Chapter 621: [Treatment Effect] (Part 1)

PS: Want to hear more of your voices, want to receive more of your suggestions, now search WeChat public account "qdread" and follow, give more support to "Medical Unification"!

Hu Xiaotian got up and opened the door, only to see Eunuch Dong appearing outside in a panic, his face full of alarm: "Quick… quick… the Empress Dowager's eyes are terribly itchy, hurry and come with me to have a look."

Hearing this, Hu Xiaotian was also startled; he hurriedly followed Eunuch Dong to the Empress Dowager's chambers. By rights it wasn't yet time to change the dressing, and yesterday when he operated on the Empress Dowager he had been extremely careful—could something really have gone wrong? Or had the medicine from the Divine Farmer Society caused an allergic reaction? Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but feel anxious; he really shouldn't have been so optimistic. Although people of this era have rather robust constitutions, strong tolerance, and low infection rates, there are always exceptions. If the Empress Dowager happened to be such an exception, that would be trouble. Thinking of all possible postoperative complications, Hu Xiaotian grew ever more fearful—if the Empress Dowager had a problem, he didn't have enough heads to lose, and not only that, he might also implicate the Divine Farmer Society and the other brothers of the envoy.

After a brief panic, Hu Xiaotian quickly calmed down. Actually, how bad could the situation get? Though he had only just met the father and son of the Divine Farmer Society's Liu family, he trusted their character completely; otherwise Qin Yutong wouldn't have personally written a letter asking Liu Changsheng to look after him. Since the Divine Farmer Society is Yongdu's top medical hall, Liu Changsheng's skill is beyond doubt. He himself had been extremely careful during the operation, making no mistake. Medicine allergy? The chance is minuscule. Could the wound be about to heal? Recalling that people of this era have far greater resistance and healing speed than before, perhaps it's quite possible.

Hu Xiaotian arrived at the Empress Dowager's chambers and saw she had already risen, sitting there, constantly saying: "My eyes are so itchy! Quickly help me take off the gauze."

Huo Shengnan didn't leave either, and softly advised: "Empress Dowager, don't be anxious; just wait until Hu Xiaotian arrives and then speak."

Hu Xiaotian happened to walk into the palace at that moment and calmly asked: "What's wrong?"

Huo Shengnan said: "It's been itchy for half an hour already; the Empress Dowager has been resisting the urge to scratch. What medicine did you give the Empress Dowager? Why is there such a reaction?"

Hu Xiaotian replied: "Do you think I would harm the Empress Dowager?" He stepped forward. Originally the gauze could only be removed after a day, but seeing the current state he had to take it off early to observe the wound, in case there was infected discharge, then he could make other plans.

Hu Xiaotian had someone fetch his surgical kit, cut the gauze covering the Empress Dowager's eyes, and when the gauze was lifted he breathed a deep sigh of relief from the bottom of his heart: "Damn!" He had almost been scared to death. The Empress Dowager's eyes showed no sign of infected discharge, not even the slightest swelling; the speed of healing was simply unbelievable—judging by the incision, the Empress Dowager had already fully recovered.

Although Hu Xiaotian already knew that people of this era heal wounds at nearly twice the speed he was used to, he hadn't expected the Empress Dowager's recovery to be this astonishing—only one night had passed, and it must be thanks to the medicine provided by Liu Yucheng.

Empress Dowager Jiang still kept her eyes closed and said softly: "Much better. Feels much fresher, though the eyelids are still a bit tight."

Hu Xiaotian carefully examined her eyelid incision. Confident that it was healed, he then plucked out the mulberry-bark suture used to stitch the eyelids.

Everyone gathered around, holding their breath, quietly watching Hu Xiaotian's every move. On the surface Empress Dowager Jiang seemed unharmed, but no one knew what would happen when she opened her eyes—whether her vision would be affected was hard to say.

After Hu Xiaotian removed the stitches from Empress Dowager Jiang, he could confirm that her wound had completely healed—this was partly due to her constitution, and partly because the Reviving Wood Spring Ointment prepared by Liu Changsheng was remarkably effective.

Thinking of the Reviving Wood Spring Ointment, Hu Xiaotian then recalled what Liu Yucheng had said before leaving; he hurriedly summoned the medicine box Liu Yucheng had left behind, took out a small blue bottle, and the liquid inside was remarkably effective at stopping the itch.

Hu Xiaotian had a palace maid bring warm water, dropped three drops into it, and then had the Empress Dowager wash her face.

Following his instructions, the Empress Dowager washed her face clean; the liquid was indeed miraculously effective—after washing her face she felt extremely comfortable, and the unbearable itch was gone.

Empress Dowager Jiang said: "Mr. Hu, can I now open my eyes?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Wait!" He had the palace maid extinguish all the candles in the room, so that Empress Dowager Jiang could fully adapt to the process and avoid strong light irritating her eyes. Having been a eunuch for so long wasn't for nothing; Hu Xiaotian's consideration was thorough, especially when it came to serving people.

After everything was set, Empress Dowager Jiang slowly opened her eyes. Since it was still dawn and the indoor light was dim, the elderly Empress Dowager felt her vision was no different from before; only the skin around her eyes felt tighter, and the old sensation of inverted lashes was gone.

The crowd vaguely saw that the Empress Dowager looked no different from before, and all secretly thought: This Hu Xiaotian really does have some skill—at least the Empress Dowager's eyes are fine.

Empress Dowager Jiang didn't say much, turned and walked to the right; the palace maid understood her intent, quickly supported her and escorted her to the dressing table, and another maid, after obtaining Hu Xiaotian's consent, lit the candles.

Empress Dowager Jiang looked into the bronze mirror by candlelight.

Hu Xiaotian watched the elderly Empress Dowager's movements from afar, still feeling a bit uneasy. Although he had done a pretty good job with the double eyelids, everyone's aesthetic differs—who knew whether Empress Dowager Jiang would be satisfied? If she wasn't, and she sued him for malpractice, he'd have no chance of winning. If it came to a fight, it wouldn't be settled by paying a little money; he might even lose his life.

Empress Dowager Jiang seemed to feel the view wasn't clear enough, so she picked up a small bronze mirror from the table and, by candlelight, examined her eyes. Suddenly, with a clang, the bronze mirror slipped from her hand and fell to the floor.

Everyone's heart jumped; Hu Xiaotian's heart sank with the sound of the mirror hitting the floor, secretly thinking, eight or nine times out of ten it's over—the elderly Empress Dowager is dissatisfied with her appearance.

"Hahaha……" Empress Dowager Jiang burst into a hearty laugh: "I can hardly recognize myself!"

Hu Xiaotian's scalp went numb—turns out it was a cold laugh. The Empress Dowager's reaction to her current look was surprisingly strong; it was just a minor cosmetic procedure, merely creating double eyelids like this—if I had to pull a whole sheet of skin for her old self, I'd go mad!

Empress Dowager Jiang sprang to her feet excitedly and quickly went to Huo Shengnan's side: "Shengnan, look, look, do you still recognize me?"

Huo Shengnan said: "You're still you!"

Hu Xiaotian felt moved—Huo Shengnan had at least spoken a fair word.

Empress Dowager Jiang grabbed Eunuch Dong's hand: "Little Dong, do you recognize me?"

Eunuch Dong glanced at her and said nothing.

Empress Dowager Jiang said: "Light all the candles, so you can all see what I look like now."

Hu Xiaotian almost wanted to drop his head to the ground: "Damn! I meant well—helping you get double eyelids for a beautiful look. If I had known you valued your natural appearance so much, I wouldn't have taken this job."

Soon the chambers were blazing with light, and Empress Dowager Jiang exclaimed excitedly: "Do you still recognize me?"

Hu Xiaotian thought to himself: "An old cucumber painted green, painted again it's still an old cucumber; even turned to ash I'd still know you."

A palace maid plucked up her courage and said: "Your Ladyship, you don't really look like yourself…… just…… just……"

Empress Dowager Jiang said: "Just what? Speak!"

The maid said: "You look much younger than before."

Hu Xiaotian breathed a sigh of relief—this kid knows how to speak; I'll give her a raise later.

Empress Dowager Jiang said: "Tell me, do you think I looked better in the past or now?" Love of beauty is human nature; even an Empress Dowager past her sixties will agonize over this question.

Eunuch Dong said: "Both are beautiful!" A typical eunuch's answer—versatile and flawless.

The palace maid said: "Now you're younger!" Though not answering the question directly, she deep down affirmed the present.

Huo Shengnan said: "Empress Dowager, you look about my age now; if we went out like this, people would surely think we're sisters." Although the remark was somewhat overstepping, it was essentially pure flattery.

Empress Dowager Jiang's brows relaxed and eyes smiled, revealing a shyness she hadn't felt in decades: "My greatest regret in life has been not having double eyelids; as a child I prayed countless times to heaven, hoping that one morning I'd wake up from single to double eyelids. I even had such a dream recently, but I never imagined today would make that dream come true. Mr. Hu, you truly have peerless skill!"

Upon hearing those last words, Hu Xiaotian finally realized Empress Dowager Jiang was praising him. The stone weighing on his heart finally dropped; he gave a faint smile and said: "It's all the Empress Dowager's immense fortune—I haven't done anything."

Empress Dowager Jiang said: "A reward! A great reward! Eunuch Dong, go fetch one hundred taels of gold for Mr. Hu, and also bestow upon the Divine Farmer Society a plaque reading 'Marvelous Hand, Returning Spring'."

"Yes!"

"Thank you, Empress Dowager!" Hu Xiaotian bowed deeply to the ground.

Empress Dowager Jiang laughed: "Mr. Hu, no need to be polite; from now on you are an honored guest of my Cien Garden. Whenever you have time, come sit often—even if it's not for medical treatment, keeping me company with a chat is good."

Hu Xiaotian respectfully said: "Many thanks for your favor, Empress Dowager." He did not reveal his identity, since this matter still involved the Divine Farmer Society. Although he had wanted to disclose the inter‑national marriage alliance in person, after consideration he realized now was not the best moment and abandoned the idea. Since the Empress Dowager was fine, Hu Xiaotian then proposed to leave.

Empress Dowager Jiang said: "Mr. Hu, why the rush to leave? You've cured my stubborn ailment—why not stay for a meal? I'll properly toast you with a few cups."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Empress Dowager's deep kindness makes me feel both grateful and fearful, but our hall master vanished yesterday; I don't know where he is now, and I need to go back to find out his whereabouts."

Upon hearing this, Empress Dowager Jiang frowned and asked: "You're saying Master Liu has gone missing?" (My novel "Medical Unification" will have more fresh content on the official WeChat platform, plus a 100% prize draw giveaway! Just open WeChat, tap the "+" in the top right corner "Add Friends", search for the public account "qdread" and follow—hurry up!) (To be continued…~^~)