Chapter 148: Better a short sharp pain than a long one
A little girl, in the bloom of her age, crouched on the ground, allowing a dog to leap over her body. Would this not embarrass Zhou Taohua?
"The black dog must jump over the shoulder seven times, otherwise it won’t work!" An old woman yelled from nearby.
Another woman nudged Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law with her elbow and said, "See, last time it didn’t jump from the shoulder, that’s why it didn’t work. Ask your Taohua to endure it this time, it will be alright once the jumping is over."
Bai Ruozhu was indeed curious and leaned over to ask in a hushed voice: "Auntie Zhou, what’s happening here?"
When Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law saw Bai Ruozhu carrying a child coming over, she hurriedly greeted her with a smile, "Ruozhu came for a visit, let’s go inside and chat once the jumping is over".
Bai Ruozhu saw the relaxed look on Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law’s face. She assumed it must not be anything serious and with so many people around, she stopped further questioning.
The dog managed to jump twice more over Zhou Taohua’s shoulder. The old woman said it was sufficient. Zhou Taohua, exerting herself, stood up from the ground and with her face flushed, walked towards her yard, her footsteps uneven and strained.
Seeing her struggle, Tao Hua’s mother hurried over to assist her. Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law also pulled Bai Ruozhu inside the yard.
"Did Tao Hua’s leg get injured?" The more Bai Ruozhu looked, the more confused she became. Was she becoming dense, why couldn’t she understand?
"Tao Hua has a big blister on her foot, it pains her so much that she can’t walk properly. The elders in our village say that if a black dog jumps seven times over her shoulder, she will recover," Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law added while linking arms with Bai Ruozhu.
Bai Ruozhu’s mouth gaped open; she couldn’t comprehend this. If she got hurt somewhere, applying censer ash, she could understand. But letting a dog jump seven times over a shoulder to cure a disease?
This was simply feudal superstition!
Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law, unaware of Bai Ruozhu’s surprise, continued, "A few days back, Tao Hua’s mother had already let the dog jump for her, but it didn’t pass over her shoulder so it didn’t work. Today it jumped, let’s wait for a few days and see."
"Didn’t you go and see Doctor Li?" Bai Ruozhu managed to ask, pulling back her dropped jaw.
"A girl’s foot shouldn’t be seen by a man, Tao Hua’s mother wouldn’t allow it. Our village has always treated ailments using these old formulas," explained Zhou Deshun’s daughter-in-law.
Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but facepalm, the tragedy of being a woman, not even allowed to see a doctor when sick, if the situation grew severe, was death simply attributed to bad fate?
She looked at Zhou Taohua: the girl seemed to be having a tough time walking. It seemed to be quite serious. Weren’t they worried that Zhou Taohua’s leg might become obsolete?
Bai Ruozhu felt if anything happened to this beautiful girl, she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself. She spoke up, calling out to Tao Hua and her mother.
"Auntie Dehai, I have some medical skills. Why don’t I take a look at Tao Hua’s wound? I am a woman, so there won’t be any issue," Bai Ruozhu suggested. She noticed the lack of approval in their faces and quickly added: "You don’t know when the dog’s jumps will take effect and your pain isn’t going away; don’t you want to get better soon?"
Bai Ruozhu had no other choice. The village folks had a deep-rooted belief in these old practices. If she openly discredited these practices, she would incur their wrath. So, she had to be tactful and change her approach.
"Let Ruozhu take a look then, otherwise it’s quite uncomfortable," Zhou Dehai’s daughter-in-law finally gave in, beckoning Bai Ruozhu into the back room. She helped Zhou Taohua take off her shoes and socks.
Bai Ruozhu noticed even taking off her socks was extremely painful for Zhou Taohua. She realized it must be serious. These people were hoping for the dog’s jumps to heal her; this was simply ignorance!
True enough, the sight of Zhou Taohua’s swollen foot made her gasp in shock. Good heavens, her foot has swollen like a pork trotter and she still refuses to see a doctor?
Upon further inspection, Zhou Taohua’s foot had a large blister that was slightly green, indicating it was full of pus.
"Miss Taohua, was this foot punctured by something?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
"A few days ago, I went out to deliver food and felt a little pain in my foot. I feared stepping on something unclean, so I soaked it in hot water after coming home. But the next day, a blister appeared. It started out small but it’s gotten much bigger these past few days." Zhou Taohua said, her voice slightly louder than usual.
"How long has this been going on? That blister is filled with pus. If it’s not drained, it will continue to hurt. It could even progress to fever or unconsciousness if it gets serious." Bai Ruozhu was growing impatient, but she managed to suppress her anger and patiently explained.
Zhou Taohua was so scared that she almost burst into tears, "Then, then what should I do? I’ve tried to cure it by having a dog jump over it twice, but it’s not getting any better!"
Her mother comforting her said, "Don’t worry, it might get better by tomorrow."
Bai Ruozhu could not believe what she was hearing. She wanted to shout at them: "It would be a miracle if these methods work!"
In the end, Bai Ruozhu calmed herself and with a softer tone said, "The method of having a dog jump over the wounded area does not necessarily work for anything. If Miss Taohua’s injury drags on, it may cause problems for your leg. Don’t you feel some pain in your thigh too?"
Zhou Taohua quickly nodded, "Yeah, the pain has spread from my calf to my thigh. What do I do? Will I become lame?"
If we go by Western medicine, Zhou Taohua’s white blood cell count must be over ten thousand by now. She had inflammation on her foot and did not get treatment. If the pus remained in there, it would be strange if her entire leg remained unaffected.
"There’s still time to treat it now, but if you delay it for another couple of days, I can’t guarantee anything." Bai Ruozhu said.
Mrs. Taohua looked at Ruozhu hesitantly and asked, "Ruozhu, can you cure it? Are you sure?"
Being doubted made Ruozhu unhappy. As a doctor, she disliked it when others questioned her capabilities. But then, she considered that she was only seventeen years old and had not studied medicine before, so it would be understandable if people did not trust her.
"It was me who saved Xi Dandan from drowning last time, wasn’t it? And didn’t I tell Doctor Li how to save Wang LaiDi from miscarrying?" Bai Ruozhu, eager to save lives, didn’t intend to hide her modesty anymore.
Her words were convincing. Mrs. Taohua nodded vigorously, "Right, right. How could I forget about that? If I knew that earlier, I would have asked for your help. My poor Taohua wouldn’t have had to go through this."
Taohua looked at Bai Ruozhu with an eye full of anticipation, she asked while holding Bai Ruozhu’s hand, "Sister Ruozhu, how do we treat this blister?"
"First, we need to break the blister and let the pus out or else the inflammation won’t heal. Also, we need to apply medicine to your foot, and you will have to drink a few potions. Otherwise, the pain in your leg won’t alleviate." Bai Ruozhu patiently explained.
"Ah?" Taohua was afraid of pain. Upon hearing this, she began to cry, "I’m scared, I’m scared it will hurt. It must be really painful to burst such a large blister, right?"
Bai Ruozhu rubbed her temples, tried to soften her tone and explained, "The skin on your foot is already numb and it won’t hurt when you break it open. The skin there is already dead and needs to be removed. New skin will grow soon. The only thing is, applying the medicine will be very painful. But it’s better to endure a short-term severe pain than to suffer constantly. Would you rather endure this agony every day?"
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I’ve had a blister like this before. I’ve had a drip for three days, and when the pus was drained and alcohol and medicine were applied, it was truly painful. My screams could be heard throughout the whole building... I remember asking the doctor beforehand whether it would hurt. She said the application of medicine would hurt. I asked if it would be more painful than giving birth. She said it’s a different kind of pain... Of course, I still think childbirth is more painful...