jdhmnovel Chapter 364 Isn't this the nouveau riche Boss Huang?
Chapter 364 Isn't this the nouveau riche Boss Huang?
The chance of contracting plague after being bitten by a rat is extremely low.
Moreover, the main source of plague infection is through the bite of fleas infected with plague bacilli, or through direct contact with the bodily fluids, tissues, or wounds of infected animals, rather than simply through rat bites.
Therefore, being bitten by a rat does not necessarily mean you will contract the plague; it could also trigger rabies symptoms.
Even though she knew the possibility of it being the plague was extremely low, Long Chuqing's heart still grew heavy. Doctor Yuan's concerns were not without reason.
Based on his description of the symptoms, they were indeed extremely similar to those of the plague.
What if it's just that one percent probability?
The patient lived in the west of the city, where the ground was covered with a layer of snow, so the carriage did not travel very fast.
The patient's surname was Huang, and it was already late afternoon when he arrived at his residence.
Before leaving at noon, Doctor Yuan told Madam Huang that Mr. Huang's condition was somewhat unusual, and he needed to go back and ask a colleague to come and help diagnose and treat him.
Even though Dr. Yuan was sweating profusely, he dared not show too much panic on his face. After all, he was not yet entirely certain that it was the plague, lest the family members and household members panic and flee in all directions.
However, he kindly reminded Madam Huang and her close relatives to cover their mouths and noses with a handkerchief when taking care of Master Huang, on the grounds of preventing the spread of cold.
In the hour that Dr. Yuan left, the patient's condition worsened.
When Madam Huang saw her husband in such agony, she couldn't help but wonder: were these symptoms really just something unusual that the doctor had mentioned? He looked like he was about to die!
Although her husband, Lao Huang, had many flaws and liked to have affairs, they had been married for over ten years, and she still relied on him somewhat. She didn't want him to die like this.
She couldn't place all her hopes on one doctor; what if he didn't come back?
So she sent someone to fetch two more doctors to treat her husband.
Just then, Doctor Yuan returned.
When she saw Dr. Yuan again, he was accompanied by a woman.
She couldn't help but wonder, so she asked, "Dr. Yuan, is this young lady your colleague whom you invited?"
“That’s right. Madam, don’t underestimate her because of her young age. She is much more skilled than I am at treating severe colds.”
Dr. Yuan didn't feel ashamed to admit that his medical skills were inferior to Long Chuqing's in front of outsiders, and he was very generous with his praise for her.
Madam Huang was a very easygoing person and didn't understand these medical principles herself. Since Doctor Yuan had said so, she had no reason to question anything.
Right now, my old man Huang is still lying in bed, barely alive! It would be best to hurry up and welcome the two of them inside.
"Please come in with me, doctors!"
Long Chuqing glanced at the lady a few more times, feeling that she looked somewhat familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before, but he couldn't remember where.
She remembered everything when she saw the patient lying in bed.
Isn't this patient with a full beard the wealthy Boss Huang we met at Zuiyunlou before?
When he entered the restaurant, he was wearing a lot of gold jewelry, which he later gave away after being flattered by two female companions.
As a result, he was dragged back home by his wife in front of everyone, with his ear being pulled along.
The woman in front of him was the one who had pulled his ear.
After realizing that it might be a plague, Dr. Yuan became more cautious. Before entering the patient's room, he made a simple mask out of gauze and cotton, following the method taught by Long Chuqing, and put it on before going in.
Although Long Chuqing has lost her spiritual power, her body is still immune to the plague.
To cooperate with Dr. Yuan, she also wore a face covering.
After being tormented by his illness for a day, Boss Huang was already terribly haggard and had long lost his previous magnanimous appearance.
"Doctor, help, help me!" Upon seeing Doctor Yuan enter, Boss Huang tremblingly raised his hand, pleading for help. "Huff...huff...huff..."
He was breathing heavily, his voice hoarse and broken, like a bellows.
As soon as Long Chuqing entered, he sensed that the atmosphere in the room was abnormal, too stale and murky.
Slender, delicate fingers touched Boss Huang's wrist; his pulse was weak and restless, beating rapidly.
Looking at his face again, his eyes were bloodshot, his lips were dry, cracked and bluish, his body temperature was abnormal, and his face was flushed, confirming that he had an extremely dangerous high fever.
"Miss Long, come and take a look."
Dr. Yuan lifted up Boss Huang's pants, exposing his calves. By the light of the snow outside the window, one could see that the skin where he had been bitten or scratched by rats was blackened and swollen, and there was a faint fishy smell.
Long Chuqing also saw a layer of dark purple malevolent energy swirling around the wound.
The murky atmosphere in the room came from the malevolent energy emanating from these wounds.
"When were you bitten? And when did the fever start?" Long Chuqing's voice was clear, cold, and steady.
"Cough cough cough... Yesterday, no, today, cough cough, it seems, it wasn't." Boss Huang was already a bit delirious from the fever. "No, I don't know, I forgot, cough cough..."
Long Chuqing turned to look at Madam Huang.
"This..." Madam Huang thought carefully for a moment: "My husband returned to the mansion at around 7 p.m. the night before last. According to him, the wound was caused by a rat that suddenly appeared in the afternoon and bit him. He rushed back as soon as he was bitten."
"After we got back, we took him to see a doctor, who said it was nothing serious and prescribed some detoxifying medicine to drink. He was fine all day yesterday, but around midnight the wound started to swell and turn red. It was snowing at night and the weather was quite cold, so we didn't think much of it. But around dawn, my husband started to have a fever."
Mrs. Huang continued her story with great emotion: "My husband has become like this in less than a day. Doctor, will my husband die? Please save him."
"Ahem..." Madam Huang coughed lightly twice, covering her face.
How fast is this infection spreading?
Long Chuqing frowned; the situation seemed worse than she had imagined.
What were they doing in the mountains?
"This..." Madam Huang seemed a little hesitant: "Our Huang family has some businesses in the mountains, such as contracting out fruit tree planting."
Madam Huang retorted, "Young lady, aren't you a doctor? What does treating illnesses have to do with my husband going into the mountains? What does it have to do with what we do? This is our Huang family's business, and it's not convenient to talk about it too much with outsiders."
Madam Huang's eyes darted around, clearly indicating she wasn't telling the truth.
Long Chuqing didn't necessarily need to know anything, so she didn't press the matter further.
She just wanted to know if anyone else besides Boss Huang and his three bodyguards who were attacked by rats had also been bitten. If there were any businesses in the mountains, they would definitely need to hire workers to help with the work.
Mr. Huang is already a bit confused, and Mrs. Huang probably won't tell her the truth either. If she wants to know more, she'll have to see if she can get it out of the three bodyguards later!