I have a magical tree

On the fifth day after Ge Lao's retreat, Xu Dao's life remained calm and uneventful.

He did not dislike this peaceful life. Some people might find it boring, but he knew how rare this kind of world and this kind of peace were.

It still did not rain, and the weather was getting hotter and hotter. Walking on the road, the heat was visible to the naked eye, and the stone slabs seemed like red-hot irons.

Many places had cracked with cracks as wide as the palm of a hand. This kind of ghost weather has lasted for a long time, but it is not known how long it will continue.

There are more and more refugees outside the city, but the increase in refugees has brought false prosperity to the county town. Because more and more refugees are pouring into the city to work and make a living.

I heard that the wages at the docks and in the market are getting lower and lower, but even so, many people can't find work.

These people who have no extra money can only starve once they can't find work. That is, now is not the cold winter. Cold and hunger are the two things that are most likely to take the lives of ordinary people.

The entire outer market seemed to be in chaos suddenly. This change is very obvious, and he has seen the bodies of hungry people on the roadside more than once.

The horrible high temperature caused these people to swell and stink within half a day after death, and they needed to be cleaned up as soon as possible, so there were suddenly many more corpse transporters on the streets, one by one, sending them to the crematorium.

The black smoke from the tall chimney of the crematorium became thicker and thicker. Even though he was actually far away, he still had the illusion that he could smell the stench of the burning corpses.

In such a situation, death is inevitable, after all, high temperatures can also kill people.

On both sides of the road, the trees that were originally lush and leafy had become bare at some point, and even the bark was stripped off. The grass and trees outside the city were actually the same.

He went out to see that those trees that survived the drought and high temperature were not spared by the hungry people after all.

Those refugees stuffed everything they could eat on the ground into their stomachs. The only thing they could be thankful for was that the river outside the city had not stopped flowing.

In fact, the black mountain not far away was still green and there was a lot of food to eat. It's just that these hungry people never thought about going there, as if it was a taboo. They only thought about staying away from the rolling mountains.

Those hungry people may not have much knowledge, but there is one thing, that is, the danger and weirdness of the Black Mountain have been preserved because of the old people's legends from generation to generation. And it has been rooted in the soul since childhood!

But Xu Dao also understood that this kind of restraint and fear will eventually have a limit. Hunger can really drive people crazy, making them forget fear and those taboos.

When they arrived at the clinic, there were already guests waiting before the door opened.

A skinny woman curled up on a shabby reed mat, and there was another small figure sitting next to her, hugging her knees, shivering, hiding her whole body in the shade under the eaves to avoid the scorching sun.

The dark and dry skin was tightly attached to the child's tiny bones. Xu Dao almost thought he saw a living skeleton, but only the eyes were still bright.

Seeing Xu Dao coming, the child did not speak, did not beg, and did not make any extra movements. He just raised one arm, spread out his palm like a chicken claw, revealing a few coins inside, and then looked at the woman on the reed mat.

Xu Dao did not take the money, but came to the side of the reed mat, stretched out his hand and put it on the woman's wrist. After a long time, he shook his head.

There is no hope. If this woman had come earlier, he might have been able to save her. It was nothing more than using more good medicinal materials. But now her organs are exhausted and her mind is exhausted. Even if he sends her health-preserving energy, it will be useless. It's like a leaky jar. No matter how much water is poured into it, it can't be filled.

The light in the child's eyes suddenly dimmed, even if Xu Dao claimed that he had already tempered his heart of stone, he couldn't help but feel a little bit of pity. But there is no hope!

The child handed over a few copper coins in his hand again. Xu Dao didn't take them, so he put them on the stone slab under the eaves, then got up with difficulty, grabbed the two corners of the reed mat and prepared to leave.

Xu Dao then realized that this was the medical fee he paid!

Xu Dao reached out and picked up a few coins on the ground, and stuffed them back into the child's hand, "No treatment, no money!"

The child was puzzled, but did not refuse, just dragged the reed mat and prepared to leave.

Then, he fell straight down less than ten feet away from the clinic.

"Alas!" Xu Dao sighed, "It is fate that we meet!"

He gave himself an excuse, then came under the sun, picked up the child with one hand, brought him back, and then carried the woman on the reed mat back to the clinic.

First, he checked the child's pulse. Fortunately, he was just hungry, but for the woman, he really couldn't do anything. Apart from feeding her some water, he seemed to be unable to do much.

Xu Dao went to the backyard to cook some meat porridge. Before the two bowls of meat porridge got cold, the child woke up!

"Drink the porridge first!" Xu Dao held the medical book without turning his head.

The child looked down at the two bowls of meat porridge in front of her, her Adam's apple rolled involuntarily, but she shook her head.

"I don't have money, I have to keep those few coins!" This was the first time the child spoke, and Xu Dao was surprised to hear that she was a girl.

"No money! You drink it first, and then we'll talk. The bowl next to it is for your mother."

The little girl was silent for a long time, then held the bowl of porridge, almost pouring it out, and swallowed the bowl of porridge in three or two mouthfuls. As for the spoon prepared for her next to it, she didn't use it at all.

Xu Dao was stiff for a moment, put down the book, stood up and came to the little girl, and then used a silver needle to prick the acupuncture points to forcibly wake up the woman who was already in the dying state.

Looking at the surprise in the little girl's eyes, Xu Dao ruthlessly broke it, "I forcibly intercepted her breath. When this breath dissipates, your mother will die!"

The woman slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She first saw the little girl in front of her, and then looked at Xu Dao.

She was about to speak, but Xu Dao waved his hand, "Have a bowl of porridge first!"

The little girl began to feed the woman porridge, one mouthful after another, and the woman ate it very sweetly. It was impossible to tell that this was a dying person.

When she finished the last mouthful of porridge, she sighed with satisfaction, and then suddenly held the little girl's hand.

Then she died without a word. There was no touching last words, no begging or thanks, just with the satisfaction of being full, she died just like that! Perhaps she had used all her desire for life to wait until the last mouthful of porridge was eaten.

The little girl looked at the woman who took her last breath, a little dazed, no sadness or pain, no tears in her eyes, just staring blankly at the woman's hand still holding her arm.