With that remark, a great stir arose from the crowd.
"Eating... eating dead people's flesh?"
"My heavens."
"We... we won't eat it."
"We've also helped the Qian family. Today, it was us who helped Hui'er with the plowing, but this illness shouldn't be mixed up with our help."
Ah Jiu recognized the speaker at a glance.
"Uncle, this is the money from selling your jade pendant. Please keep it safe." Ah Jiu stepped forward and stuffed the money pouch from her embrace into his hand.
"I only kept the money for six catties of wheat seeds."
After speaking, Ah Jiu turned back, disregarding his shock, and quietly comforted Hui'er, "Actually, older sister has done her best. If there's still no improvement tomorrow, perhaps..."
Ah Jiu dared not look at those tear-swollen eyes as she continued, lowering her gaze, "She might have to be taken to the Zhuangzi."
"Then Hui'er will have no mother. Ah, sob sob sob..." Hui'er threw herself into Ah Jiu's embrace, sobbing uncontrollably.
Ah Jiu's heart ached, and tears filled her eyes.
Just then, the system's voice sounded: "Ding dong, merit points increased by twenty, your merit points score is fifty."
Ah Jiu's heart leaped upon hearing this. It worked?
"Hui'er..." A faint call came from behind.
Ah Jiu immediately looked up. Hui'er's mother, like a skeleton, stood shakily within the doorway, her hands gripping the doorframe.
It really worked?
"My heavens..."
Several villagers who didn't understand what was happening stumbled backward in fear.
"Mother... Mother." Hui'er was stunned for a moment before turning to hug her mother tightly, crying even harder. "Mother, they were so mean, wanting to drag you away. Mother, I know you wouldn't bear to leave Hui'er alone."
Ah Jiu stood up, her shock slowly turning into joy. Was she dreaming? She had actually cured an incurable disease.
"Sister Jiu'er, you... you healed her." Tuoba Yan saw her dazed expression and quickly reminded her.
"Ah, yes, she's really cured?" Ah Jiu murmured. She pinched herself hard.
This made Tuoba Yan's eyes widen. "Sister Ah Jiu, you can pinch me. Why are you pinching yourself?"
"If I pinched you, I wouldn't know the pain," Ah Jiu rolled her eyes at Tuoba Yan, but a smile had already spread across her lips.
It hurt.
"She's really better?" Several patrol soldiers' mouths gaped open. After a long pause, they exchanged glances and reacted.
Then, all the common people let out a sigh of relief.
"Madam Qian is out of bed!"
"Yes, it's truly a miracle."
"If she can get out of bed, does that mean she's cured? Will it still be contagious?"
"Are you an idiot? Young lady Jiu'er already said that it's not contagious unless one eats that kind of dead flesh."
"Auntie, you should go back and rest." Ah Jiu saw that Hui'er's mother, having just recovered from a serious illness, had bones as thin as sticks and couldn't stand for long.
She stepped forward and, along with Hui'er, helped her inside.
"Look, Jiu'er dares to touch her. It seems what she said is true, it's not contagious."
With this discussion, the outside was like a town hall meeting, with all sorts of opinions. Some said Madam Qian was lucky to be alive.
Some also mentioned the deaths of Madam Qian's husband and father-in-law, saying that the mother and daughter had indeed had a difficult time.
The village elder also understood. "Why wouldn't Miss Jiu'er's words be true? If touching it were truly contagious, wouldn't Hui'er, who serves her mother all day, have fallen ill long ago?"
"That makes sense. Elder, you are right."
Inside the room.
As Ah Jiu had just settled the person into bed, Hui'er's mother grabbed Ah Jiu's hand and refused to let go.
"I... I thank you." She wanted to say more, but her upper body couldn't support her, and she lay down.
Her hands were like withered claws, pinching her painfully. However, judging by the strength, Ah Jiu knew she was recovering well.
"Sister Jiu, my mother wants to thank you for saving her," Hui'er added, carefully pulling over a patched-up bedsheet to cover her.
"Mm." Ah Jiu still felt a little uneasy. She took out her water skin. "Get your container for water. You need to drink some of this water every day."
"Yes, Sister Jiu." Hui'er wiped the tears from her eyes and quickly retrieved a ceramic pot from under the thatched shed.
Ah Jiu filled it to the brim and stood up to leave. "No one can take your mother away from you now. Take good care of her, and I'll visit her again when I have time."