Chapter 3

The emergency room was not very large, with only one bed, but it was equipped with a brand new ventilator and an electrocardiogram monitor, which looked quite expensive.

A young woman in a white coat, who seemed to be taking notes like in a large hospital, saw the two people who had burst in and immediately asked in a clear voice, "Are you Mr. Zhang Daowu's family?"

"Nurse, I am his fellow villager, and this is his son. How is Daowu?"

Although she was surprised that the patient had such a young son, the young woman still answered professionally, "I am a doctor. The patient is in critical condition and needs immediate surgery. We have already wasted too much time, and we need your signature right away."

While the young doctor and the middle-aged man were talking, Zhang Lisheng, with a dazed expression, looked at his father lying on the bed, pale and extremely aged, feeling a mix of sorrow and satisfaction.

Zhang Daowu held a very special position in Guawo Village. Although he was cold and never socialized with the villagers, and was neither a village official nor a respected elder, all the villagers feared him. Even the old party secretary, who had been the pillar of the village for over thirty years, did not dare to offend him easily.

It was said that Zhang Daowu was over eighty years old, and some claimed he was over a hundred. However, due to the wars and turmoil of the past, all these claims were unverifiable.

The only thing people knew was that during the Cultural Revolution, when the red storm swept across the country and even reached the remote Guawo Village, the five-member work team sent by the county to criticize Zhang Daowu was completely wiped out. Although the deaths were attributed to seemingly inexplicable coincidences, this was in western Sichuan, and no one dared to trouble Zhang Daowu again after that.

However, to his son, Zhang Daowu was not the mysterious shaman but a cruel tyrant. From a young age, when Zhang Lisheng could barely speak, he was forced to recite tongue-twisting incantations. If he failed to memorize them, he would be denied food or even pierced with a bone needle.

When he was old enough to hold a pen, he had to copy complex patterns and ancient texts from old books every night, and any mistake would be punished with a wooden stick.

As he grew older, at the age of twelve, during his adolescence, he was forced to handle venomous insects with his blood and flesh, losing a significant amount of vital energy three times a day. If he did poorly, he would be whipped with a vine. Over the years, he became much lighter and shorter than his peers.

As these memories flashed before his eyes, Zhang Lisheng realized that in his sixteen years of life, he had never experienced a single second of happiness or warmth.

At this moment, seeing his father on the brink of death, he felt a sense of relief, knowing that his father would no longer be able to torment him. This was the most relaxed moment of his life!

While Zhang Lisheng was lost in his memories, the old man on the bed suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze fixed on his only son. His face showed a mix of joy and determination, and his lips began to move, silently chanting.

Others did not know what the suddenly awakened Zhang Daowu was doing, but Zhang Lisheng, who was looking at him, knew that his father was reciting a shamanic incantation.

Could the incantation that controlled venomous insects save his life? This thought flashed through Zhang Lisheng's mind, and then he felt a mysterious whisper in his ear, and his mind became hazy.

Although it seemed complicated, all of this happened in just a few seconds. After quickly explaining the patient's critical condition to Tao Lelin, the young doctor was about to ask the patient's son to sign the surgery consent form when she noticed the young man standing unsteadily, staring at his father on the bed, seemingly lost in his thoughts.

The patient is in danger, the doctor instinctively thought. She then saw that the patient's face was stiff, his mouth twitching involuntarily, clearly showing signs of organ failure.

"The patient's heart rate is 35, body temperature 34, showing signs of organ failure. Administer one dose of Ries cardiac emergency agent directly into the heart artery..." Without wasting a second, the doctor, though tense, acted professionally, clearly narrating the treatment steps and recording them on her phone.

Unfortunately, medicine cannot save the incurable. Despite her best efforts, the young doctor could not save Zhang Daowu. After several attempts to revive him with a defibrillator, the heart monitor's wavy line turned into a straight line, and the beeping that represented his heartbeat turned into a long, cold tone.

The final effort was in vain. The doctor looked at Zhang Daowu's wide-open eyes, filled with hatred, regret, and a refusal to die, and after a moment of silence, she looked at her watch and said in a low voice, "14:36, the patient has died. The cause of death is massive internal bleeding leading to rapid organ failure. That's all."

She then slowly walked to the dazed Zhang Lisheng and said apologetically, "I am very sorry, but I did my best..."

At this point, the doctor, seeing the patient's son who had just lost his father, suddenly felt a surge of anger. She stormed out of the emergency room and, in front of many patients, shouted at the emergency room director, "The car accident patient is dead. He has a child, about sixteen or seventeen years old, who has now lost his father.

If we hadn't waited for the damn surgery consent, the patient might have had a chance to survive.

There were no nurses, no assistant doctors, not even a single orderly. The entire emergency room was handled by me, a newly licensed doctor.

I can hardly believe this is a legitimate emergency hospital serving 400,000 people. You are treating lives like grass, do you know that? You are treating lives like grass!"

The emergency room fell silent. The director, after a long pause, shouted in anger, "Doctor Mary, you can't say such irresponsible things. What do you mean by treating lives like grass? I just said that as soon as the family arrived and signed, we would take the patient to the operating room. Who told you to act on your own?

I think you are the one treating lives like grass.

Do you think this is Beijing, Shanghai, or America? Some legitimate emergency center? Dream on. This is western Sichuan, our county. We have few doctors, few nurses, and tough conditions.

It wasn't me who invited you. It was you, the American student, who insisted on interning at a hospital in a poor area. You insisted on it, and you were assigned to our hospital.

To be honest, if it weren't for the advanced ventilator and electrocardiogram monitor donated by the 'Central China Medical Charity Association,' our county hospital wouldn't have accepted you.

Since you came, you've been complaining about this and that, saying this doesn't meet the requirements and that doesn't follow the regulations. I've been holding back. Our county hospital isn't a truly poor area hospital, and you have so many complaints. If you were in a hospital in the mountains, you'd be out of control.

If your words today cause a medical dispute and affect the emergency room's evaluation, I will, I will, I, I am so angry. I will call Dean Li, and whoever wants to deal with you can deal with you..."

While the emergency room was in an uproar over Zhang Daowu's death, Zhang Lisheng, one of the main parties involved, remained motionless and silent.

It wasn't until Tao Lelin patted his shoulder and said sympathetically, "Mountain Bug, your father is gone. If you want to cry, just let it out. Don't hold it in, it will make you sick," that Zhang Lisheng suddenly collapsed to the ground.

Seeing Zhang Lisheng fall, Tao Lelin panicked and ran out of the emergency room to call for a doctor. The doctors from the county hospital rushed in and frantically tried to revive Zhang Lisheng.

Although Zhang Lisheng's body was weak and his external senses seemed to have been taken away, his mind was incredibly clear.

The shamanic incantations, the symbols he had been forced to memorize, and the chants he had recited all flashed clearly in his memory, floating before his eyes, merging and condensing, and then slowly disappearing, leaving only one incantation.

As the incantation took shape, Zhang Lisheng suddenly felt a tingling sensation all over his body, and a strange power emerged from his flesh and blood. A small, pea-sized lump also formed on the roof of his mouth.

The power in his flesh and blood appeared and disappeared, and the lump on the roof of his mouth repeatedly swelled and vanished.

When the power in his flesh and blood appeared and the lump on the roof of his mouth swelled, countless snakes and insects in the mountains and forests around the county began to run around. Some even climbed onto the village paths in groups, scaring pedestrians or being crushed by vehicles.

After an unknown amount of time, the mysterious power in his flesh and blood and the lump on the roof of his mouth finally stabilized and did not disappear again. Zhang Lisheng slowly opened his eyes.

In the single-patient room with its peeling walls, the air was filled with the distinctive smell of hospital disinfectant. Seeing Zhang Lisheng open his eyes, Mary asked with concern, "What is your name?"

"My name is Zhang Lisheng, and my nickname is Mountain Bug," Zhang Lisheng answered hoarsely.

Mary then held up four fingers and asked, "How many is this?"

"Four."

"That's great. You are conscious and there doesn't seem to be a major problem.

Zhang Lisheng, yes, Mr. Zhang Lisheng, you are sixteen years old, the minimum age to get a passport in China, and you can be addressed as 'Mr.' As a man, you must be strong and accept reality..."

"My father is dead, I know. It's okay," Zhang Lisheng said in a numb tone.