A Fruitless Trip

Su Ziyang lay down, and Old Madam Liu placed her warm hand on Su Ziyang stomach.

Old Madam Liu first gently rubbed around Su Ziyang's navel with the thenar eminence. As Old Madam Liu rotated clockwise, the rubbing area became larger and larger, first expanding upwards from the navel to the lower edge of the ribs, and then downwards to the anterior edge of the pelvis.

What seemed like an ordinary act of rubbing his stomach to Su Ziyang actually stirred up layers of energy within Su Ziyang abdomen.

At first, Su Ziyang only felt a warm sensation in his abdomen, and then his entire abdomen quickly became hot. This heat emanated from within, emanating from his True Qi.

Su Ziyang could only experience this feeling when practicing the Midnight-Noon Heaven and Earth Art.

Unexpectedly, after being gently massaged by the old woman a few times, the True Qi in his abdomen began to circulate rapidly, and he entered a state of "Deqi".

The abdominal massage lasted for more than ten minutes. When Old Madam Liu's hands left Su Ziyang's stomach, Su Ziyang was still enjoying the feeling of relaxation.

To give a somewhat inappropriate analogy, this feeling is similar to cleaning your ears.

It feels very comfortable when you take it out yourself, just like Su Ziyang's state when he is practicing his exercises.

But if someone cleans your ears, the feeling isn't just twice or even twice as good, it's incredibly pleasant.

Yes, Su Ziyang is currently immersed in this incredibly enjoyable feeling.

"This kid has such good breathing, really impressive! Young man, do you exercise regularly?"

As Su Ziyang experienced Old Madam Liu's technique, Old Madam Liu was also amazed by Su Ziyang's physical condition. In all her years of medical practice, she had never seen such an energetic and healthy body.

"Auntie, your hands are so warm and feel so good! I don't want to get up!"

Su Ziyang closed his eyes and spoke indistinctly to Old Madam Liu.

"Haha, if you're comfortable, lie down a little longer. There are no more patients behind you! Lie down a bit more!"

Old Madam Liu got up with a smile and returned to her consultation table. She picked up a celadon cup and took a couple of sips of water.

Even with this feeling and the thought of learning from her, Su Ziyang didn't sense anything special from Old Madam Liu's hands; she had only used one technique—kneading.

There is no other way.

Nevertheless, through this half-hour interaction, Su Ziyang felt or learned a spirit, or rather, an attitude, from Old Madam Liu.

Old Madam Liu spoke in a very gentle and calm tone throughout.

You could sense that her mental state remained consistently cheerful, as if it had never fluctuated.

"Alright, get up, brother! Stop enjoying yourself!" After resting for more than ten minutes, Er Biao had regained his strength and stood by Su Ziyang's bedside, teasing him.

"It's alright, child. Let him lie down a little longer. I'm fine too, I'll sit with you for a while!"

Old Madam Liu looked at Su Ziyang and Er Biao with a smile.

"No, ma'am. You've been busy all morning, you should rest for a while!"

Su Ziyang knew that lying there wasn't a good idea, so he rolled over on the bed and quickly got up.

Su Ziyang jumped twice on the ground, and he had to admit, he felt completely refreshed!

The two paid the money and quickly left.

Old Madam Liu's treatment cost thirty yuan per session, but the two of them spent sixty yuan, yet they experienced completely different feelings.

Once outside the alley, Er Biao looked at Su Ziyang and asked, "Ziyang, have you figured it out yet?"

"Brother Biao, you can't kick me if I say I didn't notice!" Su Ziyang grinned, scratching his head and saying with a smile.

"Damn it! Stop messing around! I'm really going to punch you!" Er Biao thought Su Ziyang was joking with him, so he laughed and teased Su Ziyang back.

"I really didn't realize that!"

Su Ziyang's expression turned serious as he stared at the grinning Er Biao.

"Really?" Er Biao's expression darkened when he saw that Su Ziyang was serious. "If you can't figure it out, then you're probably in trouble. No problem, we'll try again next week! If we can't figure it out the first time, we'll try twice! We'll definitely learn this trick!"

Er Biao lit a cigarette, took two deep drags, and then puffed it out fiercely.

"Brother Biao, when he rubbed your stomach, did you feel anything?"

As they walked and talked, Su Ziyang began to ask Er Biao how he felt.

"I was just about to tell you. She touched my belly button, and after she did, I felt like she touched something hard next to my belly button, and it hurt a little. Then she really went for it there! And that really hurt, I felt a rush of gas mixed with a tearing pain, shooting straight from my stomach to my lower abdomen!"

Er Biao carefully recalled his feelings just now and described them in detail.

"And then you went to the toilet?" Su Ziyang asked curiously.

"Yeah, guess what! The poop I took in the toilet was all black! Damn it, it scared me to death! I thought I was going to mutate!"

As soon as Er Biao said that, Su Ziyang really understood: this guy had been in school for a year, but hadn't attended a single class!

Black will appear, generally in two common situations:

1. Consuming large amounts of blood products, such as duck blood, pig blood, etc.

2. In cases of upper gastrointestinal bleeding exceeding 50ml, the stool will typically appear black or tarry.

Of course, Su Ziyang, the one who caused Er Biao's situation, wouldn't take the initiative to educate Er Biao about this.

"Ah! So what did it feel like when you were panting and exhaling just now?"

Su Ziyang quickly changed the subject, dragging the conversation to the next treatment session.

"It feels the same, but the difference is that my belly button area doesn't hurt as much anymore, it's just slightly swollen, and when she presses it, I feel like I need to fart!"

Er Biao's language is vulgar; his adjectives are constantly related to scatological and obscene language!

"Oh, oh!" Su Ziyang nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "Do you feel a warm feeling in your stomach, Brother Biao?"

"No, I feel like my burps and farts are like a cool breeze, like eating mint!"

Er Biao wondered why Su Ziyang asked that, then countered, "When I was massaging you, did you feel it was warm?"

"Um!"

Su Ziyang nodded.

"It seems that different people react differently to different constitutions. My condition must be a problem. Didn't that old lady just say you have a good physique? A healthy person shouldn't be sick; they just feel hot!"

Er Biao's mind raced, and he quickly came to a conclusion.

"That should be the case!" Su Ziyang agreed with Er Biao's conclusion.

"Let's go home and see my grandma! It's about 20 li (10 kilometers) to her house, so we need to go to the station to catch the bus!"

Su Ziyang knew that Er Biao had grown up with his grandparents. The two of them originally planned to find a small restaurant to have lunch before going back.

However, a single medical advice from Old Madam Liu extinguished their hopes.

After receiving a massage from Old Madam Liu, you must maintain a light diet for two days, preferably drinking porridge!

Let's go!

Er Biao and Su Ziyang felt completely relaxed and didn't want to take a taxi. Dada strolled leisurely towards the bus station.

Along the way, Su Ziyang was looking for a large supermarket. When he got near the bus station, Su Ziyang finally saw a large supermarket.

Upon seeing the supermarket, Su Ziyang rushed inside.

"Where are you going!" Er Biao saw Su Ziyang enter the supermarket and quickly ran over.

"I'm going to buy some things!" Su Ziyang ignored Er Biao and started strolling around the supermarket.

"What are you buying? Don't waste your money!" Er Biao knew that Su Ziyang was buying things for his grandparents, so he grabbed Su Ziyang's arm and pulled him outside.

"Damn it, it's none of your business. It's not like I'm buying it for you!"

When Er Biao saw Su Ziyang carefully selecting items, he smiled from the bottom of his heart and did not stop Su Ziyang.

Er Biao hadn't felt this kind of genuine friendship for many years. Since he entered this industry, even good friends were entangled in interests, and they could turn against each other in an instant over a thousand yuan or even a few hundred yuan.

Su Ziyang picked out lotus root starch, black sesame paste, monkey head rice porridge, and some nuts, among other things.

Why did you buy so much stuff?! You idiot!

When Er Biao saw that Su Ziyang had picked out so many things, he was a little confused and grabbed the things in Su Ziyang's hands to put them back.

Who knew that Su Ziyang was so agile that he dodged Er Biao's hand that came to snatch the things in Er Biao.

"Don't eat it! I bought it for Grandma! Don't touch it! I'll get angry if you come any closer! Get out of my way!"

Su Ziyang pushed and shoved Er Biao aside and paid the money.

Carrying large and small bags, Su Ziyang and Er Biao boarded the bus one after the other.

The car drove for about forty minutes and we arrived at our stop!

Er Biao's village is called Li Family Shed. Su Ziyang doesn't know why the village is called Pengzi (meaning "shed").

Er Biao, seeing Su Ziyang's ignorant attitude, didn't bother to explain to Su Ziyang.

The two chatted and laughed as they entered the gate. In the courtyard, an elderly figure with a head of white hair was boiling water in a large bucket.

"Master!" Er Biao shouted as soon as he entered the courtyard to the person boiling water.

"Hey, Huzi, you're back again! Don't you have to go to work?!"

When the old man saw Er Biao, the wrinkles on his face deepened into a smile.

"No, no! Grandpa, where's Grandma?!"

Er Biao stepped forward, took the axe from the old man, chopped a few pieces of firewood, and put them into the stove pit where water was boiled.

"Sir, this is my friend, Su Ziyang!" Er Biao pointed to Su Ziyang behind him.

"Master!" Su Ziyang called out in the same accent as Er Biao.

"Alright, alright!" When the old man saw Su Ziyang calling him, he quickly ushered Su Ziyang into the house. "Come in, come in! Let's talk inside, let's talk inside! Huzi, your grandma is in the back garden, go and call her. Tell her to stop what she's doing!"

Er Biao left the courtyard upon hearing this, while Su Ziyang carried his things into the house.

"Oh dear, you kids. How much do you earn a month? Just come and have fun! Why buy all this stuff!"

The old man's simple words fully demonstrate the humility and simplicity of rural people.

"Of course, sir! Have you eaten?"

Su Ziyang chuckled and started chatting about everyday things.

"We've eaten, but you haven't! I'll ask Grandma Huzi to make you some noodles later!"

The old man quickly asked Su Ziyang to sit down, and while talking, he took a teapot and tea leaves out of the cupboard.

"Don't bother, sir. Plain water is fine, plain water is fine!" Su Ziyang quickly took the teapot; he couldn't possibly let such an old man make tea and pour water for him.

"Guests from afar, how could I let you do this, child!" The old man had quite a strong grip, Su Ziyang actually couldn't snatch the teapot away.

"What are you Er Biao's voice came from behind, and then he took the teapot from his grandfather's hand.

"I'll go make tea! Stop struggling, stop struggling! I'll go!"

Er Biao took the teapot, brewed tea, and poured it for Su Ziyang.

A short while later, a thin old woman walked in from the doorway.

Su Ziyang quickly stood up and looked at the old lady. "Grandma!"

"Hey, hey! Kids, sit down. I'll make you two some stir-fried noodles! You haven't eaten yet, have you? Wait a minute, it'll be ready soon!"

The old lady didn't sit down at all; she simply greeted Su Ziyang warmly and went straight to the kitchen.

"Grandma, don't make stir-fried noodles! Make porridge, make porridge! We can't eat oily food right now!"

Er Biao pulled his grandmother aside and explained for a long time before the old lady understood why she couldn't eat greasy food.

"You two, what are you doing massaging me like that? What is this? How can you not eat? I was thinking of making you some pork ribs tonight!"

The old lady didn't understand the reasoning behind it, and slowly walked out while still complaining.

"I said I'm not hungry, but you won't listen!" Er Biao looked at his grandmother's back and explained to Su Ziyang with great happiness.

Su Ziyang had originally planned to go back this afternoon, but he couldn't resist the elderly couple's hospitality and had no choice but to stay.

People in the countryside go to bed early, so Su Ziyang was in bed by 7:30. Unable to sleep, Su Ziyang suddenly sat up, leaned close to Er Biao, and said, "Brother Biao, how about we give it a try?"

When Er Biao heard Su Ziyang say he'd give it a try, his pupils dilated instantly, and he sat up in alarm, looking at Su Ziyang: "Brother, don't mess around! Your Brother Biao doesn't like men!"

Upon Er Biao's words, Su Ziyang was taken aback, then curled his lip and said, "Get the hell out of here, you idiot! I said, I just figured out Old Madam Liu's method, I'll show it to you, you want to feel it? What the hell are you thinking!"

"Damn, that scared me to death!" Er Biao patted his chest. "You come up here and give it a try, I know what you're going to try!"

Er Biao lay obediently on the bed, and Su Ziyang placed his hand on Er Biao's navel and carefully felt around.

Clockwise: one circle, two circles, three circles, four circles.

Counterclockwise: one circle, two circles, three circles...

"Are you tickling me, bro!" Er Biao finally couldn't take it anymore and interrupted Su Ziyang was very serious about performing his technique.

"I'm done. I don't understand! I didn't find anything!"

Frustrated, Su Ziyang threw the blanket at Er Biao with a thud, making Er Biao groan.

"If you don't know, you don't know. Why are you getting so worked up, kid?"

Er Biao pulled the blanket over himself, and soon began to snore softly.

Su Ziyang kept thinking about the Old Madam Liu's methods during the day, and soon he also fell asleep.