allonlinenovel Chapter 428: This isn't how you save someone
Chapter 428: This isn't how you save someone
Li Wan'er held Fang Xiaoxiao's hand, her face showing a mixture of expectation and pity.
Fang Xiaoxiao composed herself, took a deep breath, and glanced at the gentle and charming princess.
She couldn't bear to see people suffer, but since they were living in a chaotic world, helping them would only attract more people in such a miserable situation.
It's important to understand that this only addresses the symptoms and not the root cause.
The day before yesterday, Fang Xiaoxiao helped the woman who sold herself to bury her husband. She had only agreed to buy her because the woman was kneeling at the entrance of the inn and her voice was not expected to cause unnecessary trouble.
Today is different. There are people kneeling in front of me, selling themselves to bury their fathers, mothers, and family members. There are four or five of them right in front of me, not to mention the people along the streets and alleys in front of me.
Just as she was pondering how to refuse the princess, a dirty little girl grabbed her trouser leg.
The little girl looked adorable and had a lovely appearance.
She raised her head and said weakly.
"Sister, are you a doctor? Can you save my mother?"
The little girl had a lovely voice, so much so that Li Wan'er couldn't help but squat down, just as she was about to tell her that it was true.
Seeing this, Fang Xiaoxiao quickly covered her mouth and shook her head shyly.
"Little friend, I'm not a doctor. If you want to save your mother, you have to go to the clinic."
The princess, whose mouth was suddenly covered, was very confused by Fang Xiaoxiao's actions. She tried to break free, but she was too weak and couldn't break free like a little quail when facing Fang Xiaoxiao, who had learned martial arts.
Fang Xiaoxiao shook her head again and blinked her eyes to signal her to be quiet.
Fortunately, the princess was not an unreasonable person and quickly understood what she meant, nodding and blinking to indicate that she understood.
The little girl looked disappointed when she heard Fang Xiaoxiao's answer. She wanted to say something, but in the end, she didn't speak.
Fang Xiaoxiao noticed the girl's disappointed expression, and a thought flashed through her mind.
It seems unlikely that the girl would ask if she was a doctor, unless she could smell the medicinal herbs on herself. Otherwise, theoretically, the girl wouldn't ask her.
The thought flashed through my mind and was gone in an instant.
Li Wan'er also freed herself from her grasp, looked at the girl with a hint of apology, and prepared to give the girl some silver.
This time, Fang Xiaoxiao did not stop her. She simply deliberately blocked the princess's view of taking the silver to prevent others from seeing it.
Li Wan'er cooperated by taking out a tael of silver from her sleeve, quickly stuffing the silver into the little girl's arms, and whispering instructions.
"Sister, don't let anyone see this. Quickly take it to a doctor to treat your mother."
She spoke quickly, blinked her clever little eyes at the two of them, then turned and left with her head down, heading towards the alley ahead.
After watching the girl leave safely, Fang Xiaoxiao and her companion got up and walked back to their original destination.
Next.
The two headed towards the east end of the city, searching along the way for the location of an old friend who ran a clinic, as introduced by the disheveled Taoist priest before they left.
Fortunately, after walking for about half an hour, they saw a sign that read "Wanjia Medical Hall and Pharmacy" in the middle of the street.
Because Chengdong Road is home to many wealthy people, it is not as hellish as the outer city. However, there are not many pedestrians or shops open on the street, except for pharmacies which continue to operate normally.
Wanjia Medical Clinic is the largest on the entire East Street, with only a few small herbal medicine shops scattered around.
Fang Xiaoxiao and the princess stood at the shop entrance, just about to go in, when a disheveled man with a scratched face walked out of the shop.
The man complained to the store.
"My lady, how can you be so fierce? I only wanted to check on Little Mantou's mother's illness first."
"Look at you, all you do is go see that vixen all day long. I know what you're up to. You just want to take her as your concubine because you see she's all alone and helpless!"
Before Fang Xiaoxiao could ask if the man was Li Shizhen's old friend, a woman with a voice like a duck appeared in front of the two with heavy steps.
The woman was very tall, half a head taller than Fang Xiaoxiao who was 170cm, and had a robust and powerful figure. Her round face was filled with anger.
She first glared at her own man, then looked at Fang Xiaoxiao and her companion.
The woman was a shrewd businesswoman and quickly realized that it was a customer. She immediately suppressed her anger and looked at the two men with a smile.
"Oh my, oh my rare guests! Ladies, are you here to buy some medicinal herbs, or do you need to see a doctor?"
"Let me tell you, our Wan Family Medical Clinic is the largest shop in the entire city of Suzhou. We have all kinds of medicinal herbs, and my husband can even treat the plague."
Can the plague be cured?
A hint of surprise flashed in Fang Xiaoxiao's eyes. No wonder they hadn't found any plague patients on East Street, or even many people buying medicine. It turned out there was such a skilled doctor there.
But then again, if this disheveled Taoist priest's old friend has such abilities, why doesn't he heal the entire city's inhabitants?
With a question in mind, Fang Xiaoxiao asked the man.
"Hello doctor, we were introduced by Master Li. May we come into the shop to talk?"
The man turned around in surprise and straightened his clothes.
"Madam, is the Taoist priest Li you're talking about the one who practices acupuncture at that run-down Taoist temple on the outskirts of the city?"
"That's right, that's right, it's that old geezer."
"Ha, I didn't expect that Master Li would still be as carefree as ever, without any regard for appearance."
"Can we go inside the store?"
Fang Xiaoxiao asked.
The man was no longer as weak as before; instead, he looked at his wife with a serious expression.
"A friend of Master Li."
The woman immediately became respectful and quickly made way for her.
The group entered the pharmacy.
As soon as Fang Xiaoxiao sat down, the man closed the door of the pharmacy and told his wife to go to the backyard first.
The woman wasn't angry and obediently agreed to leave.
This unusual change puzzled Fang Xiaoxiao and her companion.
The man first poured tea for Fang Xiaoxiao, and then spoke.
"You must be Madam Fang, right?"
"Ok?"
“Last night, Master Li came to see me and told my wife that you have developed a medicine called Banlangen that can cure the plague.”
Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaoxiao finally understood. It turned out that the slovenly old Taoist priest had informed the other party in advance, which explained why the couple's attitude changed so quickly.
Before she could answer, the man continued.
"Master Li not only told me that the Banlangen medicine that my wife developed has extraordinary effects, but also said that it tastes good, unlike the medicine I drink now, which is nauseating and hard to swallow. May I see it for myself, my wife?"
Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaoxiao took out the prepared Banlangen (Isatis root) and placed it on the table.
"Due to time constraints, it was impossible to make it more refined."
The man picked up the Banlangen medicine wrapped in kraft paper from the table as if he had found a treasure.
These granules are similar in shape to elixirs, only smaller in size.
During the production process, Fang Xiaoxiao thought of kneading it into mud balls, since there wasn't enough time to make the Isatis root as small as it was in her previous life.