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Capítulo 217

"What kind of magic formula?" Mo Yan asked curiously.

"It's said to be a miraculous cure for toothache."

"A remedy for toothache?" Mo Yan scratched her ear. "This elixir can cure toothache? The immortals are really thoughtful."

Upon hearing this, Ma Han clearly took Mo Yan's words as a compliment and quickly replied, "Not only that, there are also remedies to cure all kinds of ailments, repel snakes and mosquitoes, and so on. In short, there are many."

Mo Yan wanted to laugh, but was afraid Ma Han would be displeased, so she hid half her face behind Zhan Zhao's arm and then asked, "How do you treat a toothache?"

Upon hearing her question, Ma Han immediately became serious and called back Wang Chao, who was trying to sneak away. He earnestly said, "Don't you have a toothache? I'll say it again, and you must remember it carefully. First, take a piece of paper, whatever size or shape it may be, and fold it into seven layers. Then take a three-inch nail and place it on the beam, nailing it into the center of the paper. When nailing it, first inhale a breath from the south, that is, inhale facing south, and silently recite the incantation: 'Red worms from the south, come to eat my teeth, nailed to the beam, may this paper remain for a thousand years.' Each time you recite the incantation, cough once and inhale, then hammer the nail once. Repeat this incantation seven times, that is, seven inhales and seven hammerings, and you will see immediate results."

After he finished speaking at length, the three people in front of him looked at each other, none of them understanding.

Side Story 2: Anecdotes of Kaifeng, Chapter 2

Author's Note: The side story is just an attempt to depict their daily lives. It's not very plot-driven, so please forgive me!

After waiting for a while, Mo Yan tentatively asked, "Is this really for treating toothache?"

"Yes, Brother Wang said he had a toothache yesterday, so I went back and checked it several times. There's no mistake."

"Isn't it too much trouble just to treat a toothache?" Mo Yan shook her head repeatedly, but then she thought of the pain she felt when her wisdom teeth came in, and thought that even if it was a little more troublesome, she could make do with it. So she smiled at Wang Chao and said, "Wang, you should try it and see if this prescription works!"

“I…” Wang Chao had always kept his distance from these kinds of things, and after a moment of hesitation, he said, “Actually, my tooth didn’t hurt when I woke up this morning.”

Ma Han was taken aback: "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"You didn't even ask... I still have to keep an eye on those bastards. You guys chat, I'll go first." He gave Zhan Zhao a perfunctory bow and walked away without touching the ground.

Mo Yan smiled at Ma Han and said, "What book were you talking about earlier? Can I borrow it and take a look?"

Ma Han, being honest and kind, nodded and smiled before even noticing Zhan Zhao's expression, saying, "That is truly a remarkable book. Take it and read it, but be careful not to damage it."

"That's natural."

Mo Yan readily agreed.

"Come and pick it up at dinner time. Brother Zhan, you can come and have dinner with us too."

Zhan Zhao could only smile and nod.

"I still have to go to Ma Xing Street, so I'll go ahead first. See you tonight." Ma Han cupped his hands in greeting to them before turning and leaving.

Mo Yan shook her head, looking cheerful, and took a few steps forward. Suddenly, she turned back to Zhan Zhao and asked, "Brother, does your tooth hurt? Why don't we go back and try it first?"

"My teeth are perfectly fine, thank you."

Zhan Zhao shook his head helplessly and walked past her.

"Big brother..."

Mo Yan tried to catch up quickly, but Zhan Zhao stopped as soon as he heard her footsteps and gently scolded, "Walk slowly, don't forget you're pregnant now." After saying that, seeing Mo Yan's nonchalant look, he was still worried and took her hand to walk slowly.

"Big brother..." Mo Yan wanted to say something more.

Before Zhan Zhao could even listen, he said, "Let's make this clear first: no matter what good prescriptions you find in those books, you're not allowed to use them on me."

Before Mo Yan could finish speaking, he cut her off. She was dejected for a moment, but then she cheered up again, thinking to herself: There are so many people in Kaifeng Prefecture, I won't have trouble finding someone.

"You must not disturb Lord Bao and Mr. Gongsun," Zhan Zhao added, seemingly fully aware of her thoughts.

"Brother... what if they've come to ask me for advice?"

Zhan Zhao glanced at her and said calmly, "Don't worry, I won't let that happen."

"..."

That evening, after Ma Han's repeated reminders, Mo Yan indeed brought back the tattered book. She curled up in bed, wrapped herself in the covers, and began to carefully turn the pages by candlelight.

Because Mo Yan was taught by Xiao Chen from a young age, and Xiao Chen was blind, he would memorize everything he read. He required Mo Yan to do the same, regardless of whether it was necessary or not. Therefore, from the time she learned to read, Mo Yan read books in this way, memorizing them as she read.

When she read something interesting, she couldn't help but chuckle and said to Zhan Zhao, who was writing in the case file at the table, "Brother, there's even a recipe for having a boy in here! Listen—if a woman is pregnant and wants a boy, she should secretly place an axe under the bed with the blade facing down, and she will definitely give birth to a boy. I don't know if it's true or not, go find an axe and let's try it."

Zhan Zhao put down his pen, sorted out the case files, and then stood up and said, "What matters is that the baby is born safely. It doesn't matter whether it's a boy or a girl."

Mo Yan smiled and turned her head: "That makes sense, then we don't need to try." She continued reading her book.

Zhan Zhao walked over and saw her muttering to herself as she read the book. He couldn't help but sigh, "You even have to memorize a book like this?"

"I'm used to it, there's no way around it." Mo Yan shrugged. "If I don't memorize it, it feels like I haven't read the book at all."

"Reading like this is too mentally taxing."

Zhan Zhao placed his hand on the book and frowned as he looked at her. Since her serious injury, Mo Yan had not recovered, and now that she was pregnant, he truly hoped she could rest well.

"I'll just look at one more page, just one more..."

Mo Yan looked at him with a grin, but couldn't help yawning.

"It's already past midnight, and you're so sleepy, why aren't you asleep?" Zhan Zhao simply took the book from her hands and placed it on the table next to her.

Mo Yan was also taken aback: "It's already past midnight, no wonder I'm so sleepy." She stretched out her body, intending to lie down and sleep, but then suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said: "Big brother, come up here, I'll massage your back."

"No need, you should rest," Zhan Zhao said gently.

Mo Yan insisted, "No, I just learned this skill from the bone-setting doctor on West Street. If I don't practice, what if I get rusty... Besides, the weather is getting colder now. These past two days, I've seen you lie down for a while after waking up before getting up. You must be in a lot of pain. Do you think I wouldn't know if you didn't tell me?"

"It's too late today, and you're tired too. Let's talk about it tomorrow."