Save his life
A clinic outside the city.
Fu Zhi Qiao felt the oppressive atmosphere as soon as she entered.
Perhaps knowing their days were numbered, each infected person was lifeless. Imperial Physician Gao, along with a group of medical supervisors, prepared medicine, and the strong aroma of herbs filled the air above the clinic.
The imperial physicians and medical supervisors all came from the Imperial Medical Academy, so their medical skills were beyond doubt. They were mainly responsible for taking patients' pulses and writing prescriptions. Minor tasks such as decocting medicine and taking care of patients were left to the doctors in the city. The doctors wore masks and hurried around. There were too many patients, and each doctor had to take care of several patients at the same time. They were so busy that they didn't even have a moment to rest.
Doctor Gao's eyes were bloodshot, and he looked very haggard. When he saw Fu Zhi Qiao there, he said with concern, "Boss Fu, why did you come to the clinic? It's dangerous here, you should go back quickly."
Wang Qianxin immediately grabbed the imperial physician Gao, not letting him say anything more. What a joke! He had gone to great lengths to invite Miss Fu over. If you call her back now, wouldn't all his efforts have been in vain?
Fu Zhiqiao pretended not to see Wang Qianxin's little trick.
"I heard that the Crown Prince has contracted the plague. How is he doing?"
Imperial Physician Gao's expression was grave: "The young master's condition is not optimistic. His high fever persists, and he remains unconscious. If this continues, I fear..."
The imperial physician dared not say what followed.
Fu Zhi Qiao felt a "boom" in her head. She couldn't hear what the Imperial Physician Gao was saying as his mouth opened and closed.
Is Xie Zhuo really that badly injured?
Is there any cure?
The imperial physician sighed softly, "If we can bring the high fever down, there might still be a glimmer of hope."
Xie Zhuo's identity was special, and she lived in a separate room. She stood at the door for a while, stunned, and only after mentally preparing herself did she push the door open.
Xie Zhuo lay on the bed with his eyes closed, as quiet as if he were asleep. Sunlight shone in, casting a faint halo around him. Judging from his appearance alone, no one would guess that he was about to die.
Fu Zhi Qiao's mind went blank. Even though she spoke harshly, her heart still ached terribly when she saw Xie Zhuo lying motionless on the bed.
“How could this happen…” Fu Zhi Qiao slowly walked to the bedside, reached out and touched Xie Zhuo’s forehead, and then took his hand.
Xie Zhuo's forehead was burning hot, but his palms were ice cold.
How did it get like this in just a few days?
Suddenly, Xie Zhuo's body trembled, and his lips moved slightly, as if he were trapped in a nightmare.
Xie Zhuo felt like he was in chaos, everything around him was dark and distorted. He was floating in the endless darkness, his head was spinning, and his whole body felt like it was on fire. He didn't know how much time had passed, but in his daze, he seemed to hear Fu Zhi Qiao's voice.
Has his Ajo arrived?
Xie Zhuo strained to open his eyes, trying to see the person from the future more clearly.
Ah Qiao, is that you? Ah Qiao, have you forgiven me?
A heavy wave of dizziness washed over Xie Zhuo, and he completely lost consciousness.
Shivering is a natural reaction of the body when it feels cold. Fu Zhi Qiao helped him tuck the blanket in so that not a single bit of warmth could escape.
Reason told her that she shouldn't get too close to Xie Zhuo at this moment, but Fu Zhi Qiao still unconsciously moved her head closer to Xie Zhuo's mouth, wanting to hear what he was saying.
"Ah Qiao... Ah Qiao..." Wang Qianxin was right; even in his unconscious state, he was calling her name.
Fu Zhiqiao sat blankly on the edge of the bed, her heart filled with unbearable sorrow. No matter what her relationship with him was, she did not want to see him die.
A short while later, Physician Gao pushed open the door and came in.
Fu Zhiqiao didn't even turn her head, and asked, "As long as the high fever goes down, he can survive, right?"
"Logically, that should be the case." Imperial Physician Gao frowned, his face full of worry. "But I have tried every possible method and countless kinds of decoctions, yet none of them have worked."
"I have a way."
"What?"
"Imperial Physician Gao, I need you to save Xie Zhuo's life." Fu Zhi Qiao took a deep breath. "You can't let him die before I get back."
The imperial physician was stunned.
"Can you do it?" Fu Zhiqiao raised her voice.
Fu Zhi Qiao's aura was so strong that Imperial Physician Gao nodded unconsciously.
Wang Qianxin escorted her all the way to the winery to get the alcohol.
"Where's the alcohol I asked you to refine last time?" As soon as they arrived at the winery, Fu Zhiqiao called over Old Man Gao.
Old Gao brought out a large wine jar and said, "Boss, all ten catties of alcohol are here."
"Okay, now follow my previous method and extract all the latest batch of Taibai wine into alcohol."
Old Gao frowned as he listened: "Master, there's a new batch of 40,000 jin of Taibai wine."
All 40,000 jin of wine were refined into alcohol?
Old Gao reminded her, "Master, this batch of Taibai wine was originally intended for Taibai Tower in the capital. If it is all refined into alcohol now, Taibai Tower will not be able to supply it later."
All the equipment in the distillery was focused on refining alcohol, which meant that Taibai liquor could not be produced during this period. If Taibai liquor could not be shipped out in time, Taibailou's business and the operation of the caravan would be affected.
Equipment can be recycled, but food cannot!
After the flood, grain prices soared. The grain currently used for brewing in the winery is the one that Fu Zhiqiao had bought before the flood. Once these stockpiled grains are used up and there is no new grain, Taibai wine cannot be produced, which would be a huge loss for the winery.
"Listen to me." Fu Zhi Qiao didn't hesitate for a moment. She had considered these issues on the way here. Compared to human lives, she could afford these losses.
Old Gao paused for a moment, then said, "Yes!"
Fu Zhiqiao carried the ten kilograms of alcohol she had already extracted back to the clinic, intending to use it to reduce Xie Zhuo's fever.
Alcohol is volatile, and when it evaporates, it carries away excess heat from the surface of objects, which can help lower body temperature.
Fu Zhi Qiao couldn't guarantee it would work 100%, but she had no other choice but to try anything.
"Bring over a basin of warm water, and also a clean basin and gauze."
Alcohol is irritating, so for safety reasons, Fu Zhiqiao chose to dilute it again.
She washed her hands, first scooped a ladleful of alcohol into a clean basin with a wooden ladle, and then scooped in a small half ladleful of clean water.
Once the alcohol is diluted, it's ready to use.
Having done all this, Fu Zhiqiao turned her back and instructed Wang Qianxin, "Unbutton his clothes."
Before Wang Qianxin could react, Fu Zhiqiao glanced at him and said, "What are you standing there for? Do you want me to do it myself?"
"Oh, oh." A rustling sound rang out, and Wang Qianxin obediently unbuttoned Xie Zhuo's shirt. "Miss Fu, I've unbuttoned it."
Watching the two men bustling around, Imperial Physician Gao couldn't help but ask, "Is...is this really going to work?"
Fu Zhiqiao did not answer the imperial physician's question. "Wet the gauze with alcohol, wring it until it is half-dry, and wipe the forehead, palms, wrists, neck, and armpits in turn."
Wang Qianxin did as instructed, saying, "Miss, I've finished wiping."
"Keep wiping, wipe for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea each time, and wipe once every half hour."
Wang Qianxin and a medical supervisor took turns wiping Xie Zhuo's face.
By the third time she had wiped it, Fu Zhiqiao was starting to feel overwhelmed and her mind began to wander.
Fearing that Wang Qianxin and the medical supervisor wouldn't know what to do if she fell asleep, she instructed Wang Qianxin: "Change the water after wiping five times. The ratio is one ladle of alcohol and a small half ladle of clean water, remember?"
Not long after saying that, Fu Zhi Qiao fell asleep on the table. Wang Qian Xin covered her with Xie Zhuo's cloak and then went to help Xie Zhuo wipe his body.
The next morning, as soon as Fu Zhi Qiao opened her eyes, she saw the big face of Wang Qianxin, the Prince of Tennis. He exclaimed in surprise, "Miss Fu, the fever has gone down! The young master's high fever has subsided!"
"Refunded entirely?"
"The fever hasn't completely subsided, but it's not as high as before. Imperial Physician Gao came to see him this morning and said that the high fever starting to subside means that the young master has pulled through. That's wonderful, the young master won't die."
Although Xie Zhuo was not yet fully conscious, his body temperature had thankfully come down.
Fu Zhiqiao breathed a sigh of relief.
...
Alcohol is hard to come by, so Fu Zhiqiao asked Wang Qianxin to keep the rest of the alcohol safe and reminded him to tighten the cap after use.
As soon as he stepped out of the room, Imperial Physician Gao followed him.
"Boss Fu, I have a favor to ask." Doctor Gao was very interested in alcohol, and he had never heard of using alcohol to wipe the body to reduce fever before.
Alcohol is a good thing for reducing high fever, and he wanted to ask Fu Zhiqiao for some alcohol to study.
"Alcohol is my secret recipe." Fu Zhi Qiao understood Gao Taiyi's desire for alcohol, but no matter how much he researched it, he couldn't make alcohol, so she simply gave up on his idea.
The imperial physician was a sensible person, so he didn't press the matter about the alcohol. Instead, he asked if some of it could be used on other patients.
"Alcohol is a precious commodity, and I only have ten catties on hand right now. Everything must be reserved for the young master's use." After last night's consumption, only six or seven catties of alcohol remained out of the ten catties. Fu Zhi Qiao only took out three catties to give to Imperial Physician Gao.
"It is right, it is right."
Fu Zhiqiao asked, "Do you intend to use the alcohol on other patients?"
The imperial physician Gao did not hide anything, saying, "Since this alcohol can work on the prince, it should also work on other patients."
Xie Zhuo's body temperature dropped a bit after being rubbed with alcohol, which gave Imperial Physician Gao great hope. He had been researching the plague for so long, and finally found something that was effective, so he didn't want to miss it.
Fu Zhiqiao thought for a few seconds, "Doctor Gao, there isn't enough alcohol to distribute evenly among so many patients. It would be better to use it on the medical supervisors and doctors to prevent infection. I will refine more alcohol in a few days and then use it on the patients."
Given the limited alcohol production, she suggested prioritizing its use for uninfected doctors and medical staff to reduce the risk of infection.
Alcohol offers no protection to those already infected; it can only help. However, for those who are not yet infected, proper disinfection can reduce the risk of infection.
Physician Gao was so focused on curing the plague patients that he neglected the doctors who had been caring for them in the clinic. Now that he heard Fu Zhi Qiao was thinking of them so much, he naturally agreed.
Imperial Physician Gao gathered all the medical supervisors and imperial physicians together.
As the owner of the alcohol, Fu Zhiqiao explained the uses of Taibai wine to them, and instructed them to wipe their hands with alcohol every time they entered or left the medical ward. In addition, they had to wear masks at all times and could not take them off.
A doctor with a beard was indignant, arguing that Fu Zhi Qiao was just a weak woman and why should he listen to her?
"Who are you? Why should we listen to you?"
"You're just a young woman, you should go home and not meddle in men's business."
Imperial Physician Gao scolded, "How dare you speak like that? This is Boss Fu!"
Some of the doctors recognized her name and muttered under their breath, "Is she the Boss Fu who donated 100,000 jin of grain?"
"So it was her!"
The bearded doctor said nonchalantly, "So what? Every profession has its own secrets. No matter how rich she is, she can't boss us doctors around."
"Why should you listen to me?" Fu Zhi Qiao turned around, her sharp gaze sweeping over everyone present. "Because I can save your lives. If you're not afraid of getting infected, you don't have to do what I say."
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