Chapter 173: A Bowl of Medicine, Multiple Needles
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Let me prescribe a decoction that can detoxify the poison,” said Wang Yao.
“Oh, that’s lucky. I can witness my young friend’s miraculous work again,” replied Mr. Sang delightedly.
In the system’s lattice, Wang Yao found that there were a few sprigs of antidote herb.
While alone in the room, Wang Yao started to prepare the decoction. He prepared an ordinary bowl of hot water and added a few pieces of verdant leaves which melted immediately into the water. This was a simple decoction to make.
Wang Yao brought the bowl of green liquid to the sickbed.
“Let him drink this.”
Mr. Sang glanced at the bowl of green liquid; his eyes were full of anticipation.
After taking the decoction, the patient started trembling instantaneously.
“What’s going on?”
“Be patient.”
Urrggh. The patient who was originally lying on the sick bed started to vomit. As he was unable to get up and everyone was unprepared, the stench of the vomit permeated the place.
“This is…?”
“He has vomited a portion of the poison,” said Mr. Sang. He was now more curious about Wang Yao’s identity.
Whose disciple is he? Who can make decoctions with such miraculous effects? Unless he was from the long-buried lineage of the legendary King of Medicine?
The patient gradually recovered from the bout of vomit and stayed still.
“Let me take a look.” Mr. Sang took the pulse and also unbuttoned the patient’s shirt.
The unconscious Mr. Zhou’s body had a lot of bruises. Upon closer inspection, the bruises were made by fists and palms.
Looking at this scene allowed Wang Yao to understand the martial arts and the pugilistic world a little better.
Mr. Sang took out a cloth pouch from the portable medicine box that he carried and unfurled it. In it laid a row of silver needles.
“Acupuncture?!”
Wang Yao’s eyes brightened upon seeing the scene.
The path of medicinal knowledge was broad and profound and could be broadly classified into two categories—”Diagnosis” and “Treatment.”
Diagnosis referred to the understanding of the patient’s condition and discovering the source of the illness. Looking, hearing, asking, and diagnosing were among the various methods of diagnosis.
Treatment referred to the treatment of the illness by reducing the patient’s pain and enabling the patient to recover his health. There were multiple methods to achieving this, such as massage therapy, acupuncture, decoctions, etc. In Wang Yao’s current repertoire of treatment methods, he only possessed the knowledge of decoction. It was truly deficient.
Mr. Sang’s recognition of the acupoints was very accurate; however, he pierced the needle very slowly. It was unlike what was described in movies or novels, where the needle was pierced into the skin very quickly. Mr. Sang pierced the abdomen area. It was very likely for the purpose of stimulating the internal organs since the accumulation of poison was the most in this area. After he pierced the silver needle through, he constantly rotated the needle.
Wang Yao observed the entire process extremely intently. If he wanted to become a true pharmacist, he needed to acquire acupuncture skills.
Wang Yao had already memorized the location of the human body’s acupoints, arteries, and veins. Although he also had the knowledge indoctrinated by the system, Wang Yao did not have the knowledge of acupuncture, specifically the method of acupoint recognition. He had read a few related books. Unfortunately, they were not detailed enough.
There was a saying that went, “Knowledge gleaned from books could not be compared to the deep understanding obtained from personally practicing the subject matter.”
Knowledge and practice complemented each other. One could not do without the other.
After the needle was pierced, Mr. Sang waited for some time and then took the pulse. Thereafter, he gradually withdrew the needle.
The order of piercing and withdrawal of the needle was quite different.
Acupuncture was a medical skill and a profound learning.
This skill appeared to consume a lot of energy. After Mr. Sang removed the needle, he went to the side of the room to rest.
“I am old now and have less energy. My young friend, I will rest for a while.”
“Okay.”
Wang Yao got up and walked him to the door and then returned to the sickbed and extended his hand to take the pulse.
Sure enough, the pulse condition had improved again, better than the condition just after taking the antidote herb decoction. The acupuncture had its own sense of profundity.
…
Thousands of miles away in Lianshan County.
Wang Mingbao took Wang Yao’s decoction to his uncle’s house.
“Uncle, these are all Wang Yao’s medicine. They can be applied externally and consumed. Try and see their effects,” Wang Mingbao said.
“Okay, I will try.”
For the past few days, Wang Mingbao’s uncle was in great pain because of the illness. The malignant sores on his back seemed like they were on fire and even emitted an odor. He was thoroughly uncomfortable and could not sleep at night. He had taken all sorts of medicine to no avail. Furthermore, he kept having diarrhea. No matter what he ate, his stomach felt unwell.
I really hope this is effective. These were Wang Mingbao’s uncle and aunt’s internal prayers.
Wang Mingbao’s aunt carefully applied the salve on her husband. Suddenly, Wang Mingbao’s uncle felt a cooling sensation in his back area, and he felt comfortable. The feeling of being on fire experienced earlier had been suppressed. This had not happened before.
This is effective!
He immediately noticed the medicine’s efficacy.
“Let me drink a little of this.”
The decoction was slightly bitter and cool. A cool feeling cascaded deep into the stomach and rapidly proliferated. The stomach felt cool. The exterior of the body felt cool as well, a complement to the interior.
“How do you feel, Uncle?”
“Much more comfortable,” said Wang Mingbao’s uncle. “Yao is amazing!”
“Indeed!” Wang Yao replied proudly. He felt like a proud parent to his best friend.
“Help me to thank Yao. Oh, by the way, how much is the medicine?”
“You don’t have to worry about this; I will handle this with him. Don’t forget the method for taking the medicine. I’m leaving now.”
“Hey, don’t be in such a hurry. Have you had dinner yet?”
“No thanks, I have matters to settle at my shop,” Wang Mingbao replied and left in a rush.
“This child!” his aunt commented.
“Never mind, let him go.”
I wonder what Yao’s doing in Cangzhou? He even spent the night there, Wang Mingbao pondered as he was driving.
…
In the Zhou village in Cangzhou.
The awakened Zhou Wuyi was now able to speak and take food. The dramatic change in his condition happened within a day. The people who knew about the whole situation were very impressed with Wang Yao.
While caring for Zhou Wuyi, Zhou Xiong brought his son to see Wang Yao.
“Hello, Doctor Wang.” Zhou Wukang was pleased to see Wang Yao again.
“Hello, Kang. It’s been a long time.”
The diagnosis was acceptable. Zhou Kang’s condition had improved since he left Lianshan County. However, the improvement was limited. The arm was still deteriorating.
“You haven’t asked Mr. Sang to treat Kang’s illness?” Wang Yao asked. After his interaction with Mr. Sang, he could tell that the affable Mr. Sang was worthy of his name. He was an expert, and his medical skills were top notch. Although Kang’s illness was strange, if Mr. Sang were to see him earlier, he should be able to treat him.
“We’ve asked him. It’s a pity we were too late. If he had not used acupuncture, Kang’s arm would have been incapacitated, and his body would have been far worse,” said Zhou Xiong.
“Too late? I thought Mr. Sang lives in Cangzhou?”
“No. Even though he is very well known in Cangzhou with the title of being an extremely skilled doctor, he does not stay here long. He only visits Cangzhou at a fixed time every year. Other times, he is always elusive and mysterious in his whereabouts. It was better in the last two years. The years before, he didn’t come back here often at all,” Zhou Xiong remarked.
“It was all thanks to Mr. Sang that Uncle was able to survive as long as he did until you arrived. Mr. Sang happened to be in Cangzhou and has good ties with our family, so we were able to secure his help.”
“I see that this old gentleman is very amiable, correct?”
“Yes, he is not only highly skilled, but his ethics are unquestionably excellent. In the past, he frequently saw patients for free. Now that he is getting older, although he sees patients less frequently, his fees are always very low. Sometimes he doesn’t charge. Additionally, he is very particular about the disciples he mentors. Many people are indebted to him,” said Zhou Xiong.
“Impressive!” Wang Yao complimented Mr. Sang. Such a moral character in this materialistic society was a true rarity!
In the other room, Zhou Ying was talking to Mr. Sang.
“Previously, Xiong and his son had gone to Doctor Wang?”
“Yes.”
“In that case, little Kang’s illness turned for the better because of him?” Mr. Sang asked.
“Yes,” Zhou Ying replied simply, not saying anything more.
“You have so little to say!”
“It’s alright,” said Zhou Ying.
“Doctor Wang’s medical skills are quite extraordinary. He’s so young and has such abilities. He’s far better than my stupid disciples,” said Mr. Sang, smiling.
“Mr. Sang, you’re too modest. Your disciples are renowned in Cangzhou. Senior Lu is very capable,” said Zhou Ying.
“Him? He’s probably not suitable to practice in the provincial capital,” said Mr. Sang.
“I have a request to make of you.”
“What is it?”
“Can you keep a secret regarding Doctor Wang?” Zhou Ying said.
“Haha, don’t worry. I know what to do,” said Mr. Sang.
After taking Wang Yao’s decoction and after Mr. Sang’s acupuncture, Mr. Zhou Wuyi’s body felt better. However, he was still not out of danger as the poisons in his body were not yet completely flushed out. Furthermore, his erratic arteries and veins were a big problem. If not treated quickly, he might not be able to survive. He might even become a vegetable or an idiot.
“If you don’t mind me asking, is your uncle a practitioner of the legendary neigong?” Wang Yao curiously asked Zhou Xiong. As he took the old man’s pulse, he discovered that his body had a faintly discernible Qi. It was the first time he had met with something like that in all his time of taking numerous patients’ pulses.
“Yes, that is neigong. He has neixi,” Zhou Xiong said. “Since he has neixi, it helped him last this long before you and Mr. Sang could see him.”
“Your uncle is a martial arts expert?”
“Yes. My uncle has practiced for 60 years. He practices both internal and external techniques and possesses a range of Kung Fu skills. He had virtually attained perfection. If he was not attacked by underhand means, he would not have turned out like this,” said Zhou Xiong.
“When they duel, do they not openly challenge each other?”
“Hehe, nope,” Zhou Xiong said. “Uncle dueled with that person on a hill peak with only a few spectators.”
“How did he get attacked?’
“That person used a hidden weapon dipped in poison. Not just Uncle, the surrounding people who witnessed the duel were injured as well. They were not as seriously hurt as Uncle. By the time we rushed there, it was already too late,” said Zhou Xiong.