Chapter 646: Repaying Kindness, Distrust
646 Chapter 646: Repaying Kindness, Distrust
Luo Qiao and her brother found their way to Elder Qin's youngest son's house, where they saw a family happily gathered around, watching Elder Qin weave baskets.
The woman who led Luo Qiao and her brother inside called out, "Qin family, someone is here to see your father-in-law."
The Qin family's daughter-in-law turned around and, not recognizing the neighbors who had brought the visitors, asked, "Who are you?"
Luo Qiao said, "Hello, I've come from the farm, I heard Elder Qin was hospitalized a few days ago and wanted to come see him."
At this moment, Elder Qin, surrounded by his grandchildren, also saw Luo Qiao and tried to get up, but his back was too weak to rise on his own, so he called out, "Luo Qiao, child, what brings you here?"
Hearing the call, Luo Qiao replied, "Elder Qin, I've come to see how you are."
Elder Qin's face beamed with a smile, and he didn't forget to ask, "How did you find your way here?"
Luo Qiao, seeing Elder Qin sitting in the chair unable to stand, felt moisture in her eyes; this person who had given so many kindnesses and helped the original owner of her body was now confined to this chair, still not resting, with a nearly finished basket in his hands.
Luo Qiao stepped forward, "Elder Qin, when I returned to the farm, the current gatekeeper told me you were ill. Later, after asking Director Tiong, I managed to find my way here. It was that auntie who escorted us."
Elder Qin looked towards the woman who had led the way and nodded with a smile, "Thank you for the trouble, Second Qiao Family."
The woman replied, "Oh uncle, no need to be so formal, it's not a big deal."
Luo Qiao stood up, grabbed a handful of candies from her sling bag, and turned to give them to the woman who had brought them, "Auntie, please take these back for the kids to sweeten their mouths, thank you for leading the way."
The woman felt somewhat embarrassed saying, "I've just shown you the way and you give such precious things, I'm really getting the better end of the deal here."
Though the woman felt like she was taking advantage of others, the candy was not something she could usually afford for her children, so after repeatedly thanking them, she reached out and took it.
Only then did Luo Qiao introduce, "Elder Qin, this is my second brother Luo Xuyuan, who accompanied me back to the farm to pay respects to Grandma Luo."
Elder Qin's eyes welled up with tears, "Ah, good children, your grandma would never have imagined such a blessing, but she must be happy, it wasn't in vain that she looked after you, she can rest easy."
Luo Qiao nodded, "Whenever I have time, I will frequently return to the farm to pay respects to Grandma Luo."
Worried that Elder Qin would become emotional, she changed the topic, "Elder Qin, how is your health now?"
Elder Qin said, "Ah, the hospital doesn't have a good solution, there's not much to do but rest and heal."
Luo Qiao placed the nutritional supplements that her brother was carrying onto the table, "These are some nutritional supplements, to help build up your strength."
Seeing the items on the table, Elder Qin said, "Just having you come to see me makes this old man very happy, there was no need to bring so many things, I hardly feel worthy."
Meanwhile, the Qin family's daughter-in-law pulled over stools for the siblings to sit down.
Luo Qiao sat down with a word of thanks, "Elder Qin, I've been studying medicine under Professor Yang at the farm, may I help you have a look?"
Elder Qin looked surprised before saying, "Why not? Ever since Professor Yang left, we've had no idea how to contact him, and my condition—sigh."
Elder Qin's youngest son helped Elder Qin into the room, and after Luo Qiao conducted an examination, her diagnosis aligned with the hospital's: lumbar sprain.
Elder Qin explained, "I overexerted myself when I was younger and twisted my back once. It wasn't treated in time because we were too poor."
Luo Qiao realized that it probably had never fully recovered, turning into a chronic issue that was now quite severe.
After reflecting for a moment, Luo Qiao said, "Elder Qin, I'll give you acupuncture today, and once I return to the Capital, I'll make some medicinal plasters for you and send them over. Use them for one course of treatment to start with, and then we can see how it goes."
The Qin family's daughter-in-law asked, "Miss, can it be cured?"
Seeing the skeptical looks on the faces of Elder Qin's son and daughter-in-law, Luo Qiao smiled and said, "Whatever I say now isn't as convincing as seeing the results after using the medicinal plaster."
Elder Qin's youngest son looked conflicted as he turned to Elder Qin, "Dad, the hospital couldn't cure it, you think this will work?"