Chapter 289 - 171: The Boundless Joy of a Retired Old TCM Doctor

Chapter 289: Chapter 171: The Boundless Joy of a Retired Old TCM Doctor

Zhou Yan quickly parked the car, walked up, and said respectfully, "Great-uncle, hello. I didn’t even recognize you."

"It’s perfectly normal. You were only eight or nine the last time you saw me. Even if I saw you on the street now, I wouldn’t be sure it was you," Zhang Zhengping said with a laugh. "Just as handsome as I was when I was young. Half the nurses in the hospital were in love with me."

Zhou Yan was taken aback for a moment. ’This great-uncle is quite a character.’

"That ended when he started going bald at thirty," the grandmother chimed in with a jab.

Zhang Zhengping flushed and quickly tried to save face. "That was after I married your great-aunt! I was a devoted husband, resisting all temptation. It had nothing to do with my hair, you know."

"That part is true," the grandmother nodded. "His fear of his wife was legendary at the hospital."

"What could I do? Your great-aunt packs a serious punch. Her slaps are vicious, and she’s even twisted a doorknob clean off. Who wouldn’t be scared of that?" Zhang Zhengping said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world, utterly shameless.

Zhou Yan was listening, dumbfounded. The pace of the older generation’s Dragon Gate Formation was a little too fast for him to follow.

’Still, it looks like this great-uncle is a retired doctor.’

’He has a great personality, though. He can take a joke, and he’s got that classic humor and open-mindedness of the older Sichuan generation.’

The grandmother’s cousin Li Hua was constantly on her mind. The plan was to have the great-uncle go check on the great-aunt right after they ate.

"Uncle! What brings you here?" Hearing the voices, Zhou Miao came hurrying out of the kitchen with a look of surprise.

"To see my third sister," Zhang Zhengping said with a smile, patting Zhou Miao’s shoulder. "Zhou Miao, it’s been a few years since we’ve seen each other, hasn’t it?"

"It’s been over three years. How are you and Auntie doing?" Zhou Miao asked with concern.

"I’m doing all right. Your auntie had a fall about six months ago, so now she needs a cane to get around. She’ll have to recover for a while longer." Zhang Zhengping added with a hint of glee, "Now she can’t even catch me when she wants to hit me."

Everyone laughed.

Zhou Yan looked at the feisty old man. ’He’s a real piece of work, always asking for trouble.’

Zhao Tieying and Zhao Hong also came out to say hello, pouring bowls of water for the grandmother and the old gentleman.

"Tie Ying and Zhao Hong are the thoughtful ones, knowing we were parched from the journey," Zhang Zhengping said with a smile, setting down his bowl.

After a bit more small talk, the grandmother spoke up. "We can chat more later. First, let’s go see Li Hua."

"Alright, I’ll get the basket off the back," Zhou Miao agreed, wheeling a bicycle out the door.

As Zhou Yan gave Zhang Zhengping a ride on his bicycle, they engaged in a Dragon Gate Formation the whole way. Finally, Zhou Yan asked out of curiosity, "Great-uncle, what kind of doctor were you before you retired?"

"A barefoot doctor," Zhang Zhengping replied.

"Huh?"

"Just kidding. I practiced traditional Chinese medicine," Zhang Zhengping said, letting out a hearty laugh.

Zhou Yan wanted to scratch his head, but both his hands were on the handlebars.

’This retired old TCM doctor is really living his best life.’

Zhang Zhengping chuckled. "You’re really something, you know. Only twenty years old and you’ve already opened such a big restaurant. And you even inherited Third Sister’s recipes for braised dishes. I’m eating at your place tonight to try your cooking, sound good?"

"Of course!" Zhou Yan said with a grin. "Tonight, whatever you want to eat, Great-uncle, I’ll whip it up for you. As long as it’s on the menu, I guarantee you’ll be satisfied."

This great-uncle was the grandmother’s younger paternal cousin. Her two biological brothers had passed away many years ago, and of all her cousins, he was one of the few who still visited from time to time.

Of course, "from time to time" was measured in years.

Visiting once a year was considered keeping in close touch. In those days, transportation was difficult, and it wasn’t easy for the elderly to travel.

"Deal, but whatever I order, I’m paying for it," Zhang Zhengping said with a grin.

"Absolutely not! Even if Grandma doesn’t chew me out, my mom and dad would have my hide," Zhou Yan laughed. "I own the restaurant, Great-uncle. Eat to your heart’s content. You’re not going to bankrupt me."

"You kids don’t get it," Zhang Zhengping said leisurely, then changed the subject. "When I was working, your great-aunt managed my salary. After we retired, we started managing our own money, and I have more than I can spend. As for this great-aunt of yours... when she was little, she’d come to Niu Hua to hang out with Third Sister and the others. I saw her a few times—a skinny little thing, gentle and polite. Everyone liked her and called her ’Little Cousin.’ In the blink of an eye, it’s been at least forty or fifty years since I’ve seen her."

Chatting the whole way, they turned onto a village road after ten or so minutes. The bumpy ride finally brought them to the courtyard of a dilapidated, collapsed, rammed-earth house.

"Good heavens. The house collapsed and no one’s even tried to patch it up?" Zhang Zhengping said with a sigh as he got off the bicycle, staring at the half-ruined building.

"How did it collapse so badly? It wasn’t like this last year when our cousin passed away, was it?" Zhou Miao looked equally surprised.

As Zhou Yan parked the bike, he heard shouting coming from behind the partially open courtyard gate.

"Second Aunt, I’m taking this goose, this chicken, and these two bags of soybeans today. Consider it interest for the year. I hear Lai Fu’s tofu has been selling well recently. How much money do you have on hand? Give it all to me. It’s time you started paying back some of the principal." A man’s powerful voice rang out.

"Changgui, you can’t!" Mrs. Sun’s tear-filled voice cried out. "I need those soybeans to make tofu! If you take them, how will we make a living? Lai Fu and I are counting on those two bags to get through the winter! Taking them is as good as killing us!"

"Second Aunt, Liwei and Qiaoqian borrowed my money, and then they up and died. My own family has been struggling this past year, fighting every single day. There’s no peace in my house! Paying your debts is the way of the world, isn’t it?" The man’s voice grew louder, a vicious edge creeping into his tone.

"I swear I’ll pay back all the money Liwei borrowed before I die. But Changgui, he borrowed five hundred yuan from you. Last year you took our donkey and said it was for the debt. Later, you took two chickens and a goose. How can it still be five hundred? You’re the village accountant! That’s not how the books are supposed to work, is it?" Mrs. Sun said, her voice shaking with agitation.