"Aah," Gu Jiu let out a sound, walking over with difficulty and extending her small hand to Mrs. Zhang.
Mrs. Zhang's hand was large and rough, covered in calluses, but she held Gu Jiu's hand steadily, making Gu Jiu feel much more comfortable, no longer having to stumble along.
After walking for a long while, trees gradually became more numerous as they approached the edge of the old forest.
Everyone was a bit apprehensive about the old forest, mainly due to the terrifying tales passed down from the elders—things like mountain goblins, man-eating trees, wolves, insects, tigers, and leopards. Just listening to those stories was enough to make one's legs go weak.
It was only mid-afternoon, but no one wanted to go any further. The man-eating old forest could wait, they would enter it later when they had to.
The Oldest Xie decided to let everyone stop and prepare for entering the forest, planning to continue the next day at dawn.
They found a flat area and sat down to rest.
Having just begun their escape, the villagers still had some food remaining, but their water supply was almost exhausted. Some had even thrown away their water during the flood, borrowing from others' supplies that morning.
The Oldest Xie sent Xie Datong, Second Xie, and two burly men from the village to search for a water source nearby.
Xie Datong had experience as an armed escort, so camping outdoors and finding water sources while avoiding dangerous areas to evade bandits were all skills he had learned for wilderness survival.
Gu Jiu took the opportunity during the break to take Mrs. Gao's pulse.
As soon as she placed her three fingers on Mrs. Gao's wrist, a voice suddenly rang in her head, "Report to the host, your system has completed its upgrade and is now ready for use."
Accompanied by the mechanical female voice, a vast space appeared in her mind, with mountains and water.
Gu Jiu was dumbfounded—her Traditional Chinese Medicine system had come with her! The TCM system was a small chip she had used to study TCM in her previous life, which could be embedded in specific objects and carried with her. Gu Jiu had worn it as a ring. But how did the system follow her through soul transmigration?
She searched her body but couldn't find the ring from her previous life.
In her former world with advanced technology but frequent wars, people had no stable learning environment, so learning systems were invented for various fields of knowledge to allow studying anytime, anywhere.
Gu Jiu had first studied surgical techniques, then later acquired a TCM system and studied it for a year before unexpectedly transmigrating here.
The key issue was—the system had actually transmigrated with her!
No, the key issue was—what was that space?
Why did it seem so familiar?
Why was it so similar to the base the army had just found before her transmigration?
And since when could the system upgrade itself autonomously? And come with a space, no less? It was simply too bizarre!
Perhaps Gu Jiu's expression was too astonished, as Mrs. Xu urgently asked, "What's wrong? Is there an issue with Mother's pulse?"
Mrs. Gao patted her hand reassuringly, "It's nothing, I know my own body. I've lived this long, with all my children grown up and even grandchildren now. I have no regrets. Even if my pulse doesn't look good, it doesn't matter."
"Ah? No, no, no." Gu Jiu came back to her senses and hurriedly said, "It's not that, I just suddenly thought of something else."
She busied herself taking Mrs. Gao's pulse again, putting the system matter aside for the moment.
Mrs. Gao's pulse was intermittent, weak and feeble, hollow with firm pressing.
Gu Jiu communicated with the system through her mind, "It's a deficient pulse, right?"
The system's mechanical voice gave a brief reply, "Yes."
Gu Jiu then examined Mrs. Gao's appearance. Her hair was dry and withered, her complexion pale and sallow, her lips white and peeling.
"Does Mother often feel fatigued, sweat easily, have palpitations and insomnia, and sometimes feel dizzy?" Gu Jiu asked, removing her fingers from Mrs. Gao's wrist.
Mrs. Gao was a bit surprised. "Yes, our Gu Jiu is quite perceptive."
"Did Mother experience severe bleeding during a difficult childbirth? The blood loss led to blood deficiency, which in turn led to Qi deficiency. With Qi deficiency prolonged, it was unable to produce new blood. Combined with a weak spleen and stomach, it accumulated over time, resulting in a chronic wasting deficiency that only worsened."
Mrs. Xu stood by in astonishment, her mouth agape. "You're truly gifted. Mother did have difficult childbirths with the fourth and fifth children. The fourth was sickly and had to stay at the Taikang Hall of the renowned physician in Jingzhou City for two months after birth before we could bring him home. The sixth child's birth was also difficult."
"Two back-to-back difficult pregnancies definitely took a toll on Mother's body. We've had prescriptions filled by doctors in town over the years, but nothing really helped. Gu Jiu, do you have a solution? Mother's illness has been a constant worry for our entire family, with her health being so poor."
Gu Jiu pondered. The condition itself wasn't difficult to treat, but obtaining the necessary medicinal ingredients would be challenging at this time. It was a pity that acupuncture couldn't be used for dual deficiencies of Qi and Blood, otherwise she could have provided some relief through needling first.
"It can be treated. Once we're out of the old forest, I'll write a prescription. We can find a pharmacy to gather the herbs and after taking the medicine for about half a month, her condition should improve. Then, with proper nutrition and rest, the full recovery process can begin."
Mrs. Gao and Mrs. Xu both found Gu Jiu's serious demeanor very trustworthy, a stark contrast from her usual mischievous self. Her confidence was inexplicably convincing.
The system's mechanical voice sounded in her mind again, "Host, you didn't examine the pulse carefully enough. There are still issues you missed."
Gu Jiu was taken aback. The system's scans wouldn't be wrong. She extended her hand, placing three fingers back on Mrs. Gao's wrist.
Mrs. Gao and Mrs. Xu both looked puzzled, with Mrs. Gao asking, "What's the matter? Is there something wrong?"
Mrs. Xu also appeared concerned, gazing at Gu Jiu.
Gu Jiu shook her head and closed her eyes, carefully distinguishing the qualities of Mrs. Gao's pulse.
It was intermittent, weak, and feeble—that much was certain about the deficient pulse. But no, as Gu Jiu applied slightly more pressure with her three fingers, the pulse felt faint, feeble, and utterly arrhythmic, alternating between fast and slow, heavy and light, strained and obstructed.
Gu Jiu withdrew her hand and communicated with the system through her mind, "Underneath the deficient pulse, there's also a wiry quality. Does that indicate stagnation of Qi and Blood?"
The system responded, "Yes."
"Oh, it's actually caused by stagnated Qi and Blood resulting in a uterine fibroid!"
Traditional Chinese Medicine doesn't have a term for "uterine fibroid"—stagnated Qi and Blood is the cause, while the fibroid is the result.
Gu Jiu suddenly understood. "The root cause of the fibroid is obstructed Liver Qi. The Liver governs the free flow of Qi, so when Liver Qi stagnates, Qi and Blood become impeded. With Qi and Blood unable to circulate properly, it gives rise to the fibroid mass. That's why, to truly cure it, we must first resolve the stagnant Liver Qi."
The system dispassionately replied, "Correct."
Having received the system's confirmation, Gu Jiu went over the treatment plan in her mind, knowing how to proceed with the adjustments and which herbs to use.
But for now, it was a case of the skilled housewife having no rice to cook with—she lacked everything needed and could only begin treatment once they were out of the forest.
She advised Mrs. Gao, "There's a growth in your abdomen, Mother, but don't worry, it can be treated. As long as you don't experience any external impacts or collisions, it will be fine."
Mrs. Xu gave Gu Jiu an exasperated look, frantically making eye signals. This girl was far too blunt—couldn't she be more tactful when informing a patient of their condition?
Gu Jiu noticed Mrs. Xu's signals but appeared perplexed. "What's wrong, Second Auntie? Oh, don't worry. This condition isn't that difficult to treat. Mother's fibroid must have been there for years. Although it's rather delicate, look, you've had it for so long and nothing happened, right? Rest assured, as long as there's no compression or impacts, it won't cause any immediate problems. Once we're out of the old forest, I can treat it."
Gu Jiu was more skilled at surgical procedures for uterine fibroids, but without anti-inflammatory medications or surgical instruments, she could only use Traditional Chinese Medicine therapies. Moreover, since uterine fibroids were often caused by stagnant Liver Qi, simply removing the fibroid surgically without addressing the root cause would likely lead to recurrence.
Mrs. Xu grew even more concerned. Perhaps it would have been better if Gu Jiu hadn't explained at all.
