country bumpkin

Chapter 307 Grandma is Sick

After spending a long time cuddling with her maternal grandmother, Yunya finally greeted her second and third aunts.

Kong Xiujuan then pulled Kong Xiufen aside to ask Yunya about her work situation.

After Kong Xiufen explained the situation clearly, she returned to speak with Mu Shuyun.

Looking at her mother, who had clearly lost even more weight, Kong Xiufen asked with concern, "Mom, why have you lost so much weight again? Are you feeling unwell?"

Mu Shuyun said frankly, "Alas! I don't know what happened, but I slipped and fell while walking at night in the snow a while ago, and my leg joints have been hurting ever since, and they still haven't gotten better."

My legs hurt so badly I couldn't eat or sleep, and that's why I lost weight. I thought I'd come to the city to see what was wrong.

Kong Xiufen nodded repeatedly, "We really need to investigate this thoroughly; it's no small matter."

Kong Xiuzhen stepped forward and said, "You all have business to attend to. I'll accompany Mother to Yicheng People's Hospital first thing tomorrow morning."

After the sisters discussed their tasks, Kong Xiuzhen said, "Let Mother stay at my house for a while! My house is big enough and has spare rooms."

In fact, the house was already built on the vegetable garden to the west of Kong Xiujuan's house in the second half of last year.

Since the family could fit comfortably in the two rooms, and it would be a waste to leave them idle, they rented them out.

The annual rent is 600 yuan, which isn't a lot, but it's still a significant amount. Kong Xiujuan initially asked for 800 yuan, but the rent was negotiated down to 600 yuan.

Sun Zitao's monthly salary is only 600 yuan, and the rent for the year is equivalent to his monthly salary.

Sun Zitao no longer drives a donkey cart to haul goods. With the rapid development of the economy, donkey carts can no longer keep up with the pace of the times.

Nowadays, hauling things is done by tractor or motorcycle tricycle, which are inexpensive and much faster than donkey carts.

Sun Zitao changed careers to help his younger brother, Sun Zihao. They also sold the family's donkey, which brought in a good 1500 yuan.

The donkey worked hard its whole life, never expecting that it would earn its master 1500 yuan for its hard work in the end.

The sisters decided that the second sister, Kong Xiuzhen, would accompany their mother to the doctor.

The other sisters agreed that after Mu Shuyun returned from her hospital check-up, she would stay at one of their homes for a few days, so they could have a proper family reunion.

Mu Shuyun did not go to Kong Xiuzhen's house that night because Yunya insisted that she sleep with her grandmother that night.

So at night, Sun Zitao cuddled his son in one bed, Kong Xiujuan and her eldest daughter Sun Limei squeezed together, and Yun Ya and Mu Shuyun squeezed together. That's how they made do for one night.

The next day, Kong Xiuzhen arrived just as dawn broke. She came on a tricycle because Mu Shuyun's leg was hurting, so she had to take Mu Shuyun with her on the tricycle.

Kong Xiuzhen didn't let her mother eat breakfast, fearing she would need a blood test. She didn't even let her drink a sip of water.

After saying goodbye to her eldest sister's family, Kong Xiuzhen rode her tricycle with her mother to the largest people's hospital in Yicheng.

They arrived at the hospital, registered, and waited in line. After 20 minutes, it was finally their turn.

Kong Xiuzhen helped Mu Shuyun into the examination room. As soon as they entered, the middle-aged female doctor asked, "Is this Mu Shuyun, number 15?"

Kong Xiuzhen quickly replied, "Yes, doctor, my mother's name is Mu Shuyun."

The female doctor asked again, "Where does it hurt?"

Mu Shuyun told the doctor about her long-standing leg pain. She also explained in detail what medicine she had taken and what plasters she had used in her rural hometown.

After listening to this, the middle-aged female doctor lifted up Mu Shuyun's pants and looked at Mu Shuyun's knees.

Then he pressed it, and with just a light touch, Mu Shuyun immediately gasped in pain.

The doctor quickly gave me a lab order, which said I needed to have a blood test and a urine test.

Kong Xiuzhen took the form and lined up to pay, while Mu Shuyun found an empty stool to sit down and wait for her.

After paying the fee, Kong Xiuzhen helped Mu Shuyun to the blood test center to have her blood and urine drawn.

After completing these steps, you just need to wait for the results before seeing a doctor.

While waiting for the results, Kong Xiuzhen took out a warm pie from her bundle and handed it to Mu Shuyun.

He then said, "Mom, you must be starving. Eat something first to fill your stomach, and then we'll go home and have a good meal later."

Mu Shuyun did not refuse; she was indeed starving, her stomach was flat.

As she ate the soft pie, she suddenly felt thirsty. Seeing this, Kong Xiuzhen took out the military water bottle she had prepared; the water inside was still warm, perfect for drinking now.

Mu Shuyun took several sips before stopping.

The results are coming out very slowly, and now they can only wait for them.

The mother and daughter chatted for a while, and the results didn't come out until 11 a.m.

Kong Xiuzhen retrieved the results, took the printed copy, and helped Mu Shuyun back to the doctor's office.

After reviewing the test results, the doctor said, "Sir, you have rheumatoid arthritis."

Mu Shuyun didn't understand what kind of illness it was, so she asked, "Is this illness serious? Can it be cured?"

Kong Xiuzhen was also very scared and looked at the doctor anxiously.

The doctor replied, "Rheumatoid arthritis, as the name suggests, is a chronic disease that affects joints of all sizes."

Modern medicine considers it a type of immune system dysfunction, but its cause is still unknown.

In the early stages, joint redness and swelling may occur, and even pain may be present, but the impact on limb function is relatively small. It often appears symmetrically.

However, if this disease progresses further, patients will develop deformities of varying degrees. Over time, it will damage bones and joints, and in severe cases, it can lead to disability and significantly affect limb function.

Currently, there are no very effective treatments for rheumatoid arthritis; most treatments focus on alleviating symptoms. (This is from a search result.)

The doctor said a lot, but the mother and daughter didn't understand.

All I understood was the sentence, "There are no very effective treatments; we can only alleviate the symptoms."

Mu Shuyun was in despair. She was terrified and asked in a trembling voice, "D-D-Doctor, will I never get better? Will I always walk with a limp?"

The doctor shook his head regretfully and said reassuringly, "Don't worry, there's a type of injection now specifically for rheumatoid arthritis. However, you can only have it three times; after that, you'll have to take medication year-round."

Mu Shuyun was overjoyed and said excitedly, "Doctor, I want to get this injection. Even if I have to take medicine all year round, at least I can walk properly now. My family lives in the countryside, and there's still a lot of work to do at home. I can't afford to get sick."

The doctor expressed his understanding, saying that these elderly people had all endured hardship. They had all overworked themselves in their youth, resulting in numerous ailments in their later years.

Even with a host of ailments, they would never give up on their family affairs; they were all destined to be hardworking.

The doctor prescribed anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving medications, saying, "Take these two medications home and try them. If you feel better, stop taking them and pay attention to keeping warm and getting proper nutrition."

If there's no improvement, come back to me, and I'll switch your medication. But you need to have a check-up every six months. If the pain becomes severe, you can then get a nerve block injection.

The mother and daughter nodded in unison. Mu Shuyun held the doctor's hand and thanked him again before being helped out of the consultation room by her daughter.

After leaving the consultation room, Kong Xiuzhen took Mu Shuyun's money bag to pay for the medicine. Once the medicine was ready, Kong Xiuzhen helped her mother out of the hospital.

Mu Shuyun sat on the curb at the hospital entrance, waiting for Kong Xiuzhen to push the cart.

The tricycle was pushed over, and Kong Xiuzhen helped Mu Shuyun sit down shakily.

Once Mu Shuyun was settled, Kong Xiuzhen got on the tricycle and pedaled hard towards her older sister's house.

She needed to go to her eldest sister's house first to tell her about her mother's condition, otherwise all the sisters would be worried.

Back at her eldest sister's house, Kong Xiuzhen showed her all the medical reports and medications. Kong Xiujuan, who had never been to school and couldn't read at all, was extremely anxious.

She said, "Oh, Xiuzhen, just tell me what illness our mother has, how serious it is, and whether it can be cured. I don't need to look at the prescription; I can't read."

Kong Xiuzhen knew her eldest sister was an impatient person, but she didn't expect her to be in such a hurry. She slowly explained, "The doctor said it's rheumatoid arthritis, which can't be cured completely, but the condition can be controlled."

When Kong Xiujuan heard that "it can't be cured completely" meant there was no way to cure it, she also despaired.

Kong Xiuzhen added, "However, the doctor said to try the medication first and see how it goes. If it doesn't work, we'll switch to another medication. The worst-case scenario is some kind of nerve block injection, but they said we can only have it three times. After that, we'll have to take medication for years."

Kong Xiujuan finally understood that this was a chronic disease that could never be completely cured.

"Oh!" she sighed deeply, feeling sorrow for her mother.

Mu Shuyun, however, has come to terms with it. She now feels that as long as she can spend more time with her children and grandchildren in her remaining years, that's enough. She is not as frustrated as her daughter.

She smiled and comforted her two daughters instead.