Goldfield
Chapter 41: Acute Illness

Doctor You has been gone for two months. The villagers and surrounding Dongshan Village did not feel anything different in the short term. But after a while, they all felt discomfort due to his absence. In the past, when they suffered from minor illnesses or minor disasters, they could pay Doctor You ten to twenty copper coins to look at. After that, they only needed to take medicine and their illness would disappear.

After Doctor You left, the majority of the villagers who fell ill were able to cope with his illness by surviving. But if their condition does not improve over time, they should go to the city to see a doctor. However, they had to pay at least several hundred copper coins to visit even the smallest treatment hall.

Everyone knew that the granddaughter of the Old Yu family had been studying medicine under Doctor You's guidance for a month. But, she was only an eight-year-old foolish girl and also did not long study under the guidance of Doctor You. They would rather bear the disease themselves than lay their own lives in the hands of a little girl. He might even turn their little illness into a serious illness!

Xiaocao was quite talented in studying medicine, and Doctor You felt that there was not much he could teach her anymore. However, three months passed, and Xiaocao did not receive a single patient. But he didn't take that heart. Xiaocao's initial goal in studying medicine was to hide the effects of the mystical stone water when he used it. Therefore, it did not matter to him whether he had a patient who sought help or not.

Doctor You often likes to concoct pills for common conditions such as the common cold, low-grade fever, and other minor illnesses. The majority of the villagers from Dong Shan village knew of this.

Occasionally, Yu Xiaocao was visited by the villagers. He would take the pills or medicine packs prepared by Grandpa You and give them to the sick villagers. This was the only role left for her as Doctor You's direct disciple as she left.

Taking advantage of the fact that the early winter snow did not close the mountain, Yu Xiaocao casually set up a few traps every few days as he climbed the mountain. With the mystical stone water as a versatile bait, his harvest at all times would be extremely bountiful. His small wallet was getting bigger.

With more money comes more worry. In the past, with just one or two silver bars, he could find random angles and hide them. But now that he had silver ingots and silver pieces inside his bulging bag, it was harder to find a safe hiding place .. After all, the family had Yu Heizi, who liked to check other people's belongings.

Xiaocao did not treat him unfairly: Heizi has a criminal record. Every day, Yu Hai and Madam Liu had more work than they could complete in a day, and Yu Xiaolian was also not allowed to laze around. When Xiaocao set a trap, he would bring along Little Shitou. Basically, other than when they ate or slept, no one in the Western Room witnessed anything.

Once, Yu Xiaocao had just returned from selling the animals he had caught using his traps on the mountain. When he came back, he saw the door of the Western Room open wide so he quickly rushed over to take a look. The entire room became a mess after being ransacked by someone. Tattered clothes inside the trunk were thrown everywhere. Even the blanket on the bed was tangled into a lump.

He immediately went to check where he hid the —— money in the small gap between the kang bed and the mud wall. Fortunately, after he hid the money in a small crack, he used the loose land to seal it. Otherwise, the money would be hard to escape from the evil hands of Brother Heizi.

Xiaocao was angry because of this so he told the head of the household —— Madam Zhang. The old lady who was biased only asked a few questions. Due to the lack of evidence, they were forced to let the matter go unresolved. After that, when Xiaocao hid his secret money, he was much more cautious.

In the end, he found a very easy way to hide his money. He dug a small square hole in one of the mud bricks on the wall. He also got a small piece of mud brick that could be easily put into the hole. After he put the silver into the small hole, he would insert a small mud brick into it. Then, he would take out the mud and fill in the small gaps, making everything look perfect.

As the days passed, the winter in the north finally showed its strength. The weather was gloomy that day. The entire sky was covered in thick, low, grayish-yellow cloud.

The northeast wind roared as it wreaked havoc in the wilderness. It seemed like the wind carried a sharp sword that could easily pierce through a tight leather coat. So when Xiaocao went out, his open cheeks were smashed by the wind. His cheeks hurt and it was hard for him to endure that pain.

The dark black sky was sprinkled with small pieces of pure white flower petals. It seemed that the white petals also had a slight aroma. Snow as big as goose feathers flew in large numbers, instantly dyeing the world white.

In his previous life, Yu Xiaocao had lived in Central China. So even if there is snow, it will only happen on a small scale. This was the first time he had seen snow so heavy that it looked like a lump of cotton shredded down.

The old, shabby cotton-coated jacket he wore was not enough to withstand the severe cold in the north. Ever since winter arrived, Yu Xiaocao was unwilling to go out. He would lie in bed every day.

“It's the first snow of the year, but it's been snowing this much! It will be hard to get through this winter! Do we keep enough food at home? ” At dinner, Old Yu sits on the bed. He looked out to see the snow that had been falling for a day and sighed. From his years of experience, it was not uncommon to see great snow become a disaster.

Madam Zhang thought of the pile of sweet potatoes in the food storage room in her hands, Madam Zhang did not panic. He nodded his head and replied, “There must be enough food. It's just not ground into powder. When the snow stops, the eldest son and the second son will grind thousands of catties of sweet potato powder and store it.

Old Yu furrowed his brows and said, “Even if you don't get tired of just eating sweet potato flour all winter, your stomach might not be able to handle it. We still need to buy coarse and fine grains to store during the winter. If we wait until the New Year when the snow has piled up almost to the sky, the price of grain will definitely be higher. ”

As they discussed, the front door of the Yu Family was slapped with a heaven-shattering sound. Between the sounds of wind and snow, they could also hear someone crying at the door.

I'll check it out! Yu Hai put down his rice bowl and put on his tattered cotton jacket. He opened the door and slid into a raging storm. As the door opened and closed, several snowflakes entered the house. The snowflakes fell to the floor and melted into small dots of muddy water.

“Cao’er! Do you have a fever pill made by Grandpa. You going? Uncle Shuanzhu you have a high fever and need it right away! ” Bone-piercing wind blow through door. Yu Hai hurriedly opened the door and entered the house. Behind her was Shuanzhu's wife whose eyes were red-framed.

Yu Xiaocao swallowed the croquet in his mouth and quickly replied, “All of the medicines that Grandfather had made are gone. Is Uncle Shuanzhu burning so badly? Does he need me to go see him? ”

“You're just a little kid, what's the point of you going? Do not delay the patient's illness. It is better if you send him to the city to see a doctor. Don't worry about money. ” Madam Zhang was worried Yu Xiaocao would bring trouble to his family so he interrupted immediately.

Shuanzhu's wife was so anxious that tears almost fell from her eyes. “Yesterday, my husband caught a cold. When he woke up today, he felt uncomfortable but did not take it seriously. In the past he would only endure his illness until he healed himself. But who would have thought the fever would get hot. Before, his hands and feet were thrashing. We also ran out of fever-lowering drugs. What should I do?”

Madam Li started to make a cynical statement beside her, “God! Fever burning to cramp? That's not possible! My mother's family neighbors also had a fever. His fever was burning so intensely that his brain was burning and he became stupid. He was almost forty now and he still could not find a wife! Your family's Shuanzhu fever has been burning for a day now. I don't even know how he is now! ”

After being told, Shuanzhu's wife could no longer hold back her tears. He was anxious without a solution, “Then what can be done? It was snowing so hard that we couldn't even send him to the city to see a doctor. Xiaocao, is there really no medicine left? ”

“Human life is worth more than any value. If I had the medicine, I would not hide it or hide it! Aunt Shuanzhu, if you believe me then I will go with you to check on her. You can't just stand there and watch her fever get worse right? ” Yu Xiaocao decided to accept his first patient.

Madam Zhang angrily said, “What can an eight-year-old girl like you do? Is seeing patients easy? There is human life involved! How many days did you study under Doctor You? Aren't you afraid of wasting Uncle Shuanzu's time —— and his wife's time? Why don't you go into town and invite a doctor? ”

If he were to go to the city now through the snow, it would still take three to four hours to leave and return. By the time he arrived in town, it was already night. What's more, it would be hard to say whether doctors even agreed to travel overnight to see patients in this inclement weather.

Shuanzhu's wife turned to whichever doctor she found out of desperation. He placed his last hope on Yu Xiaocao, “Xiaocao, Uncle Shuanzhu and your father were friends who had been through life and death together. They even fought sharks together in the sea. Don't hide it from me and tell me the extent of your medical skills. ”

Yu Xiaocao's eyes stabilized as he looked at Shuanzhu's wife. He honestly said, “Aunt Shuanzhu, Grandpa You said that I learned about seven to eight points from his skills. Two to three points left because I lack experience. When it comes to the common cold or fever, as long as your Grandfather can cure him, I can too! ”

Shuanzhu's frenetic and anxious wife's heart gradually loosened after seeing Xiaocao's calm gaze. He bit his teeth and made a hard yet precise decision, “Good! Auntie trusts you. I will lay Uncle Shuanzhu's life in your hands! ”

“Aiya! Shuanzhu's wife, how can you believe in the arrogant words of a child? Xiaocao our family is only eight years old. We can't replace him if he treats Shuanzhu incorrectly! ” Mrs Li has finished eating and drinking. He was watching the show but now he was worried about the consequences if something bad happened.

Shuanzhu's wife once again clenched her teeth. He stomped his foot and said, “Whether he healed her or not, we will not make you take any responsibility. Xiaocao, let's go quickly. Your Uncle Shuanzhu still has a fever! ”

Yu Xiaocao did not care about half his meal. He immediately went to the Western Room to retrieve the medicine box that Grandpa You left behind. He looked at the medicinal ingredients inside the medicine box and saw that it was already complete. Thinking further, he looked for the Divine Stone bath water with a high concentration of mystic stone water. He poured the mystical stone water into the empty medicine bottle. Only after he put on all the clothes he had that could help him endure the cold did he leave the house with Shuanzhu's wife.

Yu Hai did not feel calm and could not continue to eat dinner. He followed behind his own daughter, helping her carry a heavy medicine box. From time to time, she would support her daughter, making sure that she did not slip in this snowy weather.

Initially, the journey only took five minutes. However, with wind and snow blocking their path, the three of them needed a quarter of an hour to arrive at their destination. The moment they opened the door, they could hear the sharp yet sad cries of the two Liu Family children, “Dad! Dad, please wake up! Dad, you can't die! ”

When Shuanzhu's wife heard their cries, her legs suddenly became soft. He sat on the floor and started crying.

Yu Xiaocao was half-walking and half-running as he rushed towards the bed. He pulled Uncle Shuanzhu's eyelids and looked at his pupils. She calmly said, “Don't cry anymore. Uncle Shuanzhu is not dead! But the fever made him shock. Auntie, quickly prepare warm water to lower her body temperature. ”

“What? You want to lower his body temperature? It was a cold day and he was still sick. If you lower his body temperature, won't his illness get worse? ” Shuanzhu's wife swayed slowly as she woke up. Her heart began to waver at her decision to allow Yu Xiaocao to treat her husband's illness.

Yu Xiaocao did not know whether he should laugh or cry as he said, “Uncle Shuanzhu's fever is too hot. He needs to lower his body temperature. If he only relied on treatment, he would recover much more slowly. Therefore, I want Aunt to use warm water to wipe Uncle Shuanzhu's body. This way, his body temperature would drop faster.