A Western Doctor’s Happy Farming Life[1] 122

When the master saw the femina man, helplessness and struggle overwhelmed his pair of eyes. He clenched his fists and said, “You should have known the rule within this village, Goudan’s femina father. If he fails to quit smoking this gadget for the third time, he should be thrown into the remotest place in the ice mountain with the accompany of the mountain ghosts. You know what the risks the drugsters bring, don’t you?”

Suddenly, a few expressionless men walked out of the room and tied up Goudan without hesitation.

Yet, it seemed that Goudan wasn’t aware of what was going to happen himself, and the smile on his face got even brighter while several strings of saliva lingered at the corner of his mouth.

Although Goudan’s femina father didn’t intervene to stop the action of those expressionless men, his tears fell down fiercely like a broken string. He looked at Goudan who seemingly was aware of nothing and shook his head while touching his own chest, as if he was too sorrow to say anything else.

Song Qinghan stood still witnessing the whole ‘Crime Scene’, just as those men were about to take Goudan and left the place, he shouted suddenly, “Are you guys going to abandon him just because he can’t make it to quit smoking?”

The master was utterly stunned, as if he didn’t expect that Song Qinghan would make a sound right at this moment. After all, from Song Qinghan’s previous action, he seemed to have no intention of participating in the affairs of the village.

Noticing that everyone’s gaze gathered altogether on him, Song Qinghan took a pause, and then answered slowly, “Probably I am able to help if it is just a drug addiction.”

It was Goudan’s femina father who reacted the fastest, with fingers crossed, he kneed down suddenly and then kowtowed to the master, choking with sobs, “Master, please sparse Goudan’s life! Please give him the last chance! If he can’t make it this time, I will send him to the forest my own.”

Nothing but only embarrassment could be found currently on the master’s expression, while all the other residents in the scene was putting on a face of hope, as well as suspicion. And then the master turned to Song Qinghan, whispering, “Are you sure? If you can’t make it…”

Song Qinghan glanced at him and said calmly, “You will send me to the remotest forest either if I can’t make it?”

The sudden interruption of Song Qinghan almost choked the master. Looking at Goudan who was giggling foolishly, he suddenly made up his mind, nodded and said, “Give him the last chance!”

The men loosened the tie for the Goudan. Though there were several sounds of complaint sounded among the crowd, they were nothing big. It seemed that this so-called master had gained a popularity here.

Song Qinghan understood the complaints of those people. It was obvious that many people here were addicted to drugs. Perhaps some of their relatives have been thrown into the forest because they failed to get rid of the addiction for the three chances. So, it was explainable when they saw Goudan could get the fourth chance, grudge towards the unfairness just festered in their minds.

But when they regained their awareness towards the whole matter, they felt cheerful instead just as the image of Goudan successfully being cured and getting rid of the drug addiction popped up in their minds. In another consideration, they themselves and their other family members would get the exemption to be sent to the forest. Probably they would finally appreciate in the end for not jumping out to object.

After the crowd dispersed, Song Qinghan approached to check out the condition of Goudan who was now rolling eyes, and then he spoke to the master, “What was the method you guys adopted to treat them?”

The head thought for a moment and pointed in a direction, “We locked them up in a certain room, and only served them with meal and water, and nothing else. If they can insist after one month, we will release them.”

Song Qinghan raised his eyebrows and asked calmly, “So how many people succeeded out of ten?”

The expression on the master’s face started to be rather embarrassing. He scratched his head and answered, “Probably one or two out of ten, most of them were quite normal after they were released and they were able to act normally, yet those who could remain it were the minority.”

Needless to say this, of course Song Qinghan knew the fact. If the drug addiction was really easy to be treated, it wouldn’t have been the public nuisance in the world.

He gestured to the master, pointed at Goudan with his chin and said calmly, “Take him to that room. I want to rearrange it.”

The master carried Goudan being rather obedient and put him into the “Tiny Black Room”.

Song Qinghan looked around and found that such a room was actually as he thought. Here was equipped no any protection at all, what was worse, several traces of blood-stained spot still could be seen on the wall and ground. It was obvious a place with some ignoble history unseen and buried.

The head followed his Song Qinghan’s gaze and explained, “Some of them were really stubborn and got serious addiction, they bit and kick fiercely as long as they saw people. And, if they didn’t see any one, they would knock their heads against the brick wall, even some of them died out of that…”

Halfway through his sentence, he suddenly realized that Song Qinghan was a femina man who probably would feel uncomfortable towards something like blood and flesh, so he quit describing further details.

On the other side, Song Qinghan was rather calm without any exaggerated expression, he pondered for a moment, and then asked the master to find some ropes over, tied Goudan’s legs and arms tight on bed, and then turned to Goudan’s femina father, “He just smoked just then, so it will be the first round for him to receive the treatment. He might have a violent reaction, don’t let him get off the bed temporarily. As for the toilet stuff, probably it will fall to you to help wipe him.”

Goudan’s femina father nodded hurriedly, he didn’t seem to have any grudge over the whole matter.

As long as the Goudan wasn’t going to be thrown into the remotest forest, he would accept any conditions even to fix Goudan in bed for like a whole eternity. Yet it was a pity that the village wasn’t willing to accommodate any idle person who was out of ability to be a part of labor force, especially the ones who got ill, mentally or physically.

Seeing that he had agreed, Song Qinghan nodded and found some fabrics featuring soft corners, and then wrapped up all the sharp spots on the bed and took off all the things which might cause some accidental harms. Seeing that there was no danger posted, he said to the master, “Do you guys get some candies or something like chewy things here?”

The master was stunned and thought Song Qinghan was hungry, so he quickly reached out and said, “Here, this way, I have already ordered them to cook, probably the meal will be served very soon.”

Song Qinghan shook his head with resignation and pointed at Goudan, saying, “Nah, not for me, I mean, get some to him! And better not too large, in case he will get choked. Just when he can’t hold it no more, feed him with something like that. That probably will help to divert his attention.”

Though the master did not comprehend what Song Qinghan really meant. he still nodded obediently, pointed at a big jar over at the corner, saying, “We got hawthorn over there in the jar, all their kernels have already been removed, and all are softened quite enough, they won’t post any threats to his throat.”

Hearing that, Song Qinghan suddenly got a mouthful of saliva in his mouth. Thinking of how Goudan would keep eating the hawthorns, he now would worry more about Goudan’s teeth being corroded than failing to get rid of the addiction.

However, it was not that easy to find other alternative snacks in such an environment full of ice and snow. Therefore, Song Qinghan nodded and said, “Alright then, then offer him some hawthorns, but remember, force him to swallow them, and as long as the addiction breaks out, feed him with a piece of hawthorn.”

A drowning man will clutch at a straw. Goudan’s femina father nodded hurriedly, he would do anything right now even if Song Qinghan asked him to feed Goudan with flesh and blood.

After coming out of the house, Song Qinghan looked at the ice and snow in front of him with his hands behind his back and said slowly, “Hey you, the so-called master, will you tell me about the legend now?”

“The legend?” the master put on an expression of utter astonishment, it took a long while for him to regain his attention, and then he answered, “Well… Do you really want to know about that?”

Song Qinghan frowned and said in a low voice, “You must know my real intention why I came here, right?”

The master sighed heavily there as if he had compromised. He pondered for a moment, and then answered gently, “This legend should be based on the reason why our Flying Eagle Village exists here. A hundred years ago, the ancestors who lived in Central Plains migrated here and found a suitable place to live at the foot of the mountain. They worked hard using their bare hands to unearth villages one after another. They thought that they could live a life of well-being and work in peace. Who would have imagined… ”

His tone decreased, combined with a bit sorrow. And then Song Qinghan paused, interrupting, “Snowslide? Wild beasts?”

“Thousands of millions of wolves and bulls came with tons of snow and passed through the village razing it to the ground and ruined it root-and-branch. Only several residents survived from such a huge disaster.”

The master’s eyes were with a bit redness when he mentioned the disaster. It could been seen from his expression that he was rather excited and moved when he talked about his great ancestors’ soul-stirring and great achievements.

Although Song Qinghan did not personally experience this event, he could imagine the scene from the master’s description.

Natural calamities and man-made misfortunes could easily take the lives of thousands of millions of people. Yet it seemed that those man-made misfortunes were easy to avoid, meantime the natural calamities were instead inevitable. In other words, the only choice for them was to accept their fate to be vanished in this world.

His face assumed an expression of move while the impatience turned into calmness, he said slowly, “What happened then?”

The master pursed his lips and looked at the distant snow forest. He continued, “Then, they didn’t accept defeat and selected another place to re-plough and built more and more villages in line in the end. Unlike before, they had learnt the mistakes from the last time and built a tall and thick wall outside the village in an attempt to block the disaster. However, it turned out that what they did was totally in vain.”

“The villages were ruined once again ruthlessly, and as you might guess, the misery tragedy was put on the stage once again.”

Song Qinghan couldn’t help shaking his head, as if he was feeling sorry for those lost lives.

Especially those who experienced the first disaster, no one could tell exactly how desperate they were when they experienced the second time!

The master seemed to have sunk into memories and then he continued, “At that time, among the remaining people, they were divided into three factions. One of them proposed to return to Central Plains, while the other suggested to stay here and fight against the disasters.”

“And as for the last faction, they lost their kinsfolk both in those two disasters, they got nothing that time but just their own lonely souls, they lost their hopes for lives. What they chose in the end was to perish together with those culprits no matter what they were,”

“Because there were not many people left, if they move separately, they would only disperse their strength and make survival more difficult. Therefore, the representatives of the three factions finally came up with an agreement to let the third faction stay on the mountain. If anything unusual happened, they should send a signal flare to remind the people at the foot of the mountain. The other two factions would continue to live at the foot of the mountain, while being responsible for providing free supplies to the third faction.”

Penny finally dropped, it seemed that Song Qinghan finally came to understand why this group of people would burst in that town like a gang of bandits, and why the residents of that town did not come out to stop them even though they were frightened.

Without the master’s further explanation, Song Qinghan could imagine what the picture was about things happened in its ensuing course.

The people living on the mountain were gradually mentally healed as the time passed, and they got generations of their offspring. Perhaps they would have the idea of going down the mountain for another way of life, but for the safety of everyone around them, they eventually chose to let their generation after generation of descendants stay here and continued to bear the heavy responsibility.