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墨書 Inktalez
"You seem to know a lot of things that I don't."
Pei Guanjing's voice was low and cold, like a ghostly whisper that penetrated Ye Chen's mind, racing along his nerves up to his spine.
Ye Chen's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly changed his words, "It's just the evil wind entering the body; I was just using different terminology. Doctor Pei, please don't take it the wrong way. I tend to use my own words when I speak, it's nothing personal."
"Oh." Pei Guanjing slightly lowered his head and handed a saw to Ye Chen. "In a moment, I'll use silver needles to seal his blood vessels. You take the opportunity to saw it off quickly; we can't waste too much time as the military is short on Hemostatic Medicine."
"Understood, Doctor Pei. But I might not have enough strength," Ye Chen said, glancing at the saw with a troubled expression.
"Let me do it." The simple white curtain was suddenly lifted, and Zhou Laosan had not left yet. He strode in, took the saw from Ye Chen, and gestured near Shuanzi's leg, asking, "Where should I start?"
Ye Chen looked at Zhou Laosan, who was holding the saw in a terrifying manner, and couldn't help but think of the famous horror film—Saw. So he really wasn't here for personal revenge?
Pei Guanjing glanced at Zhou Laosan's thick arms and nodded. "It's good that you're here; with your strength, you can spare him some suffering."
Next, Ye Chen carefully disinfected Shuanzi's wound with white liquor and began to saw his leg with Zhou Laosan according to Pei Guanjing's instructions. The tools of ancient times were not as advanced as those today, so Ye Chen prepared himself for a long battle.
However, he never expected that with Zhou Laosan's brute strength and just this saw, they would finish sawing off Shuanzi's leg in just a few minutes. The bloody stump revealed clear blood vessels, with white bone and marrow spilling everywhere. Ye Chen suddenly turned his head, covering his mouth and nose as he crouched down. Despite having mentally prepared himself, the gruesome scene before him was still unbearable.
With half-closed eyes, Ye Chen followed Pei Guanjing's commands, forcing himself to endure the discomfort as he applied Hemostatic Medicine to Shuanzi and disinfected and bandaged him layer by layer.
By the time everything was finished, only an hour had passed, and this surgical operation had surprisingly gone smoothly. However, it remained uncertain how Shuanzi would recover afterward; after all, in an era without antibiotics, many people died from post-operative infections—everything depended on the patient's own resistance to endure.
Zhou Laosan was accustomed to the sight of severed limbs and dismembered bodies, unlike Ye Chen, who was easily startled. In the end, he casually waved the half of Shuanzi's amputated leg in front of Ye Chen and said nonchalantly, "When he wakes up, you can ask him if he still wants this half of a leg."
With that, he tossed the leg directly into Ye Chen's arms. Ye Chen's round eyes widened in shock, and he stood frozen for a moment before regaining his composure. He wrapped Shuanzi's leg in a white cloth and gently placed it by the bedside before lifting the white curtain and hurriedly leaving the small compartment.
Pei Guanjing had heard everything. At the moment when the leg was thrown into Ye Chen's arms, he caught the sound of the boy's terrified gasp, but soon after, the slight curve at the corner of his mouth vanished.
"You'll move to the Medical Camp tonight; we need more hands here," Pei Guanjing said without turning around, hands on his hips.
Ye Chen bit his lip and nodded helplessly. "I understand."
When Ye Chen returned to pack his things, he found that most of his belongings had already been sorted out by Fu Gui and Wang Xiangzi. He slung a pack that felt lighter than when he arrived over his shoulder and tearfully bid farewell to his brothers at the Canteen before heading back to the Medical Camp.
Xiao Chen, whom he had met before, guided him along the way, enthusiastically introducing, "This is where the apprentices live. We all stay here; your spot is over there."
Looking at the dark, uninviting cold bunk in the corner, Ye Chen couldn't help but hug his arms tightly as a chill ran through him; he seemed to foresee a bleak future ahead.
Noticing Ye Chen's low spirits, Xiao Chen curiously leaned closer and patted his shoulder, asking, "What's wrong?"
Ye Chen shook his head and hesitantly asked, "Um, so we’re all living together with over forty people?"
"Yeah, isn't that how it is? Living together in the Medical Camp keeps us warm; it won't be cold at night. What’s wrong? Are you not used to it?"
"No, no. I just think it's quite new to live with so many people for the first time," Ye Chen forced a smile.
Here, there were only a few students living together, just like when he was in the same class.
After tidying up his bed, Ye Chen officially started his duties that day, only to receive a sudden notice that he was assigned to be an apprentice to Pei Guanjing.
"Huh?" Ye Chen tilted his head in confusion. "Why Doctor Pei? I wanted to be an apprentice to Doctor Liu."
"Be grateful! Doctor Pei is a renowned physician from the capital and has never taken on an apprentice before. You are the one he personally requested from the Canteen. You should cherish this opportunity, understand?" Xiao Chen said with envy.
Ye Chen opened his mouth but couldn't find the words. This opportunity is not something I really want.
With a sullen face, Ye Chen went to find Pei Guanjing. To his surprise, Pei didn't make things difficult for him; instead, he assigned him some simple tasks of grinding herbs. Sitting on a stool with his feet on the medicine mill, he slid back and forth, and thus passed the monotonous days.
In the middle of it all, Fu Gui came to bring him lunch and stayed to chat for a while. After a lengthy conversation, Fu Gui reluctantly left Ye Chen behind as he turned to leave, all while Pei Guanjing's seemingly friendly yet subtly dismissive farewell echoed in the air.
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