Well Water

Zhang Cai said, "Definitely not ginseng. I only saw that stuff once when I was young, at someone else's Medical Hall. Ever since I came to Guo Village, I've never had another chance to see it."

Everyone grew even more puzzled. What could it be? They all ate from the same pot every day, and all they ate was Agriculturalist food. There was nothing special about it.

No matter how they racked their brains, they could not figure it out.

Seeing that it was already late, and that Zhang Cai and Guo Sufi had been busy all day and were exhausted in both body and spirit, everyone finally dispersed.

Zhang Xiaohua crept back to his grandmother's little room. She was already sound asleep. Though she still coughed softly from time to time, she was exhausted after all and slept deeply, unaware of his entering. Zhang Xiaohua slipped into his own bedding and listened closely to his grandmother's suppressed coughs and uneven breathing. His heart ached. He could not help thinking of all the kindness she had shown him. Every little memory since he had first become aware of the world flashed through his mind. Usually, when nothing was wrong, he had never felt that his emotions for his grandmother ran particularly deep. Yet now, he realized that his mind was deeply etched with memories of her—so many of them, so detailed, not a single thread or fragment to be forgotten.

As he thought, Zhang Xiaohua began to cry. Tears ran down his face and fell onto his pillow. Gradually, he drifted asleep, and his flickering dream arrived as promised.

In the dream, Zhang Xiaohua seemed to live in a flickering world that breathed with a steady rhythm. His breathing, his body, everything about him flickered along with it unconsciously, gradually melding into that world as one.

The next morning, when the first ray of sunlight shone into his grandmother's little room, Zhang Xiaohua opened his eyes right on time. The flicker in his eyes flashed and vanished once more.

The first thing Zhang Xiaohua did upon waking was listen for his grandmother's voice. Yet there was no coughing, no breathing. He hurriedly sat up, only to find that she was not in the room. When he got up and went outside, he saw her sitting in a chair in the courtyard. The morning wind was still cold, lifting her white hair to dance in the sunlight. Zhang Xiaohua's eyes blurred again.

He quickly ran over and said, "Grandmother, hurry back inside. The morning wind is very cold. Your health is already poor, so don't come out in the mornings again."

His grandmother's hand searched until it found Zhang Xiaohua's head. She lovingly stroked it and said, "Xiaohua, Grandmother is old and doesn't need much sleep. I woke up long ago and couldn't fall asleep again, so I came out to get some air. I'll go back in now, all right?"

Zhang Xiaohua said nothing. He merely helped his grandmother back into the warm little room in silence.

After leaving the room, Zhang Xiaohua looked once more at the rising sun on the horizon. Suddenly recalling what had happened a few days ago, he made the same motion of biting the sun. Sure enough, he again felt a stream of heat enter his throat. Zhang Xiaohua froze. Could it really not have been an illusion? His eyes rolled around a few times. Could this be "Heavenly Dog Eats the Sun"? Had he become a heavenly dog? After pondering it for a while without reaching any conclusion, he shook his head and stopped dwelling on it. He only decided that he would take a bite like this every morning and see what happened in the end.

After finishing a simple breakfast, Zhang Xiaohua prepared as usual to carry spring water from the hillside.

Just as Zhang Xiaohua was about to leave, Liu Qian, who was clearing the dishes, called out, "I know what Grandmother has been eating."

Everyone was stunned. Zhang Cai asked in confusion, "What do you mean, what Grandmother has been eating?"

Liu Qian smiled. "Yesterday, didn't the doctor say Grandmother had eaten ginseng?"

Only then did Zhang Cai come to a sudden realization. Zhang Xiaolong said anxiously, "Hurry and tell us! What exactly has Grandmother been eating?" Zhang Xiaohua also stopped in his tracks.

Liu Qian said mysteriously, "More accurately, Grandmother has been drinking something."

"Drinking?" Upon hearing that word, Zhang Xiaolong looked at Zhang Xiaohua, seemingly understanding something.

Zhang Xiaohu had not finished his meal yet. He stared blankly at the thin porridge in his bowl and said in a daze, "This? It's ginseng? That can't be possible."

Seeing everyone's confusion, Liu Qian explained, "Think about it. Didn't we spend a long time thinking last night and still fail to come up with anything special? But the doctor said she had only started consuming it recently. In the past, we only drank a little of the well water from the hillside once in a while. Ever since I came here, we've started using that well water in large quantities. Especially Grandmother—she only recently began to enjoy tea steeped with well water. And we only recently began using well water for cooking too! Looking at the timing, only this well water fits the conditions."

Guo Sufi slapped her forehead and said, "That's right! Yesterday, we only thought about what she had eaten and never considered what she had drunk. Liu Qian is absolutely right."

But Zhang Cai said, "I can believe that ginseng can nourish Mother's body, but this water—no matter how good it is, it's still only water. Can it really be consumed as medicine?" He looked at Liu Qian doubtfully.

Liu Qian did not know how to answer either. "Uncle, I don't know about that. How about we fill a jug with water and take it to the Medical Hall in town for them to examine?"

Guo Sufi said, "All right. Have Xiaohu take a jug to town later and let the doctor have a look."

Zhang Xiaohu said excitedly, "All right. I'll finish eating and get ready right away. My injury is almost healed anyway, so making a trip won't be a problem."

Zhang Xiaohua said as well, "I'll go fetch the water right away. I want to go to town with Second Brother too."

With that, he prepared to run toward the hillside.

Just then, Zhang Cai spoke up. "No. You absolutely must not go!"

Everyone was stunned again. Guo Sufi said, "What do you mean, dear? Why won't you let Xiaohu and the others go?"

Seeing how confused everyone was, Zhang Cai gave a bitter smile. "Have you forgotten about Mr. Wu from the neighboring village?"

At once, Liu Qian and Zhang Xiaohua came to a sudden realization, while the others remained bewildered. Zhang Xiaohu asked curiously, "Father, of course we know about Mr. Wu. He dug up a treasure and was killed by bandits because of it."

Zhang Cai said, "Then is our well water a treasure?"

Zhang Xiaohu said, "We don't know, which is why we want the town doctor to take a look."

Zhang Cai immediately followed up, "What if it is?"

Zhang Xiaohu was struck speechless and did not know how to respond.

Seeing that everyone was still somewhat confused, Liu Qian explained, "This is what Uncle means. If the well water is a treasure and the town doctor finds out, that would be no small matter. A whole well full of ginseng—that would be far more precious than Mr. Wu's chest of jewels. If the bandits learned of it, wouldn't they come to kill people and seize the water? Besides, the well water isn't in our courtyard. It's far away on the hillside, and we can't simply claim it belongs to us. If people find out, they'll all come to draw water. Should we let them or not? If they draw it all dry, what will Grandmother drink? Worst of all would be if someone powerful seized it. Then no one would be able to draw any water."

Only then did everyone understand.

Zhang Xiaolong asked again, "But if we don't let the doctor examine it, then we won't know whether this well water is useful for Grandmother."

Liu Qian smiled. "For the moment, let's not even mention whether the Medical Hall would examine the water we brought them, or whether the doctor could tell anything from it. Even if the well water is useless, not knowing whether it helps Grandmother's health won't cost us anything. Won't we still drink this water and cook with it?"

Then Liu Qian said seriously, "But if this water is useful, then we may not be able to drink it in the future. Grandmother may not be able to drink it either. There might even be a disaster that costs us our lives."

Guo Sufi hurriedly said, "Liu Qian is right. We cannot go to town to find a doctor. And everyone must keep the matter of the well water secret. Under no circumstances must it be spoken of outside."

Everyone nodded together.

As Zhang Xiaohua went to fetch water, he shook his head again and again, muttering to himself, People's hearts are no longer what they used to be in this world. Whatever you do, you have to protect yourself first. Being a person is truly hard.

From that day onward, Zhang Xiaohua made an extra trip to fetch water from the hillside every day. All the household water—for eating, drinking, washing, and everything else—was replaced with well water. They no longer used river water from the edge of the village.

It seemed everyone hoped that a miracle would happen to Grandmother.

Grandmother's body remained weak, and her coughing did not seem to lessen.

But the injuries of Zhang Cai, Zhang Xiaolong, and Zhang Xiaohu improved rapidly day by day. Zhang Xiaolong in particular astonished Old Chen the veterinarian the first time he went to have his medicine changed. Old Chen could scarcely believe his eyes. He looked again and again, felt the injury again and again, and finally, faced with the facts, had no choice but to believe that Zhang Xiaolong was truly more than half healed. The broken bones were about to mend completely. Ignoring Guo Sufi's repeated, joyful thanks, he hastily sent them away, then rushed into his medicine room and carefully preserved the healing medicine he had prepared, which had only been used on Zhang Xiaolong once. Secretly, he felt rather pleased with himself. Who says I can only be a veterinarian? My first time preparing healing medicine and it already has this effect. Could it be that I have the makings of a divine physician? It looks like I should change professions someday and open a divine physician's Medical Hall in a bustling part of Lu Town. With this miraculous healing medicine, wouldn't I make a fortune?

Leaving aside Old Chen the veterinarian's wild thoughts, the entire Zhang family was delighted to see Zhang Xiaolong's injuries heal so quickly. They became even more certain that the well water deserved the credit. When Grandmother learned that her grandson's arm had recovered, she was in especially high spirits. Her face bloomed like a chrysanthemum, and even her coughing grew lighter. The household was filled with laughter and celebration.

As for Liu Qian, even she did not know exactly how she felt. When she first saw Zhang Xiaolong return without his splint, she was naturally overjoyed and rejoiced with everyone else. Yet before long, a wave of loss swept over her. She tried desperately to avoid that feeling and refused to acknowledge such thoughts, but she knew that she truly liked this family, and liked Zhang Xiaolong himself. She did not want to leave this place and return home. Was her own home bad? She asked herself, and the answer was no. She liked her own home too, but the feeling of home there seemed different from the feeling here. Exactly how was it different?

Perhaps it was because of Zhang Xiaolong.

But Zhang Xiaolong's injuries had healed. What reason did she have left to stay here?