Chapter 40: A Good Opportunity to Show Kindness

Though Shen Meng was frightened, she couldn’t show her fear. After all, she had little Lu Mingkai clinging to her, and if she ran off, he would be terrified.

“Don’t worry, Xiao Kai. There are no ghosts in this world. Let’s pretend we didn’t see anything and go home. We’re almost there.” She hugged Lu Mingkai close, suppressing her own fear, and hurried towards home.

Lu Mingkai, still young, pressed his face against his mother’s shoulder, fear making him close his eyes. Yet, he couldn’t help but peek at the source of the fear. Something moved there, and he tightened his grip around Shen Meng’s neck.

“Mama, that ghost moved! It really is a ghost! Waaah, Xiao Kai is scared!”

Shen Meng, already afraid, and now with Lu Mingkai’s cries, fear turned to anger and protectiveness. She gritted her teeth, turned, and walked towards the “ghost.” She wanted to see what creature dared to frighten her precious child.

Lu Mingkai, seeing his mother approach the “ghost,” felt a chill. He thought she was possessed. Mimicking what he’d seen an older woman do, he poked Shen Meng’s pressure point with his small hand.

？？？

Shen Meng: “Ouch! Xiao Kai, what are you doing? That hurt!”

“Mama, you’re possessed! This isn’t our way home. You’re lost! Xiao Kai saved you!”

Shen Meng: “. . .”

Thank you. Really!

Shen Meng winced in pain, surprised by the strength of her son’s hand.

As they approached, they found a man lying on the ground, occasionally stirring. Shen Meng leaned closer, trying to see who it was, when Lu Mingkai slipped from her grasp.

“Mama, it’s A’man.”

“A’man?” Shen Meng’s heart quickened. She recalled a passage from the novel where a sick man lay by the road, encountering a female protagonist who gave him some food. It seemed the character A’man was having a similar experience.

The man, A’man, seeing someone approaching, struggled to get up. It was a cool night, but he wasn’t shivering uncontrollably.

Shen Meng had an idea. A chance to help someone and perhaps prevent the hero from gaining a vital ally, making her feel delighted. She touched his forehead. It was very hot.

“You have a fever. Don’t worry, I’m not a bad person. I won’t hurt you. My husband is a soldier. I have some medicine here. Take it.”

Shen Meng pulled out some fever and pain relievers and slipped them into A’man’s mouth. Before he could react, she shoved them inside.

The bitter medicine spread across his tongue. A’man struggled to swallow, his face contorting like a wrinkled orange.

“Thank you. I’ll go now. I’ll go.”

This was a great opportunity to show kindness. How could Shen Meng just leave him? She helped him up. Lu Mingkai, seeing his mother helping A’man, wanted to help too, and reached for the empty basket on the ground.

“Hmm?” He tried several times, but couldn’t lift it. He was eager to see what was inside.

Shen Meng quickly took the basket, “Don’t try to lift that. There are things in there Mama put in, you can’t lift it.”

◈◈◈

She helped A’man up and took out a basket of wild vegetables wrapped in steamed buns. She bought this type of bun from a shop in the village before. Fresh, spring wild vegetables are expensive.

“Are you hungry? This is a wild vegetable bun from home. Take one.” Shen Meng offered A’man a warm bun.

A’man was sixteen years old. He had been in Lujia Village with his grandfather for six years, following the down-shifting policy.

Tonight, he was sick because his grandfather was ill. He had gone into the mountains to find wild game for his grandfather, but he hadn’t found anything. In the afternoon, he felt dizzy. He went to the river in the evening to try to catch a fish, but he couldn’t find anything either, and was sick. He felt he would rather be dead than live like this, a worthless dog.

He trembled, clutching the warm bun. He had seen this woman in the village before. She was the only military family member in the village, and often looked down on others. But, he hadn’t expected her kindness.

He hadn’t expected her compassion.

“Eat it. If you don’t take care of yourself, how will you take care of your grandfather? He’s old. If something happens to you, it would break his heart.”

Thinking of his grandfather, A’man felt his eyes well up. He ate the bun quickly. He was about to say something when she handed him a water bottle.

A’man: “. . .”

How did someone who went out in the evening have all this prepared. Food and water!

“Drink some water. Xiao Kai and I were looking for Daqing’s mother, and ran into you. There’s some more food in the basket. Take it to your grandfather. Nothing valuable.”

Lu Mingkai’s mouth hung open. He kept looking back and forth between his mother and A’man, and the basket. These things were beyond his understanding. And what about what his mother said about looking for Daqing’s mother, he thought. He just saw her earlier.

He tugged at his mother’s sleeve, trying to get a better look at the basket. This was different from what he’d seen before. He couldn’t figure it out. And what did his mother mean by “looking for Daqing’s mother?”

Lu Mingkai poked his pressure point again. Was he possessed?

“Oof!”

“What’s wrong, Mingkai? Don’t be stingy. Your brother A’man is hungry. We have more at home. I’ll get you some later. A’man, you should go home now. I’ll have Mingyang and the others visit you later. Take the basket. We’ll go home now.”

Before A’man could reply, Shen Meng scooped up Lu Mingkai and ran home.

A’man, still feverish, moved slowly. Under the dim moonlight, he lifted the cover of the basket. Besides the wild vegetable bun, he saw two cornmeal buns, with a meaty smell.

He quickly covered the basket and ran towards the cowshed, his pace quick as he didn’t want to be discovered. Even at night, there might be patrols. If caught, they wouldn’t just let him go.

Shen Meng rushed home, hearing Xie Jinghao’s sharp voice before she even reached the courtyard.

“Second Sister-in-law, get out of here before my sister gets home. Otherwise, you won’t get any good treatment.”

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