Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence-Chapter 199: True Fragrance

"Really? I don't believe you."

Faced with Lu Yu's classic question, Ji Youyou froze for a second but quickly composed herself.

Before coming on the show, Ji Youyou had specifically researched Appointment Today and was aware of Lu Yu's signature question.

She didn't explain. Instead, she countered with a question of her own, "Teacher Lu, I heard that to maintain your figure, you usually only eat seven grains of rice per meal?"

Lu Yu clearly hadn't expected the topic to turn to her, but with her rich hosting experience, she went along with it. "Haha, there was a time when that was the case."

"Well, would you like to try some of this?" Ji Youyou opened a thermal container, spooned some rice into a small bowl, and handed it to her. "A few more grains of rice won't ruin your diet plan, will they?"

The live audience let out good-natured laughter.

At the same time, an alluring aroma of rice began to spread.

The audience was too far away to smell it.

But when the rice was placed in front of Lu Yu, her mouth instantly began to water. Her body's instincts screamed at her to have a taste.

"Alright."

Lu Yu took the small bowl and carefully scooped a dozen or so grains of rice into her mouth.

She had originally only planned to force down a bite for the sake of the show, but the moment those dozen-or-so grains of rice entered her mouth, it was as if her taste buds had been jolted awake.

The grains were plump and carried a faint sweetness. Chewing them brought a strange sense of satisfaction, as if each grain contained some kind of warm energy.

She froze.

"This..." Lu Yu's spoon paused in mid-air, her eyes widening slightly, as if she couldn't believe what she had just tasted.

"What's wrong?" Ji Youyou smiled. "Not to your liking?"

Lu Yu opened her mouth, but for a moment, she didn't know how to respond.

But her body reacted faster than her mind—she scooped another spoonful of rice into her mouth.

This time, she ate even more than before.

The live audience had just been watching for fun, but as Lu Yu ate the rice, spoonful after spoonful, everyone fell silent.

—This was Lu Yu!

The star host of Appointment Today, famously known in the industry as the "Seven-Grain Queen," who had even trended for it.

But now, she was actually eating the rice Ji Youyou brought, bite after bite, right here during the show's recording?

In no time, the small bowl of rice Ji Youyou had given her was empty.

The director, Shi Zhuo, had a flash of inspiration. He immediately signaled the cameraman to zoom in for a close-up on Lu Yu.

'This is the perfect viral moment for the show!'

Lu Yu also seemed to realize her lack of composure, but she couldn't stop herself.

"This rice..." She looked up at Ji Youyou, a hint of disbelief in her eyes. "Is it really just ordinary rice?"

Ji Youyou shook her head. "Doctor Li said it's a specially grown rice for treating anorexia. This is the rice I ate that cured my illness."

Lu Yu was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Can I have another bowl?"

The studio audience erupted in an uproar.

—Lu Yu actually wanted more?!

Many of them were paid audience members, hired by the TV station.

They watched the show as part of their job, not because they were genuinely interested.

When to laugh, when to act shocked, and when to applaud were all pre-determined by the production team.

But now, without any instructions from the crew, they were all showing their true feelings—utter disbelief!

Ji Youyou smiled and served her another small bowl. "Take your time. No need to rush."

Lu Yu took the bowl. This time, she ate even more intently. You could even see the subtle changes in her expression—from initial surprise, to enjoyment, and finally, a trace of... reluctance to finish?

When she put the bowl down, she even licked her lips subconsciously.

The audience finally couldn't help but start murmuring among themselves.

"Lu Yu actually ate that much?"

"Is that rice really so delicious?"

"Is this a pre-arranged part of the show? For dramatic effect?"

"No way. Lu Yu is extremely strict about managing her figure. Even for the show, she wouldn't eat this much. There's only one possibility—the rice is genuinely delicious."

Shi Zhuo rubbed his hands together excitedly and immediately had his assistant make a note of this segment, planning to feature it heavily in post-production.

It had Ji Youyou's comeback and the gimmick of the host, Lu Yu, breaking her rule to eat two bowls of rice.

This episode was definitely going to be a huge hit!

...

After the recording ended, Shi Zhuo immediately had his staff edit a behind-the-scenes clip of Lu Yu eating the rice and released it in advance on Appointment Today's official Weibo account.

The caption read: [SHOCKING! "Seven-Grain Queen" Lu Yu binges on rice live on set?! What kind of immortal rice did @Ji Youyou bring?]

In the video, Lu Yu, shedding her usual elegant and restrained image, ate the rice from Ji Youyou bite after bite, and even asked for another bowl, clearly wanting more.

Netizens went wild.

"??? Isn't Lu Yu supposed to eat only seven grains of rice per meal?"

"What kind of magic spell is in this rice?"

"For real?"

"Lu Yu's public persona is ruined!"

"Is the rice really that amazing? Link please!"

Soon, hashtags like #LuYuBreaksHerDietForRice, #JiYouyousMagicRice, and #AnorexiaCureRice started trending.

Countless netizens were curious—what on earth was this rice?

Ji Youyou responded on her personal Weibo: [It's a special kind of rice I bought from @Li's Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic. It helps regulate the spleen and stomach to restore one's appetite.]

Someone asked: [How much per pound?]

Ji Youyou replied: [Fifty thousand.]

Netizens: "???"

"Fifty thousand for a pound of rice?! That's highway robbery!" 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Is this rice made of gold?"

"As expected of medicine... Can't afford it, can't afford it."

But amidst the gasps of astonishment, some people were genuinely tempted—

like Lu Yu, for example.

...

「Li's Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic.」

Song Sisi was glued to her phone, completely mesmerized.

Every now and then, she would yelp.

"Boss! We're trending!"

She held up her phone excitedly. "So many people are asking about our rice online! Some are even planning to come to the clinic to buy it!"

Li Xu was organizing medicinal herbs with his head down. Hearing her, he didn't even look up. "Not for sale."

"Huh?" Song Sisi was taken aback. "Why not? This is a golden opportunity to make money!"

Only then did Li Xu look up and explain, "This rice is medicine, not regular food. For someone with anorexia, it's a lifesaver. But for a normal person, it's just a bowl of slightly more fragrant rice, not even comparable to top-grade Wuchang rice."

Song Sisi blinked. "But didn't Lu Yu seem to be really enjoying it?"

"That's because she also has a mild case of anorexia," Li Xu said flatly. "A normal person eating this would, at most, think it tastes good, but they would never get addicted to it like she did."

Just as he said that, Li Xu's phone rang.

It was Ding Kaifang.

"Doctor Li!" On the other end of the line, Ding Kaifang reported his progress. "The dried Rice Pills are done!"

Li Xu asked, "How are the results?"

"They meet the requirements perfectly!" Ding Kaifang laughed. "And with all the recent news reports about the magic rice, we don't even need to advertise. We can start selling them directly!"

Li Xu chuckled. "I'll head over and take a look."

After hanging up, he turned to Song Sisi and said, "You stay at the clinic and continue practicing your massage techniques. I'm going to the pharmaceutical factory."

Song Sisi nodded obediently. "Okay!"