Chapter 25.1 - Mandarin Orange Peel 陈皮
Finally, the cast on his hand was removed. His left hand felt unfamiliar, and He Suye frowned as he said to Qiu Tian, “These past two days, using my left hand feels strange. I’m not even good at typing; I guess I’m just not used to it.”
Qiu Tian rolled his eyes. “What, are you regressing or something? I remember you could write and use chopsticks with your left hand before!”
He Suye sighed. “Maybe it’s just a lack of sensation.” He picked up a pen with his left hand, tried it a couple of times, then dropped it and shook his head. “Am I getting old?”
Qiu Tian burst out laughing, accidentally knocking over a stack of medical records. “You’re getting old? Forget it, I’m a year older than you. Speaking of which, we’re probably the youngest in the class.”
He nodded and bent down to help pick up the records. “Yeah, seven years passed in the blink of an eye. Now we’re working, and back then, we couldn’t even imagine what major we’d choose or who we’d meet.”
Qiu Tian snorted, “Here you go again with the sentimental talk. I never saw you so emotional before. What’s up with you? Is it because Shen Xifan left? Don’t worry, you can keep all this for when you’re face-to-face with her. Just don’t trigger me, the lonely soul.”
He Suye thought seriously for a moment. “When I see her, I can’t say anything at all. It’s really strange.”
“Normal, normal!” Qiu Tian quickly concluded. “Go to the U.S. to find her, I can’t stand you two dragging it out so slowly.”
He Suye smiled. “Everything comes step by step. If it happens too fast, it doesn’t feel real. As the saying goes, good things come to those who wait.”
Back at home, he opened his computer, and saw a message from Shen Xifan on QQ. “The two-week Management for Services course finally ended, and I got my three credits. My brain cells are almost gone; I keep dreaming of those concepts from the dance classes.”
He looked at the time and couldn’t help but feel concerned. Quickly, he typed a reply, “It’s so late, still staying up? It’s bad for your health. You should go to bed earlier.”
Immediately, he received a message back with a crying face. “Right now, I’m in the middle of an Operation Management course, and it requires us to use the computer extensively. So I’ve been glued to my laptop.”
He Suye was both amused and exasperated. “You’re working too hard. Get some rest! It’s only 5 AM in Ithaca—why are you already working? You didn’t pull an all-nighter, did you?”
On the other end, there was a long silence before Shen Xifan finally replied. He Suye could tell she was likely feeling guilty for staying up all night and was now avoiding him. He replied gently, “I’m not mad at you, just worried about your health. Don’t hide from me, I’m not going to scold you.”
Immediately, a message popped up, “Yeah, I’m sorry. I promise I won’t stay up all night again.”
He Suye sighed, shaking his head. “Don’t tell me that. I know you’re trying to look strong, but remember to take care of yourself.” He absentmindedly picked up a tea cup from the table, only to realize it was still half-full of the tea that his nephew, He Shouzheng, had been drinking.
He Shouzheng, having just eaten, was staring at the half cup of tea with a grimace, nearly on the verge of tears. “I don’t want to drink this tea! It’s too bitter and sour!”
He Suye didn’t give in. “You’re overweight, eating junk food all the time with no nutritional value. Fatty food isn’t good for your health. You don’t like exercise, so drinking this tea is the only solution!”
He Shouzheng sniffled. “Is there anything that isn’t bitter and sour? Can you add sugar?”
He Suye sighed and pulled out a book, showing him a chart. “Standard weight = (height - 100) × 0.9. If your weight exceeds the standard by 20%—excluding muscle mass or water retention—then you are diagnosed as overweight.”
He Shouzheng fell silent, touching his face as he absorbed the information. He Suye then opened a Traditional Chinese Medicine book and showed him, pointing to the ingredients. “This special tea I made for you contains bitter orange, tangerine peel, hawthorn, poria, lotus leaf, and Chinese herbaceous plant.”
His nephew grumbled reluctantly, “Why does it have tangerine peel? I’d rather eat an orange.”
“Tangerine peel is also known as chenpi,” He Suye explained, turning the page to the relevant section. “It’s best when aged. It’s spicy, bitter, and warm, helping to regulate qi, strengthen the spleen, dry dampness, and resolve phlegm.” He gently pinched He Shouzheng’s cheek. “Your condition is simple obesity, so this tea will help eliminate excess food, regulate qi, relieve stagnation, strengthen the spleen, and drain dampness.”
He Shouzheng sighed, surrendering. “Fine, I’ll drink it. But hurry up and go after Shen Xifan. I could use a little peace and quiet around here.”
He Suye reached out a finger to gently push away the persistent little head, sighing, “Alright, I know. I’m just packing things up. By the way, little rascal, aren’t you being a bit too harsh on me?”
He Shouzheng shook his head. “When my mom is away, my dad does the same to me, so I’ve seen through the nature of men!”
