This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

Over the weekend, Du Heng and the Pharmacy Doctor visited all the village clinics near Central Lake, gathering first-hand information.

Meanwhile, after two days of action, Gong Daoyang had swiftly apprehended those involved in selling counterfeit medicine.

A total of two village heads were involved. One was the head of Jiangjiagou, who had gone to town in the early morning; the other was the village head from Yang Yuansheng’s village, whose skull had been cracked open with a hoe by villagers.

As for village doctors, only one was involved, which was considered a fortunate outcome.

The remaining accomplices were all young people working in various villages.

It turned out that before Wu Zhouzhou and his team sold the medicine, they had already collected information on each household by offering free blood pressure, blood sugar, blood lipid, and uric acid tests to the villagers. This way, they not only tallied the number of patients but also screened for potential collaborators.

Du Heng felt deeply fortunate when Gong Daoyang told him this.

This group’s methods showed they had become a mature fraudulent operation, a qualitative change from just three months prior.

As for substandard medicine ingredients, the village clinics in the mountainous areas had no problems; all their medicine ingredients were up to standard.

This wasn’t because they were morally upright, but rather because people in rural areas, for convenience, usually opt for Western medicine or Chinese patent medicines. They seldom used Decoction medicine.

Another factor was the village doctors’ lacking skills in traditional Chinese medicine. Furthermore, Decoction medicine didn’t generate profit as quickly as Western medicine, so they used it infrequently, negating the need for stockpiling.

But regardless, it was all good news.

However, before Du Heng could even rejoice, the village clinics in the four large village brigades surrounding the Health Clinic were all found to be using substandard medicine ingredients—a total wipeout, with no exceptions.

Needless to say, the other private clinics couldn’t possibly have been spared.

With substandard medicine ingredients discovered, Du Heng also frankly shared his considerations with the few people involved. Whether they listened or not was their own business.

On Monday, after the regular morning meeting, Du Heng communicated with Lu Zhongjiang. Later that afternoon, Du Heng went to the Bureau to report the matter.

After handling all this, Du Heng returned to the Health Clinic and headed for the back ward.

”How are you feeling today?” Du Heng asked Yang Yuansheng softly, who was lying on the sick bed.

Yang Yuansheng’s spirits were excellent, a world of difference from the previous week. He also looked much more relaxed.

”Thank you, President Du! I feel much better. Especially my stomach; it’s not as bloated as before. It feels very light. I feel like I’ve come back to life!”

As Yang Yuansheng spoke, he was visibly agitated. He wanted to reach out and shake Du Heng’s hand but felt it was inappropriate, so he quickly clasped his own hands together.

Du Heng wore a calm and confident smile.

All of Yang Yuansheng’s changes were within his expectations.

However, Yu Haiting, following behind, was truly stunned.

In Yu Haiting’s eyes, Yang Yuansheng’s change over the week was remarkable, a daily transformation. He had watched with his own eyes as a patient with a swollen abdominal, whose belly was once like a drum, saw it shrink day by day, all without any Western medicine methods like draining the ascites.

Moreover, the improvements in the patient’s spirit and complexion all indicated that the medicine prescribed by Du Heng was having a positive effect.

He wanted to ask; he had so many questions, but he didn’t know how to begin.

Du Heng didn’t notice Yu Haiting behind him and instead reached out to take Yang Yuansheng’s pulse, checking his other physical conditions.

After the examination, he asked Yang Yuansheng, ”Are you urinating frequently? Have you noticed the color?”

”The color is getting lighter, but the frequency is increasing, more each day. At first, it was just once or twice a day, but yesterday, I went to the toilet six times. Doctor Du, is there anything wrong with me?”

”Don’t worry, this is a good thing. Originally, dampness was obstructing your spleen yang, causing water to accumulate internally. Over time, this damaged your kidney yang. Weakened kidney yang naturally leads to reduced urination. Now that you’re urinating more, it indicates your kidney yang is recovering. When your kidney yang is strong, its transforming and vaporizing functions will be powerful, and qi circulation will be smooth. The reconstruction of the triple burner’s qi transformation is just around the corner, and then you can return to a normal life.”

Yang Yuansheng showed an excited expression once more; hearing he could live a normal life made him a bit emotional.

”Is your lower back still sore?”

”A little, and I feel a bit cold all over.”

”Then you must be careful to stay warm and rest more.” After a brief pause, he continued, ”How has your appetite been these past few days? Is it still improving?”

”Yes, and I always feel hungry.”

Du Heng nodded. ”That’s very good. But remember, eat when you’re hungry, but definitely don’t eat until you’re stuffed. Understand?”

Yang Yuansheng nodded repeatedly. ”I definitely won’t. I just eat a few bites each time to take the edge off my hunger, then I stop.”

”That’s not quite right either; you still need to eat properly. My meaning is, don’t overeat to the point of hurting your stomach,” Du Heng chuckled, then turned to Wu Buwei. ”Buwei, for next week’s prescription, make no changes. He can continue taking it.”

”Noted, Senior Brother.”

Du Heng looked at Yang Yuansheng and said, ”You should rest. Remember to take your medicine on time. If you need any help or anything at all, just ask our nurse; she will assist you.”

After giving these instructions, Du Heng led the group out of the hospital room and towards the office.

Yu Haiting, following behind, couldn’t help but ask, ”Dean, is Yang Yuansheng all better now?”

Du Heng shook his head. ”Far from it. During the tactile examination just now, when I pressed Yang Yuansheng’s liver area, his expression was still slightly pained. There’s a faint palpable mass, slightly hard, about two finger-widths below the ribs. Only when the liver retracts to one finger-width below the ribs can he be considered recovered.”

Although Du Heng said he hadn’t recovered, Yang Yuansheng’s condition was evident to everyone; it couldn’t be faked.

”Dean, can Yang Yuansheng’s condition be completely cured?”

Du Heng smiled, walked a few steps forward with his head slightly down, then said, ”I wish. But he has stage four liver cirrhosis. A complete cure is too difficult, practically impossible. Still, who can say for sure?”

A few days ago, Li Qiuhua, the first critically ill patient Du Heng had treated for pulmonary fibrosis, had a follow-up check-up at the Municipal First Hospital. Afterwards, she specifically came to Du Heng for him to look at her post-check-up scans.

Everyone said pulmonary fibrosis was irreversible, and Du Heng had always thought so too. But when he saw Li Qiuhua’s scans, although there were no obvious signs of reversal, there seemed to be a tiny, subtle change compared to her previous scans.

And it was this tiny, almost imperceptible change that prompted Du Heng to once again review Li Qiuhua’s entire diagnostic and treatment process, as well as the medication used.