He did not want to cause trouble to Ms. Fang, but the first section of the Shao Family must be the only people who would be willing to help them, under such circumstances.
Ms. Fang was a kind-hearted person and her family was capable enough to help them. The other families might offer vegetables, bowls of rice, but never money…
Hearing what he said, Ms. Fang was startled and loaned him 50 wen immediately.
Ding Erzhu thanked her with tears in his eyes and hired the doctor from the next village overnight.
Luckily, the boy was not seriously sick. He drank some medical herb soup and by lunchtime the following day, the body temperature dropped. Although it arose a little bit later, yet eventually, it dropped after one day.
The couple guarded the boy throughout the whole night and did not dare to move away. They felt as if the sky had fallen down.
Ms. Fang and Ms. Qiao visited them the first day, and came to see them again the next day. They had some food with them, including some vegetables and the rooster that Shao Xiaoqi had hunted.
Qiao Xuan even brought a big watermelon for the child to eat, but she told them not to feed the child too much at one go.
Ding Erzhu and Ms. Zhou felt really grateful. Ding Erzhu almost kneeled down to kowtow to Ms. Fang, who asked Ms. Zhou to help him up.
Ding Erzhu wiped his eyes and said, "Ms. Fang, you are such a great family. We will never be able to pay back for what you have done for us! Please, tell us whenever you need us to do anything! We are strong people and we will pay you back in our next life too!"
Ms. Fang sighed. "Just drop it. We are living in the same village. You two are diligent people and you will definitely have a good life!"
Ding Erzhu and Ms. Zhou nodded hesitantly, accepting Ms. Fang's good intention.
But they really could not imagine what on earth their future would be.
Would they get better? They just could not see any hope!
Ms. Fang and Qiao Xuan exchanged a look, as Ms. Fang coughed and said, "You can't go on . The boy is too small to leave you, and you have nothing here, and you won't make it through winter. I have an idea, would you like to listen?"
Ms. Fang's words hit Ding Erzhu and Ms. Zhou's hearts. That was exactly what they were worried about.
Hearing what Ms. Fang said, the couple looked suddenly motivated. Ms. Zhou said, "Ms. Fang, you are a nice person, please tell us what ideas you have. If you can help us, we will be really grateful!"
The couple looked at Ms. Fang expectantly.
Ms. Fang knew of Qiao Xuan's good fields at the Zhang Village, and it was Qiao Xuan's proposal in the beginning. So she thought about this and believed that it was a good idea.
She knew about this couple. They were both very honest and down-to-earth people.
Moreover, their child was so pitiful!
They could help Qiao Xuan to guard the fields, and could also live a better life themselves.
Ms. Fang told them about this, but asked them to keep the secret.
Qiao Xuan was the daughter of the County Magistrate. When Ding Erzhu and Ms. Zhou heard about the fields, they did not find it strange. They assumed that those fields were just the dowry.
They knew all about keeping the secret.
The Shao Family had their own problems. The second and the third section of the family were greedy for Qiao Xuan's properties, and hence, Qiao Xuan needed to keep it a secret.