Chapter 167: Chapter 167: Stop Crying, He’s Not Dead Yet
Meng Yao was holding a basin of bloody water, and Doctor Su hurriedly took it over.
The man trembled upon seeing the half-basin of blood.
With so much blood loss, how could anyone still be alive?
He burst into tears, "My poor brother-in-law, if I had known, I would have taken you home, at least you’d have seen Lian Niang one last time."
Meng Yao frowned, "Why are you crying? He’s not dead yet."
The man’s cries stopped abruptly, "He’s, he’s alright?"
"The surgery was very successful, but that doesn’t mean he’s out of danger," Meng Yao said. "The wound is stitched well, but during the healing process, there’s a risk of inflammation and pus formation. If the infection gets severe, it could lead to sepsis, and at that point, truly, nothing can be done."
Though there were many terms he didn’t understand, the man gathered that while he’s not dead yet, it doesn’t mean he won’t die in the future.
"What am I supposed to do then?" the man asked, bewildered.
"The patient needs to stay here for a few days, and I have to monitor his condition at all times. But you need someone here to look after him," Meng Yao said. "Will you be caring for him, or will someone else come?"
"I’m a grown man, how can I take care of someone?" the man said.
It’s not that he wasn’t willing, he truly didn’t know how. At home, his wife handled everything; he merely provided labor.
Meng Yao remembered him saying the injured man’s wife was pregnant, clearly unsuitable for caring duties.
"Ask his mother to come," Meng Yao suggested.
"My sister’s mother-in-law is long gone," the man said.
"Anyway, someone has to care for him," Meng Yao insisted.
A look of hesitation crossed the man’s face, "Logically, my sister is the most suitable, but I’m afraid she might get frightened."
"He won’t be returning for many days; do you think you can hide it from her?" Meng Yao countered.
The man scratched the back of his head, "I can’t hide it."
Meng Yao didn’t further engage the man and went on to instruct Doctor Su to prepare medications for him.
The wound is large, the blood loss significant, he needs nourishment to replenish qi and blood.
And he needs anti-inflammatory treatment.
When it comes to prescribing medicine, Doctor Su was more skilled.
"Doctor Meng, is the man really alright?" Doctor Su couldn’t help asking.
"As long as post-operative care is proper, he should be fine," Meng Yao replied.
"The suturing you mentioned, is it using needle and catgut to stitch the wound together?" Doctor Su’s face showed a hint of hesitation, but he couldn’t help asking.
He had heard from his master about the suturing skill, though his master had said it was lost to time.
Meng Yao was not particularly surprised; surgical suturing was not a later invention. Historical records trace it back to the Eastern Han period when Hua Tuo performed surgery on Guan Yu.
"Indeed, as you described," Meng Yao confirmed, indicating she used catgut, albeit sourced from the system.
According to the system, future surgical threads couldn’t be manufactured at the ancient level, so only catgut could be provided.
Fortunately, Meng Yao didn’t need to spend silver to buy these materials.
The system had repaired a function allowing Meng Yao to accumulate points by saving lives, which she could exchange for medical supplies not surpassing ancient times.
Originally, it was supposed to accumulate points moving forward.
But Meng Yao wouldn’t agree, adamantly insisting her previous points be counted.
The system, feeling somewhat guilty from its previous money-grabbing ways, begrudgingly granted Meng Yao’s request.
Upon receiving Meng Yao’s confirmation, Doctor Su was first incredulous, then excited and delighted.
"May I have a look at your stitched wound?"
Doctor Su was overflowing with curiosity, having only heard of it from his master but never seen it firsthand.
"You can see it when changing the dressing," Meng Yao said. "He needs to change the dressing every two days."
"Alright, alright," Doctor Su eagerly agreed.
Two days, he could wait.
The man finally made up his mind, "Doctor, I’ll go back and bring my sister. Women are detail-oriented and can take care of people. Plus, my brother-in-law would surely want to see her when he awakens. This is a medical facility, even if she gets frightened, you surely have ways."
Meng Yao nodded slightly, "Be mindful when you speak to her, just say he suffered a minor injury and you didn’t bring silver when you came. So you went back to have her come and pay the silver. Everything else, I’ll explain to her when she’s here."
"Alright, alright,"
After agreeing, the man hurriedly left.
Doctor Su hesitated, "Is it alright to have his almost full-term wife come?"
"The injured person’s wound is already bandaged, so she won’t see the ghastly wound which essentially removes visual stimuli. As long as he’s awake, it shouldn’t provoke her," Meng Yao said. "Don’t underestimate the resilience of pregnant women; women generally have higher tolerance than men."
"Tolerance?" Doctor Su asked, puzzled.
"It means their level of acceptance towards adverse situations," Meng Yao explained.
Doctor Su nodded thoughtfully.
Half an hour later, the man returned with his sister.
Just as Meng Yao expected, the woman’s face was full of worry but not panic.
"Lian Niang, it was this female doctor who saved your husband," the man pointed to Meng Yao.
The woman named Lian Niang clumsily greeted Meng Yao, but Meng Yao stopped her, "No need for formalities, you should sit and rest. When he wakes up, I’ll bring you in. He’s not awake because of the medicine, not because of the injury, so you needn’t worry too much."
"Alright, doctor." Though anxious, Lian Niang obediently sat down, knowing to heed the doctor’s advice while in the clinic.
Soon after she sat down, Chai Hu came out from watching the patient, "Doctor Meng, Doctor Su, he’s awake."
He woke up two periods earlier than Meng Yao anticipated; some people are naturally resistant to anesthesia, the same dosage might last two hours for most, but only one for some.
This difference isn’t particularly unusual.
"I’ll take you inside."
Meng Yao led Lian Niang inside the room, the man was visibly excited, "Lian Niang, why are you here?"
He tried to get up as he spoke.
Fortunately, the anesthesia hadn’t completely worn off yet, so although the man’s awareness returned, his body was still under anesthesia’s effect.
"You can’t exert yourself now," Meng Yao said sternly.
The wound was on his abdomen; exertion would tear it open, and her efforts would be in vain.
The man realized belatedly, "Doctor, I’ve been stitched up successfully?"
Meng Yao nodded.
The man, exhibiting a careless demeanor, beamed, "Doctor, your skills are remarkable. I feel as though I’m not injured at all, not feeling a bit of pain!"
"You don’t feel pain now because the anesthetic is still effective. Once it wears off, you’ll feel the pain as it truly is," Meng Yao said expressionlessly. "If the pain becomes unbearable, I can brew some soup medicine for relief, but it will affect wound healing."
"Nah, don’t add it; I can bear the pain," the man said jovially.