Chapter 33: Itinerant Doctor
"Have you heard? Lin Wu's family is buying sweet potatoes. I heard they're selling them for four cents a pound."
"I heard that my father asked me to deliver 200 kilograms of sweet potatoes and really gave me eight hundred yuan."
"I heard about it too. I'll go get some sweet potatoes right away."
After the villagers heard the news, they all pushed carts and brought sweet potatoes to Lin Qian's house.
At this time, Lin Wu was on his way to find a job.
He only looked for people he knew well, who were honest and kind. He especially recruited the two sons of the village chief.
"What? One or two taels of silver a month?" Lin Fei asked in disbelief.
Lin Wu nodded: "Yes, are you willing to come? If you are willing, we will start working tomorrow."
"We will go, of course. With such high wages, we will definitely go. We will be there early tomorrow morning." Lin Fei immediately nodded excitedly.
Lin Wu said okay, and then went to the next house. He did this until he found about ten people, and each of them said they would definitely come tomorrow.
The next day, all ten people came, and Lin Wu and Zhao Xiu taught them how to do it.
The work of washing, cutting and grinding into pulp was all done by the hired workers. Lin Wu, Zhao Xiu and Zhang Yufang were only responsible for precipitating starch and changing water, as well as the subsequent drying.
The task of adding fine powder later will be done by these busy workers.
Everything was settled in this way, and the three little ones didn't need to help.
Lin Shuo and Wei Jing continued to go up the mountain every day to look for herbs and hunt.
Meng Yi, on the other hand, traveled around with Lin Qian, who was dressed as a medicine boy in male attire.
The area is not large, only about forty or fifty miles in radius.
"Master, why do you have a string of bells hanging around your waist? They ring with every step you take. Don't you find it noisy?" Lin Qian asked, glancing at the copper bells around Meng Yi's waist.
This copper bell is bright yellow and shiny, and is engraved with many medicinal patterns. It looks pretty good, but a bit noisy.
Meng Yi smiled and said, "You probably don't know this, but this is called a medical bell. People who carry this kind of bell are usually traveling doctors, that is, doctors who travel around.
When a patient hears this sound, he or she will come out to seek medical treatment.”
"So that's how it is. This is the first time I've heard of it." Lin Qian said.
"You still have a lot to learn, so take your time."
"good."
The two men took some dry food with them and walked from morning to night. Finally, they passed by a small village. The sound of copper bells attracted an old man with a hunched back.
"Is it a traveling doctor?" The old man, whose eyesight seemed to be not very good, called out from a distance.
Meng Yi and Lin Qian walked over. Meng Yi said, "Exactly. Is there a patient at home who needs to be seen?"
The old man nodded, then led the two of them home and said, "My wife has been feeling a little unwell these past few days, and I'd like you to take a look at her."
"good."
The two men followed the old man to a thatched hut. The hut was short and dilapidated, with a lot of miscellaneous items placed in front of the door. It was obvious that the man lived a hard life.
Meng Yi took Lin Qian into the house and saw the thin old woman lying on the bed.
He was short and skinny, lying on the bed like a paper man, breathing very weakly.
Seeing her like this, Meng Yi sighed, then took her pulse and found it was immediately severe. He stood up and motioned Lin Qian to go.
Lin Qian put her hand on it and felt it carefully. After a long time, it suddenly jumped, like a shrimp swimming in water.
She immediately withdrew her hand and looked up at Meng Yi, who nodded at her imperceptibly.
Lin Qian remembered that on the first day, Meng Yi told her about the seven types of pulse conditions. If any of these seven conditions was present, there was no need to save the patient.
Among them is the shrimp-swimming pulse, one of the seven deadly pulses, and if you see it, you will die.
This old woman may die tonight.
The old man came over and asked, "How is the doctor? Is my wife seriously ill?"
Meng Yi shook his head without saying anything, turned around and walked out with Lin Qian, and the bell around his waist began to swing again.
The old man followed her out step by step. After leaving the door, he sighed and said, "Doctor, what can I do to make her feel better? She complains of heat and discomfort every day. I don't want to see her die in such pain."
Meng Yi said, "She'll feel her feet getting hot and her body getting cold. Soak her feet in cold water more often and wrap her in more layers of blankets."
The old man listened, nodded, and was about to take money from his pocket, but Meng Yi stopped him.
"I just took your pulse. I won't charge you any money. Now, it's time for us to go." After saying that, the master and the disciple walked away in the night.
Lin Qian took a few steps and looked back, only to see a complex expression on the old man's face, as if relieved and in pain. In the end, he just sighed deeply, turned around and walked back into the house.
"Life and death are predetermined, and we cannot change them. All we can do is cure the disease and prevent so many people from dying of illness." Meng Yi turned to look at Lin Qian and said.
Lin Qian took two quick steps to catch up with Meng Yi and nodded, "I understand."
Meng Yi patted Lin Qian's head and said, "You get used to this kind of thing after seeing it so many times."
When the two reached the end of the village, they were invited into the home of an old woman.
"It's so late today. After you have seen my daughter-in-law, why don't you stay at my house for one night?" The old woman said enthusiastically as they walked.
Meng Yi was not polite and said immediately: "In that case, thank you very much, old man."
As they were talking, the three of them entered a room. The room was not big, with only an old wardrobe and a broken bed. There was also a strange smell in the room.
A woman with a bulging belly was lying on the bed. Her face was pale and there was an abnormal blush on her cheeks.
Meng Yi walked over, took the pregnant woman's pulse, and immediately frowned.
"Depression is building up in the heart, and qi is stagnating in the chest, leading to blood and qi depletion. This is caused by excessive thinking and worrying. You shouldn't..."
At this time, the old woman interrupted Meng Yi impatiently and asked directly: "Hey, doctor, this is not what I want to know. Do you think my daughter-in-law is pregnant with a boy?"
After these words were spoken, Meng Yi and Lin Qian turned to look at the old woman and frowned.
Lin Qian looked back at the pregnant woman's expression and found a sarcastic smile on the corner of her mouth.
Meng Yi shook his head and said, "I'm not an expert on women's illnesses, so I can't tell you."
The old woman immediately lost her previous enthusiasm. She said calmly, "Your room is next door. Go to sleep and leave quickly tomorrow morning. Also, since you didn't tell me whether it's a boy or a girl, I won't give you any money."
After saying that, the old woman opened the door and went out.
Lin Qian was a little angry. She was obviously a woman, so why did people have to favor boys over girls?
Meng Yi had obviously seen this happen too many times, so he just shook his head helplessly, then said to the pregnant woman, "Remember what I just said. Don't overthink things, and take care of your body first. Your health is your capital, and it will get better in the future."
The pregnant woman was stunned for a moment, then burst into tears, her cry sounding very aggrieved and depressed.
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