Chapter 30: The Pharmacy

"Who are you people?" the servant asked.

"Shen Chuan told us to come here," Shao Diandian replied.

The servant eyed the pair suspiciously—a chubby village girl and a scrawny boy. They looked nothing like the sort of people who would have connections with Young Master Shen.

"That's right," Shao Erdan chimed in. "He even said this academy belongs to his family!"

It was no secret that Wutong Academy was owned by the Shen family and that Shen Chuan was their only son. Still, the servant remained unconvinced.

"Sister," Shao Erdan muttered, "did that Shen Chuan fellow trick us? He told us to come here to set up a stall, but now that we're here, we can't even find him." He turned back to the servant. "Are we allowed to set up a stall here?"

"No," the servant replied flatly.

Shao Erdan gestured to Shao Diandian. "See, Sister?"

Shao Diandian pondered for a moment. "We'll wait until we see Shen Chuan and ask him what’s going on."

"We're still going to see him?" Shao Erdan pouted. "We can't even get past the front gate!"

Shao Diandian turned around. "Then let’s try the side gate."

Shao Erdan blinked. "What?"

Half a quarter of an hour later, the two arrived at the back gate of Wutong Academy. It was much quieter than the front, guarded only by an elderly man who looked frail and weary. He was sitting in a chair with his hands tucked into his sleeves, looking as if he were about to drift off to sleep. It was a skill in itself to be able to doze off while the biting winter wind whistled around you.

Shao Erdan whispered, "Sister, what if this guy doesn't let us in either?"

"Let's try first." Shao Diandian had already prepared for the worst; if she couldn't get in through the back gate, she would simply wait at the academy for the students to finish their lessons.

"Sir, I'm looking for Shen Chuan," Shao Diandian said to the old man.

The man lifted one eyelid, glanced at her lazily, and promptly closed it again.

What was that supposed to mean?

"May I go in?"

The old man continued to keep his eyes closed, preserving his energy.

"If you don't say anything, I'm going in," she said. Shao Diandian paused and told Shao Erdan, "Go wait by the front gate. If Shen Chuan comes out that way, tell him I’ve gone inside to find him."

"You got it, Sister!"

***

Shao Diandian entered the academy. Wutong Academy was vast, and she had no idea where Shen Chuan actually was. A student wearing white academy robes walked past her.

She called out to him, "Excuse me, young master, have you seen Shen Chuan?"

The student looked at her with a strange expression, perhaps wondering how such a chubby girl could exist in the world, or perhaps questioning why such a girl would be looking for Shen Chuan.

Shao Diandian smiled. "He bought some things from me, and I’m here to deliver them."

"I see." The student nodded and pointed toward the southeast. "He should be in class. If you're delivering goods, head to that courtyard."

"Thank you."

Shao Diandian thanked him and set off toward the courtyard. Along the way, she took the time to admire the scenery. So, this was what an ancient academy looked like; it wasn't as polished or glamorous as the ones in television dramas—just simple, ordinary buildings. From time to time, the sounds of instructors lecturing and the rhythmic chanting of students drifted toward her. Lost in thought, she soon arrived at the courtyard.

A servant was sweeping snow and paused when he saw the chubby village girl.

"I'm looking for Shen Chuan," Shao Diandian said.

The servant gave her a long look, said nothing, and led her into the courtyard. He gestured for her to wait in one of the side rooms before heading off to finish his chores. Shao Diandian placed her wicker basket on the table and sat in a chair, waiting for a while before deciding she should find the servant and ask when Shen Chuan would arrive.

As she stepped out of the room, snow had begun to fall again, large, goose-feather flakes drifting down in silence.

"Huh? Where did that person go?"

She had no choice but to return to the room to wait. As she passed the moon gate leading to the second courtyard, she heard a man coughing violently from a room in the back.

"Shen Chuan, is that you?" she asked.

The coughing grew worse, accompanied by dry heaves—the kind that sounded as if he might cough his lungs out. Shao Diandian frowned and hurried into the room.

It wasn't Shen Chuan. It was a young man in his early twenties, slumped over the edge of the bed, sweating profusely from the exertion of coughing, his face flushed a deep crimson.

Shao Diandian rushed to the bedside and helped him sit up, his legs dangling off the edge. The man’s body temperature was high; she could feel the heat radiating from his skin—it was much higher than the fever Wei Ting had suffered previously.

***

Shao Diandian hadn't brought her first-aid kit, so she could only use her hand to gauge his forehead temperature. "This must be at least forty degrees Celsius." She undid the buttons of his robe and leaned in to listen to his chest. "Take a deep breath, and don't exhale until I tell you to."

The man's consciousness was fading, and he couldn't understand a word she said. Shao Diandian frowned and checked his pulse. Combining his breathing sounds, symptoms, and pulse, she made a preliminary diagnosis of acute pneumonia.

In an ancient era where even a common cold could be fatal, pneumonia was a serious illness. He must have been infected for several days, and without timely or effective treatment, his condition had worsened. If it continued like this, complications like pleurisy were inevitable, and his life could be in danger.

But she had no medicine for pneumonia on her.

Just as she was pondering, her vision blurred for a moment. She instinctively closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she saw the base's pharmacy—she was standing in the internal medicine section. The cabinets before her were filled with rows of antibiotics and antivirals—exactly what was needed to treat acute pneumonia.

Shao Diandian began grabbing medicine. This time, she didn't see the empty first-aid kit, but she had her small wicker basket with her.

"Right, I need medicine for Father Shao too!"

She hurried toward the surgery section, but before she could carefully select anything, her vision blurred again, and she was back outside the pharmacy. She looked down at the box of bone-strengthening granules she had grabbed in her haste, confirming that she had indeed just been inside. She checked her basket—the medicine was still there.

So, she could access those medicines. But why couldn't she get in last time? Were there specific triggers? And she had been pulled out before she could finish—was there a time limit?

Shao Diandian couldn't figure it out for the moment, so she decided to stop thinking about it. She took out a thermometer and checked his temperature. Just as she thought—it was forty degrees.

Shao Diandian administered an intramuscular fever-reducing injection and performed a skin test for the antibiotics. The reaction was favorable, so she quickly fed him the medicine.