Elixir Supplier

“Okay, next time, you can just stay over when you come.”

“No need, I already have arrangements with a friend,” Wang Yao replied, smiling.

After dinner, Wang Yao had originally wanted to stay to meet his cousin. However, after some consideration, he decided against it and went with Chen Ying back to the small courtyard to rest.

“Tomorrow, help me make an appointment with the Su family. I will be leaving Beijing shortly,” Wang Yao said.

“Okay, I’ll contact them now.”

…

“If he leaves Beijing, then what about Xiaoxue’s illness?” Su Xiaoxue’s mother expressed her disapproval after hearing this news.

“That’s right, she has only just gotten better. I heard her say a few words today too.”

“He’s a guest. We invited him over; we ought to respect his decision. Besides, it’s not like he won’t be coming back. Forcing him to stay might make him upset. What about Xiaoxue then?” Su Xiaoxue’s father said slowly.

“Then, what if he doesn’t return?”

“Then we’ll go over to invite him again. It’s not like we don’t know where he lives. Tell Chen Ying to ask Doctor Wang when he’s leaving, and where he’s leaving to. We’ll help him prepare his flight tickets. Also, check if he needs anything else; we’ll do our best to meet his requests.”

“Okay.”

That night, after eating dinner with his second aunt, Wang Yao didn’t go anywhere else but stayed in his small courtyard instead. He spent some time looking at the sky in Beijing, and it was only much later that he decided to turn in for the night.

“You’re leaving so soon?” Chen Ying asked. She was a little surprised when Wang Yao told her his plans.

“Yeah. Would you accompany me to the airport?”

“Okay.”

After breakfast, as they were preparing to leave, Guo Sirou came over.

“How’s Xiaoxue’s illness?”

“She’s fine for now. I need to go back and continue doing some research into the medical treatments. Even if I stay here, I can’t immediately come up with a cure as of now,” Wang Yao replied honestly.

Guo Sirou was silent for a while.

“Do you have time today?”

“What is it? If it’s treating me to a meal, it’s not necessary,” Wang Yao said. “Later on, I still plan to see Su Xiaoxue.”

“I did want to treat you to a meal, to express my gratitude.”

“Express your gratitude?” Wang Yao asked. He suddenly thought about his second aunt.

“I actually do have something I need your help with,” Wang Yao said.

“What is it? Do tell.”

“I have a relative in Beijing. Her work isn’t going too well right now. Would you be able to help?”

“No problem!” Guo Sirou had thought it was some big problem. In Beijing, arranging work for somebody was an easy task for her.

“Tell me your relative’s name.”

“Okay.”

Wang Yao took out a piece of paper and wrote down his aunt’s contact details onto it for Guo Sirou.

Guo Sirou stared at it for a while before saying goodbye. Wang Yao then went over to Su Xiaoxue’s house.

In the spacious room behind the curtains on the sickbed, the patient’s body was completely wrapped in bandages. If not for her breathing and the occasional blinking, one would not be able to tell that it was a living patient.

The air she gave off seemed to have gotten stronger, and Wang Yao could feel the changes within her before he even got close. As he came to the bedside, he reached out to take her pulse. He also fed her another dose of Regather Soup. Compared to before, there was a clear difference. This was also because of the Prolongation pill’s effects.

As Wang Yao was treating Su Xiaoxue, her mother and brother sat by the side, looking anxious.

“How is she, Doctor Wang?” As Wang Yao’s treatment concluded, Xiaoxue’s mother asked hurriedly.

“She’s much better compared to yesterday. Has she finished all the medicine I gave her previously?”

“Yes, she consumed it all.”

“That’s good. I’m preparing to leave tomorrow. Before leaving, I will leave a few herbal medicines and the method to use them. I will return shortly.”

“Okay, then I’ll have to trouble you. If there’s anything we can do for you, please don’t hesitate to tell us.”

“Sure. I need you to help me get these herbs,” Wang Yao said, as he took out a list of herbs. Su Xiaoxue’s brother received it from Wang Yao and kept it carefully.

“I will do my best to get it quickly.”

“Who is that?”

Lying on the bed, Su Xiaoxue eyed Wang Yao. Her vision was blurry, and she could only vaguely make out his figure. She could not see his face even though he was right next to her. This was because of the illness affecting all the organs in her body. Even though her eyes could see things, she could not see clearly. Her hearing was also unclear. Nonetheless, she was still able to use her diminished sight and hearing to make out her family members and those who came to visit her often.

Feeling Xiaoxue’s gaze, Wang Yao turned to look at her.

“Do your best to recover. You will get better.”

Hmm?

Su Xiaoxue heard what Wang Yao had said, and in fact, heard it very clearly. This was something that never happened before, and besides herself, no one knew that.

Wang Yao did not stay long in the room.

“She needs to rest,” was what he said, as he was leaving.

“Yes, but the illness doesn’t let her sleep well,” Su Xiaoxue’s mother responded.

The illness made her hurt like she was on fire. How could she sleep like that?

“For this, I will prepare a decoction to reduce her pain. This will at least let her sleep peacefully,” Wang Yao said.

“Okay.”

After leaving, Wang Yao returned to the small yard and continued pondering on the treatment method he had thought up earlier.

Suppressing the pain in order to calm the mind would only be a temporary solution. It wouldn’t have much long-term effect. On this end, Su Xiaoxue’s condition was very similar to Zhou Wukang. Because of the illness, both were unable to rest properly, and that made the body condition worsen as a result, creating a vicious cycle. Only in her case, it was much more serious than Zhou Wukang’s.

Corydalis tuber, Dahurian Angelica root, licorice, Aniseed tree root—these were the herbs that he had used to treat Zhou Wukang’s illness previously. The emphasis was on suppressing the pain and letting the medication flow with the body’s strength. The effectiveness was exceedingly strong, and he decided to use a similar method on Su Xiaoxue.

Aniseed tree root, Kingdonia, Aniseed, shaped like a lotus flower—these could be used to diminish heat and clear toxins from the body, relieving pain. This was especially so for licorice roots.

He didn’t complete the exchange the previous time. As for the other herbs, they were commonly found and could be obtained from Chinese pharmacies.

Tang Kuei, poria cocos, Dahurian Angelica root…Moonlight herb.

These were the herbs required for the Anshensan formula. It was also the first formula he had obtained from the system. Although he hadn’t used it as much compared to Regather soup, he was still familiar with it. There was also some Moonlight herbs leftover.

These were the two herbs he prepared to decoct that he believed would help Su Xiaoxue’s condition.

…

In a departmental store somewhere in Beijing, Wang Yao’s second aunt Zhang Xiufang was still watching the elevator. Ever since she had taken Wang Yao’s medicine the day before, she had been feeling much better and more full of energy than before. This morning, as she was washing up, she noticed that her complexion had improved greatly.

“I really didn’t expect Yao to be so good at medicine. Who did he learn from?”

As she was thinking about this, a colleague went up to her to inform her that someone was looking for her.

“For me?”

“Yes. You should go, I’ll help you watch the elevator.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Zhang Xiufang did not know the person who had come to look for her. It was a thirty-year-old lady dressed in a western suit, looking very professional.

“Hello, are you Zhang Xiufang?”

“Yes, I am. And you are?”

“My name is Zhao Yulan…” Ms. Zhao began to explain the reason she had come.

“You want to hire me? But I don’t remember applying for anything!” Zhang Xiufang replied, stunned.

At this age, it was already not easy for her to find a job in Beijing. Most jobs were extremely time consuming or tiring, or the salary was low. After all, as a forty-year-old person with no special academic or other qualifications, she had expended a lot of effort looking for a job near her house, but to no avail. Suddenly today, someone came over to invite her to work for their company. She had heard of this company. It was not a small company and was also relatively close to her house—only a ten-minute bus ride away.

But I don’t know this person. Why did she come to me all of a sudden, even when I have nothing special to offer? It couldn’t be a scam, could it? Zhang Xiufang thought, worried.

“If you are still uncertain, you can go check it out. These are my contact details,” Ms. Zhao laughed, handing over a name card. “I will wait 24 hours for your reply.”

“Okay, sure. Thank you?”

Zhang Xiufang returned to the elevator, full of doubts. After work, she gave her husband a call, telling him about what had happened.

“What! Inviting you to work for such a big company? Nine out of ten, it’s probably a scam. Make sure you don’t go!”

“Okay,” Zhang Xiufang agreed.

…

In the small yard.

The firewood burned, crackling. The medicinal soup in the small pot was boiling.

Medicine was being added to the pot. The last to go in was a few leaves from the Aniseed tree, green as jade. Once these were added into the mixture, the medicine immediately changed color, and Wang Yao removed the pot from the fire.

“Doctor Wang, what is this medicine now?”

Chen Ying went up to him and asked. She knew what Wang Yao’s expectations were. When Wang Yao was brewing medicine, she maintained her distance without getting close. Only when Wang Yao was done would she go forward.

“Pain suppressing medicine.”

“Pain suppressing?”

“Yep.”

After straining the medicinal mixture, it became a clear, jade-like soup. He transferred it into a bottle and then poured away the remaining residue. If he were using the multifunctional pot for herbs, this would not have been a problem. The residue and the medicinal substrate would have been separated perfectly, and the medicinal strength would be preserved even better.

Unfortunately, this was a small yard in Beijing and not his cottage on Nanshan Hill. Some things were not usable; some could not even be revealed.

The pain suppressing medicine was easy to prepare. Next up was Anshensan. This would require a little more concentration.

As Wang Yao was busying himself, Chen Ying booked the flight tickets.

Time passed, and soon it was noon.

“How about taking a look?” On the bus, Zhang Xiufang could not stop thinking about what happened in the afternoon. After she ended work, she received another call from Ms. Zhao, asking her to check out the place if she had the time.

“Anyway, it’s not far from home. What if it were true?” She decided to go to the company to take a look.