Nyoi-Bo Studio

  Nyoi-Bo Studio

  It was a nice day, a nice day for brewing decoctions. Wang Yao picked up firewood, started a fire, and started to brew the first decoction. Wang Yao had a rush-leaf fan in his hand which he used to drive off the smoke. He was very familiar with the process of brewing this particular decoction. He had had wild herbs, licorice roots, good timing, and all the elements he required for brewing this decoction.

  The liquid in the pot was changing slowly.

  Chen Boyuan dropped in to bring Wang Yao the herbs he required. Chen Boyuan didn’t stay as he saw Wang Yao was concentrating on brewing the decoction. He just said hi to Wang Yao and left.

  The decoction was ready when it was close to noon. Wang Yao didn’t rest. He started to brew another decoction.

  He cleaned up the clay pot thoroughly before pouring clear ancient spring water into it.

  The fire was still on. Wang Yao just added more firewood. He added astragalus, codonopsis pilosula, glossy ganoderma one-by-one. Wang Yao was in no hurry. He was as calming as an old monk.

  “Dr. Wang, it’s time for dinner,” Chen Ying reminded Wang Yao gently.

  “You go and eat first; don’t wait for me,” said Wang Yao.

  As he was talking, he added another herb into the clay pot. It was pear grass, which could heal ulcers.

  Ulcers and malignant boils were basically the same things. Both were caused by blocked blood and Qi and accumulated toxins. The toxins could turn into ulcers in the skin or tumors inside the body.

  He had added two licorice roots into this decoction. The other licorice root he put in was Shanjing. Wang Yao noticed that his aunt was quite weak, which should be related to her lifestyle and work. His aunt didn’t earn a lot, so she was reluctant to spend money on expensive and nutritious food. His mother was the same.

  I’m not sure what auntie does for a living. She didn’t seem to want to talk about it, thought Wang Yao.

  The last herb added into the decoction was Guiyuan. Wang Yao left the decoction to boil for a while before he put out the fire.

  Wang Yao didn’t close the door of the cottage when he was brewing the decoction. He was too concentrated on what he was doing to notice two elders standing at the door of the cottage. They had been standing there for a while and watching Wang Yao brewing the decoction.

  “What do you think?” asked one of the elders.

  “I’m impressed by his patience!” said the other elder.

  “How about his method of brewing the decoction?” asked one of the elders.

  “He has adopted the ancient method,” said the other elder.

  “The sequence of putting herbs in the pot was based on the nature of each herb. No one cares about it nowadays,” said one of the elders.

  “Why do you pay so much attention to him?” asked the other elder.

  “Honestly, I want to see his mentor,” said one of the elders.

  The two elders had been standing outside the door and watching Wang Yao brewing the decoction for more than an hour. Wang Yao would be really impressed by their patience.

  “Why do you want to see his mentor?” asked the other elder.

  “I wanted to learn from him or her,” said one of the elders.

  “Don’t you think we already have plenty on our plate now? We are getting old. It’s time for us to retire,” said the elder whose surname is Li.

  The two of them eventually left after standing there for a while.

  “Do you know who were the two elders standing outside the door just now?” asked Wang Yao after he had poured the decoction into the porcelain bottle. Although he was concentrating on the decoction, he was aware of the two elders at the door due to his sharp hearing. Wang Yao could vaguely hear the contents of their conversation, although they were almost whispering.

  “They are Mr. Chen and Mr. Li. Both of them are doctors, very good doctors,” replied Chen Ying.

  “I see.” Wang Yao didn’t say much.

  He called his aunt after he had finished brewing the decoction. He was going to bring the decoction to her.

  “Bring it to me now? I’m working!”


  “I can bring it to your workplace,” said Wang Yao.

  “Don’t worry about it. I’m very busy now,” said his aunt.

  “How about in the afternoon?” asked Wang Yao.

  Eventually, his aunt told him that she worked in a big shopping mall.

  “Let’s go.” After checking up the location, he set off immediately. Of course, he needed Chen Ying to take him there.

  It took them about an hour to get to the shopping mall. There were a lot of people in the shopping mall. It was very noisy inside.

  “What does your aunt do here?” asked Chen Ying.

  “I don’t know, let’s go and have a look.” Wang Yao didn’t call his aunt immediately. Instead, he entered the shopping mall and walked around. He suddenly stopped.

  Wang Yao saw his aunt when the door of the elevator opened. His aunt was sitting inside the elevator. She looked tired. Wang Yao immediately knew what his aunt did for a living.

  Wang Yao noticed that his aunt’s blood pressure was a bit higher than normal when checking her pulse. It seemed that operating elevator was not a suitable job for her to do and it would have a negative impact on her health.

  When he saw his aunt, Chen Ying also saw her.

  “Wait here,” said Chen Ying.

  Wang Yao stood outside the elevator and waited for Chen Ying quietly. The elevator took a long while to arrive. Ding! The door of the elevator opened.

  “Hello, which floor are you going to?” said a tired and hoarse voice.

  “Hi, Auntie.” Wang Yao felt sad for his aunt.

  “Yao, how come you are here?” His aunt was surprised to see him.

  “I’m here to bring the decoction to you,” said Wang Yao with a bitter smile.

  “Excuse me,” said someone behind Wang Yao.

  “Sorry.” Wang Yao walked into the elevator.

  Several people came into the elevator. The elevator started to move.

  “What time do you finish work?” asked Wang Yao.

  “Four o’clock,” said Wang Yao’s aunt.

  “Okay, I’ll wait for you here,” said Wang Yao.

  “You can wait for me outside. It’s not appropriate for you to be here,” said Wang Yao’s aunt.

  “Okay,” said Wang Yao.

  Wang Yao sat quietly in the lobby of the shopping mall. He watched people come and go and thought about his aunt.

  Operating an elevator was not a physically demanding job, but it could be tiresome. In addition, most people would feel uncomfortable when the elevator started to move and when it stopped. Wang Yao felt sad to see one of his family members look so tired when working.

  It was not easy to make a living in Beijing.

  It was a long wait for Wang Yao.

  Chen Ying sat next to Wang Yao. She didn’t speak because she knew Wang Yao was probably not in a good mood.

  It was 4 pm.

  Some workers had arrived for their afternoon shift. Wang Yao’s aunt had finished work. It was time for her to go home to rest. She had to change buses to get home from her workplace. It could take her nearly an hour to get home.

  “We can give you a lift,” said Wang Yao.

  Chen Ying drove Wang Yao’s aunt home.

  “This is the decoction I brewed for you. Let me know if it works well,” said Wang Yao.

  He gave the decoction to his aunt.

  “Okay.” She took over the decoction and felt that it was still warm. She drank some straight away.

  After drinking the decoction, she felt nice and warm in her belly. Then, the warmth started to spread all over her body. Soon she felt much better. The tiredness following a whole day work in the elevator had almost gone away.

  “What a wonderful decoction!” said his aunt with a smile.

  “It will make you feel even better after a while,” said Wang Yao.

  He was sitting in the living room and chatting with his aunt. He asked about his aunt’s husband’s work and his cousin’s study, just bits and pieces about his family.

  Time passed quickly.

  “It worked,” said Wang Yao after checking his aunt’s pulse.

  “Stay here for dinner tonight,” said Wang Yao’s aunt.

  “Don’t worry about cooking. Take a day off. Let’s go out to eat,” suggested Wang Yao. He had noticed quite a few restaurants nearby, and one of them looked pretty decent.

  “Cooking is nothing. There is still quite a lot of food in the fridge,” said Wang Yao’s aunt.

  “You’ve been working all day. Don’t cook. Let’s eat out. My treat,” said Wang Yao.

  Eventually, Zhang Xiufang agreed to dine out with Wang Yao. She called her husband to notify him of the meeting time and location of the restaurant.

  Chen Ying found an excuse to leave Zhang Xiufang’s home and made a reservation at the best restaurant nearby. She also called Chen Boyuan.

  “Uncle Chen, I need to tell you something……” said Chen Ying on the phone.

  Zhang Xiufang’s husband didn’t arrive until 7 pm.

  “Are we going to eat here?” He was surprised as he walked into the restaurant. “It’s not cheap here.”


  “I’ve booked a table for us,” said Wang Yao.

  After they sat down, the waitress came to them immediately. The dishes were served promptly after Wang Yao had made orders.

  “Auntie, have you booked the bus tickets?” asked Wang Yao.

  “No, we are going to make the reservation tomorrow,” said Zhang Xiufang.

  “Let me know the time. I’ll book the tickets for you. I need to go back, too,” said Wang Yao.

  “Well, okay,” said Zhang Xiufang after some hesitation.

  Wang Yao ordered a bottle of red wine. Both he and Zhang Xiufang’s husband drank some wine while having dinner.

  “Yao, have you finished your business in Beijing?” asked Zhang Xiufang.

  “Not yet, but I will go back with you. It will take some time to sort things out here anyway,” said Wang Yao.

  What Wang Yao meant was that he wouldn’t be able to cure Su Xiaoxue in a short period of time. It would take him a long time to treat Su Xiaoxue, and he wouldn’t stay in Beijing for too long.

  “Will you come to Beijing again after the Labor Day holiday?” asked Zhang Xiufang.

  “Yes, I must come back here, but I’m not sure when exactly,” replied Wang Yao.