Chapter 19: Giving an Ancient Child an IV Drip
“Give me the banknotes,” Chen Bai said when they arrived at the fief.
Along the way, they had passed by the refugees’ temporary settlement. Qi Zheng’s fief had originally been a place used to house refugees.
All the shelters were thatched huts built from reeds and the like. They could barely even be called houses. They were little more than dens where people could barely live, not much different from animals.
The sight was shocking, and it shook Chen Bai’s soul. He had been an orphan himself, so he understood all too well the feeling of being abandoned by the world.
Qi Zheng looked at Chen Bai. This demon had clearly been in a very good mood along the way, so why had he suddenly become so gloomy?
Chen Bai was indeed somewhat impatient. At the very least, the sooner he raised rabbits and planted grapes, the sooner Qi Zheng would have to provide jobs for these refugees.
Qi Zheng handed the banknotes to Chen Bai.
The steward beside him opened his mouth, but in the end, he said nothing.
This was one-eighth of the entire Second Prince’s residence’s assets.
Chen Bai took the banknotes and walked toward the mountain after saying, “Before I come down, none of you are allowed to go up.”
Qi Zheng nodded. This demon said he was going to perform a spell to draw rabbits over and bring grapevines here. That scene probably could not be witnessed by others.
At first, Qi Zheng stared at the mountain with great interest. He thought a demon performing a spell would at least involve dark clouds rolling in, wind, rain, thunder, and lightning. In the end, there was not even the slightest movement.
He muttered, “I’ve read too many storybooks.”
Then he simply went back to the carriage to wait.
However, after waiting for a long time, Chen Bai still had not come down.
This really could not be blamed on Chen Bai. This was basically a barren mountain. There was not even a proper path up the mountain.
The rabbits he bought could not all be placed in one spot either. He had to scatter them in groups at certain distances.
By the time Chen Bai came down, Qi Zheng’s patience was just about worn thin. He asked, “It’s done? Why didn’t I see rabbits running over from all around?”
The corner of Chen Bai’s mouth twitched. Did he really think they were being drawn over from other demons’ territories?
“Go up the mountain and see for yourself.”
In any case, Chen Bai was so tired he was almost sprawled flat. He had to go back to the carriage and rest.
The steward beside them understood none of this. Why did it sound like they were speaking in riddles?
Qi Zheng definitely wanted to see it with his own eyes. Raising an entire mountain of rabbits was no small investment.
After going up the mountain, he could not help frowning. He saw no rabbits.
But after walking a little farther, he saw bundles upon bundles of vines. They should be grapevines. The vines were thicker than the grapevines of Great Qian, but their appearance was similar.
He was just about to go over and take a look when, the moment he stepped forward, something suddenly leapt out of the grass.
Upon closer inspection, Qi Zheng: “…”
One, two…
White ones, gray ones, black ones—one after another, they hopped out of the grass.
Qi Zheng drew in a breath. “So many.”
Although he had imagined this scene before, seeing it with his own eyes felt completely different.
After walking a few steps upward, sure enough…
His eyes were full of rabbits.
Rabbits all over the mountains and plains.
When he walked over, these little rabbits were not afraid of people either. Their eyes were red, their mouths were split in three, and as they gnawed at the surrounding grass, they made grinding sounds.
When Qi Zheng reached out to grab one, the little rabbit finally hopped a few steps away in disdain, then went to the side and continued eating grass.
In Qi Zheng’s experience, even searching a mountain for a whole day might not necessarily lead to finding even one rabbit. One could imagine how much of an impact the current situation had on him. Not just him—anyone who saw such a scene would probably be unable to remain calm.
An entire mountain of fluffy creatures looked especially festive.
Qi Zheng continued walking up the mountain, and everywhere his eyes could see, it was the same.
Together with the grapevines, this had cost him one-eighth of his entire residence’s savings, but it was worth it.
Qi Zheng inspected the piles of grapevines placed at intervals on the ground, then finally went down the mountain.
When he returned to the foot of the mountain, he saw Chen Bai pointing to the side with his hand.
Qi Zheng looked over, and his face darkened. A few rabbits had started hopping out beyond the mountain.
How could that do? They were all his rabbits. But in this barren wilderness, chasing them was not right, and not chasing them was not right either.
At this moment, Chen Bai pointed toward the refugees. “If you don’t have people come over and build fences around the mountain, your rabbits will all run away.”
Qi Zheng’s face was dark. “You did that on purpose.”
Chen Bai shrugged.
Actually, only a few mischievous ones had run off. The rest were only focused on eating grass.
Chen Bai added, “It gets cold at night. If no holes are dug for them, I can’t guarantee whether they’ll freeze to death or not. And those grapevines, if they aren’t planted into the ground as soon as possible, they can probably only be used as firewood.”
Qi Zheng: “…”
All of a sudden, he actually needed a great deal of labor.
This demon was using this method to force him to help those refugees.
For a moment, Qi Zheng did not even know what to say. Did this demon have a Bodhisattva’s heart or something?
Compared with some venomous-hearted people, demons seemed…
Qi Zheng glared at Chen Bai, then quickly went to discuss things with the steward beside him.
The steward said, “Your Highness, there are so many rabbits. Just now, they passed right in front of us from the mountain.”
Qi Zheng thought to himself, This is nothing. The scene on the mountain is what truly makes one’s scalp tingle.
Chen Bai did not know how Qi Zheng discussed it. The steward hurriedly led people toward the refugees’ settlement.
Before long, he brought back a large group of people, all holding simple tools.
Chen Bai listened briefly. Many refugees had joy on their faces. They had probably been promised grain in exchange for labor.
Chen Bai sighed. He was not some savior. He himself was still in difficulty and had to rely on the identity of “Mountain Lord” just to get by. This was all he could do for them.
Qi Zheng said, “Are you satisfied now?”
Chen Bai smiled. “This is only the beginning. Building fences and digging holes won’t be finished in a short while. Besides, grapes still have to be planted. The weeds around the grape roots have to be removed too. Grape trellises need to be built. Afterward, the grapes will need to be fertilized at regular intervals…”
None of these were simple little projects. There would be plenty of days ahead. How could one simply raise rabbits across a mountain and plant grapes across a mountain, then ignore everything and wait for the harvest?
Qi Zheng said irritably, “You’ll definitely become an immortal one day.”
Chen Bai almost laughed. “Think about all those rabbits on the mountain. Once they grow up, how much silver will they be worth? Rabbits grow fast too. In just four or five months, they’ll be big and fat. And think about grape trellises all over the mountain, covered with grapes…”
Only then did Qi Zheng’s expression improve a little. He thought, That is true. Where in this world is there such a thing as enjoying gains without any investment?
After saying a few words, Chen Bai did not stay idle either. Since he was taking ten percent of the profits as a technical consultant, he had to teach these people how to dig holes, how to plant grapes, and how to set up trellises.
Digging holes was actually especially simple, because rabbits naturally had that skill. They only needed to dig some shallow holes to guide them.
When Chen Bai said the rabbits might freeze to death at night, he was really just scaring Qi Zheng. The weather at night was no longer very cold. Rabbits were not stupid either. Once the temperature dropped, they would find places to hide and huddle together for warmth.
Then there were the grape trellises. They had to be built around the mountain, forming arched paths with the effect of shaded lanes. He had even planned that once the grapes ripened, he would have the noble lords and noble ladies of Shangjing come with their families to experience the fun of picking grapes. The better the grapes sold, the more he would earn from his share, right?
Of course, the most important thing right now was building the fences. Otherwise, the rabbits really would run away.
Qi Zheng followed beside Chen Bai with an expressionless face. Every time he saw a rabbit run out, he would say to Chen Bai, “Why don’t you tell them to go back up the mountain? They’re animals on our territory now, aren’t they all under your control?”
The corner of Chen Bai’s mouth twitched. “…”
Wasn’t he a fake demon?
A dignified prince, just because a few rabbits had run away, was following him around and seriously discussing this. It was rather interesting.
Just building the fences around the mountain could not be completed in a short while.
By dusk, Qi Zheng and Chen Bai had to return to Shangjing. They left behind the steward and some servants from Qi Zheng’s residence. They were probably preparing to lead the refugees in building the fences through the night.
Chen Bai added, “Don’t rush the work. Everything has to be built according to the style I explained. Triangles, crossed into a net shape. Only this kind of fence is sturdy and beautiful.”
Qi Zheng: “…”
What a vain demon.
Before leaving, Qi Zheng secretly said to the steward, “Fence the mountain in first.”
After that, if this demon wanted to build the fence into a twisted-rope shape, he would have no objection. But for now, he had to stop his rabbits from running off. It hurt just watching them go.
When Chen Bai returned to the Tingwei residence, he happened to run into Chen Xiaobu in front of the gate. Chen Xiaobu had just returned from playing somewhere.
Chen Xiaobu ran over with his skateboard in his arms. “Brother, today Shang Jujiu and Shang Zhizhou came to walk the dogs with us, but you weren’t even here.”
At the time, when the two legitimate young masters of Duke Shang’s residence came to the Tingwei residence, Madam Ronghua had been overjoyed. In the past, Tingwei Office disliked socializing with others. Who would ever have come to visit?
Chen Xiaobu continued, “Halfway through playing, someone suddenly came in a hurry to borrow the dogs from the Shang brothers. They said their residence was haunted by evil spirits and needed the Shang brothers’ dogs to ward off evil and suppress the disturbance.”
Chen Bai’s head hurt just listening to it. Still, the person who could borrow dogs from the Shang brothers probably had no simple status either.
Of course, this had nothing to do with Chen Bai. Seeing that Chen Xiaobu’s little bobbed bangs were damp with sweat and stuck to his face, he wondered how wildly the child had been playing. He quickly had someone take him inside to bathe, lest he catch a cold.
After Chen Bai finished dinner, he waited.
Sure enough, not long after, Qi Zheng’s voice message came.
“Demon, want to look at the potatoes?”
Chen Bai was already used to it. It had become their regular nightly activity. If he did not look, he himself almost could not sleep.
Qi Zheng’s potatoes had already grown many tender green leaves. They were growing very well. It seemed he had studied the potato planting manual Chen Bai gave him seriously.
The next day, Chen Bai had just gotten up when he unexpectedly received another voice message from Qi Zheng.
He found it a little strange, because Qi Zheng usually would not look for him at this hour.
Chen Bai tapped open the message.
“Can those strange medicines of yours treat someone who accidentally fell into a well, caught a chill deep in the body, alternates between freezing cold and burning hot, and keeps talking nonsense like they are possessed?”
“The young master of Duke Gan’s family accidentally fell into a well yesterday. Yesterday, they even borrowed the two strange beasts from the Shang twins to suppress the evil.”
Chen Bai: “…”
Gan Xun, one of the Three Dukes of Great Qian.
The Three Dukes of Great Qian represented three types of power. Shang Wangshu was in charge of law, Gan Xun was in charge of culture and education, and Duke Lu, Lu Qingqi, was in charge of finance and grain.
Of course, the most important military power was in the Emperor’s hands. No one dared covet it.
Chen Bai did not dare delay. They had already reached the point of borrowing dogs to suppress evil, some absurd supernatural measure. The situation was probably not optimistic.
Because Chen Bai had to go as Mountain Lord, he did not dare use the carriage of the Tingwei residence. He could only leave the house and hire one. Before leaving, he also had someone from the residence go to Shangjing Academy to ask for a day’s leave on his behalf.
In the carriage, Chen Bai began asking Qi Zheng about the young master of the Gan family. Chen Bai knew this young master too. He was one of Chen Xiaobu’s classmates.
Chen Bai actually did not know any medical skills. He directly relayed the situation to an online doctor.
“This condition is already life-threatening. He must be sent to a hospital immediately. First, give an IV drip to stabilize his condition…”
Chen Bai thought to himself, Isn’t this a case of having to do something because conditions don’t allow otherwise?
Chen Bai quickly asked for the details, such as what kind of IV a child should be given, what needed to be added to the drip, and what dosage should be used.
This was already beyond ordinary medication and could not be bought online.
But that did not mean there was no way. Chen Bai’s good friend Tang Shen was a “fake second-generation rich kid.” His brother-in-law was an extremely capable man and should be able to help.
