Chapter 29: The best medicine for depression
The old man walked up to Yang Chunyan, picked up a piece of Chuanxiong and took a look at it, "The young shoots of this thing can also be eaten."
Yang Chunyan nodded, "Stir-fried young leaves with eggs is even better."
The old man looked around and whispered, "Chunyan, Grandpa knows where there are Poria cocos. I'll dig it up for you next time."
Yang Chunyan looked up at the old man, feeling warm in her heart, "Grandpa, if you dig them up, I'll send them to the county town to help you sell them."
Grandpa Zhou looked at her lovingly, "Why would an old man like you need so much money? If you and the youngest child live well, Grandpa will be relieved."
"Don't worry, we will be fine!"
Yang Chunyan looked at the old man's cloudy eyes and thought that he might have cataracts. She thought of saving money to take him to the city to check his eyes.
"Master, you're here!" Zhou Huaian walked into the yard carrying a basket.
The old man looked at him and teased, "Oh, did you sleep on the millstone last night?"
"Hehe!" Zhou Huaian laughed dryly and showed off to the old man, "Grandpa, I went to dig herbs today. I climbed several beams before I found two baskets."
The old man rolled his eyes at him and said, "Do you want me to go to the brigade's loudspeaker and promote you? You think you are only three years old and you have the nerve to show off in front of me with such a small job!"
If you work, you will be scolded. If you don't work, you will be scolded. Zhou Huaian felt that he had become numb. He put down the basket without saying a word, "Yan'er, check to see if it's clean?"
Yang Chunyan grabbed a handful of Houttuynia cordata and looked at it, then smiled and nodded at him, "Not bad, it's cleaner than when I washed it."
Zhou Huaian's depressed mood was instantly cured, and he looked at her with a smile in his eyes, "Is there anything else you want me to do?"
He thinks his wife is the best and doesn't look down on him.
Yang Chunyan pointed at the houttuynia cordata and said, "Go and take out the sieve, put two long benches on the steps, and spread the houttuynia cordata out to dry in the sieve."
A sieve is a rectangular bamboo farm tool carried by two people to sift grains.
The sieve is made of green bamboo strips that have been soaked for several days. The household sieve is about 2 meters long, 80 centimeters wide, and 25 centimeters deep, with small holes at the bottom.
There is a hard-head spring on each side of the bottom of the sieve, which can be used as a handle for the sieve and also support the bottom of the sieve to prevent it from sagging when beans and grains are put into the sieve.
Pour the grains or beans into the sieve, and two people stand at both ends of the sieve, holding the handles with both hands, and shake it back and forth and left and right. The grain residue will fall down, and a basket of beans and grains can be sieved at a time.
"Okay!" Zhou Huaian went to the backyard, took the sieve off the pigpen, swept away the dust with a broom, carried it back to the front yard, and started working neatly according to what Yang Chunyan said.
Old Master Zhou looked at his grandson, then at his grandson's wife, and nodded secretly.
Zhou Huaian walked over to Yang Chunyan after drying the clothes, "Yan'er, I'm done drying the clothes. Is there anything else you want to put out?"
Yang Chunyan pointed at the chuanxiong and said, "Shake off the dirt on the chuanxiong, take out two large winnowing baskets and put them on the bench, spread them out in the winnowing baskets to dry them, so they won't get spoiled."
"Okay, I'll go right away."
When Zhou's mother came out after cooking the pig food, she saw Zhou Huaian standing in front of the sieve, bending over and working. She thought she was seeing things, but when she saw Zhou Huaian had finished drying the food and continued to look for work to do, she almost dropped her jaw in surprise.
She looked at Zhou Huaian for a while, then at Yang Chunyan, and became more and more satisfied with her daughter-in-law. She turned back to the room and made the bed for the old man.
After giving the child a bath, Li Qiuyue rolled her eyes when she saw Zhou Huaian working efficiently, and complained in her heart: When the family is working together, he is a lazy guy, doing his own work faster than a rabbit!
When Zhou Xiaolin saw the old man, she ran up to him and asked in a baby voice, "Grandpa, have you eaten yet?"
"Grandpa has eaten. Honey, are you full?" The old man looked at her happily and led her to the main room.
Zhou Xiaolin patted her belly and said, "I'm full. Grandma, feed me."
Li Qiuyue saw the little girl follow the old man, her eyes rolled, and she came forward with a straw stool, "Chun Yan'er, how long will it take you two to get so many herbs? Teach me and I'll help you."
Yang Chunyan glanced at her and said, "This is easy. Just remove the dead leaves, cut some vines and tie them loosely into small bundles."
Li Qiuyue nodded and pulled up a stick. "I've seen this before on the slopes of fields. Villagers disliked it because it blocked the crops, so they dug it up and threw it away. What's the point of eating it?"
"This is Polygonum multiflorum. My old man told me that it can cure insomnia, dreaminess, joint pain, waist and leg pain caused by rheumatism, wind sores, scabies, etc. I don't know how to use it specifically."
"Oh, how much can it be sold for per pound?"
"I haven't sold any either. My husband said we have a lot of them here, so they shouldn't be worth much."
After hearing this, Li Qiuyue said enviously: "You old man are really capable. It's so easy to make money by treating patients!"
"It's not easy to make money. The herbs need to be dried and processed after they are collected. Many people don't like to drink Chinese medicine now. They think it's too troublesome to boil it after taking it home! Western medicine can be taken at home, which is much more convenient."
"Western medicine is convenient, but it's extremely expensive. Last time Xiaolin caught a cold and had a fever, she went to the clinic to get medicine, and several packets of pills cost more than a dime."
After hearing this, Yang Chunyan felt that medicines nowadays are not expensive at all. If you have a cold or flu, you can go to the clinic and the doctor will prescribe medicine after just a check. Medicines costing a few cents or a dime can cure the disease.
There is also traditional Chinese medicine. These days, folk masters can cure difficult and complicated diseases with just a handful of herbs.
Who would have thought that in the future, these old doctors who had been practicing medicine for decades and cured countless patients would have to take an exam before they could continue to work. Old man Yang, the old barefoot doctor, was even fined for this.
Zhou Huaian dried the Chuanxiong and two pieces of Polygonum multiflorum in a dustpan, and took the Leonurus japonicus and Patchouli that Yang Chunyan had sorted out and spread them out under the eaves to dry. Then he said, "Yan'er, everything is done. I'm going to take a shower."
Yang Chunyan nodded, "Go!"
Li Qiuyue laughed dryly, "I didn't expect the youngest to be so efficient at work."
Yang Chunyan understood what she meant, "He is just lazy, otherwise he would be a good worker."
"My mother and my husband are both very good at their work, so they are somewhat similar."
Zhou's father and son and Uncle Zhou carried the old man's luggage back together. Mother Zhou and Zhou Huaishan had already made the bed.
Uncle Zhou put down Grandpa Zhou's things, said hello to the old man, and left in a hurry.
Father Zhou put down his things and came out to help Grandpa Zhou roll tobacco leaves.
Zhou's mother thought that the weather in the mountains was hot during the day and cool at night, and the old man had a weak temper, so she did not lay a straw mat for him, but an old blue homespun blanket.
Zhou Huairong helped take out the mosquito net, threaded it with a bamboo pole and tied it to the head of the bed. Zhou's mother put the pillow filled with rice husks and the quilt in place, and then the bed was made.
Zhou Huaian took a shower and walked to the main room in his slippers. Seeing Grandpa Zhou leaning on a recliner smoking leaf tobacco, he walked over and said, "Grandpa, wait until I sell the herbs and buy you a bundle of better leaf tobacco."
"Okay!" Old Master Zhou exhaled a puff of smoke, "You help your wife dig herbs, do you get any money for running away?"
"20/80." Zhou Huaian came closer, "I'll split 20/80. I don't know how to use herbs, so it's good enough that she's willing to share some with me."
Mr. Zhou glanced at him and said, "You are blessed. You should cherish your blessings."
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(End of this chapter)
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