The events in Jiang City did not affect Zhuangjia Village. This time, Fu Yuling brought a medicine bottle to find Li Jian. The door of the medicine hall was still wide open, and there were not many people inside. When she arrived, Li Jian was not there. Instead, an elderly man with gray hair was sitting and sniffing some herbs.
Fu Yuling approached but couldn’t get him to look her way.
She glanced around and saw no one else besides the old man. With no other choice, she stood aside and watched him prepare the herbs.
After a while, her brows began to furrow.
“There shouldn’t be any Bai Ji1means white orchid; Bletilla striata. It is considered a bitter-sweet Chinese herb with astringent properties, primarily used to stop bleeding in the blood-stopping medicine. Bai Ji is better suited for astringent blood-stopping formulas. Although the names and effects of the two herbs are similar, this one is better suited for Jiang Xiang2 also known as Rosewood, a Chinese herb for invigorating blood.
Being interrupted, the old man’s eyes lit up at her words. Right! How did he not think of that? Jiang Xiang might be more suitable for this!
Thinking of this, he hurried to a row of small drawers at the back, accurately found the Jiang Xiang, added it, and continued to mix and sniff the aromas.
Ten minutes later, he successfully finished and was pleased.
“That’s right, that’s it.”
Fu Yuling chuckled. “Now that you’re done, can you pay attention to me?”
“Huh? Was that you just now?”
Realizing he was referring to the herb Jiang Xiang, Fu Yuling nodded. “Is Li Jian here?”
“Him?”
The old man showed little interest when Li Jian was mentioned.
“He got beaten by his dad and went home.”
Fu Yuling momentarily paused, unsure how to respond.
“What do you need him for?”
Fortunately, the old man was not too concerned about him and seemed more interested in her.
Just from this person’s earlier suggestion, he felt that the gentle-looking young girl in front him must have some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine.
“Well, since he’s not here, could you help me give these to him?”
The old man took the items and immediately caught a strong fragrance. He wanted to open it, but since it wasn’t meant for him, he struggled internally for a while.
In the end, he concluded that he was Li Jian’s grandfather and saw no reason not to look at his things.
Moreover, he was checking for any dangers. It was for Li Jian’s own good.
After some internal conflict, he decisively opened the bottle and poured some out.
When he smelled one of the medicines that had trapped him for so long, his hand holding the bottle trembled with excitement, and his once-worn eyes brightened a lot.
He looked towards the door. No one was there, only the bustling street outside.
His heart felt like a rollercoaster. Just as the excitement ended, he began to feel down.
He thought that when he see this person next time, he would definitely keep her around for a good talk.
Of course, Fu Yuling was unaware of all this.
This time she didn’t look for Luo Xiao but instead went to buy a large amount of vegetables and some children’s clothes from street vendors.
When she arrived at the corner of the street with a big bundle, she found a beggar sitting there as usual, watching the passersby, becoming an unremarkable person that people occasionally remembered and mentioned.
When Fu Yuling stood in front of him, the beggar recognized her.
“Is it convenient to go back now?”
She lifted the items in her hands and said, “For the children.”
At this moment, the beggar slowly got up, and Fu Yuling noticed that he had a limp.
As a student of traditional Chinese medicine, she could tell at a glance that his leg would never heal.
She still remembered the first time she saw him. Despite his poor appearance, he was at least a healthy person. But now…
“I got beaten.”
His tone was so flat that it seemed as if he were narrating someone else’s story.
