Chapter 205: Raw Gypsum and Calcined Gypsum

Chapter 205: Chapter 205: Raw Gypsum and Calcined Gypsum

"Hu Liang didn’t say he was unwilling. It’s just... it’s just..." Cao Yunyun stammered, unable to explain clearly.

"Oh, for heaven’s sake, my dear girl, just spit it out!"

Mrs. Wang had the least patience for her sister-in-law’s dithering, but she couldn’t let it show.

Cao Yunyun herself was on the verge of tears from anxiety.

"This morning, an old aunty from our village was going to the market in town. She happened to pass by the hot and spicy soup stall and greeted me. I was busy with customers and couldn’t pay attention, but Liangzi went over and started chatting with her..."

Mrs. Wang sat bolt upright. "What did they talk about? Did you forget what your sister-in-law told you?"

"I didn’t forget... As soon as they started talking, I dropped what I was doing. I had just gotten closer when I heard... I heard Liangzi asking that aunty about the village chief’s family..."

"Did that old biddy say anything?"

Cao Yunyun shook her head. "She didn’t get the chance. I interrupted and changed the subject. Just then, someone came to pay their bill..."

Mrs. Wang patted her chest. "That’s good, that’s good."

"But..." Cao Yunyun bit her lip. "We were lucky this time that the aunty wasn’t from the south end of our village and lives far away. Plus, the news hasn’t spread yet, so she didn’t know the real story. If word gets out later, even if people don’t seek out someone from our village to ask, they’ll still come to the stall on their own to gawk, won’t they?"

Besides... ’Why did Hu Liang bypass me and ask someone from Cao Village?’

’Didn’t I already tell him about the situation with the village chief’s family? Why is he still asking around?’

’Could it be that he doesn’t believe me anymore?’

Cao Yunyun didn’t dare to think too deeply about it. Her heart was pounding with panic, which was why she had rushed to find Mrs. Wang for advice.

"What’s so difficult about that? It’s not worth getting so worked up over," Mrs. Wang said dismissively. "Tomorrow, I’ll ask a few old women I know to go sit at your stall. You stay back and pretend you don’t know them. Let Hu Liang ask them himself. I guarantee he won’t find out anything’s wrong."

’That... seems like it could work.’

Cao Yunyun breathed a sigh of relief, but her brow remained furrowed with worry.

"Sister-in-law, do you think Liangzi suspects me? There’s no way to keep this a secret forever. As soon as Ximei marries into that family, the Hu Family will find out everything..."

The tears Cao Yunyun had been holding back all day finally fell with a PLOP. She was starting to regret her actions; she had handled this whole affair so foolishly.

Mrs. Wang secretly rolled her eyes. When she turned back, her expression was once again one of earnest concern.

"Have you forgotten what your sister-in-law told you before? I’m only thinking about you and Hu Liang... Besides, it’s not like we told a complete lie, just a half-truth at most. What matchmaker doesn’t do that? For a girl from a widow’s family to marry the village chief’s son, they must have gotten lucky beyond belief. What right do they have to be picky? Just think about it, if the boy wasn’t crippled or deformed in some way, would he have even considered her?"

Cao Yunyun recalled the pros and cons Mrs. Wang had analyzed for her before. Her regret faded, leaving only worry behind.

"But will Liangzi be angry with me? What if he doesn’t want me anymore?"

"Just do as your sister-in-law says. Once the Hu Family gets the betrothal gifts, immediately push Hu Liang to finalize things and marry into his family before Hu Ximei gets married off. By the time the truth comes out, what’s done will be done for both sides. Are they going to try and return the goods? If they dare, our Old Cao Family will go raise hell in their Dafeng Village! Who’s afraid of who!"

After laying out the plan, Mrs. Wang comforted her again. "That’s just the worst-case scenario. Hu Liang is head over heels for you; even a blind man can see that. Why would he ever leave you? Even if that Widow Xie comes to cause trouble, Hu Liang will have to take your side. Once the new house is built, the worst that can happen is you and Hu Liang move out on your own. What would you have to fear from her then? You just need to find the right opportunity to bring this up with him..."

Mrs. Wang’s words greatly eased the anxiety in Cao Yunyun’s heart.

’That’s right. The ones who like Ji Huan the most are Widow Xie and Hu Ximei. Liangzi isn’t even that close to Ji Huan. He’s the best to me. He’s willing to teach me anything and hides nothing from me. So he definitely wouldn’t turn against me for someone else.’

Cao Yunyun’s heart settled, and she broke into a smile through her tears. "Sister-in-law, you’re so good to me."

Mrs. Wang’s tone became even more affectionate. "Silly girl, if I’m not good to you, who would I be good to..."

When Ji Huan appeared at De Hall with Dabao, Xin Ziqi was a little surprised.

"Is Dabao’s foot all better?"

"You saw it last time. It was just a minor sprain."

Ji Huan noticed his discomfort and chuckled. "Don’t worry, I’m not here to force you to break your rules. But I do have something I need your help with."

"Go ahead," Xin Ziqi said, his tense expression relaxing slightly.

"Do you have any gypsum in your shop? It’s a... somewhat irregularly shaped mass, grayish-white or pale yellow in color, sometimes translucent. It’s soft, heavy, with a faint smell and mild taste. A cross-section has a silky luster..."

Ji Huan gave a general description of gypsum’s properties, then added, "Or maybe it’s not called gypsum. Perhaps fine stone, cold water stone, or maybe even White Tiger?"

She had previously transcribed a medical book titled *Universal Relief Formula* for a bookshop, which contained a prescription called green pills, specifically for treating persistent fever in children.

It read: "Thirty grams of fine stone, three grams of qingdai. Grind the above into a powder, use a paste to form into pills the size of a longan pit. For each dose, dissolve one pill in lampwick soup..."

The fine stone mentioned here should be referring to gypsum.

And in her past life, classics like *Medicinal Evidences*, the *Compendium of Materia Medica*, and *Shennong’s Herbal Classic* all had records of using gypsum in medicine.

’So gypsum shouldn’t be hard to find in the Great Zhou, right?’

Xin Ziqi thought for a moment. "You mean the cold water stone that’s used with motherwort to clear heat and relieve vexation? The other names are not very common."

"Yes, yes, yes," Ji Huan nodded. "It can also be paired with Mulberry Leaves to clear and disseminate lung heat; with cassia twig to resolve both the exterior and interior; and with white peony root to reduce swelling and stop pain. It can also be used for non-healing ulcers and wounds that won’t close... But I don’t need raw gypsum, I need it prepared. The fine powder from calcining raw gypsum. Do you have any?"

Raw gypsum and prepared gypsum are actually produced together, and under certain conditions, they can even be converted into one another.

But although they are the same substance, their medicinal values are completely different.

Raw gypsum is mostly taken internally, mainly for clearing heat and purging fire, relieving vexation and quenching thirst.

Prepared gypsum, or calcined gypsum, is mostly for external use, mainly to resolve dampness and promote tissue regeneration, and for astringing sores and stopping bleeding.

Xin Ziqi shook his head. "This cold water... gypsum, although it is a type of medicinal ingredient, has many contraindications. It must be used with caution by those with yang deficiency, cold patterns, or a weak spleen and stomach. Doctors generally rarely use it in prescriptions."

Ji Huan was a little disappointed. "So you don’t have any?"

"It’s not a rare item, how could we not have it? Over twenty prefectures in the Great Zhou produce fine stone from mines, with Liaodong and our Northern Pass having the most fine stone mines. Yide Hall just doesn’t keep much in stock. If you need it, I can find some for you."

Ji Huan’s disappointment turned to joy, and she quickly told him the amount she needed.

After a moment’s thought, she added, "I also need a few other medicinal ingredients. I’ll have to trouble you for those as well."

"No trouble at all."

Ping’an brought over a brush and paper. After Xin Ziqi wrote it down, he hesitated for a moment before finally asking the question on his mind.

"I didn’t know much about this ingredient before, and this is the first time I’ve heard of the raw versus prepared distinction... Are you going to use it to treat that vagrant? Internally or externally?"

"I am looking for this for the vagrant, but it’s neither for internal nor external use. Instead, it’s for..."

Ji Huan deliberately trailed off, glancing at the irrepressible curiosity Xin Ziqi was trying his best to hide.

Her eyes twinkled, and she waved her hand. "In short, it’s for a use you’ve never seen before, and it’s very helpful for patients who need surgery... In any case, you’re not participating, so there’s no point in telling you. I have other things to do. I’ll leave the matter of the gypsum and other ingredients to you."

With that, she waved, ignored the blatant disappointment written all over Xin Ziqi’s face, and strode off with Dabao in tow.