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Translator: Silavin
The Elder smiled gently and said, “I’m a Right Winger from Beijing, an enemy of the Revolutionist. I was sent down to Jiangxi. I’ve been guarding the forest on Dazhang Mountain for many years now. I like it here. I’m surrounded by green mountains every day, composing poetry and painting, living freely.”
[Oh, I see,] Hansheng thought, feeling relieved.
“Young man, what’s your name, and where do you live?” the Hermit of Wuchu Mountain asked.
“My name is Zhu Hansheng, and I live in Nanshan Village in Wuyuan.”
“You’re carrying an herb basket. Is your Family in the medical profession?”
“My Father is the barefoot doctor of our village. Sometimes, I help him gather herbs in the mountains.”
“So, you have some medical skills too?” the Hermit asked.
“Just a little, only superficial knowledge,” Hansheng tried to sound more modest.
The Hermit laughed, “Such a modest child.”
“Uncle Hermit, what did you do before? Why did you become a Right Winger?” Hansheng asked.
“It’s a long story. I used to be a professor at Peking University, teaching and researching ancient Chinese,” the Hermit sighed.
“You’re a great scholar. Do you know what a ‘Horse Riding Cloth’ is?” Hansheng suddenly asked.
The Hermit looked at Hansheng in surprise, and after a moment, he laughed, “Why are you asking me about this, boy?”
“I’m just curious. Do you know or not?” Hansheng persisted.
“Of course I know.” The Hermit replied.
“Ancient people believed ‘Horse Riding Cloth’ is the filthiest thing in the world. Another name for it is ‘monthly cloth,’ but it’s not called that anymore,” the Hermit explained.
“What’s it called now?” Hansheng thought, hoping it would be easy to obtain.
“Sanitary belt.”
“What! A sanitary belt…” Hansheng was shocked, his face turning crimson. This was truly embarrassing. [So, the Horse Riding Cloth is actually just a sanitary belt (an older version of menstrual pad), something every woman has. Sigh, why didn’t the Classic of the Black Satchel explain it clearly? Hua Tuo, you really should have been more specific…]
“Then what about ‘Thunder Striking Horse Riding Cloth’?” Hansheng asked after regaining his composure.
The Hermit was quite surprised by this question, “Oh? How do you know about Thunder Striking Horse Riding Cloth?”
“It’s needed as a Medicine Catalyst for a certain medicine,” Hansheng answered truthfully.
The Hermit thought for a moment and explained, “In nature, when a cloud with a positive charge meets another with a negative charge, lightning is produced. According to the Classic of Changes, a Classic on divination, positive and negative are essentially Yin and Yang. The Yang is the electricity in the sky, attracted to Yin objects on the ground. When the current instantly connects, it generates heat high enough to burn the Yin objects on the ground. This is what we call a lightning strike.”
“So, what objects on the ground are Yin?” Hansheng found the Hermit’s words to be enlightening.
“Lightning strikes are aimed at living beings carrying more Yin Energy.”
“You mean women?” Hansheng guessed.
The Hermit laughed and shook his head, “No. Some creatures accumulate a lot of Yin Energy over time. Mammals such as foxes and weasels, or reptiles like pythons. Taoists call them ‘unclean’, and they’re often the targets of lightning strikes.”
“I see. In drama plays, when they talk about lightning striking thousand year old trees or ancient pagodas, it’s because these Yin Creatures are hiding in the trees or pagodas, attracting the lightning,” Hansheng realised.
“Indeed, you’re quite the quick learner,” the Hermit smiled at Hansheng.
The Hermit paused, then asked Hansheng curiously, “Why would you use such a strange Medicine Catalyst?”
“It’s knowledge that has been passed down in our Family,” Hansheng did not want to reveal the true origin and its uses just yet. “So ‘Thunder Striking Horse Riding Cloth’ is a sanitary belt that’s been struck by lightning?”
“That’s right,” the Hermit confirmed.
“Do animals use sanitary belts too?” Hansheng could not help but laugh in wonder.
“Why not?” the Hermit asked in return.
Hansheng was dumbfounded.
The Hermit laughed heartily as he walked out of the room, his voice reciting poetry: “Those who’re gone grow distant day by day, those who remain grow closer day by day. Looking straight out beyond the city gate, all I see are mounds and graves. Ancient tombs ploughed into fields, Pines and Cypresses are felled for firewood. The White Poplars are struck with more sorrowful winds, sounds of rustling depressing enough to kill!”
Hansheng was not well-versed in ancient poetry, but the Hermit’s recitation was pleasing to the ear. Especially the line ‘Ancient tombs ploughed into fields,’ which made him think of that thousand year old tomb. It made him wonder how many unknown secrets lie beneath this vast Central Plains?
Seeing that it was already dark outside, Hansheng grew anxious. His Father must be sitting at the dinner table waiting for him, and Dummy might still be guarding the old Pine Tree.
He lifted the quilt, trying to move his right leg. It sent waves of pain. When he tried to move it forcefully with his hand, the pain became excruciating. He realised the leg bone was truly broken.
As the saying goes, ‘one hundred days of broken muscle and bones.’ Without four months of rest, his broken leg would not heal. [How troublesome.]
Hansheng tried hard to recall the Classic of the Black Satchel, hoping to find a treatment method.
[Beam Dust with a boy’s White Urine as a guide…] He thought as he looked up. The dust threads hanging from old worn-out roofs were what the book called Beam Dust. There were dozens hanging from this thatched house, which should be enough. The Medicine Catalyst ‘White Urine’ referred to the white sediment left in overnight human urine. As for being a boy, he had never… so he was certainly still considered a child.
“Dinner’s ready! White rice and dried Mountain Rat, smells good, doesn’t it?” The Hermit walked in carrying steaming dishes.
The clear fragrance of rice mixed with the fatty aroma of Mountain Rat meat made one’s mouth water. Hansheng could not help but swallow.
“My Father doesn’t know I’ve had an accident, so I want to go home as soon as possible. I was wondering if you could help me get the medicine down for me,” Hansheng said.
“Get it down? I don’t have any medicine here,” the Hermit said, confused.
Hansheng pointed at the dust threads hanging from the ceiling and said, “These dust threads are called Beam Dust and are excellent medicine for treating bone injuries. Could you please sweep them down for me?”
“Alright, but let’s eat first.”
Having met with misfortune and been drenched in rain, Hansheng was already starving. His appetite was aroused, so he took the bowl and the chopsticks, and he began heartily eating.
The dried Mountain Rat was truly delicious. Thinking of the Mother Mountain Rat and her babies hiding in the rock crevice, Hansheng felt a twinge of compassion.
“Do animals really use sanitary belts?” Hansheng still did not believe it.
“I can take you to see it, but it must be on a stormy day,” the Hermit said.
After dinner, as promised, the Hermit swept down all the dust threads from the ceiling, gathered them onto a piece of white paper, and placed it on the table.
“Do you have a chamber pot?” Hansheng asked.
The Hermit brought a glass bottle and laughed, “I only have an empty jar. I usually take care of business in nature.”
The Hermit set up a temporary wooden bed in the adjacent kitchen. After reciting a few more ancient poems, his started snoring indicated he had fallen asleep.
Fearing there would not be enough, Hansheng squeezed as much urine as possible into the glass bottle.
On this night in the mountain valley, the pitter-patter of raindrops on leaves created a rustling sound, inducing one to fall asleep.
※※※
The sky was overcast with continuous rain. In the thatched house, the oil lamp’s wick had been trimmed several times, and the food on the table had gone cold. However, Hansheng had stil yet to return.
Throughout the entire afternoon, Doctor Zhu felt uneasy. He was constantly worried that something might happen. He regretted letting Hansheng go to Dazhang Mountain alone to gather herbs in the morning.
There was a sound from the courtyard. Just as Doctor Zhu was about to go out to greet the person, Dummy, the yellow dog, rushed in like the wind. He was covered in mud, yellow fur completely drenched with mud clumping to his fur. He whimpered softly, eyes red as he looked at his Master.
[Something must have gone wrong! Hansheng must have met with an accident!]
Doctor Zhu hurriedly put on his rain boots, grabbed a flashlight and shouldered his medicine box. He instructed Dummy in a rush, “Quickly, lead me there.”
Just then, there were sounds of hurried footsteps and beams of light in the courtyard.
“Doctor Zhu? Hurry, the patient is in critical condition,” a middle-aged man said urgently, with two young men standing behind him.
“Erm… which village are you from? Why didn’t you take them to the hospital? I was just about to go out to look for someone,” Doctor Zhu hastily said.
“The patient is not far away. She’s having difficulty giving birth. Please, Doctor Zhu, help us. There are two lives at stake, the Mother and the child,” the middle-aged man pleaded, his voice choked with tears.
At this moment, should he save his Son or the woman in labour? If his Son had fallen and was injured, every minute earlier would increase his chances of survival. But on the other hand, there were two lives at stake, a Mother and a child.
[Enough!] Doctor Zhu stamped his foot. [Hansheng, you must hold on. Dad will come to save you as soon as possible.]
“Let’s go, quickly,” Doctor Zhu urged, not having time to think further. He called for Dummy to follow him, knowing that without the yellow dog to guide him, he would never be able to find Hansheng on Dazhang Mountain.
Silavin: WTF. There’s really such a thing as Beam Dust (梁上尘) and White Urine (溺白) in TCM.
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