What else did they hear now?
"Is this Captain Han's wife?"
As the crowd stepped back, countless sharp, searching eyes fell upon Lin Ruo.
"Is this really Captain Han's wife?"
"She doesn't look that great. She looks like a malnourished black monkey."
Many people disliked Lin Ruo, thinking she wasn't worthy of Han Yao, and silently mocked him for his poor taste.
"I thought Captain Han, who was always so picky, would marry a woman as beautiful as a fairy. But this is it?"
"What? She doesn't even look as good as those older women who've already had several children."
"Ouch! What a pity—a beautiful flower stuck in cow dung."
After a moment, Lin Ruo withdrew her hand and said calmly,
"Han Yao, give me the package."
Then she turned to Xu Xiuqing.
"Has this child often cried and vomited? His face flushed red, he looked dazed, and ignored people calling him. When he sits, does he keep his legs together and hold his hands between them?"
Xu Xiuqing nodded blankly. Her son had all of those symptoms.
Since birth, he had been hard to care for—crying endlessly, eating little, and vomiting soon after every meal.
The vomiting was especially severe whenever he cried. At first, she thought it was just a minor issue, something he would grow out of.
The barefoot doctor in the village had always said it was "gas and stomach pain," claiming the boy's spleen and stomach were weak. She gave him countless spleen and stomach tonics, but they didn't help.
From birth, he had been fussy and exhausting to care for. Xu Xiuqing gritted her teeth and raised him for four years despite all this.
Who would have thought that today, while playing outside, he would suddenly start convulsing?
It was the first time she had seen him like this, and Xu Xiuqing was terrified. This was the son she had nearly died giving birth to.
The onlookers were stunned when Lin Ruo diagnosed Chen Xiaoliang's condition simply by checking his pulse.
They hadn't expected Captain Han's thin, dark-skinned wife to be so capable.
The sister-in-law living next door to Xu Xiuqing was especially impressed. She had often heard the child crying almost every day since moving into the family compound.
Especially at night—sometimes crying all through the night, keeping everyone awake.
It was a difficult situation to explain. After all, everyone had children, and children cry.
"You're right. We live in the same compound, and we've seen this child cry very often. Every time he cries, he vomits."
"I also noticed he looks dazed sometimes, not responding when you call him. I used to think he was just shy and timid, but it turns out he's actually sick."
Xu Xiuqing looked at Lin Ruo as if grasping at her last hope. She cried out,
"Captain Han's wife, what's wrong with my son?"
The others were curious too. Although they still held suspicions about Lin Ruo, their doubts had weakened. All eyes were fixed on her next move.
After taking the package, Lin Ruo pulled out a silver needle pouch.
"His condition is most likely epilepsy, often caused by complications during pregnancy or a difficult birth.
I'll administer a few injections to control the seizures. Afterwards, you must take him to the hospital for a full examination."
(Note: The medical details are simplified for story development.)
Lin Ruo was new to the family compound, and naturally no one completely trusted her. Her intervention now was only to help the child escape immediate danger and prevent further harm before he could be taken to the hospital.
When she opened the pouch, a row of silver needles of different lengths gleamed brightly under the sunlight.
It had been years since she last used them.
Someone in the crowd exclaimed,
"So many needles! Aren't those too long?"
Others gestured with their hands, whispering as they measured the frightening lengths.
Here's the refined version of these pages:
Han Yao glanced over, and the surroundings suddenly fell silent.
The silver needles Lin Ruo took out from her space didn't need to be disinfected or warmed. With steady, practiced hands, she quickly inserted them into the child's acupuncture points.
With each needle, Chen Xiaoliang's condition improved slightly. His violent convulsions gradually weakened as the needles were placed one by one.
By the time the last needle was inserted, Chen Xiaoliang's flushed face slowly returned to normal, and his stiff limbs relaxed.
"He's not convulsing anymore! Look—Xiaoliang has stopped shaking!"
"Oh my god, he's okay now. That's such a relief. I was terrified just now!"
Seeing the boy stabilize, everyone breathed easier. Whispers broke out as people dared to speak again.
No mother could bear to see her child sick. Though his constant crying had been a burden to many, no one truly wished harm upon him.
At that moment, all eyes shifted toward Lin Ruo. Who wouldn't feel a glimmer of hope seeing her calm and capable?
Xu Xiuqing watched her son, finally reassured he hadn't bitten his tongue. Only then did she remove her hand from his mouth.
A bloody tooth mark marred her palm, blood dripping down her arm—a testament to how hard he had bitten.
To protect her son's tongue, Xu Xiuqing endured the pain in silence.
Ignoring her injury, she repeatedly thanked Lin Ruo, her voice trembling:
"Captain Han's wife—thank you, thank you! Without you, I don't know what I would have done."
Lin Ruo shook her head softly.
"You're welcome. Any doctor in this situation wouldn't just stand by. He's stable for now. Once I finish the injections, take him to the hospital for a full checkup."
Xu Xiuqing nodded tearfully, pulling a handkerchief from her pocket to wipe the blood from her son's mouth.
"Mom…" Chen Xiaoliang groaned weakly.
Seeing her son awaken, Xu Xiuqing's tears streamed freely. Stroking his face, she choked out,
"Xiaoliang, don't be afraid. Mom's here. How do you feel? Are you uncomfortable anywhere?"
"Mom, why are you crying? What happened to me?"
Chen Xiaoliang looked around in confusion, realizing he was lying on the ground. His mother knelt beside him, red-eyed and sobbing. He vaguely remembered playing with the other children when his limbs suddenly gave out and he collapsed. After that, nothing.
He instinctively wanted to reach out and hug his mother, but Lin Ruo gently stopped him.
"Little one, you still have needles in you. Don't move yet—wait until I take them out."
"Be good, listen to this auntie. I'll make you something delicious later," Xu Xiuqing soothed quickly, holding him down for fear he might stir.
Overwhelmed, she choked on her sobs, unable to stop her tears despite not wanting to cry in front of her children.
Seeing his mother cry again, Xiaoliang obediently lay still.
A few minutes later, Lin Ruo carefully withdrew the needles.
Xu Xiuqing immediately pulled her son into her arms. Overcome with gratitude, she tried to kneel before Lin Ruo, but Lin Ruo quickly pulled her back.
"Big sister, you can't do that. Take care of your child first."
"This is your child's first seizure—we can't delay treatment any longer. Without proper care, the episodes will become more frequent, seriously affecting his future."
Someone in the crowd added, "I've seen this illness before. In our hometown, there was a boy with epilepsy. He had over ten seizures a day and eventually lost his mind. His family locked him up in chains, but he escaped, injured someone, and later ran into the mountains where he fell and died."
Xu Xiuqing's face paled with fear.
"Xiuqing, take Xiaoliang to the hospital for a full checkup," Lin Ruo said firmly.
Xu Xiuqing's voice trembled as she called to her daughter, "Go to the army camp and fetch your father. Tell him to come home at once."
With that, she carried her son back inside to clean him up.
With the crisis resolved, Han Yao finally escorted Lin Ruo back to his own courtya