"Can this Gu Poison really be cured?" Li Shuang finally asked after a period of silence in the car.
Li Dayu had been wondering the sa thing. Back in his day, Gu Poison outbreaks were a death sentence for many, with no known cure. So practitioners weren’t even skilled enough to cure the poisons they themselves concocted.
For once, father and son were in perfect agreent. They both turned to look at Wang Jian.
Wang Jian carefully sorted through the information recorded in the ancient texts he had morized.
Those afflicted with Gu have sothing solid within them, accumulated over a long period. Dampness and heat give rise to worms. When the swelling persists, qi and blood congeal and cannot be dispersed. This is commonly known as Gu. Often, one takes insects and snakes, places them in a sealed vessel, and allows them to devour one another. The single creature that survives is called the Gu. It can then be used to bewilder and harm, entering a person’s body through food and drink to bring about disaster.
Wang Jian had read so many dical books that the information flooding his mind was chaotic. After a mont of organizing his thoughts, he managed to recall a few potential solutions and gave a firm nod.
"Yes, it can be cured," he confird. "There were successful cases even in ancient tis, to say nothing of modern science. As mystical as Gu Poison sounds, it’s ultimately just the manipulation of bacteria, plants, and animals. Even if we ignore that, it’s possible to cure it using detoxification thods."
Speaking of detoxification, Li Dayu imdiately thought of Zhao Chunyang’s recent turn for the worse. "But isn’t Lao Zhao detoxifying now? Why did this happen?" he asked quickly.
Wang Jian understood he was referring to Lao Zhao’s sudden collapse. "I suspected this might happen," he explained, "which is why I prescribed a detoxification formula with a potent dose. This reaction was, for the most part, expected." Wang Jian frowned. "I just didn’t anticipate certain complications.
"There are likely a great number of these worms still inside Secretary Zhao’s body. The potent dicine stimulated them, triggering such a violent reaction. The amount he vomited is probably just a fraction of what’s still inside."
At Wang Jian’s words, goosebumps erupted on Li Shuang and Li Dayu’s skin, and the hairs on their arms stood on end. The very thought of so many worms crawling inside a person’s body was enough to make their skin crawl.
The two of them had a tacit understanding not to ask any more questions, and silence fell over the car once more.
When the Cadillac arrived at the Zhao family’s ho, a man about Li Shuang’s age was already waiting anxiously by the door. He had a buzz cut, wore gold-rimd glasses, and had on a polo shirt with a popped collar. He paced back and forth, chain-smoking. A small pile of cigarette butts littered the ground at his feet. The neighbors who had been gossiping nearby were nowhere to be seen. They had clearly retreated into their hos now that the master of the house was present, not daring to point and whisper to his face.
As the car stopped, the man rushed over. Wang Jian heard Li Dayu call him Zhao Guozhi.
"Uncle Li, you’re finally here! Is there any news?"
Zhao Guozhi threw his cigarette to the ground, grabbing Li Dayu’s hand urgently without a second thought.
Li Dayu patted his hand reassuringly, then turned to introduce Wang Jian. "This is the brilliant doctor I told you about. He’s the one who figured out what was wrong with your father."
As soon as Li Dayu finished speaking, Zhao Guozhi’s gaze fell upon Wang Jian. Zhao Guozhi had the air of an intellectual about him. Wang Jian half-expected a classic trope to play out: the man would doubt his dical Skills because of his youth, forcing Wang Jian to prove himself and put him in his place.
But contrary to his expectations, after Li Dayu’s introduction, Zhao Guozhi rely glanced at him before dropping to his knees on the spot.
"Doctor! Doctor! I’m begging you, please save my father!"
This was a scene that none of the three had expected.
Even Wang Jian was stunned. Snapping back to his senses, he imdiately moved to help the man up. "What are you doing? There’s no need for this. I rushed over here to save him."
The sudden movent pulled at his shoulder wound, and he couldn’t help but gasp in pain.
Li Dayu saw this and hurried to help. "Guozhi, get up, quickly! Doctor Wang was shot in the shoulder yesterday, you..."
Before Li Dayu could finish, a dark stain of blood had already seeped through Wang Jian’s T-shirt.
Zhao Guozhi looked up just in ti to see it. His crying stopped abruptly as he stared, dazed, at the spreading bloodstain. Especially after hearing Li Dayu ntion a gunshot wound...
People still get shot these days? Is he bullshitting ?
Zhao Guozhi remained dazed for a mont before being overco with a wave of gratitude. This doctor had rushed over despite having a gunshot wound. What more could he say?
Zhao Guozhi scrambled to his feet and pulled Wang Jian inside, completely ignoring Li Dayu and Li Shuang.
"Hurry, Doctor, co with ! My dad is fading fast!"
Hearing this, Wang Jian picked up his pace.
But Zhao Guozhi’s next words made Wang Jian smile wryly.
"Doctor, I have to be honest with you. We already called for an ambulance. The doctors from the City Hospital might be on their way. I hope you don’t mind."
"What is there to mind?" Wang Jian said with that sa wry smile. "Even if you hadn’t called them, I would have told you to."
"How long until the ambulance gets here?" Wang Jian asked.
Zhao Guozhi thought for a mont. "Probably in five to ten minutes."
"That’s perfect," Wang Jian nodded. "I’ll examine him first."
The mont Wang Jian stepped inside, he was hit by the sa foul odor he had slled at the door. Li Dayu and Li Shuang slled it too. Having experienced it once before, Li Shuang handled it better this ti, but his face still twisted into a pained grimace.
The room was large and well-furnished. Zhao Chunyang was lying on the bed, his face a deathly pale and his lips purple. He had stopped muttering to himself and was no longer sweating, but every so often, sothing would dribble from his mouth. It wasn’t active vomiting; things were simply seeping out of his mouth as he lay there. This discharge was a mix of stomach acid, food particles, and a few writhing worms. If Mrs. Zhao hadn’t been diligently cleaning it up, the entire bed would have been soaked in filth.
This family really cares for each other, Wang Jian thought to himself. It’s much better than my own family; at least they’re happy together.
Shaking off the distracting thought, Wang Jian moved past Mrs. Zhao and sat down on a chair by the bed. With his uninjured hand, he took Zhao Chunyang’s pulse.
The pulse was faint and thready, but it was different from that of a typical illness.
Despite this, Wang Jian felt a sense of relief. His dicine had suppressed the chaotic infestation of the worms. It was normal for the pulse to be weak, as the body’s immune system was like a warzone. Zhao Chunyang was in the midst of that battle. Wang Jian’s herbal dicine had acted like a powerful bomb delivered to the immune system. Under such a sustained assault, the enemy—the Gu Poison—was showing signs of collapse, even as it continued to resist.
Wang Jian said nothing more. He had Li Shuang bring him his needle pack and then borrowed a clean, damp towel from Mrs. Zhao before turning his attention to Zhao Chunyang.
First, he lifted the blanket and shirt covering the man’s abdon, exposing the skin.
Horrifyingly, you could actually see things writhing and moving just beneath the surface of Zhao Chunyang’s stomach.
Mrs. Zhao gasped, taking several steps back. She had been stoic while cleaning up the vomit and filth, but this sight was too much.
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