An aunt had suddenly popped out of nowhere? Although Fang Yi was full of questions about this, he did not immediately go to his father for an explanation, choosing instead to bury the matter quietly in his heart.
During the next two days of performances, Chen Geng did not let Fang Yi take the stage. True to his earlier promise, he performed himself. The audience's reaction was as enthusiastic as ever; while they certainly wanted to see Fang Yi's brilliant performance, they still worried that the child was too young and might get tired, preferring to let him rest.
During the three days in Zhangjiazhuang, whenever Uncle Fang left the stage, he would hover around Zhang Sheng, asking about conditions in Jiangnan from every possible angle. Zhang Sheng did his utmost, answering everything he knew, and promised that upon returning to Jiangnan, he would do his absolute best to track down Huizi's whereabouts and find her as long as she was still alive. Uncle Fang was endlessly grateful.
Zhang Sheng was not tall—a head shorter than Zhang Qiang—but he was fairer, plumper, and had a glowing, ruddy face. It was clear that his days in Jiangnan had not been too bad. He now worked in a tea factory there, had settled down and started a family, and his wife was a local. Together they had four children: three daughters and one son. His son was a year older than Fang Yi, turning sixteen this year.
Having spent three days together, Zhang Sheng grew increasingly fond of Fang Yi. He felt the boy was far better than his own "bookworm" son, Zhang Yao, and could not help showering Fang Yi with praise while feeling a mix of affection and exasperation toward Zhang Yao. "If my Zhang Yao could occasionally wield spears and sticks like you do instead of just studying, becoming well-versed in both scholarship and martial arts, that would be simply wonderful!"
The speaker meant nothing by it, but the listener took it to heart. Zhang Qiang laughed from the side and said, "Is that really what you think? Well, that's simple enough! Don't let Fang Yi go back; just make him your adoptive son. Take him right along with you when you return to Jiangnan, and he can keep Zhang Yao company over there. Master Fang has nine children anyway, so he won't miss having one less."
Upon hearing this, Sister-in-law Zhou hurried over to scold Zhang Qiang. "What kind of talk is that? How awful it would be if Fang Yi's mother heard you! Would she be willing to give such a good son to someone else?"
Zhang Qiang hurriedly put on an apologetic smile. "I was only joking. Why are you getting so worked up?"
The casual banter between the couple left both Zhang Sheng and Uncle Fang, sitting nearby, deep in thought. Zhang Sheng secretly resolved that no matter the cost, he would find Huizi upon returning to Jiangnan. Uncle Fang's mind was in utter chaos at that moment; perhaps even he no longer knew what he ought to be thinking...
The Fang Family Opera Troupe's three-day performances in Zhangjiazhuang were a resounding success. To show their gratitude, not only did the Zhang family give generous monetary rewards and other items, but the villagers also brought plenty of mountain produce, dried nuts, and the other goods.
The Fang Family Opera Troupe returned with a full load. When they came, Chen Geng was the only one carrying a shoulder pole, but on the way back, all five of them were carrying poles, burdened with an extra four loads of gifts. This delighted everyone immensely. Although their shoulders ached under the heavy loads for a walk of over thirty miles, they didn't feel tired at all, each secretly calculating how to distribute the items to their wives, children, and elderly relatives back home.
Uncle Fang's face finally cleared up, a hint of a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth, and he hummed and sang softly all the way back.
This being his first time away from home, Fang Yi had both broadened his horizons and harvested many gifts, leaving his heart warm. All the way back, he meticulously calculated how to divide the gifts among his eight younger siblings. Having not seen them for three days, he suddenly missed them terribly and wondered how they were getting along at home.
Misfortunes can happen overnight. Who would have expected that during the three days Uncle Fang and Fang Yi were away from home, trouble would strike? Fang Ju suddenly suffered such agonizing stomach cramps that she rolled all over the floor in torment. It scared Auntie Li so much that she spun around the house in a frenzy, completely losing her head and not knowing what to do.
Seeing his third daughter rolling on the bed in agony as if she were about to die, Uncle Fang's overflowing joy vanished in an instant, and his gloomy expression climbed back between his brows.
Fang Yi was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, repeatedly asking himself, "What should we do? What should we do?"
"On the morning after you left, she said her stomach felt uncomfortable," Auntie Li said through tears. "At first it was just a mild ache, but later it hurt worse and worse, and she was crawling all over the floor, crying and screaming..."
"What's all the fuss about? The child is probably just greedy, ate some random food, and upset her stomach. Let's see how things go and talk about it in a few days." With his ears ringing from his daughter's cries, Uncle Fang felt intensely irritated. He lit a cigarette, put his hands behind his back, and left the house.
Watching her husband's receding back, Auntie Li felt both heartbroken and resentful, lamenting her bitter fate. Every time the children fell ill, her husband acted this way—completely indifferent and uncaring. If she had known it would be like this, she never would have borne him so many children in the first place...
Fang Yi bit his lip and said, "Mom, we still need to figure something out. If this goes on..."
Before Fang Yi could finish speaking, Fang Mei ran out of the room and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Mom, Third Sister doesn't hurt anymore! She stopped crying!"
"What?" Auntie Li was so startled her legs wouldn't move; unable to tell whether this was good news or bad, her knees trembled uncontrollably until Fang Yi dragged her into the dark room.
"Third Sister's stomach doesn't hurt anymore. She's probably getting better," Fang Lan, who had been guarding the bedside the whole time, happily reported to Auntie Li.
"Mom..." Fang Ju lay on the bed, weak and limp. Sweat soaked her hair, several damp strands clinging to her forehead, and her pale lips had lost all trace of color. "I'm better!"
"Better? As long as she's better!" Wiping away her tears, Auntie Li told Fang Mei to wash the rice and make some congee. "Don't make it too thick, make it thin."
Fang Mei acknowledged the instruction and sprinted into the kitchen. Fang Lan followed to help.
By nightfall, the Fang household was quiet once more, free of heart-rending cries. Fang Ju drank two bowls of thin congee and fell peacefully asleep.
The next day, Fang Yi distributed all the gifts received from Zhangjiazhuang to his younger siblings. They were overjoyed, and after eating their fill, they even took some to share with their respective little playmates. Jiu'er was the easiest to please; a single piece of candy made her ecstatic, leaving her mouth and hands dirty and sticky.
Fang Yi, however, was in no mood to celebrate. He worried that Fang Ju's illness would flare up again. The sickness had come strangely and left just as strangely; when it hurt, it felt as though an iron awl was piercing her internal organs. What kind of illness was it, anyway, to be so fierce?
Overwhelmed with frustration, he sneaked into the woods again to practice his martial arts, beating and kicking a pine tree until its bark was stripped bare and wretched-looking. Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind, and he decided to make another trip to Zhangjiazhuang to find that Jiangnan man. Having seen much of the world in Jiangnan, perhaps he had a way to cure his third sister's illness.
Without telling anyone, Fang Yi walked like the wind, crossing mountains and ridges alone until he reached Zhangjiazhuang.
As ill luck would have it, Zhang Sheng had gone with Zhang Qiang to burn incense at the Dragon King Temple on the mountain peak and was not at home. Fang Yi could not wait, running all the way up to the summit to find Zhang Sheng in the temple hall, where he described Fang Ju's condition in detail.
Zhang Sheng lowered his head and pondered earnestly. Seeing this, Zhang Qiang pulled Fang Yi along to burn incense and pray to the Buddha. "Quickly beg the Bodhisattva to bless your sister so she gets better soon! The Bodhisattvas here are truly miraculous—your Uncle Zhang Sheng was found precisely because I burned incense and prayed to the Buddha every single day."
Fang Yi's mind was in total chaos at the moment; whatever Zhang Qiang pulled him to do, he did, and whatever he was told to say, he repeated, chanting under his breath while kowtowing like pounding garlic to the golden statues of various Bodhisattvas in the main hall.
"Uncle, have you thought of a way to save my sister?" Fang Yi asked, approaching Zhang Sheng after bowing to every single Bodhisattva in the temple.
"Child, don't be too anxious. Your sister probably has 'long-worm disease'."
"Long-worm disease?" Fang Yi asked with a blank expression. "What kind of disease is that?"
"It means long worms have grown inside her stomach. If the pain is that severe, there might even be a whole nest of them. As long as those worms are passed out, the illness will be cured," Zhang Sheng said, before frowning again. "There are medicines for treating this kind of illness in Jiangnan, but I don't have any on hand right now. However, I'll give you two things; take them back and try them—they might just have a very good effect."
Hearing this, Fang Yi dropped to his knees and hurriedly kowtowed to Zhang Sheng.