Chapter 149

After hearing his friend’s complaints, Xu Yi turned around and took him to climb the mountain to dig for herbs.

"Take this thing. If you encounter a snake, swing it. If you can kill it, kill it. Don't run away." Xu Yi threw the hatchet to him. "If you can't kill it, just shout. I'll be right next to you."

Xing Yuesen looked down at the hatchet at his feet and was silent for a long time.

"Are you serious?" He felt his throat was dry and itchy and wanted to cough.

Xu Yi said solemnly: "You can't read now. The stagnation in your chest is easy to get sick, so

you need to clear it."

"I am the doctor, or are you the doctor?" Xu Yi raised his eyebrows .

Xing Yuesen couldn't refute this and shut up.

Seeing that he was being honest, Xu Yi also breathed a sigh of relief, raised his hand and patted his shoulder: "Brother Xing, I won't coax you. I will send A Xu to the house to find you tomorrow. This time it's not climbing a mountain. It's about enjoying your life. If you agree, I'll take you on a trip to see something different."

Xing Yuesen said quietly, "Okay, I'll follow you."

He couldn't read at the moment. , I couldn’t calm down, and I couldn’t go home.

If not, just listen to Xu Yi. He had never experienced the hardship of climbing mountains to dig for medicinal materials before.

Immediately, he stopped hesitating and put on the tight-fitting clothes with narrow sleeves that Xu Yi brought to him.

Xu Yi watched him change his clothes, then handed him a snake repellent medicine pack and asked him to tie it around his waist.

I also took some powdered medicine and sprinkled some on his feet and shoes.

"Everything is ready, let's go." Xu Yi said to him and pointed to the bamboo basket on the ground next to him.

Naturally, this bamboo basket is not half a person tall, but was bought anew later to take A Xu up the mountain.

It is the size of a normal bamboo basket. In addition to the hatchets, there are also skin bags filled with water, medical bags containing emergency medicine, and their lunch.

Xing Yuesen has been carrying a bookcase to school since he was a child. Carrying a bamboo basket is not a problem for him.

He and Xu Yi got on Uncle Liu's ox cart and walked leisurely out of the city gate under the sun.

Uncle Liu knew that Xing Yuesen in the car was a scholar, and he could not feel as comfortable with him as Xu Yi.

Among ordinary people, everyone can be an official. If you are offended a little, you will not be able to live with it in the future.

He respectfully said to the two people in the car: "Five miles ahead, we will reach the high mountain."

When Xing Yuesen heard the name of the mountain, he couldn't help but read a poem: "The horse head sees the salt pavilion, the high mountain embraces the county green, and the clouds The flowers in the stream are light and the spring water is cool." [Note 1]

After saying this, he sighed: "When I came back to the mountain, I was still chatting and laughing with my classmates in the pavilion above, and we were so happy."

"This is the poem of the great poet Du Fu . , It's really wonderful." Xu Yi raised his chin slightly, squinting and looking into the distance, the rolling green mountains and lush trees.

This high mountain is one of the tops of Fudai Mountain. It is famous for the Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu who left a famous poem here and the legend of "Zhang Rong Killed the Python".

Standing on the top of the mountain, you can overlook the entire Yanting County. Because of its fame, more and more literati came to climb the mountain. Xu Yi didn't like overly busy mountains and forests, so he rarely came to this mountain to dig herbs.

When the ox cart reached the foot of the mountain, Xu Yi saw several carts and horses parked beside the tea shed at the foot of the mountain.

The owners of the tea shed are an elderly couple with limited mobility.

Seeing a new vehicle coming, I turned around and asked if I could rest in the shed.

Uncle Liu took out a copper coin and gave it to him and asked for a bowl of tea.

Xu Yi and Xing Yuesen didn't stop much. They carried bamboo baskets on their backs and headed for the mountain road.

This time, it was Xing Yuesen who was still carrying the bamboo basket carrying things.

He didn't complain at all. He looked up at the mountain and saw a wide mountain road in front of him that could accommodate several people.

This mountain road is made by people, which shows that there are many people who come to climb the mountain.

"I wonder if it will be lively on the mountain today." Xing Yuesen muttered.

Xu Yi heard this and looked back at him: "You want to go

?

" It became heavier and something slipped from his forehead. He wiped the sweat with his sleeve and asked Xu Yi, who was walking leisurely in front: "When will we stop to dig for medicinal materials?"

Xu Yi breathed steadily and said: "Don't worry, we will be there soon. "

After he finished speaking, he asked Xing Yuesen to follow his pace.

The two of them no longer climbed up, but turned around and moved towards a horizontal position.

Leaving the mountain road, the surrounding vegetation becomes denser.

Every time Xing Yuesen takes a step, he needs to use the back of the hatchet to wave away the branches of shrubs growing wantonly around him.

Many plants and trees that I had never seen before appeared in front of me.

He gradually figured out the difference and understood why Xu Yi gave up walking on the mountain road and went inside instead.

"No one seems to be coming in this forest?" Xing Yuesen looked left and right, but saw no sign of anyone walking by.

Xu Yi didn't look back, his eyes casually fell on the vegetation growing around him.

He said calmly: "Yes, there are many people outside the city who make a living by digging herbs. In order to dig out more herbs, some will venture in."

However, those who have the courage to come in have more or less skills.

Otherwise, if you encounter a venomous snake blocking your way, you will basically return in vain.

Moreover, I know a lot of medicinal materials. I only recognize a few medicinal materials, but I can't dig out enough herbs to subsidize my family.

"Look, there is a croton tree there."

Xu Yi and Xing Yuesen walked to the croton tree. The tree was several meters high and had bunches of green capsules the size of grapes.

However, this capsule looks like a mini version of a small lantern, with three bracts in the shape and tiny hairs growing on them.

When Xing Yuesen heard the name of the medicine, he immediately thought of something: "Will eating this croton cause diarrhea?"

Xu Yi smiled: "Croton relieves phlegm and can break up cold accumulation. This is only one of its effects, causing diarrhea and chest and abdominal distension. All acute pain and sore throat, wind and sore throat can be cured.”

He picked a green capsule into his hand, opened the outer buds, and took out the tender croton inside.

At this time, the outer shell of the croton is still green, and the seeds growing inside are used.

Each cell has three petals, and each petal has a seed. Three crotons can be taken out from each capsule.

Unfortunately, we have to wait until after August, when the capsule matures and turns deep yellow, before it can be harvested.

By that time, the croton seeds inside will also turn dark brown.

Xing Yuesen couldn't help but listen carefully as he listened to Xu Yi's eloquent talk.

When Xu Yi stopped, he exclaimed: "This digging of medicinal materials requires a lot of attention. It's hard for you, brother Yi, to run up the mountain every day."

Xu Yi wiped his hands with the leaves of croton and said, "Let's go. "

Xing Yuesen looked at the croton tree in confusion: "Are we leaving like this?"

"Yes." Xu Yi nodded, "Someone marked this croton tree. Look, there is a knife mark about ten inches on the trunk. , this person discovered it before us.

Xing Yuesen looked along the place he said, and he saw the mark made with a knife. It seemed that the bark had not grown yet, so Xing Yuesen

might have just discovered it in the past two days.

He raised his eyebrows. He didn't understand the rules and asked, "The trees on the mountain are all ownerless. If he discovered them first, can't he pick them?"

Xu Yi looked at him and said, "You can pick it if you want, but there is more than one croton tree on the mountain, so why do you have to fight for it with others? " "

​

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​, and found that there was no mark on it.

Immediately, he looked at Xu Yi in a good mood: "Does this tree belong to us? "

"It doesn't count. "Xu Yi shook his head as if he was contradicting him.

But he still took out his knife and made a mark on it.

Seeing Xing Yuesen's incomprehensible look, he explained: "You are talking about this thing on the mountain. They are all ownerless things. Anyone can dig them up and mark them. This is actually to let oneself remember where these things are. "

Then why did you say that again..." Xing Yuesen couldn't help but want to ask.

Xu Yi said casually: "It has been marked. I can't guarantee that its capsule will still be there when I come to pick it next time. Will come up short. Xing Yuesen

was stunned at first, and then laughed heartily: "I am a few years older than you, but my life is not as clear as yours. You can dig up herbs and tell great truths." "

Xu Yi laughed, but he really thought so in his heart. Xing Yuesen seemed to have misunderstood the meaning of his words.

But looking at the meaning of his words, maybe it was a good thing.

Xu Yi did not correct him. Xing Yuesen should be disappointed in the examination room. Looking for a way to vent his emotions,

he took him to the mountains to dig for medicinal materials.

They walked around in the mountains and forests.

When they encountered medicinal materials that could be collected, Xu Yi taught him how to dig them. Xing Yuesen's business skills were very immature, and he damaged several rhizomes.

Xu Yi was easy to talk to, and he didn't get angry when he saw that he had damaged the roots.

The more he behaved, the more Xing Yuesen wanted to do it well. .

In just over two hours, he was exhausted.

Seeing the sun gradually setting above his head, Xu Yi said, "Let's take a break and eat something before continuing." "

"good. "Xing Yuesen was so tired that he didn't want to talk anymore.

He didn't care about his image, so he found a moss-covered stone and sat on it.

He put the bamboo basket on his back on the ground, took out his skin bag, and poured water into it.

He quenched his thirst. He finally felt like he was alive, so he went to look at Xu Yi, who was sitting on a clean stone next to him,

only to find that except for a little sweat on his forehead, Xu Yi's clothes were clean, and only his shoes were stained with mud.

It was when they were washing the mud from the roots of white peony while they were passing by a stream. Xu Yi accidentally stepped on a piece of wet ground and got it stained.

Looking at him again, his sleeves had two cuts, and there was a lot of dirt on the hem of his gown, and his shoes. ...It was even more terrible. He couldn't tell the original appearance.

Why was the gap so big?

He was obviously following Xu Yi and followed him

. water, took out the cloth bag containing dry food from the bamboo basket on his back, and opened the oil-paper bag.

Inside was Lin's lard version of wheat cake, one piece of which was as big as an adult's face.

"Here, just drink some water. "Xu Yi took a piece and handed the rest to Xing Yuesen.

Xing Yuesen took it. He was so hungry that he didn't care whether the food was cold or hot. He smelled the fragrance of wheat and lard, and his mouth secreted He ate it quickly.

He didn't eat this kind of dry food in the past, even when he was going to Shuntian Mansion for the exam.

They ate it directly in the inn. Although the food was not delicacies, it was still delicious. Xing Yuesen

found the dry wheat cake very fragrant and tasted better than he thought.

Xu Yi saw that he was really hungry

after they finished eating .

He went to lift the bamboo basket Xu Yi was carrying, but he almost failed to lift it for the first time.

His face showed surprise: "It's so heavy?

Xu Yi said: "This bamboo basket can hold nearly a stone if it is full. " "

That's about 120 kilograms.

Xing Yuesen decisively gave up and continued trying. He might as well carry his own bamboo basket.

...

At three o'clock in the morning, Xu Yi took the stumbling Xing Yuesen down the mountain.

Drinking tea in the tea shed, Uncle Liu, who was chatting leisurely with other handlebars, almost lost his balance

with the tea bowl in his hand when he saw Xing Yuesen limping down behind Xu Yi. He trotted over on his handlebars and said, "Doctor Xu, what's wrong with Mr. Xing?" "

"It 's okay.

" Give him a hand and let him carry the bamboo basket behind him.

Xing Yuesen looked at him and saw that he was over fifty years old. Although he was almost breathless from exhaustion, he still shook his head and refused.

There were only a few steps left, so he had to do it himself.

They quickly returned to the car. Xing Yuesen put down the bamboo basket and couldn't wait to check his feet.

He took off the tight footcloth and took off his shoes and socks. All ten of his toes were red and swollen, with blisters. He grinned in pain at the slightest touch.

Xu Yi checked it and said: "It's not serious. I'll prescribe some medicine packs for you when you get back. You ask Amu to boil water and soak it for a quarter of an hour. Then use a sterilized silver needle to prick the herpes and apply ointment."

Xing Yuesen didn't do it either . Hypocritical, after hearing this, he nodded and put on his shoes and socks.

Then, he straightened the turban on his forehead and sat upright on the futon of the cattle cart.

On the way back to the city, he listened to Xu Yi and Uncle Liu chatting about the herbs they dug in the mountains.

One-third of the herbs dug today came from his hands.

Xu Yi was talking to Uncle Liu when he suddenly thought of something and turned to look at him: "When these medicinal materials are sold, I will give you half of it."

Xing Yuesen: "Huh?"

Xu Yi blinked: "Yes. You should get something for your work, and you will naturally get a share of the money from selling the medicinal materials."

Xing Yuesen said, "I will take the money and treat you to a drink."

"There is no need to drink." , thinking of the expensive and fat fish in hot summer, he said, "You can treat me to Chef Lu's banquet."

Xing Yuesen was so angry: "...you really dare to speak."

The next morning, Xu Yi woke up After arriving, he sent A Xu to Xing Mansion to invite people.

A Xu went there and got the news and told Xu Yi that after Xing Yuesen returned home from hiking yesterday, his feet were so sore that he almost fell next to the bed when he woke up this morning and could not come to Xu's house.

Xu Yi felt a little guilty: "..."

He didn't expect Xing Yuesen to be so weak. Yesterday, in order to take care of Xing Yuesen, he had restrained himself a lot and did not go deeper into the forest.

"You go to Xing Mansion again with the medicinal wine that activates the muscles and bones, and give me a message to let him have a good rest. I will process the medicinal materials and sell them for money, and then go to Xing Mansion to find him."

Xu Yi finished explaining A Xu, I took Ah Jin to the courtyard to dispose of the medicinal materials collected yesterday.

Three days later.

Before Xu Yi went to Xing Mansion, Xing Yuesen came first.

When he arrived, Xu Yi was treating a thirty-year-old male patient.

When Xing Yuesen came in, he saw the back of the man and felt that he was quite familiar, but he didn't think about it too much. He smiled and said to Xu Yi: "Brother Yi, you have caused me so much pain these days. I didn't give up until today." That crutch can come to you."

Before he could finish his words, the patient, who had his back turned to him, didn't know what was wrong and reacted so hard that he almost jumped up from his chair.

Xu Yi frowned and said, "This official, please don't move."

Xing Yuesen was also surprised. He took a few steps closer, but before he could reach the man, the man hurriedly picked up the clothes that had been taken off around his waist. , he lowered his head and was about to leave.

At this moment, Xing Yuesen finally recognized him: "Luo Yichun?"

Luo Yichun's identity was revealed by him, and he staggered, almost tripping over himself.

Xu Yi was right next to him, grabbing his arm with quick eyes and hands, preventing him from falling into pieces in front of his eyes.

"Why are you here?" Xing Yuesen once again saw his former youth, and he had a lot of thoughts in his heart, but he still couldn't help but care about his body.

Luo Yichun hesitated: "...I'm fine."

He avoided Xing Yuesen's scrutiny, secretly regretting why he saw Xing Yuesen at Dr. Xu's house.

From what he said just now, it seemed that the relationship between Xing Yuesen and Dr. Xu was extraordinary. Listening to Xing Yuesen's angry voice, it didn't sound like he was here to see a doctor.

Seeing that the patient was about to run away after looking at him for a while, Xu Yi raised his eyebrows and asked aloud: "Luo Guanren, do you still want to see a doctor for me?"

Luo Yichun looked ugly and tried to cover up: "I'll come back next time. "

After that, he ran away quickly without even putting on his clothes properly.

Seeing him running so fast, Xing Yuesen's eyes fell back on Xu Yi: "What disease did he come to see?"

Xu Yi said, "I can't tell you."

Xing Yuesen knew his rules and didn't say anything when he saw him. ask.

He sat on the chair next to Xu Yi and spoke slowly: "This man is my former classmate and childhood friend. Our family has business contacts, but since I passed the exam, he has stopped interacting with me."

What he didn't say was that before he passed the examination, Luo Yichun, because of his pride, actually asked him to hide his weakness and not show his strength in class to avoid being compared with him.

And because he looked down on the poor people, he gradually stayed away from Fa Xiao.

When Xu Yi heard about their relationship, his eyebrows moved: "His family is also very rich?"

Xing Yuesen looked at him and nodded.

Xu Yi curled his lips and said, "Then he comes back to see me for medical treatment next time. I'll charge more for the consultation."

Xing Yuesen: "..." So, what disease did that man have?

So much so that when he saw him coming, he left in such a panic.

"By the way, why are you here today?"

Xu Yi's voice interrupted his thoughts. "Me?"

"Come on, there are two medicines that haven't dried yet." Xu Yi took him to the open space outside the pharmacy.

In the hot summer, the medicinal materials are dried in the sun for two or three days, and they are basically dried to the point where they can be used as medicine and stored.

He pinched the Atractylodes cut into thick slices and broke it open to show Xing Yuesen.

"This is not dry enough. It needs to be dried until tomorrow, otherwise it will easily become moldy during storage."

After explaining, Xu Yi took him to the pharmacy.

The medicinal materials he had prepared in the past few days were placed in a separate medicine cabinet.

From dozens of kilograms of medicinal materials, we pick out the unusable parts, then clean the soil, remove the bad parts, and cut the remaining parts into sections, or peel and shell them, etc., and then dry them in the sun, and the amount produced is not much.

Xu Yi compiled a table based on the medical clinic's purchase price.

He showed the account list to Xing Yuesen: "The prices are all here. If you share one-third, it's sixteen cents per cent."

After working hard for a long time, he only got sixteen cents per cent, but Xing Yuesen happily took it. He took the money and put it on the table and counted it again and again.

This was the first time he had earned money with just his hands.

How could you not be happy?

On the second day, Liu Zhuang was sweeping the fallen leaves outside the door with a broom, and he caught a glimpse of a sneaky figure from the corner of his eye.

He grabbed the broom tightly and carefully moved towards the man.

"Are you the patient yesterday?" When he got closer, Liu Zhuang saw that it was the person who came to see the doctor yesterday, and asked him in confusion why he didn't come in.

Luo Yichun covered half of his face with his sleeves, looked at Liu Zhuang, who was wearing burlap and short brown clothes, frowned slightly and moved away from him, and asked reluctantly: "Is there anyone else in Dr. Xu's house?"

Liu Zhuang did not see him . With disgust in his eyes, he said honestly: "It's still early now, Lang Jun's diagnosis card hasn't been posted yet."

Luo Yichun rolled his eyes: "In other words, no one else will come here during this time. "Excuse me?"

Liu Zhuang: "Sir, are you here to see a doctor?"

Luo Yichun put down his sleeves and said impatiently: "Is it possible that you came to chat with your doctor?"

He went home in a hurry yesterday ? , ordered the servant to find out the relationship between Xing Yuesen and Dr. Xu.

You wouldn't know if you didn't check, but he was shocked when he checked.

This Xing Yuesen was actually friends with a doctor. The two had a very good relationship. There were often rumors outside that Doctor Xu had a friend who was a scholar, and this was Xing Yuesen.

Thinking that Xing Yuesen had abandoned him, his childhood friend, and instead befriended a doctor who was nothing, he became very angry.

The pain made him unable to sleep well last night and he couldn't stop having a fever in the middle of the night.

In the morning, his wife invited a doctor to see him. She said that the disease was incurable and recommended him to come to Dr. Xu.

He thought that Dr. Xu was somewhat famous in Yanting, so he couldn't help it and came here secretly again.

After gritting his teeth and coming in, Luo Yichun found that Xu Yi was not in the main room.

Instead, eat next door.

He waited in the hall for half an hour before Xu Yi arrived late.

"Sorry for keeping Luo Guanren waiting for so long." Xu Yi had a smile on his face, which made people unable to lose their temper.

Luo Yichun swallowed his frustration and asked Xu Yi to show him the large bulge on his back again.

There was a burning pain there, and at first it was just red. He and his wife thought it was coming from the heat, so they covered it with a cold towel and ignored it.

Later, the area gradually became swollen and red, and it still hurt when touched.

When he realized something was wrong, he sent for a doctor to see it and said it was a carbuncle. He tried several prescriptions, which only slightly reduced the symptoms, but failed to cure it.

Xu Yi asked Luo Yichun to take off his coat with his back turned.

Yesterday, he was halfway through his observation, but the man ran away. Today, when he looked again, he was sure it was the cucumber carbuncle he knew.

Cucumber carbuncle usually occurs on the back and waist and is so named because it looks like a cucumber.

The symptoms of Luo Yichun's cucumber carbuncle are in the middle stage. It is not too serious. The swelling is only half an inch high. Now it only causes soreness in the limbs.

Xu Yi pressed it through the handkerchief and heard Luo Yichun screaming in pain.

He changed the position again, and when he saw that there were no symptoms of ulceration inside, he withdrew his hand.

Xu Yi asked: "Does it hurt?"

"No, no." Luo Yichun felt pain from being pressed and was a little scared, "Doctor Xu, can my disease be cured?"

Xu Yi said concisely: "Yes."

After saying that, he asked Luo Yichun to put on his clothes.

Luo Yichun has a very typical physique of a scholar. His long-term lack of exercise has resulted in his limbs being inactive. In addition, he likes to go to pubs to drink and have fun. He drinks and has sex all the year round, which can be said to be weak and fat.

Seeing his pregnant belly, Xu Yi looked away and used her hands to diagnose his pulse.

"Your pulse is abnormal and weak, floating and unstable. You are not even as good as an old man." Xu Yi sighed.

Luo Yichun's face turned red and white, and he asked with a bare face: "Serious?"

Xu Yi said: "Not serious."

Luo Yichun choked: "..." It's not serious. Do you think I look like an old man?

He tried to get into the mood, but Xu Yi didn't give him a chance to express himself, and continued: "Although this cucumber carbuncle is not serious, you have kidney deficiency, body heat, and excessive spleen fire, which makes you prone to irritability and instability. "

At this time, Luo Yichun's face was not only flushed, but the corners of his mouth twitched.

How bad is his body that he has so many problems?

He was flustered when he heard that Xu Yi was a good friend of Xing Yuesen, so he would deliberately embarrass him because of this relationship. He also thought that Xu Yi's reputation in Yanting County was getting louder and louder. A person like him wouldn't do it for Xing Yuesen deliberately made things difficult for him.

Since he was hesitant, Luo Yichun planned to listen to his arrangements for the time being.

"According to what you say, then in addition to treating the cucumber carbuncle, shouldn't I also treat the spleen fire?"

Xu Yi nodded and said: "I will give you internal and external treatment first, and prescribe a life-saving drink to decoction, and then prescribe treatment. Apply the ointment for the carbuncle externally, wait until the cucumber carbuncle is almost healed, and then treat the spleen fire."

Luo Yichun's eyes widened. Drink for life?

Why does the name of this prescription sound so confusing?

He swallowed in horror, sweat dripped down uncomfortably, and asked in a low voice: "Doctor Xu, tell me the truth, my disease is not fatal, right?"

Xu Yi narrowed his eyes and smiled back at him : "Those who are small at the top are called inverse poisons and are difficult to cure, while those who are small at the bottom are said to be curable by smooth poisons [Note 2]. Luo Guanren, although your disease is not fatal, it is expensive."

Luo Yichun heard that it was not fatal and he was very angry . He breathed a sigh of relief: "No problem, no problem, I have plenty of money."

"Easy to talk about." Xu Yi called A Xu.

A Xu came in from outside the hall, saluted Luo Guanren, and then stood waiting for Xu Yi's instructions.

Xu Yi looked at him slowly and said, "Take Luo Guanren to sit in the side room for a while."

Soon, A Xu led Luo Guanren to the small house next to him.

The hut is small and decorated in a rather antique style. There are tables and chairs inside, with an incense burner and a tea tray placed above it.

The young man brought him over and said to him with a smile: "Luo Guanren, my husband's medical treatment has always been different from person to person. Your disease is difficult to cure, so the medical fees and medicine costs are also expensive for others." Some."

Luo Guanren glanced at the boy indifferently and said, "Tell me, how much does it cost?"

A Xu said, neither humble nor arrogant, "The consultation fee is one tael of silver, and the medicine fee is three taels of silver. The total is four taels of silver. ."

Luo Guanren was stunned: "How much did you say?"