"To heal a wound, you must first understand its cause; to lead a people, you must first understand their pain."

- Oldest Elder

* * *

“Thank you, Sage Jié Míns. You have brought me from sickness and into health. Please, take this offering."

Bai stands in my hut with a bird. It looked like a skinnier and smaller version of a pheasant. Birds were a pain to catch due to their small nature and weren't worth the little amount of meat for the effort, so it was rare to get birds outside of the traps that were placed. Because of that, birds were considered a delicacy.

"There was no need. I was simply doing my duty as a healer. But I will certainly appreciate the meal I would be able to make of it."

I didn't want to take the bird since I was already fed plenty, but I realized early on that declining gifts was seen almost like an insult. The first time I tried to decline a gift, Healer Zhi needed to intervene and accept the gift on my behalf so that no one's pride would get hurt. Even though it was rare, I also picked up the habit of bringing sweet and interesting-tasting herbs as a gift whenever visiting someone. I took the bird, and we both bowed to each other as he left. I expressed direct appreciation for the bird, and he expressed gratitude for healing his fever.

The bird came at a perfect time because I think I finally got my "concoction" right. I de-feathered the bird, cut it up, and removed the nasty organs. I grabbed some herbs and slathered the bird before sticking it over the fire. I had some vegetables and fruit in one bowl and my biggest accomplishment in the other.

It was a poor man's meal, but there wasn't much I could do since I didn't have much to begin with and wasn't the best cook in the first place. Once the bird was ready, I took it off the fireplace, put it in the bowl, and dug straight in. The villagers would usually ask the spirits for a blessing for the food. But since I was alone, I saw no reason to do any prayers.

The pheasant was fairly tasteless, but thankfully, the herbs helped spice it up a bit. I also ate my fair share of the fruits and berries before I got the guts to finally try the mystery liquid I had stored in the third bowl. My own in-house alcohol, made from crushed fruits and berries. I've gone through various variations of the experiment and have never tried more than a sip of each variation, careful of any kind of poisoning I might get. I think I finally got the formula down and was going to actually drink it. Aside from dipping my finger and tasting it like that to make sure I don't keel over and die if I drink it, I haven't had any so far.

With much hesitation, I built up the courage to put the bowl to my mouth and take a swig. Sweet, sour, and bitterness assaulted my taste buds as I tried my best to not spit it out. As I was about to close my mouth, a berry slipped in with its own sour and bitter taste that finally put me over the edge. I spit it out. This tasted awful. But I definitely tasted alcohol, and I smiled at that small victory.

I'd need to boil the ethanol to separate it from the fruits and water. Hopefully, that makes it more palatable, and I can also remix it with fresh fruit juice. Setting up a primitive distillery would take me several days since I needed something custom to catch the vapor. I know Ling dealt with pottery, so I should ask her if she could make a big bowl with a lip on the edge that curved towards a singular point and drained it into a bowl.

I finished my meal beside the bowl of fermented drink and gathered a few good-tasting herbs to give to Ling for the request. I headed towards Baozhai's hut, where Ling's husband was. They lived together, and I would need to make sure he was aware of my presence so there were no misunderstandings.

They had a very primitive marriage process. They were essentially brought in front of the chief, who blessed them with the ancestors' will, exchanged some gifts, and called it a day. There weren't any celebrations outside of the direct family line, as the people of the village needed to hunt, gather, and make things. I haven't had the opportunity to witness a marriage, but I would certainly make sure there was a celebration involved.

I approach the hut and announce my presence.

"Healer James requests to meet Hunter Baozhai."

"Ah, Sage Jié Míns. Welcome, come on in. What brings the Sage of the village to this humble hut?"

"Thank you, Baozhai. I have brought greeting gifts. These herbs work great if you crush them up and rub them against raw meat. They will add a nice spiciness to it and enhance the flavor."

"There was no need to bring these gifts."

"They come at no cost. Please, enjoy yourselves."

I was invited into their humble abode and instantly noticed that the decorations and furniture were sparser than in my own hut. There was some simple bedding and a rock that was being used as a table. A few dishes were stacked in a corner, and a few ornaments were hanging around.

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Baozhai, Ling, and I sat down, sharing some gossip. One of the kids was coming of age, and he would have a ceremony soon. A traveler should also be coming through soon, in a few moons. That was interesting since I thought that the village was fairly isolated. I'd have to catch that man and have a conversation with him. As we were talking, I noticed Ling's awkward movements and a protrusion from her stomach. It seemed they were expecting a baby soon.

"Congrats, Ling. You guys have gotten lucky. How far are you along?"

"We're a few moons in now."

"Don't stress yourself too much, and make sure you eat and drink plenty."

"Oh, no need to worry. My mother has been fussing over me; I don't need one more person."

"Haha, they simply worry about you. Don't take it too much to heart."

A lull occurs in the conversation, and I take this opportunity to bring up the topic I've been wanting to discuss.

"Ling, I know I told you to not work too hard, but I would like to request you to work on a big clay bowl for me? I'm working on making a poison that can kill tiny bugs so that when patching wounds, there is less of a risk of inflammation and fever."

"Tiny bugs? What do you mean?"

I considered really hard whether I wanted to explain bacteria to them. Still, I decided that I might as well give it a shot even if they don't understand everything.

"All of us have little bugs living on us at all times, they are too weak to bite our flesh and hurt us, but if they can get into a wound, they will act like poison. What I'm working on will kill those bugs so that when working on wounds, those bugs can't get in a person."

They look at each other and then at their hands really hard.

"You won't be able to see the bugs; they are really, really tiny."

They seemed concerned, but I told them that they shouldn't worry about it. Maybe I should've kept that knowledge to myself? Oh well, it's too late to cry over spilled milk. Man, I'd pay a lot for some milk, even if it was spilled. As I explain and draw out how I want the pot to look, she takes the role seriously and asks any clarifying questions. After I was done explaining all the details, I thanked them for hosting me and excused myself.

"Here, take this." They handed me a small wooden charm before I could even reach the door. The charm was hanging from a fiber-like string, and it was a simple hut with no extra flourish. It was nice and minimalist while still looking nice due to the material.

"This is a good luck charm we have made. So that your home could always be with you."

"Thank you, I love this and will take care of it."

I put it on, smiled, thanked them again, and headed outside to Mù Zhì's hut so we could talk about the pregnancy that would be coming in a few months. I needed to convince him to wash his hands with "poison." Of course, I would test it first before using it, but he didn't like the idea of me brewing up some kind of poison in my hut, and I was confident he might not like it.

Announcing myself, I walked into Mù Zhì's hut, and the usual smell of herbs and spices assaulted my nose. It seems like he just recently came back from gathering some. I need to update my stock as well.

"Mù Zhì's, we need to talk."

"Not even calling me by my title? I guess what you want to talk about is serious."

"We need to talk about the poison I made."

He looks at me with wide eyes as he connects the dots.

"Didn't I tell you to stop with your crazy experiment? We are healers. We do not deal with poison."

"But all medicine is poison if there is too much of it. It is the same with my alcohol. It can help make sure people don't get infections. As long as no one drinks too much of the stuff, they will be safe."

"Drink too much? Who would willingly drink the poison? Are you mad?"

"I'll drink it. I'll drink it to prove to you that it is not harmful outside of large quantities, and if I do, I need you to let me use it on patients."

"If you drink it, then we can talk, but I don't want to hear this craziness until then."

"Aren't I a Sage? You were the biggest advocate of me being one; what has changed now? Do you not trust a Sage?"

"You were the one who claims you aren't a Sage. Turning poison into medicine? Bah! Craziness."

"I may not be a Sage, but I am a healer. And being able to bring the dead back to life isn't crazy, but turning poison into healing is?"

At that, Zhì hesitated but ended up simply shoeing me away with his hands. Knowing I wasn't going to get to the man with him being this stubborn, all I could do was concede for now and, when I was ready, go to his hut and get plastered.

I go home and tidy up my place. Tallying all the herbs I currently had and needed. I noticed that I was running low on herbs that helped with headaches, so I would need to go out and collect some. After tidying up my place, I grab a fur rucksack and head towards the chief's hut. I would alert him that I was leaving the village and request a companion for my trek so I wouldn't get lost and be protected since I didn't wield a weapon.

I walked into the chief's hut without even announcing my presence since his hut was a hub for all the elders to congregate in the mornings. When the elders weren't busy, they would discuss various things, and there was no reason to announce my presence since I wouldn't startle anyone. Walking in, I find the chief and approach him.

"I am happy to see you in good health, Chief Wang Wei. I plan to restock on my herbs and want someone to watch my back in the forest."

"I am also happy to see you in good health, Sage Jié Míns. I can have Lóng Zhàn accompany you since it is his resting day."

"Thank you, chief; it means a lot to be so well taken care of as a guest."

He frowns at that last line. He seems to have a high opinion of me and does not want me to leave. Thankfully, since I was both a Sage and a healer, he couldn't be overly pushy regarding keeping me here. He was the only one I would reject gifts from since he was so excessive with them. But I never got into a fight with him since that would be a pointless activity.

"There's no need to be so humble, Sage Jié Míns. We are all family here, and it is our duty to take care of each other."

I smartly don't comment but nod, and he took the hint and dropped the subject. I went ahead and walked out of the hut with Zhàn.