Chapter 179

Yan Nujiao probably wasn't acquainted with that Lan-clad girl at all, and besides, she was worried about her brother's injury, following Mister Meng over; now Hu Xiaotian finally found someone similarly down on his luck, and he smiled at that Lan-clad girl, making a friendly gesture.

The Lan-clad girl seemed not to have noticed Hu Xiaotian's friendly glance at all, and she was also paying attention to Yan Boguang on the rattan bed.

Hu Xiaotian kept bumping into nails, and even with thick skin he could feel some heat; a hot face meeting a cold butt—how embarrassing. Who would have thought that the so-called famous doctors of this era are just like before, the higher the skill, the bigger the airs. However, this Lan-clad girl probably isn't a famous doctor at all; she's likely just a young disciple of Old Mister Meng, yet she's so arrogant.

Mister Meng examined Yan Boguang's wound, his expression turning extremely solemn; after a while he turned and beckoned to that Lan-clad girl, who put down her medicine basket and walked over as well.

Mister Meng said: 'Yutong, what do you think?'

The Lan-clad girl examined the sutured wound closely, her delicate brows knitting together, and she said softly: 'Did someone previously perform an abdominal incision on him?'

Yan Nujiao nodded, turned her head, and her lovely eyes fixed on Hu Xiaotian, obviously telling everyone that the one who had sliced open her brother's belly was Hu Xiaotian.

Mister Meng and the Lan-clad girl turned around at the same time; this was the first time they had noticed Hu Xiaotian's presence since entering the room.

Hu Xiaotian smiled, estimating that his surgery had shocked these two medical colleagues as well, and he guessed they would likely regard his actions as heretical.

Mister Meng said: 'Why did you cut open his belly?'

Hu Xiaotian said: 'The patient was suffering severe internal bleeding at the time; the purpose of opening his abdomen was to locate the bleeding point quickly and treat the damaged organs—this was the only way to save his life.'

Mister Meng frowned tightly and said: 'What did you do?'

Hu Xiaotian thought, 'Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand,' and Yan Nujiao said: 'He cut off a segment of my brother's intestine.'

Mister Meng's pupils contracted suddenly; he pressed his lips together and asked: 'Why?'

Hu Xiaotian said: 'His small intestine was pierced by a sharp instrument, and the contents inside leaked out; the abdomen had to be cleaned thoroughly, then a segment of the intestine removed and the ends anastomosed, otherwise his life would certainly be forfeit.'

The Lan-clad girl said: 'You mean cutting out the pierced segment of intestine and then re-suturing the two ends together?'

Hu Xiaotian nodded.

A look of astonishment flashed in the Lan-clad girl's eyes, as if she were seeing Hu Xiaotian for the first time; she stared at his face carefully, then turned to Mister Meng and said: 'Uncle, the patient has lost a lot of blood; he needs a blood transfusion.'

Hu Xiaotian had actually already diagnosed anemia; last night he had suggested a transfusion, but under the current circumstances the conditions weren't met, and he had drawn over two catties of blood from Hu Jinniu merely to eliminate a potential rival—those bags of blood were never used on Yan Boguang, and he had wasted them all; if Hu Jinniu knew he'd been toyed with like that, he'd probably be so angry he'd vomit blood.

Mister Meng said: 'I'll go find some blood sources.'

The Lan-clad girl took out a needle case, drew out a silver needle about an inch long, pricked Yan Boguang's finger, squeezed out a few drops of fresh blood into a previously prepared silver vessel, then scattered some unknown powder on it. Hu Xiaotian stood by the window, watching from afar, curious about her actions. Unable to contain his curiosity, he walked over, only to see the blood in the vessel turn from red to gray, then to a pale blue.

Hu Xiaotian secretly guessed this must be blood typing, completely unlike modern agglutination tests; one couldn't know without seeing, but the world truly is marvelous, with many things beyond his comprehension. As expected, after the Lan-clad girl finished, she turned to Yan Nujiao and said: 'The patient has lost a great deal of blood; he needs to be replenished quickly, and siblings are the most suitable donors.'

Yan Nujiao said: 'I can.' She really wasn't bad toward that lecherous brother. The Lan-clad girl used the same method, drawing a few drops of her blood, but after adding the powder the color turned green; her brows furrowed slightly, she shook her head—Yan Nujiao's blood type was clearly different from her brother's.

Hu Xiaotian watched from the side and couldn't help thinking: Yan Nujiao's skin is so fair and tender, her eyes are green, altogether she looks like a European girl; no wonder she doesn't seem to share a mother with Yan Boguang—different blood types make perfect sense.

Upon hearing her blood wasn't suitable, Yan Nujiao's face fell with disappointment. At that moment Mister Meng entered with several sturdy Black Miao youths; the Lan-clad girl used her unique blood‑type testing method to select usable donors, then cleansed and disinfected the skin on their forearms.

Mister Meng took out a clay jar from the inner room, which was actually full of leeches; Hu Xiaotian had only read about this in books—historically, leeches were once used for blood transfusion—and today he finally saw it in person.

The Lan-clad girl put on thin leather gloves, took out the leeches one by one and placed them on the donors' arm veins; from her practiced movements Hu Xiaotian could tell she had some anatomical knowledge, being very familiar with venous pathways. The leeches attached to the skin and quickly began sucking the donors' blood, their bodies swelling rapidly from the size of a willow leaf to that of a thumb, and once full they rolled off the skin on their own.

The Lan-clad girl carefully picked up the blood‑filled leeches, placed them on Yan Boguang's arm and calf, scattered some unknown white powder on their bodies, and the leeches then began to inject the blood they had sucked into Yan Boguang's veins.

Seeing Yan Boguang's limbs covered in leeches, Hu Xiaotian thought this unique transfusion method truly opened his eyes and was awe‑inspiring; obviously the process could not guarantee sterile conditions, and he couldn't help thinking that if any of the donors had hepatitis B, syphilis, or AIDS, Yan Boguang would be doomed.

However, looking at these Black Miao youths donating blood, they all seemed healthy and simple, unlikely to be ill; even if they were sick, it would serve Yan Boguang right—this scoundrel is a flower‑snatcher, a rotten person, and he actually escaped a deadly calamity this time. Hu Xiaotian recalled the subtle move he'd made on the man's lower body, and felt a secret pride: 'Pluck your mother's flowers, old man—I'll make you unable to consummate marriage for life, choke to death, you bastard.'

After about half an hour, the bloodletting ended. Mister Meng then poured some green viscous liquid into Yan Boguang's mouth; seeing his face flush with a bit of red, it seemed his anemia was improving quickly. Mister Meng felt his pulse, checked his eyelids, and told Yan Nujiao: 'Miss Yan, rest easy—his life should be saved.'

The usually strong Yan Nujiao, upon hearing her brother was all right, couldn't help but burst into tears of joy.

Hu Xiaotian took advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention to slip away quietly; today he'd indeed been of little help, and in fact even without giving Yan Boguang a blood transfusion, the fellow wouldn't die—he'd just need a longer recovery.

Hu Xiaotian stepped outside, just reached the stairwell, when a cold voice from behind called out: 'Young master, please stay!'

Hu Xiaotian turned around, and the one who asked him to stay was that Lan‑clad girl; she still wore her veil, adding to her mystique while also giving Hu Xiaotian a sense of distance—instinctively he felt this girl was not easy to approach, and in her exquisitely beautiful eyes he could find no warmth.

Hu Xiaotian pointed at his own nose and said: 'Miss, are you calling me?'

The Lan‑clad girl nodded, came to his side, and asked: 'What instrument did you use to perform the abdominal incision on him?'

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said: 'May I ask your esteemed surname, miss?'—quite a non‑answer to her question.

The Lan‑clad girl showed little reserve: 'No need for formalities, my surname is Qin.'

'Qin Yutong, what a fine name—I'm Hu Xiaotian!' Hu Xiaotian, ever the familiar type, volunteered his name even though no one had asked.

Qin Yutong said: 'I've only read about abdominal surgery for wound treatment in ancient texts; today is the first time I've actually seen it performed.'

Hu Xiaotian smiled: 'I've also read about leech transfusion in books, and today is my first time seeing it—so we really do have some fate between us.' Gazing at Qin Yutong's clear, deep eyes, he felt her gaze was unfathomable; through her eyes it was hard to discern her inner thoughts. Though Qin Yutong is likely not old, she gives Hu Xiaotian a sense of maturity and composure beyond her years—profoundly mysterious, inscrutable.

Qin Yutong said: 'May Sir Hu let me see the instruments you used?'

Few men could refuse a request from a peerless beauty; although Qin Yutong wore a veil, her bearing and demeanor already merited the phrase 'peerless elegance,' and Hu Xiaotian also believed that behind that gauze lay a face capable of toppling kingdoms and bringing disaster—yet his greatest trait was being lustful yet never swayed by beauty; he gave a heh heh laugh, then firmly shook his head and said: 'No.'

Qin Yutong evidently hadn't expected Hu Xiaotian to refuse her; her request was not excessive at all.

Seeing Qin Yutong's startled, bewildered gaze from the unexpected surprise, Hu Xiaotian felt a surge of pride—not because he truly wanted to refuse, but because he intended to leave her a deep impression through this unexpected tactic; past psychology wasn't studied in vain, and Qin Yutong didn't realize what sort of person she was dealing with.

After Qin Yutong's brief bewilderment, her gaze returned to its calm, still‑as‑a‑deep‑well state, which struck Hu Xiaotian as strange—how could a girl in the bloom of youth possess such a tranquil mindset? She whispered: 'It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir Hu.' She came and went lightly, and several colorful butterflies fluttered to her side, lingering reluctantly.

Hu Xiaotian added: 'Do you know who you saved?'

Qin Yutong stopped, slowly turned around, and asked: 'Does it matter?'

Hu Xiaotian said: 'A lecher!' He leaned in closer, lowered his voice, and declared: 'He has brought disaster upon countless respectable women; he deserves death a hundred times over, this lecher!'

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