Chapter 395: Harm to Others and Oneself (1)
Chapter 395: Harm to Others and Oneself (1)
The dozen or so people had varying degrees of injuries. Even the least injured had suffered a claw swipe from the tiger, while the most severely injured, Wang Dali, had deep wounds on his arm and leg from the tiger's close-range bites, with injuries so severe that bones were visible. Without meticulous treatment, he could be at risk of losing the use of his limbs.
Fortunately for Wang Dali and the others, the doctor they managed to summon was quite skilled. He cleaned their wounds, applied specially prepared medicinal salves, and prescribed appropriate remedies. The doctor assured them that as long as they followed his instructions for applying and taking the medicine, even Wang Dali, the most seriously injured, could recover fully in two to three months.
This should have been good news. A kind-hearted person, narrowly escaping the jaws of a tiger and having the chance for a full recovery, would likely have been grateful and offered thanks to their ancestors for protection. However, Wang Dali and his group had gone into the mountains with the intent to take advantage of others. Now, they had returned empty-handed, bearing injuries, and faced with the prospect of spending a large sum of money on medical treatment. Their hearts were filled with resentment.
So, when the doctor requested payment for his services and medicine, these villagers turned hostile, accusing him of lacking medical ethics and intentionally overcharging them to extort their money.
The doctor was livid. He had braved the early morning snow to come to this remote village out of compassion. Moreover, the salves he used contained several precious ingredients, making them difficult to prepare. He hadn't overcharged them at all. Being falsely accused of lacking medical ethics and extorting money was too much, even for someone with his patience.
When the villagers refused to pay and hurled increasingly harsh accusations, the doctor and his apprentice couldn't argue against them and were left fuming. In the end, the doctor, thoroughly exasperated, packed up his medicine chest and stormed out of Liuyang Village, considering himself unlucky to have encountered such ungrateful people.
The villagers' houses were closely packed together, and news spread quickly. It wasn't long before everyone in Liuyang Village knew about Wang Dali and his group's refusal to pay for their medical treatment and their verbal abuse of the doctor. However, no one knew why they had ventured into the mountains late at night, ultimately encountering a tiger.
Mo Yan was astonished at the shamelessness of Wang Dali and his group. Such selfish and incompetent people, scheming against others, ultimately harmed themselves. Once Yang Bao, the village head, decided on a punishment for their deceit against her family, they would find it difficult to continue living in Liuyang Village.
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This novel is translated by the Eternal Novel Hits translators. Please read it at https://eternalnovelhits.blogspot.com
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Having avoided paying a few hundred coins for the doctor's services, Wang Dali and his group felt triumphant, thinking they had gotten a great deal. However, their joy was short-lived. Just two days later, they were in no mood to celebrate. Wang Dali's wife and others went to the city to find another doctor for follow-up treatment, but no doctors were willing to come to Liuyang Village when they heard about the tiger attack.
It turned out that the previous doctor, still aggrieved, had shared his experience with several trusted colleagues, advising them to demand payment upfront if called to Liuyang Village to avoid being cheated. These doctors, having heard the whole story, were incensed. They had often treated impoverished patients who couldn't immediately pay for their medicine. Most of these patients expressed their gratitude and promised to pay later when they had the money.
When the families were genuinely struggling, the doctors typically charged only for the medicine and waived their consultation fees, viewing it as a charitable act. But the mistreatment their colleague had endured after braving the snow made them determined not to treat anyone from Liuyang Village without upfront payment.
The story spread quickly among the city's medical community. Within a day or two, most doctors in the city knew about the villagers from Liuyang Village who had reneged on their payment. Consequently, when Wang Dali's wife and her companions tried to find a doctor, no amount of pleading or arguing could persuade any doctor to come to their aid.
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