bookcurios Chapter 1954 The Taoist Doctor's Scheme
Chapter 1954 The Taoist Doctor's Scheme
Hou Pingzheng smiled and said to Caibao, "Master, these are candied fruits that I made myself, just to sweeten your mouth."
Oh? Treasure looked over curiously. As soon as the lid was opened, a rich floral fragrance wafted out. It was hard to tell what kind of flower it was, but the delicate scent was unforgettable.
It makes your mouth water just by smelling it.
The tiny, round fruits were soaking in the jar.
I don't know what kind of fruit it is; I've never seen it before.
Caibao took the treasure, but didn't immediately take it out and put it in her mouth. She looked at it and smelled it cautiously.
Although we're chubby, greedy cats, we don't eat whatever we want.
Hou Pingzheng explained to her, "These fruits grew on a wild tree in the mountains of one of my friends' homes. I don't know what kind of tree it is, but he cherishes it like a treasure. It only bears fruit once every ten years, and each time he can harvest about twenty or thirty catties of fruit."
This tree is an heirloom of his family. His family has a long history of longevity, living to their nineties without illness or disaster. The oldest member of his family lived to be 108 years old.
They said they had been consuming this fruit for many years, but they themselves didn't know what the fruit was called, and they had never seen the tree before.
Unfortunately, there were only one plant, and there were very few of them.
What's even more regrettable is that the tree, which had lived for hundreds of years, was struck by lightning this year, killing most of it.
The last little bit is gone, the leaves have all fallen, and the stem is withered beyond recognition; it probably won't survive.
The family cried more bitterly than if their own parents had died.
This is a longevity secret passed down from our ancestors. It should have been passed down to the next generation, but it ended in their hands. Who can take the blame for this?
As for how Zheng Shou got this, it's because the centenarian of the tree owner's family broke his hip joint while taking a bath two years ago. At that time, the hospital said that at such an advanced age, he might not survive the surgery, but if he didn't have the surgery, he would probably only live for a few months.
Elderly people are not afraid of anything else, but they are afraid of falling. It is generally difficult to recover from a fall. If they are paralyzed in bed, they usually cannot survive for more than a few months. It may be that the elderly cannot survive, or it may be that others cannot survive.
The saying "a long illness tests filial piety" applies to many families.
However, the tree's owners are all very filial.
They tried every means to find out about Hou Pingzheng, and through countless connections, they finally got to Hou Pingzheng's side. It was Hou Pingzheng who had his most outstanding disciple perform the surgery for him. After the surgery, Hou Pingzheng helped him with acupuncture and conditioning, and he finally passed the critical period without any major incident.
Now that old man can still go out for a walk with a cane, and he's full of energy.
So the whole family was very grateful to Hou Pingzheng, and when the tree bore fruit this year, they gave him ten jin (5 kg).
A very generous thank-you gift.
However, at that time they didn't know that the tree would be struck by lightning...
Good luck tricks people.
Fresh fruit doesn't keep well, so Hou Pingzheng added black honey to make candied fruit. Ten pounds of fresh fruit only yielded two jars.
Now he takes out a jar and gives it to Treasure.
Hou Pingzheng had someone specifically examine the fruit, and it was found that it was extremely nutritious, rich in many rare nutrients, and that eating it could prolong life.
Caibao didn't understand any of that talk about how precious and difficult things were. She took out a piece and took a bite.
"Ugh~~ It's sour~~" Her chubby face scrunched up, and she shivered.
Hou Pingzheng laughed: "I added black honey to the honey-soaking process, otherwise it would be even more sour."
In the words of the tree's owner, it's so sour it could make you poop and pee.
It's not an exaggeration; his family used to have to go to the toilet before eating this, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable.
Caibao was still a child, and she didn't understand how precious it was. She just thought it was too sour and didn't like to eat it. She shook her head and handed the jar to Chen Chuan.
Chen Chuan looked at the fruit inside, pondered for a moment, and asked Hou Pingzheng, "Is that tree really dead?"
"It's almost time. His family invited many people to take a look, and they all said there's no way to save him."
The tree trunk was split into charcoal...
Chen Chuan smiled and said, "It's good that it's turned into charcoal. This is lightning-struck wood, which can ward off evil spirits."
Hou Pingzheng: ?
Indeed, in the eyes of those who delve into metaphysics, the living have their uses, and the dead have their benefits. The main idea is that nothing is wasted; everything is useful.
Chen Chuan continued, "How about I find someone to go and check on them, to see if they can save the tree?"
Does he know this kind of person?
Hou Pingzheng suddenly had a bad feeling: "You don't mean you're a Taoist doctor, do you?"
Seriously? Seriously? Has Taoist medicine become this incredible? It can heal not only people, but also trees?
Hmm, if you put it that way, Hou Pingzheng suddenly suspects that the tree might have been tricked by a Taoist doctor, or that someone had changed its illness energy. Otherwise, how could it have been struck by lightning out of the blue?
Chen Chuan hadn't expected that Hou Pingzheng was either a materialist or would directly accept that the size was so large that he could even interpret ordinary natural phenomena as metaphysics.
Upon hearing about her "strength," Caibao immediately stood up excitedly: "I'll go! I'll go! I can watch!"
She's everywhere, what could she possibly be looking at?
Chen Chuan pressed his daughter down: "Of course not, we must believe in science. I'll find scientists to treat the trees in his yard."
Does he know any scientists?
Cheng Xuri was very surprised.
Caibao raised his hand: "Dad, what is a scientist? Is it a doctor? Is it a doctor who treats trees? Then what is it called? Treating dogs is called veterinarian, so treating trees is called tree doctor? Or plant doctor? Then..."
Hou Pingzheng and the others were dumbfounded.
His master is quite secretive.
Chen Chuan is very good at handling this.
"Cheng Xuri, take her out for a while. While you're at it, take her to the Agricultural University to identify some trees."
Agricultural University?
Oh, Cheng Xuri understands. Agricultural University has plenty of experts who can treat trees.
Their agricultural university in Hecheng is among the top in the country. Every expert and professor there is capable of working in paddy fields and standing on a lecture platform; they are incredibly talented.
Upon hearing that they were going out to play, Caibao immediately lost his curiosity and ran straight to the door, reminding Hou Pingzheng as he ran, "You have to be a good boy and draw the talisman. Don't think that I can't control you just because we're in Jing City."
Hou Pingzheng: ...
"If you slack off, Grandpa will spank you when he gets back."
Hou Pingzheng: …………
Master, I'm already quite old, is it alright for me to get a spanking?
*
Hou Pingzheng left Hecheng. Before leaving, Caibao examined the talisman he had drawn and nodded seriously: "Not bad."
His master praised him, and Hou Pingzheng, despite his advanced age, left feeling elated.
Then Chen Chuan selected a team of men to go to Long Province.
The team is rich in "technology".
The Agricultural University sent two heavyweight professors, and after Chen Chuan shared some fruit with them, they volunteered to join.
They had never seen this fruit before and were very curious. People who do scientific research usually have a strong sense of curiosity and cannot resist the temptation of the unknown.
Chen Ying happened to have some free time recently, so she volunteered to join in. Cheng Xuri naturally wanted to go too, and Zheng Shou hurriedly returned from another province.
The best lightning-struck wood was there; how could he miss it?