Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 2375: Chapter 2374: Conjunctivitis

Finally, Qiu Zhi returned to the boat, but he kept sneezing, clearly having caught a chill.

He didn’t dare ask Bai Ruozhu for medicine and instead sought Yuan Licheng; thankfully, as a martial artist, his body was strong and he didn’t catch a cold.

Wa Wei’s emotions were low for only one day before she recovered. Bai Ruozhu was initially concerned but seeing her as if nothing happened, she didn’t bring it up again.

While the ship was sailing, they came across another deserted island, and driven by the spirit of adventure, Bai Ruozhu decided to explore it.

Jiang Yichun wouldn’t feel at ease letting her run around, so naturally, he closely followed. The others who had been getting moldy on the boat complained until they too decided to go ashore.

So the group explored every corner of the small island but found nothing.

In the end, Bai Ruozhu could only sigh that she wasn’t blessed with the protagonist’s fate. Isn’t it said that protagonists come with a halo and can find fortune wherever they go?

With no choice but to return to the boat to get meat and water, they had a barbecue feast on the island.

In the days following, the merfolk Duannian did not appear again, and Bai Ruozhu felt some concern for Wa Wei, but when asked subtly, Wa Wei smiled and said, ”He has his own matters; he used to visit only once in a while.”

Alright, this girl has a broad heart, that’s a good thing.

Soon after, the boat encountered a storm at sea, but thankfully no one on board was harmed.

By the next day, Teng Ya and her family went down to get food. While picking up the food, Teng Ya noticed an old lady rubbing her eyes near the fire.

”Granny, what’s wrong with your eyes?” Teng Ya asked casually.

”It’s nothing, just got some ash in them,” the old lady turned her head and smiled at Teng Ya, her eyes looked a little red, but Teng Ya thought it was probably from rubbing, so she didn’t ask further.

When the food was delivered to Bai Ruozhu, and after they finished eating and Bai Ruozhu rinsed her mouth, she began talking to Teng Ya and Wa Wei about medical knowledge.

Suddenly Teng Ya shouted, ”Master, I just remembered!”

”What’s wrong?” Bai Ruozhu was startled by Teng Ya’s sudden shout but knew that this girl was quite composed and wouldn’t shout without reason.

”Just now, I saw the old lady near the fire rubbing her eyes. She said it was ash, and I didn’t think much of it then, but just now I realized she might have an eye disease,” Teng Ya said with some excitement, ”Master, do you think I could prescribe her some medicine?”

Bai Ruozhu frowned slightly, ”What kind of eye disease?”

”Her eyes were a bit red, she was rubbing them with her hands, probably feeling uncomfortable, but I suspect she might not have realized she has an eye condition,” Teng Ya said.

”Sister Ruozhu, doesn’t something seem off?” Wa Wei noticed the seriousness in Bai Ruozhu’s expression.

Bai Ruozhu stood up, ”Where is she? I’ll go down and take a look.”

Teng Ya was surprised, ”Is it a serious illness?”

”Not serious, but I’m worried it’s a contagious eye disease; if we’re not careful, many might catch it,” Bai Ruozhu said as she headed out.

The boat is humid and the lower ship cabin doesn’t ventilate well. The hygiene conditions aren’t great, and the workers below don’t have much disease prevention awareness, so even minor illnesses could spread badly.

When she arrived at the kitchen, the people there had already sent food off everywhere; it was now their meal time.

Unexpectedly, the noble lady from above would come, frightening them about where to place their bowls.

”Where’s Liu Granny, who was tending the fire?” Teng Ya looked around but couldn’t see her, so she hurriedly asked.

”She kept saying her eyes hurt. I noticed they were very red, likely irritated by smoke, so I told her to rest for a while,” said the kitchen steward quickly.

”Where does she stay? Lead the way,” Bai Ruozhu instructed.

”Yes, yes.” The steward noticed Bai Ruozhu’s serious expression and wondered if the old lady had done something seriously wrong. Was she secretly helping Zheng Xin? But the old lady is honest and a bit old, it shouldn’t be the case.

He hurriedly led them there and soon arrived at Liu Granny’s dwelling.

The narrow room was a communal sleeping area, housing several people together; Liu Granny lay on a bunk, seemingly asleep.

”Liu Granny, Master Bai is here to see you,” the kitchen steward promptly called out.

”Huh?” Liu Granny woke with a start, hastily got up, and when she opened her eyes to look at the people, she startled Teng Ya and the others.

”Granny, why are your eyes so red!” Teng Ya exclaimed.

The kitchen steward also hastened to ask, ”Your eyes, are you sick? Can you still see things?”

Bai Ruozhu saw the steward was kind-hearted and told him to wait aside.

She went over to examine Liu Granny, using a handkerchief to shield her hand as she flipped Liu Granny’s eyelids and eventually confirmed that she indeed had conjunctivitis.

”Gather everyone from the kitchen on the deck, don’t dawdle,” Bai Ruozhu said decisively. ”Also, all those who share a room with her, call them too.”

”Huh?” The steward was startled, ”Is there...”

Bai Ruozhu saw he might have misunderstood and helplessly said, ”Liu Granny’s eye condition is contagious. It’s unclear how many might have caught it. We need to wash them with medicine to prevent a severe outbreak.”

”Ah, I’ll call them now.” The kitchen steward turned and went off to assemble people.

Liu Granny looked surprised and soon showed a guilty expression, ”It’s my fault, burdening everyone.”

Though somewhat elderly now, her words sounded very pitiful, leaving Bai Ruozhu feeling a bit upset.

”It’s not your fault; perhaps this eye disease was passed onto you by others. You’re older, so the symptoms appeared more rapidly. But this isn’t a life-threatening condition; you’ll get better quickly,” Bai Ruozhu said, softening her tone.

”Thank you, Master Bai, I understand, I’m truly causing you trouble,” Liu Granny said remorsefully.

”In the coming days, avoid rubbing your eyes as best you can. Try to wash your hands often. Don’t let others use your handkerchiefs, and also avoid touching the kitchen rags as much as possible. That way, you can reduce the chances of spreading it. I’ll have someone send medicine later, and if you use it timely, you’ll recover quickly.” Bai Ruozhu explained carefully.

Liu Granny nodded repeatedly, saying, ”Alright, I’ll remember.”

Soon Bai Ruozhu took three girls up to the deck and examined everyone’s eyes in the kitchen, and indeed found that three people had contracted conjunctivitis, although only mildly with slight redness.

It’s unknown how many others might be in the incubation period.

Generally, the incubation period is two to three days, and soon the symptoms will manifest.

”Master Bai, what do we do?” The kitchen steward became anxious, wondering if the kitchen staff could no longer prepare food due to everyone having eye disease.

”This eye disease isn’t spread through food. You can carry on as usual, but those with severe symptoms should be given time to rest, and hygiene should be prioritized.” She repeated the same instructions she gave to Liu Granny.