Daily life of farming and supporting a family on the ancient Loess Plateau

"What?" Ji Yongling and Ji Manchuan exclaimed in unison.

"Master Liang is a man of great courage!" Xu Shirong exclaimed.

Ji Yongling thought for a moment, "Fortune favors the bold." Liang Jifa was sure to have a bright future this time. After all, in this era of flood disasters, there were no proper water conservancy and living facilities, and the weather was hot, so diseases were bound to be rampant. Ordinary people wouldn't even have time to run, let alone go against the flow.

Ji Manchuan murmured in shock, "No wonder he was able to become the big boss of the pharmaceutical company."

Xu Shirong nodded and said, "Yes, that's the difference between us and them. But I reckon that Liang Dongjia will let you continue with the medicinal herbs and medicine pouches business, Brother Ji. Just wait for news. Hurry up and finish making this cooling balm, it'll sell well while the weather is hot."

After saying goodbye to Xu Shirong, Ji Yongling hadn't taken more than a few steps when she heard someone calling her and Ji Manchuan.

"Uncle Ji, Miss Ji—"

Ji Manchuan listened carefully and said, "It sounds like Young Master Huo."

"Young Master Huo?" Ji Yongling asked in confusion, looking towards the road behind her. Sure enough, she saw Huo Zhiyuan riding over on horseback, with a child on the horse.

Huo Zhiyuan dismounted, took the younger sister from his arms, and greeted Ji Manchuan and the other man, saying, "Uncle Ji, Miss Ji, it's been a long time. Are you here at the market to buy things today?"

Ji Manchuan looked at Huo Zhiyuan holding the baby and was a little surprised. He thought that a rich young master like him would not know how to take care of or hold a child.

He chuckled and said, "I have some business to attend to at the pharmacy over there. What are you doing here in this sweltering heat? There's no market here anyway."

Huo Zhiyuan looked at his well-behaved younger sister in his arms and said with a smile, "This is my younger sister. I brought her over to ride a horse for a bit. I also came to the pharmacy over there to get some cooling ointment. In a few days, I'll accompany my mother to the prefectural capital to see a doctor for my younger sister. I heard there's a Taoist priestess there who's very effective."

Upon hearing the name of the old woman, Ji Yongling immediately thought of Huang Daopo. However, considering that Huang Daopo probably wouldn't go to the prefectural capital, she didn't pay much attention and asked, "Is your younger sister feeling unwell?"

Huo Zhiyuan helped Huo Zhijun remove the silk scarf and gauze covering her head, and said with concern, "Oh dear, there are many white spots on her face, and on her fingernails too."

Ji Yongling leaned closer to take a look and saw that Huo Zhijun had several round white spots of varying sizes on his cheeks, which were lighter in color than the surrounding skin. He was certain that these were obvious ascariasis spots.

She looked up at Huo Zhiyuan and said, "Your sister's condition is caused by intestinal worms. I happen to have some medicine here. After taking it, the worms will be expelled and she will be fine."

Huo Zhiyuan opened his eyes wide and repeated, "Intestinal worms?"

Ji Manchuan exclaimed in surprise, "Oh my, I always thought that only kids in our village who dig in the dirt every day or eat raw meat would get worms. I never imagined that kids from rich families in the city could get worms too."

Ji Yongling coughed and said, "Of course, even adults can have worms in their stomachs, and the worms can even travel to other parts of the body. I've heard that in the south, near the sea or rivers, some people like to eat raw fish and other raw foods, and their stomachs can be full of worms."

This is not an exaggeration on her part. For a period in later generations, parasitic diseases were rampant. In the 50s and 60s, some southern villages and towns suffered thousands of deaths due to parasitic diseases such as schistosomiasis. However, with popular science education, the free distribution of praziquantel, and the implementation of the national integrated prevention and control strategy, schistosomiasis has been eradicated.

However, in ancient times, it can only be said that the incidence of parasitic diseases in wealthy families was lower than that in farming families, but it was not impossible. For example, the female corpse unearthed from the Mawangdui Han Tomb had schistosomiasis eggs in her rectum and liver tissue.

Huo Zhiyuan was surprised when he heard this, and it wasn't until Huo Zhijun hugged his neck tightly, making it difficult for him to breathe, that he came to his senses.

"It seems that the people in the south still need to be taught not to eat raw fish or seafood," Huo Zhiyuan said thoughtfully.

Ji Manchuan smiled and said, "Young Master Huo, with this medicine, you won't need to go to the prefectural capital anymore. I'm not bragging, but this medicine is very effective; all the kids in our village are taking it."

Huo Zhiyuan hurriedly accepted the small packet of medicine powder handed to him by Ji Yongling and said solemnly, "Thank you, Miss Ji, thank you, Uncle Ji. I really don't know how to thank you enough."

Ji Manchuan waved his hand and said, "You brought such a heavy gift when you visited my house last time! This little bit of medicine powder is nothing. As long as the child gets better, that's all that matters."

Huo Zhiyuan took the medicine packet back to the backyard of the county government office. He first met with Huo Zhenglian and Shi Jingxiu, and then reported that he had run into Ji Yongling and that she had given him the medicine powder.

Shi Jingxiu exclaimed in delight, "Does it really work? Oh my, this is wonderful!"

Huo Zhenglian stroked his beard and asked Huo Zhiyuan, "Do you believe this Ji family father and daughter?"

Huo Zhiyuan was taken aback upon hearing this and said, "Father? They are just ordinary farmers, they have no demands, and they don't know my identity."

Huo Zhenglian sighed. Although she had inquired about Ji Yongling's family and knew they were just ordinary people, seeing her son still so innocent made her feel a little complicated. She waved her hand and said, "Alright, let's give Jun'er this medicine first and see if it's really as Miss Ji said, that Jun'er has worms in his stomach."

Of course, Ji Yongling's judgment is correct.

Starting the day after Huo Zhijun took the medicine, he expelled many white roundworms. For three consecutive days, worms continued to be expelled from his stool, shocking the entire family and making them unable to eat. Huo Zhijun, in particular, vividly remembered the scene of expelling worms and from then on refused to eat any food that resembled white, round earthworms.

While others found it disgusting, Huo Zhiyuan was extremely excited. He not only poked at the insects with a stick to observe them, but also drew and recorded their shapes on paper. Of course, he was inevitably scolded and reprimanded by Huo Zhenglian.

After saying goodbye to Huo Zhiyuan, Ji Yongling went to buy some beeswax and other items.

On the way home, Ji Yongling thought it over and over again, looked at her father and asked, "Dad, let me ask you, if we make a lot of ointment this time and make money, do you want us to make it ourselves, or continue to make it with my fourth uncle and my grandfather?"

Ji Manchuan asked, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Ji Yongling pursed her lips and said, "Keep finances separate."

Without hesitation, Ji Manchuan said, "What are you saying, kid! We haven't separated the family yet, so you absolutely can't say that you're abandoning your fourth uncle and going it alone! If we do things like that, how can we hold our heads up in the village? People will just stab us in the back! Even if we had separated the family, we still need to have a conscience. If you're capable, you should help your brothers out. You can't just think about how good you are and not care about your brothers and sisters eating chaff and wild vegetables!"

Ji Yongling nodded slightly, indicating her understanding.