Chapter 200: Chapter 200: A Tough One
The grotesque wounds looked like flowers sculpted from rotting flesh. Pus and blood oozed from them continuously, emitting a foul, ominous stench.
Ji Huan had guessed he was injured, but she never imagined it would be this... this horrifying.
’This pain must be beyond what any normal person could endure.’
’How did he survive this?’
’He’s one tough customer...’
As her mind raced, Ji Huan fought back the urge to gag and examined the wounds again.
To avoid a misdiagnosis, this time she physically touched the afflicted areas.
The wounds were stiff, swollen, and surrounded by purple bruises. He couldn’t flex or extend his wrist and ankle joints.
His ability to point his toes was limited. There was a noticeable depression at the heel, along with dark purple bruising, and the heel bone had shifted downward.
It was a ruptured tendon, no doubt about it.
While pressing on the wound, Ji Huan freed one hand to brush the hair from the homeless man’s face. Her eyes were glued to his expression, searching for any sign of pain.
But aside from a wooden numbness, she found nothing.
He didn’t even look up.
’Is he naturally resistant to pain, or has he become numb to it?’
Ji Huan’s chaotic mind couldn’t help but speculate.
’The cuts are clean. Clearly inflicted by a person.’
’Judging by how much they’ve healed, it’s been at least three or four months.’
’The attacker probably wasn’t skilled with a blade. On both his wrists and ankles, the cuts are deeper on one side than the other.’
’This resulted in only a partial rupture of the tendons in his left wrist and right ankle. After a few months of healing on their own, they’ve gradually improved. For now, they don’t seem to be a major issue.’
’Of course, this is just my preliminary assessment. The flesh and skin have already fused together. To conduct a deeper examination, I’d have to cut them open again...’
’As for the tendons in his right wrist and left ankle, they’re completely severed.’
’When I press on them, there’s just... nothing.’
Ji Huan stared at the homeless man’s face—scarred, horrifying, yet utterly blank—and a storm of complex emotions churned within her.
’Who is he, really?’
’What kind of enemy did he make?’
’If this was simple revenge, they could have just killed him with a single strike.’
’But they used this cruel method, leaving him in a state worse than death.’
’This was clearly meant to destroy him completely.’
’If I get involved with such a dangerous person, will it bring trouble to me and Dabao?’
Ji Huan suddenly shot to her feet, ducked out of the low lean-to, and bolted back to the rear courtyard.
The homeless man heard the sound of her departing footsteps but didn’t lift his head.
A moment later, the footsteps returned. Ji Huan entered, carrying a wooden box.
She had just crouched down when she seemed to remember something. Slapping her forehead, she hastily rushed back out.
This time, the homeless man lifted his head.
Ji Huan returned with a basin of clean water. She set it down next to the homeless man, along with the wooden box from before.
The wooden box was a first-aid kit she had commissioned from a carpenter. Inside were various bottles and jars, as well as clean gauze and basic instruments.
Ji Huan selected the necessary items and began to clean the man’s wounds.
’For an open tendon rupture like this, the sooner the surgery, the better—ideally within six to eight hours of the injury.’
’After that, bacteria inside the wound multiply exponentially, leading to infection.’
’Once infected, the rupture site is likely to become inflamed. Inflammation not only hinders healing but, in severe cases, can even cause the tendon to become necrotic.’
’On top of that, after so much time, the tendons will have retracted and shortened. That not only makes suturing difficult, but the tissue itself might tear during the process.’
’It sounds terrifying, but a surgery like this was considered routine in her time.’
’You just had to get to a hospital quickly, disinfect the wound, get a local anesthetic for the tendon repair surgery, and then put it in a cast. A course of cephalosporin antibiotics to prevent infection, and that was pretty much it.’
’The procedure itself was simple, really. You just used sutures to reattach the severed ends of the tendon, promoting healing at the site of the rupture.’
’Tendons heal through scarring. Under good conditions, it takes about three weeks or more.’
’As long as there were no complications like infection, and with proper physical therapy during recovery, the healed tendon would be just as strong as it was before the injury.’
’But the reason it was all so simple was largely due to convenient and effective modern medical equipment.’
’Take the Achilles tendon, for instance. Ultrasounds and MRIs are the most precise methods for diagnosing a rupture.’
’An ultrasound can not only confirm a rupture but also pinpoint its exact location, which helps determine the best course of treatment.’
’A follow-up MRI could then further clarify the degree of tendon degeneration.’
’But now... Forget about that kind of equipment; I lack even the most basic supplies.’
’Even with my knowledge, I’m not an orthopedic surgeon...’
’Oh, well. I’ll just have to do what I can for now.’
The man’s wounds hadn’t been debrided in time, and he had long missed the optimal window for surgery. And yet, somehow, they hadn’t become seriously infected.
Ji Huan found this peculiar. She examined the wounds again and again, concluding that someone must have treated them, however crudely.
They had only sprinkled a layer of medicinal powder on top; the ruptured tendons themselves had been completely ignored.
So, while the wounds appeared to have closed, the tendons inside remained severed.
Over time, the condition had worsened, until they had recently begun to fester and suppurate.
Ji Huan sighed. She took a cloth from the basin, wrung it out, and began to clean away the pus and blood as gently as she could.
"Without the proper equipment, it’s hard to get the saline concentration right, and I can’t guarantee it’s sterile. If it gets infected again..."
Ji Huan paused her wiping and looked up at him. "Does it hurt?"
The man finally reacted—he squeezed his eyes shut.
"...Okay, so it probably hurts a little. Just bear with me. This step is necessary. The lesions are inflamed, and even if it’s mild, we have to treat that first. Surgery is only possible after the inflammation has completely subsided."
Ji Huan paused. "Whether surgery is even an option for you, though, is still a big question mark. So don’t get your hopes up..."
’If there’s no hope, there can be no disappointment.’
Ji Huan kept up a steady stream of chatter. It wasn’t that she was a nag; she was just trying to distract him.
She was now using a thin bamboo blade to debride the necrotic flesh. It should have been excruciatingly painful, yet he didn’t make a single sound, leaning against the pillar as if he were asleep.
Part of Ji Huan thought he was just putting on a brave face.
But another part of her suspected that after the inhuman torture he’d already endured, this level of pain probably felt like nothing to him.
Once the pus, blood, and dead tissue were cleared away, she sprinkled on an anti-inflammatory powder made from ground herbs like Heart-piercing Lotus and Red Sunflower, then wrapped the wounds in clean gauze.
Ji Huan carried the basin of dirty water outside to dump it. As she picked up her medical kit to leave, she noticed the bowl of rice and bone broth, now cold.
’I forgot all about that...’
Thankfully, there was still some left in the pot.
She took the cold bowl back to give to Dahuang and ladled a fresh one.
As she set it down, Ji Huan hesitated.
"How about... I feed you?"
’He shouldn’t be putting any strain on his hands or feet right now, and I just worked so hard to clean those wounds...’
’As for the impropriety of physical contact between a man and a woman, that wasn’t even on my mind right now.’
’I see our relationship as one between a doctor and a patient. In a physician’s eyes, the distinction between male and female isn’t so sharply defined.’
’Sick? Just treat them. Who cares if they’re a man or a woman.’
’Besides, he’s a homeless man. No one would see this and get the wrong idea, right?’
’Even if I’m old enough to be married with children in this era, I’m not so desperate as to go after a homeless man.’
"Fine, don’t talk if you don’t want to. You can eat it yourself. I’ll leave the bowl here; I brought a spoon specially. Remember to use your left hand. Do not, under any circumstances, use your right hand! Got it? If you don’t listen, I’m done helping you. I can’t stand patients who don’t follow doctor’s orders..."
After giving her instructions, she placed the bowl by the man’s left hand and finally left with her medical kit.
After Ji Huan was gone, the man’s tightly shut eyes opened a fraction.
His gaze fell upon the gauze wrapped around his wrist, vacant and indifferent.
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