Chapter 3: Mom Said, Never Let a Man See It
Bite the... butt?
Liu Zixuan was taken aback upon hearing this. He hadn’t seen any snakes or anything like that just now. He walked over to the little girl and helped her up, his eyes widening immediately.
He saw a small white snake biting her butt, and even now, it hadn’t let go.
"You’re quite a pervy little snake, aren’t you? Sticking to the little girl’s butt and not letting go."
Liu Zixuan grinned, pinched the snake’s weak spot, and pulled it off. He took out a small knife, removed the snake’s gall, and casually stuffed the snake into his backpack.
Snakes, despite being poisonous, can be quite valuable. To a National Doctor, they’re like little treasures.
He handed the snake gall to the little girl: "Eat this!"
"Huh?" The little girl hesitated, her face full of disgust: "That’s gross!"
"If you don’t eat it, the snake venom will act up soon, and then you’ll be a goner." Liu Zixuan said, pretending to be serious.
The little girl hesitated for a moment, pinched her nose, and swallowed the snake gall, coughing forcefully a few times: "It’s so bitter!"
"Such a tonic, and you’re afraid of a little bitterness?" Liu Zixuan touched his nose and then tried to pull down the little girl’s pants.
The little girl jumped to the side, looking at Liu Zixuan cautiously: "What... what are you going to do?"
"You got bitten by a snake, I need to treat your wound, or the venom will spread throughout your body."
"But I already ate the snake gall!"
"Who said snake gall can detoxify?"
"Then why did you make me eat it?"
The little girl hesitated for a moment: "But... Mom said, that part can’t be shown to men."
Uh...
Liu Zixuan became curious about the little girl’s mother, chuckling: "Do you think I’m a bad person?"
"No."
"Then am I going to bully you? Come over quickly, if the venom reaches your vital organs, even I won’t be able to save you."
The little girl hesitated and reluctantly walked over, looking at Liu Zixuan’s expression, then unwillingly pulled down her pants.
"How... how do you detoxify then?"
"The venom needs to be sucked out."
"With what?"
"With my mouth, of course."
"You’re going to bite my butt..."
...
After cleaning out the venom, Liu Zixuan gave the little girl an elixir made by his beautiful master, bandaging her wound simply.
He turned to look, noticing the little girl’s cheeks were red as apples, tender and pitifully enchanting.
Liu Zixuan couldn’t help but ask: "Are you from Lingxiu Village?"
"Uh-huh. Big Brother, are you going to our village?" The little girl asked, lowering her head.
"Yes."
"You can’t go."
No sooner had Liu Zixuan spoken than the little girl shook her head like a rattledrum, a worried look on her face.
"Why can’t I go? Could it be that your village’s women eat people?" Liu Zixuan asked curiously.
"Big Brother, I think you’re a good person, so I’m telling you."
The little girl whispered mysteriously in Liu Zixuan’s ear: "Because of our village’s marriage customs, it’s all women. Every three years, during the rituals, many men are invited from outside, and they get to choose any of the women of the right age for those shyly activities."
"Uh, and where do those men go afterward?" Liu Zixuan asked. To be honest, he was intrigued by these customs, as such things were rare these days, a real perk for men.
The little girl explained: "If, during the occasion, the woman gets pregnant and gives birth to a boy, the man can take him away. If it’s a girl, she grows up in the village, but the man can’t stay in the village after the ritual and the baby’s birth."
Liu Zixuan nodded: "I see, but how does that concern me going to your village?"
"According to my Mom, because of today’s social reforms, such customs are no longer allowed. There hasn’t been a ritual in six years, and the authorities have sent a college girl to be our village leader, to bring in men from outside to start families with the women."
"But here’s the weird part: The first batch of men they invited all caught a strange illness within a week, and only one is still alive. I’ve heard from the neighbor Granny Zhang that it’s a curse from the gods, that any man who goes to our village is doomed to die."
Liu Zixuan understood now. The little girl was worried that he’d catch the mysterious illness and die if he went there.
But...
He’s an atheist, and doesn’t believe in curses. If you’re sick, get treated, why blame gods and ghosts!
Besides, this only made Liu Zixuan more determined to go. How could he, a doctor with a benevolent heart, ignore the plight of 99 women without a happy life?
So he smiled: "Lead the way, I’m a doctor, and I’m here to help solve your village’s problem."
"Doctor?" The little girl thought for a moment. After all, this big brother had just helped her with the snake venom. She hesitated and said: "Big brother, you have to listen to me. If things start looking bad, you should leave quickly."
"Okay." Liu Zixuan ruffled the little girl’s hair and followed her toward the village.
...
Led by the little girl, they made their way toward the village. She mentioned that there would be a ritual feast today, where Granny Zhang would cast a spell to save the last remaining man.
However, because observing the ritual was forbidden, only a few village officials were present.
Liu Zixuan was curious why the little girl brought him here if they weren’t allowed to watch.
The little girl made a mischievous face and smiled: "Because I always sneak a peek during the rituals. Watching Granny Zhang jump around is really fun!"
Liu Zixuan was puzzled. Why would you need to jump around to save someone?
With this question, they arrived at the entrance of the village society.
Standing in a corner and looking inside, he saw a cross set up in the courtyard with a man tied to it, looking extremely weak.
Surrounding him were five women.
One of them held a willow stick, muttering something unknown.
Nearby, two women were holding another woman’s hands.
The woman being restrained looked anxious but helpless.
The last woman was pacing back and forth, looking extremely worried, as if pondering something.
Liu Zixuan frowned; it definitely didn’t seem like they were saving someone. It looked more like the village’s rural ’witchcraft’. Seeing the man barely clinging to life, he quickly rushed over.
Without a word, he tried to untie the ropes to treat him.
Unexpectedly, the old woman with the willow stick slapped him on the back and scolded angrily: "How dare you! I’m driving away the evil spirit, and you dare act rashly. Aren’t you afraid the gods will take your life?"