Chapter 98: Escape

Back at the Qingjie Hall, the women were all watching from the doorway. They dispersed only when they saw them return. Only the child’s mother rushed forward, snatched the child back into her arms, and burst into tears.

Liu San said, “Don’t cry! The child is fine for now; there’s still hope!” He then instructed them to take the child into a room, clean his body, and apply a cold compress with a damp cloth.

“Hold his hands so he doesn’t scratch himself and break the blisters, which could lead to infection,” Liu San said, then turned to Mao Xiuyu. “Do you have paper and a brush here?”

“Yes, yes.”

“Bring them!”

Mao Xiuyu quickly brought paper and a brush. Liu San washed his hands and wrote out a prescription with a flourish. He prescribed Lingzhu San, a formula for treating viral infections in children such as tonsillitis, measles, chickenpox, and mumps. The main ingredients were antelope horn, pearl, and amber. The original formula also contained cinnabar, which in traditional Chinese medicine was used to calm the nerves, but cinnabar can cause mercury poisoning, so Liu San omitted it when writing the prescription.

“Send someone back to the city to get the medicine, the sooner the better,” Liu San instructed the guard squad leader.

“I’ll go,” a quick-witted retained yamen runner immediately stepped forward. “I’m familiar with the city. This master might not know where the pharmacies are.”

“Good, you go. Get the medicine from a large pharmacy,” Liu San said. “Pay the full price. Don’t cause any trouble!”

“Yes, yes, this humble one wouldn’t dare.” The yamen runner took the prescription and money and left. Liu San then asked if there was any strong liquor in the Puji Hall. Mao Xiuyu found a bottle of “Guoshi Wushuang” (Peerless Scholar) among the things left behind by Master Dong and quickly brought it over.

“Use a clean cloth dipped in the liquor to wipe the child’s palms and soles—don’t wipe his body! Understand? Change the compress as soon as it gets warm.” Liu San let out a breath and said, “Don’t worry! He doesn’t have smallpox! It’s just chickenpox. He’ll be fine once the fever breaks.”

“Yes, yes, thank you for your grace, Master.” The woman was sobbing and kowtowed three times to Liu San on the ground. Seeing the crying child on the bed, Liu San thought of his own son, and his heart ached, almost bringing tears to his eyes.

“Master, the congee is here.”

Fifth Sister-in-law Sun brought a small earthenware pot of steaming hot congee. Liu San looked at it. The rice was white enough, and the consistency was just right. He took a bowl and carefully ladled out the rice water. He then took a piece of candy from his pocket, peeled off the paper, broke off a small piece, and put it in the rice water. He stirred with a spoon until it dissolved, then brought it up and slowly blew on it to cool it down before feeding it to the child spoonful by spoonful. The child was hungry and thirsty and drank half a bowl in one go. Liu San stopped feeding him.

“Feed him again in a little while,” he instructed. “He’s very hungry now, so he can’t eat as much as he wants, or he’ll overeat.” He then picked up the child, held him upright against his shoulder, and gently patted his back until he burped, then laid him down and gently patted him to sleep.

Everyone present was moved. This Australian chief, for a sick child who was no relation to him, had personally gone into the infant tower filled with bones, brought him back without fear of infection, diagnosed him, got him medicine, and personally fed him rice water—even a real father might not have done so much! Mao Xiuyu couldn’t help but kneel and say, “Master, you are truly a Bodhisattva sent down to save us from suffering!”

His kneeling was all it took. The women watching inside and outside the house all knelt. Suddenly, someone started to cry, and then, like a flash flood, one after another, the “chaste women” began to wail. Their cries were mournful and sharp, filled with the bitterness and sorrow of the world.

Liu San stood in the room, listening to the wails, and tears couldn’t help but fall from his eyes. How small is the power of an individual, and how great is the suffering of the world. He himself, and the Senate, were but a small boat in this age of suffering. How many people could they save?

The detective squad’s yamen runner was quick. He brought back the medicine in just over an hour. Liu San looked at the label; it was from Chen Liji—he trusted the goods from this shop. Antelope horn, pearl, and amber were all precious medicinal materials, and unscrupulous shops were likely to adulterate them. Moreover, the medicine had to be ground very finely, which only a reputable old shop could do. He dissolved the powder in the rice water and fed it to the child, then explained the method of administration and the key points of care to the child’s mother one by one.

Liu San then looked around the Qingjie Courtyard and saw that the living conditions were extremely harsh, and there were many other children. The sick child was not the only one. He felt that at the very least, the supply standards should be raised. He asked about the Puji Hall’s food and money situation. Mao Xiuyu no longer tried to hide anything and said that there were still over ten shi of grain, but no money at all—Master Dong had taken it all when he fled.

“But there’s still cloth in the warehouse,” Mao Xiuyu said. “According to the rules, government-produced cloth is distributed once every three years. This batch has just arrived, and Dong hadn’t had time to sell it yet.”

“Take me to see it,” Liu San thought. Cloth was also good. It could be sold for money, or at the very least, used to make clothes for the poor.

Mao Xiuyu led him to the back hall of the manager’s office and residence. He unlocked the door and pushed it open. A musty smell hit them. The floor of the hall was covered in rat droppings. A few granaries were placed against the wall. Liu San looked at them: they were all filled with old rice that had been stored for years and crumbled at a touch. On the other side, however, a thousand bolts of cloth were neatly stacked on straw mats.

“A total of 2,165 bolts, not one less.”

Liu San looked at them. They were all indigo-dyed cotton cloth. This kind of cloth was not expensive on the market and wouldn’t sell for much. He couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. He asked, “Didn’t you say that by custom, only thirty percent of the funds arrive? How come this was delivered in full?”

“Who could use so much cloth, especially coarse cloth?” Mao Xiuyu said. “They were waiting for Master Dong and Master Gao to sell the cloth before dividing the profits.”

Liu San nodded. He instructed his men to seal the cloth first. Although the grain was old, it was still edible. For now, the supply would continue as usual.

“For all the women in the Qingjie Courtyard who have children, their monthly rice supply will be increased by three sheng.”

“Yes,” Mao Xiuyu agreed, but he seemed hesitant. Liu San asked, “What’s the matter? Is there a problem?”

“I can’t make the decision on matters concerning the Qingjie Hall. Even Master Dong couldn’t fully decide.”

Mao Xiuyu said that this Fifth Sister-in-law Sun was recommended by a powerful figure in the city and had been in control of the Qingjie Courtyard for many years. Although it was within Huanghua Temple, the Puji Hall had no control over it other than supplying rice every month. Even Master Dong and Master Gao were not clear about the detailed situation inside.

“…The Qingjie Courtyard doesn’t rely entirely on the hall’s money and rice to survive. I heard that they mainly rely on the charity of the ladies from the wealthy households in the city who donate money, rice, and cloth.”

So that’s how it is! Liu San thought. If that were the case, the material conditions of the Qingjie Courtyard should be much better than they were now. But from what he had just seen, it was just barely getting by. And Fifth Sister-in-law Sun had also said that the chaste women wove cloth and silk from morning till night, which meant they were also working to support themselves. It seemed there were also significant problems here.

“I have my own plans,” Liu San thought for a moment, then took a piece of white paper from the table and wrote with a brush: “Hereby appoint Mao Xiuyu as the Assistant Director of the Puji Hall Relief Station of the Guangzhou Special Municipality’s Ministry of Public Welfare and Labor.” He then took out his personal seal from his waist and stamped it.

He blew on the ink to dry it. “I am now appointing you as the temporary manager here. If you do well, you will be made permanent in half a year.”

Mao Xiuyu took the piece of white paper, his hands trembling. He had worked here for over twenty years, always just a laborer, living on a meager salary and the leftovers of the masters. Now, the Australians had come and immediately given him an official position!

Although this position was insignificant and not yet permanent, it was still an “official” position. In the Puji Hall, everyone would have to call him “Master.”

“This humble one will definitely do his utmost to serve…” Mao Xiuyu said excitedly. “It’s just the grain…”

Liu San knew what he meant. Although the people who were taking money for nothing had all fled, there were still a few hundred poor people to support, and a dozen or so shi of grain wouldn’t last long.

“I will find a way to deal with the grain issue. For now, just do as I say. Keep an eye on the cloth and don’t use it casually. In a few days, we will send someone to handle the handover with you,” Liu San instructed. “As for the original workers, arrange for them to continue their duties and guard the gates here. We will send people to handle the other matters.”

He had originally wanted to ask Mao Xiuyu to clean up the environment here, but on second thought, he was just a laborer. How much authority could he have? The financial system was not yet perfect, the cadres were not in place, and it was uncertain whether the relief station would even remain here. It was better to maintain the status quo for now.

After dealing with all the matters, the sun was already setting in the west. The guard squad leader urged them to leave—the detective squad’s yamen runners said that the security in this area was extremely poor, with bandits everywhere, and that they should return to the city quickly. Liu San didn’t dare to be careless and ordered an immediate return to the city.

The group left Huanghua Temple. Liu San was carried in a sedan chair, and they hurried back to the city. The area was full of abandoned tombs, which already made it feel desolate and terrifying. Now, with the sun setting, the old trees, crows, and desolate tombs made it even more eerie and frightening. The sedan chair bearers couldn’t help but quicken their pace.

They hadn’t gone far when a figure suddenly jumped out from the pile of abandoned tombs by the roadside, blocking the way. The wind blew, and her long hair flew up, revealing a pale face. She shouted in a hoarse and shrill voice:

“Master, help!”

The leading detective squad yamen runner let out a strange cry and almost collapsed to the ground. The sedan chair bearers were so startled they almost dropped the sedan chair. The accompanying guards immediately raised their rifles and surrounded the figure.

Liu San was also startled. At that moment, the squad leader ran over and reported that it was a woman who wanted to see “Chief Medical Officer Liu.”

Liu San was puzzled. He didn’t know anyone here. How could someone know he was “Chief Medical Officer Liu”?

“Let her come over.”

The guards brought the person over. It was a young girl with disheveled hair full of grass. She was wearing a simple indigo-blue dress—this attire was very familiar. Wasn’t this what the chaste women in the Qingjie Courtyard wore?

Could she have escaped from the Qingjie Courtyard? Liu San was puzzled and asked, “What is your name, and why do you want to see me?”

The young girl knelt and kowtowed. “This servant is He Xiaoyue. I beg the Master to save me!”