Denghuaxiao

Chapter 237 Notes
It was so quiet that there was no sound at all.

Medicine man?

What medicine man?
Lin Danqing looked at Pei Yunying and asked blankly, "What do you mean, Marshal Pei?"

Ji Xun also frowned and looked at him.

"Do you remember that on the day of the celebration banquet at Renxin Medical Clinic, Miao Liangfang mentioned Mo Ruyun, the daughter of the Shengjing Mo family?"

He raised his eyes, looked at everyone in the room, and said slowly: "She used to be Mo Ruyun's medicine man."

These words were so shocking that everyone in the room looked at each other in confusion, not understanding what they were saying for a moment.

After a moment, Lin Danqing asked doubtfully, "Isn't Mo Ruyun dead? How could Sister Lu be her medicine man?"

Everyone was present at the celebration banquet at Renxin Medical Clinic. Miao Liangfang said that when Mo Ruyun was found raising a medicine boy, she had already died in the fire in Shengjing. When she died, Lu Tong was still young and in southern Jiangsu. In any case, there was no reason for the two of them to be tied together.

"She is still alive," Pei Yunying said after a pause, his voice hoarse, "She is on Luomei Peak."

Miss Lu San from Changwu County disappeared in the great epidemic nine years ago. Lu Tong, who appeared in Shengjing two years ago, has been avenging the Lu family with brutal and decisive means.

A person's temperament changes greatly between childhood and adulthood, and the seven years in between can be imagined.

When he first learned of Lu Tong's identity, he already had doubts in his heart.

Lu Tong said that he was taken away by a passing master, but if he was going to study medicine, why didn't he tell his family? Moreover, nine years ago, Lu Tong was just a weak child, and the Lu family had no medical heritage, so why did they value talent?

I'm afraid that Mo Ruyun didn't give her the chance to say goodbye to her family. As for taking her away, it was not to teach her religion, but to use her as a tool for testing drugs.

Drug testing tools.

He closed his eyes and felt a momentary suffocation in his heart.

Ji Xun took two steps forward and took Lu Tong's hand. Before Chang Jin could stop him, he saw him lift up Lu Tong's sleeve.

"Doctor Ji..." Lin Danqing shouted.

Ji Xun didn't notice anything and just stared at what was in front of him.

From the lifted sleeve to the elbow, there was not a single spot. The woman's arm was very thin, like a lonely branch of a plum tree, with a long scar on it, which showed it hideously.

Ji Xun's pupils shrank.

"The scar is still there..." he muttered.

At the Huangmaogang hunting ground, Lu Tong still has the scars from being bitten by Qi Yutai's vicious dog.

In an instant, Ji Xun understood.

Since Lu Tong was bitten, he gave Lu Tong a lot of Fairy Jade Skin Cream.

He made the Fairy Jade Skin Cream himself. He couldn't say that the scars would disappear after using it, but at least they would be much lighter. At the time, he saw that Lu Tong's scars had not improved and asked a few more questions. Lu Tong told him that the ointment was expensive and she couldn't bear to use it, so he made a few more bottles and gave them to her.

With so many medicines, she could have made the scars fade away instead of being so obvious now, just like before.

Now it seems that it is not that she is reluctant to use it, but that those ordinary plasters are no longer useful to her body.

She used to be a medicine practitioner, so when Ding Yong tried the new drug, she was uncharacteristically opposed to it.

It turns out that this is the crux of the problem.

The room was completely silent.

As a medical officer, he could tell that something was wrong with her wound. Lin Danqing said in a trembling voice: "How long has she been a medicine man?"

Pei Yunying looked at the person on the bed: "I don't know."

Chang Jin walked up to Lu Tong, checked her pulse carefully, and his expression changed.

"There is nothing wrong with her pulse. If she has really been testing drugs for many years, her body has become accustomed to all kinds of drugs and poisons, so it is difficult to find the root cause of the disease."

It's like a tree that appears intact on the outside but has been corroded by ants on the inside. Only when it finally decays can people still discover the clues.

"Dr. Chang." Pei Yunying suddenly spoke.

Chang Jin looked at the person in front of him.

"Save her," he said.

Chang Jin was stunned for a moment.

He had seen Pei Yunying many times in the imperial city.

No matter how funny and friendly this commander looked, Chang Jin always felt a little scared every time he saw him. Pei Yunying's reputation has always been two extremes. People who are not familiar with him always say that he is handsome and warm, while people who are familiar with him say that he is perverse and scary.

It seemed that no one had ever seen Pei Yunying actually bow to anyone. Even the salutes in the imperial city were somewhat arrogant, not to mention such a pleading tone.

He always has it all.

Now, this calmness was broken because of Lu Tong.

It seems that the rumors in the imperial city are not false.

Concern leads to chaos.

"Even if you don't tell us, we can't just leave her alone." Chang Jin raised his head. "She is a medical officer at the Imperial Medical Officers' Institute. She used to be a medical officer who saved lives. When a medical officer is sick, she becomes a patient."

"Doctor Lin," he called Lin Danqing, "Except for the doctor on duty at the plague station, ask all the other doctors to come here immediately. Doctor Lu's condition is different from the usual ones. This problem cannot be solved by one person alone. Let's all work together to find a solution. The Imperial Academy of Medical Officers has received so much salary, and now he can't even treat a colleague well. If you tell others about it, you won't be a good employee. From today on, Doctor Lu is our patient, and all the doctors will work together to treat him!"

"Yes, Chief Doctor." Lin Danqing hurried out the door to call the rest of the people.

Chang Jin called Ji Xun over and went forward to see Lu Tong again. Pei Yunying said, "Doctor Chang."

"Before Lu Tong left the mountain, he asked me to take the golden tan in the medicine basket back to the plague center."

Chang Jin and Ji Xun were startled. Only then did they notice that the medicine basket brought back by Pei Yunying was filled to the brim with herbs, the most numerous of which were bunches of golden flowers, welcoming the coming of spring, tender and bright.

Pei Yunying said calmly, "She said that this flower can relieve heat and poison. If the red wood vine is useless, Doctor Ji might as well try adding this flower to the new prescription and replace two herbs. It may be useful for the epidemic in southern Jiangsu."

Both of them were stunned.

Lu Tong has fallen ill and looks extremely weak, but he is still concerned about the epidemic in southern Jiangsu.

It seems that the reason she braved the wind and snow to go up the mountain was for this flower.

Chang Jin felt a little dry in his throat.

Lu Tong has always been a quiet person, and she was always cold and indifferent to others when she was in the Medical Officers' Court. The medical officers thought that this was just her nature, she was too calm and not very kind, and as a doctor, she always lacked some warmth and kindness.

Now it seems that she didn't say anything because she could bear it. She was obviously suffering from illness, but she still went into the mountains despite the danger.

What a stupid boy...

……

The aroma of medicine outside the plague center wafted in the air again.

The red wood vine from Pingzhou was still on the way, but the golden tan brought back by Lu Tong solved the urgent problem.

The medical officers gathered together and worked all night to come up with new prescriptions. The medicinal properties of golden tannins were not as strong as those of red vines, but they were just right to not cause too much impact on the weakened bodies of the patients infected with the disease.

Cuicui also drank the new medicine.

Since her father's death, she has become much quieter and not as lively as before.

Lin Danqing packed up the empty medicine bowl and was about to go out when Cuicui stopped him.

"Doctor Lin," the little girl hesitated before speaking, "Is Doctor Lu okay?"

Everyone in the plague center said that Lu Tong went to the mountain to pick herbs for the patients, so the patients had to start a new prescription. However, Lu Tong himself suddenly developed an old illness and was bedridden, and he had not appeared in the past few days.

Lin Danqing was silent for a moment and said, "Not bad."

"Doctor Lin, can I ask you for a favor?"

"What's the matter?"

Cuicui looked at her and said, "Can you please apologize to Doctor Lu and me?"

Lin Danqing was stunned.

Cuicui lowered her head, twisted the corner of her clothes, and whispered: "My father had an accident before, and I blamed Doctor Lu... I know it's not her fault, it's just that I was too sad..."

"Mrs. Hong from the plague center said that Doctor Lu went to Luomei Peak to collect herbs for us. Everyone in southern Jiangsu knows how dangerous Luomei Peak is when it snows. I wanted to go and apologize to her, but Doctor Chang said that Doctor Lu hasn't woken up yet... When will she wake up?"

The little girl, who had lost her parents one after another, timidly placed a grasshopper in Lin Danqing's palm.

Lin Danqing looked at the grasshopper in his hand for a moment, then squatted down and touched Cuicui's head: "She has never been angry with you."

"Doctor Lu is the most generous person," she said, "She will wake up soon. When she wakes up, she will come to you to weave grasshoppers together."

Cuicui nodded, but Lin Danqing felt a pang in his heart. He didn't dare to look anymore, so he stood up and walked out of the plague center quickly.

It snowed every day in southern Jiangsu, and the north wind made people's faces hurt. Lin Danqing packed up the medicine bowl and went back to the medical officer's quarters, looking a little confused.

Lu Tong's condition is very bad.

At first they thought that Lu Tong's old illness had relapsed due to weakness. Later, the medical officers examined her together. Ji Xun and Lin Danqing asked Pei Yunying about the previous signs of Lu Tong's illness. Gradually, they were certain that Lu Tong was not only physically weak, but she was poisoned.

However, due to her long experience as a medicine man, the symptoms of various poisons in her body were no longer obvious. They had no way of knowing what poisons Lu Tong had tried, and naturally could not prescribe the right medicine.

Lu Tong's pulse was getting weaker day by day. She used to be conscious occasionally, but now her moments of consciousness were getting shorter and shorter. Compared with the patients in the plague hospital, she was in more danger, like a flickering candle in an oil lamp, which might go out at any moment.

Shocking. When she was young, she studied at the Imperial Medical Bureau and ranked among the top in all medical subjects. Even though she did not win the first place in the spring examination, she was still confident and proud, thinking that the medical path was infinite and young people had plenty of time to study it one by one in the future. Now, she hated herself so much for her poor medical skills that she could not save her friend.

With a "creak", the door was pushed open.

Lin Danqing walked into the dormitory.

The place where she and Lu Tong used to live is now occupied by only her.

She entered the room, intending to discuss with Ji Xunchang some new medical cases she had thought of yesterday. At a glance, she saw Lu Tong's medical box on the table in the room.

After coming down the mountain, Lu Tong was unconscious and the medical box was left in the house for safekeeping. Lin Danqing looked at it and suddenly had an idea and walked to the table.

The doctor's medical box is like the examination baskets of candidates and the weapons of soldiers, precious and private. The doctors of the Imperial Academy of Medical Officers always take good care of their medical boxes. Lin Danqing hesitated for a moment, then reached out and picked up Lu Tong's medical box.

Lu Tong has been a pharmacist for many years. Although he doesn't say it, as a doctor, he should know his own body. There might be medicines for daily use in the medical box. Although this possibility is very small, in a critical situation, he can't care about anything else.

Lin Danqing opened the medical box.

This medical box was very old, even the straps had signs of excessive wear and tear, and had been repaired many times. It also seemed to have been dropped several times, and was somewhat deformed and not quite square. When the lid was opened, there were only a few simple items inside.

Mulberry bark thread, gold wound medicine, coal pen, and several medical books.

Lin Danqing picked up the medical books, all of which were about treating epidemics. They must have been brought by Lu Tong himself in Shengjing before leaving for southern Jiangsu.

Lin Danqing checked and found a booklet under several medical books. This booklet had no title, so it must have been written by herself. After thinking about it, she sat down at the table, opened the booklet in her hand, and was startled when she saw the words on it clearly.

"'Sheng Qianshang': Angelica dahurica, Angelica dahurica, Nardostachys grandiflora, Clove, Anxillary..."

"When you burn this incense, the aroma will enter your nose, and your body will become stiff and your mouth will become numb. You will be unable to move, but your mind will become clear, as if you were drunk. This is better than drinking a thousand cups of strong liquor and not being drunk at all."

This is……

prescription?

Lin Danqing was puzzled.

She had never heard of the recipe for this 'Sheng Qian Shang'. The ingredients and efficacy were written very clearly, and it looked more like Lu Tong had developed a new recipe herself.

She stared and thought for a while, then lowered her head and continued reading.

The second page is still a prescription.

"'Free Oriole': Indigo, Polygonum cuspidatum, Sea Sand, Sesame, Cloud Fruit..."

"The foam is odorless. If you inhale a small amount, you will feel an unbearable pain and itchiness in your throat, as if you are stung by thousands of ants. After four hours, the poison will dissipate and your life will be safe."

Lin Danqing tightened his grip on the document and his eyes gradually became solemn.

"'Cold Silkworm Rain: Impatiens, Gelsemium, Cuscuta, Convolvulus, Smilax..."

"It is red and sour in taste. Within seven days after taking it, the cold poison will enter your bones. You should not go near water. After half a month, the remaining poison will gradually reduce..."

"My child is worried..."

"Ant Crossing Formation..."

Lin Danqing flipped through the pages one by one, his heart shaken.

This booklet, which takes up most of its space, is densely packed with unheard-of prescriptions!
No, it’s not a prescription, it’s a poison prescription.

None of the prescriptions were used to save lives. On the contrary, all of them contained strong poisons, but they would not kill people immediately. However, the reactions after taking the poison were recorded in the books, which were so detailed and varied that even the medical records in the library of the Imperial Academy of Physicians could not describe them to such an extent.

It’s just… it’s just like someone who took poison recorded it himself!
Lin Danqing's brain exploded with a buzzing sound.

For a moment, she suddenly recalled a summer afternoon in the Medical Officers' Hospital, when she and Lu Tong were sitting in the pharmacy, boiling medicine.

The sun shone warmly through the grove onto the two of them. By then, the poison of "eye-shooting" from Auntie had gradually dissipated. She leaned lazily against the wall, looking at the person in front of her, complaining with a mixture of gratitude and jealousy: "Sister Lu, you are a genius, how come you have so many prescriptions?"

Lu Tong was sitting in front of the medicine furnace, fanning the fire under the furnace. Hearing this, he smiled slightly and said, "Just try a few more times."

Just try it a few more times.

It turned out to be the case.

No wonder Lu Tong has so many new prescriptions, and no wonder her medical experience surpasses that of students who have studied in the Imperial Medical Bureau for many years.

Just because of those unexpected prescriptions, she tried every one of them herself.

Better than a thousand cups, free orioles, cold silkworm rain, crossing the ant array...

She experienced every pain herself, and then wrote down the source of the pain in a notebook without saying a word to anyone else.

The document was only half written, perhaps she had experienced much more.

Lin Danqing covered his mouth and his eyes suddenly turned red.

A page of paper floated out from the file. She bent down to pick it up, her eyes sweeping over the paper.

When he saw it clearly, his eyes were suddenly shocked.

The next moment, Lin Danqing suddenly stood up, took away the document and the pages in it, and quickly walked out the door.

She pushed the door open and ran out, straight to the next room.

In the room, Ji Xun was picking herbs into the medicine jar. Pei Yunying was sitting beside the couch. He had been guarding Lu Tong's bedside for the past few days. Duan Xiaoyan had persuaded him several times but he refused to leave.

Hearing the noise, the two looked up.

Lin Danqing walked into the room.

Lu Tong was still lying on the bed with her eyes closed. She looked very thin, like a small animal in a cave in southern Jiangsu City, too weak to survive the harsh winter.

"I know what poisons Lu Tong has been poisoned with."

Ji Xun and Pei Yunying looked at her at the same time.

Lin Danqing handed the file to Ji Xun: "I found this in Sister Lu's medical box. The poison prescriptions recorded on it should all be the prescriptions she has tried in the past. Doctor Ji, with this, at least now we know Sister Lu's past medical records. We have a clue and are not aimless."

Ji Xun took the document and flipped through a few pages. His usually calm expression suddenly turned pale.

Lin Danqing handed the paper in his hand to Pei Yunying again.

"Sister Lu has been ill for a long time. This is not the first time in Southern Jiangsu, but no one knows about it. The last time I saw her nose bleeding, it was also due to the poison, but she brushed it off and didn't notice it."

Pei Yunying took the paper.

The paper was very thin, only one sheet, and the handwriting on it was simple and sloppy.

"On the tenth day of the second month, I had abdominal pain, vomiting, sweating, palpitations, and my legs were weak and I couldn't walk. It resolved itself after half an hour."

"On the ninth day of the sixth month, my limbs became cold, I was afraid of the cold, I had dull pains, and my chest and diaphragm were uncomfortable. They resolved themselves after an hour."

"On September 17, I felt dizzy and fainted all night."

"November 24th..."

"..."

"On the third day of December, I vomited blood."

The hand holding the paper tightened, and the blood color on Pei Yunying's face instantly drained away.

Above, each record contains images of disease occurrences.

It is clear and obvious who is sick and who is in pain.

The time intervals between her attacks became shorter and shorter, but the pain became longer and longer. At first, it lasted half an hour, and then it lasted all night. At first, she was sweating and palpitating, and the most recent time, she was vomiting blood.

Pei Yunying's gaze fell on the thin piece of paper. The hands that once held the knife and remained motionless in the face of danger were now trembling slightly, as if they could not hold the thin piece of paper.

There was a line of words written at the top of the page.

"In the 42nd year of Yongchang, on August 12, I had chest pain and heart pain all night long."

The 42nd year of Yongchang, August 12th...

He suddenly remembered.

It was the day he received a report from the military patrol shop that Renxin Medical Clinic had killed someone and buried the body.

He knew the other party's disguise and trump card, and wanted to see how she would survive this time. So he came uninvited with the token, watching her calmness and counterattack with interest, surprised by her courage and admired her scheming. She confronted him in the shade of the fragrant osmanthus flowers, with a mocking smile, and won back a beautiful and exciting game.

He thought to himself at that time, what a powerful woman.

Little did she know that after he left, she was alone in pain for the entire night.

He knows nothing.

It was as if a hand suddenly grabbed his heart, and for a moment, he felt the same way as she did, as if he was looking at the lonely woman curled up in the room across a long period of time.

It hurts deep in my bones and pierces my heart.

Seeing that he looked strange, Lin Danqing whispered, "General..."

Pei Yunying lowered his eyes, and his finger bones gradually turned white.

After a long time, he spoke.

"It's me who deserves to die."