Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 181 Activating Traditional Chinese Medicine

When Chen Fan said he had actually memorized the "warming agent," Master Lu clearly didn't believe him. "Did you memorize it by skipping around?"

Chen Fan laughed and said, "If you don't believe me, you can test me, but only before the 'Warming Agent' is applied."

Master Lu naturally didn't believe it, so he immediately put down his chopsticks and asked Chen Fan questions interspersed with the previous six questions. Sure enough, Chen Fan could answer the next question as soon as he asked the previous one, and he answered fluently from beginning to end.

When the old man asked, "Why are the six lords named after Xia and Chen?"

Chen Fan's face fell. "I don't know, but I'm sure this sentence is definitely not among the first six."

Upon hearing this, Master Lu threw his head back and laughed, “That’s right, that’s right, this is the Six Gentlemen Decoction in the seventh tonic, it is indeed not among the previous six.”

Seeing that Chen Fan was so intelligent, having memorized half of the "Tangtou Gejue" in just over an hour, the old man couldn't help but become very talkative. Taking advantage of his drunkenness, he started explaining the medical principles to Chen Fan, beginning with the first chapter, "Exterior-Relieving Formulas."

Chen Fan came here today to spend the New Year with Master Lu. They could talk about anything, especially since it was about traditional Chinese medicine, which he was interested in, so he listened with great interest.

As they ate and chatted, it grew dark before they knew it. Chen Fan noticed that the old man seemed to be getting drunk, so he deliberately said, "Oh dear, I've had too much to drink, I feel dizzy. Grandpa, let's call it a day."

Master Lu glanced at him sideways and said, "You can't handle half a jin? Your alcohol tolerance is far from sufficient."

Chen Fan rested his chin on his hands. "I don't usually drink much. If I drink too much, I'll definitely feel dizzy."

He then stood up and said, "I can't go on like this. I have to get back before I get too drunk. Fourth Master, you should rest too. I'll clean up the table."

Master Lu waved his hand, "No need, no need, I can do it myself."

Chen Fan, however, had already started working, putting the unfinished dishes into the cupboard, collecting the scraps into a dustpan, and then helping the old man to bed to rest.

While Master Lu was still saying "It's nothing, it's nothing," he automatically took off his shoes and coat, lay down, pulled up the blanket, and fell fast asleep.

Chen Fan grinned and chuckled. He then went outside to check the charcoal stove, added a lot of charcoal, closed the stove door, and carefully walked out.

After closing the gate, he ran to Captain Xiao's house first. "Captain, Fourth Master Lu has had a few drinks and is already asleep. I'm worried that he might have some problems if he suddenly drinks again after not drinking for so long. Please go and check on him when you have time later."

Xiao Liewen assured him, "Don't worry, I'll go take a look later."

Then, looking at Chen Fan, she said, "But you, your face is all red. Are you alright?"

Chen Fan took a deep breath. "I can still go home."

Xiao Liewen smiled and shook his head. He went into the room and took out two large sheets of paper, one containing melon seeds and the other containing peanuts. He stuffed them into his cloth bag, saying, "Take these back and eat them while on night watch."

Chen Fan didn't stand on ceremony, "Okay, see you tomorrow."

He waved goodbye and then stumbled home.

Watching his gait, Xiao Liewen couldn't help but click his tongue. "This kid's really mastered the footwork. What should I teach him next? The mud-walking steps of Baguazhang, or the footwork of Tai Chi?"

……

Chen Fan ran all the way home, looked at Jiang Lili's room, the door was open, and it seemed that no one was inside. Then he looked at his own room, the door was half closed.

He couldn't help but smile; it seemed they had heeded his advice and come to their rooms to warm up.
Chen Fan deliberately made his footsteps heavy, the snow crunching as he walked in.

As expected, Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili in the room heard the noise and quickly opened the door.

Upon seeing Chen Fan, Jiang Lili smiled habitually and said, "You're back."

Jiang Tiantian, who was about to greet her, suddenly froze and glanced at her younger sister.

Something about that sounds a bit off.

However, neither Jiang Lili nor Chen Fan noticed anything and continued as usual.

Chen Fan smiled and said, "You're back. Have you eaten yet?"

Jiang Lili: "No, I'm waiting for you."

Chen Fan patted his head, "It's all my fault, I forgot to tell you that I had dinner with someone outside just now."

Jiang Lili's expression stiffened slightly, and she asked curiously, "Who is it?"

Jiang Tiantian didn't expect her sister to ask so directly, and tugged at her clothes from behind.

Jiang Lili immediately realized what was happening and prepared to say something.

But then Chen Fan laughed and said, "It's Master Lu. He's all alone today for the New Year, and no one's keeping him company. So I brought him a basket of charcoal and caught a chicken to keep him company for the New Year."

Jiang Lili's eyes were already wide open, "Fourth Master Lu? Lu..."

At this point, she quickly stopped herself and swallowed the rest of her words.

But the shock in his eyes was impossible to hide.

Chen Fan naturally saw her expression, but he didn't say much. He just smiled and said, "I've been drinking with Master Lu just now. I'll have some food with you all. You chat while I go heat up the food."

As she put down the cloth bag and other things, she prepared to go to the kitchen. Jiang Lili quickly said, "You rest, I'll go heat up the food."

After saying that, he turned around and walked out. Jiang Tiantian smiled at Chen Fan and followed him out, full of questions.

Chen Fan didn't mind. It was a good opportunity to rest. He sat down in a chair, poured himself a cup of tea, and soon regained his energy.

Actually, he didn't drink much, less than three ounces. He spent most of the time listening to Master Lu talk.

He hadn't expected that Master Lu was not only erudite but also an expert in traditional Chinese medicine. He explained the "Formulas of Decoctions" in great detail, from the analysis of symptoms to the dialectical effects of drugs, giving Chen Fan a good lesson in a simple and easy-to-understand way.

As a result, his TCM skills, which he had been looking forward to for nearly a month, were finally activated.

Although it was only a negligible LV1 (1/20), setting a record for the lowest skill level, I still felt a strange sense of accomplishment.

Now I can finally use medical books to increase my experience points!

Although the experience points for this professional skill increase at an outrageously slow rate compared to other common skills, at least there's something to look forward to.

……

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Jiang Tiantian was asking Jiang Lili, "Who is Master Lu? Why do you have that expression?"

Jiang Lili was still a little absent-minded. Upon hearing her sister's words, she instinctively said, "Master Lu was the landlord of Lujiawan before liberation. More than 5000 mu of land in Lujiawan belonged to his family."

Jiang Tiantian's expression at this moment was even worse than Jiang Lili's earlier; her eyes almost popped out of their sockets as she whispered, "Landlord? How dare he?"

Jiang Lili shook her head blankly, "I don't know."

Jiang Tiantian also opened her mouth wide, not knowing what to say.

The two sisters were stunned for a while before absentmindedly preparing dinner.

Actually, these are all leftovers from lunch; they just need to be heated up a little.

After setting the food on the table, arranging the bowls and chopsticks, and pouring wine for Chen Fan, Jiang Lili went over to call Chen Fan to eat.

The three of them sat down around the table, and when Chen Fan saw that they hadn't prepared anything to drink, he made each of them a bowl of sweet soup.

Sitting down again, Chen Fan picked up his chopsticks, looked at Jiang Lili whose expression was still a little strange, and asked with a smile, "Is it strange that I'm going to spend the New Year with Master Lu?"

Jiang Lili nodded gently, then thought for a moment and quickly shook her head, "No, you don't need to say anything."

Chen Fan laughed and said, "There's nothing I can't say."

He picked up his glass, took a sip, exhaled a long breath, looked at the two men, and said seriously.

"Two reasons. First, when I make friends with someone, I don't look at their background, I only look at their character."

He turned to look at Jiang Lili and said, "You are a very good person, so I am happy to be your friend. As for anything else, it doesn't matter."

He paused for a moment, then looked at Jiang Tiantian, "Family background is indeed very important, but in my opinion, what's important is not what kind of family you come from, but whether the family members adhere to the right path, do not engage in crooked ways, and do not scheme against others. These are the most important things to me."

Because "one is influenced by one's company," parents' words and actions can affect the words and deeds of their children and family members. Without those messy things, under normal circumstances, even if the members of this family aren't exactly good people, they're unlikely to be bad people either. Otherwise, no matter how good their family background, I wouldn't dare to mess with them, let alone associate with or befriend them.

Upon hearing his words, Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili exchanged a glance, their expressions complex.

Chen Fan picked up his wine glass, took a sip, put it on the table, and continued, looking at them, "The second reason is external factors."

He suddenly smiled. "The dark days are over, and it's uncertain when the light will return. But at least, no one will treat me badly because I had a meal with Master Lu or because I became friends with someone. The more aggressive people were in the past, the more apprehensive they are now, fearing that someone will settle scores with them later. Even for their own sake, they dare not bite people indiscriminately anymore."

After he finished speaking, he looked at the two of them and then smiled and said, "I've finished speaking. If you're worried about getting into trouble, I'll go back to my room to eat."

He wasn't afraid that the two of them would spread what he said. First, he believed they wouldn't do that, and second, given their situation, who would believe what they said?

Jiang Lili instinctively looked at her sister, her eyes filled with anxiety, "Sister, Xiao Fan is my friend."

Jiang Tiantian glared at her reproachfully, "Xiao Fan is still my savior."

He then turned to look at Chen Fan, picked up the bowl of sweet soup in front of him, presented it to Chen Fan with both hands, and said seriously, "We will not tell anyone what you just said. I am very happy that you can be so honest with us. If you don't mind, I would like to be your friend."

Chen Fan laughed heartily, "We're friends now."

He then raised his glass, looked at Jiang Tiantian, then at Jiang Lili, and said with a smile, "Happy New Year to both new and old friends."

Jiang Tiantian smiled and said, "Happy New Year!"

This was the first time she had genuinely smiled in front of Chen Fan, and her smile was as beautiful as Jiang Lili's.

Seeing her sister's reaction, Jiang Lili immediately beamed with joy, and holding her own bowl, she smiled at Chen Fan and said, "Happy New Year."

Chen Fan held his wine glass, clinked it with each of them, and chuckled, "Happy New Year."

(End of this chapter)