Time Travel: The Best Doctor in Ancient Times

Chapter 120: Chapter 66: Little Meat Bun’s Surgery

Gu Changsheng’s predictions proved to be accurate; even after she returned from the mountains with Lan Zhi’s family, having gathered herbs, the rise in grain prices had yet to be curbed.

“Alas, yesterday the price of rice and flour soared to eight hundred qian a dou, and I was too heartbroken to spend more silver to buy extra. Now look what happened—the grain shops in the market have shut their doors entirely. How are we supposed to get by now?” Lan Zhi, after taking the rabbit hunted by her husband, spoke with worry clouding her heart.

“Damn that Mu Wanxuan!” Gu Changsheng, carrying a basket of herbs on her back, couldn’t help but curse aloud.

“Little sister Lan Zhi, I must head home. I need to tend to my son’s illness this afternoon,” Gu Changsheng said as she waved goodbye to Lan Zhi’s family, with whom she had grown quite familiar over the past few days, and made her way back with her basket of herbs.

As soon as she entered her home, Gu Changsheng called for Uncle Song.

“Uncle Song, make a trip to the city and fetch Yuan Bao.”

...

That Yuan Bao really had his heart set on constructing buildings. With the grain prices rising to such lengths, had he not taken any notice?

“Yes,” Uncle Song responded before departing. His tuberculosis was nearly cured by now, and running errands was certainly within his capabilities.

“Lady, are you worried about the grain prices?” Han Qiu asked as he took the herb basket from her.

“I don’t know if the conflict in Southern Fujian will affect Liuzhou’s grain prices, but such a rapid increase is far from normal. Don’t forget, when we encountered Zhou Mu, he was being pursued to be killed,” Gu Changsheng said, picking a few mandrake plants from the basket and heading to the pharmacy.

Hearing this, Han Qiu also furrowed his brows and followed her a few steps, “Lady, are you planning to get involved?”

“No, I’ve been working Yuan Bao like a mule. I’m just kindly giving him a heads-up—we shouldn’t wade into these muddy waters.” Gu Changsheng dove into the pharmacy, not forgetting to instruct, “Make sure the room I asked you to prepare is ready. Have everything disinfected and ready for me. This afternoon, I’ll be performing surgery on Gu Ze.”

“Yes,” Han Qiu acknowledged with a nod, putting aside his concerns to attend to the tasks at hand.

The lump on Gu Ze’s neck had been delayed until now; the only missing ingredient was mandrake.

When returning to Liuzhou, she had only caught a glimpse of Baili Mountain in haste, not daring to confirm her suspicions. But on her second visit, she had indeed found it.

The wild mandrake, a poisonous plant in its entirety, was actually a great anesthetic for sedation!

With it, she could concoct a fully plant-based Powder for Anesthesia—a natural anesthetic!

Gu Changsheng was excited and summoned Xiao Cui for assistance, “Don’t touch it, it’s poisonous!”

“Lady? Isn’t this to be used for treating the Young Master? How can something meant for healing be poisonous?” Xiao Cui asked, puzzled.

“All medicines are poisonous to some extent, it depends on its appropriateness. Arsenic is a poison that can cause death if ingested, but it can also treat rotten flesh and furuncles, as well as tumors. You don’t need to help here, Xiao Cui. Go chat with my son and keep him company, let him not be too nervous,” Gu Changsheng said.

After sending Xiao Cui away, Gu Changsheng busied herself with mixing the drugs.

Mixing medicines was no simple task, but she had tried many times now—it was just the addition of mandrake that was new, which spared her some trouble.

She just needed to add the mandrake in the right proportion and then test its effectiveness.

When Eunuch Yuan Bao arrived, Gu Changsheng was holding a rabbit and administering medicine to it.

“Lady Changsheng, did you want to see me?” Yuan Bao rubbed his hands together gleefully, the happiness coming too suddenly—he had arrived right at lunchtime!

“Do you still have the face to be happy?” Gu Changsheng put down the medicine bowl, her gaze fixed unwaveringly on the rabbit in her arms.

“Lady, what you’re saying—I won’t take offense, but I’ve got to eat before I leave,” Eunuch Yuan Bao said, unfazed, his chubby baby-face squeezing into a mass of flesh, smiling obsequiously.

“Bloody hell! With grain prices like this, you still have the cheek to come to my house for a free meal! Yuan Bao, is your head filled with straw?”

“Grain prices?” Yuan Bao was taken aback by the scolding, then quickly came to a realization. “My lady, you might not know this, but with the conflict starting in Southern Fujian and Zhou Dynasty having recently requisitioned military provisions, a slight fluctuation in grain prices is normal.”

Gu Changsheng nodded, “That’s right, Yuan Bao. You think you can fool me just because I don’t farm? Troops can’t move without food supplies, and requisitioning military provisions certainly happened before Zhou Mu set out. If grain prices were to rise, they wouldn’t spike so noticeably after his departure. Do not blame me for not warning you: grain prices have now skyrocketed to eight hundred qian a dou, and ordinary grain shops are already out of stock.”

“Eight hundred qian? No way!” Yuan Bao couldn’t believe it. Typically, grain prices were only two hundred qian. How could they have risen so high? “Someone!”

Following Yuan Bao’s loud call, a little eunuch quickly entered.

“Lord Yuan Bao, you called for me?”

“Nonsense! With grain prices reaching such heights, why wasn’t I informed?” He had been busy helping Lady Changsheng build a house these days—could it be that his subordinates had been negligent?

The little eunuch scratched his head, “The day before yesterday, someone from the Dark Camp did report it, but, incidentally, they ran into Miss Mu. She said she would pass on the message to you, sir. You said to watch and wait, to discuss it later…”

The little eunuch’s face scrunched up. Lord Yuan Bao seemed very angry—had something gone wrong?

“Watch and wait, discuss it later?” Eunuch Yuan Bao stamped his foot, “Mu Wanxuan didn’t report any of this to me! She only mentioned that Lady Changsheng disliked her and had sent someone else!”

“I not only dislike her, but I also asked her to relay the grain price situation to you,” Gu Changsheng said, watching the rabbit that had passed out in her hands, then gestured to Han Qiu, “Bring over that sheep we just bought.”

“Lady Changsheng, I’ll take my leave now. If there’s anything else, you can send someone to find me,” Yuan Bao said, bowing shortly.

“Not going to stay for lunch before you go?” Gu Changsheng gave him a cool glance and spoke.

“Ah, with the fire reaching my backside, how could I care for food right now? You’re busy, Lady Changsheng. I’ll be going now,” Yuan Bao replied.

Gu Changsheng watched as Yuan Bao, with his hefty frame, dragged the little eunuch with him and hurried away, then she continued with her experiments using the sheep.

“Lady, with rabbits and sheep around, are we going to make roasted rabbit and lamb today?” Dong Lei reluctantly retracted her gaze, feeling melancholy. Now that Yuan Bao had left, no one would enjoy her cooking as much as he did.

“No, it’s just that catching mice is too difficult and unsanitary, so the rabbit and sheep have to serve as ‘lab rats,’” said Gu Changsheng, without even looking up.

“Lab rats?” Dong Lei asked, confused.

“Testing medicines.”

“Oh…” Dong Lei finally understood.

The medicine testing was very successful, and Gu Changsheng sighed in relief that his skills hadn’t regressed, then cheerfully turned around to look for his son.

“Aunt Cui, don’t worry, Mother is very capable, I will definitely be fine,” came the comforting voice of Little Meat Bun from inside the room, causing Gu Changsheng’s form to pause.

“The maid is just worried about the Young Master, the Young Master has suffered too much…” Xiao Cui’s voice choked with sobs.

“Aunt Cui, I have Mother, and I have all of you, I’m not suffering,” he reassured her.

“But this is surgery, you don’t know how bloody it is when Butcher Wang operates…”

Gu Changsheng kicked the door open with one foot, her face darkening, “Xiao Cui! I asked you to comfort my son, not to scare him!”

Fuck, isn’t this just making a mess!

Xiao Cui was startled, then stammered out a call, “Lady Changsheng…”

Seeing her teary-eyed, pitiful look made Gu Changsheng’s mouth twitch uncontrollably.

“Mother, don’t be mad at Aunt Cui, she is just concerned about me,” Little Meat Bun said, beaming as he tugged at Gu Changsheng’s hem and acted coy.

“What’s there to worry about? Could I possibly harm you? I’m your mother, your own flesh and blood!” Gu Changsheng scoffed at Xiao Cui, wondering when in the world her stepmother image would ever fade from Xiao Cui’s mind? It was truly a fucking complex issue!

“Lady Changsheng, I didn’t mean it that way…” Xiao Cui sniffled, on the brink of tears.

“Never mind what you meant, hurry up and eat, then get ready to assist me.” Gu Changsheng waved her hand impatiently.

“Me?” Xiao Cui pointed at herself, dumbstruck, as the image of Butcher Wang performing surgery flashed in her mind, sending a chill down her spine.

“What’s the matter? Weren’t you the one howling every day about wanting to be someone useful? If you don’t have even this bit of courage, how are you going to follow me in the future?”

“But this is the Young Master…”

“It doesn’t matter who he is, once on the surgery table, even if it was the Heavenly Emperor’s Father, he’s just a piece of flesh!” Gu Changsheng lifted Little Meat Bun, pinching the lump on his neck, “Son, I had Aunt Lei stew some donkey-hide gelatin porridge for you, eat up and then Mother will operate on you, alright?”

“Mhm, mhm,” Little Meat Bun nodded obediently as he lay on her shoulder.

During the meal, Gu Changsheng only ate half her fill; she didn’t want to affect the surgery, for it concerned her most precious treasure, and she was determined to do everything perfectly.

“Son, are you scared?” Holding her son in her arms, Gu Changsheng rubbed the two little buns on the top of his head and spoke gently.

“Not scared, Mother is here,” Little Meat Bun returned a radiant smile.

This trust warmed Gu Changsheng’s heart, and she raised her hand to pinch the lump on his neck, “Son, this thing has followed you since birth until now, and even though it has caused you countless sufferings, it has at least stayed with you through thick and thin.”

“Come, tell it farewell for life, and drink this bowl of medicine,” Gu Changsheng took the medicine bowl that Xiao Cui handed over and brought it to Little Meat Bun’s mouth.

Gu Ze, the obedient Little Meat Bun, held up the lump under his neck with his chubby little hands, and solemnly said, “Farewell for life,” before tilting his head back to drink down the soup medicine.

“Son, relax and take a nap, and when you wake up, Mother will have Aunt Lei prepare something delicious for you,” Gu Changsheng carried the Little Meat Bun to a room readied for surgery, laying him down on a bed under the light.

“Mhm, mhm,” Little Meat Bun curled his mouth contentedly and closed his eyes.

Gu Changsheng arranged the silver needles and the scalpel, took a needle in hand, and inserted it with determination.

Xiao Cui, though nervous, still bit her lip and held a white cloth, wiping away the fresh blood that flowed out from time to time.

“Hemostatic forceps.”

At the sound, Han Qiu quickly handed them over, his speed comparable to that of a professional surgical assistant.

“Wipe the sweat.”

Xiao Cui split her attention, helping Gu Changsheng wipe off the sweat beads forming on her forehead and the tip of her nose.

“Tweezers.”

“Suture needle.”

“Medicinal powder.”

……

As Dong Lei fanned the flames, he kept his gaze fixed unblinkingly on that room.

“Uncle Song, stop pacing, you’re making me nervous,” he said.

Uncle Song turned in place, his hands rubbed red with anxiety.

“Xiao Leizi, Lady Changsheng said it wouldn’t take more than an hour, right?” Dong Lei’s face grew more worried.

“That’s right…”

“But it’s been more than a quarter of an hour, why is there still no noise from inside?”