A chill through the heart
Why? Because Ye Daquan's father and Ye Wuju were cousins, but his father and Old Eight were brothers. So at first, he could not quite swallow his pride. Besides, the child had not seemed seriously ill. Only when the fever had him babbling nonsense did he panic.
Ye Daquan no longer dared say anything. His wife also gave him a vicious pinch. Had what Eighth Uncle's family did been remotely decent? Why the hell had he gotten involved? What did it have to do with him?
"Uncle, I was wrong." Ye Daquan dropped to his knees again.
Ye Wuju was not about to indulge him. He kicked him to the ground. "Do you know that if it weren't for me, Xiao Huo would have died today? You're courting death!"
"Huh? It was that serious?" Ye Daming asked.
Having vented his anger, the old man sat beside the cooling bed. "Ah, after that fright, his heart fire flared up. With timely medical treatment, he might barely have survived. If I hadn't happened to know this Chill Through the Heart Needling Technique, Xiao Huo would either have died today or had his brains burned out by the fever. Daquan, what am I supposed to say to you?"
"These symptoms have lasted at least three or four hours. Even if you hate me, couldn't you have taken the child to the county hospital? Fool!"
"Uncle, I know I was wrong." Ye Daquan picked himself up and crawled on his knees to Ye Wuju's side. "Please, you have to save Xiao Huo. He's my only son... I was wrong, I was wrong..."
Most of the villagers who had come were members of the Ye Family. The sight left them speechless too. They all knew Daquan was Eighth Master's nephew, but the old man was right. If he hated him, he could have taken the child to the hospital. Besides, had that family done anything remotely decent this time?
While everyone gathered around his grandfather and talked, Ye Huan placed a finger against Xiao Huo's lips and fed him a few drops of Spirit Spring Water. Although this family was not on particularly good terms with theirs, and this child had been spoiled rotten too, he still could not simply watch the boy die.
Xiao Huo naturally swallowed the Spirit Spring Water. Combined with the old man's acupuncture, it finally brought him back to his senses about half an hour later, and he slowly woke up.
"Dad, Mom..." Xiao Huo called twice in a hoarse voice. When he tried to move, the old man turned around and tapped several spots on his body, pat, pat, pat. Then he could no longer move. "It isn't time yet. The lingering fire hasn't been completely dispelled. Wait a little longer."
He also stopped Ye Daquan, who wanted to go over and hug his son, as he spoke.
"Oh, okay, I understand, Uncle." Ye Daquan hurriedly stepped back again.
The old man selected a few medicinal herbs from the medicine chest, then wrapped them in paper. He made three packets in total and handed them to Ye Daquan. "Boil three bowls of water down to half a bowl. Feed it to Xiao Huo while it's warm. After these three packets, he'll be fine."
Ye Daquan took the packets and knelt again. In Ye Family Village-no, Willow Tree Village-however much someone disliked this old man, no one would doubt his medical skills. That was what prestige meant.
Moreover, Old Master Ye might refuse to acknowledge you, but once you begged him and he agreed to act, even if you were his enemy, he would cure your illness first, then kill you for revenge. He was that particular about doing things properly.
Xiao Huo's mother hurriedly took the packets and held them carefully. This was no mere medicine; it was her son's life. She had married into the village more than ten years ago. How could she not know Old Master Ye's reputation?
In earlier years, wealthy families from the surrounding villages, and even the provincial capital, had come knocking at his door to beg for treatment. But the old man had turned them away with, "I don't have a license to practice." He had been unwilling to treat people for many years.
Only when villagers came to ask him would he take a look. He would lend a hand with minor ailments, but for anything more serious, he would simply tell them to go to the hospital. He would not treat them.
He had only saved the child today because the situation was too dangerous and too much time had already been lost. Otherwise, the old man would still have told them to go to the hospital.
What he had done today left Ye Huan utterly captivated: the needles went in, and the illness vanished. Although the inheritance of the Shennong Scripture also contained secret acupuncture techniques, he had not learned even the rudiments yet. But after watching his grandfather work just now, he felt he needed to study them properly-and learn his grandfather's techniques properly too.
An hour later, the old man removed all the needles. Ye Huan disinfected them one by one, put them away, and placed them in the medicine chest. Then the old man patted Xiao Huo a few times, and he could move again. Fully awake, Xiao Huo stared at Grandpa Ye in terror. He had been frightened. What he had experienced over the past half hour had scared him, truly scared him.
He had wanted to move but could not, wanted to shout but could not make a sound. He had panicked, yet no matter what he did, he could not move even a single finger.
Ye Huan had not known his grandfather could seal acupoints either. As a child, he had thought that only happened in stories. Today had really opened his eyes. If he had not had his space, with even more secret martial arts techniques inside, he really would have dropped to his knees before his grandfather.
What he actually said in his heart was, What stupid things have I been doing all these years? Studying computer science? Was I out of my mind? Is studying computers anywhere near as badass as learning acupoint sealing and acupuncture?
Seeing that their child was all right, Daquan and his wife kowtowed to the old man. He accepted one kowtow, then took Ye Huan home. He had not finished enjoying his drinks yet.
On the way back, Ye Huan and his grandfather walked in front, while his second uncle and his father followed behind.
"Dafa, that was acupoint sealing just now, wasn't it?" his second uncle asked quietly.
"How would I know? You know I was useless at learning martial arts. Who knows how many times the old man whipped me back then." Even now, Ye Dafa shuddered at the thought of his father's bamboo switch.
"Has Xiao Huan learned all of it?"
"How would I know that? Do you think those two would tell me about their business?" Ye Huan's father felt deeply wounded.
"True. They'd be better off telling your Saihu than telling you," his second uncle said with a laugh.
"Hmph!"
Back home, Bai Jie reheated the dishes, and everyone went back to drinking. Then his second aunt went home first with Tangyuan, who had finished eating. His second uncle and Ye Huan's father began competing over drinks, while Ye Huan and his grandfather watched the spectacle with smiles.
"Daguang, let me tell you, I won't argue about anything else, but when it comes to drinking, you're just a little brother." Ye Huan's father's lips had already begun to tremble.
"Listen to me. I'm telling you to listen to me..." His second uncle pushed Ye Dafa as he spoke.
"Where's the beer?" Ye Dafa looked around for beer. Ye Huan glanced at the four empty cases nearby. He had drunk five bottles himself; the rest had all gone down those two men's throats.
He looked at his grandfather. He did not mind bringing his father and uncle another two cases.
Only after seeing his grandfather nod did he fetch another two cases and open bottles for his father and second uncle. The two had long since stopped using bowls. They drank straight from the bottles, chugging away.
"Grandpa, aren't Dad and Uncle drinking too much?" Ye Huan asked.
"It's fine. Letting things out a little is good for the body. Coming home this time and seeing that his son has made something of himself has left him feeling a little out of balance. It's a common failing among fathers. Let him have a good drinking session today. Your second uncle happens to be here too, so it's a good opportunity," his grandfather said with a smile.
Ye Huan did not understand, but he did not ask either. His grandfather would not be wrong.
What he did not know was that every father believed himself to be his son's great mountain. Then one day, they discovered their sons no longer needed that mountain, or had even surpassed it. The gap between their expectations and reality brought a sense of loss. They would feel depressed, and that would become psychological pressure and a burden.