Chapter Three: The Witch

As the female doctor conversed with the middle-aged man, Zhang Lisheng gazed vacantly at his father, who lay on the hospital bed, barely alive, his face pale and exceedingly aged. A multitude of sorrow welled up within him, accompanied by a sense of satisfaction.

Upon seeing Zhang Lisheng suddenly fall, Tao Lielin hurriedly ran out of the emergency room to call for a doctor, while the emergency doctors at the county people's hospital rushed into the room at the fastest speed, frantically attempting to save Zhang Lisheng

Although various matters appeared complex, they actually unfolded within just a few seconds. After quickly explaining the patient's critical condition to Tao Lielin in the emergency room, the young female doctor intended to take the surgical consent form for the patient's son to sign. However, she found that the young man was staring intently at his father, who was on the brink of collapse on the hospital bed, seemingly having lost his senses.

If it were not for the need to wait for that damned surgical signature, the patient would still have a few chances of survival

At this moment, seeing my father on the brink of death, I realize that he can no longer hold me to account; it is, in fact, the most relaxed moment of my entire life

Mary extended four fingers and asked, "How many is this?"

Zhang Daowu holds a very special position in Luowocun. Although he has a cold personality and never interacts with the villagers, nor is he a village official or a respected elder, all the villagers in Luowocun regard him with a certain degree of awe. Even the old party secretary, who has been the backbone of the mountain village for over thirty years, does not dare to offend him easily

Although the causes of death for those individuals appeared to be inexplicable coincidences, this is, after all, the ground of Western Sichuan. From that point on, no revolutionary masses or cadres sought trouble with Zhang Daowu again

In the dimly lit single patient room with mottled walls, filled with the distinctive scent of disinfectant typical of the hospital, Mary asked with concern as she saw Zhang Lisheng open his eyes: "What is your name?"

Until Tao Lie Lin, who had come together, patted his shoulder and sympathetically whispered, "Shan Chongzi, your father has passed away. If you want to cry, just let it out; don't hold it in your heart, or you'll fall ill." Only then did Zhang Lisheng suddenly collapse onto the ground

As he grew older, Zhang Lisheng, who had just turned twelve, was in the midst of his adolescent development. He was forced by his father to tend to venomous creatures, sacrificing his vitality three times a day. If he did not perform well, he would be punished with a whip. After several years, he was significantly lighter than his peers by thirty to forty pounds and his height was also more than ten centimeters shorter than average

The emergency room is not large, containing only one bed; however, it is equipped with a brand-new ventilator and an electrocardiogram monitor, which appear to be quite valuable

There were no nurses, no assistant physicians, and not even a single caregiver assigned; the entire emergency room was under the responsibility of just me, a novice doctor who had recently obtained my medical license

"My father has passed away, I know, it is alright," Zhang Lisheng said in a tone that was wooden and indifferent.

It is said that Zhang Dao, the shaman, is over eighty years old, with some claiming he is over one hundred. In any case, due to the wars and turmoil of the past, all such statements have become unverifiable

The waiting area outside the emergency room was bustling due to the death of Zhang Daowu, yet inside, Zhang Lisheng, one of the key parties involved in the incident, remained completely still and silent.

Do you think this is in Beiping or Shanghai, or even in the United States? What kind of proper emergency rescue center are you dreaming of? This is Chuanxi County, where we have a shortage of doctors and nurses, and the conditions are quite difficult

Others may not know what Zhang Daowu is doing upon suddenly waking up, but Zhang Lisheng, who is gazing at him, understands that his father is reciting a shamanic incantation

She slowly walked up to the stunned Zhang Lisheng and said apologetically, "I am very sorry, but I have done my utmost..."

The patient is in danger, and the female doctor instinctively thought of this immediately. Upon further observation, the patient's face was indeed rigid, and their mouth was twitching involuntarily, clearly exhibiting clinical symptoms of organ failure

At this point, the female doctor looked at the patient who had lost a loved one and suddenly felt unable to contain the anger within her. She strode out of the emergency room and, in front of many patients, shouted at the head of the emergency department: "That car accident victim is already dead. He has a child, about sixteen or seventeen years old, who has now lost his father.

Nurse, I am a fellow villager of his, this is his child, how is the shaman doing

Afterward, the power within his flesh and blood appeared and disappeared intermittently, with the tumor swelling and vanishing repeatedly.

It was not me who invited you here; it was your insistence as an American student to come and intern in a poverty-stricken area. You insisted on interning in a hospital in a poor region, and as a result, you ended up being assigned to our hospital.

I see that you are the one who treats human life as insignificant

Scenes from the past flashed before his eyes, and it was only then that Zhang Lisheng realized that in his brief sixteen years of life, he had not experienced even a single second of happiness and warmth

If today your words truly caused a dispute between doctors and patients, affecting the evaluation and selection of the emergency room, I... I... I am extremely furious. I will call Director Li right now. Whoever is willing to serve you can go ahead and serve you...

Although she was quite surprised to learn that the patient had such a young son, the young woman immediately responded in a professional manner: "I am a doctor. The patient is in a critical condition and requires immediate surgery. Too much time has already been wasted; you must sign the consent form right away"

Could the spell that commands the venomous creatures also save a life? In his astonishment, Zhang Lisheng inexplicably had this thought flash through his mind, and then he felt a mysterious whisper ringing in his ears, causing his consciousness to become muddled.

As Zhang Lisheng unconsciously reminisced about the past, the elderly man on the sickbed suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze fixated intensely on his only offspring, his face displaying a blend of ecstasy and determination, his lips beginning to tremble as he silently recited.

Unfortunately, the medicine could not save the illness, and in the end, the female doctor was unable to save the dying Zhang Daowu's life. After several difficult attempts at resuscitation using a heart pacemaker, the waves on the ECG monitor transformed into a straight line, and the beeping sound indicating the patient's heartbeat turned into a cold, prolonged tone.

At this moment, although Zhang Lisheng's body had no strength whatsoever and his external senses seemed to have been completely taken away, his mind was remarkably clear

Zhang Lisheng, well, Mr. Zhang Lisheng, you are already 16 years old, which is the minimum age in Huaguo to obtain a passport, and you can be respectfully addressed as 'Mr.' As a young man, you must be strong and accept reality

Upon your arrival, it was all about 'get, get, get...'. This does not meet the requirements, nor does it comply with the regulations. I have long been unable to contain myself. Our county hospital is not even a truly impoverished district hospital. With so many complaints from you, if we were to reach a hospital in a remote valley, it would be utter chaos.

A young woman in a white coat, who was sitting by the bedside and seemingly taking emergency records like in a large hospital, immediately asked in a clear voice upon seeing the two intruders: "May I ask if you are family members of Zhang Daowu?"

To be honest, if it were not for the advanced ventilator and ECG monitor donated by the "Central China Medical Charity Association," our county hospital would not have accepted you at all

The only thing people knew was that when the red whirlwind of the Cultural Revolution swept across the country, even reaching the remote village of Guawo, the five-member work team from the county that sought to denounce Zhang Daowu had all perished without exception

The final effort was declared futile. The female doctor looked at Zhang Daowu, her eyes wide open, filled with resentment, regret, and an expression of unrest. After a moment of silence, she weakly glanced at her watch and said in a somber tone: "14:36, the patient has died. The cause of death was massive internal bleeding, leading to rapid organ failure. End of report"

At the moment the incantation took shape, Zhang Lisheng suddenly felt a tingling sensation all over his body, as a wondrous power began to grow within his flesh and blood, and a green bean-sized tumor protruded from the roof of his mouth.

However, for his son, Zhang Daowu was not the enigmatic shaman, but rather a cruel tyrant. When Zhang Lisheng was young and just beginning to form memories, he was forced to recite those tongue-twisting incantations, and if he could not memorize them, he would be starved or even subjected to bone needles piercing his flesh

When the power within Zhang Lisheng's flesh and blood manifested, and the sarcoma on his upper jaw bulged, countless snakes and insects began to scurry chaotically through the mountainous forests surrounding his county within a radius of one hundred miles. Some even crawled in groups onto the village paths, causing pedestrians to scream in terror or being crushed into pulp by motor vehicles

Once one grows a bit older and is able to hold a pen, one must practice drawing intricate patterns and ancient texts from old books hundreds of times every night, and any slight negligence will result in being punished with a wooden stick

The emergency room was enveloped in silence, and it took the attending physician a while to react. In a fit of anger and embarrassment, he shouted, "Dr. Mary, you cannot make such irresponsible statements. What do you mean by 'treating lives as mere grass'? I just said that as soon as the patient's family arrives, they sign the consent form, and then the patient is taken to the operating room. Who told you to act on your own and attempt to rescue them?"

That's great, your mind is clear, and there are no major issues

The curses that were once forced upon me to memorize, the runes I silently drew, and the incantations I recited all vividly flashed in my memory, floating before my eyes, continuously intertwining and condensing, then gradually fading away, leaving only a fragment of a curse.

Four

I can hardly believe that this is a legitimate emergency hospital serving 400,000 people. Do you know that you are treating lives with such disregard? You are treating lives with such disregard!

The renowned Zhang Lisheng, also known by his nickname Shan Chongzi, replied hoarsely without hesitation.

Uncertain how much time had passed, the miraculous power within the flesh and the tumor in the upper jaw finally stabilized, no longer fading away. Zhang Lisheng slowly opened his eyes

The patient's heart rate is 35, body temperature is 34, presenting with original organ failure. An emergency cardiac rescue agent is directly injected into the artery without wasting a second. The female doctor, though visibly tense, performs the emergency treatment with great professionalism, simultaneously narrating the treatment steps clearly and recording them with a voice recorder from her white coat.