Huo Mian’s coffee-stirring hand paused for a second; then, she shook her head...
"Um... my mom told me that there’s a really famous Chinese traditional medicine doctor where she lives, and a lot of couples have gotten pregnant after meeting with him. Chinese medicine doesn’t hurt the body, so wouldn’t it be great if your problem was solved? My mom said that he’s pretty good, and since we have time today, do you want to go check it out?"
Huo Mian usually refused, but today, she answered, "Sure."
Then, Huo Mian drove herself and Zhu Lingling to the street her mother lived on.
It was an old industrial district; Zhu Lingling grew up there, and since their family had gotten used to it, her parents didn’t want to move all the way to downtown.
In the end, they twisted and turned until they arrived outside a yard in a hutong.
A dog began barking at them as soon as they walked in...
"What do you want?" An old woman with a weird accent walked out of the yard.
"Hi, we’re here for Mr. Wang," Zhu Lingling remembered that this family was named ’Wang’.
"Oh, are you here for a checkup?"
"Yes." Huo Mian nodded.
"Come in, the consultation fee is 20 yuan." The old woman stuck out her hand.
Before Huo Mian had a chance to reach into her bag, Zhu Lingling immediately passed the old woman a 20-yuan bill.
Then, she took them into a little house, where an old man of around 80 years or so was wearing reading glasses and organizing medicine.
The entire room reeked of Chinese medicine.
"Old man, you have a patient."
"Okay, I got it." The old man had perfect hearing and stopped what he was doing immediately.
Then, he turned around and walked slowly towards Huo Mian and Zhu Lingling.
"Which one of you is the patient?"
"I am," Huo Mian said.
"What’s your illness?" The old man asked in all seriousness.
"Um... feel her pulse first, and we’ll go from there," Zhu Lingling didn’t want Huo Mian to tell him that she was infertile; it would be too awkward.
The old man nodded and gestured for Huo Mian to sit down on the chair.
Then, he placed a wrist pad under Huo Mian’s right wrist and began feeling her pulse.
He looked very professional; the truth was, Huo Mian studied western medicine, so she didn’t believe in traditional Chinese medicine.
However, not many traditional Chinese medicine practitioners existed anymore, and many medical school graduates who had rudimentary Chinese medicine knowledge pretended to be miracle-workers, prescribing patients random Chinese medication. Chinese medicine wouldn’t kill, but one had to suit the remedy to the case in order to see effects.
If Zhu Lingling didn’t mention it to her today, she wouldn’t have planned on seeing a traditional Chinese doctor. Her mom brought it up as well, but she didn’t say anything.
"Doctor, how is my friend, is there anything wrong with her?" Zhu Lingling asked anxiously.
The old man slowly put away his hand and glanced at Huo Mian. "You’re lacking both qi and blood, and your womb is cold... Do you suffer from period cramps?"
"I do." Huo Mian nodded her head obediently.
"You should take better care of your body, or else getting pregnant will be hard," the old man exclaimed.
Huo Mian and Zhu Lingling exchanged glances...
"Does she need to take medicine?" Zhu Lingling asked.
"If you trust me, I can prescribe you some Chinese medicine. If you don’t trust me, feel free to go to a pharmacy and ask for womb-warming medicine. I suggest that you take them for 3 months," the old man reminded them.
"You can prescribe them for me," Huo Mian thought that the old man had a point; from a western medicine point of view, she diagnosed herself with a cold womb as well.
Then, they bought 200 yuan worth of Chinese medicine from the old man.
As soon as she got home, Huo Mian began boiling the medicine, and soon, a nose-piercing aroma filled the entire kitchen.
She had to drink three bowls a day, one pack each time. It smelled and tasted disgusting.
The medicine mainly consisted of well-known Chinese herbs, and those who drank Chinese medicine would know how foul-tasting it was.
After Huo Mian drank the entire bowl, she felt her stomach churning; in the end, she couldn’t take it anymore. She ran into the bathroom and began throwing up.
When Qin Chu arrived at home, Huo Mian was still going at it in the bathroom; she forced herself to drink all the medicine but couldn’t keep in down. Her entire breath reeked of Chinese herbs...
"Honey... what’s wrong?" Qin Chu frowned.