Chapter 668: I Know a Thing or Two
Chapter 668: Chapter 668: I Know a Thing or Two
The man waved his hand, his smile a little peculiar.
"Your father and I are hardly old friends, but I am in your debt for this, and I won’t forget it."
Having said that, he seemed to have no intention of discussing it further. His gaze shifted to the items Ye Chutang had laid out one by one on the table.
One didn’t need to ask to know the various bottles and jars were filled with medicine; a faint, bitter medicinal smell wafted from them.
The gauze was also quite common.
’But... what is that specially shaped blade for?’
"I didn’t realize you were a doctor." The man thought for a moment, then teased, "Then again, it makes sense. If you’re skilled with poisons, you must be even more skilled with medicines."
He had been locked away on death row, and this was only the second time he had seen Ye Chutang. Naturally, he didn’t know her identity, let alone that she was now a medical saint renowned throughout the Capital City.
Ye Chutang didn’t elaborate, merely giving a slight nod.
"The other wounds on your body are manageable, sir, but your legs... they’re a bit more troublesome."
Hearing this, the man looked down at his own legs.
They were severed at the knee. Both of his lower legs were gone, leaving only empty space.
His hand rested on his thigh, and it seemed he could still feel the excruciating, soul-crushing pain from back then.
"They’re just old wounds," he said, shaking his head. "Don’t trouble yourself."
’He was used to it anyway.’
Over the past few days, Su Mu and the others had come to apply medicine for him. He no longer had to personally scrape the rotting flesh from his festering wounds, and they were finally starting to scab over.
Compared to before, this was a vast improvement.
But Ye Chutang disagreed. She shook her head and said, "A person’s legs are incredibly important. It’s true your lower legs can’t grow back, but if we let these wounds continue as they are, they will only cause more trouble later. If you’re willing to cooperate with me, you might even be able to walk outside on your own again someday."
Her eyes curved into a smile.
"Take today, for example. The early spring weather is wonderful, and the willows by the river are already budding. Soon, all sorts of flowering trees will be vying to bloom. The fragrance of flowers will fill the Capital City. Don’t you want to go see it for yourself?"
The man froze.
’He... he’d truly never thought about it...’
Five years ago, he thought he was as good as dead. He didn’t die, but he fell into an even deeper abyss.
The long years of torment had made him forget what the outside world even looked like.
During those unbearable days and nights, he had countless times thought of ending it all, only to grit his teeth and endure.
He had just... survived.
He thought his heart had long since died, that he was just waiting for the right moment to claim a quick end.
But now, he was suddenly struck by the realization that as he listened to Ye Chutang describe those scenes, his heart had, for a fleeting moment, genuinely stirred.
Seeing him fall silent, Ye Chutang and Shen Yanchuan exchanged a glance.
They both understood that this man’s identity was anything but simple.
If they wanted to uncover his secrets, they would have to do it one step at a time.
Ye Chutang smiled. "We’ve been talking for a while, but I haven’t had the chance to properly introduce myself. My name is Ye Chutang, and I know a thing or two about medicine. If you can trust me, you can leave the rest to me. If you really don’t want to go through the trouble, that’s fine too. I can find a good wheelchair for you later, which would work just as well."
Of course, it wasn’t that he didn’t trust Ye Chutang’s medical skills.
After all, there were probably few women in the world who would dare to do—or could do—the things she had done!
She had even brought all this equipment today, which looked highly professional at a glance.
He was just...
After staring at the doorway for a long time, he finally let out a relaxed smile.
"Alright. Then let me thank you in advance!"
...
Everything was as Ye Chutang had expected. The other flesh wounds on the man’s body weren’t severe. Only his legs, despite having been nursed for some time, were a different matter. The location was too critical, and because they hadn’t been properly treated for years, the wounds had repeatedly festered, making them extremely difficult to handle.
The necrotic flesh on his wounds had already been scraped away, and some areas had formed pale pink scabs.
But perhaps because he had maintained the same posture all day for too long, parts of the wounds had developed adhesions.
After examining them, Ye Chutang said directly, "I need to clean up the adhesions and reapply medicine. It might hurt a little, so please bear with it."
After she said this, Ye Chutang saw him smile.
Only then did Ye Chutang remember. In his years locked in this prison, who knew how many cruel tortures he had endured? The pain from this... truly paled in comparison.
Sure enough, the man nodded. "Just do what you have to. I won’t move a muscle unless you tell me to."
Ye Chutang picked up the blade, disinfected it with alcohol, and then began.
Her movements were exceptionally deft and meticulous, and the blade was incredibly sharp.
After clearing away the adhesions, Ye Chutang discovered that his wounds were still suppurating slightly.
This was caused by improper cleaning before.
In truth, one couldn’t really blame Su Mu and the others. The main issue was that the injury was several years old, and the man had often scraped at the flesh himself with dirty tile shards. While it had kept him alive, it had also made the problem with his legs far more severe.
Fortunately, Ye Chutang had come prepared. She carved out all the rotten flesh from deep within the wounds, applied several layers of medicinal powder, and finally wrapped the wounds with gauze.
From beginning to end, the man didn’t make a sound. His legs didn’t even tremble once from the intense pain.
Only the beads of sweat covering his forehead showed that he was not without a sense of pain.
The agony of having his flesh carved out—he had endured it completely.
Ye Chutang tied a knot and let out a long breath.
"There. It might hurt a bit now that it’s wrapped, but your legs have been injured for too long. The muscles have severely atrophied, and the wounds have repeatedly worsened. They’re in bad shape, so this was the only way."
Shen Yanchuan, who was standing nearby, only spoke after seeing she had finished. "This gauze... it seems a little different from the usual kind?"
Ye Chutang walked to the side, explaining as she washed her hands, "It’s not the kind used every day. I searched for a long time to find this material. It’s much softer and thicker, which is better for wound recovery."
’The lack of elastic bandages is certainly a pain, but I found something similar. It’ll have to do.’
Shen Yanchuan nodded in understanding and handed her a handkerchief.
Ye Chutang blinked, took it, and wiped the water from her hands.
’Treating a wound like this is nothing for me, really, but... having a personal assistant isn’t so bad, is it?’
The man nodded, his expression complex as he looked at Ye Chutang. "Thank you."
He never could have imagined that a single, casual exchange back then would end up changing the entire course of his life.
Ye Chutang smiled. "It’s a little early for thanks. Later, I’ll have someone custom-make a pair of prosthetic legs for you. In about two months, once your wounds have healed, it won’t be too late to start using them."
The man was stunned. "Prosthetic legs?"
’He had never even considered...’
Ye Chutang gave a light laugh and a nod.
"Yes. Then you’ll be able to go for a walk yourself. You won’t be able to go far, but you’ll be able to visit places nearby. What do you think?"