Village Doctor's Women-Chapter 111 - 106 Thirty years ago there were secrets

Seeing that Cai Qiong was driving the car farther and farther off the beaten path, Wang Jian couldn’t help but ask, "Your family doesn’t live in one of those large villas in the mountains, do they?"

"Not at all," Cai Qiong laughed lightly. "There are only three of us in our family. Why would we need such a big house?"

The Cai Family had always been very low-profile; this was Wang Jian’s impression of them, so he actually believed what Cai Qiong said. But when their car stopped in front of a manor gate, Wang Jian realized he was still too naïve.

Yes, the house itself wasn’t large, but the garden was ridiculously huge, occupying nearly the entire mountainside. What the wealthy consider "not large" is completely different from what we proletarians think.

"What’s wrong?" Cai Qiong got out of the car and walked a few steps, then turned to see Wang Jian still sitting inside. "Get out, we’re here."

"I was just lost in thought for a moment."

Only then did Wang Jian leisurely get out of the car and follow Cai Qiong into the house. Such large manors were actually quite rare in the country and were more commonly found in the West. Even the "relatively small" house wasn’t really small at all; it was a three-story Western-style villa, over fifty meters wide. The only reason Wang Jian had perceived it as "small" from the outside was because of the football-field-sized front lawn. He didn’t agree in the slightest with Cai Qiong’s description of her home as small.

The two entered the house. In the vast living room, with ceilings that soared at least ten meters high, only Cai Xing and Cai Wenji were present; there were no outsiders.

Upon seeing Wang Jian, Cai Xing and Cai Wenji came right up to greet him. Cai Xing’s expression was normal, not much different from the other times Wang Jian had seen him. But Cai Wenji was different. This was the first time Wang Jian had ever seen a panicked expression on his face.

"Xiao Jian, you’re finally here," Cai Wenji spoke up. As Wang Jian drew closer, he noticed the patriarch’s forehead was glistening with sweat.

Cai Wenji continued, "I... I think I’ve been afflicted."

"Hmm?"

Wang Jian was taken aback for a moment before he understood what Cai Wenji meant. He turned to look at Cai Xing, who nodded, signaling Wang Jian to take a careful look at Cai Wenji’s condition.

In truth, Cai Wenji hadn’t considered this possibility at all. But ever since Cai Qiong’s morning phone call about Zhao Chunyang and Gao Yang, he had felt that something was increasingly wrong. He had been disciplined his entire life, whether it was managing his physique or his daily routine; everything was incredibly regular. But the past week had been particularly strange. He felt drowsy whether he went to bed early or late, constantly sleepy no matter how much he slept. He even dozed off during a company-wide meeting, had nightmares, and suffered from severe night sweats. For him, these occurrences were absolutely abnormal.

The recent transition from summer to autumn was a time when people were prone to fatigue, so at first, Cai Wenji didn’t let his imagination run wild. That is, until Cai Qiong’s phone call scared him into a cold sweat. If it had been a common illness, he wouldn’t have reacted this way. But a bizarre affliction like Gu Worms was something he had only ever encountered in novels. He’d heard they couldn’t even be detected by medical equipment and would multiply inside the body... Just thinking about it made his skin crawl. So, upon learning that Wang Jian could perform an examination, he had barely set foot in his office before he dropped everything and raced home. No wonder the first thing he mentioned upon seeing Wang Jian was the Gu Worm.

After hearing Cai Wenji describe the situation, Wang Jian subtly nodded; it indeed matched the symptoms.

Recalling the descriptions from ancient texts, Wang Jian spoke slowly, "Actually, there are many types of Gu. Some are like fungi, completely undetectable to humans. They might not even grow, let alone turn into parasites that can kill a person without a trace, like what happened to Secretary Zhao. Others are like plants, able to... uh..."

Wang Jian paused, then suddenly offered an analogy, "Have you ever imagined something while eating watermelon, like swallowing the seeds and having them grow into watermelon sprouts in your stomach?"

"Plant Gu is similar to that idea, except once it’s ingested, it takes root and sprouts somewhere inside the body. It might even grow into something bizarre like a rapeseed flower. Imagine it growing out of your navel or backside—if you try to pull it out, you might end up pulling out the rooted section of your intestines along with it."

"However, to determine the exact type of Gu, I’ll need to perform an examination and analyze the specific symptoms."

The description was so terrifying that Cai Wenji seemed to sweat even more. He wanted nothing more than to pull Wang Jian aside for an immediate examination, but his rationality held him back. He said somberly, "I’ll have to trouble you this time. Please check on my father first." Feeling that wasn’t enough, he added urgently, "Quickly, quickly."

All four of them knew the matter was serious, so none of them stood on ceremony. The Cai Family had even sent many of their household servants away for this occasion. Since the family was always good to its people, granting them vacations and rest was common, so no one grew suspicious. Only two or three trusted household members remained in the entire villa.

Wang Jian had someone prepare a basin of hot water and some alcohol, then began to take Cai Xing’s pulse. The process was quiet. Due to the unique nature of the Gu Worm, Wang Jian even closed his eyes to concentrate on finding the problem.

However, Cai Xing noticed his children’s anxiety and laughed. "What’s with those expressions? I’m not dying. With Wang Jian here, even if I were on death’s door, he could pull me back."

"Dad, what nonsense are you talking about?" Cai Qiong shot him a glare, protesting his ominous words, then glanced at Wang Jian. "You certainly have a lot of faith in him."

"Hahaha," Cai Xing chuckled, then continued, "It’s not faith; it’s a fact."

Wang Jian, of course, heard his words. He had never imagined that Cai Xing had more confidence in him than he had in himself.

He opened his eyes and interjected, "Uncle Cai, please don’t say that. I’m no god."

"Do you have the results?" Cai Xing asked, looking over. "Is it in me?"

Wang Jian shook his head. "The preliminary check shows nothing."

Cai Xing was getting on in years and had a heart condition, so his overall qi and blood circulation were poor. If he really had a Gu Worm, it could very well trigger a chain reaction. Wang Jian had been somewhat worried at first, but the initial examination yielded good results, and he let out an internal sigh of relief.

Still, Wang Jian chose to be cautious. He took out his phone, forwarded a message to Cai Qiong, and said, "I sent you a prescription. Go and prepare it. Make several servings, enough for everyone to have a bowl."

"Although the examination showed no abnormalities, it’s better to take precautions. Take some Gu-dispelling medicine. That way, even if I missed something, we’ll have a layer of defense. It would be best to prepare a bowl for everyone in your home..."

Wang Jian specifically emphasized "everyone." Cai Qiong nodded. "Don’t worry, I’ll prepare a serving for the bodyguards and the housekeepers as well."

"Good," Wang Jian said, turning back to Cai Xing. "Uncle Cai, your physical condition is quite good, and your heart is stable. You’re just about finished with one course of treatment. I’ll use acupuncture to assist one more time. Continue taking the medicine I prescribed for nourishing your heart’s blood, but take it separately from the Gu-dispelling medicine. Since we’re using acupuncture to boost your qi today, let’s skip the heart medicine."

Wang Jian took out the silver needles he had prepared earlier and began inserting them into Cai Xing. Afterward, he had Cai Xing sit and rest without removing the needles. Only then did he turn his attention to Cai Wenji.

As with Cai Xing, Wang Jian first checked Cai Wenji’s pulse. After a minute, he frowned. "Mr. Cai... have you also met Gao Yang?"

He found that Cai Wenji’s pulse was very similar to Li Shuang’s, likely indicating the same type of Gu.

"Gao Yang?" Cai Qiong was stunned, then she understood and looked at her brother.

Cai Wenji paused for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, I’ve met him. For our family’s business in the province, all the raw materials for our traditional Chinese medicine go through Gao Yang’s channels."

"When was this?"

"A week..." Cai Wenji said the words and then it hit him. His symptoms had started just this week. He quickly recalled his meeting with Gao Yang. So it really was Gao Yang?

Cai Wenji’s expression instantly darkened. He said grimly, "It seems the news that we wanted to make a move on our raw material sources has already leaked."

Cai Qiong asked, "Who are the people behind this Gao Yang? I can understand them learning our plans, as there are no absolute secrets in business. But to use something like Gu Worms..."

Cai Wenji didn’t know the answer to that question.

It was Cai Xing, however, who suddenly spoke up. "This Gu Worm... it actually appeared once before, thirty years ago."

Hmm?

Wang Jian was surprised and picked up the thread. "Was it in the early nineties?"

Cai Xing looked over, surprised as well. "How did you know? Oh, right. Your village should have also been affected by the incident back then."

"If I’m not mistaken, this incident is very likely related to the people from back then."

At this thought, Cai Xing suddenly changed the subject. "Wen Ji, let’s pause the raw materials line for now."

"What?"

Cai Wenji was startled. Although he was afraid of the Gu Worm, he had never considered stopping this line of business. The Cai Family had never made such a concession out of pressure before. "Are we backing down just like that?" he asked directly.

Cai Xing nodded. "Let’s put it on hold for now."

Cai Wenji knew his father’s temperament, so even though he didn’t understand, he said no more.

At this point, Cai Xing turned to Wang Jian and asked, "Can these needles be removed now?"

Wang Jian could see that Cai Xing was feeling somewhat dejected. He checked the time and saw it was about right. He nodded, stepped forward to remove the needles from Cai Xing, and added casually, "You should rest well. Don’t forget about your heart; it’s not good to overthink things."

Cai Xing managed a smile but said nothing more. He understood what Wang Jian meant, but the memories of seeing so many deaths that year were deeply etched into his mind, not so easily erased. He simply waved his hand and went to his room to rest.

As for the Gu Worm in Cai Wenji, it wasn’t a major issue. Fortunately, not much time had passed. Wang Jian simply told him to drink several more doses of the prescribed medicine, and he would likely recover.

After the three of them saw Cai Xing to his room, they returned to the living room.

Wang Jian finally spoke. "Fortunately, the person who prepared the Gu didn’t use the kind that kills instantly. The ones planted in you are chronic Gu; otherwise, I really would have been powerless."

"Still, you must be careful. Ancient texts even record some Gu Worms that can cause hallucinations, and those are truly formidable."