Me! A high-ranking official!

Although he didn't understand traditional Chinese medicine, he had worked in the government office for five years and had written a lot of documents, so he knew what these ancient disease names referred to.

Venereal poisoning refers to sexually transmitted diseases, while syphilis and AIDS are collective terms in traditional Chinese medicine for sexually transmitted diseases.

It can be cured!

Both can be cured!

His hands began to tremble, and his heart pounded as if it were about to jump out of his throat.

This is exactly what he wanted!

He raised his hand, his finger hovering over the "Rejuvenation Pill" option, eager to click it immediately.

But he held back.

He remembered the poem clearly: if you borrow something, you have to return double the amount. He needed to check how much he had to return.

He gently tapped the "Rejuvenation Pill" with his finger.

The interface changed, and a larger window popped up.

Pill Name: Rejuvenating Pill

Efficacy: It can cure hundreds of diseases such as venereal diseases, boils, syphilis, venereal diseases, tuberculosis, bloating, diabetes, and other serious illnesses. Within twelve hours after taking it, the medicinal power will gradually enter the meridians, cleansing the evil toxins from the five internal organs. After recovery, no disease will occur, and the body will be stronger than before.

Loan period: seven days.

Compensation: Twenty million coins.

Zhao Jianguo looked at the string of numbers and counted them once.

One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million, ten million.

Twenty million.

He counted three times to make sure he hadn't miscounted.

Twenty million.

He felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him from head to toe, and the excitement he had just felt vanished instantly.

Twenty million.

How will he repay it?

He was just a suspended junior staff member with only a little over a hundred yuan on him. He didn't even have enough money to stay in a hotel. Where was he supposed to get 20 million?

Even if he sells the house, he'll only get a maximum of 700,000, which is still a long way from 20 million.

But what will happen to his illness if he doesn't take this medicine?

He'd done his research: AIDS requires lifelong medication, and while syphilis is treatable, it can't be ignored. He's broke, lost his job, and even food is a problem. How can he afford treatment?

I borrowed it, but I can't repay it.

If you don't lend it, you're doomed.

He slumped in his chair, his eyes fixed on the line at the bottom of the bowl that read "Compensation: Twenty Million Coins," his mind blank.

Just then, my phone rang.

The sudden ringing startled him, and his hand trembled, almost dropping the small bowl. He instinctively said "Save," and the small bowl instantly disappeared, returning to his body.

He picked up his phone and saw the caller ID: Liu Tao.

His high school classmate, a brother he grew up with since childhood.

He took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and answered the phone.

"Feed".

"Jianguo!" Liu Tao's urgent voice came from the other end of the phone. "Where are you? I just heard about what happened to you!"

Zhao Jianguo gave a wry smile: "You've heard about it?"

"Nonsense! It's all over the county!" Liu Tao's voice was urgent and angry. "What the hell happened? How could you get that kind of disease? I don't believe it! Don't I know who you are? Did someone scam you?"

Zhao Jianguo was silent for a few seconds before speaking.

He recounted the whole story from beginning to end, from arguing with Xu Qingqing last night, to discovering the medical report this morning, to catching Xu Qingqing cheating on him when he got home, to Cao Wenting wanting him to leave with nothing, to him reporting Cao Wenting.

Everything else was mentioned except for the treasure bowl.

Liu Tao was furious when he heard this on the other end of the phone, and a string of profanities came flying out.

"Damn it! That bitch Xu Qingqing! I've disliked her for ages! I told you when you got married that she was no good, but you wouldn't believe me! And that old hag Cao Wenting, damn it, she embezzled so much money and still pretended to be a decent person! Serves her right! Serves her right to be reported!"

After scolding him, Liu Tao's voice turned serious: "Jianguo, with this illness, what about your parents...?"

"Don't tell them yet," he said immediately. "My dad isn't in good health, and my mom is easily frightened. If they find out, they'll be worried sick. Please keep it a secret for me, as long as you can."

"Okay, I understand." Liu Tao agreed readily. "So what are you going to do next? This illness needs to be treated; we can't delay."

"I know," Zhao Jianguo sighed. "But the problem is, I have no money. My salary card is in Xu Qingqing's hands, and I only have a little over a hundred yuan on me."

"Don't worry about the money!" Liu Tao immediately said, "I have some here, take it and use it first, is 50,000 enough? If not, I'll think of something else."

He felt a warmth in his heart.

Liu Tao opened a small supermarket in the county town. Business was so-so, and he only earned tens of thousands of yuan a year. He also had a wife and children to support, so he wasn't well off. He spent 50,000 yuan at a time, but he remembered this kindness in his heart.

"No need," he refused. "Where are you now? Opening your shop, right? Don't let this interfere with your business."

"I've come to see you!" Liu Tao said. "Where are you? I'm coming right now."

"Don't come." He hurriedly stopped him: "Tao, I'm serious. My illness is contagious. Although it won't spread through daily contact, what if it does? I don't want to see anyone right now, so don't come either."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Liu Tao cursed. "We grew up together, how could I possibly look down on you?"

"I know you don't look down on me." Zhao Jianguo smiled, but his laughter was tinged with bitterness. "But I don't want to drag anyone down with me. Listen to me, don't come."

Liu Tao was silent for a few seconds on the other end of the phone, then let out a heavy sigh.

"Fine, I won't go, but remember this: if you need money, just ask. Don't try to tough it out."

"understood."

After hanging up the phone, Zhao Jianguo threw his phone on the table, covered his face with his hands, and rubbed it vigorously.

What should I do?

To lend or not to lend?

Where is he going to get 20 million?

He was struggling with this when a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

When I was binding the Treasure Basin, it prompted me that there were more than 370,000 people in Linshui County today, and I could get more than 370,000 coins.

What about that money?

He hurriedly picked up his phone, opened online banking, and checked all the bank cards he had linked.

My salary card has zero balance.

Another savings card that is not usually used has a zero balance.

Credit card, limit of 5,000, available credit of 3,800.

No.

None at all.

Was the treasure bowl deceiving him?

He frowned and summoned the small bowl again.

This time, after he entered the treasure basin, the interface was a little different from before.

There was a poem just now, followed by six categories. Now the poem is gone, and the category labels have shrunk to the edge of the bowl, becoming six small characters arranged in a circle. In the very center of the bowl, eight large characters have taken their place, floating upright.

They take whatever they want, regardless of life or death.

The bottom left corner shows the string of numbers from before: 373242.

In the bottom right corner, four small ancient seal characters appear: "Sumeru Mustard Seed!"

A thought struck him.

He had heard the phrase "Sumeru mustard seed" before; it was a Buddhist saying that meant to contain a mountain within a mustard seed, describing an incredible space.

Could it be that the 370,000 coins are in here?

He tried to focus his attention on the four characters "Sumeru mustard seed".

A flash of light appeared at the bottom of the bowl, and the interface changed.

It turned into squares, five in a row and countless in a row, arranged neatly like an unfolded scroll. In the first square, there was a pattern of stacks of silver coins.

A thought struck him, and he subconsciously focused his attention on the pattern.

The next second, a stack of money appeared out of thin air on the table.

The bright red 100-yuan bills, stacked in neat rows of ten thousand yuan each, totaled thirty-seven stacks, with a small stack of change next to them, amounting to about two thousand yuan.

Adding them all up, it amounts to 373,242.

Not a penny more, not a penny less.

370,000.

He had never seen so much cash laid out in front of him in his entire life.

He worked in the government office for five years, earning a monthly salary of over 5,000 yuan. Even if he didn't eat or drink, he would only earn 60,000 yuan a year. 370,000 yuan would be enough for him to earn for six years.

He couldn't resist picking up a wad of cash and flipping through it.

Real money.

It's not counterfeit money, not ghost money, it's a genuine 100-yuan bill. The paper is crisp, the security thread is clear, and it has the unique rough feel of a new bill.

He picked up the thirty-seven stacks of money one by one and examined them. Each stack was brand new, without even a crease.

After looking at it, he stacked the money back up and stared at it, his mind starting to calculate again.

370,000 a day.

Today is the first day, there are still six days left. Six days, 370,000 per day, that's only a little over two million in total.

We are still more than 17 million short of 20 million.

Not even close.

He put the money back into the Sumeru Mustard Seed, leaned back in his chair, stared at the eight large characters at the bottom of the bowl: "Take whatever you want, life or death is irrelevant," and his brows furrowed into a knot.

I borrowed it, but I can't repay it.

If you don't lend it, you're doomed.

Is there any other way?

He stared at the line at the bottom of the bowl that read "Compensation: Twenty Million Coins," his finger hovering in mid-air, hesitant to tap it.

I definitely need to borrow.

Although this disease won't kill you immediately, having it on your body is like carrying a time bomb. Who knows when it will explode? Besides, syphilis can't be delayed. If it's left untreated, it will spread all over your body, making your nose and face rot. Just thinking about it gives me the creeps.

But how to borrow and when to borrow are things that need to be carefully considered.

If the Treasure Bowl gives him 370,000 a day, that's about 2.6 million in seven days. To save 20 million, it would take him almost two months.

The problem is that the loan term is only seven days.

If he fails to repay the debt within seven days, the treasure bowl will randomly take things from him.

Taking money is fine; at worst, you can give it all the money in your Sumeru Mustard Seed. But if the money isn't enough, the Treasure Bowl will take away its arms and legs, its lifespan, its memories and emotions, and even its name.

He couldn't afford to gamble on these.

Zhao Jianguo closed the interface, leaned back in his chair, and pondered the thoughts that were running through his mind.

Since we can't borrow now, let's save it for now. Anyway, this illness isn't acute; it won't kill anyone in three to five days, or even ten to fifteen days. Let's save the money first, and borrow it when we've saved enough, or think of other ways to see if we can get 20 million within seven days.

Thinking of this, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.

In the blink of an eye, another thought popped into my head.

Zhou Qingyan.

The newly appointed county party secretary.

The woman he slept with in the hotel last night.

Zhao Jianguo raised his hand and wiped his face.

The blood test was done last month. At that time, he didn't know Zhou Qingyan. In other words, it wasn't Zhou Qingyan who infected him, but he who infected Zhou Qingyan.

He infected the newly appointed county party secretary with AIDS and syphilis.

If this matter isn't mentioned, Zhou Qingyan will remain in the dark, and by the time the 72-hour containment period is over, it will be too late.

He had to tell Zhou Qingyan to get preventative treatment as soon as possible.