Chapter 50 The Conman: She possessed genuine talent and skills, so naturally she wasn't afraid, but...
After having breakfast that morning, the group did not linger and traveled swiftly in their carriages until they finally caught sight of the outline of Chengya City when the sun was high in the sky.
Wen Yu lifted the carriage curtain and looked out. He saw thick smoke billowing in the distance outside the city, as if something was burning.
The thin layer of snow that fell a few days ago has melted into patches, revealing the withered yellow earth and dry grass roots underneath.
The city gate was sparsely populated, and the few people who came and went were heading out of the city. Only their group of carriages and horses were different, going against the flow of refugees into the city.
The soldiers guarding the city had been working tirelessly for several nights and looked exhausted. When they saw Wen Yu and her group, they were stunned for a moment before realizing that they wanted to enter the city.
The leader quickly stopped Wen Yu's carriage: "Ladies, the city is ravaged by disease. If you are passing through, please leave quickly so as not to be infected by the disease."
Wen Yu jumped off the carriage nimbly and took out the voucher given to him by Su Lin.
"We are physicians sent by the Prefect to provide assistance. Please inform the Magistrate on my behalf!"
The soldier stared wide-eyed, looking them up and down several times.
Seeing that their gazes were open and unwavering, the soldier finally chose to trust the evidence and bowed, saying, "Please come with me, young ladies. We will take care of the carriage."
Wen Yu nodded, then turned to the doctors and instructed them, "You go help out at the clinic first, we're going to the county government office."
"Okay." Cui Pingchun and the others unloaded their medicine boxes and bags from the carriage, asked the soldiers for directions to the clinic, and then hurriedly left.
Wen Yu followed the soldiers eastward into the city, with Wen Qingshi and Wen Yue silently following behind her.
The three of them entered a simple county government office. A soldier knocked on the door and announced, "Sir, another doctor has come to see you. He says he was sent by the Prefect."
The door opened with a click, revealing a broad but weary face.
The magistrate sighed and said, "Please come in quickly."
After everyone was seated and tea was served, the magistrate spoke frankly to Wen Yu: “Miss Wen, I won’t exaggerate. The epidemic in the city is severe. People have either fled, fallen ill, or died. Less than half of the population remains.”
"Although some doctors have come over in the past few days, some of them left quietly when they saw how dangerous the disease was. Most of those who were willing to stay were helpless. They all said that this plague is more severe than any other one before."
"Although some people were cured, many more fell ill. Several doctors even collapsed themselves due to excessive contact with patients and remain bedridden to this day..."
Wen Yu frowned.
She inquired further about the doctors' conditions and learned from the county magistrate that the aid workers sent by various counties were of varying quality, with some being charlatans.
These people did not take any precautions when treating patients, directly touching them with their bare hands, and did not isolate or treat the sick. No wonder some people were infected.
The comments section was filled with complaints.
[How did they get sent here to provide support when they're so unprofessional?]
[Sigh, it's not surprising. Although the higher-ups need to send people to provide support, not everyone is willing to take the risk. In situations like this, naturally some outsiders will step in for them, either by spending money or through some behind-the-scenes exchange of benefits.]
When the risks far outweigh the rewards, many people choose to avoid the situation.
However, judging from what he said, some of them are legitimate doctors, which is some consolation, isn't it?
[Don't get too excited yet. He said some people inside are stuck in their ways, insisting on treating it the same way they treated the previous epidemic, and the results weren't very good...]
[Sigh! Some of Vision's old fogies are starting to give me a headache...]
In the end, it was up to us, the people of Luxi, to step in. Stop being so stubborn, your strength is here!
Although Wen Yu believed in the abilities of Cui Pingchun and others, he could not bear to see more people suffer.
She said seriously, "I understand the situation. Our doctors have gone to the clinic to provide support, and hopefully things will turn around."
A glimmer of hope finally appeared in the magistrate's eyes: "That's wonderful!"
As if remembering something, he asked with concern, "Do you all have a place to stay? If you don't mind, the county government can arrange accommodation for you free of charge."
Having a place to live is certainly much better than paying out of your own pocket to stay in a hotel.
Wen Yu readily agreed: "Thank you, sir."
The soldiers had led them to a house, which was said to be an empty house under the county magistrate's name, and it was just right for them to stay in.
The magistrate did not linger but left in a hurry, as someone on the other side had reported to the authorities and he needed to attend to other matters first.
Wen Yu, Qing Shi, and Wen Yue were busy tidying up the house, making up the beds, and preparing meals for everyone until the sun began to set.
----
On the other side, Cui Pingchun frowned as soon as he stepped into the courtyard of the clinic.
It wasn't unusual for the air in the clinic to be filled with the smell of medicine, but she recognized it as a prescription for clearing heat and removing dampness. She often cooked it for the villagers of Luxi Village, and the taste was all too familiar to her.
Given the current situation in Chengya County, this medicine is completely ineffective.
Why do I smell this?
She looked up and saw two apprentices brewing medicine at the medicine stove not far away. A middle-aged man stood beside them, hands on his hips, gesturing wildly and glaring, "Hurry up! Don't spill the medicine!"
"Yes, Dr. Zhu, it will be ready soon..." The apprentices responded obsequiously, using large spoons to divide the dark medicinal soup into bowls.
Dr. Zhu snorted coldly: "Hurry up, we still need to deliver these to the patients later! If you miss work, you'll be in big trouble!"
Cui Pingchun could no longer contain himself and stepped forward to ask, "May I ask who this medicine is for?"
"What, you think this is for you to drink? Go away, get out of my way!" Doctor Zhu turned around impatiently, and when he saw it was a woman, his face darkened even more. "What are you doing at the clinic, woman? Your husband and son aren't here, get out!"
After being thoroughly scolded, Cui Pingchun clenched his fists.
"Don't push your luck! Why can't women come to the clinic?" Fan Yizhen, who was behind her, couldn't help but stand up and retort, pointing to a woman in plain clothes under the eaves, "Isn't there a woman over there?"
Everyone looked over and saw a woman wearing a veil standing quietly under the eaves, seemingly lost in thought.
Dr. Zhu looked in the direction she was pointing and scoffed, "You mean her? That's a lay Buddhist who came to do good deeds. She donated a large sum of money so we could distribute medicine to the disaster victims! Can you compare to her?"
The apprentice beside them whispered, "Girls, you'd better hurry up and leave. Master has a bad temper; who knows what might happen..."
Before he could finish speaking, he received two sharp raps on the forehead from Doctor Zhu: "You dare to gossip behind my back? I'm really giving you face!"
Cui Pingchun suddenly burst out laughing.
Dr. Zhu was even more baffled by her laughter, and his anger flared up: "What are you laughing at?!"
Cui Pingchun glanced at him, his eyes filled with sarcasm: "I laugh at that layman, he's so pitiful, he was completely deceived by you. Your medicine can't cure the epidemic at all."
"This 'Dr. Zhu,' you're pretending to be a doctor, your real purpose is to make money, isn't it!"
Dr. Zhu's face flushed red with anger: "What nonsense are you spouting, you bitch! Get out! Don't make me say it a second time!"
“You want me to leave? Fine. But only if you can explain the ingredients and effects of this medicine on the spot, and the basis for your use of it—” Cui Pingchun refused to budge an inch.
"Nonsense! Why should I explain to you?" Doctor Zhu raised his hand to slap her.
Chen Miaozhi exclaimed in surprise: "Pingchun!"
Having said that, he tried to step forward to stop him.
Several students quickly surrounded him, exclaiming, "Dr. Cui!"
"Stop." A clear, cold voice rang out.
Everyone paused, and Doctor Zhu's hand remained suspended in the air, hesitant to strike.
The lay Buddhist had noticed the commotion at some point and walked over.
"Layman! They're being unreasonable and deliberately causing trouble to ruin your good deeds!" Upon seeing them arrive, Doctor Zhu, feigning grievance, started accusing them.
Cui Pingchun explained the principles behind the prescription in a humble yet assertive manner before bowing and saying, "Layman, you have been deceived. This medicine is completely useless against the epidemic. I hope you will reconsider."
"Spreading heresy and misleading the public!" Doctor Zhu shouted, jumping up and down, but couldn't find a single word to refute it.
The layman remained silent for a long time, his expression beneath the veil unfathomable.
Everyone's heart skipped a beat.
Finally, she slowly spoke: "I am not knowledgeable in medicine and cannot distinguish between truth and falsehood. But please come with me to treat a patient, and you will know the truth."
Upon hearing this, Doctor Zhu's face turned deathly pale.
Cui Pingchun, however, remained calm and readily agreed: "Okay."
This is where ability comes into play.
She has real talent and is naturally not afraid, but Doctor Zhu is about to be exposed.
He was originally an apprentice at this clinic, but he was not very skilled. For many years, he only worked sporadically and only learned how to sort medicinal materials and dry herbs.
After the outbreak of the epidemic, the original doctor fled Chengya County with his family. In the absence of a tiger, the monkey becomes king, so he began to impersonate a doctor.
He sold fake medicine to countless people at exorbitant prices. The prescriptions were just the most common tonics he had ever brewed back then. They wouldn't kill anyone, but they couldn't cure any epidemics either.
Watching them gratefully take away those counterfeit goods while he himself made a fortune, Dr. Zhu secretly rejoiced.
Later, a lay Buddhist came and said he wanted to do good deeds and was willing to pay a large sum of money to ask him to help provide medicine to the disaster victims.
He thought, as the saying goes, fortune favors the bold. After making this money, he could take everything and fly away. Even if those people died, it wouldn't matter to him!
Damn it, why did a bunch of women suddenly appear and ruin his plans?
"Dr. Zhu, please lead the way." The layman turned to him and said slowly, "I remember that the clinic saw two patients yesterday. Let's go and see how they are doing."
"Hmm," Doctor Zhu mumbled in response, but his feet couldn't stop him from wanting to slip away.
What if they expose him? Will he be reported to the authorities, arrested, and thrown into jail?
wrong.
He then thought that these women didn't seem to know anything about medicine. Although the woman had mentioned a pharmacological principle, it might not be true.
What if they are just con artists like him, trying to scare him away and make money for themselves?
He can't back down before the battle even begins! That would fall right into their trap!
Thinking of this, Dr. Zhu straightened his back again.
That's more like it! How could a woman possibly practice medicine and cure diseases? That's more laughable than a sow climbing a tree!
Just wait and see who wins!
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