“Corydalis tuber, white mustard seed, kansui root, wild ginger.” Jiang Chan opened a small cabinet against the dormitory wall, which held various Chinese medicinal herbs. “Your timing is fortunate today. I have all these herbs here. Since your period has just ended, I can add a tiny bit of musk for a better effect.”
“Yu Jie, do we have any fresh ginger left? Once I grind these herbs into powder, I’ll need ginger juice to mix them.”
Jiang Chan and Yu Jie worked well together. Half an hour later, four gauze patches lay before the girl, each bearing an ointment that gave off a pungent fragrance. Jiang Chan applied one plaster each to the girl’s Tiantu, Tanzhong, Dazhui, and Dingchuan points.
“Don’t remove the plasters. Keep them on for a full day. Today is the first day of the first nine-day period after the winter solstice. Wearing them for three consecutive days makes one short course. I’ll replace them at this time tomorrow. During the second and third nine-day periods, wear them for three days each as well. That will complete this year’s treatment. Next year, you’ll need to wear these plasters during both the hottest summer days and the coldest winter days. Continue for three years to complete one full course, and you’ll see considerable improvement.”
Jiang Chan explained slowly, avoiding obscure traditional Chinese medical knowledge. “Keep carrying your medicine. Asthma can’t be cured completely, but these plasters will reduce how often it recurs. They can also expel pathogenic influences from your body and help strengthen your immune system.”
“It’s getting late, so I won’t keep you. Go back and rest. If you have any reactions afterward, let me know.”
After seeing the eight girls off, the dormitory finally quieted down. Wen Jing gave Jiang Chan a thumbs-up. “Impressive, Xiao Chan. You’re proficient in internal medicine too? Is there anything you can’t do?”
Jiang Chan replied irritably, “There’s plenty I can’t do. Who would dare claim they can do everything?”
Only a few of those girls had genuine problems. The most serious was the last one, with asthma. Jiang Chan shook her head. Even with her medical skills, she could only relieve it, not cure it completely.
The other conditions, which could be cured completely, hardly counted as problems.
The girls were not all from the same dormitory. They had met along the way. After parting at the stairs, the two groups returned to their rooms. Xiaoqin, who had insomnia, and Li Li, who had asthma, did not share a dormitory. Otherwise, their roommates would have gone mad.
Back in her dormitory, Xiaoqin still did not feel sleepy. After washing up, she leaned against the head of her bed and read a couple of pages, but still felt no drowsiness. She wondered inwardly whether Jiang Chan’s medical skills might be a sham.
Hadn’t she said Xiaoqin would feel sleepy once she got back? At this thought, Xiaoqin shook her head, sighing that she had actually believed it. As the hour hand gradually approached nine-thirty, her eyelids grew heavier with every page.
A few seconds later, faint snores emerged. Her three roommates immediately turned toward her bed. The dorm leader even stood on a stool and watched carefully for several minutes.
After confirming that Xiaoqin was asleep, the dorm leader deliberately took out her phone and recorded an audio clip. Its contents were quite wonderful, nothing but Xiaoqin’s snores.
That night, Xiaoqin’s roommates experienced both suffering and joy. They were happy that she could finally get a good night’s sleep. Their suffering came from how loudly she snored all night!
The noise kept them from sleeping at all. They wanted to go over and shake her awake, but thinking of how long it had been since she had slept well, none of them had the heart.
Li Li’s dormitory was a different scene. After returning, Li Li had been a little anxious about going to sleep. Who could have imagined the entire night would pass peacefully, without a single incident?
When Li Li woke in the morning, she felt energetic, without the usual weakness in her limbs, chest tightness, or shortness of breath. Her eyes immediately lit up. Now this was an expert!
Back in Xiaoqin’s dormitory, her three roommates tossed and turned, only drifting into a hazy sleep in the latter half of the night. Yet those maddening snores continued even in their dreams. Their heads felt ready to explode.
“Good morning!” At five-thirty, Xiaoqin sat up, stretched, and gave everyone an energetic smile, showing her white teeth. Seeing that the other three looked as wilted as frostbitten eggplants, she asked curiously, “What were you doing last night? Look at those dark circles!”
The dorm leader was the first to object. She had a mischievous streak too. “Ahem. We have something for you to hear. It’s guaranteed to open your eyes!”
As she spoke, she took out her phone. The other two girls immediately burst into laughter. This was definitely an embarrassing piece of Xiaoqin’s history!
The moment the recording played, a string of snores filled the air, growing from soft to loud and even changing rhythm. Xiaoqin blinked. “Whose snoring is that? It’s really something.”
“Hahaha!”
The other two could no longer hold back and said in unison, “Yours!”
“Impossible!” Xiaoqin instinctively protested. The dorm leader laughed too. “How is it impossible? You fell asleep at nine-fifty last night and slept right through until now. Those little snores never stopped once. Did you think about how we felt?”
“Exactly. Look at our dark circles. I don’t care. You have to buy us lunch to compensate for our mental suffering!”
“Yes, yes, of course I’ll treat you. How long has it been since I slept for that many hours? She’s a miracle doctor. One needle, and I’m better?” Xiaoqin rubbed her head. Before, she had been half doubtful. Now the facts had proved her wrong.
“Isn’t Jiang Chan incredible? Having someone like her at our school suddenly makes me feel so safe.”
“You can say that again. Do you know how long I’ve had this insomnia? I’ve taken who knows how many Western medicines and Chinese remedies. At first, they helped a little. Now they don’t work at all. This might be the soundest sleep I’ve had in years.”
With her face covered in foam, Xiaoqin spoke indistinctly. “When we see Jiang Chan tonight, I have to ask whether my insomnia is better now. Does this mean I won’t have it again?”
After washing up and leaving the dormitory, they happened to meet the other four girls from the night before on the stairs. Surrounded by the others, Xiaoqin looked in excellent spirits.
Li Li asked tentatively, “You didn’t have insomnia last night?”
Xiaoqin’s dorm leader said cheerfully, “She slept wonderfully last night. Those little snores made us so envious.”
Xiaoqin was easygoing too. “Maybe I was too short on sleep? It felt as though I’d only just closed my eyes before morning came. I really didn’t want to get up!”
As they walked and chatted, they praised Jiang Chan’s medical skills as though they were unmatched in heaven or on earth.
Xiaoqin’s dorm leader rubbed her chin. It seemed Jiang Chan’s medical skills really were good. Should she deliver that prescription to her grandfather this evening?
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