CHAPTER 147: CHAPTER 137: ANYONE WHO CUTS IN LINE IS COURTING DEATH

Bai Susu went back to the tent to clean the bloodstains off herself after he left, and then continued with her consultations.

Seeing this, Feng Qiwu immediately said, "Susu, you should rest."

He could tell that performing a C-section required intense concentration, and just helping that woman give birth probably exhausted her more than seeing a dozen patients.

Bai Susu shook her head and said, "I’m fine, Shu Kuang. If I can’t hold on, I’ll let you know."

She needed to quickly get a count of those suffering from pneumonia.

If there was indeed a trend of spreading, she’d need to go back and prepare promptly.

Seeing Bai Susu’s persistence, Feng Qiwu could only nod.

Because Bai Susu had just saved the shepherd’s wife and child with a C-section, everyone now treated her like a living Bodhisattva. Some had been skeptical, but now were rushing to join the queue.

This was a Bodhisattva who could snatch lives back from Yama — if they didn’t take this chance for a consultation, where could they find such a skilled doctor later?

As for those who wanted to cut in line?

Initially, when some people cut in line, others would endure it.

But who could tolerate cutting in line when the person inside the tent is a true miracle doctor!

Daring to cut in line was like risking their own lives.

So, they resolutely wouldn’t tolerate anyone cutting in line.

Thus, without Ling Han and others maintaining order, the queue was already neatly formed on its own.

Those attempting to cut in line faced the unanimous angry glares of everyone present.

...

As dusk fell, Bai Susu had Ling Han announce the end of consultations.

Those still waiting in line outside saw this, and their faces showed disappointment.

However, since Bai Susu was already regarded as a miracle doctor, no one dared to cause trouble at this time, fearing it might displease Bai Susu and make her leave.

Despite their reluctance, the crowd gradually dispersed.

At this point, Bai Susu removed her veil and face mask.

Seeing the deep marks left on her cheeks by the mask, Feng Qiwu couldn’t help but feel a pang of heartache.

"Susu, you should rest tomorrow." He regretted his decision.

He shouldn’t have suggested she come here for consultations.

He truly hadn’t anticipated that Susu would work so hard, to the point of merely taking a few bites for lunch.

Had he known she’d be so relentless, he wouldn’t have brought up the matter of practicing medicine even if it killed him.

Bai Susu, as expected, shook her head.

Seeing Feng Qiwu’s grim expression, Bai Susu quickly added, "Shu Kuang, don’t worry about me. I know my limits, and besides, my main reason for coming is to collect data."

"Hmm?" Feng Qiwu frowned and looked at her.

Bai Susu then handed him the "medical record" she was holding.

"Take a look at this," Bai Susu said.

This was her homemade log of patient conditions, and of the more than a hundred patients she had seen today, over half presented with the same symptoms.

This was also why she became faster with her consultations later on.

It wasn’t that she was perfunctory, but the symptoms of each person were similar, differing only in severity.

So the later consultations were practically an assembly line operation.

Besides pneumonia, the most common symptom was abdominal swelling.

However, their abdominal swelling wasn’t due to something growing inside their stomachs, but because they were so hungry that they had resorted to eating "Guanyin soil" from the ground!

Grains were piled up just ten miles away at the Xia Yu Pass, but in the town ten miles away, people were so impoverished they were eating dirt, leaving mostly the elderly and infirm behind.

The young, it seemed, chose to become bandits.

...

Upon seeing the medical records Bai Susu had written down, Feng Qiwu’s eyes narrowed.

"An infectious disease is breaking out here!" Feng Qiwu stated solemnly and definitively.

Bai Susu nodded, casting an approving glance at Feng Qiwu.

As expected of a major antagonist, quick to catch on.

"Indeed, according to my judgment, they have pneumonia. Once pneumonia turns severe, it becomes very difficult to treat. Moreover, this illness can easily be spread to others through sneezing and the like... I suspect that most people here are infected," Bai Susu said solemnly.

Pneumococcal pneumonia can easily invade those with weak immune systems.

And here, where people struggle with basic subsistence, how strong could their immune systems be?

Feng Qiwu then said coldly, "In that case, isolating these people as soon as possible is paramount."

If these people spread to other areas, this infectious disease would follow them, also spreading to other regions.

The trouble and danger it could cause then would be even greater.

Bai Susu noted Feng Qiwu immediately thought of isolation and couldn’t help but think that it was no wonder he had read epidemiology — he knew to cut off the transmission source first.

So she nodded and said, "That’s right, it should be done."

"However, I have another way to treat mild cases," Bai Susu said.

Then she added, "I also read about this in a book, so I’m not sure if it’s effective."

"What method?" Feng Qiwu gave her a deep look.

Did she realize that she’s already an open book?

But he was willing to cooperate nonetheless.

...

"I heard that mold growing on rotten oranges — the mold hair on top — helps with pneumonia, I want to try," Bai Susu said.

"Rotten oranges?" Feng Qiwu frowned.

Even starving people wouldn’t eat moldy oranges, everyone knows it could lead to death or illness.

Yet Susu claimed that moldy oranges could treat pneumonia?

But since she said it, might as well let her try.

Bai Susu, feeling a bit anxious, watched Feng Qiwu nod, "Yes, but to cultivate large amounts, it will require many hands."

Did he believe her?

"Don’t worry about that; what I have the most on hand are available people," Feng Qiwu said after glancing at her.

"That’s good, let me first write down the needed items, and could you have them prepared as soon as possible?" Bai Susu promptly said.

"Hmm." Feng Qiwu nodded.

Then Bai Susu sat down and began writing.

Curious, Feng Qiwu moved in closer and saw Bai Susu write on the paper: moldy oranges, rice and yam mashed into liquid, clay pot, rapeseed oil, etc.

Is this not a recipe?

After Bai Susu finished writing the steps, Feng Qiwu couldn’t help but ask, "Susu, you didn’t accidentally read a recipe, did you?"

Bai Susu: ???

Her mouth twitched, and after glancing at the materials she had written down, Bai Susu patiently explained, "No mistake, the rice and yam are for cultivating the mold on the oranges, and the rapeseed oil is for isolating useful compounds. You’ll see when the time comes."

Thankfully she had done a rudimentary experiment on penicillin extraction during college, otherwise simply knowing that penicillin was extracted from moldy oranges would have been useless.

And with a large workforce, she could produce penicillin in quantity in a short time.

...