Chapter 8 — Medicinal Garden After Hospital

Three days after the tense meeting with Mr. Truong Gia Bach, Bao Nam found Quyen at the pharmacy counter right after the morning shift, holding a document printed out from email in his hand, his eyes filled with seriousness. “I have news from a journalist friend,” he said, his voice low. "It seems the situation is more complicated than I thought."

Quyen received the document and read each line attentively. It is an investigation article that has not been officially published, recording how Kim Thai Pharmaceutical Company was behind a similar project in another mountainous district three years ago - buying a land for growing traditional medicinal herbs with the promise of sustainable development, but then exploiting it completely, converting the land use purpose to building a luxury resort, causing dozens of medicinal farming households there to lose their livelihoods.

“This is exactly what I always feared would happen,” Quyen said, her voice heavy with concern. "They don't really care about conservation, but are just looking to legitimize land grabbing with fancy promises."

"The problem is, this article has not yet been fully verified to be officially published," Bao Nam explained, his voice somewhat regretful. "My friend said, the newsroom is still collecting more evidence and specific witnesses before it can be publicly announced. But at least, this is an important source of reference information for us to be more cautious."

Quyen nodded and carefully put the documents in a separate folder that she was building for the project. She decided not to use this unverified information publicly, but it strengthened her resolve to persuade the hospital board to maintain its stance of not selling the land to any third party.

That afternoon, while Quyen was in the garden with her father taking care of the newly planted garden bed, a guest unexpectedly visited. That is Mrs. Cao Thi Yen, an elderly woman living in town, who was a familiar patient of Quyen's mother many years ago.

"Miss Quyen, I heard you're trying your best to keep this garden," Mrs. Yen said, her voice shaking with age but her mind still clear. "I want to tell you, fifteen years ago, it was your mother who saved my grandson's life, when he had a high fever and convulsions and the higher level hospital couldn't help, so he had to move back home to wait..." she hesitated, unable to finish her sentence.

Quyen listened attentively, moved by the emotional story that Mrs. Yen was telling. "My mother used traditional medicine, combined with acupuncture, to take care of the baby for three days and three nights without stopping," Mrs. Yen continued, her voice choked. "Up to now, my grandson is still healthy and studying at university in the city. If it weren't for his mother that day, perhaps my family would have lost a precious life."

Ms. Yen's story made Quyen feel moved. This is one of hundreds of similar stories that her mother has quietly written during her thirty years of working in medicine, stories that perhaps even Quyen herself has never known. "Thank you for telling me this precious story," Quyen said, her voice filled with emotion. "I will do my best to preserve the garden, so that stories like this can continue to be written in the future."

"If you need it, I am ready to testify and write a petition along with many other people in this town," Ms. Yen suggested, her eyes filled with unwavering determination. "We owe your family so much gratitude, it's time we could do something in return."

Ms. Yen's suggestion was like a new light, opening up a direction for Quyen that she had never thought of before - mobilizing support from the community, those who had been directly helped by her mother. She realized that the greatest persuasive power lies not only in dry scientific research numbers, but also in the true, vivid stories about the value that the garden has brought to the community over the years.

That evening, Quyen shared this idea with Mr. Loc and Bao Nam. "If we can collect many stories like Ms. Yen's, combined with scientific evidence, I believe, our proposal will have much more weight," Bao Nam commented, his eyes full of excitement. "This is not just about her family anymore, it has become the story of an entire community."

Mr. Loc also nodded in agreement, his eyes shining with pride. "I can help you contact many other families who were treated by your mother," he suggested. "He still clearly remembers the list of difficult cases that she has successfully treated over the years."

The new plan was quickly implemented. In the following days, Quyen and Mr. Loc visited each family on the list, listening and recording each touching story about the times they were helped by Mrs. Sen.

One of the families they visited was the home of Mr. Tang Van Sung, a farmer living in a village near the town, who had been bitten by a poisonous snake ten years ago. "At that time, the commune health station did not have anti-venom serum, so we had to be transferred to the provincial hospital, which took nearly four hours through the forest," he recounted, his voice still filled with the fear of that day. "Mrs. Sen gave me first aid right on the spot with traditional medicine to stop the bleeding and temporarily detoxify, so I was able to hold out until I got to the provincial hospital in time. The doctor there also said that if I had been delayed another half an hour, I probably wouldn't have been able to keep my life."

Another family, Mrs. Dinh Thi Men's, told the story of her young daughter who suffered from severe malnutrition, stunted growth, and slow growth for many years despite using all kinds of expensive supplements. "Mrs. Sen persistently took medicine and taught me how to prepare suitable dishes for nearly a year, without taking any money," Mrs. Men said, tears welling up in her eyes. "Now my daughter is tall, healthy and normal like any other child, and is in twelfth grade at the district school."

The more stories she heard, the more Quyen understood the profound influence her mother had built during her thirty years in the medical profession - not simply through successful medical treatments, but also a strong network of affection and gratitude between her and countless families in the area. She began carefully recording each story in a separate notebook, with each family's signature and confirmation, preparing to include it in the appendix of the project.

Each new story strengthens Quyen's belief in the true value of the legacy her mother left behind, and gives her the strength to continue the battle to protect the garden, which is becoming more and more difficult and complicated.

After nearly a week of traveling around villages near and far in the commune, Quyen and Mr. Loc have collected more than twenty touching stories, accompanied by full confirmation signatures of each family. One evening, while synthesizing all the documents, Quyen couldn't help but feel moved by the huge amount of things her mother had silently contributed throughout her life, without ever giving credit to anyone.

"You know, I used to think that I knew my mother better than anyone in this world," Quyen told Mr. Loc, her voice deep and thoughtful. "But through each story like this, I realize that perhaps I only know a very small part of who my mother is."

"That's also what most children experience in their lives," Mr. Loc replied, his voice warm and contemplative after many years of experience. "Parents always dedicate the most beautiful part of their lives to work and to others, and sometimes their biological children are the last to know. But I believe, knowing these precious things now, even if it's a bit late, is better than never knowing."

Quyen nodded, her hand gently caressing the thick file containing so many touching stories she had just collected. Her heart was filled with determination to use these true testimonies to fully protect the legacy that her mother had worked so hard to build, not letting it fall into the hands of those who only see the commercial value but forget the profound human meaning hidden inside each story, each tree, each medicine that has saved so many people.