C6 The Words Were so Beautiful

The next day, Miao Xiu almost thought her daughter had slept through the day again. The sun was already high in the sky, yet she hadn’t moved an inch. Miao Xiu called out for a long time before Sheng Nanzhen finally managed to open her heavy eyelids.

"Zhen, what's wrong?" Miao Xiu was genuinely terrified because her daughter had once been at death's door.

Nanzhen shook her head. "Just a bit."

She had trouble sleeping at night due to the humidity, and once she fell asleep, she couldn't wake up easily. Today, she needed to find a way to get some medicine.

"Mom, can you bring me a pen and paper? I need Dad to help me get some medicine."

"Zhen, you can't just take any medicine."

"How are my brothers doing?"

"Your oldest brother's fever broke this morning, and your fourth and fifth brothers aren't having stomach issues anymore."

"Mom, that means the remedy that old gentleman suggested is working. Please have Dad get the medicine for me, and I'll get better too."

Miao Xiu found this reasonable. "Alright, I'll get it for you."

Given the convincing improvement in her brothers' conditions, Sheng Zhenbei had no choice but to listen to his daughter. Sheng Nanzhen prescribed herself a mix of herbs: fresh yam, fresh rehmannia, fresh white peony root, figwort root, large goji berries, and a bit of talc, enough for four days.

The names seemed like common herbs, and although Sheng Zhenbei was familiar with them and knew they could be bought, he hesitated when he saw his daughter's handwriting.

"Zhen, since when did your handwriting become so beautiful?"

"...Dad, the important thing right now is the life-saving medicine. Why are you worried about my handwriting?"

Hearing this, Miao Xiu agreed, "Hurry up and get the medicine. We can look into this later."

Sheng Tianjiao stood at Sheng Zhenbei's doorstep. She hadn't heard anything about Sheng Nanzhen being buried yesterday, yet this morning, the white mourning cloth had been taken down!

Just then, Sheng Zhenbei hurriedly walked out.

Tianjiao asked, "Uncle Bei, why are you in such a rush? Where are you going?"

"Jiao, I'm off to get some medicine. If you're looking for Zhen, just head inside."

The journey was long, and he didn't stop, leaving only those words as he quickly walked away.

Tianjiao thought, "...Am I supposed to find a dead person? Ugh!"

She changed direction and headed straight toward Yang Village.

After taking the medicine, the fever had gone down, and the eldest and second child were able to get out of bed. However, Sheng Nanzhen now lay motionless.

When Sheng Zhenbei returned from town and brewed her some medicine, he called for her to get up. Sheng Nanzhen was still half-asleep, dreaming of a stone emitting light in seven colors: purple, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red, suddenly surrounding her...

"Zhen, Zhen..."

Sheng Nanzhen was being woken up.

It wasn't until Sheng Zhenbei's face appeared in front of her that she paused for half a second before asking, "Dad, is the medicine ready?"

"Yes, it's ready. Get up and drink it."

"Okay."

Just as she sat up, Miao Xiu came in from outside. "Have some porridge before the medicine."

"Mom, the timing doesn't matter for this medicine. I'll just take it. I want to get better quickly."

Her whole body was swollen, not her stomach.

"Then eat later. I'll keep it warm for you."

"Alright." Sheng Nanzhen drank the medicine and said, "I'll sleep a bit more."

She was surprised by the dream she just had; it was so vivid. The lights felt like they were right beside her.

The room gradually quieted down, and though Sheng Nanzhen closed her eyes, she couldn't slip back into the dream.

After tossing and turning for a couple of hours, she finally got up.