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Chapter 68: 斜 (Joy)
Pu An County is a little town with beautiful scenery, simple and honest folkways where it has rich natural resources. Often, there will be foreigners who come here to relieve boredom and sightseeing. Especially now, after a highly skilled doctor  appeared in town, there is an endless stream of people coming into the town.
This led to the people of the town, if they saw strangers or a well-dressed person, they would not be surprised. They would just silently take a detour and walk away in order not to bump into any big shot.Those were the people they couldn’t afford to mess with.
Zhao Zheng’an and Zhong Ziqi traveled three days by water and four days by carriage, non-stop rush. They finally arrived in Pu’an County this afternoon.
When they arrived in town, Zhao Zheng’an and Zhong Ziqi did not rush to find the miracle doctor. Instead, they went into an inn, asked for a barrel of hot water to freshen up a little. This journey, they were in such a rush, so the two of them were dirty.Even they themselves were disgusted with themselves, let alone others.
They couldn’t wait to take a bath and
changed their clothes. Two people asked for a table of food.Zhao Zheng’an ate especially well. Zhong Ziqi didn’t know if they rushed too fast that for these two days he didn’t have much appetite. He just simply ate a little then he put his chopsticks  down.
“Later, let the doctor also see what’s wrong with you. Don’t let it be, my illness has not been cured, yet you let yourself become exhausted!” Zhao Zheng’an’s heart was distressed, looking at his haggard face.
Zhong Ziqi did not care and said: “Maybe it’s just that we’ve been rushing too fast and I’m not adapted to it.”
Zhao Zheng’an shook his head: “We are approximately looking for the doctor, so let him see if there is any problem with your body, so we can treat it at the earliest time.”
Zhong Ziqi nodded: “Okay!”
After the two of them filled their stomachs,only then they asked the waiter about it: “Brother Xiao Er, I heard that there is a miracle doctor in your town, I wonder where he is?”
[Brother Xiao Er or Xiao Er Ge is not the waiter’s name but come from the word waiter = ćș—氏äșŒ (dian xiao er)]
The waiter laughed ‘He he’: “Are you two also here for the miracle doctor in our town?”
“That’s right! I heard that his medical expertise is excellent so I am looking for him to pay a visit but I don’t know where he lives?” Zhao Zheng’an said with a smile.
“On the other street there is a clinic which is opened by the miracle doctor, if you go there, you will find it.”
” Okay! Thanks a lot,Xiao Er Ge.”
Zhao Zheng’an bestow the waiter a few copper coins. After the waiter received the money, his smile became more and more sincere.
Zhao Zheng’an and Zhong Ziqi followed the waiter’s directions and went to another street. No wonder the waiter said they could find it if they went there. The doctor’s clinic had a small door, the area was the same as their ‘Quite Delicious’ restaurant although obviously not as big as their ‘Quite Delicious’. On the door, hung an old board (attached to a wall) with two words “Medical Clinic”, no unnecessary superfluous words.
If it wasn’t for the long lines of people coming in and out, to show that this is where the divine doctor’s temporary lodging was, they would have thought that they have gone to the wrong place!
“You guys are also here to see the doctor, right?” An old Amu asked.
“That’s right ah, Amu, is it always so many people here every day? How long do we have to wait?” Zhong Ziqi asked.
“Don’t look at there’s a lot of people, but the doctor is very fast! The doctor will know what illness you have as soon as he takes your hand. Then he will let his little disciple prepare the medicine.” The old Amu was very knowledgeable and told the two of them the situation inside.
Zhong Ziqi nodded his head as he received the teaching, Zhong Ziqi and Zhao Zheng’an were set up (lined up) behind the Old Amu.
Indeed, as the old Amu said, the queue looked long but the speed of them vanishing from sight was particularly fast.
From what the others said, unless it was dubious or hard-to-treat complicated diseases (would be treated by the doctor) otherwise, nothing out of the ordinary diseases such as catching a cold, headache and slight fever will only be treated by the miracle doctor’s disciple.
Soon, before the sky was dark, it was Zhao Zheng’an and Zhong Ziqi’s turn. It was very obvious that they should be the last wave of people because that one person who reportedly as the disciple of the divine doctor, the delicate and elegant looking man came out to drive people away: “Everyone, please disperse! That’s it for today. Come back again tomorrow!”
Although the crowd was unwilling after hearing this, they dispersed without complaint, so unless someone has a disease that needs immediate treatment, otherwise the doctor’s consultation time was fixed.
“Both of you, please come inside!” The man extended his hand in an inviting gesture.
Zhao Zhengan and Zhong Ziqi entered the clinic and immediately found a man of about forty or fifty years old sitting on the left side of the medical hall, he was not fat or thin, ordinary looking, the kind of person who appeared to be indistinguishable in the sea of people.
“Dilly dallying, still not coming?” The man was somehow impatient.
Zhao Zheng’an and Zhong Ziqi hurriedly walked over, made a salute gesture (cup one fist in the other hand to show respect): “Greetings to the senior divine doctor.”
“What’s that? (He meant the courtesy to call him as a senior) Just call me Doctor (性怫) like they do.”
Zhong Ziqi and Zhao Zhengan glanced at each other, willing to accept his advice and answered, “Okay.”
“Which one of you?” (Tl notes: He is asking who is the one that need the medical consultation)
“He is.”
“Both of us.”
Zhao Zheng’an and Zhong Ziqi speak in unison.
Zhao Zheng’an frowned: “Didn’t we already agree (about it before)?”
Zhong Ziqi coughed: “You first!”
“Say, what are the symptoms?” The genius doctor asked as he knocked on the table.
Zhao Zheng’an told him what had happened to him from the beginning when he fell and hurt his head to become an idiot, until he recovered and became well right now: “After recovering, I am suffering from the after-effects, my head often hurts, each time it will lasts about five minutes 
”
“Give me your hand!”
“Zhao Zheng’an stretched his hand over.  The miracle doctor took the pulse for a while and checked the other places too. He looked relaxed, without any difficulty and said: “I will give you a prescription. You have to soak in the medicinal bath every day. Come over here in the morning and I will treat you with acupuncture.”
“So
. Doctor, how long does it take for him to be fully recovered?” Zhong Ziqi could not help but ask. Indeed,the miracle doctor worthy of being the miracle doctor, he went to many doctors, but all of them said that it can not be cured, however to the miracle doctor here, it was something trivial.
“What’s the matter? Your home is far from here?” The god doctor lifted his eyelid and asked, his hand quickly wrote a prescription: “A Ye, go get the medicine.”
The young man waiting on the side took the prescription: “Yes,Shi fu.”
[Shi fu mean teacher/master]
Zhong Ziqi glanced at the long list, then said: “Yes doctor, our home is far away from here, we have to rush for almost ten days to get here, and we plan on going back in time before the New Year.”
When the doctor heard this, he looked at him in silence and then said, “I only need to treat him with acupuncture continuously for five days, after that you follow my prescription and let him soak in a medicinal bath for a month.”
“That’s good, that means we can rush back home for New Year.”
The doctor heard this and shook his head: “I don’t know for sure if you guys can go back or not. I only know that now you are not suitable to travel and inadvisable for you to be too tired from it.”
Zhong Ziqi froze for a moment and pointed his finger at himself: “Me?”
Zhao Zheng’an immediately became anxious: “Doctor, my Fu Lang, is he suffering from some kind of disease? He couldn’t eat on the way here and his face was frighteningly pale.”
The doctor did not say anything, but gestured to Zhong Ziqi to give him his hand: “Your Fu Lang, this indeed is a happy pulse (ć–œè„‰) . However, because he doesn’t pay attention or it is also possible that you have been exhausted by the hardships of travelling and sleeping outdoors in the past few days so the fetal is somehow unstable. I will give your fu lang some medicine, drink it for two days,then you will be fine. But when you go back, you should pay attention and rest more. Don’t move around too much!”
[ć–œè„‰: Happy pulse/ the regular throbbing of the arteries that indicates pregnancy]
The doctor said a lot, minding his own business, completely ignoring the two people who were already petrified.
Zhong Ziqi’s heart at this time was similar to a group of ‘grass mud horses’ (this actually mean ‘Fuck! Shit!, the censored version of it) that surged forward. He wanted to spray out blood on the doctor’s face. The thing he was worried about still happened.
As a matter of fact, it was not that he was unwilling to give birth. How to say it? As a good orthodox twenty-first century young man who was inculcated with more than twenty years’ ideology of women gave birth to children and the man did the farm work, this all of a sudden change of identity, still somewhat difficult to accept. So that was why, these several days he always felt that his stomach ached. He did not even tell Zhao Zheng’an about it,he was afraid that he would be worried. He did not expect that it would turn out to be something like this.
Zhao Zheng’an beside him was also petrified, at this moment, his entire mind was resound with what the divine doctor had said: “Your Fu Lang, this is a happy pulse 
.happy pulse 
.happy pulse.”
“Doctor, are you saying that my fu lang, he
.he is having my child?”
Zhao Zheng’an asked in a trembling voice, desperately needing an affirmative answer to prove that he had not heard it wrong.
The miracle doctor obviously had seen too much of this kind of thing and repeated it one again: ” That’s right! it’s a happy pulse, if there is no accident, then that is your child.”
Zhao Zheng’an’s eyes widened in ecstasy, completely ignoring the divine doctor’s teasing words, he turned to look at Zhong Ziqi, with a happy face, and wanted to reach out his hand to touch his stomach.
Zhong Ziqi:”
.(cough, cough) umm
 doctor, doesn’t he need to apply the needles today?”
“No need, starting from tomorrow. Today, after you guys go back, let him soak in the medicinal bath first. I will give you some medicine, then you go back, cook on a slow fire and drink it.” The miracle doctor said.
“

okay.”
Coming out of the clinic, the sky was already dark. Besides the inn, the tavern also closed late, the majority of the stores were already closed so the streets only had several random passers-by in a haste.
“Wife, we have a child now 
. Great! If I know, when we are on the way here, we should have been more careful on the road, we almost lost the child
Fortunately, God protects and bless (the baby) 

”
Zhao Zheng’an surrounded Zhong Ziqi, nagging and annoyingly talking for half of a day, only to discover right at the moment that the individual or the party concerned did not say any word at all, Zhao Zheng’an’s joy suddenly scattered a lot, he gently and cautiously asked: “Wife
.don’t tell me
.you dont like this child?”
Zhong Ziqi said in his heart, ‘I am unable to accept it,but I do not dislike it’ but in his mouth, he still said: “Nothing like that, I like it very much. It’s just too sudden, I am not mentally prepared.”
“It’s good that you like it. This is our child, I’m looking forward to it.” Zhao Zheng’an said with a stupid smile.
Zhong Ziqi looked at how happy he was, the look of Zhao Zheng’an, as if he was almost dancing and gesticulating for joy. Zhong Ziqi originally ‘suffered from pent-up frustrations’ heart was somehow unknowingly loosened up. If he carefully thought about it, it was actually not a big deal. Moreover, in this world, there are no people from the 21st century, only men and ger so it was not strange for him to get pregnant, no one would ridicule him. On the contrary, if he continuously does not have a child, only then people would look down on him!
He liked Zhao Zheng’an, so much so that it could be said that after going through such a long development and interaction, he had already fallen in love with him, therefore giving the person you love a child seems to be not unacceptable at all. This was the crystallization (figurative for the fruit of their love) of his and his beloved one, think of the future soft, adorable and cute buns running around and following him behind his back. It seems that
.also not that bad?!
Zhong Ziqi consoled himself continuously in his heart, ‘It’s no big deal, only a little pain at one time, that’s all
’
Back to the inn, Zhao Zheng’an let Zhong Ziqi sit on the bed while he ordered the waiter to boil the medicine and also carry a barrel of hot water.
When Zhong Ziqi finished drinking the medicine, Zhao Zheng’an opened a packet of medicine and poured it into the (bath) tub, then took off his clothes, sat in and began to soak in the medicinal bath.
Zhong Ziqi smashed the bitter taste in his mouth, yawned, and did not wait for Zhao Zheng’an, went to bed to rest first.
Zhao Zheng’an sat in the (bath)tub and looked at the sleeping soundly Zhong Ziqi, the corners of his mouth could not help but grin. In order not to disturb Zhong Ziqi’s sleep, Zhao Zheng’an came out softly and quietly from the tub, and then instructed the attendant to carefully carry the tub out. Only then he went to bed and rested together with him. Rushing for half a day of travel, plus the fluctuating mood, he was also tired, after lying on the bed for a short time, he fell asleep.
Translator’s note:
It reached the mpreg part
 Probably would see the little baby soon