Chapter 374 - 250: Song in the Rain

Teacher Shen's treatment method didn't require medicine, just a few words.

'Using conversation as a form of treatment... that's just fucking talk therapy.'

Regardless, Jiang He pulled Shen Yu into a tight hug.

Even if a deluge was raging outside, his family's safety was more important than anything else.

The two of them held each other for a moment, recharging.

Teacher Shen said, "Why don't you go take a shower? After you're done, I'll give you a massage and prepare a foot bath for you. You've worked hard today, Dr. Xiaojiang."

"Hmm? Why 'Dr. Xiaojiang' now? Where does the 'little' part come in?"

The unexpected dirty joke made Teacher Shen blush. She playfully punched Jiang He and said, "It's a term of endearment! Your mind is really in the gutter."

Jiang He scratched his head. "I don't like it. Pick another one."

With a mix of exasperation and affection, Teacher Shen said, "You're Dr. Da Jiang, you're Dr. Changjiang, how about that?"

The "Changjiang" that came from his wife's lips clearly didn't carry the same meaning as the one he was thinking of.

Jiang He grinned. "Now that's more like it. I'm going to take a shower."

With that, he quickly took a shower and came out.

'I should probably organize my notes from the press conference later,' Jiang He thought.

But he found Shen Yu waiting anxiously for him at the bathroom door.

Jiang He froze. "What's wrong?"

Shen Yu's voice was filled with worry. "Jiang He, about that herbal foot soak... you asked where I got it, right?"

Jiang He replied, "Uh, yeah. I figured a hotel in a foreign country wouldn't have something like that..."

"They don't, usually. While you were at the conference, I called Sister Su Zhi to see if she could get me an herbal foot soak. She asked an elderly traditional Chinese medicine doctor from the Maryland Chinese community, Grandmaster Chen, to bring one over. The old gentleman runs several TCM clinics in Maryland and is highly respected in the local Chinese community. When he heard that a top medical expert from China was visiting, he insisted on delivering the herbal packet to the hotel himself."

As she spoke, Shen Yu's eyes started to redden.

"Sister Su Zhi just messaged me. She said Grandmaster Chen came by again a little while ago with an even better herbal packet. He got caught in the worsening blizzard and is now trapped in the hotel. During the chain-reaction crash outside, a huge number of injured people flooded the lobby. Grandmaster Chen is old, and he was knocked over in the chaos. Sister Su Zhi said... no one in the lobby is helping him..."

Jiang He listened in silence.

By 2008, the Chinese community in Maryland was already well-established.

A large number of Chinese scholars and business owners had congregated near Johns Hopkins University.

Far from home, the older generation of overseas Chinese still held deep affection for their motherland.

Delivering an herbal foot soak in a snowstorm.

It wasn't worth much money, but the gesture was packed with goodwill.

Jiang He hadn't originally planned on getting involved in the accident.

But now that Teacher Shen was safe and a fellow countryman was in trouble, there was no reason not to go down and take a look.

Jiang He gently ruffled Shen Yu's hair. "You wait for me here at the hotel. I'm going downstairs to check things out."

Shen Yu said, "I want to go with you..."

Jiang He refused. "You're not going. Just stay here and be good. Listen to me."

Shen Yu pouted, looking a little hurt, but she obediently stayed put.

"Okay... I'll wait for you to come back."

...

...

「The first-floor lobby.」

The situation was even more dire than what Jiang He had seen earlier.

Medical supplies on-site were critically scarce; they could only perform the most basic emergency procedures.

And yet, most of the injured people brought here were in serious condition.

It was a paradox...

The injured should have been triaged according to the severity of their condition, but that was clearly not what was happening.

Wails of agony echoed from all sides.

The first person Jiang He spotted in the crowd was Wen Xuyang. Standing beside him was Su Zhi.

Su Zhi hurried over, speaking quickly. "Dr. Jiang, the Maryland Department of Health has issued a statement. According to local law, any emergency medical aid you provide here is protected. You don't need to worry about licensing issues."

Jiang He didn't break his stride, replying with a single word: "Good."

Beside them, Wen Xuyang surveyed the chaotic scene and said through gritted teeth, "Jiang He, what's the plan? I'll follow your lead!"

Jiang He nodded and, guided by Su Zhi, found an elderly man dressed in a dark gray Tang suit.

Grandmaster Chen was curled up in agony, his hands clutching his upper-right abdomen as his body spasmed.

Jiang He's eyes narrowed. Even from several paces away, he could see a faint yellow tinge at the edge of the old man's sclera.

'Yellowing of the sclera means his biliary obstruction must have shown precursor symptoms at least two days ago.'

'The cold from today's extreme weather and the stress from the fall were just the last straws that broke the camel's back.'

Just as Jiang He was about to step forward, Carter beat him to it, arriving at Grandmaster Chen's side.

The star surgeon looked thoroughly annoyed.

'To be honest, he didn't want to be here at all.'

'But he couldn't just leave. There were too many excellent doctors around.'

'In a situation like this, he absolutely couldn't be seen leaving.'

'He had to at least pretend to be responsible, or his reputation would be toast.'

Carter walked over to Grandmaster Chen and glanced down at him condescendingly.

The old man was clutching his abdomen, able only to moan in pain.

Carter didn't even perform a basic palpation exam, making a judgment based solely on his "clinical experience."

"It's probably just painful spasms from abdominal trauma. He's being too loud and it's affecting the other patients' morale. Get two vials of morphine from the first-aid kit and give him an IV push! Just get him to shut up and be quiet for now. We'll do a CT scan once the roads are clear and the ambulances can get through!"

The nurse immediately nodded, opened the first-aid kit, and drew the medication into a syringe.

After expelling the air from the barrel, she took the syringe, knelt, and took hold of Grandmaster Chen's arm.

The drug in the syringe was morphine.

Anyone with medical training would know exactly what that was.

In 2008, the United States was in the throes of the burgeoning opioid crisis.