"They're here! They're here!"
Li Changlong ran over from a distance, clutching a pottery jar tightly in both hands.
Lu Da and Zhao Xiaodong were following behind him; they must have come to help Li Changlong after seeing him.
Lu Qiqi took the earthenware jar from Li Changlong, and she could feel the residual warmth on it even through the jar.
She said, "This medicine needs to be taken cold. Go and fetch me a basin of cold water."
After saying that, she carried the pottery jar into the house.
At this moment, Niu Xiaozhou had already helped Uncle Niu Er put on his clothes. Looking at Lu Qiqi holding the pottery jar, he asked, "Village Chief, what should we do next?"
Lu Qiqi glanced at Uncle Niu Er, who was still unconscious, and said, "Find a sturdy wooden stick and put it in his mouth to prevent him from biting himself later."
Upon hearing this, Niu Xiaozhou knew that Uncle Niu was probably going to suffer some hardship. He nodded and went out to find a wooden stick.
Lu Qiqi squatted down, picked up a clean cloth, and folded it into a square shape so that it would be easy to put into the earthenware jar to soak later.
Lu Da and Zhao Xiaodong quickly brought a basin of water into the house. Lu Qiqi put her hand into the water. The well water was icy cold, and the chill hit her head, instantly sobering her up.
She put the earthenware pot into the basin, and the water in the basin immediately floated to the surface, almost overflowing.
A moment later, Lu Qiqi reached out and touched the greenish-blue medicinal liquid.
The cool well water was very helpful, and the warmth of the medicine had subsided.
Because of the addition of mountain mint, Lu Qiqi felt a slight coolness.
Then she put the cloth, folded into a square, into the earthenware jar.
The white cloth was taken out of the pottery jar and instantly turned bluish-green. Lu Qiqi unfolded the cloth and applied it to Uncle Niu Er's burned leg.
Applying the poultice for the time it takes to burn an incense stick, repeating this process several times, eventually reveals a faint bluish-green tinge on the charred, rotten flesh. It's so faint that it's barely noticeable unless you look closely.
When Niu Xiaozhou returned, Lu Qiqi had already asked Lu Da to remove the medicine.
Seeing Niu Xiaozhou return with a piece of wood in his hand, Lu Qiqi said, "Once the medicine has dried, scrape off the flesh from the charred parts."
Niu Xiaozhou nodded without saying anything, just squatted to the side and quietly watched Uncle Niu Er.
Lu Qiqi wasn't idle either; since they were going to scrape off the rotten flesh, they needed to have all the necessary equipment ready.
She no longer has gloves in her hands, and given the current situation, there's no time for her to prepare adequately.
"Just get the essentials ready first," she said, pointing to the hallucinogenic leaves in the corner. "Second brother, could you crush these leaves for me?"
Then Lu Qiqi took out a delicate little curved knife and handed it to Lu Da, saying, "Sharpen this knife for me, the sharper the better."
Lu Da took the small curved knife, his eyes dark and unreadable, as if he was thinking about something. It wasn't until Zhao Xiaodong called out to him that he reacted.
"Brother, I'll go borrow a millstone."
After realizing what was happening, Lu Da said, "Go."
Unable to contain his doubts, Lu Da then asked, "Village Chief, where did you get this knife?"
When Lu Qiqi was asked, she realized that the knife belonged to the Tartars. In the countryside, the villagers couldn't understand it and only thought it was exquisite and beautiful, so they assumed it was very valuable.
This was the first time someone had asked her where she got the knife.
Lu Qiqi said, "My family and I fled famine all the way to Luzhou Prefecture. We found this knife on the road, and I kept it because I thought it was useful."
After all, iron products were very valuable in this era, and the government controlled them very strictly. You had to register if you wanted to buy a knife from a blacksmith shop.
It's quite reasonable for Lu Qiqi to leave behind a beautifully crafted little curved knife.
Besides, she was just telling the truth. She did find the scimitar, but she accepted it as compensation for the Tartars hurting Xiaohua.
Lu Da glanced at Lu Qiqi's expression, but didn't ask any more questions. He took his small curved knife and left the house.
Lu Qiqi watched his departing figure, lost in thought.
She deliberately handed the small curved knife to Lu Da to see his reaction.
Lu Da's reaction was not obvious, but it was enough for her to use as a reference. At least she knew that Lu Da could tell the difference of this scimitar at a glance, and even knew that this scimitar belonged to the Tartars.
Few people have access to Manchu goods, so it seems that Lu Da's previous livelihood was either from his time on the battlefield or from being a traveling merchant.
Either way, it at least confirms that he went to the border.
It's just unclear why he chose to conceal his talents in Tianxin Village.
After all, once the plague is over, he will be free to go wherever he wants.
"The medicine is ready," Li Changlong said as he came in with a bowl.
After regaining her senses, Lu Qiqi took the bowl and squatted down to check the condition of the wound.
Medication was applied to the wound, and the burned area received some relief.
Although it didn't have a very strong effect, it was more than enough.
Lu Qiqi gently applied the hallucinogenic leaf juice from the bowl to Uncle Niu Er's scorched calves.
She only applied a little, not daring to use too much, for fear that she wouldn't be able to control the pressure when scraping the flesh later.
Leaving Uncle Niu a trace of pain would allow her to adjust the force of her blows in time.
After applying the medicine, Lu Qiqi gave Uncle Niu acupuncture; it was better for him to stay awake in this situation.
Otherwise, it is not a good thing for a person to suddenly become alert to pain while in a state of high fever and coma.
When Lu Qiqi was administering acupuncture, Lu Da and Zhao Xiaodong also returned.
After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Lu Qiqi put away the needles, and Uncle Niu Er slowly opened his eyes, his pupils gradually focusing.
When Niu Xiaozhou saw that his second uncle had woken up, he excitedly knelt on the ground and called out, "Second Uncle, Second Uncle, it's me, Xiaozhou."
Uncle Niu's eyes gradually cleared, and he opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
Seeing that the person was awake, Lu Qiqi finally finished the preliminary work. She said, "Niu Xiaozhou, put the stick in your second uncle's mouth, and be sure to press down his tongue so that he doesn't bite it."
"Lu Da and Xiao Dong, help me hold him down."
"Second brother, please get me a clean cloth to stop the bleeding."
Lu Qiqi assigned the task to everyone, and they quickly complied.
So she picked up a small curved knife that had been soaked in wine for half an incense stick, lowered her breath, and scraped away the charred, rotten flesh from Uncle Niu's body.
Scraping away this rotten flesh is quite difficult. After cleaning with medication, redness and pus can already be seen.
Therefore, she could only scrape away the rotten flesh bit by bit, following the edges of the charred parts.
The burns on the corners weren't severe, and Lu Qiqi didn't have to put in much effort to scrape them off.
However, she had been looking down for too long and her neck was a little sore.
The rotten flesh around the burned area on the calf was scraped away, and tender, red flesh gradually emerged.
Uncle Niu didn't react much because Lu Qiqi had scraped away very little rotten flesh, and under the influence of the hallucinogenic drug, he couldn't feel any pain.
Next comes the most important part, which is also the area with the largest burn area on the lower leg.
This place is not only filled with blood, but also with thick, sticky water.
Lu Qiqi looked up at Li Changlong and instructed, "Second Brother, try to get the blood and pus on your hands, don't wipe them. We can't use too much medicine to stop the pain."
Li Changlong clenched the cloth in his hand and said solemnly, "Okay."
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