Chapter 150 Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic

The situation in the second room was quite dire; I glanced at it and then turned and left.

The third room was quite unique; I had never seen such decor in this small town before.

The house is quite large, with a spacious living room and an elegant Chinese style in its decor.

There was a nice tea set on the dining table in the living room, but nothing else.

Then I went into the kitchen and bedroom, both of which were clean, tidy, and very spacious.

It seems there's not much here; it looks like a house where only an elderly person lives alone, and there are no living supplies at all.

I'm still a little unwilling to accept this; I always feel that there should be something special about this renovation.

Continuing inside, the door was locked, so I smashed it open with the baseball bat I always carry.

Upon opening the door, one finds a study with a long row of bookshelves on the right, filled with various books.

To the left of the study are two rows of cabinets, each with a small compartment and a pull ring; they look somewhat familiar.

Oh, I remember now, it's the cabinet for Chinese herbal medicine!

Could this be the home of an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor? I left the house and saw some faint writing on the wall by the door, something unclear, something about a hall.

Just by looking at the character "堂" (tang), you can tell he's a traditional Chinese medicine doctor.

Unlike big cities, where traditional Chinese medicine clinics have formal signs and storefronts, small towns are different.

In remote towns like those in Inner Mongolia, traditional Chinese medicine clinics are often run directly from individuals' homes, and as long as all the necessary permits and licenses are in order, it's not illegal.

I quickly ran to the cabinet of Chinese herbal medicines, pulled the tab to open the drawer, and found a thick, transparent plastic bag inside. The plastic bag contained saffron.

I picked up a little saffron and smelled it. It smelled awful, so it seemed the medicinal effects were still there.

Suddenly, I had a strong urge to possess the entire medicine cabinet. I stood back and examined the cabinet.

This medicine cabinet has ten drawers horizontally and ten drawers vertically, and each drawer has the names of two kinds of medicinal materials written on it.

It seems that each drawer needs to contain two kinds of medicinal herbs.

Suddenly I noticed a gap in the middle of the medicine cabinet. I looked closer and realized that the medicine cabinet was not a single piece, but was made up of four smaller medicine cabinets pieced together.

The small medicine cabinet has five drawers horizontally and five drawers vertically. If you only look at this small medicine cabinet, it's something I could actually move.

It seems like I might be able to bring the entire medicine cabinet home.

I tried to move one of the small medicine cabinets; it was much heavier than I had imagined, but not entirely impossible.

I quickly ran out, drove the car to the door of the house, and then tried to move the medicine cabinet.

With great effort, they moved the small medicine cabinet on the upper shelf to the ground. They moved it forward a few steps with great force; it was quite heavy, and the cabinet was made of very sturdy materials.

They moved it little by little, and it didn't take long to move the first small medicine cabinet next to the car.

With all his might, he lifted the small medicine cabinet onto the car in one go.

Wow, this thing is so heavy! I strained so hard my face turned red.

However, I really felt that this thing could save my life, so I risked my life and lifted all four cabinets onto the car in one go.

Having only medicinal herbs isn't enough; I also need a whole row of books on traditional Chinese medicine, which I should study and bring along.

Empty the contents of your suitcase, then carry it to the bookshelf, carefully browsing through the items while avoiding disturbing the bookshelf.

Buy any book whose title contains phrases like "Complete Collection of Traditional Chinese Medicine", "Complete Collection of Prescriptions", "Encyclopedia of Medicinal Herbs", or "Folk Remedies".

I won't take the really advanced ones.

I didn't stop until I had filled most of the suitcase with books.

There are several small doors in the middle of the bookshelf, but they are all locked.

I looked around and saw a fairly large writing desk between the medicine cabinet and the bookshelf. I found a set of keys in the pen holder on the writing desk.

I tried each key one by one, and all four small locks opened.

Inside the first three doors, I found a mercury sphygmomanometer, a stethoscope, a bag of silver needles, two small pure copper scales (professionally called "scales"), and a small bag full of tools, including small scissors and knives of various shapes, which were probably made of silver.

I put all the tools into the suitcase, and then took out a few books on acupuncture and pulse diagnosis from the bookshelf.

Now that you've got the tools, the instruction manual should be included.

I've taken it, but whether I'll actually learn it when I get back is another matter.

The last door was full of small packets of seeds, with the names of the seeds written on the outside of the plastic bags.

This is what truly has value for me.

Once we grow the medicinal herbs and have the prescriptions, we'll never be afraid of getting sick again. Why didn't I think of that when I was stockpiling supplies!

There was a solid metal medicine grinder on the ground. I almost strained my back just bending over to lift it.

First, they put the entire suitcase of contents into the car, then they came back and carried the huge, heavy medicine grinder up as well.

The medicine grinder can not only grind medicine, but also rice and flour. It is much easier to grind by stepping on it back and forth than by turning the stone mill by hand.

After carefully closing the door of the traditional Chinese medicine shop, I didn't bother looking for anything else and drove straight home.

The kitten was no longer sleeping; it couldn't climb out of the box and was meowing.

I guessed it was hungry, so when I got home I put the milk in the refrigerator, put the kitten on the kang (heated brick bed) in the east room, poured some goat milk into a small bowl, and it lay there and licked it up.

It's much easier to care for than when Xiaodi and Xiaogua were little. At least now it can drink milk by itself and I don't need to feed it little by little.

The dogs at home haven't found the kitten yet. They just got home and there's a lot of chores to do. I haven't figured out how they get along yet.

The only option is to keep the kitten in the east room, close the door, and not let any dogs in.

Seeing the four dogs wagging their tails so happily because I came home, I shook my head, poured half a bottle of goat milk into the basin, added half a bottle of clean boiled water, grabbed a few handfuls of my own baked biscuits, mixed them in, shook it well, and put it on the ground.

The four dogs, smelling the milky and goaty aroma of the goat milk, forgot all about trying to please me and plunged into the bowl to eat voraciously.

This was the first time the third and fourth children had ever drunk goat milk, and their stingy owner had even diluted it with water.

I let out a sigh and got to work.

As Taozi suggested, the goat milk was divided into small bottles and placed in the freezer. The milk that the kitten would drink each day could be taken out and thawed in advance.

I also put the milk tofu and milk skin into the freezer. These precious dairy products deserve my serious attention.

After finishing this task, I hurried to feed the livestock at home.

First, feed the chickens and ducks. The ducks quacked loudly and came over to eat the food, looking quite hungry.

After feeding the pigs, I hurried up the mountain to cut grass for the rabbits.

I didn't stop for the first two hours after I got home.

By the time I finished everything, it was completely dark. I had experienced so much that day, and I was exhausted. I didn't want to move anymore.

I covered the truck bed with a plastic sheet and will sort out these supplies tomorrow.

The thought of my car being filled with precious medicinal herbs and books makes my dreams come true.