Top-notch Little Horseman

Now that Ye Chen has neither a vaccine nor a laboratory, he can only use the most basic method to cut off the transmission route.

"General Yun, please quickly prepare a few things: mugwort, atractylodes, astragalus, isatis root, and honeysuckle for internal use; also prepare some sophora flavescens and cnidium monnieri, along with the quicklime from the military camp, so I can clean the bumps on the horse's body."

"If you can find these things, I guarantee I can cure these warhorses. If you follow my method, at least 6% of these sick horses can be saved."

After he finished speaking, there was a moment of silence beside the stable.

The veterinarians looked at each other, their mocking expressions quickly freezing.

The old doctor stroked his beard, frowned, and said, "Using mugwort and atractylodes for fumigation is a common practice; but aren't you just using bitter and cold heat-clearing herbs like scutellaria and phellodendron chinense recklessly?"

"The warhorse is already weak and has diarrhea. Are you trying to kill it by giving it such a cold-natured medicine?"

A middle-aged veterinarian standing next to Dr. Qian chimed in, "And Isatis root and honeysuckle? What are you asking for? Those are for treating human colds, how can you use them to treat horses?"

Another veterinarian shook his head as well: "You still want to use quicklime to rub the horse's body? That stuff is highly toxic; aren't you afraid of burning its coat and killing the horse?"

Everyone chimed in with their own words, each one filled with doubt.

"If you ruin the warhorse, can you, a mere soldier, bear the responsibility?"

Chen Baiquan felt uneasy listening to this, and Luo Kai couldn't help but feel worried for Ye Chen.

Yunheqiao's face darkened as he looked at Ye Chen and said, "Boy, if you continue to act recklessly, this general will not let you off!"

Ye Chen remained calm and smiled gently, saying, "Old Doctor Qian is very experienced, but he only knows about common equine fever and weak stomach and intestines. He doesn't know that there is a disease in this world where insect toxins enter the blood and damp heat is trapped in the internal organs. It is not simply a case of physical weakness and diarrhea."

Everyone was stunned upon hearing this, staring blankly at Ye Chen.

The old doctor Qian stared intently, his brows furrowing: "Insect venom entering the blood? Utter nonsense!"

Ye Chen pointed to a warhorse, then to the sick horse lying on the ground, and said, "Everyone, please look. The warhorse has a persistent high fever, yellowing eyes, and pus oozing from its nose. It has internal heat and toxins."

"Look again; lumps and swelling of the skin and flesh below the abdomen indicate that toxins have spread under the skin; loose and green stools indicate that damp heat is flowing downwards."

"Ordinary diarrhea should be treated with gentle tonics, but this horse's illness is caused by worms and excessive dampness and heat. The more tonics it receives, the more toxic it becomes, and the faster it will die!"

Upon hearing this, the veterinarians' expressions changed drastically. They opened their mouths, but for a moment, they couldn't refute it.

Ye Chen continued, "I use Scutellaria baicalensis and Phellodendron chinense, which are cold herbs, to clear heat and toxins; Lonicera japonica and Isatis indigotica, which are used to cool the blood and disperse blood stasis; Astragalus membranaceus is not used to tonify the body, but to support the horse's fundamental health and prevent its internal organs from completely collapsing."

"Using quicklime with herbs for washing, the quicklime dries and kills insects, combined with Sophora flavescens and Cnidium monnieri, kills the small insects that bite horses and stops the spread of the bumps."

"The mugwort and atractylodes used for fumigation are used to repel foul odors and kill insects."

"You only know how to treat horse diseases, but you don't know that the root of the disease isn't in the horse itself, but in the worms, the filth, and in the stable!"

After he finished speaking, the entire room fell into a deathly silence.

The contempt on Dr. Qian's face vanished completely, his beard trembled slightly, and his eyes widened in astonishment.

He practiced medicine for thirty years, always thinking only of treating sick horses, never considering that the disease could originate from the stable or from flying insects.

Chen Baiquan looked shocked and unconsciously took half a step forward.

Yunheqiao's pupils contracted slightly, and his tense expression subtly relaxed.

The mockery on the faces of the veterinarians vanished, replaced by embarrassment and astonishment.

After a long silence, the middle-aged veterinarian who had spoken earlier gritted his teeth and said, "Even if what you say makes sense! From ancient times to the present, what's the logic behind fumigating the shed first, then bathing, and then administering medicine? That's too strange!"

Ye Chen raised his eyes slightly and said, "The key to traditional Chinese medicine lies in curing the disease, not in rigidly adhering to the rules."

"Since the ancient methods are ineffective, they are insufficient, and new methods should be developed."

"The fact that the entire army is becoming increasingly burdened with military discipline shows that the old methods are ineffective. Why can't the new methods be used?"

Two simple sentences, yet they resonate deeply.

No one in the room objected.

Yunheqiao stared intently at Ye Chen, then suddenly raised his hand and shouted in a deep voice, "Guards! Quickly do as he says and prepare all the medicinal herbs!"

……

By the time all the medicinal herbs were prepared, it was already completely dark.

Yunheqiao ordered his personal guards to set up several large iron pots outside the stable and pour quicklime into the water, which immediately hissed and emitted white steam.

Artemisia and Atractylodes were bundled into small bunches and piled aside. Astragalus, Isatis root, and honeysuckle were divided into small piles as Lin He instructed. Sophora flavescens and Cnidium monnieri were crushed and mixed into lime water.

Several soldiers stirred it with wooden sticks, making them sneeze.

Dr. Qian stood to the side, his expression quite complex.

He didn't leave, and neither did the other veterinarians.

Although they were all rendered speechless by Ye Chen's words, they all stayed, wanting to see what this young man was going to do.

I can disregard my reputation, but I cannot ignore the lives of three hundred warhorses.

If this young man is truly skilled, they can learn from him.

If this young man is all talk and no action, they can expose him on the spot.

Ye Chen had the sick horses led out in batches and tied to temporary wooden stakes outside the stable.

He first ordered his soldiers to clear all the hay from the stables and burn it in an open area.

The feeding troughs were brushed with lime water at least three times, and a layer of quicklime was also laid on the ground.

He lit mugwort and atractylodes in several large earthenware basins, letting thick smoke fill the entire stable.

Ye Chen did not close the doors and windows, but had someone open all the doors and windows to let the smoke out through the gaps in the roof and the windows.

Several soldiers had tears streaming down their faces from the smoke, but none of them moved away.

"The smoke needs to be used for a full half hour," Ye Chen said softly. "To kill all the flies in the stable."

Dr. Qian stood to the side, stroking his beard, without saying a word.

Only after the smoke cleared did Ye Chen have someone lead the sick horse back to the stable.

He began to examine each sick horse one by one. Some horses had ulcers on their bellies that were oozing pus. He had people wash the ulcers with lime water and then repeatedly rub them with a concentrated decoction of Sophora flavescens and Cnidium monnieri.

When the pus was squeezed out of the ulcer, the horse neighed in pain, and several soldiers couldn't hold it down.

Ye Chen personally squeezed a warhorse, his technique was steady and accurate, and after squeezing it, he applied medicine, all in one smooth motion.

"If the ulcer isn't squeezed clean, the lump will get bigger and bigger, and eventually it will die," Ye Chen said to Doctor Qian.

With a gloomy face, Dr. Qian gritted his teeth and nodded.

Ye Chen turned his head as he spoke and continued to administer medicine to the sick horse.

Most of the sick horses had stopped eating, so Ye Chen had someone mix astragalus, isatis root, and honeysuckle together in a certain proportion and boil them into a thick broth, which was then poured into the horses' mouths through a hollowed-out bamboo tube.

When the horse is given medicine, it struggles, and the medicine drips from the corner of its mouth, spilling all over the ground.

He had someone catch the spilled medicine in a bowl and then pour it back in.

"These medicines can't be wasted!"