Chapter 29 - 29 0029 Offering a Helping Hand 1_1

Chapter 29: Chapter 0029: Offering a Helping Hand 1_1 Chapter 29: Chapter 0029: Offering a Helping Hand 1_1 “Good boy, don’t cry. All you can do now is wait.” Feng Qingxue tenderly touched his head regardless of the dirt, “Your grandmother is sick? Could you take me to see her?” Upon hearing this, Zhao Tianqi happily nodded. The child was hovering around the entrance of a waste recycling station, so his house was certainly nearby. It didn’t take long to walk there. The living conditions of his family were a lot better than those of Uncle Xu and Auntie Xu. Their low stone wall enclosed a small courtyard, with three brick-tile houses standing firm inside it. There was a kitchen and a toilet set up on the side, and a well, too. “Grandma! Grandma! I brought a sister to see you!” As Zhao Tianqi shouted, he pushed the door open and ran into the house. Feng Qingxue parked the flatbed tricycle in the courtyard and followed him inside, only to find that the interior was just as empty. An emaciated old woman was lying on an old, wide wooden bed with pedal-like legs, covered by an old blue and white patched quilt. Her white hair spread out across the pillow, her cheeks flushed and eyes tightly closed. She was gasping for breath. The vastness of the bed made the frail and petite person on it look even more pitiful – it was a truly bleak sight. Seeing this, Feng Qingxue sighed softly. She moved closer, gently touched the old woman’s forehead and felt its burning heat. She then bent down to look at the phlegm on the ground, “It’s a fever caused by a cold.” “Sister, will Grandma get better?” In Zhao Tianqi’s eyes, tears glistened as he held onto two-thirds of his bread roll. The boy looked even more pitiful now. “Don’t worry, she will get better.” Feng Qingxue comforted him. She noticed there was a kettle and an enamel jar nearby, so she poured half a jar of water. Although it wasn’t very hot, it still had a bit of warmth. Then, Feng Qingxue took out cold and fever medicine from her bag behind Zhao Tianqi’s back. Having carefully examined the phlegm and tongue coating of the old lady, she concluded it was a wind-heat cold. Therefore, the medicine she took out was effective. The medication she took out was in capsules. Since capsules can’t be revealed, she emptied the powder from the capsules into the enamel jar and shook it, allowing it to melt. Then she threw the capsule shells back into her bag. She held the potion, sat on the edge of the bed, and while half helping Zhao Tianqi’s grandmother, she fed her the potion. The old woman seemed to have regained some consciousness, and she slowly swallowed it down. Feng Qingxue, who had taken care of her grandparents before, gently patted the old lady’s back until she completely swallowed the potion before she let her lie down again. Those with a cold and a fever should eat light meals. Feng Qingxue told Zhao Tianqi to finish eating the bun and then went to look inside the kitchen. There was a clay cooking range in the kitchen and a coal stove next to it. There was a pile of honeycomb coal and firewood, but the fire in the stove had long been out. The water in the bucket had almost run out. The pots, pans, spoons, and bowls were all there, as was the salt, but they were out of oil. Feng Qingxue pretended to take a small bag of yellowish rice and a small bag of flour mixed with cornmeal out of her basket. After thinking for a bit, she also pulled out three cooked salted duck eggs. Seeing this, Zhao Tianqi came running with admiration in his eyes, “Sister, is your basket a treasure box?” “My basket isn’t a treasure box, but I myself am a treasure box.” Feng Qingxue answered with a smile, walking to the well to draw a bucket of water. She cleaned all the pots, pans, spoons and other kitchenware, along with the cutting board and kitchen knife. “Sister, what are you doing?” Zhao Tianqi asked. “I’m making something for your grandmother to eat.” Feng Qingxue rinsed the rice, put it in a pot, and lit the fire. Her movements were brisk and efficient. Smelling the fragrance of the plain porridge and watching Feng Qingxue stoke the fire, Zhao Tianqi’s mouth started watering. “Sister, it smells so good!” Feng Qingxue served him a bowl of porridge with a salted duck egg, and then carried a bowl of porridge into the room. The old lady was now awake. Sitting on the bed, she had tears in her eyes. She weakly muttered, “Thank you, my girl. Thank you, I can feel it.”