Chapter 19: The First Call of Nian Nian

"Nian Nian, it's really Nian Nian… old woman, I must be dreaming…"

The old lady's withered face quivered with excitement, and she shakily reached out to touch her granddaughter, wanting to know if this was truly real.

She hurriedly grasped her hand, those aged, scar‑filled and wrinkled hands.

Yet they felt incredibly warm.

The grandmother who, when she was a child, would hold her hand and guide her through the babbling stage.

The grandmother who would hold her and lovingly give her favorite pastries.

The grandmother who, after she got into trouble and ran away to evade her father's discipline, would unflinchingly pull her behind to protect her.

Scenes from her past life, like a fleeting tour, kept flashing through her mind.

She held her grandmother's hand, pressed her face against it, and said, "Grandmother, it's Nian Nian, Nian Nian has returned."

"Nian Nian, Grandmother's Nian Nian… wonderful, truly Nian Nian…"

"Mother, we are here, we are all here."

Shen Juancheng looked at his mother, who had grown much more gaunt, and his eyes involuntarily reddened.

"Mother, I have been unfilial, causing you worry."

"Mother, the daughter‑in‑law is unfilial."

Shen Qingci and Shen Yuhuan also knelt down.

Seeing that the Eldest's family were all still alive, the old lady nodded repeatedly with excitement. She struggled to sit up, and Shen Qingquan and Shen father hurriedly helped her to rise.

"Good, everyone is still alive, that's enough. Eldest, Eldest's daughter‑in‑law, you have suffered."

The two had tears in their eyes, repeatedly shaking their heads.

"Qingci, Yuhuan, come, let Grandmother see."

The two stepped forward and knelt; she looked at the two children, stroked their faces, "Good, it's fine, it's fine… cough cough!"

She suddenly coughed violently, and Shen Qingquan and the others were startled, "Grandmother, please don't get excited, first…"

Then she turned back to look at Master Huang's grandson, "Please, both of you, look after my Grandmother."

The two naturally would not refuse; Huang Lao stepped forward, took the old lady's pulse, and in an instant examined her injuries.

"How is she?"

"The old lady's forehead was heavily struck, bleeding a lot, and she also has some external injuries, but fortunately they are not severe. Mainly, the elder is old, and combined with exposure to wind and rain, hunger, leading to a weak body afflicted by wind‑cold, and excessive worry, which caused her to fall into an unconscious coma…"

To put it plainly, it's the external injuries plus hunger, and worrying about Shen Qingquan and the others, that made her fall ill.

"Chang Er, prepare a dose of medicine for injuries, dampness, and wind‑cold for the old lady, and also fetch some medicine for external wounds. After the old lady takes them, make her sweat a bit, then let her have a good sleep; she'll recover in two days."

Huang Yuanchang nodded, and immediately took medicine from the medicine box.

Huang Lao hesitated a moment, then said, "The old lady needs proper nurturing; her external injuries aren't severe and will heal soon, but the body's Weakness cannot be restored in a day or two."

He could see that the old lady's foundation was good; she must have been raised in wealth before. Though her clothes are tattered, her bearing and aura are far beyond an ordinary person.

Huang Lao was not surprised; ever since he met the Shen Family, he sensed they were not simple refugees. Perhaps their household had also fallen, been afflicted, otherwise they wouldn't have ended up here.

But in the current situation, how can they 'properly nurture' them? Even basic food and shelter are difficult.

"How should we nurture them? Please be frank, Huang Lao. Do we need ginseng? Lingzhi? Or other herbs? I will definitely find them for Grandmother." Shen Qingquan said with a serious expression.

"I'll go find them too!"

The several children also hurriedly said.

Huang Lao waved his hand, "Actually there's no need for ginseng or lingzhi; the old lady's body is too weak to accept supplements now. We must first give her light, easily digestible nutrition, like eggs, rice porridge…"

The more he spoke, the lower his voice became; at this stall, even a simple full meal is a luxury. The old lady's stomach is delicate, cannot handle coarse grains. If she were healthy, it would be fine, but now her body is too weak; those foods would only worsen her condition.

"I understand, that's no problem."

Shen Qingquan let out a long sigh of relief in her heart; if it's only these, she can still manage.

She had originally thought precious herbs would be needed, but if it's just food, it's not a big deal. Even a bit of rice porridge and egg, or even a big fish and meat, she can obtain!

Grandmother has endured so much suffering; now that she's here, she will never let them endure hunger and cold again!

Huang Lao was surprised, not expecting her to be so easygoing.

At present, these items are more precious than silver; in Xiangcheng, fine grain sells for five or six taels per jin, and the price keeps rising! Eating a bite is like eating silver!

Moreover, even if they have silver, they might not be able to buy these items now! But how did Miss Shen agree so lightly? Does she not know the current situation?

He opened his mouth to speak, but finally swallowed the words.

"Miss Shen, why not take the old lady and first settle her at my place? This environment… really isn't suitable for nursing an illness."

At this moment, Huang Yuanchang walked over.

Shen Qingquan paused, looked at Shen father, Shen Juancheng weighed the situation, then clasped his hands, "… then I'll trouble both of you."

Now that a plague has broken out here, it truly isn't suitable to stay. Moreover, they have finally reunited, and there's no reason to part again.

"I'll go borrow a wooden cart, we'll place the old lady on it and go…"

"Doctor Xiao Huang, I'll help you!"

Shen Yuhuan quickly said.

Doctor Xiao Huang glanced at his leg, "Your leg is injured, not fit for moving. I'll go fetch a servant; I'll be back soon. Please wait here."

Huang Lao also left with him; the two exchanged glances, understanding that the Shen family's reunion deserved a proper catch‑up, so they deliberately gave them space.

Inside the shed, soon only the Shen family remained; their reunion made it hard to hide their excitement.

Soon, Shen Qingquan and the others learned of the events that occurred after they left.

It turned out that after they vanished, the Shen family had originally continued moving with the exile convoy, but Grandmother was determined to find them, planning to go the next day to request soldiers to dispatch people to search nearby.

The soldiers were also under imperial orders; losing a person was a serious crime. Moreover, the missing were members of the Shen family. They had planned to search after a night's rest, but unexpectedly the next day a flood struck. All of them were swept away; Second Aunt and Shen Yubai, who were close to Grandmother, were swept together to a place.

When they finally escaped danger, they realized they were already more than ten li away from their previous location.? This book's first release is from 17K Novel Network, watch the official content!