"Bro, sit over here."
Seeing his older brother still near the bedroom door, Du Heng waved for him to sit down next to the burning dish of white spirit.
Du Ping’s face was still filled with resentnt as he looked at Du Heng, but his emotions were less angry than before, now within a reasonable range.
Clutching his side, Du Ping slowly walked over to Du Heng. Just as he was about to sit down, Du Heng said, "Hold on, take off your clothes first."
Du Ping frowned. "Why take them off? Can’t I just lift this side up?"
"Your clothes are so thick and tight. How could you lift them? Besides, even if you did, wouldn’t they be uncomfortably constricting?"
As he spoke, Du Heng reached out and started pulling Du Ping’s clothes off.
Du Ping had no choice but to comply, allowing Du Heng to remove half of his clothing and completely expose his side.
Du Heng positioned Du Ping comfortably for himself and Du Ping, having him place his arm forward. Then, Du Heng gently pressed one hand on Du Ping’s ribs while dipping the other into the dish of burning white spirit.
Instantly, a pale blue fla danced on Du Heng’s hand, resembling the Flaming Palm from kung fu movies—very cool.
Du Yi, who was watching TV, heard the commotion. He abandoned Ultraman fighting monsters and turned around, his eyes wide with surprise and admiration as he stared at his uncle’s flaming hand. His eyes practically sparkled.
Du Heng, his right hand coated with white spirit and flickering blue flas, quickly slapped the area of Du Ping’s qi deviation.
With a SNAP, the pale blue flas leaped from Du Heng’s hand to Du Ping’s ribs. The spot he slapped also ignited with a light blue fla.
Du Heng’s movents were swift as he continuously wiped Du Ping’s side. After a few passes, the pale blue flas vanished, leaving the area moist. The scent of alcohol in the room, however, grew stronger.
Once the flas on his ribs disappeared, Du Heng once again dipped his hand into the burning dish of white spirit and repeated the process.
All of Du Heng’s movents were quick yet unhurried, perford with a smooth and flawless technique.
Du Yi’s eyes were wide, his mouth agape, as he stared intently at the incredible scene unfolding before him.
He never imagined that sothing from TV would happen right in front of him, involving his uncle and father!
At that mont, his admiration and fondness for his Little Uncle deepened.
Du Xuejing’s studies over the past month hadn’t been for nothing. After asking about her father’s condition and now seeing Du Heng’s actions, she knew what she needed to do.
She imdiately turned and walked towards the drawer near the TV, where the family kept their Red-flower Oil. Passing Du Yi, she saw his wide-eyed stare and gave him a disdainful smile.
If this kid even had an elentary school diploma, he’d know that white spirit ignites at around 22°C. This heat does little more than dilate pores.
After five or six continuous wipes, Du Heng stopped. He had Du Xuejing take the small dish outside and pour the remaining white spirit into the courtyard. However, Du Heng didn’t take the Red-flower Oil from Du Xuejing.
Glancing at Du Ping’s reddened side, Du Heng said softly, "Bro, try moving a little. See if it helped."
Du Ping twisted his body slightly, then grimaced. "It’s a bit better than before, but it still hurts. The pain is especially noticeable when I bend to the sides."
Du Heng frowned, thought for a mont, then turned and walked towards the back. "Sit here for a mont. I’ll go get sothing," he said, heading into his own room.
Shortly after, he returned holding two fish-shaped guasha boards, black and yellow, with a smooth, lustrous finish.
Du Heng walked over to Du Ping with a guasha board in hand. Just as he was about to start, he abruptly stopped. After a mont’s thought, he grabbed his bag from the sofa and took out his car keys. "Tingting, there’s a black box in the glove compartnt on the passenger side. Can you get it for ?"
During this brief interval, Du Xuejing and Du Yi had already picked up their chopsticks. Hearing Du Heng, Du Yi reacted much faster than Du Xuejing. He imdiately dropped his chopsticks, snatched the car keys from Du Heng, and ran outside.
Du Xuejing shot the little brat a disdainful look. Watching Du Yi dash out like a gust of wind, she pursed her lips and leisurely walked out after him.
Du Ping, half-naked, felt very uncomfortable. "What did you send them to get now?"
"It’s a blood activating ointnt I made myself. I’ll apply it to your side before I use the guasha board. I think it’ll be very effective," Du Heng replied.
"Hurry up. I’m getting cold like this."
Just as Du Heng was about to speak, his Sister-in-law called from the doorway for soone to lift the door curtain. Du Heng got up to help and saw his Sister-in-law enter, carrying a plate in each hand.
She glanced at her husband on the sofa and said, placing the dishes down, "Let’s eat first. You can treat your brother after dinner."
"I’m already halfway done, and his pores are all open. It’s best to finish it now while we’re at it, so my brother can feel more comfortable," Du Heng argued.
Before long, Du Yi rushed back in like a gust of wind, holding the box Du Heng had ntioned.
Du Heng took the box, scooped out a small amount of ointnt with three fingers, and began to apply it to Du Ping’s side.
After spreading it evenly, he had Du Ping lie diagonally on the sofa. Du Heng then picked up the guasha board and began to scrape from top to bottom, one stroke at a ti. With each scrape, Du Ping’s expression grew more pained.
When thin red streaks appeared on the skin of his side, Du Ping could no longer bear it and started to cry out.
Du Heng seed not to hear him. He scraped a few more tis, spread the accumulated ointnt, and then continued scraping, repeating the cycle.
Although Du Heng never increased the pressure and was consciously lightening his strokes, Du Ping felt each one was heavier than the last. Towards the end, every ti the guasha board touched his side, the skin and muscles there would involuntarily tremble.
"Are you done yet? I feel like you’ve scraped my skin off!" Du Ping blurted out, already looking like he wanted to dodge.
Seeing it was about enough, Du Heng stopped. "Get up and try it. See if it hurts as much as before."
Du Ping cautiously sat up. During the movent, he didn’t feel the sa constricting pain as before, allowing him to sit up straight quite easily.
Pleased, he slowly swayed left and right. Although he still felt a dull ache in his side when he made larger movents, it was now within a tolerable range.
"Not bad, much better. It doesn’t hurt so much inside anymore." As Du Ping spoke, he lightly touched his side. The mont his fingers brushed the area scraped by the guasha board, a burning pain shot through it, and he quickly pulled his hand away.
"Did you scrape the skin off here?" Du Ping lowered his head, trying to get a better look.
Hearing Du Ping’s words, Du Heng’s eyelids twitched. Sothing seed to be fluttering at the edge of his mind, but his thoughts were too muddled to grasp it.
Du Ping mumbled sothing and then got a clear view of his side.
The sight of the reddish-purple skin made him want to slap Du Heng with every glance.
However, the pain in his shoulder was a constant reminder that he was in no condition to retaliate. After glaring fiercely at Du Heng, he said, "My shoulder is really sore and aching. Do you have anything for that?"
Du Ping’s question imdiately chased away whatever had been fluttering in Du Heng’s mind. When Du Heng tried to recall it, the feeling was gone; he couldn’t even rember what he had been trying to think about.
Looking at his older brother’s already swollen shoulder, Du Heng said softly, "Co on, I’ll apply so blood activating ointnt and then give you a massage. The swelling should be down by tomorrow morning."
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