Courtyard House: The Chef's Intelligence System

October is National Day, with clear skies and crisp autumn air, making it the most comfortable time of year.

However, the temperature difference between day and night is quite large, and it's common for children to catch a cold if they're not careful.

Recently, many neighbors in the courtyard have been getting medicine and brewing it in the yard.

Why is it said "getting the medicine" instead of "taking the medicine"?

Because most people rely on traditional Chinese medicine, which has been passed down for many years, the general public trusts it more.

Western medicine isn't that you can't take it, but it's too expensive, and many people simply don't believe that a few cheap pills can cure diseases.

But Li Jiuzhou believed it. It wasn't that he was a Western worshipper, but rather that if someone in his family suddenly developed a high fever, Western medicine would be more effective.

For other symptoms, Li Jiuzhou preferred to take his family to the Seventh Master's herbal medicine shop to get medicine.

Thanks to Seventh Master, Li Jiuzhou has also stockpiled quite a lot of medicines like Angong Niuhuang Wan, which are truly life-saving miracle drugs.

A common cold and fever can be treated with some Western medicine.

The only thing that can truly save lives is Angong Niuhuang Wan.

This medicine is sold at Tongrentang, but it's not displayed on the counter, so ordinary people may never even see it in their lifetime.

Li Jiuzhou stored more than sixty of them, all of which he had collected, since they wouldn't expire in his storage space anyway.

This kind of thing is only for emergency use. Li Jiuzhou would naturally not use it if he didn't have to. Only a fool would want to use it.

The reason Li Jiuzhou kept so many was because he was too greedy. Who wouldn't want to keep more good things? It's a normal thought.

Of course, it wasn't just Angong Niuhuang Wan; Li Jiuzhou also had a lot of other precious medicinal materials stored up, but they would become increasingly scarce in the future.

Because of this, Li Jiuzhou was often ridiculed by Master Bai.

He said, "Everyone else is saving gold and collecting antiques, but you're going to get into medicinal herbs. You're a real talent."

However, Master Bai was happy to help Li Jiuzhou collect it. What was difficult for others was nothing to him. His family owned a pharmacy, so what did they lack?

With so many years of tradition, how could the Bai family not have its best medicinal herbs?

Giving Li Jiuzhou any amount would be enough.

Of course, you have to pay. Don't think that just because you're surnamed Bai you can get something for free. You can't!

The medicine pots in the courtyard are basically one for each household now, but with so many people catching colds and fevers, they're not enough.

A clay pot isn't expensive, and passing it around is not only a waste of money but also troublesome, so it's better to have one at home.

Actually, it's not really a medicinal pot. Before, when Li Jiuzhou's neighbor at the teacher's college was stewing a mutton soup, he mentioned that it should be cooked in a clay pot.

So almost all the old women in the courtyard bought it.

In essence, a clay pot can be used for both making soup and decocting medicine.

Do we really need to prepare a special set for stewing soup and decocting medicine?

That's true; it involves folk customs.

The medicine pot is a "clean thing" and is only used when you are sick. Otherwise, it is kept in a corner or cabinet.

Borrowing a medicine pot: In folk customs, it is only borrowed and not returned. Returning it is equivalent to "sending the illness back", which will make the host family angry.

The medicine pot is a small, thick, oil-free earthenware/clay pot, used specifically for decocting Chinese medicine; the soup pot is a large, thin, commonly used iron/aluminum pot, used specifically for cooking rice and stewing meat. The two should never be used interchangeably or substituted for each other.

So the neighbors in the courtyard basically each had two clay pots, one for stewing soup and the other for decocting medicine.

This is also to avoid unnecessary trouble and arguments.

There are still many customs in folk life, the problem is that people don't understand them and don't follow them.

You may not really understand, but others may not be so generous as to forgive you.

Because your inappropriate behavior will make your neighbors feel that you bring them bad luck.

What's there to forgive?

Not doing anything to you is the least of your worries.

Therefore, one must also know the rules and be mindful of boundaries in everyday life.

The older people are, the more rules they know, such as Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Yan Bugui.

They earn respect because of their status and position, as well as because they are knowledgeable, involved, and do a lot.

Many people are unfamiliar with customs and rules related to weddings, funerals, and other important occasions, so they must consult others for guidance.

It's very simple. For example, choosing an auspicious date for marriage is something Yan Bugui doesn't understand.

He definitely knows how to do it; there's no need for divination or fortune telling. He can just choose an auspicious day based on the calendar.

Although it's just the basics, how many people in the courtyard can read?

Instead of having them come, you might as well just get married, register your marriage, and hold a banquet on the spot like Zhang Shih-hao.

Of course, Zhang Shih-hao's approach would certainly not work in the eyes of many rule-abiding people.

But since it's their second marriage, it's a special case that can be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Normal procedures should still be followed, even though extravagant celebrations are not allowed now.

Therefore, we need someone knowledgeable to discard the simple parts and retain the essential and valuable aspects.

Yan Bugui may not seem very capable, but he is actually quite skilled.

Would it be alright to let young people like Sha Zhu and Li Jiuzhou do it?

The answer is definitely no.

Xu Damao, now middle-aged, has learned a lot about the rules. In the original drama, he was the instigator of the conflict between Bang Geng and Liu Guangfu over the medicine pot.

Because he understands the rules, he can use them to do bad things and remain unperturbed.

So no matter what, the older you are, the more popular you become, because you really know a lot.

For example, if you go to see a traditional Chinese medicine doctor, would you dare let a doctor in his early twenties treat you?

Even if you grit your teeth and read it, you'll still feel uneasy after the medicine is decocted.

Conversely, a doctor in his seventies or eighties would probably prescribe medicine without hesitation, and the patient would gulp it down without even looking.

This isn't just true for doctors; it's true for people in all walks of life—they tend to trust older people more.

Some say that many young people are also very capable, but the facts prove that there are far too few of them, and very few people dare to gamble.

This is due to inertia; everyone does it, and the selection ratio is roughly the same.

Let's talk about Tong Jinfeng. Since she married into the family, she has gained the approval of the neighbors in the past month or so.

Although it hasn't been a long time, they did a great job.

She excels at everything: laundry, cooking, and childcare.

Of course, even though she has separated from her parents-in-law, she still helps her sister-in-law with housework when she has free time.

There's no way around it, she's just too damn free. Back in the countryside, besides doing housework and taking care of the whole family, she also had to work in the fields.

Farming is hard work, the biggest task in our daily lives.

Now, Tong Jinfeng is just doing housework, and she's incredibly happy.

She could only vent her remaining energy on her husband, Zhang Shih-hao, at night.

The couple had a blast, making their neighbor, Da Hu, suffer terribly, and his wife was naturally the happiest of them all.

She was diligent in cultivating the land, so what complaints could she possibly have? Besides, it was the time when the land was fertile, and if she didn't cultivate it now, she might end up benefiting someone else.

After the incident of Zhang Shih-hao's wife cheating on him, the old men in the courtyard became very protective of their land, plowing it every now and then.

Because if you don't plow, someone else will plow, and they'll do it secretly, while you'll still be the one kept in the dark.

Therefore, at night, two people in the courtyard were always the most seriously injured: the deaf old woman and Jia Zhangshi.

The deaf old lady is a light sleeper due to her age. There are several couples in the backyard, and one couple is having sex with another. It's really too damn hard for her. She can only try to catch up on sleep during the day.

The deaf old woman even regretted it a little. If she had known, she wouldn't have donated the backyard. She could have enjoyed the backyard all to herself without anyone bothering her.

Then there's Jia Zhangshi. Her family isn't big, and her son and daughter-in-law are both mediocre and playful, which makes her very distressed.

Especially during the month her son was recuperating, she worked every single day.

Jia Dongxu wasn't at work, and he was incredibly energetic. He couldn't sleep at night and would often have to do something.

Tong Jie wholeheartedly agreed, saying that her husband's leg injury didn't matter as it wouldn't affect farming, and she was willing to come instead.

I'm in my early twenties, how can I not get myself to do something? Let's not even talk about it in conversation, or we'll start doing something.