"What?!" The man was struck dumb, his eyes instantly turning bloodshot as he stared intently at Li Xingzhou. "My father was perfectly fine before, but after using your lousy medicine, he's going to be disabled? What will happen to our family then?"

He shoved aside the soldiers who were trying to stop him and lunged at Li Xingzhou like a madman, yelling, "I'll teach you to harm people! I'll teach you to lie!"

Li Xingzhou was caught off guard and was tackled to the ground.

He was immediately hit several times on the face and body.

He tried to struggle, but the man held him down tightly, and he could only desperately protect his head with his uninjured arm.

The surrounding villagers were stunned at first, then some clapped and cheered, and the scene fell into chaos again.

Political Commissar Wang frowned even more deeply and shouted sternly, "Stop! All of you, stop!"

Several soldiers rushed forward to break up the fight and finally separated the man. However, Li Xingzhou had already been beaten black and blue, with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His glasses were askew on his face, with one lens shattered into a spider web. His wrist, which had just been bandaged, was also injured a second time.

He was trembling all over in pain, his vision blurred, and he lay on the ground for a long time, unable to get up, barely having the strength to even groan.

Commissar Wang frowned. They had only been fighting for a short while, and the injuries were all superficial. It looked like someone was about to die.

He assumed Li Xingzhou was faking it to evade responsibility, and said in a cold tone, "Stop pretending! Even if someone is really injured and has been treated like this, you must give an explanation and a clear treatment plan for the family. Since you made the medicine, you must know how to treat it and how long it will take to heal. Give me a definite answer!"

How could Li Xingzhou know how to treat this festering wound?

They had no idea what kind of medicinal herbs they were using!

But now that he was forced into this situation, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and answer, "Seven...seven days!"

If we don't give a definite answer, this matter won't be resolved today.

As for what to do after seven days, we'll see.

At worst, he can find someone else to take the blame and take responsibility for the whole thing.

The only thing that can overshadow this event now is big news like a death.

He could find a doctor colleague and cause them to make a mistake that could lead to death.

He didn't consider what consequences the other party might face.

"It doesn't even need seven days."

A clear, familiar voice suddenly came from outside the crowd.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Xu Xinghe walking slowly towards them.

Today she wore a newly made maroon cotton-padded coat, which didn't look bulky but rather exceptionally thick and warm. She wasn't wearing a hat, and her jet-black hair was combed into a tight braid and swayed down her back. A few strands of hair, ruffled by the wind, clung to her cheeks, and the tip of her nose was red from the cold, but her eyes were bright.

She walked to the oxcart and stood still, her tone confident and certain, "I can treat you right now."

The crowd fell silent instantly, and all eyes were on her.

Xu Xinghe looked at Li Xingzhou, whose face was pale, and said slowly and deliberately, "Didn't you say that the frostbite cream was a family ancestral recipe? How come there's such a problem now? And—you don't even know how to treat it!"

After she finished speaking, she used a bamboo stick to pick out a little bit of frostbite ointment. "Or is it that there was never any ancestral recipe from the beginning, and it's just an excuse for you to steal my credit? Otherwise, why is it that your medicine, which is also for treating frostbite, caused people to suffer so much that their skin ulcerated and oozed pus, and you can't even explain it yourself?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she bent down and carefully applied the ointment to the old man's festering wound.

The ointment melted instantly upon contact with the skin, seeping into the pus.

"What are you doing!" The man finally realized what was happening and rushed forward to stop him. "Who told you to scribble things like that? Who's going to take responsibility if something happens?"

He wanted to cure the person, but first he wanted to pay compensation!

Li Xingzhou hasn't even paid yet!

Xu Xinghe glanced at him, her heart filled with disdain.

This is the kind of pillar of society raised under the ideology of valuing sons over daughters—selfish and self-serving.

Even this disturbance was for profit.

Although she didn't agree, she could understand.

In the hearts of ordinary people, land and money are the foundation of their livelihood, more important than anything else.

Xu Xinghe said coldly, "He won't be crippled. This wound is actually just an enlarged frostbite. My medicine can remove the pus and promote tissue regeneration. It will heal in five days. If you don't use my medicine, you can only watch your father become crippled."

She's now using a stronger version of the frostbite cream on the old man, diluted less with the Lingquan ointment, making it more potent.

The man was taken aback by her resolute attitude and couldn't utter a rebuttal for a moment. If he did, it would seem as if he were an unfilial son…

The dean also went over and saw that, although the medicine had just been applied, a thin film had already formed on it, protecting the wound. "Let's observe it first. If the redness and swelling of the wound improve after an hour, then it should be effective."

Political Commissar Wang made the decision, "Okay, then let's wait an hour. The patient can't be exposed to the wind for too long, so let's carry him into the guard post."

He looked at the man and said, "You can see what's going on in the guard post from here, so you can rest assured now, right?"

"Well... alright then." The man could only agree. "But my father suffered so much, he can't have suffered for nothing, can he? Even if my father recovers later, it's Comrade Xu who cured him, it has nothing to do with this quack doctor. So I don't want anyone else to be responsible, this quack doctor must pay compensation!"

Political Commissar Wang nodded in agreement, "Okay, I'll make the decision for you here. Five days later, Li Xingzhou will pay you compensation of one hundred yuan. How about that?"

"Great!" The man's eyes lit up. He had only wanted a few dozen yuan, but he hadn't expected to get so much. However, he seemed to have agreed too quickly. That was a wealthy person from Shanghai; he might have been able to get even more.

Before he could even open his mouth, he saw the look in Political Commissar Wang's eyes and quickly lowered his head again.

Fine, one hundred it is.

If this goes too far, Political Commissar Wang will be angry.

He only dared to cause trouble because the military was required to serve the people. If it were anywhere else, he would have to think twice.

Now that things have escalated to this point, it's clear who is right and who is wrong.

Xu Xinghe looked at Li Xingzhou, whose face was bruised and swollen, and who was no longer elegant, as if she were looking at a defeated opponent. "What good are your stolen medicinal herbs? If you don't know the formula, you still can't make the same frostbite cream!"

Upon hearing this, Li Xingzhou, who was already swaying precariously, turned ashen-faced, as if he might faint at any moment.

She knows everything!

So from the very beginning, she knew what she was planning!

The current situation is that she is using a plan against her!

Otherwise, she could have exposed herself much earlier, instead of only coming forward now to reveal everything!

"No!" Li Xingzhou bit his lip hard, his mouth full of the taste of blood. He could not defend himself in front of outsiders, but in front of Xu Xinghe, he had to say something.

Otherwise... it would look like he really admitted defeat!

"I didn't steal your herbs, and there's nothing wrong with my herbs!" Li Xingzhou glanced at the crowd and saw a familiar face; his eyes suddenly lit up.

How could he forget that there is one person who can prove that his medicine is safe!

It's all because of his injured wrist; the pain made him less clear-headed, and he didn't even remember something so important!

Li Xingzhou raised his undamaged arm and pointed at the soldier, "He used my medicine before, and his frostbite is completely healed!"

Political Commissar Wang looked over and saw that the old man's matter was temporarily resolved. The next step was to resolve the issue between Li Xingzhou and Xu Xinghe.

There are many vested interests involved behind frostbite cream, and we must find out the truth!

What belongs to someone else, belongs to them!

He beckoned, "Come out here and tell me everything you know."

The young soldier nervously took a step forward. "Political Commissar, um... Dr. Li did give me medicine, but then I met Comrade Xu, and she gave me new frostbite cream, so I wiped it off and applied her medicine instead."

Li Xingzhou's vision went black, and his tall, thin body collapsed to the ground with a thud.

So... everything about me was part of Xu Xinghe's scheme!

He's like a clown, thinking himself clever, but actually being completely fooled!