Bai Cao Tang
Doctor Huang stood at the entrance, looking left and right down the street.
When he opened his clinic’s doors that morning, he was shocked to find a crowd of people waiting outside: young and old, men and women…
Doctor Huang was stunned.
He had no idea what was going on.
After asking around, he learned that his junior apprentice had called them over. He then invited them inside to be seated.
He had assumed they were there for him to treat their illnesses, but after they entered, they didn’t ask him for medical attention. After some inquiries, he discovered that his master was scheduled to make a house call that day.
No wonder they weren't seeking his consultation; his master was personally attending to them!
But it was almost noon, and his master still hadn't arrived.
Just then, someone gently patted Doctor Huang’s shoulder. Annoyed, Doctor Huang brushed the hand away, thinking it was his medicine boy playing a prank. He said angrily, "Nancy, stop fooling around!"
To his surprise, the person behind him chuckled.
"Old Huang, who are you looking for?"
Hearing this, Old Huang immediately turned around.
"Master, where did you two appear from? I’ve been watching the entrance for a long time and didn’t see you arrive," Doctor Huang asked with a confused look.
"Mm, over there?"
Leng Ruo Li pointed towards the alley entrance not far away.
Then, Doctor Huang smacked his forehead forcefully.
"Ah, how could I forget there’s another entrance here."
"Master, please go inside quickly. I was getting frustrated waiting for you."
Leng Ruo Li smiled upon hearing this and walked into the clinic.
At this moment, the Bai Cao Tang clinic was filled with a dense crowd of people.
Those who knew Leng Ruo Li stood up to greet her.
"Miss, we’ve brought our family members who aren't feeling well."
"Alright, I’ll see everyone now. Please form a line and come one by one."
After speaking, Leng Ruo Li asked Xing'er and Ling'er to arrange everyone in line.
Once everyone was in line, Leng Ruo Li began to examine them.
The first patient was Niu Hua’s youngest son, whose leg had a large, red boil from an insect bite. Leng Ruo Li put on gloves and gently pressed the boil, causing the child to cry out.
"Niu Hua, bring your child to this room with me," Leng Ruo Li called out to Niu Hua.
Niu Hua then led her child into the room that was used as her operating theater.
Leng Ruo Li opened her medical kit, took out a syringe, and was about to administer anesthesia to Niu Hua’s son when Niu Hua suddenly reached out to stop her.
"Miss, do you really know medicine? What are these strange things you have?" Niu Hua asked, full of apprehension.
"This is a syringe for anesthesia. After giving your son an injection, he won't feel any pain when I treat his boil."
Niu Hua thought it sounded magical, but upon looking again at the long, white needle in Leng Ruo Li’s hand, she still felt scared.
After Leng Ruo Li patiently explained everything to Niu Hua, Niu Hua let down her guard and allowed Leng Ruo Li to administer the anesthetic to her son.
However, Leng Ruo Li only gave the child a local anesthetic.
Since Niu Hua’s son only had a boil on his leg and no other issues, local anesthesia was sufficient.
Throughout the process of treating the boil, the child remained conscious. To distract him, Leng Ruo Li took out a pack of chocolate biscuits, opened them, and gave them to him to eat before she began treating the boil on his leg.
She first used a scalpel to gently puncture the boil, then slowly squeezed out the pus, disinfected the wound with saline solution, applied some anti-inflammatory ointment, and finally, bandaged the wound.
It took only a few minutes to treat the boil.
"Alright, Niu Hua, I've treated the boil on your son's leg. Do not wash the wound with water for three days, and apply this ointment three times a day. It will heal in a few days."
As she spoke, Leng Ruo Li handed the ointment she had just used on the child to Niu Hua.
She then added, "After the anesthesia wears off, you can take your son home."
Niu Hua thanked Leng Ruo Li profusely with great gratitude.
After treating Niu Hua’s son’s boil, she came out to examine the remaining patients. Her old apprentice, without a word, followed closely behind her, watching her examine and treat people.
The second patient was Niu Cui’s mother-in-law.
The old woman had a kind face and a good complexion, dressed neatly, but her eyes were dim and lifeless.
"Miss, my mother-in-law's body is quite strong, but her eyes are problematic. In the past two years, for reasons unknown, her vision has become increasingly blurry."
Hearing Niu Cui’s words, Leng Ruo Li already had a general idea of the old woman's eye condition, suspecting she had age-related cataracts.
Then, Leng Ruo Li felt the old woman’s pulse. Just as Niu Cui had said, the old woman's body was indeed fine. Leng Ruo Li then took a chopstick and moved it back and forth in front of the old woman's eyes. She also lifted the old woman's eyelids to examine her eyeballs, finding that her eyes still had a slight reaction, indicating that medication could still be effective.
Therefore, Leng Ruo Li said solemnly to the mother and daughter-in-law, "Niu Cui, your mother-in-law's eyes can still be treated. I will prescribe some pills for you. Take them home and have your mother-in-law take them with Yang Bai. After a few days, regardless of whether her condition improves, you must bring her back for me to conduct a further examination of her eyes."
"Okay, thank you, Miss."
Then, Leng Ruo Li turned and walked back into the previous room. Niu Hua and her son had already left. She mentally retrieved medication for cataracts from her system space, placed it in her medical kit, opened the packaging, divided the medication into small paper packets, and then took them out to give to Niu Cui.
"These are the medications to treat your mother-in-law’s cataracts. Three times a day, one packet each time, with an interval of two and a half hours between doses…"
Leng Ruo Li carefully explained everything to the mother and daughter-in-law.
Niu Cui nodded continuously. After thanking Leng Ruo Li, she helped her mother-in-law leave.
Next, it was time for the third, fourth, and fifth patients…
In fact, none of these people had serious illnesses. They were mostly minor ailments like colds, headaches, and fevers, which could be quickly cured with medication.
In less than half an hour, Leng Ruo Li had finished examining them.
However, she found it perplexing that she hadn't seen Nie Cai Die today. Hadn't she always said her husband had a difficult-to-treat illness? Why hadn't she come today?