Chapter 188 Inheritance of Traditional Chinese Medicine

With Grandma's careful care, Xiao Jiu's cough symptoms were relieved, but he still needed to take Sister Cui Mei's medicine to fully recover.

When the Lin family brought eggs and duck eggs to thank her, they learned that Lin Jinbao's condition was not good and his cough seemed quite severe. So Xiaojiu recommended her fifth sister to them. When her fifth sister came to see her on the weekend, she told her about Lin Jinbao's condition. After confirming that her fifth sister was ready, she took her to see a doctor for Lin Jinbao.

The Lin family initially didn't believe it, but they were stunned by Tang Cuimei's skillful medical techniques. If this girl was just pretending, then she would ask questions and say things exactly like a hospital doctor, and might even be more professional. She then prescribed some colorful Western medicine pills, wrapped in paper, and told them how to use them.

Then he said decisively, "I won't charge you for the medical treatment, but I will charge you for the medicine. You can not pay me this time. Check Jinbao's symptoms in three days. If they are better than they are now, give me five yuan! If they are not better, I don't need a penny."

Now that things have come to this point, no one is saying the medicine is expensive anymore. Besides, this is Xiao Jiu's relative's child. If they can take good care of Xiao Jiu, they must have some skills. We can't underestimate them just because they are young.

Cui Mei knew she was too old to stand on her own, which was why she sought medical treatment in this way. She wasn't afraid they wouldn't pay her, because she was confident in that.

As for the matter of seeing a doctor and prescribing medicine, it was naturally impossible to hide it from the Tao family. Tang Cuimei herself studied Western medicine, and her family was a family of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. Her own abilities and expertise were far superior to Ning Meng, who only had a doctorate and internship experience but no real clinical experience.

Others learn by observation and experience, while Ning Meng mostly only has theoretical knowledge and practical experience from her few years of internships. Although she has a high level of education, it does not mean she has enough experience.

So she could tell at a glance that Cui Mei was highly skilled in medicine. While she was still hesitant and afraid to treat others, Cui Mei was already openly taking her grandparents' pulses and treating them.

Although her grandparents were very curious, they kept quiet out of politeness. Fortunately, Cui Mei didn't treat them like outsiders and spoke frankly.

"Grandpa and Grandma might not believe it, but I had a dream in which I became a doctor. I was very experienced and excellent. I even had my own clinic. I could even conjure up medicine out of thin air, like this, and like this. So, from now on, only our family will know this secret. I will treat any member of our family for free. In the future, I will go to medical school to further my studies and continue to be a doctor."

If the preceding events were all setup, the subsequent act of producing medicine out of thin air completely stunned the two elders, with the grandmother even grabbing her hand.

"My God, such a miracle still exists in this world! Daughter, alright, stop talking. Grandpa and Grandma already know. Thank you for trusting us. Don't worry, only a few of us know about this. Xiao Jiu, this concerns your fifth sister's life, you mustn't..."

"Grandma, don't worry, I know. In fact, I already knew, otherwise I wouldn't have taken my sister to see Jinbao for treatment. My sister didn't perform this skill in front of outsiders. The reason she told you was because she was afraid you would overthink it. She just wanted to give you the answer so you wouldn't worry."

“My clinic can only treat a limited number of patients, so I must go to medical school so that I can naturally work in a hospital. Don’t worry, Grandpa and Grandma, my sister and I have never forgotten your great kindness. Today I am Tang Cuimei, and even if I become a doctor tomorrow, I will still be your goddaughter.”

"Oh, you child, your words are so reassuring and heartwarming. Alright, your grandparents appreciate your kindness. As long as you are both well and healthy and thriving, we will be happy. How many more years can your grandfather and I live? Seeing both of our families getting better and better will allow me to go to see my two sons in peace."

When the old woman mentioned her two sons who had sacrificed their lives, a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes. Xiao Jiu didn't know how to comfort her, so she simply hugged the old woman from behind.

"Grandma, you still have me. I hope you live to be a hundred and see me become a doctor and wear a white coat."

"Oh, our little Jiu has such lofty ambitions. Is it because you see how amazing your fifth sister is that you want to study medicine too?"

Xiao Jiu nodded vigorously, "But I don't want to study Western medicine, I want to study traditional Chinese medicine."

She was incredibly grateful that this era was more suitable for learning traditional Chinese medicine, as there were more TCM practitioners and the coverage was wider than that of Western medicine. Unlike later generations, when Western medicine almost dominated, the things passed down from our ancestors were gradually forgotten, which was her greatest regret.

Tang Cuimei looked at Xiao Jiu in surprise, "You actually figured out that I'm a Western doctor?"

Xiao Jiu chuckled, "Although Fifth Sister took Grandpa and Grandma's pulse and used acupuncture, she still used Western medicine pills when administering the medication. So I guessed it was Western medicine, but since she also used acupuncture and pulse taking, it's a bit hard to figure out. Could it be that you are good at both?"

Her grandparents and parents used to force her to study traditional Chinese medicine, but she didn't understand. After going through many twists and turns, she finally realized that her elders only hoped that traditional Chinese medicine could be passed down from generation to generation. It was precisely because it was gradually declining that these older generation of traditional Chinese medicine scholars sighed about it.

Although she took control of her own future, it caused some unpleasantness with her family. Fortunately, her early exposure to traditional Chinese medicine meant that her knowledge of it was not superficial. She even studied traditional Chinese medicine while helping out at her family clinic during winter and summer vacations, so it's not too late for her to pick it up again now.

Even her younger sister understands this principle, so she has no reason to deny it. Passing on traditional Chinese medicine may truly require the perseverance of their generation.

"Shouldn't Xiao Jiu go back to school?"

Xiao Jiu was very resourceful. "My eldest sister said that there was another famine before 1962. I can go back to school after that period is over. Don't worry, Fifth Sister, I'm studying at home and I'm confident that I can take the junior high school entrance exam directly."

Tang Cuimei knew that Xiao Jiu was very smart, so she gave her a quick test. She didn't expect that the girl was even more capable than she had imagined.

Even if the little sister born in 1950 goes to junior high school in 1962, it's not too late. With so many people in the family getting into top middle and high schools, how can we not tutor a primary school student?

Tao An is someone who simply doesn't want to learn, and even if she does, it's just so-so. Xiao Jiu, on the other hand, chose to study at home in order to spend more time with her grandparents. I thought it was just talk, but judging from the current results, she is serious and has made some progress, which shows that this child is a natural learner.

She patted Xiaojiu's head and said, "If there's anything you don't understand in the future, feel free to ask me."

Ever since Grandpa and Grandma learned that Fifth Sister had the ability to treat illnesses, whenever Fifth Sister came to the Tao family on weekends, she would always treat the villagers, earning one or two yuan, or even ten or fifty cents. She was short of money and ration coupons, so if someone couldn't afford medical treatment, she would gladly accept food instead.

Because she gained some fame for her medical practice, she accumulated more and more money, eventually saving up to one hundred yuan.

Not only could we pay for the sixth child's tuition, we could even have surplus grain to exchange for food coupons for them to use at school.

The sixth sister wasn't one to freeload. Whenever someone in the village had a wedding or funeral, she would drag the fourth sister along. Even if the family didn't give them money, they would still let the two sisters bring home some meat and vegetables to improve the family's meals, out of consideration for the sisters' good intentions.

Since we have a heavy financial burden at home, we should save as much as we can.

Tang Cuihua and Tang Cuiju practically monopolized all the land in Taojia Town, while the Zhou family's land wasn't due for redevelopment yet. Even if the old couple passed away, even if Zhou Xing joined the army and Zhou Yue went to school, the family still had six mu of land. The production team would be established around next year, so there wouldn't be any changes at this time.

The elderly couple now live in the village and rarely go to town anymore. Tao An, who studies in town, often stays in their rented house. Cuihua and Cuiju return to the village after finishing their work. However, it is thanks to the two of them that the land in town is well tended.

At the beginning of spring, several rains fell in succession, which not only saturated the wheat but also caused wild vegetables to sprout.

Diligent Xiao Jiu would carry her bamboo basket out every day to dig for wild vegetables and gather firewood, making several trips a day. Even though it was early spring and the mornings and evenings were still a bit chilly, she would always come home covered in sweat, which made her grandmother feel very sorry for her.

"Going twice a day is enough. Why are you pushing yourself like that? We have more than enough wild vegetables to eat; there's no need for that."

"That won't do, Grandma. We'll eat these wild vegetables ourselves. I need to cut some fresh grass for the sheep separately, otherwise I'll feel so bad feeding them wild vegetables."

"It's not easy to dig up wild vegetables, which is why it pains me to see them so bad. If they were as easy to cut and bring home as grass, I wouldn't feel this way. After all, they are our family's heroes, especially this old sheep."

"The old sheep will thank you for your consideration. Look, now it doesn't have to give birth or produce milk. It's well-fed and watered every day and is very happy. With this little ewe, we have enough milk. It's time for it to retire."

After all, the old sheep had fed her, and Xiao Jiu treated her very well. Sometimes she would even secretly feed her cabbage leaves from the space. She loved eating cabbage, and she was also happy eating carrots. She also loved eating the carrot tops from the space. Sometimes when she had nothing to do, she would tidy up the vegetables in the space that were suitable for feeding them, such as the outer skin of cabbage and the tops of white and red radishes. In Japan and Korea, they are used to make pickles, but they don't need them here, so they just pluck them off and feed them directly to the sheep.

In February, there's mugwort; in March, shepherd's purse; and in April, there are even more: willow buds, Sichuan pepper buds, toon buds, mulberry leaf buds, elm seeds, dandelions, and noodle greens. In May, there are locust flowers, sow thistle, purslane, bracken, and lamb's quarters. In June, there are purslane, wild amaranth, wolfberry buds, and so on.

Although they are called wild vegetables, they all have medicinal value. Take advantage of this time to dry more wild vegetables so that you won't go hungry in a famine year. Now, not only the Tao family, but also the Tang family, are busy searching for wild vegetables in the fields or riverbanks every day. The more wild vegetables they dry, the less they will have to worry about in a disaster year.