Chapter 69

Groans rose and fell, filling the entire space. Qingyun watched this scene and couldn't help but swallow hard.

Since the situation was so urgent, she decided to roll up her sleeves and get to work. She called Yinglian in and glanced at Song Chaoli, who was following behind her. After a moment's hesitation, she invited her in as well, and then dismissed the city patrolmen.

Qingyun stood in front of a table and took out gauze and alcohol from the medicine box one by one. Then she took out a large piece of cloth and gestured for the two of them to put all of these over the patients' eyes. "Why do we need to cover their eyes?" Song Chaoli asked, puzzled.

Qingyun was still taking things out of his medicine box. Hearing this, he didn't answer immediately, but after a long while, he said, "Because my medical skills are my own unique skills, and I can't let anyone see them."

"So that's why you let those people out." Song Chaoli looked like she suddenly understood, thinking to herself that this person was indeed not simple, and that Song Junwu must have given her quite a bit of benefits. "Then we can watch?"

"I believe you," Qingyun said.

Moreover, there was a reason for her actions. Some of the lumps had already become infected with pus, and simply injecting medicine wouldn't be enough to absorb them. Surgery to drain them was necessary, but the scene was too bloody, and people might react if they saw it.

The two began to cover the patient's eyes, while Qingyun followed behind to give her injections. The two frequently looked back, curious about what the silver needle-like thing in her hand was. Could it be poison, a case of fighting poison with poison?

Walking up to a peasant woman, the figure looked very familiar. Although her eyes were covered, it was still recognizable. This was He Erniang, who had been arguing with Liu Er a few days ago. She was tall and looked bulky lying on the wooden board. However, different swollen lumps appeared on her arms and armpits. The one on her arm had even swollen into a very large abscess, with alternating red and yellow pus inside, and the pus moving strangely inside.

Qingyun calmly used tweezers to pick up a cotton ball, moistened it with alcohol, and then placed it next to the unusually soft abscess. She gently swirled it around and pushed the anesthetic into it. Actually, she didn't need to use it, but it had progressed to this point, and she had become accustomed to the pain. Or rather, it was a form of numbness.

He then used a scalpel to cut open the abscess, first making a small incision. Unexpectedly, black fluid mixed with pus rushed out, gathering on the wooden board beneath her. There was no time to wipe it away. He Erniang's painful groans gradually subsided.

This part is essentially a debridement procedure, scraping away the rotten flesh inside. The two people behind her couldn't take it anymore when they saw this scene. Yinglian suppressed the sour feeling in her throat, while Song Chaoli didn't shy away from it and said directly, "There aren't any maggots inside, are there?"

Without broken skin, flies naturally cannot lay eggs inside. However, those who cannot bear the pain may not be able to, or some may have broken skin but were not properly bandaged. Carrion flies are indeed attracted to them. Qingyun has not yet encountered such patients.

The two were quite quick and efficient, and soon finished their tasks. Seeing this, Qingyun had someone come over and began to teach them how to give injections.

However, when Song Chaoli got to work, her worst fears came true. It wasn't the situation she had described earlier; it was a patient who had been bedridden for many years. When Song Chaoli turned over to check for any remaining lumps, she discovered a small hole in the other person's buttocks.

Driven by curiosity, she examined it closely and noticed something white faintly visible inside the reddish, slightly moist flesh. When she realized what it was, she instantly forgot about the other person, abruptly releasing them and jumping aside as if in shock.

She made quite a commotion, which quickly attracted Qingyun's attention. He thought she had encountered some trouble, but after he turned the woman over, he realized why she was so startled. It turned out that she had been bedridden for a long time and had developed severe sores. What Song Chaoli saw was not maggots, but bones.

Qingyun dismissed the others and began to deal with the woman herself. After quickly tidying her up, she noted down the woman's name. The woman was unconscious and unaware of the incident, but after Qingyun gave her painkillers, her tightly furrowed brows relaxed considerably.

Seeing this scene made me feel uneasy. Although I knew it was just a virtual character, I couldn't help but feel a tremor in my heart when faced with the other person's real expression of human emotions and body language.

Qingyun, who was washing her hands, remained silent. She had something on her mind. She was starting to seriously think about the things she had faced and the interpersonal relationships she had experienced over the years. After a round of drug treatment, she had a general idea of ​​what was going on.

"Qingyun".

Her thoughts were interrupted by a shout, and when she turned around, she realized that it was Song Chaoli calling her. She shook the water off her hands, her casual manner showing none of the airs of a princess.

Are you going to my second sister's place?

Reminded by her words, Qingyun remembered and took the towel Yinglian offered, first thanking her. As their eyes met, memories of their first meeting flooded her mind. Back then, Yinglian hadn't even dared to argue, appearing somewhat timid. But everything that followed proved she had grown.

So, can I really only treat these people as virtual beings? Qingyun kept asking himself this question.

"How is she now? She shouldn't be dead, right?" Song Chaoli asked with a frown. But thinking back to the day he carried her back, he didn't experience any discomfort. It was probably just a common cold.

"She only has mild symptoms, she's fine, you don't need to worry."

Seeing Qingyun frequently lost in thought, Yinglian's face was filled with worry. She quickly advised him not to push himself so hard and to go and get some rest.

Hearing this, Qingyun nodded obediently in agreement. However, the current situation did not allow her any time to rest. She didn't know how Lin Wanjun was doing on the sand dunes. Although everything had been taken care of, she couldn't help but worry.

"Trust those you employ, and don't employ those you don't trust. Host, don't be too nervous." The system, which had been watching from the side, couldn't help but speak up. It could hear Qingyun's thoughts and naturally understood that although this person appeared calm on the surface, he was actually struggling with anxiety inside.

Seeing that everyone was comforting him, he had no choice but to put aside his many thoughts and focus on the present.

So they worked like this for several days in a row. Some of the patients who had been paralyzed slowly woke up and were able to speak. Qingyun was only responsible for giving injections and medicine every day. Others took care of feeding them. He also repeatedly reminded everyone to follow the hygiene guidelines.

"Stop anyone from picking up food from the ground. They can't eat it. If they do, they might have another attack," Qingyun said again before leaving.

When I arrived yesterday, I saw some people picking up crumbs of bread from the ground and stuffing them into their mouths. Now everyone is able to eat their fill, but some people still maintain this habit, unwilling to waste a single grain of food. Qingyun understands that everyone is afraid of being hungry, but this habit is not good.

“In the past, everyone’s food reserves were scarce, and they barely had enough to eat. How could they afford to raise rats? But now, everyone is doing better, and they have surplus grain at home. These rats are all fat and big.” A man carrying a sack said to the person next to him from a distance.

As they were talking, Qingyun was drawn to the two men. The other man next to the first man said, "This thing will look absolutely delicious when grilled."

After saying that, the man carrying the bag put his arm around the other man's shoulder and said with great enthusiasm that he had finally broken his fast today.

Qingyun: "..."

Judging from their attire, they are city patrol officers.

The servant standing directly opposite her cautiously observed Qingyun's gaze. Seeing that she remained silent, he felt a pang of anxiety and tentatively asked, "Shall I go and retrieve it?"

Upon hearing this, a steady and powerful voice came from the other party, "Add one more rule: rats and animals are not allowed to be eaten, and no one is allowed to eat them."

After saying that, as if remembering something, he turned around and asked again, "Could it be that all the rats caught by the city patrols are roasted and eaten?"

The servant quickly shook his head and explained, "These are people from poor families who haven't been here long. They're short-sighted, and most of them have some money. They wouldn't eat such filthy stuff."

"That's good." Seeing this, Qingyun nodded in agreement. Then he remembered that no one had mentioned that this outbreak was the plague, so he took the opportunity to educate the servants again and gave a strict order that no one should eat this stuff anymore.

These past few days, this servant had been working alongside him. Qingyun knew that the servant was one of Song Junwu's trusted confidants, and a mischievous thought crossed his mind. He jokingly asked, "I'm not your master, giving you orders and behaving arrogantly. Do you accept that?"

Strength is the only true measure of success. He can pull people back from the brink of death, surpassing even the imperial physicians from the palace. Who would be unconvinced? He himself was born into hardship, just like the general. He had experienced hunger, carried corpses, and even fought with dogs for food during his most difficult times. He genuinely admired Qingyun.

The attendant hurriedly laughed and said he dared not, then bowed deeply to Qingyun, saying, "I thank you in advance, young lady."

Dragging her exhausted body back to her room that evening, she lay down, not wanting to get up. But having not yet visited Song Chaohua, she mustered her willpower and got up. After dinner, she rushed to his place without stopping.

At this moment, her cold face held a long-lost tranquility. As if sensing someone in the room, the melted iceberg froze again, and even her still hazy eyes immediately revealed vigilance. When she saw who it was, Song Chaohua closed her eyes and said sarcastically, "I'm afraid you're having some troubles."

Qingyun, who was tidying the bedding, paused upon hearing this, then scratched her head. "It's alright, but it's really tiring, especially since you're giving me attitude."

Song Chaohua: "..."

Seeing that the person on the bed was silent, Qingyun quickly put on a smile, playfully sticking out her tongue as if to say joking.