Chapter 545: The Decoction Was as Precious as Jade
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
w.a.n.g Yao took out the notebook he used to doc.u.ment all his cases from the clinic.
Another cancer case. He had come across a few cancer patients.
He had treated a cancer patient a while ago. His treatment was effective in that it had prolonged the patient’s life expectancy. If it was not for an unexpected incident, he could have lived longer. Another cancer patient was Wu Tongxing’s father, whose condition was better. Now, he was going to treat a third cancer patient.
After initial consultation, w.a.n.g Yao had doc.u.mented the old man’s symptoms and had come up with a treatment plan. He needed to adjust the plan before implementing it.
Treatment for all cancer patients had the same princ.i.p.al. He needed to consolidate the patient’s fundamental health and enhance the immune system to fight the cancer. He also needed to remove the tumors and reduce pain. It was important to eliminate the cause of the illness.
The decoction contained ginseng, ganoderma, and licorice to enhance one’s immune system, and half leaf of Bajiaotong to reduce pain. One decoction had two functions.
As for the price of the decoction, w.a.n.g Yao hadn’t decided since the old man was a fellow villager. The old man’s son had changed and been treating his father well.
w.a.n.g Yao decided to brew the decoction the next day. He put a sign on the door indicating he was away from the clinic.
After he returned to Nanshan Hill that night, he prepared all the herbs for the decoction he was going to brew the next day. He planned to brew two decoctions. One was regather soup. The other was Connection ointment, which could fix any damage in the body.
The sun rose as usual the next morning. A unique smell of herbs wafted out of the cottage.
It was relatively easy to brew the Regather soup since he had brewed it many times before.
…
In Beijing, Song Ruiping had a guest.
“Ruiping, you see, Zhenghe has reached the age to get married. Xiaoxue is 25. I think they would make a lovely couple,” Li Tongxiu said.
“Tongxiu, I think we have to ask if Zhenghe and Xiaoxue want to marry each other. You know Xiaoxue has just recovered from a horrible disease. We need to respect her wishes.” Song Ruiping didn’t completely turn Li Tongxiu down.
“OK, let’s ask Xiaoxue,” Li Tongxiu said.
Although marriage arranged by parents was out of date, in some families, parents still had a strong say in their child’s marriage.
“We should respect the kids,” Li Tongxiu added with a smile.
She left Song Ruiping’s house smiling. Even after she had gotten into the car, her smile hadn’t waned.
She’s definitely not happy. Watching Li Tongxiue leaving, Song Ruiping knew she had probably upset Li Tongxiu since she sort of turned her down.
Guo Zhenghe was peeling an orange at home. He stood up immediately when he heard someone opening the door.
“What did they say, Mom?” Guo Zhenghe anxiously asked.
“Same excuse as last time,” Li Tongxiu said with a smile.
“I see. Have some orange first.” Guo Zhenghe was still smiling. No one could tell what was on his mind.
“You are really a good-tempered boy,” Li Tongxiu said as she looked at her son.
Most young men Guo Zhenghe’s age would have been upset or disappointed at the news. However, he still appeared calm and pleasant. Li Tongxiu was very proud of her son. As a government officer, he should never show his emotion on his face.
“Same old excuse… Can’t she be a bit creative?” Guo Zhenghe took a bite of the orange, which was sweet and juicy.
“Zhenghe, you have a lot of compet.i.tors. I heard your Uncle He and Uncle Cheng also want Xiaoxue to be their daughter-in-law. Both of them have spoken to Xiaoxue’s parents. I saw Xiaoxue again today. She is such a pretty girl, like a fairy in a painting,” Li Tongxiu said.
She had seen many pretty girls. Su Xiaoxue was definitely one of the prettiest.
“Your son always has sharp eyes for beauties,” Guo Zhenghe said.
“I b.u.mped into Mr. Yuan the other day. He had read Xiaoxue’s face and said she was like a dead tree coming back to life, a b.u.t.terfly coming out of the coc.o.o.n. She is a very fortunate girl. Her face indicated fortune,” Li Tongxiu said.
“Hmm!” Guo Zhenghe nodded.
People from prestigious families were often quite superst.i.tious.
“You need to make an effort to marry Xiaoxue,” Li Tongxiu said.
“Will Dad come back for work next week?” Guo Zhenghe asked.
“Yes,” Li Tongxiu said.
“Maybe ask Dad to talk to Uncle Su?” Guo Zhenghe suggested as he gave his mother an orange.
“OK, I’ll speak to your dad,” Li Tongxiu said.
Meanwhile, Song Ruiping was talking about the same thing with Su Xiaoxue.
“What did Auntie Li come here for?” Su Xiaoxue asked.
“She came for you,” Song Ruiping said.
“She wants me to marry Zhenghe?” Su Xiaoxue asked with a smile.
“Yeah, she wants you to marry her precious son,” Song Ruiping said.
Su Xiaoxue didn’t hold back her feelings. “I don’t like him.”
“Well, tell Mommy, you like w.a.n.g Yao, right?” This was the first time Song Ruiping asked her daughter this question.
“Yes,” Su Xiaoxue said without hesitation.
I was right about this! Song Ruiping sighed. “Why? Because he cured you?”
“That is just one of the reasons. I don’t know how to tell you. I just like him, really like him,” Su Xiaoxue said. “Do I need reasons to like someone?” She was like a young girl falling in love for the first time in her life.
“Silly girl,” Song Ruiping said.
“Come sit here.” She dragged her daughter to sit next to her. “Have you thought about if he’s fallen love with someone else?”
“I would give him my blessing then,” Su Xiaoxue said.
Song Ruiping suddenly felt a bit sad. “You have my support no matter what you decide to do.”
She held Su Xiaoxue in her arms. She then went straight to the cottage where Chen Ying stayed as soon as she walked out of her daughter’s room.
“h.e.l.lo, Ma’am.” Chen Ying was a bit surprised to see Song Ruiping, who rarely came to the cottage unless w.a.n.g Yao was there.
“I want to ask you something,” Song Ruiping said.
“Sure,” Chen Ying said.
“I remember you mentioned last time that Dr. w.a.n.g has a girlfriend, right?” Song Ruiping asked.
“Yes, her name is Tong Wei. I’ve seen her here once,” Chen Ying said.
“What is she like?” Song Ruiping asked.
“She’s an extraordinary girl,” Chen Ying said.
“Where does she live?” Song Ruiping asked.
“In Dao.” Chen Ying then told Song Ruiping where Tong Wei worked.
“I see.” Song Ruiping asked a few questions related to Chen Zhou and left the cottage.
Why did she ask about Tong Wei? Chen Ying was a bit confused by the sudden visit from Song Ruiping. Is it because of Xiaoxue?
“Well, I don’t know if this is a good thing or not,” Chen Ying murmured with a sigh.
…
w.a.n.g Yao was brewing Connection ointment on Nanshan Hill. He had already prepared for the herbs and purchased feilaifeng from the medicine shop using bonus points.
Panax notoginseng, achyranthes, draconis sanguis… w.a.n.g Yao put the herbs into the pot one by one.
The color of the decoction changed gradually from light blue to dark blue. The liquid in the pot became thicker and thicker as more herbs were added.
Initially, the decoction was as clear as water. It gradually became as thick as honey. Finally, it turned into a gum-like material. An ointment was supposed to be thick and sticky.
w.a.n.g Yao was squatting next to the fire. He was constantly stirring the decoction. He didn’t add any water into the pot. He only added firewood from time to time.
The sun had reached the highest point of the day.
The decoction had become very thick. w.a.n.g Yao filtrated the decoction again and removed the dregs.
Normally, the process of making ointment contained many steps, such as frying the herbs, alchemy, refining, and removing heat poison. w.a.n.g Yao only took advantage of the herbs’ nature to make the ointment.
He brewed and filtered the decoction several times. Whatever was left inside the multifunctional pot for herbs became dark green and extremely thick and sticky.
Almost done! w.a.n.g Yao moved the pot away from the fire. He place the pot next to the pond outside to allow it to cool down.
San Xian came out of his dog house once he heard w.a.n.g Yao’s footsteps. He came to the pot and looked at the dark-green ointment inside.
“Don’t get too close, San Xian.” w.a.n.g Yao patted the dog’s head with a smile. The dog sat quietly next to him.
The ointment inside the pot gradually cooled down. The nature of the ointment was changing as it cooled. The color of the ointment became much clearer, like jelly. A full pot of decoction eventually turned into a bowl of ointment.
“Done,” w.a.n.g Yao said.
He put all the ointment into a porcelain cup with a round lid.