Chapter 354 - Heavenseizing Hands and Bian Que Hands
Su Tao's safe return made everyone in the Three Flavour Hall feel relieved.
Glancing at Su Tao's robe, which was covered in dirt, Cai Yan asked in concern, "Did you suffer any injuries?"
"Nope!" Su Tao smiled. "With my ability, there's nothing to worry about."
Cai Yan sniffed her nose with perplexion in her eyes before knitting her brows together and immediately turned around to leave. This made Su Tao briefly stunned, since he had no idea why Cai Yan seem to be unhappy and smiled. "I'm a little hungry. Can you cook me something?"
"Oh!" Cai Yan responded in a deep voice.
When he came to the canteen, there was a bowl of noodles on the table with a small dish of radish strips. Even if Su Tao wasn't a glutton, he couldn't help being briefly stunned as he watched Cai Yan place the chopsticks down and left.
Quickening his steps, Su Tao immediately followed over and held onto her wrist with a smile. "Have I offended you in any way?"
"Where did the perfume on you come from?" In the end, Cai Yan couldn't hold herself back from asking.
"Uh…" Su Tao immediately sniffed his clothes. He did not pay attention earlier, and he only realised now that there was a dense fragrance after Cai Yan's reminder. He could only say that Rangure's perfume quality was too good. Immediately, he analysed if he should tell her about the truth, and in the end, he decided on the truth, "I had to kidnap someone to leave safely, and that hostage was a woman. Due to our close distance, her perfume got onto me as well."
Although it sounded a little incredible, that was the truth.
Letting out a breath, Cai Yan's brows were raised. "Alright, I'll forgive you!"
"Big Sister Cai, your jealousy was pretty strong earlier!" Su Tao said with a wry smile.
Cai Yan snorted, "I'm not jealous, don't blow your own trumpet." When she finished, she walked over and took the bowl of noodles on the table. "I'll make a new one for you to reward our hero."
However, Su Tao snatched it over and said, "It's rare for Big Sister Cai to cook for me, and I can't waste it!"
Feeling proud of his words, he immediately stuffed a mouthful of noodles, fearing that Cai Yan might seize it away. But when the noodles entered his mouth, his entire face was drained of all color and he found a dustbin to vomit it all out.
Teased by this scene, Cai Yan laughed to the point that her tummy was aching. After she calmed down from her laughter, she wiped the tears off the corner of her eyes and asked, "So, how does it taste?"
"Spicy!" Su Tao was speechless as he looked at Cai Yan. Using the chopsticks, he flipped the noodles around. When he saw the bottom full of chili oil, he asked, "Big Sister Cai, are you trying to murder your husband here?"
Cai Yan immediately took a cup of water and handed it over to Su Tao. "I wanted to change for you, and you're the one that snatched it over."
Looking at Cai Yan with a complicated gaze, Su Tao rinsed his mouth with the water and sighed, "A woman's jealousy is too terrifying. I trusted you so much, but you actually laid a trap for me!"
Although Cai Yan was feeling guilty, what's done is done. As a woman's pride, she would surely not smoothly lower her head and glared at Su Tao. "This is a reminder for you! Don't piss me off, or I will take revenge against you!"
Feeling a chill down his spine, Su Tao raised his hands and surrendered. "It has been engraved in my heart. If Big Sister Cai is jealous, I will be served spicy food. I won't forget this, ever!"
Making a funny face towards Su Tao, Cai Yan returned to the kitchen with Su Tao watching her figure through the mirror.
Although that mouthful of noodles was a horrifying experience, Su Tao wasn't angry when the thought about it.
As the saying goes, occasional harsh words or deeds can demonstrate one's love. Cai Yan pranking him was a testament of her feelings. With such a beauty feeling jealous over him, it was worth it, even if he died from the spiciness.
As Cai Yan whipped a bowl of egg fried rice, the aroma permeated and the fried bits of the egg were captivating, along with the sliced sausages and scattered onions. It was appetising.
Su Tao swiftly gobbled it up, and when he reached the bottom of the bowl, Cai Yan came with a bowl of seaweed soup. Although the ingredients were simple, it was refreshing, and it was practically a perfect match with the egg fried rice.
"Su Tao, I have something that I would like to ask you." Cai Yan supported her cheeks with her hands and looked at Su Tao drinking the soup. Her heart was full of satisfaction at this scene.
"Ask away!" Su Tao placed down the bowl, since he wanted to use his hand to wipe the corner of his mouth. But Cai Yan handed a napkin over, which he used to wipe the grease off his lips.
"What plans do you have with that mountain in Sichuan Province?" Cai Yan asked. The reason why she didn't dare to ask earlier was due to her being paranoid that Su Tao might find her bothersome.
Su Tao realised that he had neglected Cai Yan. He never told her anything about Qihuang Charity Funds. Hence, he spoke the truth to her without any hesitation, "The reason why I wanted to rent an entire mountain in Sichuan Province is to provide an environment for TCM herbs to grow."
"You do not intend to develop it?" Cai Yan was taken aback as she looked at Su Tao.
"Yep! Firstly, there's a high cost to develop, and it will be a long process to get the cost back the moment we start. After all, the location is lacking in transportation; secondly, the motto of the Qihuang Charity Funds is to serve the public, and destroying a forest goes against it; last but not least, for an industry chain like the Three Flavour Hall, it's not easy to have our own garden of wild herbs. I plan to sort out that forest over the next three to five years as Three Flavour Hall's distinguishing feature." Su Tao patiently explained.
"Your trail of thoughts is truly extraordinary!" A smile rose on Cai Yan's lips as she continued, "I've heard from Jingjing about your harvest in the previous trip, and if you can really find an endless supply of precious herbs on that mountain, it's a worthwhile transaction."
"Wild herbs like Ginseng can only be discovered but not sought. Even if the mountain and forest belongs to the Qihuang Charity Funds, we have to consider the ecology balance in the excavation process. Hence, we cannot pluck them excessively." After a brief pondering, Su Tao suggested, "Wang Peng is extremely sensitive to herbs, and I intend to have him get familiar with the environment there."
"To find precious herbs for you?" Cai Yan immediately understood Su Tao's thoughts.
"Not for me, but the Three Flavour Hall." Su Tao solemnly emphasised, "The Three Flavour Hall doesn't belong to me alone, but everyone!"
Cai Yan nodded her head and smiled. "Don't worry. I will deal with that!"
She had a pretty good relationship with Wang Peng, and if she made a move, that disciple of his that was focused on researching herbs would definitely be convinced.
He accepted three disciples, which he taught in line with their forté. At the same time, he provided them a direction and space to improve.
Xiao Jingjing was an all-rounded talent, and she would be a flag of the Three Flavour Hall in the future; Zhao Jian had talent in acupuncture, and he also had a steady character with both courage and responsibility, so he's suitable to deal with the expansion work; Wang Peng specialises in herbs, and since he was already familiar with every book on herbs, a mountain was the most suitable training ground for him to improve himself.
There wasn't a romantic ambiance as the two of them sat in the simple canteen and started to talk, exchanging their thoughts.
Su Tao quietly admired Cai Yan. Although Rangure was bewitching, she paled in comparison to Cai Yan.
She wore white pencil pants and a pink jacket that tightly hugged her body. She also wore a high-collared sweater that went well with her fair skin, along with a silver ornament that hung on her delicate ears and a thin amount of makeup that could trigger anyone's desire.
Compared to a few months ago, Cai Yan was now strong, independent, confident, wise, and hard-working.
After thinking about it, Su Tao's heart tensed. Such an outstanding woman would definitely attract the attention of other men, and he had to pay attention not to allow anyone to get close to her.
The grand opening of the Three Flavour Hall was an eventful episode. Even if they suffered due to the Medicine King Hall's underhanded tactics the entire morning, Dou Fanggang convinced everyone with his outstanding medical skills in the afternoon.
Soon, an article was reported from Huaibei Daily with regards to the Three Flavour Hall's opening. Although the exchange between their competitor wasn't mentioned, it advertised that the Three Flavour Hall invited a TCM grandmaster, Dou Fanggang, over for a charity consultation to benefit the folks in He City.
It was understandable for the paper to protect the Medicine King Hall. After all, the Medicine Deity Corporation was significantly invested in every media at He City, and the papers also had their own policies. Thus, they wouldn't want to offend their financial backer for a newcomer.
To make up for the loss on the first day, Dou Fanggang extended his charity consultation from three days to four days.
There's definitely something to learn when people of the same trade come together. Hence, Su Tao did not go anywhere and became Dou Fanggang's personal assistant. The latter also knew Su Tao's intentions, which he quietly taught him the Bian Que Hands through practical treatments.
When the last patient was treated, Su Tao smiled and cupped his hands in the direction of Dou Fanggang. "Senior Dou, you had it tough for the past few days!"
Rotating his neck, Dou Fanggang smiled. "I'm truly a little exhausted, and I can't even lift my head at this moment."
Immediately, Su Tao volunteered, "Shall I give you a massage?"
Dou Fanggang was intentionally trying to test how much Su Tao has learned with regards to his Bian Que Hands. He was curious about the chemical reaction between the Heavenseizing Hands and Bian Que Hands.
After massaging a few acupoints around Dou Fanggang's spine, the latter suddenly opened his eyes, beaming.
A warm current flowed from Su Tao's fingers to his acupoints and circulated throughout his body with an unprecedented comfort to his five viscera and six bowels.
It felt as if he had returned to being a child running on the wild plains!
So it turned out that time can really go in reverse, and youth can be restored to his aging body.
So such a wonderful sensation can be produced after combining the Heavenseizing Hands and Bian Que Hands.
It was a seal to Su Tao's attempt. The Heavenseizing Hands was akin to an inner cultivation technique, while the Bian Que Hands was akin to an external kill. So by combining the two, an extraordinary effect was created.
After performing the massage for Dou Fanggang, Su Tao suddenly kneeled before the former and gave a kowtow. "Master!"
Dou Fanggang nodded his head in satisfaction with tears flickering in his eyes. It was considered his fortune that he could accept such an outstanding disciple at his age.