Chapter 508: Secret Recipe (1)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Zhou Linghuai immediately pursed his lips.
As soon as she took off her cloak, she ran out casually. Even though she was wearing a thick jacket, it could not block the wind and snow outside. If she was not careful, she would fall sick from the cold.
She was already so old, but she still made people worry.
Yu Youyao left and returned quickly. “Cousin, look. This is the ointment I made after modifying the incense recipe.”
As if presenting a treasure, she handed the blue and white porcelain box in her hand to her cousin.
Zhou Linghuai did not take it. He pulled her to sit in front of the charcoal cage and handed her a cup of red date ginger tea. “Why are you running out without
even wearing a cloak?”
The red date ginger tea was already brewed and had been simmering on the charcoal fire. It was always hot when he drank it.
Yu Youyao did not like the taste of ginger. No matter how much red dates and brown sugar were added to the ginger tea, she was not willing to drink it. She only drank a cup just now because she had stayed outside for too long and her cousin was worried that she would catch a cold.
Yu Youyao looked at her cousin bitterly with disdain on her face. “Cousin, I’m wearing thick inner wear and a jacket outside. I only went to the incense room just now and didn’t go to the courtyard. There’s no need to drink this!” She reached out to pull her cousin. “Look, my hand isn’t cold at all.”
The corridor was covered with bamboo curtains to block the wind. It only took a few steps to arrive at the incense room.
Her hands weren’t cold, but they weren’t warm either. Zhou Linghuai coaxed her patiently. “You have to drink at least two mouthfuls. You’ll catch a cold in such weather.”
Yu Youyao pouted and pinched her nose. She reluctantly took the cup and took two sips, unwilling to drink more than one. “We agreed to take two sips.”
Zhou Linghuai was also helpless. He took the cup and placed it aside. He took the porcelain box that she had been holding in her hand. “Have you been working on this all this time?
From the name, one could tell that the effect of this ointment should be similar to medicinal oil.
It was for him to use.
Although Yu Youyao was talented in the field of incense, she had only studied incense for less than a year. No matter how much foundation she had, she still needed time to slowly settle down.
It was just like a jar of high-quality Shaoxing Wine. No matter how good the brewing process was, it had to be buried in the ground to rest for some time. Only when it was opened could the wine fragrance be intoxicating.
Yu Youyao was talented and hardworking. She had also learned a lot about incense. What she lacked was this patience.
It was not easy to improve the incense recipe.
Yu Youyao nodded. “That’s right. Such a long winter will last until February or March next year. I can’t let Cousin endure the pain in his leg all the time, so I want to try and see if I can improve the incense recipe and make a better medicine than the medicinal oil and cold-repelling incense that Cousin is using now.”
Zhou Linghuai gripped the porcelain box in his hand tightly and forgot to open it.
At the mention of the areas she liked and was good at, Yu Youyao had endless things to say. “It’s indeed too difficult to improve the incense recipe. For a long time, I was like a blind person who had no clue at all. Nanny Xu said that my foundation is not bad, but I lack patience. She asked me to rearrange the incense book I learned and deepen my learning.”
Zhou Linghuai pursed his lips again.
After returning to the Yu Residence for a few days, he tested Yu Youyao’s homework.
In addition to the “Four Books and Five Classics”, there were also calligraphy, zither skills, “Heavenly Works”, “Zizhi Tongjian”, and some historical materials.
Zhou Linghuai wanted to see if Yu Youyao had missed her classes after being away for a few months.
As he had prepared annotations, it was easier for Yu Youyao to learn. If there were any questions she didn’t understand, she could ask Ms. Ye for guidance. Yu Youyao’s studies had improved a little.
However, in order to prevent her from being arrogant and complacent, he definitely had to balance between giving her the carrot and the stick.
While he said some praises and encouragement, it was inevitable that he would mention her shortcomings. He did not criticize her, but he was a little stricter.
After a few days, he heard that Yu Youyao had been studying very hard recently. She spent most of her time in the study and did not even care much about the matters in the residence
He even thought that Yu Youyao had suffered a blow and was motivated.
As a young lady, how could she spend all day talking about the trivial matters of the internal affairs? It was better to study more. He was happy to see this happen.
Little did he know that what he thought she was learning was something else.
Yu Youyao did not know that her cousin’s heart was filled with thoughts. “From the remnant recipes that you helped me gather, I found a recipe for ointment. Cousin, you don’t know, but this remnant recipe came from a foreign country. It records a secret recipe for ointment that can circulate blood and relieve pain.”
Zhou Linghuai rubbed the blue and white porcelain box in his hand.
Hearing the little girl’s chattering voice, he said, “Although I don’t know how effective this ointment is, since this prescription has been spread to the Central Plains, it must have something extraordinary about it. I want to study it. However, the medicinal materials used are all foreign, and the Great Zhou Dynasty can’t produce them.”
At the mention of this, Yu Youyao couldn’t help but frown, looking troubled. How stressed she must have been when she faced such a predicament previously.
Zhou Linghuai said, “Even a clever woman can’t cook without rice. How was it resolved later?”
Yu Youyao smiled. “I just thought that ever since the prosperity of maritime trade, the Great Zhou Dynasty and the foreign countries have been mutually beneficial. The incense materials of the foreign countries have always been very popular in the Great Zhou Dynasty. Perhaps there will be records in the medical books. I’ve also looked through many medical books and found detailed records in the Essential Herbs and the Theory of Medicine.”
Seeing her smile, Zhou Linghuai also smiled. “The mountains and rivers are heavy, and there’s no way out. There’s a bright light in the dark.”
Yu Youyao nodded repeatedly. “There’s a medicinal ingredient called Myrrh. This medicinal ingredient enters the four organs- spleen, kidney, heart, and liver. The four organs of the human body are mainly biochemical and storage of our essence, Qi, blood, and spirit. According to the Theory of Medicine, Myrrh can treat conditions like blood stasis, bone stasis, pain in the joints, and blade wounds. It can help with unbearable pain. It promotes blood dissipation to remove the stasis, reduce the swelling, stabilize the pain, and ease the fascia. It’s the effect of blood circulation. It’s right for Cousin’s illness. ”
At this point, her tone was already very thrilled, and her fair face was flushed with excitement.
Zhou Linghuai only listened and did not interrupt her.
“In addition to Myrrh, there’s also a kind of incense called Frankincense. Its effect is similar to Myrrh. The magical thing is that if the two are combined, their effect will be boosted. According to the Compendium, Frankincense can circulate blood and Myrrh can dissipate the blood. Both can reduce pain and swelling, so they are great to be used together.”
Myrrh and Frankincense were foreign medicinal ingredients. They were rare in the Great Zhou Dynasty and were not widely used.
Even though Zhou Linghuai was knowledgeable, he was not proficient in medicine, so he naturally did not know.
Zhou Linghuai listened carefully. The young lady had spoken casually, but he could still tell what difficulties she had encountered and how much effort she had put in to improve the incense recipe.
She had overcome all the difficulties..
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