A tall woman with a rough face stood at the doorway, hands on her hips, shouting inside.
"Anping, where's your boss? Hurry up and call him out for me."
"Aunt Zhu..."
"What are you dawdling for? Go get him!"
Anping shrunk his neck, not daring to refuse, and had to run to the backyard to call for someone.
He only made it halfway before being blocked.
Zhao Qiancai had heard the commotion long ago.
"What's wrong, Sister-in-law Zhu? Such a temper, are you feeling overheated? Do you need Anping to fetch you some cooling medicine?"
"Pah! I'll fetch your grandma's leg!" Zhu Dahong spat on the ground.
"My man took medicine from you the other day, and he's not doing well today. Is this medicine you're selling to cure illness or to send people to their deaths! Let's go, we're going to see the official!"
Zhu Dahong was tall and sturdy. As soon as she entered the room, she cast a shadow. She grabbed Zhao Qiancai, lifting him like a little chick, and started to drag him out.
"Wait a moment."
Rong Zhi blocked the doorway.
"Sister-in-law, you say there's a patient at home, how is his condition? Are you so busy dragging people away that you're neglecting him? What if his condition worsens? Even if he truly loses his life, what then?"
"Who are you?"
Zhu Dahong was startled by Rong Zhi. Who was this little thing she hadn't noticed before? Her temper was usually quick, and seeing someone blocking her path, she instinctively wanted to push them aside. However, after hearing Rong Zhi's words, she couldn't help but think of her ailing husband. Her expression softened, and she let go of Zhao Qiancai.
"My man can't get up now. It's all because of the bad medicine he got from him. Now he's barely breathing, and we might not be able to save him..."
Her voice grew choked with sobs towards the end.
"Sister-in-law, don't worry. My name is Lin Mo, and I'm a doctor. Take me to your home to take a look, perhaps the person can still be saved."
"You?"
Zhu Dahong eyed her with suspicion. This girl looked less than 20 years old; how much medical skill could she possibly have, even if she were a doctor?
"You're in cahoots with Zhao Qiancai. I don't believe you. I want him to go see the official with me!"
Saying that, she moved to grab Zhao Qiancai again.
Zhao Qiancai quickly dodged to the corner of the wall.
"Miss Lin, save me!"
"Then take him!"
Rong Zhi stepped aside, clearing the path.
"But I'll make myself clear: if you rush to save the patient, he has a fifty percent chance of survival. If you insist on causing trouble now, he's as good as dead. Furthermore, you cannot definitively prove that this is the shopkeeper Zhao's fault. If it's later discovered that he had nothing to do with it, you will be charged with defamation."
Rong Zhi spoke calmly and unhurriedly, but Zhu Dahong was intimidated.
Zhao Qiancai, seeing Rong Zhi move aside, thought she was abandoning him. He hadn't expected her words to be so sharp and to the point.
"Have you thought about it? Is it to save a life, or to lose two lives?"
Zhu Dahong's face turned from green to white, then she gritted her teeth and nodded.
"Alright, I'll trust you. But if you can't cure him, I'll report you too."
As she spoke, she pulled out a bundle of ropes from behind her back and, using the technique for tying a pig, bound Zhao Qiancai like a zongzi.
"Don't even think about running!"
She glared at Zhao Qiancai.
Zhao Qiancai was on the verge of tears. He had no intention of running!
Seeing this scene, Rong Zhi's eyelids twitched. This woman was too formidable.
"Lead the way!"
After the group left, Anping, who had been hiding silently nearby, cautiously wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and slowly shuffled behind the counter.
He was so scared he thought they were going to take him too.
On the way, Rong Zhi learned that this woman, Zhu Dahong, was a butcher. Besides her husband, she had a daughter. Her husband was frail and often ill, and she relied entirely on her butchering to earn money.
Hearing this, Rong Zhi finally understood the woman's personality. If a man couldn't hold up the household, how could a woman survive if she wasn't strong?
They lived in a small courtyard on the outskirts. The courtyard was kept spotlessly clean, with butcher's tools and poles for hanging pigs placed in the corners.
When they entered, a girl, no older than ten, was washing medicine pots in the courtyard.
The sudden appearance of several people startled the girl, and she almost dropped the medicine pot in her hands. She immediately stood up and called out to Zhu Dahong, "Mother."
"Xiaoyuan, where's your father?"
"He drank some water and has gone to sleep."
Xiaoyuan looked completely different from her mother. Her eyes were delicate, her nose and mouth small. Her voice was low, and she seemed shy.
Seeing two more people behind her mother, her gaze darted away.
"Is this the pot for boiling medicine? Don't wash it yet, let me see it."
Rong Zhi saw the half-washed pot on the ground and picked it up. Xiaoyuan wanted to stop her but hesitated and didn't dare to come forward.
"Take me to see the patient."
"Follow me, he's in the inner room."
Zhu Dahong led Rong Zhi to the inner room. Zhao Qiancai, his upper body bound by ropes, found it inconvenient to walk. Before entering, he casually asked Xiaoyuan,
"Did you boil the medicine for your father?"
Xiaoyuan nodded slightly. As if afraid Zhao Qiancai would ask her more, she quickly ran to the kitchen.
The inner room had poor lighting. The sunlight, filtered through the paper on the window, gave off a hazy feeling. Dust motes floated in the air, more visible under the sunlight. A thin man lay on the bed. Though asleep, his breathing was heavy, clearly indicating discomfort.
"Dazhuang, how are you?"
Zhu Dahong went forward and patted him awake. A weak cough was heard.
"Hong, why are you back? Didn't you go to the pharmacy?"
"I brought the doctor back for you." She gestured to Rong Zhi.
"Brother, extend your hand."
Rong Zhi sat by the bed and, without waiting for him to refuse, took his wrist to feel his pulse.
Looking at his complexion, Rong Zhi had a rough idea of his condition.
"Sister-in-law, do you still have the prescription for the medicine you bought at the pharmacy?"
"Yes, I'll get it for you."
Seeing Rong Zhi acting so professionally, Zhu Dahong's anger subsided a little. She turned, found a prescription in a small box, and handed it over.
Rong Zhi quickly scanned the prescription, then picked up the medicine pot again and smelled it. Her brow furrowed.
"The prescription calls for Digencao. This herb is sour and leaves a layer of brown residue in the pot after boiling. Your pot looks quite clean, and there's no sour smell. Shopkeeper, did you give her Digencao when you dispensed the medicine?"
Her question drew all eyes to Zhao Qiancai, one of them filled with murderous intent.
"You still say you didn't dispense the wrong medicine?"
Zhao Qiancai was stunned.
"I guarantee it, the medicine I dispensed was absolutely correct."
Zhu Dahong had been at the front of the shop when buying the medicine, and he had dispensed it himself.
"Then why did it disappear without a trace?"
Who knew? Zhao Qiancai couldn't explain and could only cast a pleading glance at Rong Zhi.
While they were talking, Rong Zhi carefully examined the medicine pot again and noticed a scent not present in the prescription.
"Sister-in-law, where was the medicine residue discarded?"
"It should be in the kitchen."
"Take me to see."
"Alright."
Zhu Dahong tucked the quilt around the man on the bed and gave Zhao Qiancai a warning look before leaving.
Zhao Qiancai quietly called out to Rong Zhi.
"What exactly is going on?"
Rong Zhi didn't answer, but whispered something in his ear.
Zhao Qiancai's face turned pale.
"That won't do. My little shop isn't doing any business as it is."
"Do as I say, and you'll have business."
Without waiting for him to object, Rong Zhi had already left.
As soon as she entered the kitchen, Rong Zhi saw a small figure hurrying out, so flustered that she almost bumped into Rong Zhi.
"What's the rush? Like a wolf is chasing you."
Zhu Dahong muttered inexplicably. Seeing Rong Zhi, she wore a troubled expression.
"Doctor Lin, the medicine residue is gone."
Gone?
"Who boiled the medicine?"
"My daughter."
Rong Zhi remembered Xiaoyuan's hurried demeanor just now and suddenly realized something. She quickly chased after her.
Behind the house was a vegetable patch where various vegetables were growing vigorously. Xiaoyuan was standing by a cucumber trellis, frantically stomping on the ground with her feet.
"Xiaoyuan, what are you doing?"
Zhu Dahong pulled Xiaoyuan away and, looking at the patch of earth beneath her feet that was clearly different from the rest, sternly reprimanded her.
"You're trampling the vegetable patch! Go away."
Rong Zhi glanced at Xiaoyuan, then squatted down and began to dig the earth with her hands.
The moment she started digging, Xiaoyuan suddenly burst into tears, her cries growing louder and louder, uncontrollable.
"Child, why are you crying? Your father isn't dead yet."
As she spoke, Rong Zhi had already dug up the patch of earth, revealing a pile of medicine residue.
She picked out the residue and examined it one by one, suddenly discovering something that looked like a grass root.
Bringing it closer for a better look, it was actually a common wild grass found on the mountains.
Xiaoyuan's crying grew louder, mixed with a few indistinct words.
"It wasn't on purpose, I really didn't do it on purpose..."
"What do you mean?" Zhu Dahong was bewildered.
"Sister-in-law, go and search the kitchen thoroughly, see if there are any remaining medicinal ingredients."
"Oh..."
Zhu Dahong, not understanding, could only follow Rong Zhi's instructions back to the kitchen.
Rong Zhi went up to Xiaoyuan, placed her hands on her knees, and bent down to ask her.
"Xiaoyuan, you boiled the medicine. Why did you replace the ingredients?"
Xiaoyuan didn't answer, only cried.
"Your father is fine. Tell me why, so I can save your father."
Her voice was extremely gentle, with no hint of blame. Xiaoyuan gradually stopped crying and asked timidly,
"Is my father really okay?"
"Of course, he is," Rong Zhi said, stroking her head. "I know it wasn't on purpose. Can you tell me?"
Xiaoyuan sniffled, her eyes red.
"I just wanted to save some money for the family..." she said. "That medicine was too expensive. I saw a patch of grass outside the city, and the grass there looked similar to the medicine. So I picked some and put it in the medicine pot..."
Her voice grew softer as she spoke, and she eventually fell silent.
Rong Zhi understood when she heard this. It was a typical case of good intentions leading to bad outcomes.
The man suffered from a heart condition. The prescription contained Digencao, which could make the medicinal properties more gentle. If the properties were too strong, they could block the heart meridian.
The young girl, not understanding, only thought of saving money for the family and didn't consider this.
Rong Zhi had encountered such situations before: patients not following doctor's orders, or altering prescriptions, increasing or decreasing dosages, or even replacing medicinal herbs with useless wild grasses, usually to save money. This often led to a worsening of the condition, and in severe cases, could even cost them their lives.
As a doctor, Rong Zhi had to remind them.
"Xiaoyuan, the wild grass you found cannot cure illness. If you truly want your father to recover soon, you must listen to the doctor, do you understand?"
Xiaoyuan nodded, realizing she had made a mistake.
Just then, Zhu Dahong ran over in a panic.
"Doctor, hurry and go see! My husband has stopped breathing!"