Chapter 17: Suturing and Healing

Aunt Cao wiped her eyes and calmed herself. “Don’t worry, just let Little Miss Gu treat him. I’m confident about his leg. If it doesn’t heal, it’s on me, but if it does, it’s on her.”

Wang Yulan let out a sigh of relief. “You can be at ease. Brother Cao is a lucky man; your whole family will be fine!”

Gu Yi mixed the medicine, preparing a prescription for stopping the bleeding and reducing inflammation. She called out, “Cao Xia, boil the medicine. Three bowls of water, reduce it to one, and bring it in once it’s ready!”

She quickly moved to check on Uncle Cao. The wound had already been cleaned, but there was still considerable blood oozing out.

“Needles and thread!”

Aunt Cao took out her sewing kit. “What do you need needles and thread for?”

Gu Yi pointed to the large wound on his leg, almost as long as a woman’s palm.

“To stitch it up!”

Aunt Cao gasped in shock.

“Do you have candles?”

Aunt Cao shook her head.

Fishermen didn’t buy candles, as they usually went to bed before dark.

“Go to the kitchen and bring me a basin of hot coals!”

As Gu Yi sat by the bed, she heard someone outside shout, “The wine’s here! The wine’s here!”

A moment later, the wine jug was brought to her.

Gu Yi stood up, took the jug, opened it, and sniffed. The alcohol wasn’t very strong, but it was good enough.

She poured the wine onto a clean cloth and used it to wipe around the wound.

At that moment, the hot coals were brought in.

Gu Yi picked up a sewing needle and heated it over the fire until it was hot, then began stitching the wound.

It was too dark to see clearly, and the discomfort was evident on her face. She had to rely on experience to stitch it, one stitch at a time.

Minutes ticked by.

Gu Yi rubbed her tired eyes. Finally, the wound was stitched up.

After stitching, the blood started to seep out less.

Suturing wounds wasn’t difficult for Gu Yi. She was used to it, but her concern was whether the wound would get infected and cause a fever later.

She wrapped the wound in clean white cloth before walking out.

“Is it done?” Aunt Cao asked hopefully.

Gu Yi replied, “This isn’t the hardest part. Let’s see if he can survive the night. A fever is certain, so keep an eye on him. If the fever goes down, he’ll slowly heal.”

Aunt Cao’s face alternated between pale and red, but she still held Gu Yi’s hand, thanking her profusely. “Thank you, Little Miss Gu. We’re truly grateful.”

In the neighboring village, a man had suffered a leg injury at sea and had no way to treat it. He had now become disabled and wouldn’t live much longer.

Aunt Cao was terrified.

Gu Yi shook her head.

As she came out, other villagers approached. “Little Miss, could you take a look at my family too?”

Gu Yi examined them one by one. Aside from one person with a deep arm wound, the rest had only minor injuries from bumps and bruises. Gu Yi borrowed some thread and needles to stitch them up, also cleaning the wounds with alcohol.

“Go back and drink ginger soup to prevent a fever tonight. Use alcohol to wipe your bodies down and lower your temperature. Tomorrow, if the weather clears, go to the county to get more medicine. I’m out of supplies. Come back in half a month to get your stitches removed!”

One man nearby urgently interjected, “Don’t you have medicine? I saw you had a lot earlier. Why give it all to Cao’s family and not us?”

Gu Yi gave him a cold stare. “Are you questioning me?”

She was already tired, and with the wind still blowing outside, her temper flared. This man had ignited her anger.

“My wife is seriously injured too and has had stitches. She needs medicine!” the man insisted.

Gu Yi turned to the woman who had also received stitches. “Do you feel the same way?”

The woman, her face pale, couldn’t meet Gu Yi’s gaze. She tugged at her husband’s arm. “No, please don’t talk like that. I can handle it.”

Well, a classic case of trying to avoid conflict on both sides.

Gu Yi scoffed.

A villager standing nearby couldn’t stand it anymore and rolled his eyes. “Li’s family, is Little Miss Gu in debt to you? What gives you the right to demand that she treat you for free and give you medicine? Didn’t she pay for it with her own money? She’s been treating you for free, and you’re acting like this!”

He was astounded by how low the other man’s emotional intelligence was. Yes, it was natural to feel anxious when a family member was ill, but this kind of blatant ignorance was beyond belief!

He had been lucky to escape the storm by taking shelter at Cao’s house. As an outsider, he felt that the unfairness of the situation had become more apparent to him.

Li’s wife turned pale.

Li Tai, realizing the situation, panicked. “She’s a doctor. Isn’t it her job to save people? Why does helping people mean we’re taking advantage of her? They’re exiles, and our village is letting them stay here, so we’re the ones benefiting from their presence!”

His tone showed an air of superiority, as if he had no idea how unreasonable he sounded.

Gu Yi hadn’t realized that such people existed in the village.

She had assumed that by helping with her medical skills, she could integrate into the village, and most people had gladly accepted her family.

She never imagined there would be such shameless, disgusting individuals.

The villager who had defended Gu Yi was shaking with anger. He had known Li Tai for years and had never suspected he could be so vile.

The argument caught the attention of the village head, who arrived, frowning after hearing the details of the conflict.

As the village head, his authority was still strong. He glared at Li Tai with a stern expression. “Li Tai, do you know what you did wrong?”

Li Tai scoffed, nodding slightly. “Village head, I know I was wrong.”

His attitude was far from sincere.

“Ha, what a load of nonsense!” The village head exhaled sharply and then let out a cold laugh.

“Idiot!”

“Do you not know how hard it is to get a doctor in the village when someone gets sick? Little Miss Gu has earned the respect of the entire village with her skills, and yet you dare to belittle her, looking to take advantage? Your shamelessness is thicker than this wall!”

“You’re useless. Ten of you combined wouldn’t compare to her!”

Li Tai’s face turned pale. He opened his mouth but couldn’t say anything.

Hadn’t everyone in the village distanced themselves from her because she was an outsider?

“Don’t say another word. Take your wife and go home. Don’t bother her with this illness anymore!”

Li Tai opened his mouth but was too anxious to speak, sensing that he had made a grave mistake. “Village head, the typhoon is still raging outside.”

“Then stay in the corner! Once the storm stops, leave immediately!”

After reprimanding him, the village head turned to Gu Yi and Wang Yulan.

“Little Miss Gu, Wang Niangzi, I apologize. There are indeed some foolish people in the village, and they’ve made everyone upset.”

Wang Yulan remained silent, her expression unreadable.

In truth, as a former lady of a noble family, her presence alone was imposing. She stood with perfect posture, exuding an aura of authority.

Clearly, she wasn’t interested in forgiving or engaging with them.

Gu Yi couldn’t help but chuckle coldly. “It’s true that the irrelevant don’t need to be angry, but he did remind me. I’ve been giving away medicine and treatments, and it feels like I’m the village’s free doctor, someone everyone can call on anytime.”

The village head was startled. “Little Miss Gu, please don’t think that way.”

“Village head, let me finish…”