Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 541 - 486: Settlement

"These are already diluted injections. Adults should use two doses for the first time, and then one dose every two to three hours via intramuscular injection. Monitor the body temperature, and when the temperature decreases to normal and both general and local symptoms improve, reduce the dosage. Continue the medication for three to five days, with the course of treatment lasting ten to twenty days..."

"Children should be medicated based on their condition, about half of an adult’s dose, given every twelve hours. Be cautious not to reduce the dosage substantially in a short period to prevent the recurrence of the disease..."

"For glandular plague skin lesions, streptomycin ointment can be applied. If necessary, streptomycin can be injected into the muscles surrounding swollen lymph nodes, followed by moist dressings, and incision and drainage once the lesion suppurates and softens..."

Li Ang stood in front of the sick house, patiently explaining the medication protocols to the medical staff. Beside him, Ouyang Shi took notes with pen and paper, preparing to later print them into a manual.

"Even after all symptoms have disappeared, the patient must still be isolated and observed for seven days, undergoing four to five sputum or blood smear tests before being considered cured." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Li Ang spoke sternly, "Streptomycin is not a cure-all. Facing the rapidly progressing plague, there is still the possibility of death. Everyone must stay vigilant and prioritize their own safety. This year, everyone should go home healthy."

He looked around at the doctors and nurses wearing masks and said solemnly, "Dismissed."

The crowd dispersed, some to change their protective gear, some to prepare syringes and IV bottles, and others to grab brooms and dustpans to clean the floor of the sick house, then sprinkled disinfectant on the ground with watering cans.

In the morning, the desperate silence that lingered above the sick house was quickly replaced by the noisy bustle of activity.

Li Ang nodded imperceptibly and walked directly to the office in the corner of the sick house.

Li Hui and Li Leqing were still at the Governor Mansion, wrapping up the events of the day. Now with streptomycin at their disposal, the plague in Hedong Road no longer posed a concern. Even if Zhao Ming spread the Plague Demon Talisman in secret, it would not affect the overall situation. Moreover, before coming to the sick house, Li Ang had already written a detailed manual of the streptomycin production process and handed it over to them. They were to contact sick houses around the region that could locally produce it. The produced streptomycin was to be partially dispatched to support Hedong Road and partially kept locally to prevent potential outbreaks.

Ouyang Shi took Li Ang’s speech to be printed into booklets, leaving only Qiu Feng and Li Ang in the office.

Qiu Feng handed over documents for Li Ang to review and sign, such as consolation for the families of medical staff who had unfortunately died; awards for those who had made contributions; and decisions on when to lift the city’s lockdown.

Li Ang swiftly went through the documents, his face showing little emotion.

Previously, Qiu Feng prepared the ink, placing the inkstone and an activated soundproof talisman on the table, and whispered, "In the laboratory, during the last twelve hours..."

"Can we not talk about this?" Li Ang interrupted Qiu Feng, looking directly into her eyes with a hint of apology. "When the time is right, I’ll explain."

He knew what Qiu Feng was about to ask. The production stages of streptomycin and penicillin had many similarities: starting with inoculating spores onto a slanted agar medium, incubating for seven days until the medium was fully grown with spores, then creating a suspension inserted into a flask containing the medium; after 48 hours of further incubation and vigorous mycelia growth, combining several media cultures, these were then inoculated into a sterilized medium inside a seed fermenter, sterile air was pumped in for mixing, and it was cultured for 62 hours; then transferred to a fermentation tank, pumped with sterile air, and fermented for seven days; and after that, it went through steps of extraction, purification, washing, decolorization, and drying to finally produce the final product. Li Hui and Li Leqing didn’t know the specifics of the production process, and neither did Ouyang Shi, who assisted in the lab. But Qiu Feng was well aware that twenty-four hours ago, she and Li Ang hadn’t even begun to inoculate the most suitable spores. How did Li Ang skip nearly three hundred hours to obtain the final product of streptomycin directly? And, during the production of penicillin, Li Ang had conducted extensive experiments with mice, rabbits, and other animals before daring to use penicillin for Blood Sore. How did Li Ang know for certain that streptomycin would be effective and harmless to humans without any animal or human trials? Is there really someone born with innate knowledge?

Qiu Feng gazed into the calm eyes of the young man. Despite having gone through so much together, she still felt that her understanding of him was not thorough enough. The secrets surrounding Li Ang were far more numerous than he showed.

"Hmm."

Qiu Feng took a deep breath, nodded earnestly, leaned toward Li Ang’s ear, and whispered, "When we return to the Governor Mansion, I’ll revise the experimental logs. You also find a chance to hint to Ouyang, to ensure there are no loopholes in the logs."

"Uh..."

Li Ang paused, then nodded with a wry smile, "Right. You always think things through."

Qiu Feng didn’t inquire further about what happened in the lab but helped to check and fill the gaps in the experimental logs to prevent any suspicion from the outside world.

Qiu Feng stuck out her tongue, straightened up, and smiled, "I’m considerate, aren’t I?"

"Mm-hmm."

Li Ang nodded and smiled, "After this incident is over, I’ll petition His Majesty to grant you a significant title."

"Rather than a title, I’d prefer if the court would provide more relief to the victims of this plague, at least exempting parts of Taiyuan Prefecture and other severely affected areas from taxes."

Qiu Feng pursed her lips, hesitated, and asked, "What do you think the court will do about the common people who besieged the Governor Mansion today?"

"They won’t be harmed. Most of the common people were just exploited by the real villains, and Le Ling has made provisions for them."

Li Ang paused, then added somberly, "As for those leading local gentry, I’ll have the garrison investigate to see if they have ever accepted money or letters from anyone in the past. By doing this, we can trace back and find out who is behind this plague."

A chilling intent was hidden beneath Li Ang’s calm tone.

If the initial outbreak of the plague was truly a natural disaster, then the flyers, Plague Demon Talismans, rumors, and even today’s mass event besieging the Governor Mansion were all man-made disasters that could have been avoided. My blood can cure diseases? Even if the rumor originated from Zhao Ming, the Wang Family must have played a role in exacerbating it. Those local gentry who incited the common people today were undoubtedly connected to this—and even if they weren’t, he would instruct the garrison to "find" some evidence anyway. He had overestimated the morality of these nobel families and underestimated their selfishness, foolishness, and shortsightedness. But this was for the best.

Li Ang silently sneered, his gaze seemingly piercing through building after building, focusing on the Wang’s Mansion on the other side of the city.

Will the nobles bleed too?