Chapter 172: The Old Lady's Health

After a long while, Wen Jun finally withdrew his hand.

"Jun, what's wrong with your grandpa?" Wen Xiuyi asked nervously, casting a worried look at Old Man Wen.

Old Man Wen glared at him. "Stop looking at me like that. I'm not dying."

When he turned to look at Wen Jun, his expression instantly softened into a beaming smile. "Our Jun is so capable! Just how long have you been following Doctor Jin, and you already know how to take a pulse? Tell your grandpa, what's wrong with me?"

Wen Jun checked Old Man Wen's other vitals before furrowing his brows and asking, "Grandpa, have you been eating too many sweets lately?"

If his judgment was correct, the old man was showing early signs of hyperglycemia. If he didn't keep it in check and it developed into diabetes later on, it would spell serious trouble.

In this era, contracting this disease was practically a death sentence. Even though Wen Yao could purchase medicine from her dimensional space, why put oneself through such suffering?

Faced with this question, Old Man Wen guiltily averted his gaze and stammered, "No, not at all. What are you talking about? Don't talk nonsense."

Madam Luo had been worried at first, but hearing Wen Jun's words made it click. She narrowed her eyes at Old Man Wen and demanded, "Did you sneak into the cupboard and eat the pastries while I was busy?"

Ever since Qiu Rongrong had grown close to Wen Yao, she sent things over every few days. If she couldn't come in person, she would have Datou and the others bring them back. As a result, Madam Luo's cupboard was always stocked with pastries bought from town—cloying and sweet.

She had been busy lately and hadn't checked carefully, only occasionally letting the younger children grab some when they had a craving. Never did she expect that the youngsters hadn't touched them, but the old man had gotten to them first.

Madam Luo knew very well that Old Man Wen had a lifelong sweet tooth. In the past, hard times had prevented him from satisfying his cravings, but now that life had improved, he was starting to indulge.

The more Madam Luo questioned him, the guiltier Old Man Wen felt. Without another word, Madam Luo stood up, grabbed Wen Yao, and headed for the door.

"Hey, old woman, don't..." Seeing her stance, Old Man Wen knew she was going to search the cupboard, which meant his stealthy snacking would be fully exposed.

Then he noticed everyone else staring intently at him, making him want to slap himself across the face. Why on earth did he ask his eldest grandson to take his pulse for no reason?

"Hey, alright, fine, yes, I ate them!" Old Man Wen finally abandoned all pretense and gave up.

Madam Luo stopped, turned back to look at him, and smiled a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

Growing guiltier by the second, Old Man Wen stammered, "I... I didn't eat that much." He had only reached for a piece whenever his sweet tooth acted up, that was all.

Madam Luo chuckled. "I thought the missing pastries from the cupboard were because these little scoundrels were craving sweets, but after all this time, it was actually you! Xiaojun, tell me, what kind of illness does your grandpa have?"

She simply had to discipline this old man today.

With a straight face, Wen Jun began, "Grandma, it's actually not that serious. Grandpa just ate too many sweets recently, and his body is having a bit of trouble handling it. Once he rests for a while and the sugar in his system breaks down and digests, he'll be fine. As long as he eats normally from now on, there won't be any problems."

"And what if he doesn't listen?" Madam Luo continued to ask.

Wen Jun glanced at Old Man Wen, who was giving him a pleading look hoping for some grandfather-grandson mercy, and said, "If Grandpa continues to consume sweets without any moderation, the sugar in his body will keep building up, leading to hyperglycemia. Once the sugar in his blood exceeds a certain index, it turns into diabetes. And this disease... is incurable."

Wen Yao silently gave a thumbs-up to Doctor Wen, who was playing the part of the solemn popular science machine with a straight face.

Hearing that it was incurable, Old Man Wen almost tumbled right out of his chair.

"What? It's that serious? They're just a few pastries!" Old Man Wen found it hard to believe. How could a few pastries cause so much trouble? Besides, he had never even heard of this disease; how could it be incurable? If that were true, everyone in the city might as well just drop dead.

"Can't your master cure it either?" Old Man Wen asked, refusing to give up hope.

Wen Jun nodded. "Yes." His master couldn't cure it, but *he* could, provided he had the medicine. However, there was no need to tell the old man that. After all, it was for his own health's sake—elderly people needed to cut down on sugar and salt anyway.

Oh, how Old Man Wen regretted his actions!

Madam Luo continued pouring cold water on him. "Xiaojun, don't worry about him. Just let him be. The family's life is better now anyway, and in a month or two, the ducks will be ready to sell for money. Our good days are still ahead of us. If he's hell-bent on courting death, let him."

Furious, Old Man Wen protested, "You old woman, what kind of things are you saying? I, I, I..."

"You, you, you, what about you? If Xiaojun hadn't wanted to check your pulse today, nobody would have ever found out. When the time really comes and it's incurable, you can just sit by yourself and cry." Though Madam Luo's words were harsh, Wen Yao, standing right beside her, could feel that her grandmother had indeed been frightened when Wen Jun said the illness was incurable.

"Alright, alright, Grandma, calm down. Grandpa won't sneakily eat them anymore, right, Grandpa?" Wen Yao hurriedly signaled to Old Man Wen.

Reluctant as he was, Old Man Wen hung his head and nodded. "Mn, I won't eat them."

Wen Jun added, "Sugar is also a part of the human body's needs; you don't have to cut it out completely. Just control the portions from now on. Grandma, you shouldn't get angry either. Grandpa's condition just started, so it's easy to manage. Sit down, let me check your pulse too. I noticed your complexion hasn't been looking too good lately."

Madam Luo waved it off dismissively. "What could possibly be wrong with me?" Though she was busy from dawn to dusk every day, the thought that it was all for a better future kept her from feeling tired.

Despite her protests, under Wen Jun's insistence, Madam Luo finally sat down and let him conduct a proper examination.

Unlike when he examined Old Man Wen, however, Wen Jun's expression grew increasingly solemn. He took her pulse for even longer than he had for his grandfather.

This caused Wen Xiuyi's just-settled heart to leap back into his throat.

Perhaps noticing that everyone's expressions had turned grim, Madam Luo forcefully pulled her hand back and complained with her usual disdain, "I told you not to bother. I'm just too tired. What are with these expressions on all your faces?"

Wen Jun exchanged a look with Wen Xiuyi, prompting Wen Xiuyi to swallow back the questions on the tip of his tongue. It was Old Man Wen who grew anxious instead.

"Xiaojun, what's wrong with your grandma?"

This wife who had accompanied him through a lifetime—even though she was always bossing him around, he didn't want anything bad to happen to her.

After a moment of hesitation, Wen Jun finally said, "Grandma is fine. She's just been too tired lately and needs more rest."

Madam Luo breathed a sigh of relief, her tone returning to one of triumph. "I told you nothing was wrong. You people worry about nothing all day long."

Wen Jun remained silent, merely casting a glance at the old matriarch without saying another word.

Once the members of the old residence left, the family of three gathered together.

"Doctor Wen, what is wrong with the old lady? Give your father a straight answer," Wen Xiuyi asked nervously. Experiencing parental love and care once again made Wen Xiuyi exceptionally cherish this hard-won bond.

Wen Yao's heart was hanging by a thread as well. Right now, all she needed was a single word from Doctor Wen, and she would happily pull a whole diagnostic machine out of her spatial dimension.

"For now, my skills are still lacking, and I can only tell that something is wrong with Grandma's liver. For the specifics, I'll have to ask my master to take a look." Without advanced precision instruments, conducting a thorough check on the old lady wouldn't be easy. He could only pin his hopes on his master.

As soon as these words were spoken, the family of three fell silent.

Now, figuring out how to get Doctor Jin to examine the old lady without arousing her suspicion or frightening her had become a brand new puzzle.