Chapter 50 External Use

  "Let her cry it out, it's nothing serious." Chen Jing said as he walked in and saw Li Xiangxiang crying so miserably that she seemed to be dying.

  Li Qianqian's hands were held down by her mother and maid, not allowing her to scratch. The unbearable itch that couldn't be scratched made her cry out in anguish, twisting and turning on the bed as she tried to rub against the sheets to relieve the itch.

  But it was all in vain, she twisted and turned almost madly, crying bitterly.

  She had erythema, which was rheumatic urticaria. This disease made the skin on her face and arms scratched into pieces, as if it were about to rot, looking very frightening and suffering, but in fact, it was not a serious illness, and it was very common in later generations.

  When this disease breaks out, it's extremely painful with a maddening itch.

  Last time Chen Jie saw Li Juan's eyes and face were slightly swollen, and she heard that her voice was not quite right, knowing that her tonsils were uncomfortable, so she predicted that she might have wind-heat rash, let her take preventive measures in advance, drink some honeysuckle and Forsythia suspensa water to clear heat and dispel wind, prevent trouble before it happens.

  Because Chinese medicine in this era takes effect relatively slowly. When it comes to diseases like eczema, if the effect is slow, the whole body will itch and suffer.

  Alas, Li Juanjuan didn't listen.

  Chen Jing couldn't be certain that she would definitely get the rash. Predicting illness only had a 60-70% accuracy rate. So, Li Xiangxiang didn't take any medicine, and Chen Jing also didn't force her to do so.

  If everyone in the family is physically strong, they can fight off those evil spirits.

  This is something nobody can say for sure.

  Now seeing her so uncomfortable with itchiness, Chen Jing couldn't bear it. Li Juanjuan was one of the younger generations he liked more. As soon as Chen Jing came in and spoke, he let Li Juanjuan scratch the itch, and everyone in the house noticed him.

  Mrs. Li didn't pay attention to Chen Jing, still holding Li Xiangxiang's hand and said in a low voice: "Can't scratch. One scratch will break the skin, good people will be scratched bad!"

  She has her own life experience.

  Li Qianqian's fingernails were long and sharp, last night was too itchy, she scratched for two hours, the more she scratched, the itchier she became, her whole body was covered with rashes, some places even broke the skin, showing blood stains.

  Red rashes all over the body are very frightening.

  Chen Jing didn't see the look on Li Juan's face, so he didn't know her miserable state. Seeing her in such pain, he let her scratch him. In fact, it was unbearable.

  "Don't catch, don't catch, can't catch!" Li Juan's wet nurse also said.

  "She's suffering so much, just scratch her a bit. Get a maid without fingernails to scratch her slowly through her clothes, not too hard." Chen Jing said, "It can relieve her for the time being and alleviate some of her pain."

  Mrs. Li lowered her head and continued to hold the crying Li Xuanxuan, pretending she hadn't heard.

  She still disagrees with Chen Jiong's words.

  She thought it was impossible to catch, Chen Jing was just a child and didn't understand things, his words couldn't be listened to.

  Li Qianqian was still crying.

  "Ling'er is right," said Old Lady Li, suddenly speaking up. "You can endure pain, but you may not be able to endure itchiness. Let Bi Tao scratch Qianqian a few times, not too hard."

  It was Mrs. Li who had someone invite Chen Jiong in, so she spoke on his behalf.

  Li Dainai's head hung even lower. When her mother-in-law spoke, she didn't dare to refute, nor did she dare to show a hint of dissatisfaction, she could only lower her head and cover up her emotions.

  Ya Tou Bi Tao said yes and gently helped Li Xuan Xuan scratch the itch.

  Li Qianqian's painful and twisted expression finally eased a little, still crying sadly.

  The old lady saw Chen Ying standing aside, not knowing what to do, and opened her mouth: "Ying'er, it was I who sent someone to invite you. On the sixth day of the beginning of the year, didn't you say that Xuanxuan had some symptoms and needed to take some medicine?"

  These words made Li Dainai also stunned, raised her lowered head and looked at Chen Jing.

  Li Qianqian also looked at Chen Jing, with tears in her eyes, pitiful and touching.

  "Yes, old lady." Chen Jing replied, "On the sixth day of the New Year, I saw that Xuanxuan's facial features seemed to have contracted a wind-heat evil. Wind-heat evils are common during the spring and summer seasons when the weather changes. The wind evil invades from above, first offending the lungs."

  The lungs are in charge of the skin and hair, once they get sick, it's likely to break out in a rash. I thought, just in case a rash breaks out, people will suffer, so let Xuanxuan take some medicine to clear the heat and dispel the wind, preparing for a rainy day.

  But Li Xuanxuan didn't listen.

  "...You can actually diagnose an illness just by looking at someone's face?" Old Lady Li said with a pause.

  This is undoubtedly an extraordinary story.

  But he was right about everything.

  A doctor's skills are a matter of life and death for his patients. Chen Jing is still young, he shouldn't have such medical skills, even if what he said was correct, it can't rule out the suspicion that he was just lucky guessing.

  Mrs. Li had lived for half a lifetime and was somewhat knowledgeable, but she still didn't quite trust Chen Jing.

  After Chen Jing finished speaking, Old Lady Li hesitated for a while before responding with this sentence.

  As they spoke, the rest of the Li family also learned about Li Juan's illness.

  Li Qianqian's father Li Dalang was in the outer study, going over accounts with the household stewards. Hearing that his daughter was ill, he immediately entered the inner courtyard.

  Li Balang was idle at home and also came along.

  Their arrival interrupted Mrs. Li and Chen Xuan's conversation.

  Li Qianqian's aunt, sister-in-law, and cousin also came, filling the whole house.

  It turned out to be the doctor who was late in arriving.

  Li Dalang asked about his daughter's illness as soon as he entered the door.

  His wife explained with a sob.

  "Who did you send to fetch the doctor?" The doctor had not arrived yet, and his daughter was still wailing away. Li Dajun was so anxious that he paced back and forth in the house. His daughter's crying was heart-wrenching, her face covered with red rashes, disfigured, and in great pain, which made Li Dajun extremely worried.

  He loves his daughter very much.

  Li Qianqian has been sensible and lively since childhood. Although young, she is meticulous in her dealings with others, earning everyone's respect and admiration at home.

  "...send Fu Sheng to invite him." A big servant girl replied. Fu Sheng was a small servant in the outer courtyard, usually helping with inviting guests and running errands.

  "How can you still not be back!" Li Dalang's voice involuntarily rose.

  The whole house of maids and female relatives were frightened into silence.

  In the quiet room, Li Juan's wailing sounded even more mournful. She couldn't cry out anything else, only repeatedly saying: "Mother, mother, I'm so itchy."

  Although the maid was helping her scratch, it didn't work at all. She had hives all over her body, and the maid's light scratching was like a drop in the bucket, having no effect whatsoever, and instead making her itch even more.

  Li Qianqian has long fingernails herself. If she could scratch a few times, it would be so comfortable!

  Unfortunately, her hand was tightly grasped by her mother, and her wrist had turned red.

  She could only cry non-stop.

  She itched all over and hated that she couldn't roll around on the bed, but unfortunately was being held by her mother and couldn't move at all. She was almost going crazy, itching to the bone, suffering terribly.

  Mrs. Li was also moved to tears by her, unknowingly with a face full of tears.

  She and her mother were like this, Li Dalang didn't know what to do, became more anxious, his face looked even worse, he sternly ordered the maid: "Send someone to invite again. Let Li De and others, all go invite doctors, invite several more!"

  Li De is the general manager of the Li family.

  The eldest maid was summoned and hastily went out of the inner courtyard.

  "Big brother, don't worry, the doctor will be here soon." Li Balang consoled Li Dalang, then lowered his voice slightly, "Mother is here..."

  Li Dalang was so worried about his daughter that he forgot his mother was still sitting beside him.

  The old mother is here, he is so angry and furious, it's also unfilial.

  "Daughter......" Li Dalang realized his loss of composure, composed himself and went to the old lady's side, making a bow. He was not only Li Xiangxiang's father but also the head of the Li family; it was indeed unseemly for him to be so flustered.

  The old lady seemed to understand her son's feelings. She waved her hand and said, "It doesn't matter. The doctor hasn't arrived yet, it's slow enough!"

  She was even more anxious in her heart.

  "Why don't I make a prescription, stew some thick soup, and apply it to Qianqian?" Just then, Li Dalang and Li Balang came in, interrupting Chen Xuan's conversation with the old lady, and causing Chen Xuan to be completely ignored. It wasn't until now that Chen Xuan had another chance to speak.

  Li Daling's eyebrows slightly furrowed.

  His eyes were filled with distrust.

  "......Big brother, let's try a prescription. Our family relative He Shi's second son has been ill for five years and many famous doctors can't do anything about it, but only Zhang Qi was able to cure him. The imperial physician hasn't arrived yet, so let's have Zhang Qi try first, to avoid Xiang Xiang getting into trouble." Li Er Niang finally spoke up after remaining silent the whole time.

  Qianqian was so miserable that outsiders couldn't bear to look at her, and Li Erniang couldn't bear it either.

  Moreover, Chen Jiong had indeed cured two cases of malignant diseases.

  Li Erniang mentioned several times during her visit to her parents' home that Chen Jing had cured He Zhen, but Li Dalang heard it and didn't take it seriously, only believing in the effectiveness of two or three cures.

  Even if it's just two or three tenths, it means Chen Jing is somewhat skilled in medicine.

  Now she says so again.

  Li Dalang hesitated for a moment, his eyes flashing slightly.

  "I won't prescribe any internal medicine for now." Chen Jiong knew the concerns of Li's family, so in order to gain their trust, he decided to take it one step at a time and said, "Let's wait until the doctor arrives, then we'll write a prescription and administer the medication."

  I'll concoct a prescription, decoct the medicine into a liquid and use it for bathing to temporarily relieve Qianqian's unbearable itchiness and alleviate her suffering. Although this only treats the symptoms and not the root cause, it can at least let Qianqian suffer less for now."

  Medicines taken orally can be fatal if taken incorrectly; while topical medications, even if used incorrectly, will not be life-threatening.

  Qianqian is suffering so much, as a family member, I am willing to try any method.

  Li Erniang kept talking about Chen Jing's medical skills.

  "All right, then I'll trouble you!" said Li Dalang.

  No matter what, it's better to try than to be anxious like this now.

  "Old Master......" Upon hearing this, Mrs. Li was startled. She didn't believe Chen Jing and feared that he would harm her daughter. Her husband had actually agreed to let Chen Jing write a prescription, causing Mrs. Li's heart to skip a beat.

  How can a man's heart be so broad?

  Li Dalang turned his head, his eyes gleaming sharply.

  Mrs. Li lowered her head again, not daring to say more as she caught his gaze.

  The maid brought paper and pen.

  Chen Jiong got up and went to the desk in the outer room, where he wrote a prescription.

  Li Yongrong followed him out and stood aside to watch. He saw Chen Xuan writing on the paper: "Five times the son of half a catty, dandelion two catties, bitter ginseng two catties."

  "What? With such a large dose?" Li Yongrong asked.

  The doctor prescribed a few mace and a few candareens of medicine.

  Chen Jiong actually prescribed medicine by the catty.

  Chen Jing explained: "These medicines can clear heat and detoxify, inhibit bacteria and stop itching. Boil a large pot of water, pour it into the bathtub, let Xuanxuan soak for half an hour, her itching will temporarily relieve, so the dosage is large... Of course, this cannot cure the root cause, she still needs to take medicine."

  Later generations treated urticaria with external medicines, including these several drugs.

  Li Yongrong listened and nodded, although he had never heard of anything called "inhibiting bacteria". However, he didn't understand medicine, and many medical terms were unknown to him, so he didn't pursue it further.

  When the ink was slightly dry, Chen Jing took it in and showed it to Li Dalang.

  Li Dalang also couldn't understand and saw such a large dose, so he asked why.

  Chen Jie repeated what he had just explained again.

  "Hurry up and take it to the outer courtyard, send someone to fetch the medicine, go quickly and come back quickly." Li Dalang received Chen Jing's explanation and handed the prescription over to the maid beside him.

  The maid took the prescription and hurriedly ran off.

  It was about half a cup of tea's worth of time before the doctor still hadn't appeared, and Li Dalang's barely suppressed anger surged up again.

  Jian Jian was still crying.

  The child's throat is hoarse from crying and keeps twisting his body on the bed to fight against the strange itch.

  Mrs. Li couldn't hold her down by herself, so she had the maid and wet nurse help out, holding her down and not letting her scratch the itch herself.

  At this time, the little servant Li Fu-sheng who went out to invite Dr. Sun first came back and knelt down in front of Mr. Li: "Master, Dr. Sun has been invited by the Mo family, I was a step late."

  I went to the Mo's house and said that our family's daughter was seriously ill, but after waiting for half an hour in the gatehouse, Dr. Sun didn't come out. Later, a young servant from the Mo's house came out and told me to go back, saying that Dr. Sun couldn't leave today because their old lady had invited him to dinner.

  A big family always has a fixed doctor.

  Because of a fixed doctor, familiar with the pulse case, treating diseases is more handy. The doctor and the patient are familiar with each other, trusting each other, and it's also easier to treat the disease.

  Sun was skilled in gynecology, and whenever a woman in Li's household fell ill, they would always invite him.

  Unexpectedly, today was so unlucky and bumped into Mo's family.

  No wonder Li Fusheng delayed until now before coming back.

  "Go and invite other doctors!" Li Dalang said sternly, "Send someone to the Mo family and ask them if they can postpone their lunch for another day. Tell them that my daughter is waiting for her life to be saved, and we will certainly remember the kindness of the Mo family and Doctor Sun."

  Li Fusheng said that and turned around to run out.

  Li Daling's face was gloomy for a while.

  Knowing that the girl from the other family is waiting to be rescued, Sun Daifu actually didn't come because he wanted to accompany Old Lady Mo for dinner. What's more important, human life or currying favor with the Mos? This kind of behavior is truly detestable.

  Na Mo's family can also be hated. If it weren't for Mo's family holding him back, Sun Dafu wouldn't have been able to come either.

  Li Dalang's face looked unpleasant, and the faces of others in the house didn't look any better.

  Li Balang beside him also secretly clenched his fist.

  After a while, the young servant who went to buy Chen Xuan's prescription came back, carrying the medicine into the inner courtyard, and the atmosphere in the house relaxed slightly.