"What’s going on with Mayor Ji Xiang?"
The three doctors were naturally anxious when they heard that many people in the village were sick.
Mayor Ji Xiang sighed.
"Just three days ago, for some unknown reason, a disease suddenly spread through the village. It started with vomiting and diarrhea, and later progressed to high fevers and as. At first, it was only one household experiencing these symptoms, and we thought it was just food-related.
In our village, with vomiting and diarrhea, families usually just endure it at home, rest for a couple of days, and recover.
But by yesterday, suddenly, many households in the village started having these symptoms of vomiting, diarrhea, and high fevers. The father from that initial household was the first to fall ill, and now he’s already gone."
Mayor Ji Xiang’s words immediately put Bai Xiao and the others on alert.
The symptoms didn’t sound very serious, but the more they listened, the more it seemed like an epidemic.
If this disease really spreads, it would be very troublesome.
"Mayor, we need to do two things right now. First, take us to see the patients, including the one who first died since he hasn’t been buried yet according to what you said. Second, immediately lock down the entire village so no one can leave or enter. Make sure to inspect each household to see who has fallen ill. Everyone affected must be reported."
Bai Xiao and Dr. Zhang instinctively realized something was quite wrong.
Mayor Ji Xiang was startled.
"What’s going on? Dr. Bai, Dr. Zhang, is it possible this is some serious illness?"
Bai Xiao and Dr. Zhang exchanged a glance, seeing in each other’s eyes that before anything was confirmed, they must calm the munity. If it indeed turned out to be an epidemic, the villagers might try to flee to relatives or friends outside, leading to more deaths.
Both of them shook their heads firmly.
Even though they felt guilty, they knew this matter could be very serious.
"What kind of illness? We have to see the patients to know, but to be safe, we must take precautionary measures. If this disease is contagious, it could spread to other villages."
Mayor Ji Xiang nodded.
"Alright, I’ll immediately gather the village officials, who are all party members, to take quick action. Let’s go; I’ll first take you to see the patients."
Bai Xiao and the others grabbed their medical kits, with Bai Xiao repeatedly reminding Xiaoyu and Dr. Zhang to wear masks.
No one knew whether it was contagious or how it transmitted, but just to be safe, the doctors had to ensure protection against airborne transmission.
With their medical kits, they followed the village chief, treading through uneven paths, to the household where the disease first appeared.
Because it was dark and they were unfamiliar with the path, it wasn’t until they arrived outside the house that they heard sounds of low sobbing inside.
"Mom, mom, what’s wrong? Dad is gone, if you fall too, our family is finished. How am I supposed to take care of little brother and sister alone?"
Mayor Ji Xiang, upon hearing this, quickly pushed open the door.
Calling it a door was a stretch; the wooden board was already letting wind pass through, with a hole in one place.
Bai Xiao, Dr. Zhang, and Xiaoyu stepped into the yard.
Another stilted house.
In the faint light inside the house, there were low cries of children.
"Dogwa, what’s wrong with your mom?"
They followed Mayor Ji Xiang inside.
The house wasn’t spacious.
In the room they entered, three children were holding each other, crying bitterly. On a bamboo bed in front of them lay a woman burning with fever, her face flushed, lying motionless with her eyes closed.
Dr. Zhang hurried over to examine her.
Forty-one degrees?
A fever of such intensity was something they hadn’t even imagined.
Bai Xiao had already checked her over.
If her special ability couldn’t detect anything, then no one else would be able to.
Sure enough, she discovered a virus in the woman’s body.
When her special ability encountered this virus, it encountered resistance, similar to the toxic encounter with the foreign Head of State’s delegation before. Although her special ability could usually resolve ailments easily, it could only surround this resistant virus without being able to eliminate it immediately.
Now wasn’t the time for her to act.
Dr. Zhang swiftly used a swab to scrape some saliva from the woman’s tongue and drew blood with a syringe for testing.
They were secretly grateful they had brought some equipment and instruments, or they would have been pletely blind to what was going on.
"Uncle Village Chief, please save my mom. She suddenly collapsed just like dad, with vomiting and diarrhea, and now she’s in a fevered a. Is she going to go like dad?" The oldest boy looked only about thirteen or fourteen years old.
His eyes were swollen from crying, and the two children in his arms—one boy clearly showing signs of developmental delay, biting his finger and staring blankly at his mother on the sickbed without crying or laughing.
The other, a younger girl, was huddled in her brother’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
Mayor Ji Xiang looked at Dr. Zhang and Dr. Bai, "Dr. Zhang, Dr. Bai, what’s really going on?"
Dr. Zhang remained silent; based on the symptoms, it appeared to be merely mon vomiting, diarrhea, and high fever. These symptoms were not unlike those of dysentery and similar diseases.’
Being a doctor, without concrete data, he couldn’t determine what was going on.
Bai Xiao, however, had a grave expression, suspecting that even if Dr. Zhang ran tests, the result might be the same as hers.
"Mayor, regardless, the current situation can’t allow the kids and their mother to stay together. If this disease is contagious, the children could be at serious risk."
Just as she finished speaking, the little girl who had been weeping suddenly shut her eyes and collapsed to the ground.
The brother hurriedly picked up his sister, but Bai Xiao took the little girl from him.
Without needing to say much; with a simple pulse check, she knew the virus in the little girl and the mother was the same.
"Another one passed out?"
Mayor Ji Xiang was genuinely worried now.
"Village Chief, the situation is really urgent. Think about if there’s a place in the village specifically for isolating these patients. This disease is infectious; whether it’s through the air or other means hasn’t been validated, but it truly is contagious.
To protect the other villagers, all these individuals must now be isolated."
Bai Xiao couldn’t keep this hidden; since Mayor Ji Xiang was a party member, he should understand the gravity of this situation.
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