"Refreshing!"
Seeing Lu Xuan so forthright, downing a glass of wine directly, Wang Youqing laughed heartily: "Lu, slow down, I noticed your drinking capacity last time, a couple of bottles of beer is no problem, but don't drink too quickly, you might get drunk easily."
"Listen to the uncle," Cheng Gaowen said with a smile on the side.
"Lu, come, sister toasts to you."
Zhou Liting also joined the fun: "I'll have a glass too."
As she was about to pour wine, Lu Xuan pressed his hand to stop her: "Sister Cheng, Sister Zhou, don't drink, especially Sister Cheng, you shouldn't touch alcohol in the next few months."
"Can't drink?"
"No."
"Alright then, forget it."
Cheng Gaowen showed a helpless expression.
Zhou Liting nudged Cheng Gaowen's arm beside her: "Sister Cheng, listen to Lu, this guy is really capable. I highly admire him now, if he asks me to go east, I definitely won't go west. We don't dare to touch the alcohol, drinking the medicine Lu prescribed, the other day..."
Zhou Liting almost let it slip, but caught herself in time and winked at Lu Xuan: "Forget it, I won't mention that, but you must listen to Lu, if he says you're fine, then you're definitely fine."
"Of course I know that."
"But, Liting, what did you just start to say about the other day?"
Cheng Gaowen looked curious.
Zhou Liting shut her mouth tightly, completely unmoved: "Nothing, it's a secret between me and Lu."
After finishing, she looked at Lu Xuan: "Lu, you promised sister not to tell anyone."
Lu Xuan gave a wry smile: "Sister Zhou, don't worry, I won't say anything."
Cheng Gaowen chuckled strangely: "Liting, Lu, you two..."
"Sister Cheng, don't misunderstand, it's just about some issues with Sister Zhou's health." Lu Xuan quickly explained.
Speaking of health, Cheng Gaowen didn't say much further but suddenly extended her arm to Lu Xuan: "Lu, just in time, take my pulse."
Lu Xuan placed his fingers on her wrist, and after a while, he smiled and said: "Sister Cheng, keep it up, maybe in a month or two, you might encounter a pleasant surprise."
"A surprise?"
Cheng Gaowen asked: "What surprise?"
But Lu Xuan didn't reveal: "If I say it, it won't come true."
"Lu, you got sister all curious, and now you won't say?" Cheng Gaowen looked like she wanted to know no matter what.
On the side, Wang Youqing interrupted: "He said it, if you say it out, it won't work, Cheng, don't ask further, come, Lu, let's drink."
Lu Xuan promptly raised his glass, starting another round of clinking glasses with Wang Youqing.
Since Cheng Gaowen and Zhou Liting couldn't drink, Yuan Na also followed their lead, and the three women began chatting about everyday matters.
Two bottles of beer were quickly emptied, Lu Xuan got up to visit the restroom, and after returning, he yielded to Wang Youqing's invitations to drink without rejecting any, and both of them downed five or six bottles each in no time.
Although Wang Youqing's face was slightly red, his spirits were still high, showing no signs of being too drunk, his alcohol tolerance was quite impressive.
In ordinary cases, someone would have given up with five or six bottles of Daliang Mountain in their belly, ending the drinking battle by turning their glass upside down.
The three women hadn't noticed initially but seeing the growing number of empty bottles on the table, they were startled after counting them and promptly urged the two: "Uncle, Lu, stop drinking, those are over a dozen bottles, if you keep drinking, how can you work tomorrow?"
"Especially you, Uncle, told you so many times, Lu is different from you, yet you keep inviting him, look how much Lu has drunk!"
Reminded by Cheng Gaowen, Wang Youqing glanced at the empty bottles and suddenly sobered up. Turning to Lu Xuan, he was astonished to see Lu Xuan, not drunk, but in even better condition than himself.
"No way, Lu, how much have you drunk?"
Lu Xuan glanced at the empty bottles on his side: "This is the eighth bottle."
"Uncle, wait, I'll go to the restroom first, come back and continue drinking."
Lu Xuan's face changed, he got up directly, and quickly walked to the restroom.
This place had no lack of customers, and the restroom was almost always occupied. When Lu Xuan came in, he could already smell an extremely pungent sour stench, indicating many had vomited from drinking.
Walking up to the urinal, Lu Xuan began to relieve himself.
Lu Xuan didn't know how many times he'd been to the restroom, yet couldn't help admiring the power of traditional Chinese medicine.
He hadn't imagined that Little Chaihu Decoction, with the addition of Atractylodes and Polygonum, would be so effective in countering alcohol effects.
Drinking felt like not drinking at all, almost all eliminated thoroughly through urination.
In Little Chaihu Decoction, Chaihu itself goes into the lymphatic system, and it can clear heat and dissipate cold, making it a half-exterior and half-interior medicine.
Pinellia can dispel water and stop vomiting because there is water separating it in the middle, the filterable virus runs into the water-wrapped diaphragm, depending on Pinellia to drive it out, so when using Pinellia, urination will increase.
This way, alcohol won't reach the liver because Little Chaihu Decoction regulates Lesser Yang symptoms, Lesser Yang and Terminal Yin are exterior-interior relations, stabilizing the liver well and avoiding the possibility of vomiting from drinking too much.
Ginseng, licorice, and Chinese Dates specifically strengthen the spleen and stomach and stabilize the middle burner, preventing the Lesser Yang Disease from transferring to Yangming, while also enhancing the immune system and the stomach's ability to process grains, making the middle burner stronger. A strong middle burner enhances the draining effect of this medication.
Moreover, Lu Xuan listened to advice and added Atractylodes and Polygonum, which help with alcohol detox, to the basic formula of Little Chaihu Decoction. Alcohol won't cloud the mind, and naturally, there won't be symptoms like headaches.
"Bro, impressive!"
"Is this bull urine or what!"
The guy next to him didn't know how long he had been watching. As he was about to leave, he suddenly gave Lu Xuan a thumbs-up. When he came in, there were people ahead of him, and after waiting for a while, he finished his business, while Lu Xuan was still there relieving himself.
Lu Xuan was quite taken aback by this social butterfly, feeling somewhat embarrassed, he said, "I drank a lot, a lot."
"Legend!"
"That's quite a bit of drinking!"
Lu Xuan was torn between laughter and tears. As he was pulling up his pants, Wang Youqing suddenly walked in. Seeing that Lu Xuan was just using the urinal, he had a look of shock, as if he had seen a ghost: "Lu, are you alright?"
Wang Youqing's expression was a bit odd, but Lu Xuan didn't pay much attention to it. He simply shook his head and said, "I'm fine, doing great."
"Uncle, I'm heading back. Shall we continue drinking later?"
"You…you want to drink more?"
Wang Youqing was a bit flustered. After downing eight bottles of beer, he felt he was about done, knowing that drinking any more would probably mean he'd have to be carried back.
Of course, it didn't count as particularly much for him, but his headache called for some sleep.
"Ah?"
"No problem, no problem. You go ahead!"
Lu Xuan didn't ask further and headed straight to the private room.
He hadn't sat down for long before Wang Youqing also came in.
Lu Xuan poured the remainder from the bottle into his glass and gently tapped the table: "Uncle, we won't drink too much, let's just finish this last glass."
Wang Youqing felt a bit uneasy. He sensed something was off, but couldn't figure it out. Almost instinctively, he clinked glasses with Lu Xuan, marking the end of their little drinking challenge.
"Lu, are you really alright?"
Cheng Gaowen asked with concern from the side.
"I'm fine."
Zhou Liting glanced at eight empty beer bottles, couldn't help but worry a bit: "You drank eight bottles, how can you be okay, uncle's face is all red."
"I really am fine."
Lu Xuan appeared a bit helpless.
"Really okay?"
"Really okay."
"Lu, you're playing the pig to eat the tiger!"
Wang Youqing couldn't hold back anymore, looking at Lu Xuan's impressive drinking feats yet seeming untouched by alcohol, he had to raise his thumb in admiration: "I concede defeat!"
Zhou Liting also gave a thumbs-up: "Awesome, you're the first person I've seen who can drink uncle under the table."
Lu Xuan felt a bit awkward and responded with a smile: "Sis, don't make fun of me, my drinking capacity compared to uncle's is not even close."
"Lu, don't be so modest."
Wang Youqing sighed: "I know my own limits. I can drink more, but if I drink any more, it's too much. But you're different, downing eight bottles like it's nothing, I could never manage."
"In terms of drinking, I've never admired anyone in my life, but Lu Xuan, you're the first."
"Legend!"
"You went to the bathroom so many times, I thought you might have drunk too much and were vomiting. Now, it seems, I was overthinking it."
The admiration in Wang Youqing's eyes was evident.
Seeing that the four people were practically treating him like a drinking god, Lu Xuan chuckled bitterly and finally revealed the truth.
"Actually, I took some detox medication before drinking, otherwise don't even mention eight bottles, I'd be in unbearable pain after three."
The four were instantly stunned.
Cheng Gaowen blinked.
Zhou Liting's face was full of question marks.
Yuan Na's mouth dropped open.
Wang Youqing hesitated for a long time, dazed yet filled with sudden joy: "Lu, you…"
"Give me some of that medicine, next time I'll drink those Ninth Hospital folks into submission."