Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 523: Chapter 523: Cicada Shell

To avoid them being spotted at a glance, Li Xu deliberately chose spots that were a bit high up—places a flashlight could reach, but a hand couldn’t.

He scrambled up a willow tree like a monkey, found a relatively smooth patch of bark, and carefully stuck the "cicada" to it.

"Don’t stick it on too tight. It won’t be funny if they can’t get it off."

Song Sisi reminded him in a hushed voice from below.

"Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing."

Li Xu finished sticking one on, then jumped down to admire his work.

In the mottled light and shadow beneath the tree, the paper cicada actually looked like the real deal.

Never mind at night; it would be completely indistinguishable.

They divided the labor. Li Xu was in charge of climbing trees to stick them up high, while Song Sisi handled the hidden corners in the lower areas.

As they carried out this thankless, malicious deed, they couldn’t help but snicker.

"You think if that old guy from last night catches this, he’ll get so mad he’ll smash his bottle?"

"Haha, he’ll probably start cussing."

Their clothes were soaked with sweat, but the long-lost childhood fun and the thrill of the prank filled them with energy.

While climbing trees to carry out his "crime," Li Xu unexpectedly discovered some golden Cicada Shells on the backs of a few hidden branches.

The shells still retained the form of cicada nymphs, their front claws gripping the bark tightly, a crack running down their backs as if telling the tale of a life’s difficult transformation.

"It seems that even when humans lay an inescapable net, there are still fish that slip through and manage to transform," Li Xu remarked with a sigh.

Then he carefully collected the Cicada Shells and put them in a bag.

Song Sisi, waiting under the tree, caught them and asked curiously, "What are you collecting those for? Aren’t they just empty shells?"

"This stuff is valuable."

Li Xu explained as he climbed down, "In traditional Chinese medicine, the Cicada Shell is a well-known medicinal ingredient."

He dusted the bark fragments off his hands and began to tell Song Sisi a story:

"Legend has it that a long time ago in Jingzhou, there was a wealthy squire whose mischievous son did nothing productive all day. He just loved to use a bamboo pole with a spiderweb on the end to catch cicadas."

"As a result, the boy suffered retribution. A pustule grew in his ear, leaking pus and blood with a terrible stench. The squire summoned all the famous doctors, but none could cure him."

"The local witch doctor claimed a cicada spirit was causing trouble. He performed shamanistic rituals and burned talismans, but not only did it fail to cure the boy, the witch doctor himself caught the ear infection."

"Just as the squire was losing all hope, an ugly Daoist happened to pass by."

"He followed the smell to the boy and said he could cure him."

"Although the squire found the Daoist’s appearance unpleasant, he was desperate to save his son, so he treated him to fine wine and good food."

"After eating and drinking his fill, the Daoist wrote a prescription: two ounces of Cicada Shells and a dash of Musk. The Cicada Shells were to be burned to ash, the Musk roasted dry, and both ground into a fine powder. This was then wrapped in a cloth and inserted into the ear."

"A few days later, the boy’s ear infection was completely healed!"

Li Xu shook the paper packet in his hand. "So you see, Cicada Shells are used to disperse wind-heat, soothe the throat, restore the voice, vent rashes, clear the eyes of cloudiness, and calm spasms. It works wonders for things like a child’s inconsolable crying at night, tetanus, and even a hoarse voice. It’s a gift from nature."

The two continued their grand "prank" operation while chatting about traditional Chinese medicine anecdotes.

Only after they had stuck up the entire stack of pictures did they finish their work with satisfaction. Like two children who had successfully pulled off a misdeed, they exchanged a grin and headed back to the clinic.

...

「Afternoon.」

Time flew by in a flurry of activity.

Li Xu saw a few patients and prepared several prescriptions.

Meanwhile, Song Sisi was busy at the medicine cabinet, occasionally glancing up at Li Xu. Whenever she remembered their "masterpiece" from noon, the corners of her mouth would involuntarily turn up.

Finally, evening arrived.

Just as dusk was settling, Li Xu eagerly stood up. "Let’s close up early today. Come on, let’s go check on our results."

He felt like a director who had meticulously planned a grand play, desperate to see the audience’s reaction.

It was even a bit like what they say in criminal psychology—the perpetrator always likes to return to the scene of the crime to savor that secret thrill.

The two changed into casual clothes, grabbed a large flashlight, and returned to the city moat.

This time, however, they were no longer miserable searchers but observers hiding in the shadows.

「In the woods by the river.」

The place was still bustling with people, the beams of their flashlights weaving into a net of light.

"Look over there."

Li Xu nudged Song Sisi’s arm, pointing to a large willow tree not far away.

Under the tree, an old man in a white undershirt, holding a long-poled net, was intently searching for his prey.

He scanned the ground, but finding no cicada nymph holes, he straightened up with some disappointment.

On instinct, he swept his flashlight beam up the tree trunk.

Suddenly, the beam froze.

There, at a fork in the branches about three meters off the ground, a dark, roundish object sat perfectly still.

Under the bright light, the object’s outline was clearly visible, and he could even faintly make out the patterns on its back.

"Well, I’ll be! Look at the size of that one!"

The old man was so excited his whiskers practically stood on end.

He glanced around, and seeing no one was paying attention, he quickly raised his long pole.

But the "cicada’s" position was a bit tricky, wedged right between two branches where the net couldn’t reach.

The old man grew anxious, scratching his head. Finally, he gave up and took the net off, using just the bare pole to poke at it.

"Come on down, you. Get down here."

He muttered as he poked, his movements becoming more and more vigorous.

Just then, a woman who looked to be in her fifties with permed, curly hair walked by.

Seeing the old man’s actions, she, being an expert herself, immediately aimed her flashlight in the same direction.

"Ooh! A cicada!"

The old woman’s eyes lit up, and without another word, she hurried over.

"What are you doing? I saw it first," the old man got mad, glaring as he shouted.

"Just because you saw it, that makes it yours? Is your name written on it?"

The old woman didn’t back down an inch, her tongue as sharp as a tack. "This tree belongs to the public, and so does the cicada. Whoever gets it down, gets to keep it."

With that, she began prodding at it with the branch in her hand.

"You old hag, you’re being completely unreasonable."

"You’re the one being unreasonable, you damned old coot."

The two of them cursed at each other while their poles danced wildly around the branches like fencing foils, each trying to be the first to knock the cicada down.

Several other cicada-catchers nearby were drawn over by the commotion and started watching the show.

Finally, after a flurry of pokes from both of them, the "cicada" could hold on no longer.

It wobbled, then floated lightly down.

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

They both lunged for it at the same time.

But the moment it hit the ground, they both froze.

’How is it so light?’

’Like a leaf?’

’Could it be an empty shell?’

’A Cicada Shell?’

’No, that’s not right. Up on the tree, it definitely looked like a dark, living creature.’

The old woman was faster, snatching it up in her hand.

She took a look under her flashlight.

It was a color photograph cut into the shape of a cicada, with a small piece of bark still stuck to the back.

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