Plotting with You: The Forensic Scientist in Ancient Times!-Chapter 460 - 459: Alchemy

The old man didn’t know about the "rivalry between master and disciple" between Yan Daoxin and Lu Qing. He only felt that the young lad, looking like a little apprentice, spoke very sincerely, making him feel inexplicably at ease. With his mind set on healing his grandson, he decided to set aside his apprehensions.

"Divine Doctor, it’s not that I’m unwilling to tell you, or that I’m intentionally hiding something; it’s just that I’m very frightened..." He sighed sadly, looking at the weak infant before him. "And the witch doctor said, said... said that my grandson is some kind of elixir from the Pill Furnace that gained essence and was reborn into our family, which is why his entire body is a bright red.

The witch doctor also said... said that since the elixir from the Pill Furnace gained a spirit, even if it hasn’t been fully refined, it’s definitely not something that ordinary herbs can compare with, and it might be able to cure our king’s illness..."

Upon saying this, the old man became even more frightened and knelt on the ground with a thud, "Please, Divine Doctor, save my poor grandson! What crime has the child committed? He’s already suffering from illness, and yet nobody can cure him, and some even want to use him for alchemy...

My poor grandson has never known a few days of comfort since birth; please, Divine Doctor, save him at all costs!"

Yan Daoxin sighed, gestured to the rune beside him to help the old man up, and asked, "I can cure this illness, and as it happens, you’re worried about others discovering your grandson, and I too don’t wish for just anyone to come blocking my door to seek medical help.

So be it, such a small infant indeed suffers greatly; I will write a prescription for you. You go out and first buy some Coptis, Phellodendron, Rhubarb, and the like, and also buy some sesame oil to blend these medicinal materials.

I will first help relieve your grandson of this red swelling and pain, then we can discuss how to adjust internally.

I know it is hard to find herbal medicine in Bhutan, but although this disease is strange, most of the herbs needed for treatment are fairly common.

Go and find them first. For the ones that are hard to obtain, I have them with me and will use them for your grandson, saving you the trouble.

Buy the external and internal medications separately to avoid alarming others and arousing their suspicion."

One would think this matter is not too difficult, given that Yan Daoxin’s considerations are fairly comprehensive; yet the old man still looked troubled.

"Divine Doctor, I assure you I’m not lying. Those medicines like Rhubarb and Phellodendron... we haven’t seen them around here for a long time... Even if some pharmacies have them, they’re exorbitantly priced. Even if I were to sell my old bones, I couldn’t afford them..." He was nearly in tears and didn’t know what to do.

"Why have even such medicines like Rhubarb become rare?" Yan Daoxin asked conveniently, "Haven’t your farmlands in Bhutan all been used to grow medicinal herbs to the extent that even ordinary greens are hard to come by?

Where did all the herbs from these farms go?"

"They were all used by our king for alchemy..." Since the old man had already begun talking, he decided to speak candidly.

"Your king... what ailment does he have that requires so many herbs yet remains uncured?"

"I don’t know what illness it is. They say he’s sick, but we commoners never see the king and don’t know what illness he has. Doctors come and go in the capital, many of whom specially go to the Prince Mansion to treat the king...

It seems he never got better.

But not all those herbs for alchemy were used to treat the king’s illness. Even before the king fell ill, it was like this here.

In the earlier years, the king sought immortality, so he used the herbs to make elixir pills. However, after so many years, not only did he not gain immortality, but he also contracted a strange illness..."

He wanted to continue but suddenly realized that saying too much could be dangerous. Embarrassed, he stopped talking about matters unrelated to his grandson’s illness and looked expectantly at Yan Daoxin.

Yan Daoxin looked helpless and, after a long sigh, seemed somewhat unwilling and asked, "What about Angelica, Rehmannia, Cicada Moulting, and Schizonepeta?"

As expected, the other party, upon hearing the names, only shook his head pitifully.

Seeing this, Yan Daoxin resigned himself, looking heartbrokenly at the old man and then at the infant on the table. He slapped his thigh decisively, "Forget it! A physician must show compassion; I can’t just turn away a patient, especially such a small infant!

Your grandson is fortunate; I happen to have the necessary herbs with me for his treatment, or else I would be helpless as well."

The old man was overjoyed upon hearing this and was about to kneel again, but the rune stopped him, so he stood beside and continuously bowed to Yan Daoxin.

Yan Daoxin had the rune retrieve the medicinal materials they had purchased before entering Bhutan, picked out the ones needed, and instructed the rune how to prepare the external ointment, then called Fu Lu over.

"Find a way to prepare the medicine unobtrusively." He instructed Fu Lu, "As for the shopkeeper of this inn..."

"Divine Doctor, you need not worry about the shopkeeper; he is my nephew..." The old man said a bit sheepishly, "You don’t need to worry about him..."

"No wonder as soon as we’d returned, you were waiting with the child right at the door." Yan Daoxin looked at the old man helplessly and sighed, "Forget it, your grandson may not have some incurable disease, but being so young is pitiable. I am willing to lend a hand.

Since we needn’t worry about the shopkeeper leaking information, that’s a good thing."

The old man thanked him profusely again, and then followed Fu Lu downstairs to prepare the medicine.

After they left, Zhu Yu cautiously approached, gazing at the infant on the table, and asked Yan Daoxin with some concern, "What illness does this child have? Can it really be cured?"

"Since nephew wants to know, let uncle tell you." Yan Daoxin replied with a pretense of seriousness, "The illness this child has is called fetal redness. It’s rare, but not difficult to treat; it merely requires clearing heat and cooling the blood. Once regulated, his skin will naturally stop peeling layer by layer, sparing him such suffering.

In a different place, this child wouldn’t need to endure so much; he’d likely have been cured already.

Clearly, Bhutan lacks proper doctors practicing medicine and treating illnesses, and witch doctors have always had control.

Witch doctors, you cannot say they are without medical skills, but the skilled ones may not be accessible to ordinary people; those they can find are merely charlatans who boast and bluff.

With the talk of elixir pills from the Pill Furnace gaining spirit, the family grew more fearful of him being taken away for alchemy, turning this into a supposed hard-to-treat disease."