readytorunbook Chapter 217 Forced
Chapter 217 Forced
"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Yi." There were about a dozen people in the group. No one dared to look up. They all knelt on one knee and saluted.
"Forget it." Zhou Chang felt amused. One had an ox face, the other had a snake face, a pair of monsters, but none of them recognized her.
Cui Bian took a piece of white gauze from the two leading medical officers of the Plague Hospital, who were wearing the same gray cloaks, and presented it to Zhou Chang: "Your Highness Prince Yi, this is a white cloth fumigated with mugwort leaves. The medical officers of the Plague Hospital told us that if we enter the epidemic area, we can cover our face and mouth and nose with this cloth to ensure safety."
Zhou Chang knew that it was of little use, but at least it could block the smoke from the mugwort, so he took it.
The two medical officers behind him distributed the white cloth they brought to the rest of the people one by one.
Zhong Yuye took out a pile of handkerchiefs that he had prepared in advance from his bosom. I don’t know what kind of potion they were soaked in, but there was a herbal fragrance: “Your Highness, if you add this, you may have some difficulty breathing, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
When Zhou Chang discussed this matter yesterday, Zhong Yu suggested that they should be prepared. Unexpectedly, they actually made masks in private.
Zhou Chang didn't hold out hope for these things. She believed that a blacksmith must be strong himself to forge iron. She relied entirely on Prince Yi's own immunity.
But Zhong Yu was sincere, which was a double guarantee, so he took it and tied his mouth and nose.
Zhong Yu distributed it to everyone, and they covered their mouths and noses and prepared to set off.
Cui Bian had the fence removed and ordered two people to lead the way with burning mugwort.
The group marched into the epidemic area in a mighty procession.
Qin Shou was escorted by Gao Yuan and followed Zhou Chang closely, never leaving his side.
The doors of the houses on both sides of the street were closed, there were no pedestrians on the road, and only the occasional stray cats and dogs were running around on the street.
"Has it been banned? What do the people eat in their houses?" Zhou Chang was very confused. This situation was different from what he had imagined.
The patrol captain Cui Bian reported: "Your Highness Prince Yi, although this place belongs to the jurisdiction of the West City, it is close to the South City and used to be a market town. Now that martial law has been ordered, all shops must be closed and no one is allowed to operate. No one is allowed to enter or leave at will, so few people come and go."
Zhou Chang was disappointed: "I want to see the people who are really sick and know their conditions. How far are they from here?"
"This..." Cui Bian hesitated and looked at Qin Shou.
Qin Shou was almost pressed against Zhou Chang's side, speaking vaguely through the cloth: "Your Highness Prince Yi, it's fine for you to just watch here, but how can you personally come into contact with those who are already infected? There is no effective prescription yet. If Your Highness Prince Yi is infected with the epidemic, how can I explain it to you?"
"Don't you hope for the best for me?" Zhou Chang kept walking and even quickened his pace.
Cui Bian could only follow and continue to reply: "Your Highness, it's just two streets away, but it's not far, so I'll call a carriage."
"No need." Although it is winter now, the weather is warm today. Besides, walking more makes me feel warm. "Since they can set up a checkpoint here, it must not be too far away."
"Cough cough..." Zhou Chang said and continued to walk forward quickly. The smoke from the burning mugwort around him was really choking.
Zhou Chang and his group passed through the market town and walked along two more streets.
Just as he was about to turn, Cui Bian came up to stop him: "Your Highness Prince Yi, you can't go any further. To the west are shanty towns. It's not as quiet as this side. It's the hardest hit area in this outbreak."
"We need to look at the situation in the most serious areas. Otherwise, how can we ask Dean Qin to come up with the most effective prescription?" Zhou Chang turned around and looked at Qin Shou.
Qin Shou shrank his neck and held his breath, he was almost unable to breathe.
After Zhou Chang finished speaking, he turned west. The smoke from the burning mugwort in front of him was getting thicker and thicker.
"Your Highness Prince Yi, we can't go any further..." Qin Shou was startled and broke out in a cold sweat in the middle of winter. "Your Highness wants a prescription, and I can give it to you right now."
"How can that be possible? If he doesn't diagnose the pulse himself, how can Dean Qin guarantee the accuracy of the medication?" Zhou Chang didn't even turn his head back, but kept walking.
Qin Shou was being "escorted" by Gao Yuan, so he could only keep up and explain, "No need, Your Highness Prince Yi, there is really no need to take your pulse, Your Highness..."
"Dean Qin, please don't bully me because I don't know medicine." Zhou Chang showed his eyes with a smile on his face.
"Ahem..." Qin Shou had to take a deep breath, "How dare I lie to Your Highness? Although I have taken each person's pulse, observed, smelled, asked and felt each patient, different people may increase or decrease the dosage and prescription according to different situations, but the treatment of different diseases is different, and one prescription is equivalent to a hundred."
"Oh? That prescription is also necessary. It would be unreasonable not to see a patient." Zhou Chang was not trying to make things difficult for Qin Shou. After all, business was more important.
Qin Shou walked and spoke, looking very tired: "Ahem, Your Highness Prince Yi, you don't know that even if all the doctors in the Imperial Hospital and the entire Jindu City were combined and worked day and night, it would not be enough to diagnose and prescribe medicine for each patient. This is not advisable. We need to set a universal prescription and concentrate the government's efforts to distribute the boiled medicine. Only in this way can we save most people."
"Master Qin is right. It seems that you are more experienced. I should ask for your advice more." Zhou Chang agreed, but his pace did not slow down at all.
Qin Shou was unable to persuade Zhou Chang and insisted: "Therefore, Your Highness Prince Yi does not need to be anxious, and must not rush into the epidemic area..."
"Ahem..., how was such a prescription formulated? Doesn't it require more contact with the patient and understanding of his condition?" Zhou Chang raised his hand and got straight to the point.
"This..." Qin Shou's only exposed tadpole eye turned back and forth, and he tried to perfunctorily answer, "That's not necessary. According to the report from the medical officer of the Plague Hospital, the last prescription should be effective. You can boil the medicine according to this prescription first, and if it doesn't work after taking it, you can adjust it according to the situation."
"I see." Zhou Chang seemed to have heard it, but continued walking.
Since you could have just given me the prescription, why were you still making excuses before?
"Your Highness Prince Yi, so we don't have to go in ourselves. It's dangerous, dangerous..." Qin Shou grabbed Zhou Chang's sleeve.
Zhou Chang shook his head in disgust, but then "looked back and smiled": "Master Qin, are you going to go in by yourself? How can this be possible? I can't let you go alone."
"No, no, no..." Qin Shou's tadpole eyes jumped up and down, and he waved his hands quickly, "Your Highness Prince Yi, please don't go in, and I don't want to go in either."
"That's not hell. What happened to Dean Qin?" Zhou Chang knew what the consultant said, so he turned around and continued on his way.
Qin Shou was already shaking like a sieve, his feet moving non-stop.
Gao Yuan gave another push from behind.
"Captain Qin, taking the pulse of the people in the epidemic area should be the job of the Imperial Hospital. I am risking my life to accompany a gentleman. Ahem..." Zhou Chang raised his voice, fearing that Qin Shou could not hear him, but he was choked by the smoke of the wormwood.
Qin Shou was speechless and was forced to follow.