticipation for the unknown future.
He took a deep breath, turned around, stepped over the messy threshold, and walked into the inner room that was once filled with the fragrance of medicine.
The moonlight shone in obliquely through the broken window frame, casting mottled shadows on the ground.
Dou'er's eyes swept across the house. This used to be the warmest little world for her and Yang Huaixi, but now it was a mess.
But she had no time to feel sad. She quickly squatted down and dragged out the patched cloth bag from under the bed. This was the bag she usually used to carry medicinal herbs, and it finally came in handy at this moment.
In the corner, the set of pharmaceutical tools that had accompanied Yang Huaixi for many years lay there quietly, as if waiting for the moment to be reborn.
There was still some residual medicine powder on the bronze medicine grinder, and the edge of the stone mortar was engraved with fine lines, recording countless days and nights of boiling medicine.
Dou'er carefully picked up the medicine grinder, her fingertips touched the cold metal surface, and she was in a trance and returned to the early mornings when she followed Yang Huaixi to learn how to make medicine.
"We must take all these treasures away."
He murmured, his voice choking with sobs.
Although the Black Tiger Gang looted the pharmacy, these seemingly ordinary medicine making tools were nothing more than a pile of scrap metal in their eyes. They did not know that these were "treasures" that could be used to practice medicine and save lives.
Dou'er gently put the medicine grinder into the bag, then picked up the scale next to it and carefully wrapped the scale bar and weight in a clean piece of cloth, fearing that they would be bumped into anything.
On the shelf, several ceramic medicine jars were leaning to one side or the other, and some had cracks.
Dou'er bit her lip, picked out a few that were still intact, and wrapped them carefully with rags.
His movements were gentle and quick. Years of experience helping out in the pharmacy made him nimble and each of his movements was rhythmic and practiced.
Suddenly, his eyes fell on the handwritten copy of "Compendium of Materia Medica" hanging on the wall.
That was the painstaking effort that Yang Huaixi spent several years copying out stroke by stroke.
Dou'er stood on tiptoe, carefully took out the notebook, gently stroked the faded words on the cover, and her eyes became moist again.
He held the notebook tightly in his arms, as if he was holding the whole world.
"Dou'er, are you okay?"
Yang Huaixi urged softly outside the house.
"coming!"
Dou'er responded and took one last look around the room that held so many memories.
He bent down and picked up the bag full of pharmaceutical tools. Although it was a bit heavy, his steps were unusually firm.
The moment he stepped out of the door, the moonlight sprinkled on his body, illuminating his handsome face and the fire of hope rekindled in his eyes.
He knew that these pharmaceutical tools were not only their means of making a living, but also their hope for a fresh start in the Great Northern Wilderness and the continuation of their dream of saving lives.
The shabby wooden door slowly opened with a creaking sound, and the moonlight poured like silver sand, covering the messy courtyard.
Wang Jianguo cautiously stretched out his hand and supported Yang Huaixi's hunched back. His palms touched the bony joints and the coarse cloth soaked with blood.
Every time he stood up, he was accompanied by an uncontrollable groan. The pain from broken ribs made veins pop up on his forehead, and cold sweat kept dripping down his gray temples.
Dou'er stood at the threshold, holding a sack full of pharmaceutical tools tightly in her hands, her nails digging deep into her palms.
The scene before him made his breath stop - Yang Huaixi's originally straight back was now bent like a taut bow, and his left eye was so swollen that he could hardly open it.
There was still dried blood at the corner of his mouth, and his right leg hit the ground heavily with every step he took.
The backbones that usually protected her from wind and rain now looked like old trees broken by a storm, swaying in the night wind.
"Brother, how are you? Can you still walk?"
Dou'er rushed forward, his voice trembling. He gently held Yang Huaixi's arm, fearing that if he used too much force, he would touch the wound on his body.
The boy's fingertips felt a cool touch, which was the cloth soaked with cold sweat, and Yang Huaixi's body was still trembling slightly despite his support.