Chapter 452 - 454: Aren’t They Family?
As soon as Bai Yihong’s words ended, Bai Ruozhu had already pulled up his clothes, speaking softly to Zhou Deshun’s wife, "Auntie, it’s okay now."
Only then did Zhou Chuang react to his exposed back in front of Bai Ruozhu, his face reddening involuntarily. He quickly lowered his head to fix his clothes, internally grumbling about his mother’s unusual brusqueness that day.
Bai Ruozhu pulled Zhou Deshun’s wife aside and explained, "Zhou Chuang isn’t careless, he has some hormonal problems which are affecting his memory."
"Hormonal? What problem?" Zhou Deshun’s wife’s eyes reddened when she heard this. She didn’t understand, and so it felt particularly serious.
Bai Ruozhu hastily reassured her, "Auntie, don’t worry, it’s not a big issue. It’s just like someone having excessive heat in their body causing blisters on the corner of their mouth, or only having bowel movements every few days— nothing serious."
Zhou Deshun’s wife finally exhaled in relief, "But how can excessive heat, being a minor issue, affect Zhou Chuang’s memory?"
Bai Ruozhu found it difficult to explain modern terminologies to people from ancient times. As she racked her brain for a simpler explanation, Zhou Deshun intervened loudly, "The situations are different, even if explained, you wouldn’t understand. Instead of asking why, why not ask if it can be cured & how?"
Bai Ruozhu nodded in agreement. Despite Zhou Deshun being tipsy, his thought process was clear.
"It’s not a serious issue. Some medication for regulation should help. Once his body regains balance, his memory will naturally improve as well." She then proceeded to write the prescription. Zhou Chuang, ever watchful, immediately leaned over to offer, "Sister, let me grind the inkstick for you."
In no time, Bai Ruozhu had two prescriptions ready. Initially, she intended to hand it over to Zhou Chuang but then reconsidered and gave it to Zhou Deshun’s wife. Given Zhou Chuang’s present memory condition, there was a risk of a mix-up.
"Auntie, start with the medication from the first prescription. Infuse the herbs in three bowls of water until it gets reduced to one bowl, to be consumed daily; switch to the second prescription after a week. Continue based on the disappearance of the pimples on Zhou Chuang’s back & regularity of his bowel movements," advised Bai Ruozhu.
Remembering an important detail, she added, "Oh yes, the first prescription may cause a bit of diarrhea, but nothing severe, it’s mainly to purge..." She was addressing Zhou Chuang and wanted to mention ’detoxing’ but thought better of it to avoid any misunderstanding with ancient people regarding poisoning.
"...Purge the impurities from your body."
Zhou Chuang nodded, "Thank you, Sister Ruozhu. How long before my memory improves? I told you, I am not careless, I just forget easily but my mom doesn’t believe it."
"You brat, now blaming your poor mother!" Zhou Deshun’s wife pretended to be angry, giving Zhou Chuang a light slap, then asked Bai Ruozhu, "Ruozhu, what caused this issue? Anything we should be cautious of in the future?"
"Auntie, this isn’t really a big deal, it could be related to his physical constitution, or because of an inadequate water intake, poor lifestyle habits, or even picky eating habits. From now on, Zhou Chuang should drink more water, preferably warm, when the weather is cool, and eat more vegetables, especially green leafy ones," advised Bai Ruozhu, who noticed Zhou Chuang grimacing— he clearly didn’t like green leafy vegetables.
"In this freezing weather, all we see are radishes, I’d rather munch on corn cobs." Zhou Chuang grumbled.
This time, it was Zhou Deshun’s wife gave him a smack, "Listen to Sister Ruozhu, eat whatever she tells you to."
Bai Ruozhu chuckled inwardly, he had it coming for himself.
Due to the incident, Bai Yihong and the others did not feel like drinking anymore. Both families decided to retire. Zhou Deshun suggested giving Zhou Chuang some time to take his medication and would bring him to visit Bai Ruozhu for a follow-up after the New Year’s festival in Beiyu City.
The Bai family naturally welcomed the plan and agreed to another gathering in Beiyu City.
Early the next morning, the Bai family returned to the West Courtyard. Bai Ruozhu started preparing the Fresh Soup Powder mixture, inviting her elder brother and Zhang Liliang to observe, carefully explaining the proportions and the mixing process.
She barely started explaining when Zhang Liliang hastily intervened, "Ruozhu, just explain it to Zehao, I’ll go take care of other things."
Bai Ruozhu rushed to stop him, "Uncle Zhang, why are you avoiding this? You’ll be helping my brother prepare the Fresh Soup Powder in the future. He can’t manage all on his own."
Zhang Liliang, turning red, replied, "It’s your secret recipe, not meant to be shared beyond the family. You shouldn’t be telling me."
Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help laughing, "It isn’t to be shared beyond the family, yes, but don’t you consider yourself a part of the family? Haven’t you agreed to be my companion?"
Zhang Liliang was taken aback, stuttering, "I... I haven’t signed the Indenture Contract yet, it doesn’t seem... appropriate."
Bai Ruozhu purposely put on a stern face, "If a mere contract is enough to create a rift between us, we are already losing its sense. Uncle Zhang, I’ve told you before that I trust you. I truly do."
She really did trust Zhang Liliang’s character. She still remembered him setting aside business during the busy farming season to help her family with fieldwork. Despite being sunburnt, he never once complained.
Even if one day, Zhang Liliang took the formula and left, she’d consider it a gift to the Zhang family, helping them secure a livelihood. She’d bear no ill-will towards him and would consider it as repaying a favour.
Bai Ruozhu was the type of person who’d remember who was kind to her, reciprocating with equal kindness. Even though she was typically a money-conscious Taurus, at times even a bit stingy, she was never miserly with those she considered family and friends.
Zhang Liliang remained silent for a long while, his eyes reddening as he turned his head away, struggling to hold back his tears, he was too embarrassed to let the younger generation see him cry.
Bai Ruozhu had saved his only daughter from kidnappers, helped heal his wife’s and daughter’s burn injuries, and now, she was leading him towards prosperity. He was more than willing to work for Bai Ruozhu, and even serve as her companion, but he never expected her not to hesitate in sharing with him the secret recipe many people would kill for.
How could he ever repay her?
Bai Ruozhu signaled her elder brother with her eyes. After waiting for Zhang Liliang to surreptitiously wipe away his tears and turn his head back, they both pretended as if they hadn’t noticed him crying. Ruozhu continued explaining how to prepare the Fresh Soup Powder.
To enable her family to master it accurately, she had her father make a large wooden barrel and a square wooden spoon, with each spoonful equal to a portion, making handling the proportions much easier.
Once Bai Ruozhu demonstrated the process while explaining, and thoroughly mixed the Fresh Soup Powder in the barrel, she asked them, "Taste this and memorize the flavor."
Both tried a bit, then transferred the prepared Fresh Soup Powder into prepared jars. They rehearsed the steps again and quickly got the hang of it.
"This task isn’t difficult, just needs attention to detail. Missing an ingredient, or even a slight discrepancy in measurement, can impact the taste, and subsequently our brand image," Bai Ruozhu said, thinking about the Ronglang Pastry shop. Their own shop should exemplify Wang Dasao’s work ethic.