The Same Return (II)
He Shu rubbed his sleepy eyes, leaned against the tree trunk, and yawned slowly.
Moisture instantly filled his eyes, and his vision became hazy. In this mist, he saw the familiar tall figure in plain clothes, with a gentle smile on his face. He walked towards him calmly and said:
"Why did you decide to come to my private school to attend classes today?"
He Shu hurriedly closed his mouth, which hadn't yet completely closed. He stood up in a panic, patted the broken osmanthus petals on his robe, and walked forward, his tone full of eagerness that was trying to hide:
"I'm not here to attend the class! It's Qingshan! You forgot to bring this bag of Polygonatum this morning!"
His gaze was wandering, and he didn't look Qingshan in the eye. He stuffed the warm oil-paper bag in his hand into the other's arms.
"Huangjing?"
Qingshan took the oil-paper bag, but chuckled helplessly, and stretched out his hand to naturally pick away a small petal of golden osmanthus stuck on his eyebrow, with gentle movements.
"Didn't I tell you this morning before I left? Ah Su, who has a cough, has parents who have something to do today, so they asked me to take care of him. He'll have lunch at our house. When the time comes, just have him take the herbs home directly; I won't have to bring them to the private school."
He looked at He Shu's somewhat bewildered expression, sighed softly, and his voice was still gentle and tolerant:
"When I heard you respond, I thought... you heard it clearly."
He Shu was suddenly speechless, vaguely remembering Qingshan's whispers before he left, but he was too sleepy at the time...
He lowered his head embarrassedly, not knowing what to say to cover up the embarrassment, when a little head suddenly popped up behind Qingshan.
It was Ah Su, the little boy who dozed off in class. He was full of energy now, and with a smile on his face, he jumped in front of He Shu, tilted his little face up, and greeted him crisply:
"Hello, Doctor He!"
"Hello, A Su."
He Shu heaved a sigh of relief, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw, and changed the subject. He half-knelt down, making himself look at the child at eye level, raised his hand and gently touched the top of Ah Su's soft head, smiling and saying with concern:
"How are you feeling? Is your cough still severe?"
"It still feels a little bit uncomfortable..."
Upon hearing this, Ah Su's face immediately fell, he lowered his head in frustration, and his voice also lowered.
"My throat is itchy and I keep wanting to cough..."
He Shu saw this and quickly took the little hands in his hands, saying in a softer tone, "I'm so glad to see you again!"
"It's okay, don't worry. Take the medicine and take good care of yourself, and our Ah Su will be full of energy and fully recovered soon."
He pointed to the oil-paper bag in Qingshan's arms, and saw a boy walking beside him who was leaving the private school after school. He also took A Su's hand, and walked out with him while speaking softly.
"After lunch, have Doctor He take a closer look at you and prescribe you a mild and effective 'Huangjing Runfei Drink'. I've already thought of the recipe. Use nine qian of Huangjing as the main ingredient, supplemented with seven qian of Nanshashen, six qian of Ophiopogon japonicus, five qian of Polygonatum odoratum, and two qian of roasted licorice root to blend. Finally, add two qian of melted rock sugar for flavor..."
"Ah? You still need to take medicine?"
Ah Su's little face immediately wrinkled up, as if he had drunk bitter medicine, his nose wrinkled up, and he grumbled in resistance.
"Will it be very bitter... Doctor He, I, I don't want to take the medicine..."
As he spoke, he suddenly broke free from Heshu's hand and slipped into Qingshan's arms like a nimble little loach. He grabbed his sleeve tightly and buried his little face in it, leaving only the back of his hairy head exposed.
"Oh, you kid!"
Seeing the child's reaction, He Shu became more excited. He stretched out his long arm and easily grabbed A Su's collar. He "caught" the little guy back in front of him, deliberately put on a stern face, and teased him relentlessly:
"Good medicine tastes bitter but is good for the disease! Be obedient! When the time comes, I'll have your Master Li supervise you every day and make sure you drink every drop of the medicine!"
"I won't take the medicine! I don't want to take the medicine! It's so bitter! I won't take it - I won't take it -"
A Su struggled hard under He Shu's hands, his little arms and legs flailing around, he kept protesting loudly, his little face flushed red.
Qingshan stood aside, watching the two people suddenly quarreling beside him, feeling both amused and helpless. He had no choice but to speak out to interrupt the increasingly fierce argument:
"Alright, alright...be quiet."
He first reached out his hand, gently put his arm around He Shu's waist, and took him two steps back, creating some distance between him and the ferocious A Su.
Then he raised his hand again, bent his knuckles and tapped A Su's restless forehead lightly, his tone gentle but with a hint of intimidation:
"A Su, you must listen to Doctor He and take your medicine obediently. Only then can the disease be driven away and your body recover quickly."
He paused and offered an attractive condition.
"Besides... the master has candied fruit. As long as you drink the medicine obediently, I will give you a sweet mouth immediately. I guarantee that it won't be bitter at all."
"Preserved fruit!"
Sure enough, a child’s temper is like the weather in the mountains, it comes and goes quickly.
When Ah Su heard the word "candied fruit", his eyes lit up instantly, and his previous resistance was quickly thrown out of the window.
He jumped up with joy and started to circle around Qingshan and Heshu excitedly, shouting:
"There are candied fruits! The Master is the best!"
He Shu couldn't help but laugh at A Su's sudden brightening. He quietly approached Qingshan and asked in a low voice, a little coquettishly, in a voice only the two of them could hear:
"Qingshan, what flavor is this candied fruit? I want to eat it too!"
“The taste…”
Qingshan suddenly frowned slightly, his eyes swept over A Su who was still jumping around in front of him, full of anticipation for the upcoming sweetness, and leaned over to whisper in Heshu's ear.
The warm breath was like a feather, gently tickling the sensitive earlobes, and a playful whisper crept in:
"How could Wuming take what I said to comfort a child so seriously? I don't have any candied fruit here."
"you--"
The heat warmed my ears, and they instantly turned completely red as if they were painted with rouge.
He Shu felt as if he was scalded. He subconsciously covered his burning ears and took several steps back until his back almost hit a street stall and he stopped.
He glared at the man in front of him with shame and anger, only to see Qingshan's eyebrows curved and a smile spreading from the bottom of his eyes. It was obvious that he was deliberately teasing him.
He looked around quickly in panic and saw long bluestone steps and wine flags fluttering.
A peddler carries baskets full of wild persimmons, their ochre fruits frost-covered. Long-eyed children gather around a sugar painting stall, golden syrup swirls across the wooden boards.
The noise of the street market was endless, but passers-by did not pay attention to what they were doing. A Su in front was still immersed in his longing for candied fruit and was happy to himself. He Shu then secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Just as he was about to rebuke Qingshan for teasing him regardless of the occasion, he saw the corner of his mouth curl up even higher. He took two steps forward slowly, closing the distance again, lowered his head, and his voice was filled with a bit of humble persuasion:
"I only spoke halfway, causing Wuming to misunderstand. Please don't be really angry."
He Shu snorted coldly upon hearing this, folded his arms, turned his head away, and deliberately avoided looking at him, making it clear that he didn't want to pay any attention to the person who approached him.
He turned around and quickened his pace. In a few seconds, he caught up with A Su in front of him and walked side by side with the little boy, leaving the smiling figure behind for the time being.
Qingshan was not in a hurry. He continued to walk at a steady pace behind the two of them, but he raised his voice a little. His clear voice was flattering and clearly reached the ears of the two people in front of him:
"I'm really out of candied fruit at home. But I was planning to stop by the Ganyifang next door to buy some more when I go to Xiangmanju to buy braised pork and glutinous rice. Whatever flavor Wuming wants, we can buy it when the time comes, okay?"
He Shu paused at the sound, then, as if to conceal something, he walked even faster. There was still a trace of deliberately maintained anger in his voice, but it was no longer as tense as before, and even carried a hint of righteous impoliteness:
"You said it! I want to eat golden candied dates, nine-processed tangerine peel, white sugar bayberry, Suzhou-style preserved plums, licorice star fruit... and their new five-spice hawthorn slices. I can't miss any of them!"
As he spoke, he lowered his head again and asked Ah Su, who had been listening with eyes shining and saliva almost flowing out.
"Did you hear that? Your teacher said it himself. We can choose whatever we want! Ah Su, what flavor do you want? Just tell me, don't be polite! A gentleman's word is as good as gold!"
"A Su wants to eat candied red fruits! I want the biggest and reddest ones!"
A Su suddenly became excited and held He Shu's sleeve tightly with her little hand. The two seemed to have reached some kind of alliance and walked quickly towards Gan Yi Fang not far ahead where the sweet fragrance wafted from.
"Okay! Let's buy candied red fruits! Pick the biggest and reddest ones!"
He Shu immediately agreed, his tone filled with excitement and pride.
Qingshan caught up with the two of them in a few steps. He naturally came to Heshu's side, tilted his head slightly, and looked at his blushing face with a smile. His eyes were gentle, and he repeated it in a serious tone:
"Yes, I've got them all in mind: golden candied dates, nine-processed dried tangerine peel, white sugar bayberry, Suzhou-style preserved plums, licorice star fruit... and the newly released five-spice hawthorn slices, plus the candied red fruit that Ah Su wanted... A gentleman's word is as good as gold. I'll definitely buy them all later, leaving nothing out."
"Well, of course!"
Being stared at with such focused eyes, the remaining anger in He Shu's heart had already dissipated without a trace.
But he still kept up a forced expression, refusing to show a good face easily. He even bent his elbow deliberately and nudged the person beside him lightly, signaling him to stay away.
Then he turned his head away and chatted and laughed in a low voice with A Su, leaving Qingshan completely aside and ignoring him completely.
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