This Doctor Is Too Wealthy

For instance, there was one patient whose face was splattered by cooking oil while he was frying hamburgers. The oil sparks then ignited the gas stove, causing a tremendous fire. The victim’s face was first scalded by the oil and then burned by the fire.

What did he end up looking like?

Not to mention the pits and grooves, his facial features were almost squeezed together, so tightly that a three or four-year-old child could cover his entire face with one hand.

So, the state of Gu’s face definitely hadn’t scared Du Heng; rather, he was taken aback by the potential consequences.

Typically, facial paralysis has two possible origins. Firstly, it can occur if brain nerves lose control of facial nerves and muscles due to a stroke. The second condition occurs if facial nerves suffer from ischemia or meridian obstruction. This results in lax facial muscles due to ischemia, or it can be due to nerve and meridian spasms.

Even though both situations can result in drooping eye corners and a crooked mouth, there is almost never a complete slump of all facial muscles. In the first two circumstances, the face will exhibit some stiffness, giving an impression of rigidity and immobility.

But Gu’s face now looked utterly loose and saggy, resembling the laxity found in the faces of the elderly. This condition implied that the facial muscles, blood vessels, nerves, meridians, and so on had all lost their elasticity and were no longer active.

If her condition improved slightly, meaning if blood circulation could be restored, then her face would remain as it was. However, if blood circulation could not be restored, then even though this half of her face was saggy now, it would gradually atrophy within a year.

How severe would the atrophy be?

It would extend until the entire face was affected, leading to necrosis of the facial muscles, then infection, and ultimately shock and death. This process might take three or five years. Even if her family was affluent and influential, and even if they found the best medicine in the world, it absolutely wouldn’t extend her life beyond ten years. Muscular atrophy and necrosis might slow down initially, but as time progressed, the condition would deteriorate more quickly.

Du Heng let out a long sigh. Without even noticing, his sigh carried a slight tremor. Before this, he genuinely thought it was just a case of neurogenic facial paralysis following a stroke.

He never imagined it would turn out like this.

He was somewhat confused; since arriving in the Capital, why were these strange and unusual illnesses continually surfacing?

”Has Gu taken any Western medicine? She has had acupuncture, taken traditional Chinese medicine, and had massages...”

Gu’s father, who was nervously watching Du Heng, hurriedly answered when he heard the question, ”Yes, she’s taken quite a few different kinds of medicines, like Vitamin B1 or B2, I can’t remember exactly, and some neurological recovery drugs. The names were very difficult to pronounce, so I didn’t memorize them. Oh yes, she also had injections, also of some kind of vitamin.”

Du Heng frowned slightly. ”It would probably have been Vitamin B12, administered through intramuscular injections. Anything else?”

”Yes, also some medicine that helps nerve recovery, each injection costing over two thousand yuan.” Old Gu also furrowed his brows at this point. ”But as I mentioned this afternoon, it had no effect at all. In the beginning, when they used methods of traditional Chinese medicine, although it didn’t cure her, at least her condition didn’t deteriorate. But ever since those injections, her condition has worsened.”

It was just as he had thought.

Given the Gu family’s resources, the TCM practitioners they could find would definitely not be second-rate; they were surely all outstanding people in their field. Whether they were prescribing medicine or performing acupuncture, Du Heng believed they wouldn’t worsen a patient’s condition. The only way Gu’s condition could have advanced this much in just over three weeks—almost a month—was likely due to other medications. This speculation was now confirmed.

Being wealthy isn’t always a blessing.

Du Heng stood up, slowly walked over to Gu, then reached out and gently touched her facial muscles, lifting them slightly to inspect. When Du Heng initially reached out, Gu flinched slightly, trying to avoid his hand.

Fortunately, Wu Shengnan was by her side. Noticing Gu’s reaction, she quickly said, ”Don’t be afraid. Let my husband take a look. He treated thousands of stroke patients during his time in Jinzhou. He’s treated many cases like yours. Don’t worry. He’ll definitely find a solution.”

Only then did Gu stop resisting and gradually accept Du Heng’s examination.

After a long while, Du Heng slowly stepped back, sat on the sofa, and stared intently at Gu’s face, lost in thought.

Du Heng felt a bit numb.

Gu’s actual condition was almost exactly as he had assessed: her facial muscles and nerves had completely lost their elasticity. To say they were useless wouldn’t be an exaggeration. For example, while Du Heng was supporting Gu’s left lower jaw earlier, he had gently pinched her cheek with his fingernail. But she hadn’t reacted at all.

What to do?

For the time being, Du Heng couldn’t think of a solution.

This situation was very similar to when Wu Shengnan had frostbite on her foot. But Wu Shengnan could have had an amputation to save her life back then. You couldn’t possibly ask Gu to have her face removed to save hers, could you?

Gu’s father watched Du Heng carefully. Seeing that Du Heng remained silent, he didn’t dare to ask. Gu herself might not understand the severity of her situation, perhaps thinking she would just become a bit uglier. But as her father, he knew everything. He had consulted with numerous experts countless times. If there had been any other possible solutions, he wouldn’t have been so shameless as to bring his daughter for visits repeatedly, especially in the middle of the night. He was now terrified that Du Heng would say there was nothing he could do. If it really came to that, even if his heart were made of stone, he absolutely couldn’t bear the pain of losing his daughter. And his daughter was still so young; her life had just begun.

Gu, at this moment, was likely thinking along the same lines as her father: wondering if Du Heng could restore her appearance. Then again, even if she were told the truth, being a girl who cherished her beauty so much, she would probably consider her appearance more important than her life.

Wu Shengnan gripped Gu’s hand, looking first at Gu with worry, then anxiously at Du Heng. Finally, she couldn’t hold back any longer and asked, ”Husband, how is it? Is there a solution?”

Du Heng really wanted to give a bitter smile.

Solution? What solution?

They’ve tried acupuncture, the decoction medicines aren’t achieving the desired effect now, and Western medicines have also been used. What could he do?

He was a human, not a god capable of curing all diseases.

Just as he was about to tell Mr. Gu to Seek Someone Else More Capable, an image suddenly flashed through his mind, making his eyes light up. He quickly asked, ”Mr. Gu, has Gu ever undergone fire cupping therapy?”

”Fire cupping? You mean, with cupping glasses?” Mr. Gu was stunned for a moment, then shook his head. Aren’t cupping glasses for removing dampness? Those purple and black marks left on the back from using them... did my daughter’s current condition require treatment with cupping glasses?

Was Du Heng thinking of treating her with fire cupping? No, no, no. What he was thinking about was something he had seen years ago—a very peculiar, rustic method that was virtually inexplicable. Yet, this very method had cured a patient with facial paralysis similar to Gu’s, though her symptoms had been much milder.

”Mr. Gu, I’ve thought of a method. But I need to consider it carefully first and then formulate some treatment steps around it. So, how about this: you bring Gu to the hospital to see me tomorrow morning. We can discuss it in detail then. Would that be alright?”

As soon as Du Heng said this, Mr. Gu’s eyes lit up. ”Yes, yes, absolutely! Thank you, Director Du! You’ve truly given me hope! Tomorrow morning, I’ll bring my daughter to the hospital on time.”