Free Web NovelChapter 217: Chapter 217: Contagion
"Auntie, you should go eat too. You haven’t been eating properly these past few days while taking care of Little Mo. I’ll feed him and be right there."
"Alright," Grandma Cui agreed readily. After a couple of bites, she couldn’t stop nodding.
Su Li was a good cook.
After dinner, Little Tang Mo, who had been restless all day, finally fell asleep.
Grandma Cui kept muttering, "Thank heavens." She added, "He hasn’t been sleeping soundly at night these last two days. He’s finally asleep."
She looked at Su Li, filled with regret. ’If only I had known, I would have asked Su Li to come sooner. If she had come earlier, maybe Little Tang Mo wouldn’t have had to suffer so much.’
"Auntie, why don’t you wash up and get some good sleep? You can sleep in the other bedroom. I’ll watch Little Mo tonight."
She urged Grandma Cui to rest well in the master bedroom while she took the temporary bed that Grandma Cui had been using in Little Tang Mo’s room. Exhausted both mentally and physically, Grandma Cui didn’t put up much of a protest.
"Alright, I’ll go to sleep then. There have been a lot of mosquitoes lately, Su Li. Don’t let them bite you."
"Okay."
After a long day, Su Li was tired too and fell asleep in no time.
But with Little Tang Mo on her mind, Su Li startled awake in the middle of the night.
She got up to check on Little Tang Mo. Just as she was feeling his forehead, Grandma Cui knocked and came in.
"How is he?"
"I think he’s running a bit of a fever again." Su Li moved her hand away and pressed her own forehead against his.
"A fever again?" Grandma Cui’s heart sank.
Su Li straightened up. "Yes."
Little Tang Mo’s fever had indeed returned.
"Why does it keep coming back?" Su Li reached out and felt Little Tang Mo’s back. It was soaked with cold sweat.
"Should we go get the doctor to take a look?" Grandma Cui asked.
"If he doesn’t get better soon, we’ll have to," Su Li had just finished speaking when she heard a faint commotion outside.
"What’s going on out there?" Grandma Cui heard it too.
"I don’t know." Su Li was too preoccupied to pay attention.
"Little Mo, wake up..." She woke Little Tang Mo, gave him some water, and carefully changed his clothes and wiped him down with alcohol. As she bustled about, the noise outside grew louder.
"I don’t know what’s happening outside, but I think I hear crying," Grandma Cui said to Su Li. "I’ll go take a look."
Grandma Cui returned a moment later, her face pale.
"Someone’s vomiting blood! A child outside is vomiting blood, can’t catch his breath, and his face is turning purple... His mother is crying. The doctor and Nurse Yang are both there."
Su Li frowned at the news. "Why would he be vomiting blood? What was he sick with before?"
"It was just a fever and a headache. How could this happen so suddenly...?" Grandma Cui’s face was white, and she was starting to panic.
"Most people in the family compound have been woken up. They’re all gathered around watching. So many people have been sick lately; everyone’s on edge."
Hearing this, Su Li felt something was wrong. "Auntie, I’m going out to see. Could you watch Little Mo for a minute?"
"Okay, you go. But don’t get too close. The sight of the blood is terrifying."
Su Li agreed and went out.
Indeed, nearly everyone in the family compound had been woken up. They were gathered not far from the entrance, and others, like Su Li, were just coming out and hurrying over.
As she walked, Su Li heard people all around her discussing the symptoms: fever, body aches, headaches, pain behind the eyes. Some mentioned diarrhea, too.
Frowning, Su Li hurried to the entrance.
"He needs to be taken to the hospital. There’s nothing I can do in a situation like this..." Amid the doctor’s explanation and the mother’s sobs, Su Li looked at the child who had vomited blood.
After a chaotic scene, the child was finally driven away, and the crowd slowly began to disperse.
"Doctor, please, you have to look at my child! His fever is back, and he’s suddenly broken out in a red rash..."
The doctor was pulled away by another worried mother. Su Li dispersed with the rest of the crowd. Just as she was about to open her door, Grandma Cui rushed out, her face etched with anxiety.
"Su Li, Momo’s fever shot up again! He’s burning up! You go in and check on him, I’ll get the doctor."
"Okay," Su Li hurriedly agreed and went inside.
"Mama... I feel sick..." Little Tang Mo’s whole body was burning, and even his breath was hot.
Su Li quickly resorted to her usual method, but as she carefully wiped his body with alcohol, she suddenly noticed red spots on his skin.
Su Li took a closer look. A thought suddenly flashed through her mind, and her expression changed.
"Little Mo, you said your whole body ached before. What kind of ache is it?"
"It’s like... my bones hurt..."
Su Li’s face paled slightly.
As Su Li’s mind reeled, Yang Xiangyun arrived.
The doctor was busy, so Nurse Yang Xiangyun had come to check on them first.
Yang Xiangyun frowned as she assessed Little Tang Mo’s condition. "We can’t let this fever continue. We need to give him a fever reducer. You still have the one from before, right?"
"Yes, yes." Hearing this, Grandma Cui quickly poured some water and was about to give the medicine to the boy, but Su Li stopped her.
"No, he can’t take that."
Both Yang Xiangyun and Grandma Cui looked at Su Li, confused. "Why not?"
Su Li opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
’Why? Because this might not be a common cold...’
Testing Yang Xiangyun’s patience, Su Li barraged her with several questions, one after another, all about the other patients’ conditions.
"So you’re saying it’s not just in the family compound, but many people in town are sick too?"
Yang Xiangyun sighed in exasperation. "Yes. But you should really give Momo the fever reducer first. We can’t delay."
Su Li shook her head. "He can’t take any more fever reducers."
She took a deep breath. "Nurse Yang, I’ll be honest with you. I suspect this isn’t a common cold. It’s a severe flu-like illness, and it’s contagious..."
"A contagious disease?" Yang Xiangyun frowned.
"The doctor will have to make the final diagnosis, of course, but to me, it looks like Dengue fever. It’s infectious and contagious, but as you know, it’s a bit different from typical contagious diseases."
"The best course of action is early detection, early isolation, and early on-site treatment. Otherwise, it could be life-threatening."
"I have to take care of Little Mo right now, so I can’t leave. Could you please convey my thoughts to the doctor and ask him to take a serious look at this?"
A flicker of impatience finally appeared in Yang Xiangyun’s eyes.
"Have you studied medicine before?"
Su Li shook her head. "No, but I’m familiar with the relevant knowledge. I’ve read detailed materials on it. My judgment shouldn’t be wrong."
Yang Xiangyun sighed. "Since you haven’t studied medicine, it’s better to be a little more cautious and not make such claims so casually." freёweɓnovel.com
’Dengue what? I’ve never even heard of it!’
Just as Yang Xiangyun was speaking, she heard someone outside calling for her. She reluctantly fell silent. "I have to go. Please take good care of Momo. As for Doctor Yang, I’ll pass on your message."
"But I can tell you in advance, Doctor Yang... is very experienced. If there was anything unusual, he would have noticed."
With that, Yang Xiangyun hurried away.
"Thank you for your trouble!" Su Li called after her retreating figure.
Yang Xiangyun looked back. "Don’t mention it. You should just focus on taking good care of Momo."
After she left, Su Li got back to taking care of Little Tang Mo. Grandma Cui was very uneasy.
"Su Li, that deng-something fever you mentioned... is it really a contagious disease? Is it serious?"
Su Li sighed and nodded. "I said Dengue fever. Dengue fever... this illness is rather peculiar."
There’s a phrase used to describe this illness: all posturing and pretense.
