After the child took the prescribed medicine, they began to perspire slightly, and their flatulence became more frequent. Following a persistent high fever that lasted over ten days, the child’s temperature finally returned to normal. Overcome with joy, the parents wept tears of relief.
Seeing that even the relentless fever had subsided, the Yan family father and son were rendered speechless. Yan Er silently thanked his father for stopping him earlier from making any rash declarations; otherwise, he would have been utterly embarrassed now.
Realizing they had no face to linger any longer, the Yan family duo left, but not without stealing several lingering glances at Shen Congyun. Feeling thoroughly uncomfortable under their scrutiny, Shen wished he could merge into the wall and disappear.
Once they left, Shen breathed a sigh of relief, as if pardoned from a heavy burden.
Li Runyu approached Gao-Yuan and asked, "Doctor Gao, are you really planning to intervene in their affairs?"
Shen huddled down on the ground with his arms around his knees, lowering his head like a dejected figure.
Seeing Shen in such a pitiful state brought back memories of his previous life's tragic end—a lonely, sorrowful figure before his demise. Gao-Yuan couldn't help but shake his head, sighing deeply. "Some matters must be resolved and faced eventually. Once things settle here, I'll accompany him to the Yan family."
Shen looked up at Gao-Yuan with watery eyes, his hands tucked into his sleeves, his face showing an expression of grievance, on the verge of tears.
Li Runyu glanced at Gao-Yuan, her expression subtly conflicted.
"Let’s check on the child’s condition," Gao-Yuan suggested.
----------------------------------------
During the second diagnosis, the child’s abdominal distension had noticeably reduced, breathing became smooth, and diarrhea had significantly lessened. Initially experiencing 5-8 bowel movements daily, the frequency had dropped to three, with the stools now yellow and normal in texture. The child’s throat still carried phlegm sounds, but sleep had stabilized, lips were moist, and the extremities showed slight warmth.
Examining the pulse, Gao-Yuan found it to be deep and slightly slippery. The tongue's coating, which had been grey-black, was now fading.
Gao-Yuan exchanged thoughts with Li Runyu, concluding the condition remained a case of yang deficiency complicated by phlegm.
Li Runyu suggested, "I recommend continuing with warming therapies. The previous approach yielded quick results, so minor adjustments to the prescription should suffice."
Gao-Yuan nodded in agreement. Li Runyu’s judgment was precise, and Gao-Yuan modified the original prescription slightly before instructing continued administration.
----------------------------------------
As they exited, Li Runyu remarked, "It’s quite peculiar. Even though the flu season has passed, there’s been a noticeable increase in children with respiratory distress and pulmonary swelling recently."
Gao-Yuan froze mid-step.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
"What’s wrong?" Li Runyu asked.
"Are you saying cases of respiratory distress and pulmonary swelling among children have increased recently?" Gao-Yuan asked.
Li Runyu nodded. "Yes, there’s been a noticeable uptick. The peculiar thing is that the external pathogens differ. Some are wind-cold, while others are wind-heat."
Gao-Yuan’s brows furrowed deeply. Adenovirus pneumonia, from a traditional Chinese medicine perspective, aligned with terms like "pulmonary swelling" and "respiratory distress." Diagnosing such cases was notoriously challenging, as it lacked the patterns of a flu outbreak. The external pathogens varied across patients, and the symptoms transformed at different stages of the illness, creating layers of complexity and uncertainty in diagnosis.
Even seasoned TCM practitioners like Yan Qiao, renowned throughout the county, had stumbled over such cases, demonstrating the difficulty in diagnosis.
“Let’s go,” Gao-Yuan said, nudging Li Runyu. “We need to report this situation to Bureau Chief Wang Hanzhang.”
----------------------------------------
Upon hearing the situation, Wang immediately sprang into action. Life had become hectic since Gao-Yuan’s arrival; he and the other station leaders had been running nonstop to handle public health prevention efforts.
Exhausted, they had barely caught a break before being tasked with compiling illness statistics again. Public health work was thankless: when done well, it went unnoticed; when done poorly, blame abounded.
Data from various rural areas confirmed similar cases appearing in every clinic. However, as traditional and modern medicine interpreted diseases differently, only the county hospital possessed the necessary diagnostic tools and expertise.
Gao-Yuan suggested convening the heads of joint clinics and the county hospital director to devise a coordinated prevention and treatment plan. He also proposed immediately reporting the situation to higher authorities and alerting other counties.
Wang followed through with the suggestions but later realized, Why am I just blindly following whatever Gao-Yuan suggests?
----------------------------------------
Travel from the rural areas to the county took time, so the meeting had to wait until the next day.
That evening, Gao-Yuan stayed in the county. The following morning, he returned to the hospital for the child’s follow-up.
----------------------------------------
The second round of treatment had further reduced symptoms. The child’s bloating was entirely gone, extremities warmed, and while the face still showed slight puffiness, bowel movements had stabilized at two to three times daily, with stool consistency normal. The child coughed lightly but was able to eat and drink with improved vitality. The pulse was slow and steady, the tongue's coating further cleared.
“How is he?” the anxious parents asked.
Gao-Yuan playfully tousled the now-active boy’s hair and smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, he’s out of danger. Just continue the medication for two more doses and monitor his condition. If nothing changes, he can be discharged soon. Post-discharge, proper dietary care will suffice.”
The parents sighed in relief and thanked Gao-Yuan profusely.
----------------------------------------
Doctor Qiao observed the situation with admiration. “Doctor Gao, I’m genuinely impressed. The child’s high fever persisted for over ten days, and no treatment seemed effective. It kept worsening to the point where his life was at risk.”
“But then you came along. One dose reduced the fever, and two doses nearly resolved the issue. It’s taken only two days! Adenovirus pneumonia has always been a tough case for us, yet you made it look effortless.”
Gao-Yuan responded humbly, “The treatment's success is due to our teamwork. Infants have such fragile immune systems; severe cases rely heavily on your life-saving interventions and advanced medical tools.”
Qiao laughed heartily. “Doctor Gao, if anyone hears us flattering each other like this, they’d laugh at us!”
The surrounding doctors chuckled as well.
But Gao-Yuan’s expression remained serious. “I mean it. I sincerely hope to collaborate more closely with you all in the future.”
“We’d be happy to cooperate,” Qiao replied without hesitation.
“Good,” said Gao-Yuan. “I’ll inform the other clinics about this approach.”
Qiao stopped him quickly. “Wait a moment! Aren’t you collaborating with us directly?”
“It’s a joint effort between traditional and modern medicine,” Gao-Yuan explained. “But I’ll still spend most of my time at Zhangzhuang.”
At that, the local doctors exchanged subtle looks.
A wave of unease washed over Gao-Yuan. Could something be going wrong now?