"He truly is the King of Medicine! He's amazing!" Song Hao exclaimed.
Tang Yu said, "If Hua Tuo's Mafeisan (麻沸散) is indeed still in existence, its discovery would be enough to shock the world. This shows that many ancient remedies and secret medicines are still circulating among the people and are not necessarily extinct. As long as Ren Zhiqian really has the secret formula for Mafeisan, we must find him and make this ancient remedy available to modern people. Although modern medicine has anesthetics, the Mafeisan described in the scriptures has unique effects. If we fully explore its efficacy, it will surely shine brightly."
Song Hao said excitedly, "This is the second task of our trip to Qinghai."
“Master, I’ll go to Qinghai with you too,” Qiu Wei said.
Tang Yu smiled and said, "Why don't you go to the Heavenly Medicine Hall with your sister first? The new Hundred Herbs Garden needs manpower, and we'll let the people at the Heavenly Medicine Hall see the skills of the Medicine King Sect. We'll rush back as soon as we're done."
Song Hao said, "That's right. You should accompany your sister to Tianyi Hall first. Otherwise, we won't feel at ease letting her go alone on the way. Even if we pick you up on our way back, it will probably take a lot of time."
Qiu Ru smiled gratefully at Song Hao after hearing this. Qiu Wei had no choice but to give up. At the urging of the Qiu siblings, Song Hao and Tang Yu stayed at the Qiu family's house for the night.
Volume Two: The World of Traditional Chinese Medicine - The Heavenly Doctor's Hall, Chapter Thirty-Three: Vampires
Fire is expansive, water is fluid, wood is adaptable, metal is firm, and earth is heavy. The same applies to their living forms. Sound has no form or color, but is expressed through vessels; fire has no substance, but is expressed through firewood; color has no fixed form, but is expressed through vegetation. Therefore, of the five elements, only fire has no form yet its uses are inexhaustible. —Ming Dynasty, Lü Kun, *Shenyin Yu*
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The next day, Song Hao and Tang Yu bid farewell to Qiu Ru and Qiu Wei, and continued their journey by car. A few days later, the Qiu siblings also went to Tianyitang in Baihe Town.
Song Hao was thrilled to have unexpectedly met and invited a successor of the Medicine King Sect. He was also excited to learn that the ancient and miraculous remedy, Mafeisan, still existed. This made Song Hao realize the great significance of his trip.
While sitting in his car, Song Hao called Luo Feiying, who was far away at Tianyi Hall, to tell her about the Qiu siblings' upcoming visit. He also inquired about the current situation at Tianyi Hall and was relieved to learn that the project had started and everything was progressing smoothly.
"I'm afraid some people will be jealous of Qiu Ru's departure!" Tang Yu muttered as he drove.
"What did you say?" Song Hao asked, not understanding.
"It's nothing!" Tang Yu said with a smile.
As we traveled through Shaanxi and entered Gansu, the sky was high and the land was vast, the mountains were thick and the soil was fertile, creating a rugged landscape, and there were few signs of human habitation along the way.
That night, they traveled until midnight without encountering a town or even a village where they could stay overnight. The moon and stars were hidden, and it was pitch black all around, with only the car headlights moving about. The road conditions were also poor, and the ride was very bumpy, causing Song Hao and Tang Yu great anxiety. What you worry about most is more likely to happen. Tang Yu stopped the car on the side of the road, shook her head, and said, "The car has broken down!" She and Song Hao then grabbed flashlights and got out to check.
"Can it be fixed?" Song Hao asked.
After inspecting the engine, Tang Yu said helplessly, "It's an engine malfunction; we'll have to tow it to a repair shop."
Song Hao held the flashlight and looked around. The darkness was terrifying, and the flashlight's cord seemed to be absorbed by the endless darkness, becoming even dimmer. He said worriedly, "We can't just wait here. We need to find a place with people, otherwise we'll attract a pack of wolves, and that will be troublesome."
Tang Yu took some essential items from the car and said, "That's right, we can only ask for help. Let's keep going and see. We're unlikely to encounter wolves, but we can't just sit here and wait to die. This place is remote, and we might not see any passing vehicles even if we wait for several days."
The two then continued along the road. After walking about seven or eight li, Song Hao spotted the outline of a house on the side of the road in the light of his flashlight and exclaimed with delight, "We've finally found someone!"
This was a small, quiet village, devoid of any lights, likely because it was late at night and everyone was asleep. Song Hao and Tang Yu entered the village, but felt a deathly stillness; not even a dog barked, creating an unsettling atmosphere.
"It's too quiet; it doesn't seem like a village where people live," Song Hao said.
"It is a bit strange. Although most of the houses are made of earth and stone, the doors, windows and courtyards are all intact. It should be a village inhabited by people," Tang Yu said, shining her flashlight around.
"Let's knock on a door and see what's going on," Song Hao said.
"Song Hao, stay still!" Tang Yu suddenly warned.
"What's wrong?" Song Hao was taken aback, then sensed that something was off. He then noticed a dozen figures approaching from the darkness like ghosts.
"What are you doing?" a wary voice rang out from the side. Immediately afterwards, the beams of more than a dozen flashlights shone on Song Hao and Tang Yu.
"Hey passerby, my car broke down up ahead, I'm coming to the village for help," Song Hao called out, raising his arm to shield his eyes from the beam of sunlight. He then noticed figures moving around him – a group of people wielding wooden sticks, and two uniformed policemen with handguns standing in front of them.
Upon seeing this, Tang Yu felt relieved and abandoned his attack stance. However, he was puzzled as to why the police and civilians had ambushed the village. Something unusual must have happened.
The lead policeman glanced at Song Hao and Tang Yu's attire, confirming they were indeed just passersby, and waved his hand, signaling everyone to lower their guard. He said, "Come over here and let's talk."
Upon entering a brightly lit room, the policeman first checked Song Hao and Tang Yu's ID cards, then had them sit on a wooden bench. He said, "You two are quite bold, daring to walk alone in the dark."
Tang Yu said, "There was no other way, the car broke down, so I had to come here for help."
The policeman said, "Let's talk about it when it's light. I'll have someone tow your car to the town ahead for repairs."
"Thank you so much, officer!" Tang Yu said gratefully.
At this moment, another policeman came in and said, "Chief Zhang, after all that commotion, that thing probably won't show up tonight. It's almost dawn, so everyone should go back and rest."
Upon hearing this, Director Zhang nodded and said, "Alright!" A sigh of relief appeared on his tired face.
"Director Zhang, what happened in the village? Why do you seem so alarmed?" Song Hao asked.
"It's none of your business. I'll have someone take you and the car to the town ahead after dawn," said Director Zhang. As he spoke, he frowned, clutched his chest, and looked pained.
Upon seeing this, another policeman quickly brought over a glass of water and said, "Chief Zhang, you should take your medicine."
The director wiped the cold sweat from his brow, took a medicine bottle from his pocket, unscrewed the cap, poured out two pills, and swallowed them with water. His pain remained unabated; he was gritting his teeth and enduring the pain.
Seeing this, Song Hao observed his complexion and actions, and said, "Director Zhang, do you have a heart condition and are you having a severe attack of angina?"
"Oh! Yes!" Director Zhang glanced at Song Hao in surprise and replied.
"I'm a doctor, can I take a look?" Song Hao said.
"You're a doctor!" Director Zhang was taken aback upon hearing this, then smiled wryly and said, "It's a chronic condition that I can't treat." He clearly didn't quite believe in the young man's abilities.
"Give me your left hand." Song Hao ignored him, reached out and took Zhang's left hand, using his right thumb as a needle to press hard on the thenar eminence of Zhang's left palm with acupuncture. As he kneaded and pressed, the force penetrated the metacarpal bone.
The director immediately felt the pain subside and said gratefully, "I didn't know you had such abilities, thank you!"
Song Hao laughed, "You're welcome!" As he spoke, he pulled a needle from his sleeve and pricked the Shenmen and Neiguan acupoints on Director Zhang's left wrist. He then withdrew the needle after a brief manipulation.