Chapter 60 The Thread of Life
"What method, what method?"
Guard Li's reaction was first one of confusion, but then he quickly asked.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
The other guards also looked over.
"In a nearby village, there is a famous doctor..."
As Ma Gu described, the eyes of Guard Li and the others gradually lit up.
They had also heard of the Old Doctor Chen that Ma Gu spoke of.
Rumors had it that the elder doctor was highly skilled in medicine and had earned the appreciation of many nobles; even the County Lord had praised him.
It was said that the elder doctor did not live in the city, and unexpectedly, he resided in a nearby village.
With such an impressive doctor nearby, Guard Li and the others instantly decided to abandon the risky option of taking the young master back to the city.
"Brother Ma, where is Jiuli Village?" Guard Li asked anxiously.
"It's just three or four miles away from here. I have a subordinate who is very familiar with that area and can lead you there!" Ma Gu said.
Previously, he had sent his subordinate Xiao Tian to Jiuli Village to investigate matters regarding Lu Qing, never expecting that it would come in handy here.
Ma Gu immediately called for Xiao Tian and, under his guidance, the group set off for Jiuli Village.
On the way, Ma Gu finally learned how exactly Young Master Wei had fallen into the valley.
It turned out that he had been chasing a peculiar little beast and refused to give up even at the cliff's edge, which resulted in a misstep and his fall.
Luckily, the valley was not very deep and there were some trees in the middle to break his fall.
Moreover, with the great efforts of the Wei Family's cultivation and resources poured into him, Young Master Wei himself had reached the Qi Blood Realm in martial arts, boasting quite a strong physique.
That's the only reason he didn't immediately die.
Otherwise, even with ten lives, one fall like that, and he would have lost them all.
After listening to Guard Li's account, Ma Gu was speechlessly incredulous.
How foolish must one be to chase after a wild animal and fall into a valley—especially being a Qi Blood Realm Martial Artist.
The group hurried towards Jiuli Village, and under Xiao Tian's lead, they headed straight for Old Doctor Chen's Half Mountain Small Courtyard.
Arriving at the courtyard, Ma Gu spotted a familiar figure.
He called out repeatedly, "Young Master Lu, Young Master Lu, save a life, please save a life!"
Lu Qing, who was drying medicinal herbs in front of the courtyard, was startled.
Turning around and seeing Ma Gu in the lead, he was quite surprised.
He had thought he wouldn't see him again until the next big market day, but unexpectedly, they met again just one day later.
"What's the matter, Master Ma?" Lu Qing asked.
"Young Master Lu, is Old Doctor Chen at home? We have a severely injured patient who urgently needs his treatment!" Ma Gu spoke with urgency.
Lu Qing then noticed the stretcher behind them.
Although he was shocked to see that the one lying on it was the well-dressed young noble, he knew the situation was urgent and quickly stepped aside.
"Please come in, my master is just resting inside. I'll go call him right away!"
Having said that, he ran into the courtyard.
Ma Gu and the others swiftly followed.
The elder doctor was merely napping lightly inside and had already been awakened by the noise outside.
By the time Ma Gu and the others entered the courtyard, he had also come out of the house.
Seeing the pale face of Young Master Wei on the stretcher, he immediately realized the severity of the situation.
He felt the pulse and his expression grew solemn.
He ordered, "Quick, bring the person inside."
At the same time, he instructed Lu Qing, "Ah Qing, go quickly make a batch of Blood-Boosting Medicine, Atractylodes, Angelica... boil with three bowls of water, on a high flame, hurry!"
"Yes, master!"
Lu Qing responded and immediately ran to the medicine cabinet to start selecting medicines.
Although he had spent most of his free time practicing martial arts cultivation in the past few days,
when at the Half Mountain Small Courtyard, he mainly learned medical skills from his master.
Possessing superpowers, Lu Qing learned everything exceedingly fast.
In just a few short days, not only had he mastered the technique of selecting medicines, but he also learned the basic methods of decoction.
After selecting the appropriate medicines, Lu Qing began to prepare the decoction as instructed by his master.
The furnace for boiling medicine was specially made to adjust the heat as required.
Lu Qing directly applied a strong and speedy flame, and before long, he had the medicinal concoction ready.
He poured the medicinal juice into a bowl and watched intently.
Before long, a white light began to emanate from the medicine in the bowl.
Seeing the information provided by Superpower, Lu Qing finally felt relieved.
As long as the medicine wasn't prepared incorrectly, it was fine. As for the diminished medicinal properties, there was nothing to be done about it.
Under such urgent circumstances, it was already quite good to have seventy percent efficacy.
After confirming there were no issues with the medicine, Lu Qing hurriedly carried the medicine to the patient.
By this time, Young Master Wei had already been moved into the sickroom, and aside from Guard Li, everyone else had been asked by Old Doctor Chen to wait outside temporarily.
When they saw Lu Qing coming, everyone stepped aside to clear a path, not daring to hinder him in the slightest.
Entering the room, Lu Qing saw that Young Master Wei had his shirt removed, and his body was full of silver needles.
The dreadful wound on his stomach made Lu Qing's heart skip a beat.
"Master, the medicine is ready."
Lu Qing handed over the medicine. Discover hidden stories at empire
Old Doctor Chen took the medicine, sniffed it to confirm there was no problem, and nodded slightly.
"You feed him the medicine," Old Doctor Chen instructed.
"Yes, Master."
Lu Qing picked up a spoon, scooped up a spoonful of the medicinal soup, and slowly brought it to Young Master Wei's lips.
However, by this time, Young Master Wei was barely conscious and unable to swallow the medicine.
But this was no trouble for Old Doctor Chen.
He simply pinched Young Master Wei's throat a few times, and miraculously, Young Master Wei's throat began to move, swallowing the spoonful of soup.
Following the same method, under the combined efforts of the master and apprentice, Young Master Wei slowly consumed the entire bowl of medicine.
Old Doctor Chen then continued with the acupuncture, aiding in the rapid absorption of the medicinal effects.
After the soup was ingested, and with the addition of Old Doctor Chen's acupuncture, in a short while, Young Master Wei's complexion was no longer so pale, and there was a slight rising and falling in his chest and abdomen.
Guard Li had been watching very nervously from the side, and seeing this scene, the huge weight in his heart lifted a little.
He knew that the young master and their group of guards had, for the moment, been pulled back a bit from the brink of death.
"Elder Chen, how is my young master doing?"
Seeing Old Doctor Chen stop his work, Guard Li hurriedly asked.
Old Doctor Chen pondered for a moment and replied, "This young man is also quite fortunate. Despite the large gash on his stomach, it has not cut into the inner organs or intestines, which is a piece of fortunate news amidst this misfortune."
"However, he has lost a great deal of blood, and his head has suffered an impact. He also has many cuts on his hands and feet; the situation remains dire."
"At this point, all I can do is to use the medicinal soup in conjunction with acupuncture to cling onto his life temporarily. As for when he can wake up, that's very hard to say."
Hearing that the young master's life was temporarily saved, Guard Li finally felt somewhat relieved.
As long as the person was still alive, there was room for everything to be rectified.
Otherwise, if the young master died, even if they could escape with their lives, their families would have nowhere to run.
"Elder Doctor, what can we do now?" Guard Li asked.
Old Doctor Chen considered for a moment and answered, "The biggest problem for this young man right now is the excessive blood loss. The injury on his abdomen is merely an external wound and has not harmed the intestines. If we could get our hands on some sufficiently old ginseng, fleeceflower root, and notoginseng—herbs that are vital for replenishing blood and stopping bleeding—I would have much more confidence in preserving his life."
At this point, Old Doctor Chen seemed somewhat regretful.
If they still had the ginseng Lu Qing had brought a few days ago, he would have been able to maximize the preservation of this young man's primordial Qi.
Under the current circumstances, even if this young man could be saved, he feared that there would be a severe loss of his primordial Qi.
"Ginseng, fleeceflower root, and notoginseng, right? Don't worry, Elder Doctor; I'll send someone to fetch them from the city right away!"
After saying this, Guard Li stepped outside.
Outside, Ma Gu and the others were anxiously waiting. Seeing Guard Li come out, they immediately gathered around him.
"How is it, how's the young master doing?"
"The young master is temporarily out of danger."
This declaration by Guard Li let everyone sigh in relief—especially the guards, who showed an expression of surviving a disaster.
"However, the young master's condition is still rather serious. Old Zhao, you and Xiao Gu head back now; report the situation here to the Family Head's lady and ask the lady to go to the medicine storehouse to fetch some blood-boosting herbs like ginseng, fleeceflower root, and notoginseng. Elder Doctor said that with these herbs, there's a better chance for the young master to pull through..."
Under Guard Li's command, the two named guards accepted the order with solemn expressions and quickly departed.
Ma Gu, who was standing by, shifted his eyes upon hearing this.
Then he pulled his subordinate, Xiao Tian, aside and gave instructions in a low voice.
"You go back and retrieve the War Saber hanging in my study for me."