Chapter 23: Old Chinese Physician
As Xu An rode his tricycle out of the intersection, he saw an old man on the roadside carrying a stack of candied haws for sale.
Only then did Xu An remember that he had forgotten to buy the candied haws and stickers he had promised Xu Kang and Xu Le.
While Xu An was picking out the candied haws, he suddenly saw a tall, thin figure flit across the street and enter a building with a sign that read ’Chinese Medicine’.
’That figure looks like my uncle-in-law. What’s he doing here?’
"Sir, do you know what kind of business they run in that building across the street?"
The old man selling candied haws looked where Xu An was pointing, grinned with the few teeth he had left, and said cheerily, "There’s an Old Chinese Physician in there who specializes in treating infertility. The Old Chinese Physician is skilled, but he’s got a temper too. He only sees patients referred by acquaintances and doesn’t take walk-ins."
’An Old Chinese Physician who specializes in infertility? Looks like my uncle-in-law hasn’t given up on having kids. He’s starting to believe in folk remedies and the supernatural now.’
The old candied haw seller tugged on Xu An’s sleeve, motioning for him to lean in.
"I heard that this Old Chinese Physician is incredible. Many infertile couples come to see him, and not long after, they get pregnant. It’s truly amazing!"
"Sir, have you heard how he treats them?" Xu An felt that something wasn’t quite right, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
The old man shook his head. "If I knew that, would I still be here selling candied haws?"
Seeing that the old man didn’t know the details, Xu An didn’t press further. He stood near the old man, watching the building across the street and waiting for his uncle-in-law to come out.
He waited for a while, but his uncle-in-law didn’t emerge. Xu An couldn’t just stand there waiting forever. He still had to go to the Zijing Garden construction site to pick up Xu Heping. Otherwise, with just that one bicycle, there was no way he could bring everything back.
Xu An had no choice but to pay for two skewers of candied haws, place them in the foam box, and head off toward the Zijing Garden construction site.
Just ten minutes after Xu An left, his uncle-in-law strolled out of the building, hands behind his back, humming a little tune with a cheerful gait and a smug look on his face.
Xu Heping was counting the remaining lunch boxes at the stall. "One, two, three, four, five... We’ve been out here for almost two hours, and out of thirty lunch boxes, there are still five left. Sales are getting worse and worse."
He turned to look at the fried noodle stand next to them; their five-yuan egg fried rice was selling like hotcakes.
Then he looked at the row of fast-food restaurants across the street. Besides the workers, a few local residents were mixed in with the crowd.
Only their stall was depressingly quiet.
’Should I move the stall across the street?’
As Xu Heping was lost in thought, Xu An returned on his tricycle.
"Heping, how are sales over here?"
"Not great. Out of thirty lunch boxes, there are still five left. And I just heard from Uncle Dongliang that the factory cafeteria’s food is back to normal, so probably even fewer people will be willing to come out and buy food."
"The ones who are willing to eat out are all being snatched up by those fast-food places across the street for now. It should get better after their promotions end." Xu An got off the tricycle to help pack up the stall. They had also arranged for a tractor to help them move the freezer, and it would be too late if they delayed any longer.
"That’ll take at least three to five days, right? How’s business on your end?"
"Not bad. The fast-food places over there mainly sell to local residents, so their prices are a bit higher. Our eight-yuan lunch boxes are very appealing to the workers. Maybe in a few days, we can even attract some nearby residents or office workers."
Hearing this, the owner of the fried noodle stand was intrigued. He pulled out a cigarette and offered it to Xu An, asking politely, "Where are you setting up your stall now, young man?"
"Just wandering around other construction sites," Xu An said evasively, and the two of them left together.
’Ptooey!’
The fried noodle stand owner spat on the ground, scuffed it with his foot, and watched their retreating backs with a displeased expression.
’A couple of little brats. Don’t think I can’t find you just because you won’t tell me.’
When they got to the wet market, the tractor driver was already waiting at the main entrance. Xu An and Xu Heping hurried into the market and found Old He’s dry goods shop.
The sign for Old He’s dry goods shop had been taken down, leaving only an empty lintel. The shelves inside the store were all gone, with only the freezer Xu An had reserved remaining inside.
You could tell the freezer had been cleaned. The last time he was here, there was still some dust and water stains on the bottom, but now it was all spotless.
Xu An plugged it in to test it. After confirming there were no issues, he said goodbye to Old He and, with Xu Heping’s help, lifted the freezer into the tractor’s trailer.
The walking tractor’s trailer was huge. Not only did it fit the freezer, but it also held both their tricycle and bicycle. Xu An and Xu Heping squeezed into the front seat with the driver, and the tractor rumbled and bounced its way toward Xu Family Village.
Halfway there, the tractor driver received a phone call. Xu An overheard a few keywords in the conversation.
’Want a child,’ ’Old Chinese Physician,’ ’needs a referral.’
The combination of these keywords made Xu An think of the Old Chinese Physician across from the Hai City Library construction site.
"Sir," Xu An asked, "I just heard you mention an Old Chinese Physician on the phone. You wouldn’t happen to be talking about the one across from the Hai City Library construction site, would you?"
The tractor driver was taken aback. He looked Xu An up and down in disbelief and said, "No way, kid. You’re only in your early twenties and you already need an Old Chinese Physician to sort you out?"
...
"I’m asking for a relative," Xu An quickly explained. "He’s been married for seven or eight years and still doesn’t have kids, so when I heard, I thought I’d keep an eye out for him."
"Oh." The tractor driver snapped out of it. "Then you’ve got the right one. Going to this Old Chinese Physician is definitely the right move."
"I’ve heard many people say he’s good at treating infertility, but I’ve never heard who specifically has been successfully treated there. Sir, do you know anyone personally who’s been treated by him?"
"It’s right that you don’t know. The Old Chinese Physician’s secret formula uses many rare medicinal herbs, so the supply is limited. If word got out and too many people knew, it would disturb his peace. He only helps those who are fated to meet him." The tractor driver’s tone was full of pride.
"Then how do you know so much?" Xu An pressed.
"I have a relative—a real relative!" the tractor driver emphasized before continuing. "They were married for over three years with no kids. They pulled some strings to get a referral to that Old Chinese Physician, saw him once a week for three to five visits, and she actually got pregnant. The kid’s three years old now, full of life and cute as a button."
"Then do you know how this Old Chinese Physician treats his patients?" Xu An brought up the topic again.
"The treatment process is confidential. No one talks about it, and no one knows. But I do know about the Chinese medicine they drink alongside it. It’s all expensive stuff, very nourishing."
’A medical technique isn’t something you can master just by watching a few times. The reason the Old Chinese Physician is so secretive is that his treatment method is likely something that can’t see the light of day, maybe even something illegal or criminal.’
’Of course, there’s another possibility: the Old Chinese Physician awakened a Child-Giving Guanyin System, and his mission is to help a thousand infertile couples have children of their own.’
The three of them chatted as they quickly returned to Xu Family Village. The RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE of the tractor drew a crowd of onlookers from the village.
Once the freezer was settled, Xu An cleaned out the kitchen and even called his Second Uncle Guo Qiang over to help with the wiring.
They moved the freezer into the kitchen and plugged it in. The hum of the compressor started up, and the freezer began to work normally.
Xu An patted the freezer, feeling very satisfied. Starting tomorrow, he could buy the ingredients for the next day when he packed up in the afternoon and bring them back, saving him a trip to town early in the morning.
"Anzi, are you planning to open a convenience store at home?" Seeing the freezer, Granny Xu’s first thought was that Xu An wanted to open a small shop in the village.
"Granny, this is for our own use, not for a shop," Xu An explained, looking completely baffled.
"Then why buy a horizontal one? I’ve never seen anyone use this type at home," Granny Xu said, completely puzzled.
"This one is used. It was cheap."
As soon as he said the word "cheap," Granny Xu stopped worrying about whether the freezer was horizontal or vertical. She looked at it from every angle, growing more and more pleased.
But when she saw the freezer’s power cord, her heart sank. ’A freezer this big... how much electricity will it use in a day!’
That evening, Xu An was tallying up the day’s earnings as usual.
Xu Kang and Xu Le were roughhousing nearby. Xu Le’s little hand accidentally knocked the ledger out of Xu An’s grasp, and a neatly folded piece of paper from inside it fell to the floor.
After scolding the two of them, Xu An picked up the notebook and the paper from the floor.
’What’s this?’
Xu An unfolded the paper and glanced at the information on it, and it all came back to him.
’I remember now. Isn’t this the medical report my uncle-in-law threw in the trash can at the bus stop?’
’I just stuck it in my notebook when I got back and completely forgot about it.’
’This is useless. I should just throw it away.’
Just as Xu An was about to toss the paper into the trash, his gaze suddenly fell on the torn corner.
The name had been torn off, but the address on the report was still there.
’Apartment 803, Building 3, Bright Moon Bay, Wangcheng District, Hai City.’
’This is my aunt’s address!’
’My uncle-in-law is the only man in my aunt’s house, so this medical report really is his!’
’Looks like my uncle-in-law’s been cuckolded.’