BFDNS 038

Chapter 38: Chaihu Shugan Powder

Madam Chen cried like pear blossoms in rain, frightening Xu Yi so much he didn’t know what to do. He looked helplessly at Madam He beside him.

Madam He gave him a reassuring look. She was much more familiar with handling such matters than Xu Yi.

“Perfectly fine, and now you’re crying. Look at yourself crying like this. Those who don’t know would think I bullied you.” Madam He put her arm around her shoulders and leaned close, using her handkerchief to wipe the tears hanging at the corners of her eyes. Coaxing her, she continued, “It’s good to cry it out. Don’t let this pent-up qi stay bottled up inside, or it’ll be even more uncomfortable.”

Madam Chen’s face flushed at her words as she sobbed and used her handkerchief to wipe her face.

After quite a while, she recovered and said somewhat embarrassedly, “I’ve made you both see me in such a state.”

Xu Yi also came back to his senses. He got up and went inside to brew tea, bringing it out to soothe both their throats.

In Xu Yi’s view, women of this era had it extremely difficult. Unlike the women in his family, they couldn’t choose free love or free careers. When they couldn’t confide their inner suffering to others, pent-up qi building into illness over time wasn’t just an empty phrase.

Today, after Madam Chen’s crying spell, her complexion actually improved.

However, Xu Yi still planned to prepare two doses of medicinal decoction for her to drink. Madam Chen’s melancholic illness hadn’t accumulated in just a day or two. From her pulse, it had probably been four or five years.

“I’ll prescribe Chaihu Shugan Powder for you, with an additional ingredient of lindera root. This lindera root is excellent for treating cold stagnation and qi blockage in the body. It can disperse cold and reverse stagnant qi,” Xu Yi told Madam Chen.

The reason for prescribing Chaihu Shugan Powder was because this formula primarily treated liver soothing, qi regulation, blood activation, and pain relief. It could open up the pent-up qi blocked in the chest. But Xu Yi worried that Madam Chen still had blockages in her chest area, and due to body coldness, using lindera root as a channel-guiding medicine would work even better.

He had chuanxiong, chaihu, chenpi, and licorice readily available at home. He still needed cyperus, bitter orange, and lindera root. So Xu Yi only wrote down the dosages for these three medicinal ingredients and had Madam Chen go to another medical hall on South Street to buy the herbs and bring them back to brew.

Madam Chen was puzzled and asked, “Apricot Grove Hall is closer. Why go to another one?”

Xu Yi blinked. It would be immoral to badmouth competitors behind their backs, so he didn’t say directly, “I went to Apricot Grove Hall before, but afterward I never went back.”

Madam Chen’s eyes flickered, perceiving another meaning. She didn’t continue asking.

“Brother Yi, calculate the consultation fee and the cost of these medicinal ingredients. I’ll get the money for you,” she said.

“Mm.” Xu Yi nodded.

The medicinal herbs at home were all dug from the mountain. Xu Yi calculated them based on the medical hall’s selling price, gave acquaintances a discount, and estimated it to be about the same price as the herbs he sold to Miracle Hands Hall. He always based consultation fees on the person. For South Street residents coming to see him for treatment, he charged five wen as the consultation fee.

After hearing the price he quoted, Madam Chen was stunned.

Last time when Chen Erwang was sick, she had requested Doctor Chen to make a house call. The consultation fee alone cost her two qian of silver. The prescription he wrote required buying medicine from the medical hall, which cost her another three qian of silver.

Five qian of silver spent, and only then was Chen Erwang’s illness cured.

But for her, Xu Yi only charged her thirty-four wen.

“Brother Yi, have you miscalculated? How is it this price?” Madam Chen asked in disbelief.

Xu Yi smiled and said, “No mistake. The consultation fee is five wen, and the medicinal herbs are all common medicines, not expensive.”

Calculated by price per jin, it might be twenty or thirty wen. But the amount of medicine used per dose was only five or ten qian. Especially since he was currently an itinerant physician, saving on medical hall operation costs, apprentice fees, rent, and such, although this price was cheaper than what medical halls sold for, it was still a small profit.

He wasn’t doing business at a loss because of their familiarity.

–

After the rain cleared, the following days were all sunny.

The common people of Stone Well Lane on South Street returned to their daily laboring routine, going out early and returning late, treading on the lengthened shadows of the setting sun as they came home.

Tiles were piled up in the Xu family courtyard. With Little Huang’s activity space reduced, Xu Yi couldn’t bear to confine him at home. These past two mornings when going out, he took Little Huang along.

The days on the mountain weren’t as dull and boring as imagined. On the contrary, they were extremely interesting.

Every time Xu Yi felt he had finished exploring one area’s wild Chinese medicinal herbs and could expand to new exploration territory, he would discover that under rocks, beneath tree stumps, on dead tree trunks, by riverbanks, and other places, he could still excavate quite a few new good medicinal herbs.

Halfway up the mountain, he rarely encountered others of his kind. Whatever he wanted to say, he shared with Little Huang.

Little Huang was very accommodating. After listening each time, it would rapidly wag its tail and even bark “woof woof woof” a few times in response, making Xu Yi feel that it really seemed to understand.

Of the medicinal herbs he dug and gathered back, he selected a portion to dry in the courtyard. Since the Xu family courtyard was occupied by tiles, he borrowed the He family’s courtyard. Another portion he sold to Miracle Hands Hall as usual. When the money accumulated to a certain amount, Xu Yi would take it to the gold and silver shop to exchange it for five-tael banknotes, which were easier to store.

In the midst of all this busyness, the five-day appointment with the tile workshop arrived.

Also helping to repair the house was Huang San.

Huang San was an honest man. He said he would repair Xu Yi’s house for free, and he really came every day.

The Xu family’s thatched roof had been built quite a long time ago. Just removing the wooden planks and beams from the top took considerable time.

The old master craftsman repaired the removed wooden planks and applied waterproof and insect-resistant raw lacquer. After drying, they could be reinstalled and then the tiles could be laid.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Xu Yi spent some effort having the old master also repair the wall surfaces.

On the outside of the original earthen walls, they applied a new layer of smooth, even mud plaster. This really tested the old master’s skills. Xu Yi worried the old master might not do it well, but unexpectedly when he inspected the results several days later, although the transformed walls were earth-gray after drying, compared to the original earthy yellow, they were better by more than just a little bit.

On the day of completion, Xu Yi went to the marketplace and bought two boxes of pastries to give to the old master.

The old master accepted the pastries with a face full of good cheer. Before leaving, he even made two new wooden frames for Xu Yi using leftover wood, without charging Xu Yi for the labor.

You give me peaches, I repay you with jade. Who would have thought that just a small gesture would receive such a delightfully pleasant return gift?

During these days, Xu Yi also became the hot topic of discussion among the common people of Stone Well Lane on South Street.

Of the four injured patients from the disaster, two had already recovered and could work. Among them, Huang San’s second brother, after taking the prescription Xu Yi had written for three days, no longer had headaches. The one with internal injuries to his waist who had been hit, after taking the medicine Xu Yi prescribed, vomited blood twice more and came running to consult Xu Yi.

With one pulse reading, Xu Yi knew it was the accumulated stagnant blood in his body being expelled. He told him to go back and take the medicinal decoction for two more days, then he could stop the medicine.

At first he was somewhat skeptical, but two days later, he really was better. When working and exerting strength, neither his chest nor his waist hurt anymore.

Once this matter spread, the South Street residents became even more confident in Xu Yi’s medical skills.

Everyone they met, they would say how good Young Master Xu was, how affordable his medical treatment was, and how the consultation fees and medicinal herb costs he charged were lower than ordinary medical halls.

These words quickly spread and reached the ears of certain interested parties.

However at this time, the man whose internal injuries had completely healed brought a basket of wild loquats freshly picked from trees the next day and delivered them to Xu Yi’s home.

These wild loquats had a sour and astringent taste. Common people who picked them would soak them in well water, add salt to the water, then peel them before eating.

Soaked in water and treated with salt could remove part of the astringency. Eating them in summer dispelled heat and quenched thirst.

Some South Street residents knew how to find wild loquats and would use ancestral secret recipes to pickle them into dried fruit to sell, which was also quite a good income.

This basket of wild loquats weighed over thirty jin. It was really thoughtful of him to deliver them all. Xu Yi looked at the loquats, only slightly larger than quail eggs, and fell into contemplation.

Traditional loquat syrup used old loquat leaves, along with medicinal herbs that regulated qi, transformed phlegm, cleared heat, and moistened the lungs, then was boiled with mint, honey, and such into a syrup consistency.

But… he had never used loquat fruit pulp to make loquat syrup.

Xu Yi thought of his cooking skills, then looked at the newly rebuilt kitchen. After a moment of hesitation, he decided to request outside help.

When it came to making food, Madam Chen was more skilled than Madam He. The fragrant beverages he regularly drank were all made by her.

This time, Xu Yi also planned to entrust the task of making loquat syrup to her.

Having drunk several doses of medicinal decoction, Madam Chen, whose complexion had visibly improved, stared at this basket of loquats and asked in surprise, “Make it all into loquat syrup?”

Xu Yi’s tone was certain. “Yes, I’m troubling Madam Chen.”

Madam Chen advised, “This loquat syrup doesn’t keep well. In summer it spoils and changes flavor. Better to make candied loquats instead. They can be eaten for a year or two without spoiling, no worse than that loquat syrup.”

Xu Yi’s brow moved slightly. “Madam Chen, do you know how to make these candied loquats?”

“They’re easy to make, it just uses a lot of sugar. In the past we weren’t willing to make them.” Madam Chen smiled gracefully. “I can see you love to eat, so I’m telling you. If you’re willing, buy two kilograms of sugar. Good sugar, so they’ll keep even longer.”

For common people, who would be willing to use so much sugar to pickle fruit? Madam Chen only mentioned it because she saw Xu Yi was interested in these little things and knew he loved to eat and was greedy.

Who would have thought that after noontime, Xu Yi really went to the sugar shop and bought two kilograms of good sugar back.

This shocked Madam Chen so much she didn’t dare delay. Early the next morning, she woke up and made breakfast, then began bustling about in the courtyard.

The loquats needed to be peeled and have their inner pits removed. Over thirty jin of loquats was quite a lot. It wasn’t until the afternoon that Madam Chen finally finished peeling this entire basket of loquats.

Xu Yi saw that she was so busy she hadn’t even eaten lunch. Feeling truly apologetic, he proactively took on dinner duties, calling an idle hand to run an errand to the restaurant and bring back four servings of food.

Two portions were for him and Madam Chen, two portions for Little Huang and Chen Erwang.

Chen Erwang had only eaten porridge for lunch. Just watching Madam Chen busy herself with Xu Yi’s candied loquats, not caring whether her husband was hungry or not. Angry, he secretly cursed Xu Yi behind his back as a shameless scoundrel. With fire burning in his heart, he pretended to hide in the room without coming out to greet anyone.

Later, Chen Erwang eavesdropped by the door and heard that Xu Yi had sent someone to buy food from a grand restaurant, one meal costing one qian of silver. He swallowed his saliva, cursing Xu Yi in his heart for being wasteful, but quickly ran out, stiffly called Xu Yi “Young Master Xu” once, sat on a stool and with grunts buried his head wolfing down the food, devouring it like a whirlwind.

After eating, Chen Erwang went straight back to his room, angering Madam Chen so much she wanted to spit a few words at him without restraint.

After venting her anger, Madam Chen still needed to explain for him. “He’s just someone who doesn’t know what’s good for him, always doing annoying things. Brother Yi, don’t hold it against him. That would just let him win.”

Xu Yi laughed helplessly. To him, Chen Erwang’s behavior was too childish and completely without any offensive power, like a mosquito buzzing in his ear.

Annoying, but not enough to make him angry over a mosquito that couldn’t bite.

In his view, such a person was even more reassuring than a dog that doesn’t bark.

Xu Yi said, “Why should I hold it against him? I’m waiting for tomorrow when I can eat the candied loquats you mentioned. I still don’t know what they taste like.”

Having said this, he squatted down on a wooden stool to watch Madam Chen boil the sugar water.

Madam Chen added sugar to water and used low heat to dissolve them. The dissolved sugar water carried the fragrance of honey. Before long, it filled the entire courtyard, attracting both Little Huang and Madam He.

Shortly after, two more small children wearing bibs on top and split-crotch pants below gathered around.

The children crouched at the corner of the courtyard wall, sniffing vigorously toward the kitchen.

So fragrant.

It was the scent of honey.