Li Xu took Belik’s pulse and asked about his condition in detail—blood in his stool, a feeling of pressure and pain in his anus, and recurrent flare-ups that wouldn’t heal.

Li Xu thought it over.

Given the limited medicinal herbs available here, prescribing a standard oral formula to reduce inflammation, clear fluids, and improve circulation was impossible.

’I’ll have to use a folk remedy.’

"Do you have any Sichuan peppercorns at home?" Li Xu asked.

"Sichuan peppercorns? Yes, yes, we have them."

Belik nodded repeatedly.

Sichuan peppercorns were one of the most common seasonings around here.

"When you get home, grab a handful of Sichuan peppercorns, put them in a clay pot, add water, and bring it to a rolling boil. Then, take the pot off the heat and, while it’s still steaming, use the steam to treat the affected area, your anus. Once the water has cooled enough not to burn you, dip a clean piece of gauze in the peppercorn water and wash the affected area. Do this once a day for three consecutive days."

"If the blood in your stool is severe, you can add a handful of pagoda tree flowers when you’re boiling it. The effect will be even better."

"Pagoda tree flowers?" Belik thought for a moment, then shook his head. "We don’t have any in the village right now."

"Then don’t worry about it. Just using the Sichuan peppercorns will also be effective."

"Ah, thank you, Divine Physician! Thank you, Divine Physician!"

After hearing this, Belik was overjoyed. He turned and ran home to try it.

While Li Xu was explaining the folk remedy, Ye Mushen, who was standing to the side, quietly took a small notebook from a drawer and wrote down the method with a pen.

Just as Belik left, a young woman wearing a headscarf ran to the door.

In her arms, she held a child who looked to be about two or three years old.

"Divine Physician, I’m begging you, please save my son."

As soon as the woman entered, she faced Li Xu, crying and pleading.

Li Xu quickly helped her up.

"Let me take a look first."

Li Xu examined the child.

A sallow, yellow complexion, listlessness, cracked lips, and sunken eyes—they were all typical signs of dehydration.

After asking some questions, Li Xu learned that the child had been suffering from diarrhea for three or four days straight.

He was passing yellow and green mucus-like stool with a foul, fishy odor, having more than ten bowel movements a day. He threw up everything he ate.

The symptoms were textbook.

In Western medicine, this is called "bacterial dysentery."

In Chinese medicine, this is a case of "diarrhea" caused by what’s known as "damp-heat descending," which disrupts intestinal function.

In remote areas lacking antibiotics and IV equipment, this disease is extremely dangerous for young children.

It can easily become life-threatening due to severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.

"Why not put him on a drip?"

Li Xu asked Ye Mushen.

He had seen some IV equipment earlier.

Ye Mushen shook his head. "We only have glucose solution left. No antibiotics..."

"I see..."

Li Xu frowned.

’They’re short on the right medicinal herbs, and the situation is urgent. I’ll have to use another folk remedy.’

"Do you have garlic at home?"

"Yes, yes, we do."

Li Xu told the woman to go home, find a whole head of garlic, and roast it directly over a fire until the outer skin was charred black and the cloves inside were soft and thoroughly cooked.

"Then," Li Xu instructed, "peel the roasted garlic, put it in a bowl, add half a bowl of water, and boil it for a little while longer. Finally, add a suitable amount of brown sugar to taste, and have the child drink it all at once while it’s still warm. Three times a day. I guarantee you’ll see results within a day, and he’ll be fully recovered after three consecutive days of treatment."

"Oh, thank you, Divine Physician."

The woman listened as if his words were a divine decree, then hugged her child and rushed home to prepare it.

However, this was only the beginning.

As news that Li Xu was willing to treat the villagers spread, Ye Mushen’s home was instantly flooded with people.

Villagers came one after another seeking medical help.

Most of them were actually suffering from very common ailments.

For example, stubborn rheumatic joint pain caused by years of hard labor;

chronic gastritis from unsanitary food and drink;

and infantile malnutrition...

For many illnesses, given the lack of doctors and medicine, there was nothing Li Xu could do.

Even acupuncture wasn’t a panacea.

For other ailments, he told them effective folk remedies that, while perhaps not a cure, would definitely alleviate the symptoms.

For example, for rheumatic joint pain, they could stir-fry ginger and coarse salt, wrap it in a cloth, and apply it as a hot compress to the joints;

for chronic gastritis, he had them gather a common local herb with properties that aided digestion and told them to chew it;

for cases of infantile malnutrition, Li Xu used a steel needle he carried with him to perform a simple "pricking" therapy...

Just as Li Xu was completely surrounded by villagers and swamped with work, another commotion arose from the edge of the crowd.

"Divine Physician, can you save my daughter?"

A haggard-looking middle-aged woman in a tattered robe, carrying a frail little girl, stumbled and pushed her way through the crowd.

’Could it be dysentery again?’

Li Xu looked over.

The little girl in the woman’s arms looked to be about seven or eight years old.

But her body was abnormally small and thin, her face was waxy yellow, her eyes were shut tight, and her brows were knitted in pain.

She was curled up motionlessly in her mother’s arms, her breathing so faint it seemed like she could stop at any moment.

When Ye Mushen saw the mother and daughter, his expression changed. He shook his head at Li Xu and quietly advised, "Divine Physician from the East, you’d better not treat this one. It can’t be cured."

"Why?"

Li Xu asked.

Ye Mushen explained, "That little girl is named Mayila. I’ve already examined her illness; it’s not a simple headache or fever. I suspect she has worms in her belly, and they’ve already crawled into her gallbladder. A case like this has to be sent to a big hospital in the city. It can only be cured with special medicine or surgery."

He sighed and continued, "But... Mayila’s family is too poor. Her father went to work in the mines a few years ago, had an accident, and has been gone for a long time. The family relies solely on her mother just to scrape by. Forget about going to the city for treatment—they have trouble even getting enough to eat. She’s been sick like this for several days now... sigh..."

The implication was that this illness was beyond the scope of any treatment they could provide there.

It wasn’t something a folk remedy could fix.

After hearing this, Li Xu gave a noncommittal response. "I’ll take a look first before saying anything."

He crouched down and began a careful examination.

After some questions, Li Xu learned that Mayila had always been frail and sickly.

Three days ago, she had suddenly started experiencing intense pain in her upper abdomen. At the time, she was sweating profusely from the pain, and her face was waxy yellow.

After taking some painkillers from Ye Mushen, the pain had subsided somewhat.

But the next day, her condition was the same.

Ye Mushen discovered that Mayila was starting to show clear signs of jaundice. Combining this with the pain in her upper epigastric region, he made a preliminary diagnosis of what was likely "biliary ascariasis."

And just this morning, the bloating and pain in the girl’s upper abdomen had become even more severe.

She started running a high fever, with her temperature hovering between thirty-eight and thirty-nine degrees Celsius.

Even more frightening, she had vomited up a live, wriggling roundworm!