Can You Really Cure My Son?

The bookseller was furious. "Pah! You probably don't even have a few coins on you, yet you dare to come into a bookseller's shop to buy books. I feel disgusted just looking at my books."

Zhou Wanwan also spat and said, "I just touched your books, and I feel like I've broken out in a rash. They're filthy, just like your heart."

Zhou Wanwan went straight to the bookstore next door, which was indeed barely surviving.

Zhou Wanwan looked closely and realized that the owner of the bookstore was actually Gu Chaoyang.

Gu Chaoyang also saw her and said, "Oh! What brings you to the city, little girl? Are you out of food? I'll go get you something to eat."

The woman next to her muttered softly:

"I might as well give everything away, let others read the books for free, and give away all my belongings."

Our family's bookstore business was never good to begin with; you see, we only make a few hundred coins a day, and now the kids aren't doing well either.

"If anything were to happen to our son, I wouldn't want to live anymore."

Zhou Wanwan looked at Gu Chaoyang's simple-minded son, who walked over and grinned at her, "Sister, want some candy?"

I saw that he had a piece of maltose in his hand, which was so black it couldn't be blacker.

Zhou Wanwan shook her head and said, "I won't eat, but I can treat your illness!"

Gu Sinian stared blankly at her. Zhou Wanwan turned to Gu Chaoyang and said, "Uncle Gu, I know how to treat illnesses. I wonder if you would be willing to let me try?"

Gu Chaoyang's mother frowned and said, "How could a child as big as you possibly know how to treat a doctor? Don't you dare harm my son."

Gu Chaoyang glared at her and said, "This is none of your business. Hurry up and go inside to work."

Gu Chaoyang looked at Zhou Wanwan and said:

"Young lady, do you really have a way to save my son?"

I took him to see so many doctors, and they all said it was no use; he'd be mentally challenged for the rest of his life.

Zhou Wanwan directly took Gu Sinian's pulse and said:

"The impact of this external force was too violent. It not only damaged his meridians and blocked his blood and qi, but also disturbed his mind and injured his primordial spirit, which is why he lost his mind and became so stupid."

This illness is difficult to treat and requires a two-pronged approach: daily acupuncture to clear the blockages, followed by nourishing herbal decoctions.

It will take anywhere from three months to half a year to gradually awaken his consciousness.

Gu Chaoyang looked at her with delight and asked, "Can you really cure my son's illness?"

Liu Dalang quickly nodded and said, "My Wanwan is very capable. Everyone in our village who was shot in the chest by an arrow was saved by Wanwan!"

"Wanwan is actually that amazing?"

Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said:

"Take a look, Uncle Gu. If you're willing, I can give him acupuncture today."

However, please don't tell anyone that I know medicine; my master forbids me from speaking out.

"Alright, no problem, then you can perform acupuncture on this kid!" Gu Chaoyang sighed.

She took out silver needles, heated them over a candle flame, and then precisely inserted them into acupoints on the child's head, forehead, back of the ears, wrist, and soles.

While performing acupuncture, he said:

"For the first half of the month, acupuncture should be performed once a day, with the needles retained for 35 minutes each time."

This acupuncture is to clear stagnant qi and blood, and awaken the blocked sensory orifices; it cannot be interrupted for even the slightest moment.

After starting the needlework, she picked up a pen and wrote down the prescription:

"Angelica sinensis 4 qian, Honghua 2 qian, chuanxiong 2 qian, peach kernel 3 qian, then add acorus tatarinowii 3 qian, polygala tenuifolia 2 qian, and finally add licorice 1 qian."

Twenty sets in total, two sets per day, one set in the morning and one set in the evening.

Gu Chaoyang nodded and said, "What books do you want? I have them all, I can give them to you."

Zhou Wanwan looked around and said, "Uncle Gu, your bookstore isn't doing so well!"

Gu Chaoyang said helplessly:

"What business could we possibly have? All our money went to the children's medical treatment, and we couldn't afford to buy new books, so the bookstore had to be shut down."

I'm thinking that if all else fails, I'll just go back to my hometown and go back to farming..."

Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said, "Uncle Gu, if this bookstore were sold, it would still be worth some money, right?"

Gu Chaoyang thought for a moment and said, "Someone did want to buy it. They even came to ask about the price yesterday. They said it would be 500 taels, but I still feel it's not worth it."

Zhou Wanwan looked at him seriously and said:

I advise you to sell it as soon as possible if you can.

A severe drought is coming soon; you won't even be able to afford food.

Gu Chaoyang frowned and said:

"Wanwan, don't talk nonsense. If someone with ulterior motives hears this, it could be very serious."

It's just a common locust plague; the imperial court will handle it accordingly.

Zhou Wanwan smiled faintly and said, "Since you trust the imperial court so much, then continue to trust it..."

Isn't this blatant disregard for the lives of their children and daughters-in-law?

Then a voice came from outside. "Fool, come here, drink the water your grandpa just boiled for you, it's still hot!"

When Gu Chaoyang went outside, he saw the village chief leading a few people over.

The village chief's son was teasing Gu Sinian, which angered him so much that he rushed over and grabbed the child by the neck.

The village chief shouted, "Gu Chaoyang, you dare touch my son? Believe me, I'll kill your stupid son!"

Gu Chaoyang looked at him, his eyes red, and said, "You dare! Try touching my son, and I'll fight you to the death! Let's all die together!"

The person next to the village chief said:

"Alright, alright, it's just kids playing around. Let's just let it go if we both take a step back."

"Don't we have important business to attend to?"

The village chief looked coldly at Gu Chaoyang and said:

"Your bookstore is so dilapidated, someone is offering 100 taels of silver to buy it."

They'll be coming to sign and seal the document tomorrow, so you should prepare in advance.

Gu Chaoyang said angrily, "You think you can buy my shop for 100 taels? You're dreaming."

The village chief coldly shouted:

"Gu Chaoyang, what's the point of keeping this shop?"

Sooner or later it will all belong to our clan. We can still give you 100 taels now, but who knows about tomorrow."

Gu Chaoyang trembled with rage. "You're all scoundrels! This shop is meant to be left to my son, what right do you have to make decisions for me?"

"Heh... Let me tell you the truth! The people who want to buy your shop are the same people from your old government office. You have to agree whether you want to or not."

Anyway, the message has been delivered; now it's up to you to handle it!

The men nearby scoffed, "Thinks they're constables? They're nothing special."

"That's right! Even a fool like that will have to rely on our clan in the future. If he's unwilling, we'll show him what our village is capable of."

The village chief sneered, "Get ready early tomorrow, let's go back!"

Enraged, Gu Chaoyang slammed his fist into a nearby pillar, leaving it bloody and mangled.

Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said, "Uncle Gu, I think this is an opportunity. You should think it over carefully! I've said enough."

She turned to leave, Gu Chaoyang suddenly spoke up:

"Wanwan, don't go. I'm planning to sell this place. Can I come to your village?"

As you can see, I don't get along with the people in my village.