"Alright, how are you feeling?"
Inside a tent, injured disaster victims were being treated. Wan Yunting and Jiang Yichun were bandaging their wounds.
For severe cases requiring surgery, patients were either transported to hospitals further back or operated on by Western medicine doctors on-site.
"Doctor, my chest hurts a bit."
A young man, just brought in, clutched his chest, his face pale, groaning in pain.
"Let me see..."
Wan Yunting immediately went over and lifted the young man's t-shirt, revealing his chest. He noticed a bruise on the Zhongfu acupoint and was taken aback. "Were you pressed by a rock?"
"Mmm..."
The young man nodded painfully, his breathing ragged. Wan Yunting frowned and carefully examined the bruised chest. The moment his finger touched it, the young man cried out, "It hurts..."
"The chest bone should be fractured. It needs to be treated as soon as possible."
Wan Yunting made a preliminary diagnosis of a severe injury. He turned and called out to Gu Luotang, "Luotang, hurry and notify someone to bring him to the rear for further examination. If it is indeed a fractured chest bone, we cannot treat him here."
He had to admit that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was helpless against internal injuries caused by severe external force.
Although TCM had its own surgical practices, Western medicine, with its surgical expertise and the aid of medical equipment, was more professional in accurately diagnosing internal injuries and their changes.
Thus, both TCM and Western medicine had their limitations; neither was superior to the other.
When it came to preventing illnesses, TCM was the best choice.
However, for surgical excisions and other medical conditions, Western medicine was the strongest. There was no basis for comparison.
"Okay, leave the patient to us."
Soon, a professional medical team from Baishi People's Hospital took over the young man from Wan Yunting. After a preliminary examination, the doctors also confirmed a potential fracture of the chest bone and possible internal bleeding, necessitating immediate surgery for the young man.
"Dr. Wan, if you have any critically ill patients, please inform us as soon as possible," said Dr. Wang Haosen, the head of the Baishi People's Hospital rescue team, to Wan Yunting.
"Alright, I'll trouble you."
Wan Yunting smiled and nodded, watching as Wang Haosen and his team took the young man away for surgery.
"What does he mean by that?"
However, Huang Jingshan was displeased. "What do you mean, 'leave the critically ill patients to them'? Is he looking down on us in TCM, thinking we can't treat serious cases?"
"Exactly..."
Ren Xingbang and the others were also unhappy.
"He didn't mean it that way."
Wan Yunting shot Huang Jingshan and the others a look. "After all, that injured person had a fractured chest bone leading to internal bleeding, so surgery is required for treatment."
"We can perform surgery in TCM too," Huang Jingshan retorted. "Our ancestor Hua Tuo's surgical skills were not to be trifled with."
"That's right, our ancestors' surgical science is the foundation for your Western medicine," added Jia Wenle.
Wan Yunting was speechless. He pointed at them and asked, "Have you inherited Hua Tuo's surgical medical tradition, or are you confident in performing surgery on him?"
His question rendered Huang Jingshan and Ren Xingbang speechless.
While it was true that TCM's surgical practices were pioneered by the divine doctor Hua Tuo, they had long been lost.
"In surgical practice, Western medicine is the most professional. We have to admit that!"
Wan Yunting said seriously, "So, those of us who study TCM should not view Western medicine with an adversarial mindset. After all, there are some patients that TCM cannot treat, and we must rely on Western medicine. We should adopt an attitude of learning. Of course, TCM is not without its strengths either."
"After all, TCM has been passed down for so many years, and in certain medical fields, Western medicine cannot compare. But even so, we cannot be blindly arrogant."
"Yes, Xiao Wan is right."
At this moment, Jiang Yichun and Li Chengde came out after dinner. Seeing Wan Yunting and the younger generation, Jiang Yichun smiled and said, "Modern Western medicine is very advanced, and in some areas, TCM cannot match it."
"Therefore, we should not be hostile or look down on the authority of Western medicine, nor should we deify TCM with arrogant pride. Otherwise, it will be as foreigners say, that TCM is witchcraft!"
This remark made Wan Yunting, Gu Luotang, and the others laugh.
As Jiang Yichun had said, some foreigners who didn't understand TCM called it witchcraft or even sorcery.
"Old Jiang..."
Just then, Ding Zipeng arrived with his grandfather, Ding Huixiang. Seeing Wan Yunting and the others, he said excitedly, "Xiao Wan, you're all here."
"Elder Ding..."
Wan Yunting, Gu Luotang, Song Sinan, Shen Yingrui, and others all nodded in greeting.
"Old Ding, are you alright?"
Jiang Yichun and Li Chengde immediately greeted Ding Huixiang. He shook his head and sighed, "I'm fine, but I've lost the medical clinic passed down by my ancestors."
Jiang Yichun patted his old arm and comforted him, "It's good that you're safe. If your ancestral clinic is gone, you can rebuild it later. Natural disasters are merciless; no one can stop them."
"Indeed," Li Chengde agreed.
"You're right, it's just that it pains me. What a pity for my old clinic." Ding Huixiang understood this reasoning but felt powerless in the face of the disaster.
Seeing this, Wan Yunting and the others didn't know what to say.
"Xiao Wan, thank you for coming to our hometown to help with disaster relief." Ding Huixiang turned to Wan Yunting, Miao Yanzheng, and the others, feeling deeply grateful.
"Elder Ding, this is what we should do," Wan Yunting and the others replied.
"Good, good, but you must be careful and pay attention to safety," Ding Huixiang reminded them.
"Mmm..."
Wan Yunting and Huang Jingshan nodded.
At this moment, Nie Xiaoyu approached and said to Wan Yunting, "Doctor, we just received news that there are trapped villagers in Houlong Village, but we don't have enough medical personnel there. We'd like you to send a few people to help rescue the injured."
"Alright, I'll go with you," Wan Yunting agreed without hesitation.
"I'll go too..."
Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao immediately raised their hands, followed by Song Sinan and Wei Renxin.
"Six people should be enough to go with us," Nie Xiaoyu said.
Wan Yunting looked at Gu Luotang and the others. "Jingshan, Renxin, Luotang, Miaomiao, Sinan, let's go together, the five of us."
"Okay..."
They nodded. Wan Yunting said to Nie Xiaoyu, "Wait a moment, we'll go grab a first-aid kit."
Soon, the six of them emerged with backpacks and first-aid kits. Wan Yunting said to Jiang Yichun and Ding Huixiang, "Old Jiang, Elder Ding, you stay here. We're going out."
"Okay, be careful," Jiang Yichun and Li Chengde waved. Everyone watched as Wan Yunting, Gu Luotang, and the other five followed Nie Xiaoyu to the rendezvous point.
"By the way, Old Jiang, the Beijing TCM Association has also sent people to our Lingyun County for disaster relief!" Ding Huixiang said.
"Oh."
Jiang Yichun, Li Chengde, Shen Yingrui, and Miao Yanzheng were all surprised. They hadn't expected the Beijing TCM Association to send people for disaster relief.
After all, their previous visit to the countryside for medical support was a mere formality, a cursory inspection. After Wan Yunting exposed their superficial attitude, Weng Dehai and the others faced online backlash and were dismissed by Sima Wentang.
Furthermore, Sima Wentang himself had publicly apologized, attempting to salvage the reputation of the Beijing TCM Association.
However, the public's eyes were sharp. During that period, various criticisms of the Beijing TCM Association appeared online. Even national television news outlets criticized them, causing the reputation of the Beijing TCM Association to plummet.
In this internet age, any mishap could lead netizens to unearth all sorts of negative information, even if it wasn't your doing. With keyboard warriors, anything could be attributed to you.
If not for the sudden landslide disasters in Lingyun County and Fengshan County drawing public and media attention away, the Beijing TCM Association would have remained in the headlines.
In the face of the disaster, other news could be set aside, giving the Beijing TCM Association a chance to breathe a sigh of relief.