Chapter 32: Treating the Cow
Before Feng Kai could say a word, some of the cooperative members grew restless and began voicing their doubts:
“Secretary, are you really going to let that kid treat him? Isn’t that just fooling around?”
“Exactly. I’ve never heard of Yiwa treating cows. What if he kills it?”
“You’re absolutely right. This isn’t the time to show off—he really has no sense of the gravity of the situation!”
“If we slaughter it now, we can at least get some money for the meat. But if we wait until it dies, then we’re completely out of luck…”
Hearing the crowd’s skeptical murmurs, Li Yi replied calmly, “I said I’m confident, and I mean it. If that’s how you feel, then I’m out of here. Anyway, if the cow dies, it’s none of my business!”
With that, Li Yi stepped back into the crowd!
He’d meant well just now, but he hadn’t expected these people to be so harsh!
What’s the deal? Did they expect him to sign a pledge of personal responsibility before treating the cow? He wasn’t some saint!
Feng Kai frowned and shouted, “Everyone, stop arguing!”
Once the crowd had quieted down, he turned to Li Yi and said, “Yi, tell your uncle honestly—what are your chances of curing this cow?”
“If I had the medicine, about ninety percent,” Li Yi replied.
He still held Feng Kai in high regard, so his tone was relatively gentle—not as sharp as it had been earlier!
“Alright, I trust you. Go ahead and treat it!” Feng Kai decided.
Li Yi didn’t hesitate; treating this common condition wasn’t difficult.
Western medical treatment is based on the principles of relieving spasms, alleviating pain, and clearing the intestines to inhibit fermentation. A 40-milliliter dose of 30% Ananin injection can be administered via intramuscular injection.
Alternatively, 30 mg of atropine sulfate injection can be administered via subcutaneous injection, accompanied by a deep enema with warm water.
Alternatively, 30 ml of belladonna tincture can be mixed with 3,000 ml of warm water and administered orally in a single dose.
Traditional Chinese medicine is also effective. Simply use 90 grams of Euphorbia, 30 grams of Fennel, 30 grams of Green Tangerine Peel, 30 grams of Wood Fragrance, 20 grams of Sichuan Pepper, 60 grams of Artemisia, 60 grams of White Peony, 30 grams of Wine-processed Rhubarb, and 15 grams of Licorice.
The method is simple: decoct the herbs, strain out the residue, let it cool to a warm temperature, and administer the entire dose at once.
The production team had no Western doctors, but there was a barefoot doctor who had a fairly complete supply of Chinese herbs.
Li Yi immediately made a trip to Dr. Liang’s house, spent 50 cents to gather all the necessary herbs, and then used the family’s decoction pot to prepare the medicine.
Since it was for an animal anyway, the amount of decoction didn’t matter, so it was ready in no time.
After straining out the residue, Li Yi carried the decoction back to Xiahewan.
By then, the villagers had heard that Li Yi was treating the cow and had all rushed over to watch the spectacle. The scene was packed with people; anyone unaware of the situation would have thought something major had happened.
When Li Yi arrived, he spotted Tang Xue and his third older sister, Li Na, in the crowd!
However, Li Yi didn’t go over to say hello—treating the cow was the priority!
Upon reaching the sick cow, Li Yi immediately called over two young, strong men. One held the cow’s head in place, while the other inserted the medicine-dispensing horn tube into its mouth.
The big yellow cow was unwell and simply didn’t have the strength to struggle, so it could only let these burly men do as they pleased.
Li Yi didn’t care if it was a pregnant cow; he showed no mercy whatsoever, directly pouring two large bowls of thick medicinal liquid into the sick cow’s mouth.
Worried the medicine might be spat out, Li Yi thoughtfully closed the cow’s jaws and stroked its neck.
Only after confirming that the sick cow had swallowed all the medicine did he order them to let the cow go!
Seeing that the medicine had gone down smoothly, Feng Kai walked up to Li Yi with his pipe and asked, “Yi, will this really work?”
“It’s not up to me to say whether it works—it’s up to the cow!”
Saying this, Li Yi pointed at the pregnant cow on the ground, panting heavily!
“Hmm, let’s hope it pulls through!” Feng Kai said with a sigh.
“Are you saying you don’t have faith in me, old man?” Li Yi asked with a smile.
“You’re no vet, so where am I supposed to get that confidence from?” Feng Kai shot him a look and said.
“Then why did you ask me to treat it in the first place? Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill it?” Li Yi said, speechless.
“It’s a long shot, but what else can we do?”
“Just give it a cut and be done with it!”
Feng Kai sighed and said, “I just can’t bring myself to do it!”
He then stood up, glanced at the villagers gathered around, and said, “I’m letting Yi treat this cow today. If it dies, I’ll take full responsibility—I’ll pay whatever it’s worth!”
Team Leader Zhang Tongfu hurriedly interjected, “Old Feng, why are you putting yourself through this?”
Secretary Feng raised his hand to silence him and continued, “You may not know this, but this cow is already 22 years old. I personally hauled it back from the county when I was 28.”
“I remember back then it was just a calf, not even eight months old. I raised it day by day, right up until I became the brigade’s accountant, then deputy captain, and finally captain—and I kept feeding it all along.”
“This ox is just like a cat or a dog—you grow attached to it as you raise it. I really can’t bear the thought of it working for the brigade its whole life only to be slaughtered by us with a single stroke of the knife. I just can’t bear it…”
At this point, Secretary Feng’s voice was trembling!
The old secretary’s words were so moving that everyone fell silent. Many of the female educated youth even began to wipe away tears on the sly—anyone unaware of the situation might have thought they were watching a tearjerker!
Li Yi simply couldn’t stand the scene anymore. He stepped forward, patted the old Party Secretary on the shoulder, and said, “Uncle Feng, that’s enough. It’s not like it’s hopeless. You’re making it sound like a life-and-death parting!”
Hearing Li Yi’s words, everyone burst out laughing!
“You’re just asking for a beating, you little rascal…”
Li Yi smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Uncle. The cow just got wet and caught a chill. It’s just that it’s old and has a calf, so it’s more fragile. Look, isn’t it already looking better now?”
Hearing this, the gathered villagers all looked down at the sick cow on the ground. They noticed that the cow, which had been rolling around on the ground just moments ago, had calmed down considerably and wasn’t panting as heavily as before.
“Hey, you know what? It really does seem to be feeling much better!”
“It’s stopped rolling around and isn’t panting anymore. Yiwa really knows his stuff!”
“Who’d have thought Yiwa, who’s usually such a slacker, could actually come through when it counts!”
“You’re absolutely right. Do you think our village is about to produce a veterinarian…?”
Just as everyone was chatting about this, Tang Xue, standing nearby, asked Li Na in surprise, “He… he can treat cows too?”
Li Na looked just as baffled and shook her head. “I’ve never heard of that before!”
“Then how…”
“Don’t ask me. My little brother’s got some wild connections! Take that liangpi, for example—I have no idea where he learned it, but his skills are top-notch. You wouldn’t believe how popular his little stall is…”
As Tang Xue listened to Li Na speak, her eyes kept drifting toward Li Yi, who stood in the center of the scene like the main character.
The more she looked at him, the more she felt this man was full of mysteries. The villagers all said he was good-for-nothing, but from what she knew of him, that wasn’t the case at all.
He could make liangpi, bake flatbreads, and earn money selling mountain produce—and now he could even handle veterinary work. How could someone like that possibly be called uneducated?
Some also said he was a loose cannon with no sense of propriety, but Tang Xue had discovered that while he liked to talk a big game, deep down he was actually quite upright.
Never mind that he’d once risked his life to save someone on the street; even just considering that they’d been engaged for so long and he’d never made any unreasonable demands of her, that accusation clearly didn’t hold water.
Moreover, for some reason, Tang Xue felt that Li Yi looked quite handsome now, and he had a certain air about him.
He was still the same person, and his clothes and appearance hadn’t changed much, but there was something different about him—he was incredibly charming!
At this thought, she couldn’t help but become completely captivated!