This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

No one was there, and Du Heng was a bit confused.

At this time, Zuo Liangliang received a call from his wife, telling them to hurry back for lunch. They would see patients again after eating.

Zuo Liangliang hung up the phone, and since there was no one waiting, he called Du Heng and the others to go home.

Du Heng also didn’t want to just wait around like that. It would be better to go for lunch first, then continue waiting this afternoon. If there are still no patients, we’ll pack up and leave early today.

After all, there was still a lot of work to be completed back at the clinic. Just filing the 50 disease records from yesterday’s check-ups would be enough to keep the two of them busy.

However, it was strange. Just as they were preparing to leave, patients started to arrive one after another, and their numbers kept increasing.

This put Du Heng and the others in a dilemma – whether to leave or stay. Seeing that all the patients were old men and old women, they couldn’t just leave these elderly people waiting.

So Du Heng clenched his teeth and decided to continue seeing patients, postponing lunch.

In Northwest rural areas, breakfast typically consisted of a cup of tea and a piece of bread. Because Du Heng and Wu Buwei were guests today, Zuo Liangliang’s wife had made a special breakfast, cooking a Fried Egg for each of them. So, when lunchtime arrived, they weren’t too hungry; it didn’t matter much if they skipped the meal.

Zuo Liangliang had been thoroughly impressed by Du Heng’s examination and diagnostic process yesterday and had gained a deeper appreciation for it. As a village doctor, he practiced an integration of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine to a large extent. Given his rudimentary working environment, traditional Chinese medicine, which doesn’t rely heavily on instruments, was the most economical and practical option for him. The problem was his limited education and lack of a mentor, which made his progress incredibly slow.

Now that he had this opportunity, he was particularly eager to learn Du Heng’s techniques for diagnosing and prescribing for the villagers’ colds.

Zuo Liangliang swallowed his pride and suggested to Wu Buwei, ”Dr. Wu, can we switch places? I want to sit next to Doctor Du and learn as well.”

For Wu Buwei, this proposal was music to his ears. Yesterday’s experience had left him with a touch of fear. Although he was assisting Du Heng, and Du Heng explained things meticulously, allowing him to learn a lot, the workload was overwhelming. Those 52 disease records and 52 prescriptions—writing them all had made him question the meaning of life. Moreover, he felt he had learned a great deal yesterday and needed time to digest it. So, without a second thought, he immediately agreed to Zuo Liangliang’s proposal.

Fearing Du Heng might object, he switched places with Zuo Liangliang at top speed.

As Du Heng continued his consultation with a villager, he saw them murmur a few words and swap seats but wasn’t very concerned. Anyone could sit beside him, as long as they helped properly record the disease records and write the prescriptions.

”Auntie, your aversion to cold and dizziness aren’t symptoms of a cold. A cold typically has other features, like a runny nose, cough, phlegm, and throat discomfort.”

”Then what’s wrong with me?”

”Don’t worry, let me check first. Open your mouth, say ’AAAH...’”

”AAAH...”

”Alright, now I’ll perform a pulse diagnosis.”

Du Heng took the auntie’s wrist and placed his three fingers sequentially on her radial artery. While performing the pulse diagnosis, he asked, ”Auntie, how is your hearing?”

”Not good. I’ve gotten older these past two years, and sometimes I can’t hear people clearly.”

”I saw in your file that you’re only 52, not that old. Let me check your other hand, Auntie.” Du Heng switched hands and continued the pulse diagnosis. ”Have you stopped menstruating?”

The auntie looked a bit uncomfortable and lowered her voice. ”Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. It’s just a little bit each time, and the timing is all irregular.”

”Do you have any vaginal discharge?”

”Yes, it’s like clear water, and there’s a lot of it.”

Du Heng had a good idea of the situation. ”Auntie, do you also have problems with waist soreness and knee weakness?”

”Yes! If I do even a little heavy work, my waist is so sore I can’t stand up straight.”

”A pale complexion, aversion to cold, dizziness, hearing loss, profuse and thin clear vaginal discharge, a pale tongue with a white coating, and a deep and fine pulse. Auntie, this is caused by a kidney yang deficiency.”

The auntie glared at Du Heng. ”I’m a woman, not a man! How could I have a kidney deficiency? You doctor, you’re just talking nonsense.”

Du Heng chuckled. His explanation was a bit crude, ”Men have two big kidneys, and women also have two big kidneys. If men can have a kidney deficiency, why can’t women?”

”You’d better not be tricking me.”

”Why would I trick you? Relax, a few doses of medicine and you’ll be fine. Your hearing will improve, and your waist and legs will no longer be sore.”

”Then prescribe me some medicine. If it doesn’t work, I’ll come find you for a refund.”

”Don’t worry, Auntie. If it doesn’t work, come find me at the Health Clinic.”

Du Heng glanced at Zuo Liangliang and noticed he hadn’t finished writing the diagnosis for the disease record. So, he pulled a prescription paper towards himself and began writing, ”Kidney yang deficiency. Treatment principle: tonify the kidney and warm the yang. Rehmannia, deer antler, aconite, cinnamon...”

”Alright, Auntie, take this carbon copy of the prescription. Go to Dr. Zuo, and he’ll dispense the medicine for you.”

”Okay, thank you, Doctor.”

”You’re welcome.”

The auntie left, but Zuo Liangliang still hadn’t finished writing the diagnosis. Seeing the next patient approach, beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Du Heng didn’t rush him, just waited for him to finish.

Zuo Liangliang finally completed it, looking apologetically at Du Heng.

He had envied this position before. Indeed, Du Heng’s examination and questioning just now had been very helpful and enlightening for him. But writing medical records wasn’t as easy as it looked. In his own clinic, he would just scribble a few lines, or sometimes not even bother, simply selling the medicine directly to the patients.

However, the Health Clinic’s requirements for disease records were the same as those of Big Hospitals. These records had to clearly detail the patient’s medical history, the consultation process, the diagnosis based on pattern differentiation, and finally, the prescribed remedies. This was undoubtedly a very challenging task for someone who hadn’t written much in twenty or thirty years.

Writing slowly was one thing, and his less-than-perfect handwriting was also acceptable. The key issue was that many characters seemed to dance at his fingertips, yet he just couldn’t write them down. This was the most absurd, painful, and difficult thing to accept.

”Doctor Du, I think I should switch back with Dr. Wu. I’m slowing you down too much.” Zuo Liangliang felt embarrassed and requested to switch back.

However, Du Heng knew Zuo Liangliang’s reason for wanting the seat and, considering how much Zuo Liangliang had helped them over the past two days, he smiled and said, ”It’s fine, just stay here. Even if you were faster, it wouldn’t save more than a few minutes.”

Looking at the queue that had formed, Du Heng adjusted his posture. ”Mr. Zuo, if you’re ready, let’s see the next patient.”

Zuo Liangliang was very grateful to Du Heng. He gathered his spirits and called out, ”Alright, next!”

The diagnostic work once again proceeded in an orderly manner.