The less people want to talk, the more Zhao Chuan wants to know. Zhao Chuan has this character and is naturally curious.
"Is there a plague in the Marquis's barracks in Jiangzhou City some time ago? I heard that the Marquis sent out orders to recruit Qihuang Saints to treat illnesses. Did your father also go there, and then something happened?" Zhao Chuan started to quote and guess the ending.
"No!" Shopkeeper Wang said simply, "Our family doesn't have that ability. We can only look after some minor illnesses among the people. My father can't go to the Marquis's affairs!"
Zhao Chuan drank all the tea, stood up and said, "I feel that the old man worked hard sitting in court, treating diseases and saving people in the world. Although he had no merit, he still worked hard, but he ended up being beaten to death and not having a good death. In fact, It's tragic. I wanted to ask about the situation and see if I could help complain and ask questions. Since you don't want to mention it, I won't force it. Then I'll pick up the medicine I ordered in a few days."
Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Wang stood up and stopped him, saying that the noble man should stay and don't leave. If you are really interested in listening, I will tell you.
Shopkeeper Wang sat down, lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then raised his head and shouted in the direction of the backyard, asking his wife to come and serve tea again.
Shopkeeper Wang called three times, but no one in the backyard responded.
"Oh, this little lady went to play cards next door again! She just likes playing cards, so there's nothing she can do about it." The man smiled and sighed, with a helpless expression.
Seeing Shopkeeper Wang talking about her wife, Zhao Chuan asked him where her wife was from.
Shopkeeper Wang said he didn't know, she was a homeless girl picked up at the Jiangzhou City Pier.
Picked up from the dock?
Zhao Chuan asked when this happened?
Shopkeeper Wang said that a few days ago, he went to the dock to deliver herbs to a merchant on a boat. When he returned home, it was almost dark, and he met this homeless wandering woman, clutching her stomach, dying and very dirty. It seems that at that time she asked me to help find some women's washing work, so that I could support myself.
"I saw how pretty she was, so I took her home. After the second dose of medicine, she was fine on the third day. I changed her clothes and washed her face. Hey, she is a great beauty. I picked up a beautiful wife for nothing! "Shopkeeper Wang was overjoyed.
"Then what will she do?" Zhao Chuan asked.
Shopkeeper Wang was stunned when asked, "What else can a woman do? Just eat, sleep, and serve me."
"Didn't you just say that she can play cards?" Zhao Chuan laughed.
"Haha, this, this, I can also play cards. I just came here to live, and I don't have children. The store is not busy. I want to have fun. It's not important. It doesn't matter..." Shopkeeper Wang laughed sheepishly. Covering up his embarrassment, he picked up the empty tea cup and got up to make tea in the backyard.
Zhao Chuan calculated the date. At that time, there were water bandits on the luxury passenger ship, and the passengers were transferred to other passenger ships first. I feel like this Wang Decai woman is the vixen on the ship, but I don’t know if this spirit can really harm people. It depends on the fate of shopkeeper Wang.
Not long after, shopkeeper Wang made tea again.
Zhao Chuan then began to ask shopkeeper Wang about his father, the old doctor.
"It's a long story, it happened a few months ago." Shopkeeper Wang took a sip of tea, sighed, and began to tell the story of how his father was beaten to death.
That day, an old man with family members near the south gate of Jiangzhou City fell ill. The head of the family came to the shop early in the morning to call for a doctor.
Dr. Wang is the sitting doctor in the pharmacy. He usually does not go out unless he is a neighbor in a nearby town. Because of the proximity, he does not delay guarding the pharmacy when he goes there. After all, he is the only one working in the store.
The owner of the house was a sturdy man in his fifties. He repeatedly begged and insisted that Dr. Wang come.
Doctor Wang asked what the patient's condition was. The owner said that it was caused by an occasional cold, and that the local doctor in the village couldn't treat it well, so he came all the way here to ask the old doctor to take a look.
Doctor Wang was very embarrassed and said that you live at the south gate of Jiangzhou City, which is too far away from me, nearly 20 miles away. Your home is so close to the city, why don't you go to the city to find a doctor? Moreover, I am the only one in this small shop. I have to close it as soon as I leave. Besides, you are too far away. It will take a day to go back and forth. It is really inconvenient for me to go there. Moreover, the occasional cold is probably a common ailment that can be treated well by a doctor, so there is no need to specially invite me.
The owner of the family said that doctors in the city not only charge high fees for medical treatment, but also cost a lot for medicine. His family is poor and cannot afford it, so he came to you. Moreover, he came to your house specifically because he heard about the reputation of the pharmacy here.
Dr. Wang said that I was just a sitting doctor and that I had never traveled so far to treat people. How about this? If you bring the patients to me, I will treat them for free, and I will only charge a nominal fee for the herbal medicine. Isn’t that okay?
The head of the family said that this was not possible, because the patient was old and could not withstand the torment of traveling back and forth. Besides, the family was poor and even the fare was very tight.
Dr. Wang was in a very difficult position, saying that this wouldn't work, that wouldn't work either, what should I do?
Finally, the owner of the family knelt down in front of Dr. Wang in the street and said that doctors are benevolent and for the sake of the poor, you should go there!
Many people gathered around the street. Seeing this situation, they all advised Dr. Wang to go there, saying that saving one life would be better than building a seven-level pagoda.
In the end, Dr. Wang had no choice but sighed and said, okay, I'll go and see it, but I'm not necessarily sure about it. After all, the patient is old, and the poor physical condition cannot be compensated by medicine.
Doctor Wang followed the owner of the house and walked twenty miles to the patient's home. It was already noon.
Zhao Chuan was furious when he heard this, and secretly thought that the head of the family was really capable. If you go to ask someone to see a doctor, it's okay if you don't have a sedan to carry him. It's okay to find a horse-drawn carriage and an ox-cart to take the doctor there. If not, go to the village and borrow a donkey to carry the doctor to the head office.
"Oh, this old doctor Wang is really a down-to-earth person. He can really follow me on foot for twenty miles!" Zhao Chuan sighed. If it were him, he would definitely not go. The person seeking medical treatment is obviously not sincere. Go to hell!
"It can't be said that they are not sincere. After all, the family is too poor." Shopkeeper Wang sighed and continued to tell.
When Dr. Wang arrived at the patient's home, he immediately asked to see the patient and found that the patient was an elderly woman.
The patient was skinny, his eyes were closed, his face was pale, and his lips were black.
Doctor Wang's face darkened as soon as he saw it, and he immediately took the patient's pulse.
Dr. Wang put his hand on the patient's body and remained silent for a long time, his face getting increasingly ugly.
Doctor Wang asked the owner of the house, how old is the old man? The answer was more than seventy.
Then asked how long have you been sick? The answer is more than three months.
"As the saying goes, when you're seventy, you don't leave food, and when you're eighty, you don't stay overnight. You've been sick for three months, and your illness has dragged on like this. Why do you want me to do it?"
Doctor Wang had an upright temper. After hearing this, he immediately reprimanded the head of the family and asked him why he didn't tell the truth in the pharmacy just now. What do you mean by not hiding your illness?
The head of the house hurriedly explained with a smile that he was afraid that the doctor would not come if he told the truth about his condition.
"Then why didn't you ask sir for diagnosis and treatment earlier? What's the reason why it took so long and a minor illness turned into a serious one?"
Dr. Wang was very angry and said that no one would lie to him like this. He came all the way twenty miles to come here with you. Are you asking me to diagnose and test me, or are you asking me to exercise? ah?
How can Dr. Wang not be angry?
The head of the family seemed to have something to hide, so he just lowered his head and said nothing, allowing Old Doctor Wang to scold him.
Doctor Wang shook his head and sighed, saying that my reprimanding you was not the purpose. This old woman has been ill for too long and has lost the best opportunity for treatment. She is afraid that I will not be able to recover, so he will go back after saying this.
When the owner of the family heard this, he was not willing to give up. He immediately grabbed Old Doctor Wang and begged him to find a way to save his life. Seeing that Old Doctor Wang was determined to leave, he called his teenage son and they knelt in front of Old Doctor Wang. Where was Old Doctor Wang going? If they left, they would kneel and crawl to block the way.
Dr. Wang was so angry and anxious that he almost fainted and fell to the ground. I ran for dozens of miles in a hurry and didn't even take a sip of water. I didn't expect this to be the case.
"That's all, that's all. If I had known now, why bother at the beginning!"
Dr. Wang sighed and had to return to the patient's bed, take the pulse carefully again, and then carefully write out a prescription, saying that if you dare to try it, it is hard to say whether it will have any effect, so go to the pharmacy to get the medicine. .
The owner of the house took the prescription, but still knelt down and pulled Dr. Wang to go back with him to get the medicine.
Old Doctor Wang laughed angrily and said that you are such a pedantic man, why are you going back with me? It's fine if I don't charge you for the consultation, but do you want me to give you the medicine for free?
The owner said that’s not what he meant. I just want to go back with you and buy medicine from your store. I can’t trust the medicine from other stores...
Old Doctor Wang was almost going crazy with anger. He looked around at the family surrounded by bare bones and said helplessly, "It's up to you."
Dr. Wang is really a bit confused. After working as a doctor for decades, this is the first time he encountered someone like this, "It's okay to come with me to my house to get medicine, but it won't be free. Don't spread the word lightly, and the medicine won't be free. I At best, we should collect it more or less, and we must not break the rules of our ancestors."
The head of the family said he understood, so he naturally understood the truth.
So the owner of the family followed Dr. Wang back to the pharmacy. Dr. Wang was extremely kind and gave the best medicine for the least amount of money.
A few days later, the owner came to thank Dr. Wang and said that after taking Dr. Wang's medicine for a few days, the patient improved significantly. I thought about prescribing medicine for a few more days, because in a few days I would have to travel far away to work to make money, and I would not worry about letting others take care of the patients. Just wait for the patient to recover and then run away from home.
Dr. Wang was very happy when he heard it and agreed wholeheartedly. It seemed that his efforts were not in vain, nor was he tired from running dozens of miles that day.
"Originally, this matter has come to an end here, and the condition will gradually improve in the future, without any suspense. But..." Shopkeeper Wang said that he felt regretful at this point, and he slammed the table hard, blaming himself.
"What? What happened again?" Zhao Chuan asked.
Shopkeeper Wang said that the head of the house had already prepared to get medicine. Old Doctor Wang heard that the head of the house had to go away for something, and that the head of the house had to take care of the patients himself. After thinking about it, he temporarily changed the prescription and added two herbs. The old woman will recover faster, which will allow the owner of the family to travel far and make money earlier.
Unexpectedly, at this time, a neighbor from the town came to call Dr. Wang, saying that a woman suddenly became mad and asked Dr. Wang to hurry over and take a look.
"Oh, what an injustice. That's what happened! I happened to come back to the store from outside at this time." Shopkeeper Wang said.
"Why is it so bad? Even if you come back, it won't affect people's medicine." Zhao Chuan said.
Shopkeeper Wang said why it won't affect it, just listen to me.
Zhao Chuan straightened his back, moved his body, and said, "Your story is really long. Can you please make it short?" I've been listening to it for half an hour, and I feel a little hungry. I still don't know how your father died. The storyteller doesn't have the skills to talk like you.
Shopkeeper Wang was a little embarrassed by Zhao Chuan's intimidation, so he had to use another excuse to get up and go to the backyard to make tea.
Time was running out. Shopkeeper Wang came back and started telling the story again. Zhao Chuan saw that it was still early, so he had no choice but to listen patiently. He was naturally curious.
Shopkeeper Wang came back from outside and entered the store. Old Doctor Wang muttered, "You don't touch the house all day long. You run around selling some medicinal materials every day. You come back today just in time for me to go out for something. Please take the medicine on this prescription." Catch them all for this guy.
Old Doctor Wang stood up and handed the list to his son, then hurriedly followed the person who called him out.
Shopkeeper Wang took the prescription and prepared the medicine. He had been learning from his father since he was a child, and he was very fluent in the medicine.
But when he took the last dose of medicine, he froze.
