Chapter 736: Can’t Figure It Out

"Phew—that was so bitter."

After downing the medicine in one gulp, Xu Huimin stuck out her tongue. She quickly grabbed a cup of warm water from the bedside table, took a large gulp, and rinsed her mouth, looking utterly miserable.

However, the feisty woman who had been secretly observing her caught a whiff of the herbal aroma wafting through the air and actually swallowed unconsciously.

Perhaps it wasn't that hard to swallow after all?

"Xiaoxu," Uncle Guo called out warmly from the aisle. He had just finished a move of the Eight Brocades, specifically the 'touching toes with both hands to strengthen the kidneys and waist' routine. "Finished your medicine? Do you want to come over and practice the Eight Brocades together? It's great stuff. It stretches your muscles and bones, and once you're done, your whole body feels warm. When your meridians are unblocked, it's incredibly comfortable."

"Oh, sure, Uncle Guo. I'll be right there. My bones are getting rusty from lying in bed these past two days."

Xu Huimin didn't decline. She set down her water cup, actually got out of bed, and walked over, clumsily mimicking Uncle Guo's movements.

Lying in bed, the feisty woman watched the harmonious interaction between the old man and the young woman. She cursed inwardly, "This woman is ridiculous. Doesn't she have a mind of her own? She just does whatever anyone tells her to do. And that Eight Brocades the old man is doing—it's so slow! Can that really cure pneumonia? What a joke."

The more the woman thought about it, the more exhausted she felt. Watching their movements, an inexplicable wave of irritation washed over her. She recalled that when she was first hospitalized, both Uncle Guo and Xu Huimin had been severely ill as well. They had been hooked up to oxygen every day, lying lifelessly in their hospital beds.

But what about now? How many days had it even been?

Not only had their fevers broken and their coughs eased, but they were now energetic enough to be doing exercises right here in the ward!

Then she looked at herself. She had been receiving massive doses of antiviral Western medicine every single day, yet what was the result? Her fever hadn't even completely subsided. Every afternoon, without fail, her temperature still spiked past thirty-eight degrees Celsius. Her cough hadn't improved; instead, her chest felt increasingly tight. Her phlegm was so thick that she couldn't cough it up, and she would wake up suffocating multiple times every night in absolute agony.

She racked her brain but simply couldn't figure out why this was happening. She was on the verge of depression. Why were they recovering so fast, visibly becoming more energetic by the day, while she was progressing so slowly? It even felt like her condition was stagnating.

There was one fact that she subconsciously refused to admit and had been trying her best to avoid. That was—both of them had taken Chinese medicine. Meanwhile, she had firmly refused it from the very beginning, not touching a single drop of Chinese medicine.

But... but... weren't traditional Chinese medicines just useless placebos? Weren't they all just deceptive grass roots and tree bark? She firmly believed in science. By using pure Western medicine to fight the virus without the interference of all that miscellaneous Chinese medicine, shouldn't she be recovering faster and more thoroughly?

How did it turn out like this? Didn't those prominent medical influencers and science popularization bloggers on the internet say that traditional Chinese medicine was a scam?

"Ugh, this is so annoying."

The more the woman thought about it, the more confused, irritated, anxious, and depressed she became. As a result, she triggered another violent fit of coughing.

COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!

Xiaoma, the nurse in charge of Western medical treatment rounds, pushed her cart over to change the woman's IV fluid.

"Bed Three, time to change your medication," Xiaoma said. "This is today's anti-inflammatory drug."

Having nowhere else to vent her pent-up frustration, the feisty woman immediately fired at Xiaoma. "Change what? All you know is how to hook me up to these IV drips every day. Why hasn't my fever broken yet? Do you people even know how to treat patients? Are you giving me fake medicine?"

Xiaoma was stunned by the sudden scolding, her face filled with speechlessness. The medicine had been prescribed strictly according to the most authoritative Western medical treatment guidelines in the country; it was already top-tier. Viral infections naturally had a cycle. Since she refused to cooperate with a comprehensive treatment plan and relied solely on antibiotics to suppress it, how could her recovery possibly be that fast?

Just then, Lin Guorui happened to walk by for his ward rounds. The woman immediately caught hold of him and began to complain.

"Why are you all like this? Why is no one taking care of me? Are you picking on me because I'm lying here all alone? Are you bullying me because my family isn't by my side and I have no one to stand up for me?"

Standing to the side, Nurse Xiaoma was so exasperated by this sudden emotional outburst that she practically wanted to roll her eyes at the ceiling. She sighed helplessly and patiently explained, "Ma'am, please don't get agitated. It's the same for everyone. No patients in the entire ward are allowed to have family members accompany them. This year's influenza virus is highly contagious and can easily trigger cluster infections, which you already know. This is a strict hospital regulation designed for everyone's safety."

COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!

The feisty woman coughed consecutively, her face flushing red from the exertion. She rubbed her chest vigorously, finally managing to catch her breath. However, her resentment only grew higher, and she retorted furiously, "How is it the same? How is it the same anywhere? Is this what you call treating everyone equally?"

She raised her hand, pointing at Uncle Guo in the adjacent bed, who was currently practicing the Eight Brocades.

"Look at him! That old man is about to be discharged!" The woman slapped her own chest in agitation. "My fever hasn't even gone down. Every afternoon, without fail, it spikes past thirty-eight degrees. I have absolutely no strength in my body; I can barely even get out of bed! This is clearly your responsibility. You didn't give me good medicine."

Xiaoma was so exasperated she almost rolled her eyes for real this time. Forcing down the rising anger in her chest, she grumbled inwardly, "Some patients simply have better physical constitutions to begin with. Take Uncle Guo, for instance. Despite his age, he has a solid foundation. Couple that with his active cooperation in the integrated treatment of Chinese and Western medicine, and of course he recovers quickly. Other patients have numerous underlying conditions and poor immune systems, making them highly susceptible to deterioration. If everyone could become lively and energetic right after treatment, then the flu wouldn't be terrifying at all. We wouldn't have to be on such high alert, and there would be nothing to worry about."

Besides, Xiaoma knew very well that Bed Three's condition was far more complex than Uncle Guo's. She had a history of malignant tumors. Fourteen years ago, she had suffered from ovarian cancer and underwent major surgery as well as chemotherapy. Although it hadn't relapsed over the years, her foundation had long been hollowed out. Her body was naturally extremely weak, and she caught colds at the drop of a hat.

Therefore, when this patient was admitted to the hospital and her various indicators were checked, she was immediately diagnosed with a severe case of influenza pneumonia. Since it was a severe case, it naturally wouldn't be easy to treat. Furthermore, a patient with a history of tumors and a compromised immune system could develop multiple organ failure at any moment, with a high probability of progressing to a critical state. She was essentially a ticking time bomb.

Xiaoma shook her head and took a deep breath, trying her best to speak in a calm tone. "Ma'am, your illness is severe, and you have a history of underlying conditions. Your physical foundation is weak. Treatment is inherently a long process. It certainly won't be as fast as it is for young people or patients with mild symptoms."

Even while crying, the feisty woman maintained her formidable combativeness. Pointing at Uncle Guo without a hint of backing down, she snapped, "Don't try to fool me with that 'underlying conditions' excuse. What about him? That old man was also a severe case when he was brought in, right? I heard the doctors say he didn't just have pneumonia, but also a heart attack and gangrene! He had one foot in the grave, and now he's about to be discharged!"

Uncle Guo was just finishing the closing posture of 'propping up the sky with both hands to regulate the Triple Burner'. Hearing that he was being used as a target again, he merely glanced back at her indifferently, shook his head, and continued his stretches without saying a word.