Zhao Huanzhang quickly went to fetch the cigarettes.

Gao-Yuan helped the girl’s mother into a more comfortable position.

Taking out two packs of Zhonghua cigarettes, Zhao Huanzhang asked, “Should we run to the nearest clinic to get medicine?”

Gao-Yuan replied, “It’s too far; going there and back would waste too much time. Quickly, give me the cigarettes.”

Handing the cigarettes to Gao-Yuan, Zhao Huanzhang questioned, “What are you going to do with them?”

Gao-Yuan began to unbox the cigarettes. “I’m going to do moxibustion.”

Stunned, Zhao Huanzhang asked, “What? You’re going to use cigarette tobacco as moxa?”

“The situation is urgent. It’s the only substitute we have.” Gao-Yuan instructed, “Take off her shoes; I need to apply moxibustion on her Yinbai and Dadun acupoints.”

Gao-Yuan handed the cigarette box to Zhao Huanzhang. “You brought matches, right?”

“Yes,” Zhao Huanzhang nodded, finding the matches. As he lit the cigarettes, he hesitated. “Do you think this will work?”

Gao-Yuan shot back, “Do you have a better idea?”

Silenced, Zhao Huanzhang resigned himself to trying anything that might help.

Gao-Yuan took the matchbox, lighting another match. Without scissors, he directly ignited a lock of the mother’s hair, extinguished it, then rubbed the hair into a small pile of ash.

He retrieved a water flask from his bag, mixed the hair ash into the water, and helped the mother drink it down.

Seeing the two men helping, the girl’s panicked expression softened somewhat. She looked at Gao-Yuan, then at Zhao Huanzhang, and asked, “Who are you two?”

“We’re doctors from Zhang Village Clinic,” Zhao Huanzhang replied.

Tears welled up in the girl’s eyes as she exclaimed, “Oh, thank heaven! We found doctors up here on this mountain!”

Zhao Huanzhang chuckled, “Indeed, lucky timing. If it weren’t for Dr. Gao-Yuan heading to Zixiang to buy sorghum liquor, we wouldn’t have passed by.”

The girl looked at Gao-Yuan and whispered, “Thank you.”

Gao-Yuan simply reminded Zhao Huanzhang, “Alright, let’s cut the chit-chat.”

Zhao Huanzhang focused back on the manipulation.

The girl glanced at Gao-Yuan with mixed feelings; at first, he’d seemed warm, but now he looked a bit fierce. She avoided talking to him and turned her attention to her mother’s condition.

As moxibustion continued on the acupoints, the mother’s severe bleeding gradually slowed, and her pale face regained a bit of colour.

“Mom, how are you feeling?” the girl asked with concern.

“Better,” her mother replied, though her voice remained faint.

Seeing that it seemed to be working, Zhao Huanzhang felt encouraged.

Time passed, and the mother’s condition gradually stabilised.

Night had fallen deep.

Gao-Yuan grew increasingly silent.

“Xiao Hui, where are you?” Shouts echoed from a distance.

The girl quickly stood up, waving her arms and calling back, “We’re over here, Dad, Brother, we’re here…”

Lights began to appear in the distance as a group hurried towards them.

“My family is here,” the girl said to Gao-Yuan and Zhao Huanzhang.

A rough-looking man rushed forward, shouting anxiously before he even reached them, “What were you two doing? You said you’d be picking acorns for acorn tofu, but it’s the middle of the night, and you’re still not home! We’ve been looking for ages; I thought you’d gone missing!”

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Looking ahead, the girl saw her father and relatives approaching, neighbours among them as well.

Relieved but feeling a surge of emotion, the girl broke into tears as she spoke, “Dad, Mom suddenly started bleeding heavily. It was terrifying!”

“What?” Her father, shocked, hurried over with a lantern to see Gao-Yuan and Zhao Huanzhang crouching beside his wife.

The girl sobbed, “Dad, they’re doctors from Zhang Village, and they just happened to be passing by. They’ve been helping this whole time.”

“Oh, oh!” The girl’s father looked frightened and worried. He didn’t even pause to thank them, rushing over to check on his wife’s condition.

Zhao Huanzhang finished the manipulation.

Gao-Yuan said, “Let me examine her one last time.”

The girl’s father stepped aside.

Gao-Yuan checked the mother’s pulse, noting that the bleeding hadn’t fully stopped but was minimal now, and her condition was more stable. After confirming her pulse was steady, he said, “Get her to the nearest clinic as soon as possible. Her condition is stable enough to make it there.”

Everyone looked at Zhao Huanzhang, given that he was older.

Zhao Huanzhang pointed to Gao-Yuan, saying, “Listen to him; follow his advice.”

The girl’s father promptly lifted his wife onto his back, heading quickly forward with the relatives helping along.

In their hurry, none of them had time to properly thank the doctors.

The girl wiped her tears and turned to the two, saying, “Thank you. My name is Wen Hui, from the mountain nearby. If it weren’t for you, my mother wouldn’t have made it.”

Zhao Huanzhang waved a hand dismissively, “It’s nothing; just doing our job.”

Wen Hui looked at Gao-Yuan and said, “Thank you too, Dr. Gao-Yuan. Your method really worked; you’re an amazing doctor.”

Zhao Huanzhang glanced at Gao-Yuan.

But Gao-Yuan, expression cool, only replied, “Hurry along.”

“Oh,” Wen Hui whispered cautiously, confirming Gao-Yuan’s aloof temperament. She gave him a quick look before hurrying after her family.

Gao-Yuan, however, remained in place, gazing silently at her departing figure. The coolness on his face gave way to a deep sadness.

“What’s wrong?” Zhao Huanzhang asked in confusion, “Didn’t we save her? Why do you look so down?”

Gao-Yuan forced a smile. “Yes, we saved her.”

Staring into the night where Wen Hui had disappeared, he continued watching long after she’d gone out of sight. He’d finally been there for her at her moment of greatest despair.

But he had no intention of ever involving her in his life again.

If he couldn’t escape his fate, why drag her down with him? She was a good woman; she deserved a better life than he could offer.

Gao-Yuan sighed softly, the sadness in his gaze unmistakable.

As Zhao Huanzhang tidied up the cigarette packs, he asked, “It’s so late; are we still heading to Zixiang?”

In a low voice, Gao-Yuan answered, “Forget it.”

“What about tomorrow’s festival? Should we get a different bottle of liquor?”

“Drinking’s bad for you,” Gao-Yuan replied flatly.

Stunned, Zhao Huanzhang muttered to himself—wasn’t it you who wanted the liquor for the festival?

With a bit of regret, Zhao Huanzhang pulled out the last of his cigarettes and asked, “Want a Zhonghua?”

Gao-Yuan shook his head.

Zhao Huanzhang passed him the cigarette anyway, saying, “Hold this for me; my shoe’s got a pebble in it; let me shake it out.”

Taking the cigarette in hand, Gao-Yuan remembered his past life. He’d never left home without matches, always lighting one cigarette after another, even using a part of his family’s small plot to grow tobacco. Only in the haze of smoke could he dull the pain of his reality.

After putting his shoe back on, Zhao Huanzhang looked up to find Gao-Yuan holding the cigarette. Surprised, he asked, “So you do smoke?”

Handing the cigarette back, Gao-Yuan replied, “Not anymore.”

“Why not?” Zhao Huanzhang asked, curious.

Gao-Yuan glanced once more in Wen Hui’s direction, saying, “She doesn’t like it.”

“What?” Zhao Huanzhang asked, missing the comment entirely.

…

At Huichun United Clinic, Director Tan Yun had been summoned to treat an emergency. After examining Wen Hui’s mother and enquiring about the events, he remarked, “The bleeding was severe; without stopping it, this could have been fatal.”

Wen Hui’s family exchanged worried glances, a lingering sense of dread in their expressions.

Tan Yun asked, somewhat puzzled, “Since there was such heavy bleeding, how did it stop? Did she take any medication or receive any first aid?”

Everyone turned to Wen Hui.

Wen Hui quickly explained, “We ran into two doctors who performed emergency care. They burnt some of my mother’s hair into ash and had her drink it.”

Tan Yun nodded. “Xueyu Tan. Good for treating minor haemorrhages, but in cases of severe bleeding, it’s a bit limited.”

Wen Hui continued, “They also performed moxibustion on her toe.”

Tan Yun checked for burn marks and nodded. “Dadun and Yinbai acupoints. That’s very skilful thinking. Did they carry moxa with them?”

“No, they used cigarettes,” Wen Hui replied.

Tan Yun looked surprised. "Cigarettes? They can be used like that?"

Wen Hui carefully added, "Maybe because they're Zhonghua brand, so they’re more effective."

Tan Yun shook his head and laughed, clearly impressed. "That's really some clever thinking! It takes serious skill and courage to attempt something like that. Without enough emergency experience, most people wouldn't think of using it this way, and even if they did, they wouldn’t dare try it. So, who was this doctor? What's his name?"

Wen Hui said, "They’re doctors from Zhangzhuang Clinic."

Tan Yun was surprised. "Zhao Huanzhang? Since when has he become this bold?"

Wen Hui shook her head. "It was Doctor Gao-Yuan."

"Gao-Yuan?" Tan Yun paused. "Oh, that explains it."

Wen Hui asked eagerly, "You know him?"

Tan Yun smiled. "Who doesn’t know Gao-Yuan around here? You’re really lucky to have crossed paths with such a skilled doctor. If it had been someone else, I’m afraid things would have taken a much worse turn."

The Wen family stood in awe, taking it all in.

Wen Hui, meanwhile, looked thoughtfully towards the door.