Wu Luoluo wiped the table in front of the old beggar clean with a rag, then turned around and filled a plate with the steaming pancakes from the pot and brought them over.
The old beggar didn't even bother to wash his hands. He grabbed a pancake and, although it burned his hands, he kept shifting it between them rather than putting it back. He took a big bite and yelped from the heat.
Wu Luoluo poured the old beggar a cup of warm water and rolled her eyes. "Take your time, old sir. No one's going to fight you for it!" His eating style made it hard for her to even look at food.
Alas, there was nothing she could do! Her master had always treated this senior-uncle with the utmost respect. Since she was soft - hearted and didn't want to disappoint her master, she had to put up with it.
The old beggar grabbed the bamboo cup and gulped down the water. After devouring three pancakes, he waved his hand contentedly at Wu Luoluo. "I've brought you a gift. It's lying in the inner room. Go take a look!" Then he picked up a fourth pancake and continued to wolf it down.
Wu Luoluo was taken aback. Would this senior - uncle really bring her a gift out of kindness? The only thing in the pantry's inner room was a large pot she used for processing herbs. What kind of gift could he have brought and tossed into the inner room?
Wu Luoluo pushed open the ajar wooden door suspiciously and walked in. With the light seeping through the window, she saw that in the large copper pot she usually used for processing medicinal herbs, there was a young man lying naked from the waist up! The man's face was ashen and his body was swollen. He looked as if he had been in the water for a long time and was already dead.
Wu Luoluo was quite surprised. What did the senior - uncle bring back such a horribly disfigured dead man for? She reached out her delicate hand and grabbed the man's wrist, gently pressing her three fingers to feel his pulse.
As she had expected, the man had no pulse; he was thoroughly dead.
It was such a pity that such a young man had drowned! Wu Luoluo sighed silently in her heart. She pushed the door open and walked out, shouting at the old beggar, "Senior - uncle! What do you mean by throwing a dead man here?"
The old beggar just continued to eat his pancakes. Seemingly annoyed by her, he waved his hand impatiently. "Can't you try to treat a dead horse as if it were alive? I've even brought the man to you. Do I have to chew everything up and feed it to you?"
Wu Luoluo stood there, speechless. How could she treat a dead man? Did the senior - uncle think that her mediocre medical skills could bring the dead back to life?
Did he overestimate her too much?
Also, could he please stop using such disgusting metaphors? She really might vomit. Thank you!
Seeing Wu Luoluo standing at the door, looking at him blankly, the old beggar couldn't help but complain. "When I go to other disciples' places, they treat me to good food and wine. But when I come to you, I can hardly get enough to eat. And now, you even expect me to treat the patient myself?"
Wu Luoluo lowered her head in shame.
Although she was really interested in saving people through medicine and had read a wide variety of medical books, her master mainly made a living by making and selling medicine. He only treated patients when the villagers came to him for help. So she was only familiar with the properties of various herbs, and was obviously lacking in experience when it came to pulse - taking and diagnosing diseases. Moreover, the man the senior - uncle had brought back was probably already dead, and she didn't know where to start.
Wu Luoluo said timidly, "Senior - uncle... Could you teach me?"
The old beggar frowned impatiently. "Fine. Judging from your state, it seems you haven't learned anything from your short - lived master. Alright, I'll be kind enough to teach you today. Go get the medicine: Angelica sinensis, Poria cocos, Alisma orientale, Atractylodes macrocephala, Heracleum hemsleyanum, Aconitum carmichaeli..."
The old beggar listed a long string of medicinal names. Wu Luoluo quickly got up and went to the warehouse to get the medicine. She then tossed them all into the pot as instructed.
The Chinese herbs were scattered all over the man's body. Wu Luoluo caught a glimpse of his side face and felt a bit curious. Although the man's swollen body looked quite terrifying, there was a moment when his side face made her think he was actually quite good - looking.
The old beggar stepped forward, grabbed the young man by the collar and casually threw him on the ground, almost pulling off the tattered cloth that was covering his private parts. Wu Luoluo quickly took a few steps back and turned her face away in embarrassment.
The old beggar seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. He sneered disdainfully. "As a doctor, are you still so shy about this? How are you going to diagnose and prescribe medicine for patients in the future?"
Wu Luoluo blushed. She thought the senior - uncle was absolutely right! She had only seen naked human figures in the meridian diagrams of some medical books. Now that she finally had a naked dead man to study carefully, why should she be shy?
Suddenly, Wu Luoluo remembered that one night, she had accidentally seen her senior - brother peeping at their mistress bathing through a hole in the window paper! Afterward, the senior - brother had told her with a straight face that he was just trying to identify the meridian points and asked her not to say a word. Wu Luoluo rolled her eyes silently in her heart. She might be a bit stupid, but she wasn't a fool!
The old beggar said impatiently, "Stop daydreaming all the time! Go fetch water and chop firewood. Fill the pot with water and boil the medicine!" Then, without even looking at the dead man on the ground, he found a comfortable position, crossed his legs and took a nap.
Wu Luoluo obediently did as she was told and quickly went to chop firewood.
After the medicine in the copper pot had boiled three times, Wu Luoluo looked at the man lying alone on the cold ground and then at the old beggar who was sleeping soundly. She was at a loss. Not daring to disturb the old beggar, she helped the man up and got him as close to the fire as possible to keep him warm. Then she got up and went to chop more firewood.
When the medicine in the large pot was no longer scalding hot, the old beggar finally opened his eyes groggily. He glanced at the slender figure outside the window, chopping firewood vigorously in the wind and snow, and waved for Wu Luoluo to come in.
"Have you learned acupuncture?" the old beggar asked, looking at her sideways.
After chopping the firewood, Wu Luoluo's face was flushed. She nodded seriously. Her master had once praised her for her accurate acupoint - selection and good technique. She thought she should be able to handle it.
The old beggar nodded. "Go get Old Wu's acupuncture kit and give him acupuncture." This "him" naturally referred to Shangguan Yun, who was lying cold on the ground.
Wu Luoluo scurried off happily.
Although this senior - uncle didn't seem very reliable, since her master had said he was capable, she naturally believed it. It was quite a rare opportunity to be personally guided by the senior - uncle. Wu Luoluo quickly went to the main hall to get the acupuncture kit and laid out all the needles. The needles of different sizes and lengths were neatly arranged and glistened.
The old beggar grunted and instructed, "Shenting, Yintang, Jingming, Tanzhong, Zhongwan, Guanyuan..." The old beggar spoke very quickly. Wu Luoluo took out the silver needles and calmly inserted them into the corresponding acupoints one by one.
Before long, all the important acupoints on Shangguan Yun's body were filled with silver needles. When Wu Luoluo finished inserting the needle into the Yongquan acupoint on his foot and looked back, there were hardly any silver needles left in the kit.