bioinnovel Chapter 2: Dealing with Dissent
Chapter 2: Dealing with Dissent
The morning rush hour in Changsha is so congested it's unbearable.
Electric bikes were crammed together on the non-motorized vehicle lane in front of Renxin Pharmacy.
Wang Minyu got up early, wearing his slightly yellowed white coat, holding a stainless steel tea mug, and sat on a plastic stool by the door basking in the sun.
The teacup wasn't filled with tea; it contained some leftover chrysanthemum and goji berries from last night, mainly just for show.
Boss Liu hadn't arrived yet, and the roller shutter door was only half open.
"Hey young man, is this pharmacy open?"
An elderly man wearing a sanitation worker's vest stopped sweeping and leaned out to ask.
The old man's face was sallow, and he was clutching the area below his right rib, looking pained.
Wang Minyu took a sip of cool water: "It's open. Grandpa, what's wrong?"
"My stomach hurts, here, and sometimes it pulls on my back too. I've been taking anti-inflammatory medicine for several days, but it's not getting better," the old man said, pointing to his upper right abdomen.
Wang Minyu put down his teacup and looked at the system panel.
[Gallstones accompanied by chronic cholecystitis. Caused by long-term irregular eating habits and insufficient water intake. Recommendation: Gallstone-expelling decoction + lifestyle adjustments.]
He didn't rush to speak, but stood up, walked to the old man's side, and pressed hard on a certain acupoint on the old man's back with two fingers.
"Ouch, damn it!" The old man jumped up in pain, dropping his broom. "What are you doing! Murder?!"
Wang Minyu said expressionlessly, "This is called tenderness at the Gallbladder Shu point. Sir, this isn't a stomachache, it's gallstones. Do you usually skip breakfast, eat a light lunch, and only have a proper dinner to save time?"
The old man clutched his back, wincing in pain, but his eyes showed surprise: "Amazing...it really is like that for me. What should I do? Do I need surgery?"
"It's okay if you don't want surgery." Wang Minyu turned around and walked into the counter, grabbing a few herbs: Lysimachia christinae, chicken gizzard lining, Lygodium japonicum, and Curcuma longa.
The movements were fluid and effortless; they didn't even need scales, they just grabbed it with their hands.
Boss Liu had just come in from outside, carrying two baskets of steamed buns. He was startled when he saw this scene: "Hey, hey, hey! Xiao Wang, why didn't you weigh them? What if you grab too many and get sick from eating them?"
Without turning his head, Wang Minyu wrapped the medicine in a piece of brown paper: "30 grams of Lysimachia christinae, 15 grams of chicken gizzard lining, 15 grams of Lygodium japonicum, and 12 grams of Curcuma longa. You can weigh it again; if it's one gram less, I'll eat the medicine raw."
Mr. Liu took the packet of medicine with some skepticism and placed it on the electronic scale.
Moneywort, exactly 30.0 grams.
Chicken gizzard lining, 15.1 grams.
The error is extremely small, almost as if it were machine-packaged.
Boss Liu's eyes widened, and he almost dropped the steamed bun.
That feel for it, you couldn't develop that skill without ten years of experience as a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, right? How old is this kid?
Ignoring the shopkeeper's shock, Wang Minyu handed the medicine to the old man: "Go back and boil it in water to drink, three times a day. Also, you must eat breakfast from now on, even if it's just a steamed bun. This medicine costs twenty-eight yuan and fifty cents, scan the code."
The old man hesitated: "Is that all? No need for an IV drip? The clinic next door said I need to have IVs for several days."
"If you have too much money to burn, I won't stop you." Wang Minyu sat back down on the stool, picked up his teacup, and said, "But this medicine of mine will relieve pain in three days, and reduce the size of the stones in a week. You can try a dose first if you don't believe me."
Seeing his indifferent and unresponsive attitude, the old man felt a little more at ease.
Doctors who act all high and mighty usually have some real skills.
"Okay, I'll trust you this time!" The old man scanned the code, picked up the medicine, and left.
[Task progress: 1/3. Patient's emotions: initially frightened, then convinced.]
Boss Liu leaned closer, his expression complicated: "Little Wang, who taught you how to handle medicine with your hands?"
"Talent," Wang Minyu said succinctly.
Actually, it was muscle memory given to him by the system, but he was too lazy to explain.
In the morning, only a few people came to the pharmacy to buy medicine, mostly for minor ailments such as colds and fevers.
Wang Minyu sat there, either not saying a word, or when he did, he could leave people speechless, but his advice was always extremely accurate.
Around noon, a BMW X5 was parked in front of the gate.
The car door opened, and a bald man wearing a tight T-shirt and with large tattoos on his arms got out.
He walked with a limp, his face covered in cold sweat, and a glamorous young woman followed behind him, supporting him.
"Doctor! Do you have any painkillers? The strongest kind!" the bald man shouted as he entered the room, his voice making the shelves vibrate.
Seeing this, Boss Liu's legs started to cramp, and he quickly smiled apologetically, "Brother, where does it hurt? We'll have to decide whether to prescribe painkillers based on the situation..."
"Gout! Gout flare-up! My toes feel like they've been sawed off!" The bald man plopped down in a chair, propping his right foot, swollen like a bun, on another stool. "Quickly get me some colchicine, painkillers, ibuprofen or whatever!"
Wang Minyu was looking down at his phone, not even looking up: "Colchicine has serious side effects, can your stomach handle it? There was a strong smell of seafood coming in just now, you must have eaten a lot last night, right?"
Upon hearing this, the bald man flew into a rage: "How dare you talk to me like that, you little brat? I paid for medicine, what business is it of my business whether I ate seafood or not? Believe me or not, I'll smash up this lousy shop!"
The girl next to him chimed in, "That's right! Hurry up and get the medicine! My darling is in so much pain!"
Boss Liu turned pale with fright and frantically tried to signal to Wang Minyu not to cause trouble.
Wang Minyu finally put down his phone, stood up, and slowly walked to the bald man.
"Smashing a shop will result in compensation and detention. And with a foot like that, there's no air conditioning in the detention center."
"You son of a bitch..." The bald man struggled to stand up and attack.
"Don't move." Wang Minyu suddenly reached out and quickly pressed the Zusanli and Yanglingquan acupoints below his knee twice.
It wasn't a very strong blow, but the bald man felt a tingling, numb sensation spread throughout his leg instantly. The excruciating pain miraculously subsided, and the swelling that felt like it was about to burst was also suppressed.
"Holy crap?" The bald man froze, his raised fist hovering in mid-air. "This...it doesn't hurt anymore?"
"It's temporary." Wang Minyu took a step back, hands in his pockets. "If you make a move now, once this breath dissipates, the pain will be ten times worse than before."
The bald man immediately became obedient, retracting his fist and adopting a fawning expression: "Little miracle doctor, then... then what do you suggest?"
"It's simple." Wang Minyu pointed to the door. "Go buy two bottles of chilled soda water and gulp them down. Then go to the fruit shop next door and buy a watermelon. Only eat the white flesh; don't eat the red parts. Then come back to me for bloodletting."
"Huh? Eating watermelon rinds?" the delinquent girl asked with a look of disgust. "Is that even edible?"
"You can choose not to eat it, and then feel so much pain that you want to chop your foot off," Wang Minyu said coldly.
Without a word, the bald man yelled at the punk girl, "Hurry up and buy it! Are you trying to kill me with all this money?!"
Ten minutes later.
The bald man was eating the bland white flesh of a watermelon while chugging soda water, looking utterly ridiculous.
Wang Minyu took out a disposable lancet and quickly pricked the Yinbai acupoint at the end of the bald man's swollen big toe, squeezing out a few drops of purplish-black blood.
As black blood flowed out, the bald man let out a long sigh of relief. The ferocious look of pain on his face completely disappeared, replaced by a feeling of exhaustion from surviving a disaster.
"He's alive...he's really alive..." The bald man looked at Wang Minyu with eyes full of awe. "Brother, no, miracle doctor! You're amazing! You did it faster than me getting an IV drip at the hospital!"
"During an acute attack, clearing heat and removing blood stasis is the fastest way," Wang Minyu said, throwing the discarded needle into the sharps box. "But that only treats the symptoms. If you can't control your eating, even a miracle won't save you next time. Also, the consultation fee is two hundred yuan, and bloodletting is a skilled procedure."
"Two hundred? That's too cheap! I'll give you five hundred!" The bald man took out his phone to transfer the money.
"No need, just two hundred." Wang Minyu refused decisively. "I don't accept tips. That's for the service industry. I'm a skilled worker."
The bald man paused for a moment, then burst into laughter, swiped two hundred yuan, and patted Wang Minyu on the shoulder as he left: "Good job, you've got guts! From now on, I'll stick with this place! I'll recommend it to all my gout-stricken buddies!"
Mr. Liu watched in stunned silence.
These days, there are actually doctors who can scold customers, make them eat melon rinds, and still manage to convince them to give them money?
[Congratulations, host, on completing the first stage of the advancement quest. Reward: Skill 'Massage and Bone Setting' (Advanced Level). Reputation Points +10.]
Wang Minyu watched the bald man's departing figure, pondering to himself.
Gout patients are a large group, and most of them are wealthy people who love to eat.
If you can capitalize on this opportunity, establishing yourself in this community won't be difficult.
Just then, Zhang Kai called.
"Hey, Minyu, something's happened." Zhang Kai's voice was low and anxious. "Your parents somehow found out your name and are checking your professional registration information at our hospital! They'll probably find your pharmacy soon!"
Wang Minyu's grip on the phone tightened slightly, and his eyes instantly turned cold.
"understood."
"What are you planning to do? Maybe we should go into hiding for a while?"
"Hide?" Wang Minyu sneered, looking at his somewhat thin but upright figure reflected in the glass door. "I've been forced here, what am I supposed to do? Let them do what they want! That's my bone marrow, my body. Since they're so eager to find me, let them come."
After hanging up the phone, Wang Minyu turned to Boss Liu and said, "Boss, I'd like to get an advance on my commission for the past few days to buy a security camera to install in the store."
Boss Liu was taken aback: "Why would you need to install that thing?"
"To guard against thieves," Wang Minyu said calmly, "and also against animals."