Chapter 6 – Surgery
Surgery
She could have done it herself, and Feng Yu Heng was confidence she would have done it better. But she must keep her identity a secret! She had to remind herself that she was just a 12 year old girl. Just a little girl.
The old man also set to work. He pulled a scalpel out of his medical kit and began scraping the dead flesh from the brocade-wearing man.
Scrape by scrape, the blood dripped from the wound. Bai Ze even furrowed his brows while watching. Feng Yu Heng and the brocade-wearing man, however, looked as though nothing were wrong.
She was calm because she had complete faith in her medicine, while he truly did not feel even the slightest bit of pain! He couldn’t help but glance towards the bottle of medicine a few more times.
The old man’s technique was also skillful. Not long after, all the dead flesh had been removed. Bai Ze brought more clean water to rinse the wound, and Feng Yu Heng took advantage of the situation to spray the medicine again. Seeing it sprayed again, the brocade-wearing man couldn’t help feel his heart ache- “I didn’t feel any pain, so spare some of it.”
“Shush.” She looked him over once, and he lower his head in silence.
The old man, using both hands, held the top and bottom portions of the patella. His voice sounded out: “I’ll be setting the bones. After the bones are set, I will bind the injured area with medicinal bandages. All that remains is to get plenty of rest.”
The brocade-wearing man indicated he understood, so the old man said no more. He firmly held the bones with his hands, then suddenly exerted some power. A “clack” sound rang out. One patella had been set.
“Leave this to me. You go ahead and set the other leg.” Feng Yu Heng, holding a thick branch, received the old man’s medical kit and began rummaging around.
The old man could see that she understood medical practices, so he did not stop her. Instead, he walked around to the other side.
The medical kit contained a small variety of medicinal herbs. There were enough common herbs, but…
Feng Yu Heng was uneasy. The injury was too severe. If the medicinal bandages alone were used, then it would probably not be sufficient. The conditions present on this mountain were abysmal. It was wet and humid, which made infection very likely. This damnable era. What is the Da Shun dynasty? In the past, she had never seen it in any history books. There probably wouldn’t be any anti-inflammatory drugs either.
Thinking briefly, she reached her right hand in to her sleeve and pulled a small pouch of antibiotics from her pharmacy.
These antibiotics originally belonged to the army, but she had taken them back to her pharmacy in some large self-sealing bags. She then separated them in to fifty smaller packages.
“What is this now?” Bai Ze expressed curiously, no longer doubting her.
“Even if I told you, you wouldn’t understand.” She said, unwilling to divulge too much. “Either way, it can only help with his injury. There’s nothing bad in it.”
She poured some medical powder on the wound then wrapped it with a cotton cloth from the medical kit. Then she used the branch as a knee brace to keep it stable.
With this side completed, the other knee had also been mended. Repeating the steps, she wrapped the other leg. With this, both legs were treated, and the old man finally let out a sigh. Slightly trembling, he looked at the brocade-wearing man.
The man stared at his legs for quite a while. Only then did he raise his head and thank the old man. He then ordered Bai Ze: “Safely escort this gentleman back to the prefecture capital.”
“What about you?” Bai Ze was hesitant to leave him alone and turned his eyes towards Feng Yu Heng.
She could only resign herself to staying, “I’ll stay and look after him.”
The old man added: “Just escorting me out of the mountains is enough. I know the roads outside.”
Bai Ze had nothing else to say as he quickly led the old man away.
Only after they had walked further away did Fneg Yu Heng pick up the broken jar to fetch more water. Upon returning, she had two white pills in her hand.
“Eat this.” She handed both the pills and the water to the brocade-wearing man. “If you don’t eat it, it’s very likely that you will have a fever… err feel warm. If things go poorly, then the treatment will have been for naught.”
The man said nothing. He immediately ate the pills upon receiving them causing her to stare blankly at him: “You aren’t worried that I might have given you poison?”
He quietly hmphed, “A poison made so exquisitely, if I’ve eaten it, then I’ve eaten it.” After saying that, he raised his hand towards Feng Yu Heng, “Give it.”
“Huh?” She responded absentmindedly. Quickly remembering, she handed over the spray bottle. “There is still a good amount left. For this injury, there is enough for three more uses.”
He looked at the bottle in his hands and tried to imitate her actions. Looking towards the nozzle, Feng Yu Heng quickly stopped him. “Don’t press it!” Then made sure to instruct him. “Look, there’s a small opening here. Aim it towards the targeted area then squeeze to spray it. If you squeezed it earlier, it would’ve been sprayed in your eyes.”
He accepted the lesson. “Thank you.”
The two sat there, neither speaking a word. The brocade-wearing man closed his eyes and leaned against a tree. It was hard to tell just what he was thinking about. Feng Yu Heng held her right wrist, as her conscious mind dove straight back to her pharmacy.
In her previous life, there was a phoenix-shaped birthmark on her right arm. Who would have expected that after reincarnating, it would still be there. Furthermore, it brought along her pharmacy.
The pharmacy was as she had left it. The first floor was for Western medicine and prescription Chinese medicines. There was also a wall of Chinese herbal medicine.
The main draw of the second floor was simple medical equipment. Hidden there, were also some not-for-market special medicines, the majority of which she’d taken from the Marine Corps. She had also collected some miracle drugs from around the world.
Among the various arrangements, was a table of medical supplies. For example: gauze, tape, cotton balls, alcohol, iodine, and those sorts of things. In addition, she spent her resting time on the second floor, so there was a washroom and a shower room. There was even a refrigerator and a microwave.
The table still had her most commonly used make up items. The drawer even still contained snacks. It also had a jewelry box. She didn’t usually wear jewelry, and those that she left at the pharmacy were not worth very much. Most were made of silver and were purchased because she thought they were pretty, but she never ended up wearing them. There were a few pieces of gold jewelry, none with diamonds, but there was one with a ruby.
These sorts of things were extremely common, but currently, it was like going back to the stone age. Oh… but she really had gone back in time.
Feng Yu Heng inwardly sighed, subconsciously, she had thought about the helicopter crash, but did not want to think too deeply on it. She knew that it was not a simple disaster. Her theories were all haphazard, but she did not want to admit it.
Regardless, she was alive again. In regards to the pharmacy being accessible, she was very pleased. Her previous life’s specialties were only Chinese medicine and Western medicine. Chinese medicine was an ancestral craft passed down through the generations. Western medicine was a product of decade-long research phases combined with combat testing. If fighting wars counted as a skill, then she could be considered a top professional. At least if it was a one on one, she could draw even with the most iron-willed men in the Corps.
But these sorts of things, would they be of use in this era?
Something went off in her mind, and she removed her consciousness from the space.
Not far away, a person’s shadow appeared. She warily looked over, and the brocade-wearing man spoke: “It’s Bai Ze returning.”
Feng Yu Heng rose, “Since your people have returned, I will be leaving.”
She did her best to keep snot from dripping, the mountain was rather chilly. “It’s really unfair. In treating your leg, I also had a part. Yet you did not tell Bai Ze to escort me.” Then without waiting for the other party to respond, she waved her hands and continued, “I’m kidding. But…” The girl’s eyes flashed. “I took care of your problems. Shouldn’t you give something in return?”
“Hm?” The brocade-wearing man displayed a slight shock, then let out a bitter smile. “What sort of repayment do you want?”
She counted on her fingers: “Not only did I help treat your injury, I also gave you three kinds of medicines. I also gave you the remainder of the medicine. You tell me how much that cost.”
Reluctantly he said, “I know that medicine is advanced and hard to get. Problem is I really don’t have that amount of money right now.” While speaking, he removed a pouch from his waist and weighed it with his hand. “There is at most 20 taels1 of silver pieces. Considering you live in the mountains, this should be easier to use.”
“20 taels?” She pondered for a moment. She couldn’t figure out how much 20 taels was worth.
He thought she was thinking it wasn’t enough, “If we meet again, no matter the amount this girl asks, I will not say no.”
Feng Yu Heng hated these sorts of words. ‘If we meet again.’ when these sorts of words were spoken, it usually meant they would never meet again.
She once again looked uncontrollably at his forehead. The lotus flower so purple it made it hard for people to look away. It made her feel like she had taken a huge loss.
“Then let’s do that.” Receiving the bag of money, Feng Yu Heng weighed it in her hands. It was pretty heavy. Then, following the directions memorized by the body’s previous owner, she headed down the mountain in big strides.
The brocade-wearing man watched the small, small shadow get further away. She was small and weak, but displayed a hardheaded stubbornness. His expression slowly revealed a faint smile. Seeing this smile as he returned, Bai Ze was frightened. It truly frightened the guard who had grown up with him.
“Young, young master.” Was he smiling?
“Hm.” He ceased reminiscing. “How did it go?”
“I escorted him to the entrance to the mountain and knocked him out. Whether he survives before waking up is reliant on his own luck.” Having said that, Bai Ze glanced in the direction Feng Yu Heng had gone. “Young master, do you want this subordinate to take care of business over there?”
“No need.” The brocade-wearing man quickly responded. “We’ll leave this mountain tomorrow.”
“Subordinate obeys!”
…
1 A tael is a measurement of weight for ancient currency, usually silver.