"We don’t have such deadly mosquitoes here, and poisoning doesn’t work this fast, didn’t you say he was fine in the morning?"
"Yeah, he showed no signs of illness in the morning."
"Ah." The doctor seemed troubled, "Send him to the clinic in the nearby town to get checked out. I can only deal with common illnesses like colds here."
"Doctor, I have it too." Xue Liangliang rolled up his sleeves on both arms.
Standing next to him, Li Zhiyuan saw that his arms had the same greyish spots as his own.
It was no surprise, last night that woman was squatting in front of him, and nearly grabbed him instead of Zhao Hequan, so it’s normal for him to have some flesh wounds.
"Let’s rush to the hospital then, and you should get checked too, in case it’s something contagious."
"Okay, I’ll leave my friend here while I go find a car."
The doctor frowned but could only nod his head, then took an old mask out of his pocket and put it on himself.
After Xue Liangliang left, the doctor looked again at Zhao Hequan, whose consciousness was starting to blur.
The doctor muttered, "This doesn’t look like a disease, more like he’s been invaded by something filthy."
Barefoot doctors were people who were trained or designated by the state after the establishment of New China, possessing basic medical skills, and served as both farmers and medics. Although generally not as professionally skilled as doctors in formal hospitals, they played a significant role in improving and maintaining rural medical conditions during specific historical periods.
At the same time, due to the nature of their profession, they often have their own understanding of special and intricate illnesses and were not so averse to them.
"What did you say?" Li Zhiyuan, who had overheard, curiously asked.
The doctor remained silent, as he wasn’t about to alarm a child with ramblings.
"Did we encounter something filthy, something that invaded us?" Li Zhiyuan asked proactively, "How can it be resolved?"
The doctor chuckled, "Kid, how would I know how to resolve this? I’m a doctor, not a fortune-teller."
Li Zhiyuan felt somewhat disappointed; it seemed he could only wait for the Grandmaster to return.
He knew that Liu Jinxia and Aunt Juxiang might have a way to solve this issue, but he felt somewhat embarrassed to approach them because their methods were often too simplistic and brutal.
Just then, Xue Liangliang who had left a moment ago, returned with a middle-aged man dressed in work attire, whose hair was partially grey.
The man had thick, steady brows and a square face, exuding a natural sense of righteousness and authority.
"Mr. Luo." The doctor stood up and greeted him.
The man was the deputy director of the construction project and a department head at Haihe University, responsible for organizing local water conservation construction projects over the years.
"Hmm." Luo Tingrui responded with a gesture and then walked straight to Zhao Hequan’s side to assess the situation, then quietly scolded Xue Liangliang, "Don’t you have a brain? Who told you two to act so impetuously yesterday?"
"Director, it was my fault."
Luo Tingrui frowned, "Haven’t I taught you when encountering graves or temples during construction, they indeed need to be dealt with. If it’s impossible to relocate them, at least offer some incense, say a few good words before dismantling these objects. Instead, you just smashed them with a hammer!"
"Director, what should we do now?"
Actually, yesterday Xue Liangliang had planned to offer incense before pushing down the temple, but Zhao Hequan snorted and scornfully mentioned, ’That’s just the inherent flaw of the Chinese,’ and started smashing with a hammer, and Xue Liangliang had no choice but to follow.
Who knew such an issue would arise the next day, but now was not the time to share blame or explain.
"Where was the statue moved to?"
"It was dragged to the ditch on the west side, along with the construction waste."
"Alright, take him there now; I’ll get some incense from my temporary office.
Apologize first, then take him to the city hospital. This kind of condition probably can’t be handled by the local clinic. Anyway, it will take some time to get a vehicle."
"Got it, Director, I understand."
Xue Liangliang carried Zhao Hequan and ran down the dam.
Walking along, he suddenly turned his head and looked at Li Zhiyuan, who had followed.
Li Zhiyuan didn’t waste words but showed his forearm to Xue Liangliang.
Xue Liangliang was surprised, "Kid, did you also go smashing?"
Actually, Li Zhiyuan was the most innocent among them. He possessed the passive ability to travel to the Underworld, yet the whole situation had nothing to do with him actually.
"Then come with me to offer incense, and after that, tell your family. I’ll take you to the city hospital with him."
The two, or rather three of them, arrived at the waste-filled ditch on the west side, where the statue of the female Bodhisattva stood forlornly.
The laborers working on the construction had some basic scruples and didn’t just leave it lying there; a rock was placed next to it to ensure it stood upright.
After setting Zhao Hequan down, Xue Liangliang walked in front of the statue and bowed:
"I made a mistake yesterday, please forgive me..." He paused, glanced at Li Zhiyuan next to him, "At least, please forgive this child."
Last night, Xue Liangliang had declared with confidence: This world is materialistic.
But perhaps this wasn’t wrong; in the eyes of a true materialist, as long as there is an established set of laws to explore and solve, even ghosts are materialistic entities.
Li Zhiyuan watched the statue closely, which had been underwater or in mud for a long time. Its painted surface had peeled and corroded, and what caught his eye was a large area that looked like red rust, probably the material used to make the statue.