Chapter 184

Erqing quickly came back with the medicine box and teapot, and was a little surprised when he saw Xu Yi pulling the old woman and saying thoughtful words without any disdain. This was a little different from the Xu Yi he knew.

At this moment, Xu Yi was chatting with the old woman about trivial matters just like he used to do to the elders in his family. The old woman obviously hadn't talked to a stranger for a long time. She felt a little uncomfortable at first, but now she was in a state of mind. Looking at Xu Yi's handsome appearance, she thought of her grandson who was a bartender.

The old woman sighed in her heart, her grandson would not say such disrespectful words.

No, in other words, even her son didn't have time to sit down and have a sip of tea with her because of the farm work in the fields.

The old woman drank the best tea she had ever tasted in her life, her eyes were filled with soreness, she looked away and wiped away the tears that overflowed from her eyes.

Xu Yi seemed not to notice and poured new tea for her.

"It's getting hotter and hotter today, so it's good to drink warm tea." Xu Yi put down the teapot, picked up the medicine box next to him, took out the pulse pillow inside, and patiently explained, "I often go to the countryside for free clinics, just to save money. With my experience in medical treatment, if you don't mind, I can diagnose Ping'an Pulse for you."

Diagnosing Ping'an Pulse is something that only wealthy families can do. The old woman was stunned for a moment before she stretched out her hand to Xu Yi.

Xu Yi, as always, was checking the pulse of the person in front of him. There are many types of people's pulses. Common ones include stringy, floating, astringent, and heavy... Xu Yi has diagnosed all of these pulse conditions, and he can see most of them at a glance. , what kind of dialectics is this pulse condition symptomatic of?

But when faced with the dialectical examination of the old woman's pulse, he hesitated.

Many years ago, he once thought about what the pulse of a dying person was like.

At that time, he rarely had the opportunity to come into contact with patients with such pulse conditions. Normally at this time, under such a severe situation, his parents would not let such a patient watch him practice.

He suppressed the extra expression on his face, retracted his hand and looked at the old woman who was looking at him expectantly. He said with a gentle smile: "There is nothing serious, but I am a little weak. I should eat more broth."

The old woman heard that she wanted to eat . Broth, with a distressed look on his face: "How expensive is this meat..."

Xu Yi smiled and said: "If you think the broth is expensive, you can also eat some chicken and crucian carp soup."

Crucian carp is not expensive this season . , a palm-sized fish sells for twelve cents a piece, which is much cheaper than meat.

But it was more expensive than chicken. Xu Yi said so. The old woman really felt that it was not as cost-effective as eating chicken.

"I have nothing else to do on weekdays, so I raise three hens in the yard." The old woman said, "I can lay one chicken every day, and I can save thirty after a month. Some are sold and some are kept. It's good to give it to your grandson."

Xu Yi was silent after hearing this. The probability of laying eggs is very low, which shows that the hens cannot be raised as carefully as in modern times.

However, Xu Yi also knows some ways to increase the probability of laying eggs.

He said to the old woman: "During the day, let the hens bask in the sun for four hours. Feed them more rice husks, vegetable roots, and snail seeds. They will also fatten them up and lay more eggs."

The old woman said . Surprisingly, she knew how to feed rice husks and vegetable roots. She used vegetables dug from the fields and vegetable roots that were too rotten to eat to feed the chickens. She also mixed the rice husk into it and fed it together. Even the insects were reluctant to throw it away.

However, she is getting older year by year, and her grandson has grown up and has a job as an errand, so she no longer feeds insects. Otherwise, she could still harvest two chickens every day.

I just didn’t expect that basking in the sun would also affect egg laying.

The old woman wrote these words down, but she couldn't pick up the snail seeds in the field.

Xu Yi gave her a note and asked her son and his wife to tie a cloth bag around their waist when they were working in the fields. When they encountered snail seeds, they would dig them in and bring them back.

The old woman nodded repeatedly: "Okay, okay, okay, I understand."

She was very grateful to Xu Yi, but she couldn't bring out anything. Even the best cooking cakes at home were mixed with soy flour and semolina. I really can't take it.

Xu Yi smiled indifferently.

The sunlight outside gradually moved westward, and soon the sky became gloomy, as if it was going to rain.

...

The patter of rain hit the thatched house, and the raindrops formed into beads, falling with a crashing sound, and splashing a series of water splashes.

Xu Yi and Erqing were forced to take shelter from the rain at the old woman's home.

He stood under the eaves and his eyes fell on the low thatched house diagonally opposite.

The owner of the thatched hut has not returned home yet, and the cracked wooden door is closed tightly, as if no one has opened it for a long time.

They waited, and before the rain stopped, they first saw a donkey cart driving slowly.

The young man on top of the donkey cart is too familiar. Who else is it if it’s not A Xu?

Erqing's eyes widened and he shouted in surprise: "Brother A Xu knows we are here?"

Xu Yi said: "I don't know."

His eyes passed over the car behind him, and he landed on the back of the car, tied with a rope. A wooden cart being pulled.

As for why there was a wooden cart, Xu Yi's eyebrows moved slightly. Before he had time to think about it, he saw the vehicle stopping in front of them.

Although their car was parked not far next door, A Xu obviously parked in front of the thatched house diagonally opposite.

Then, A Xu, who was wearing a raincoat, saw Wang Cai belatedly.

A Xu: "..." Lang Jun and the others are here?

He ran out of the car and came to Wangcai. Seeing that there was no one inside, he looked around, trying to find Xu Yi and the others.

Behind him, Ah Jin helped his father-in-law get out of the car.

She twisted her eyebrows and said with some complaint: "It's not a coincidence today. Why does it rain at this time?"

Li Laizi was very embarrassed. He came down limping. Just as he was about to say something, he ran to the young man in front of him. Lang came back again, and he shouted to the little lady next to him: "Sister, Lang Jun is here."

A Jin nodded: "I saw the donkey cart."

Li Laizi was slightly surprised when he listened to their conversation . , is he actually a servant of which wealthy family?

They didn't notice Li Laizi's reaction and planned to look around to see where Lang Jun was resting.

They saw the door of the wooden trestle next to them open, and Erqing ran out in the rain, calling them, and then they saw Xu Yi who was taking shelter from the rain in the house next door.

Xu Yi didn't look at them, but at the old man next to him.

This old man looked much older than Uncle Tang. His body was thin and stooped, and his clothes only had more patches.

The old man also saw Xu Yi, a handsome young man whom he did not recognize, but looked at him deeply as if he knew him.

Somehow, Li Laizi felt uncomfortable.

Since he settled in Zhaohua, he has rarely met anyone who knows him. He didn't want to see those people either, he was afraid, afraid that they would see him in such a miserable state.

Li Laizi moved his face away, the doubts in his heart getting deeper and deeper.

Xu Yi walked towards them. A Xu wanted to take off the raincoat he was wearing and give it to him, but he refused.

"I am Xu Yi, from Yanting, Zizhou." Xu Yi stopped in front of him and asked politely, "Is this old man's surname Li?"

Cripple Li opened his mouth: "You... recognize me?"

Xu Yi said: "I don't know, but I was told by an elder that if I see you in Zhaohua, I can tell you a few words and give you a favor."

Li Laizi's slightly dull eyes moved . Move, he thought to himself, who could be coming from Yanting, Zizhou?

Zizhou...Yanting...

Li Laizi's dull eyes gradually became clear, and he thought of a person, Brother Tang.

He stared at Xu Yi uncertainly: "Are you sent by Brother Tang?"

Xu Yi nodded and smiled and said, "Well, it's Uncle Tang."

Li Laizi was in a daze for a moment, and then said: "He is living a good life now. "How are you doing?"

"Uncle Tang is doing well. He often thinks of you in Yanting. It's a pity that he's far away and can't come to see you." Xu Yi said with an unchanging expression, touching his sleeve pocket before going out. , he took the entrusted tip bag with him.

After touching the kit, Xu Yi was not in a hurry to take it out.

He looked at the two people waiting next to him and asked them what was going on.

Ah Jin told Xu Yi exactly what happened when he helped Old Man Li and broke the wheel on the road.

Li Laizi said quickly: "It's not their fault. The wheel was going to be broken. It was stuck in the gap for so long, so it was bound to break. I'll get some tools to repair it, and then it can continue to be used."

Xu Yi Go look at the broken wheel.

At this moment, the rain finally subsided and became thinner. When it fell on people, it was difficult for them to become soaked in water.

However, they had been outside for a while, and Xu Yi's clothes were wet. They clung to his tall figure, making him look even more handsome.

This young man looked nothing like Brother Tang, but judging from his excellent temperament, he didn't look like he could lie.

Just as Li Laizi was thinking about it, he saw Xu Yi squatting down and rolling up his sleeves to check the cracks in the wheel himself.

It was just a matter of dragging it home, but the crack became even bigger, and it was shaking when touched, and it looked like it would fall off at any time.

Xu Yi frowned and said, "This wheel can't be used anymore and needs to be replaced."

"Let me take a look." Li Laizi approached hesitantly, but Xu Yi stood up and supported him lightly.

Xu Yi said: "My father-in-law, don't be impatient. Since my A-Xu-A-Jin has good intentions and does bad things, then let them change the wheel."

Cripple Li: "..." That's not what he meant.

Xu Yi didn't give him a chance to refuse. He asked A Xu to remove the wheels, take them to the carpenter's shop, and ask a carpenter to make them with exactly the same dimensions.

A Xu was very fast. He went to the car to get the tools and removed the broken wheel in a short time.

He got into the car holding the wheel and drove away in the donkey cart without stopping.

Xu Yi and the others did not wait outside. The rain was pouring down again, so they went to Li Laizi's house.

Li Laizi's home is similar to the old woman's home, but there is no chicken coop in the yard. There are some miscellaneous things piled up in the yard, mostly rags picked up from outside.

Some wooden stools can still be used after washing, while others can only be used as firewood. Even such things are not easy to pick up. They have to be guarded at the back door of a wealthy family. Some followers are lazy and throw these broken things out. , many people pick it up and continue to use it home.

Li Laizi has inconvenient legs and feet, so he can't win over others every time, but the more times he goes, the more he saves a lot.

He didn't think it was such a humble thing. Seeing Xu Yi staring at those things, he told him that it was not easy to pick up these things now.

"Why? Isn't it the bad stuff that the wealthy people don't want?" Xu Yi asked incomprehensively.

Li Laizi said: "Those followers are also smart. Seeing that there are many people picking it up, they keep it for themselves and use it as firewood. If they pick out some decent ones and sell them, they can get a few bucks." "

Not everyone knows how to do carpentry these days, otherwise, there wouldn't be anyone who would be desperate to become an apprentice to a carpenter.

Xu Yi listened to his ramble. There was no clean water at home. He had to drag his leg to the end of the alley to fetch water from the well. How could Xu Yi let him do this.

He rolled up his sleeves and said let him come.

Li Laizi looked at his fine brocade clothes: "..." It would be bad if these clothes got dirty.

"Doctor Xu, let me do it," Er Qing said quickly, "I am strong and my clothes are not easy to get dirty."

It was rare for Er Qing to find an opportunity to perform, so he would miss it.

After he said that, he picked up the bucket and ran away with a squeak. He was very fast, as if someone was chasing behind him.

Xu Yi smiled helplessly: "..."

Very good, no one needs to argue.

Li Laizi's legs and feet were inconvenient, and a layer of dust accumulated on the floor of the house. He came back almost at sunset every day to solve the problem of eating. It was so dark that he couldn't see clearly, and he couldn't clean.

Seeing that the floor was so dirty that it was hard to put his feet down, Ah Jin went to get a broom and swept it inside and out.

While waiting for Erqing to come back, Ajin ordered him to fetch two buckets of water. She scooped up the well water with a melon gourd and poured it on the floor, and used a floor brush to scrub away the sewage.

I went to see Xu Yi again, and Xu Yi was not idle either.

Although it was April, they had all caught some rain. The wind and cold in ancient times could kill people, so Xu Yi could not guarantee that they would not fall ill.

He used the well water brought back by Erqing to make a pot of brown sugar and ginger tea.

Everyone has a share. Li Laizi doesn’t have extra pottery bowls at home, but they have them in their car.

Li Laizi looked a little dazed as he watched these young men and women busying around in his house as if no one else was around.

How many years has it been? How many years has it been since his family has seen such a lively time?

On the other side, not long after Xu Yi and the others left the old woman's house, the old woman's son and daughter-in-law also came back from the fields.

As soon as they entered the house, they found that their mother was a little different today.

The old woman smiled and took out the Poria Cake and divided it between her son and daughter-in-law.

The two of them were stunned when they looked at the off-white fruit and smelled the alluring fragrance.

"Mom, where did you get this?"

"This fruit is not cheap, where did you get the money to buy it?"

The old woman said, "Doctor Xu gave it to me."

"Doctor Xu?"

"Which Dr. Xu? Cheng Is there a doctor named Xu here? "

" Well...he's not from the city, he's from out of town. He said he's here to find Old Man Li next door." The old woman hunched over and pointed to the house opposite. He pointed to a donkey cart parked not far away.

"Did you see it? That belongs to Doctor Xu." The old woman said, "I also made an agreement with Doctor Xu that when he is done with his work, he will come to treat you."

His son was puzzled, who is this Doctor Xu?

He looked at the fruit in his hand, a little afraid to eat it, but then he thought, he didn't have anything at home, what was there that others were worried about?

Thinking of this, he put down his guard and took a bite of the Poria Cake in his hand.

After eating this, he was completely stunned. He looked at his wife who was also stunned and said in disbelief: "This fruit is so delicious!"

They had never eaten anything so delicious.

The two of them looked at the remaining pieces of Poria cake in the handkerchief, thinking that they must be left for their sons to try.

next door.

"Da da da -"

A Xu came back driving a donkey cart.

Li Laizi, who was waiting anxiously in the room, heard the movement and dragged his lame leg out. He was a little excited when he saw A Xu walking towards him holding the wooden wheel.

A Xu said: "My father-in-law, please rest a while and leave it to me to change the wheels."

Li Laizi said embarrassedly: "How can I bother you so much."

"That's right." A Xu grinned and showed a With a bright smile, "This is just a trivial matter for me, it won't be a problem."

In the past few months, A Xu has been maintaining the carriages and axles of the donkey cart.

He installed the wheel with style and skill. Xu Yi looked at Old Man Li and explained to him that the wheel of their carriage was broken and it was A Xu who replaced it.

Only then did Old Man Li realize that these young people were not here to see him.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

Xu Yi replied: "Go to Kyoto."

After hearing this, Li Cripple's face was full of shock: "..."

Zhaohua is far away from Kyoto. They kept walking like this, and they didn't know when they would arrive.

"It doesn't matter." Xu Yi smiled. The purpose of their journey was to gain more clinical experience.

What's more, they were not only spending money along the way, they were also making money. In addition, Yu Qiulin came to look for him this time and brought him a generous share, which was enough for the four of them to spend two years.

In addition, he still has several hundred taels of silver on hand...

This amount of money is enough for ordinary people to spend in two lifetimes.

With the wheel repaired, Li Laizi no longer has to worry about being unable to deliver goods tomorrow.

He looked left and right, a smile appeared on his wrinkled face, and he thanked Xu Yi and A Xu again and again.

Xu Yi did not accept his thanks.

It was getting late, so he took out his kit and placed it on the rough wooden table.

Seeing the confusion on Old Man Li's face, he said gently, "Uncle Tang asked me to bring you the things here."

"What is it?" Li Laizi asked.

Xu Yi shook his head and said he didn't know.

After explaining, he took A Xu and the others away from here.

Not long after they left, Li Laizi took the light bag and pinched it like paper.

Could it be a letter sent to him by Brother Tang?

But he can't read more than 100 words, and he doesn't know many words. He still doesn't know if he can read or understand? If I had known earlier, I should have opened it in front of the child, so that I could ask them about words I didn't understand.

While Li Laizi was thinking, he opened the bag and pulled out half of the paper inside, then he paused.

That's not Xin...it's Jiaozi.

One piece, two pieces, three pieces, four pieces, four pieces of five taels of jiaozi, a full twenty taels of silver.

Li Laizi was stunned for a long time, then burst into tears and started crying silently.

...

In the next room, the old woman waited for Xu Yi and others to come back.

Her son and daughter-in-law were all there, looking at this young Doctor Xu in disbelief.

The taste of the Poria Cake they had just eaten still lingered in their mouths, which had to convince them that what their mother said was true.

When Xu Yi saw them, he knew that these two people were also obviously malnourished.

The ancients did not have a term for malnutrition, but called it impotence, or "impotence." However, the old woman's son and daughter-in-law were not so weak that their limbs were weak and their bodies were weak and useless.

Instead, it starts with sallow skin, then gradually loses weight to the hair, skin, and face. At the beginning, the body is still lean, but as time goes by, the muscles will disappear and become weak.

By then, the pulse will become as dilapidated as that of an old woman...

If it really comes to that time, and there is no cure, it will not be death from illness, but death from thinness and exhaustion.

Xu Yi was silent for a long time. The old woman and her family held their breath and did not dare to speak.

He noticed the nervousness of the family, and quickly withdrew his hand to check for pulse, and said to them with a smile: "It's not a big trouble. I'll prescribe a prescription for body conditioning. Just take it for a while."

After hearing this, The old woman's family of three breathed a sigh of relief.

Just be fine.

Seeing Xu Yi's cold expression, they thought something was in trouble.

Xu Yi's eyes became a little distant because he didn't speak. When he saw them, he showed a smile.

He knew that this white lie would not change the outcome of this family. But at least, during the days when the old woman's life was coming to an end, she was not immersed in despair.

Xu Yi took out a pen and paper and wrote a mild tonic prescription. Then, he remembered the sesame tea he had made.

Sesame tea contains very good oils, and regular drinking can have the effect of prolonging life. Although for the old woman, it was just delaying time.

But who can say for sure?

Or with conditioning, you can live longer and longer.

Xu Yi silently wrote sesame tea in the prescription. Ajin, who was grinding ink for him next to him, saw it and had a hint of suspicion in his eyes.

After writing out the prescription, Xu Yi said, "I have the medicinal materials there. Old man, just send someone to follow me to get them."

Her son said, "I'll go. I'm quick and can keep up with Dr. Xu's donkey cart. " "

Xu Yi smiled and said, "No need to do that, just take my car with you."

They didn't waste much time. Xu Yi simply explained a few words and asked the old woman's son to get in the car with him.

Arriving at the inn, Xu Yi asked A Xu to get the medicine.

And he took advantage of this time to pour all the cooked white sesame seeds that had been ground into fine powder yesterday into a bag, and took an unopened can of black tea and handed it to the old woman's son.

When the old woman's son saw these things, he was so frightened that he didn't dare to pick them up.

How could he afford such an expensive thing?

Xu Yi said: "It doesn't cost much. Just give me twenty coins from the money you brought."

The old woman's son: "...Two, twenty coins?"

"Yeah." Xu Yi said firmly, "Twenty coins." Wen."

Xu Yi was happy to do this kind of loss-making business.

Erqing and the others had long been accustomed to Xu Yi's occasional "nosy" behavior. They were not surprised by this and would even take the initiative to help.

Early the next morning, the waiter knocked on the door with breakfast.

A Xu took the breakfast, thanked the waiter, and carried it into the house.

Xu Yi in the room got dressed, sat at the table and read the book in his hand.

He had read all the travel notes that Pang Boyi gave him. They bought this book at a bookstore when they passed by the county town.

Xu Yi didn't put down the book in his hand and looked up at him: "Has the letter been sent?"

"Everything has been sent." A Xu nodded and said, "I haven't received a letter from Mr. Xing for so long this year, and I don't know whether Mr. "Is Lang Jun in high school?"

Xu Yi said calmly, "I should be able to pass."

This is Xing Yuesen's fifth Chunwei exam. Last time, he was very close to being a Jinshi.

He has been studying hard for the past two years, and he should have good results.

Xu Yi was very confident in his good friend and did not worry about this matter. However, he would receive Xing Yuesen's letter later.

The most important thing now is to attend the tea party.

He glanced at the time clock in the room and saw that the tea party was about to begin in about an hour.