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 “Good,” Professor Lu said.

“Is there anything else you want to tell me?” Wang Yao asked.

“Yeah, I need to go home,” Professor Lu said.

He had been away for over a month. He didn’t think it was good to neglect his family and give all his time to help his ex-lover.

“How about Wen Wan and her son? Are they leaving, too?” Wang Yao asked.

“Do you think they can travel given Wen Wan’s condition?” Professor Lu asked.

“You’ve asked me that several times, and I’ve told you several times,” Wang Yao said with a smile, “that I don’t think Wen Wan should travel.”

Although Wen Wan was better, her condition could potentially deteriorate anytime. Wang Yao could at least save her anytime as long as she stayed in the village. If she was in Beijing, Wang Yao wouldn’t be able to help her in time. In addition, Wen Wan was too weak to travel a long distance.

“They want to leave?” Wang Yao asked.

“Yeah, actually her son wants to leave,” Professor Lu said.

“That is understandable,” Wang Yao said.

Although the air was fresh in the village and it was quiet and peaceful, it was quite isolated compared to a big city. People like Wang Yao preferred to stay in the village, but the village was too boring for most young people.

There was no night life or entertainment in the village. The hills were nice spots to visit, but staying on the hill too long was intolerable for most people. Fishing was a good activity for leisure, but no one would enjoy doing it all the time. There was absolutely nothing else to do in the village.

“I’ll come back here after a while,” Professor Lu said.

Wang Yao didn’t say much. He just smiled. After all, their business had nothing to do with him.

“Dr. Wang, will that horrible contagious disease come back again?” Professor Lu asked.

“To be honest, I really don’t know,” Wang Yao said.

He had found a way to cure the disease and cause. However, he didn’t know how to prevent it from happening again. No one knew where those mice and rats hiding under the ground had gone to, how many there were, or whether they all carried the vital bacteria.

One mouse or rat could be a bomb. No one could know when it might explode.

“As long as I’m here, no one will die from being infected by that bacteria,” Wang Yao said.

In fact, Lianshan People’s Hospital was now able to treat the disease. Early intervention had the best outcome.

“I’ll try to convince Wan’s son to stay here,” Professor Lu said.

He left after chatting with Wang Yao for a short while.

Wang Yao thought Professor Lu was a person in a dilemma. He had his own family, but he still couldn’t forget his ex-lover. He betrayed his family. Plus, it might not even be worth his effort.

Wang Yao doubted if his wife, children, or parents knew what he had done for Wen Wan. They wouldn’t know since Professor Lu wouldn’t tell them.

Anyway, it has nothing to do with me! Wang Yao shook his head.

The other person who visited Wang Yao’s clinic was Wang Zecheng.

“Hi, Dr Wang, can you take a look at me again?” Wang Zecheng asked.

“Sure, how are you?” Wang Yao asked.

“The pain is all over my body and was really bad last night. I didn’t sleep well,” Wang Zecheng said.

He had pain in some parts of his body after a fall. The pain got worse after he went home from Wang Yao’s clinic. It was everywhere in his body. He couldn’t sleep at all.

“Let me take a look,” Wang Yao said.

He took a good look at Wang Zecheng.

“It is normal that the pain got worse,” Wang Yao said.

“Really? Maybe some parts of my body became numb after the fall, but the numbness left after the massage,” Wang Zecheng said.

“You are right about that,” Wang Yao said.

Wang Zecheng planned to go to work in the morning. However, the pain was so bad that he couldn’t even walk, let alone go to work. Therefore, he had to take a day off. He really hoped he would get better soon, but the pain didn’t reduce in the morning. He was worried, so he decided to see Wang Yao in the afternoon.

“I’ll give you a massage,” Wang Yao said.

“OK,” Wang Zecheng said.

“Ouch! That is so painful!” His pain was worse now than when he had the fall.

“Try to bear with me,” Wang Yao said.

He didn’t change the pressure he applied on Wang Zecheng’s body. His hands were steady, and his movements were slow.

“Can you make me better a bit sooner?” Wang Zecheng asked in low voice.

“Why? You want to be able to go to work sooner?” Wang Yao asked.

“Yes,” Wang Zecheng said.

“I’ve told you, you don’t need to worry about the fee for the decoctions for now. You can pay me when you have money,” Wang Yao said.

“It’s not just the herbs. I have bills to pay,” Wang Zecheng said. “I’m running out of my savings.”

His money situation was making him very worried. He couldn’t afford to stay at home for another weak.

Wang Yao kept silent. His decoctions with licorice roots were too expensive for average families. Some people couldn’t afford the decoctions at all. He had taken this into consideration.

He tried to save as many people as he could. However, it wasn’t easy. Even the Buddha needed donation.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Wang Yao finally said.

“OK, thank you.” Wang Zecheng didn’t even have the strength to talk due to pain.

After Wang Zecheng left, Wang Yao got a phone call from Professor Wu, who was in Beijing.

The results from the insect sample test had come out. Professor Wu confirmed that the insects carried the vital bacteria that had caused the outbreak of a contagious disease in Wang Yao’s village. Professor Wu briefly told Wang Yao what he planned to do about the sample.

” I’ll email a copy to you. Call me if you have any questions,” Professor Wu said.

“OK, thank you very much,” Wang Yao said.

“No, I should thank you,” Professor Wu replied.

“Oh?” Wang Yao was surprised.

“Because you provided the sample and helped settle the crisis, I got a promotion,” Professor Wu said. “Now, I have a bigger office. They increased my salary and upgraded a lot of equipment for me. So, I should thank you.”

“I see. Congratulations,” Wang Yao said.

“You have to let me know when you are visiting Beijing next time. If there is anything I can assist with, let me know,” Professor Wu said.

“OK, thank you,” Wang Yao said.

After he had hung up the phone, he logged into his email account. There was a new message in the inbox. Attached to the message was a detailed report of the test on the insects. The laboratory staff members also did a thorough check on the mouse. They tested its blood and internal organs, as well as performed an autopsy on it. They did everything they could.

Wang Yao read the report carefully.

According to the report, 70 percent of the insects in the sample carried the vital bacteria. The other 30 percent didn’t carry any bacteria. The mouse also carried the bacteria. It was an interesting finding.

Wang Yao had seen the insects on Xishan Hill. They were like bees living together, so they definitely had contact with one another. He couldn’t understand why some of them carried the bacteria and others didn’t.

What happened to the mouse was more interesting. The mouse carried the bacteria, but the antibody was also found inside its body. The antibody could resist the bacteria. The mouse could transmit the disease to other animals and human beings, but it wouldn’t get sick.

Other than the vital bacteria, the laboratory staff members also found an unknown virus inside the insects’ bodies. The insects passed the virus out of their bodies after eating. The virus was very strong. A very small amount of virus could kill a guinea pig. It was the same virus Wang Yao found in the soil on Xishan Hill.

Wang Yao reckoned the virus inside the insects’ bodies made the pits barren. However, he didn’t find any insects in those pits.

Maybe I dug into the wrong places? Wang Yao thought.

Professor Lin was interested to know why the insects and the mouse could live together peacefully. He had a theory that the insects and the mouse co-existed because they relied on each other. The fecal waste from the insects containing the virus was probably transmitted by the mouse.

Following the experiment, Professor Lin was also certain that the mouse had the antibody to resist the virus.