Chapter 197: A Surgery in Ancient Times
’Losing consciousness before the surgery would be extremely dangerous.’
"Father trusts you."
The pain in Xiang Minghou’s abdomen was excruciating. He gritted his teeth and forced a smile, but it was a struggle just to lift his hand.
"Young Miss, here are the things you needed," Du Yi said, rushing in.
"Of you three, I need one experienced person to assist me. The rest can leave," Ye Qianning said as she went to pick up a pair of scissors and sterilize them.
"Young Miss, I have some knowledge," Luo Xuan stepped forward.
"You, then. Move the table in front of the bed and sterilize the knives with wine," Ye Qianning ordered, walking to the bedside, scissors in hand.
The cloth around Xiang Minghou’s abdomen was stained a dark crimson. She cut away the surrounding fabric with the scissors and tore it off, revealing his tanned skin and the shockingly conspicuous dagger.
The dagger was lodged in an old, deep scar—one left by the horizontal slash of a longsword. Judging by the scar tissue, the original wound was just over a year old.
’Wounding the same spot again is even more dangerous. There’s no proper medical equipment in this era, so I have to be extremely careful with every step.’
Taking a fruit with analgesic properties from her space, Ye Qianning broke it into small pieces and placed them in his mouth. "Father, eat this. It will stop the pain."
Xiang Minghou was struggling for breath. When the cool object was placed in his mouth, he slowly chewed a few times.
Ye Qianning then took out a Two Qi Fruit. While the Two Qi Fruit wasn’t a top-grade healing item, for nourishment, it was second to none—far superior to any lingzhi mushroom or deer antler.
Xiang Minghou was still conscious. His eyes widened as he watched Ye Qianning produce another Two Qi Fruit—a treasure people would kill for—and he was so stunned that he broke into a violent coughing fit.
"Father, don’t move! Don’t move!" Ye Qianning pressed down on him.
"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH... Pangtuan..." Xiang Minghou was agitated, his hand lifting slightly to point at the Two Qi Fruit.
"I know what you want to ask and what you want to say, but none of that is important right now. We’ll talk after you’re better." Ye Qianning was struggling to hold him down. "Luo Xuan, hold him still! Don’t let him move at all."
Luo Xuan moved to hold Xiang Minghou down, his mind reeling with surprise. ’Where on earth did the Young Miss get a Two Qi Fruit from?’
Ye Qianning forcibly fed him the Two Qi Fruit. His sudden movement had shifted the dagger, and blood was now flowing nonstop. ’There are no highly effective topical hemostatics in this era.’
’I haven’t been here long enough to have prepared any.’
With the situation so urgent, she could only resort to using a tourniquet. She tightly wound a strip of cloth proximal to the wound—closer to his heart—to prevent a gush of blood when she pulled the dagger out.
Xiang Minghou’s face was now deathly pale, his breathing faint.
Ye Qianning pulled the dagger out and tossed it to the ground. ’It went deep... his internal organs are damaged. I’ll need to perform intestinal repair, resection, and anastomosis.’
’There are no surgical gloves in this era. The biggest risk in open surgery is internal infection. If he gets infected, it’ll be even more serious.’
After repeatedly sterilizing her hands, Ye Qianning waited another minute or two before undoing the tourniquet. She applied pressure to the wound until the bleeding gradually lessened. Only then did she dare to make an incision.
Her scalpel sliced through Xiang Minghou’s skin, exposing the crimson viscera beneath.
"Young Miss..." Luo Xuan had never witnessed such a scene. It was practically disembowelment.
The sight made him so dizzy he thought he would faint.
"Not a word," Ye Qianning said coldly.
Luo Xuan’s face was pale with fright. ’Can this really work?’
Though he was filled with doubt, he still had firm faith in the Young Miss. He had been by her side for many days now, and her every word and action inspired conviction.
Moreover, she was the General’s most beloved daughter. They all trusted her!