Chapter 671: Chapter 229: Purple Clouds
The snow and wind in the courtyard had not stopped; the window was closed again.
Lin Danqing sat down in front of Lu Tong, her brow slightly furrowed as she took the pulse of the person before her.
After a while, she withdrew her hand and looked at Lu Tong with suspicion, "Strange, there’s nothing wrong."
"Don’t worry," Lu Tong said, "maybe it’s just that I’ve been sleeping too late these days."
Lin Danqing shook her head, "I thought you had caught the epidemic just now."
As soon as she entered the room, she saw Lu Tong sitting under the window, lost in thought, with blood trickling down her nose, which startled her. Although the medical officers at the Medical Officer Institute wore medicine pouches and used Plague-Expelling Incense daily and took Plague-Expelling Decoction, there were still a few medical officers who had unfortunately contracted the epidemic in recent days.
The elderly, the weak, and those with existing chronic ailments were the most vulnerable to the onslaught of the epidemic. Lin Danqing, Ji Xun, and Lu Tong, who were still young, were among the least worrisome of the medical officers treating the epidemic.
"No," Lu Tong said, noticing her serious expression, and proactively rolled up her sleeve to show her, "I have no ’peach blossom spots’ on my body."
In the great epidemic of Su Nan, those who caught the disease would gradually develop large patches of red on their bodies and hands, resembling peach blossoms, hence named "peach blossom spots." When the color of the spots turned from red to purple, forming "purple cloud spots," the patients’ vitalities would diminish.
Cuicui’s mother was covered in "purple cloud spots" before she died.
Her arm, pale and without a hint of spotting, made Lin Danqing breathe a sigh of relief. Her brow furrowed again as she held onto Lu Tong’s arm.
"How have you become so thin?" she asked, "I could encircle this arm with just one hand."
Lu Tong had always been slender; Lin Danqing used to think that it was the refined and elegant beauty of a woman from the south, but now on closer look, she was indeed excessively thin.
"Your complexion doesn’t look good, either," Lin Danqing observed her, "much weaker than when we were in Shengjing."
Lu Tong withdrew her hand, lowering her sleeve, "It’s nothing."
"Younger Sister Lu, don’t neglect your own health," Lin Danqing shook her head, "Patients are important, but you need to rest too. If you fall ill yourself, how will you treat the people of Su Nan City with the epidemic? It’s not normal to have a nosebleed for no reason; even if it isn’t the epidemic, it must be that you’re not well."
"I’ll go tell Chief Physician Chang right away that you shouldn’t be called to the Plague Hospital tonight, and rest more at your accommodations for the next couple of days."
"No need..."
"What do you mean, no need? Listen to me." She took a handkerchief, wiped the bloodstains on Lu Tong’s skirt. After two swipes, the stains became more mottled, a chilling spread of red.
"Rest more, eat more," she said, "After all, Pei Yunmeng has brought medicine and food supplies. We’re not going hungry now, understand?"
Her words were resolute; Lu Tong fell silent for a while, then nodded, "Mhm."
...
Perhaps Lin Danqing had said something to Chang Jin, for the next two days, Chang Jin did not allow Lu Tong to go to the Plague Hospital.
With the Plague Hospital’s affairs being so busy, when Chang Jin found a gap in his schedule to see Lu Tong, he was very serious. He not only took her pulse himself but also had Ji Xun take her pulse again, not relaxing until he confirmed she had not caught the epidemic.
Chang Jin thought she was just overworked and weak, which caused the sudden nosebleed, and told her to rest well at her accommodations. Duan Xiaoyan had visited once, bringing a lot of dry food and meals, which was the best he could do under the circumstances. He also subtly reminded her to eat more to nourish her body, offering his help for anything she might need.
Lu Tong knew he was speaking on behalf of someone else and thanked him sincerely.
Without needing to go to the Plague Hospital or make medicinal pouches, Lu Tong started writing prescriptions to treat the epidemic while at her accommodations.
In Su Nan City now, they relied on rashes to confirm the epidemic, but by the time the rash appeared, it was often too late. The disease initially caused no pain, then gradually fever and body aches set in, along with intense chills, affecting the exterior without penetrating deeper.
The medical officers were now treating both the exterior and interior, but the effect of the decoctions was only to slow down the deepening of the rash, with no significant results.
Lu Tong looked at the prescription and frowned as she crossed out the herbs listed at the top.
Still not right.
As she was pondering, Lin Danqing came in from outside.
She shook off the snowflakes from her body and, seeing the prescription Lu Tong had written, read, "San Xiao Drink... Da Yuan Drink with added Ascend-Dispersing Triple Yang Meridians of bupleurum, kudzu root, notopterygium, and rhubarb..."
"A prescription for dispersing and releasing," she pondered for a moment, "This prescription is quite similar to the new one that Doctor Ji and Chief Physician Chang have written."
Lu Tong looked up, "A new prescription?"
"Yeah," Lin Danqing said, "Yes, because the epidemic has been dragging on, everyone decided to switch prescriptions, but this new one is a bit bold. Ding Yong volunteered to test it on himself. He started taking it last night," she was puzzled, "I thought Doctor Ji had already talked to you about it before."
Lu Tong’s brows furrowed even more.
Ji Xun indeed had mentioned it to her before, but she had clearly expressed her disagreement. She thought at least it wouldn’t happen so quickly, but she didn’t expect that Ding Yong had already begun to take the medication.