When he heard Li Chenmoâs words, Old Gu said, "We want to, but without a special recommendation letter, we canât leave this place or visit the hospital."
"Then letâs send him to Doctor Xieâs house," Li Chenmo said as he carried Old Zhao on his back.
Hearing this, Old Su said, "I will go inform the team leader."
"Okay, we will accompany Old Zhao," Old Gu nodded.
Li Chenmo carried Old Zhao out and placed him on the bicycleâs cart. Seeing this, Old Su and Old Gu quickly covered him with their tattered old jackets to keep his body warm.
Without waiting for them, Li Chenmo quickly drove to Doctor Xieâs house. While helping these people might implicate him and his family, life was at stake and he couldnât hesitate.
Thirty minutes later, they finally arrived at Doctor Xieâs house. The moment he parked his bicycle, he carried Old Zhao into the house while shouting, "Doctor Xie, come quickly!"
Doctor Xie was napping in his bedroom when he heard the shouting and came out hurriedly. Seeing him carrying an old man, he said, "Put him on the bamboo bed."
Soon after, he opened his medical bag and checked on Old Zhaoâs condition. After a moment, he gave him an injection and said, "We have to wait for half an hour to monitor his condition. If the fever doesnât go down, weâll have to send him to the hospital to get an IV."
Li Chenmo nodded and replied, "Thank you for your help, Doctor Xie."
Waving his hand, Doctor Xie said, "Youâre usually not the kind of person who interferes with other peopleâs matters. Whatâs wrong with you today? Why did you suddenly have the heart to care about these people?"
Hearing his words, Li Chenmo said, "I was just passing by when I heard people shouting, so I went to check the situation."
Nodding at his words, Doctor Xie said, "His condition is not good, so itâs better for him to take western medicine."
"Comrade Xie, how much is the cost?" Old Gu asked.
Doctor Xie glanced at him and said, "We are old acquaintances, there is no need to pay."
Knowing how expensive the medicine was, Old Gu said, "How could that be?"
Before the two of them could argue about the fee, Li Chenmo said, "I will pay for it. Itâs my wifeâs instruction."
After saying so, he took out twenty yuan from his pocket and handed it to Doctor Xie. Since someone was willing to pay, he didnât refuse and accepted the money.
He prepared a bottle of fever medicine and a bottle of cold medicine before he said, "Let him take this medicine three times a day after meals."
Not long after, Old Su returned with Han Yuheng. Seeing him come in, Li Chenmo stood up and said, "Since the team leader is here, I will go back now."
"Thank you, young man," Old Gu said while holding onto his hand tightly.
If not for his help, they would have had to watch their friend pass away helplessly.
After he explained the situation to Han Yuheng, Li Chenmo rode his bicycle and returned home.
The snow only stopped for a day before it resumed falling heavily. Due to the heavy snow, more than fifty houses collapsed, and lots of orphans and elderly were frozen to death, if not buried under the collapsed houses.
This yearâs winter was the harshest in the past decade. With the number of casualties increasing, the production team staff could only send more people to check on the villagers and relocate them to avoid further disasters.
More than three weeks passed in the blink of an eye, and the day for meat distribution finally arrived. Today was February 8th, 1975, three days before the Lunar New Year.
At this moment, Lu Jueyuâs pregnancy was entering the 29th week, and her belly was so big that it was alarming.
Early in the morning after breakfast, Li Chenmo held his wifeâs hand and said, "Wife, you just stay at home with Xiao Huang. Ah Li and I will go get our meat."
Hearing this, Lu Jueyu pouted and said, "Husband, I have been staying at home for so many months. Now that my pregnancy has already entered the last trimester, if I donât go out for a walk now, I will have to wait until I finish my postpartum period."
Li Chenmo looked at his wifeâs big belly and said worriedly, "But the road is slippery and the weather is cold. What if you slip and fall?"
Due to her pregnancy, Lu Jueyuâs emotions were unstable. She often cried suddenly whenever she thought that her husband cared more about the babies in her belly than about her.
While her husband always said that she was the most important, she still couldnât believe his words. Right now, she felt the sadness again after hearing her husbandâs words.
She pushed away his hands and said, "You only care about the babies in my belly and no longer care about me. Iâm bored. I want to go out!"
Li Chenmo was feeling a headache when he saw his wife throwing a tantrum. He didnât know what he should do to make her believe him. For him, she was the most important, yet no matter how many times he told her, she didnât believe him.
Thinking about the book he read about pregnancy symptoms in his past life, he let out a sigh and coaxed her, "Alright, itâs my fault. Donât be angry, okay?"
Lu Jueyu turned her head away and said with a snort, "You always say that but you donât change at all."
Li Chenmo smiled and replied helplessly, "I will listen to you this time."
The moment she heard this, Lu Jueyuâs eyes lit up and her tears stopped instantly. She turned to look at her husband and asked, "So, I can go join the fun?"
Li Chenmo nodded and said, "But you have to stay with me all the time."
Lu Jueyu nodded and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Okay!"