Romantic Medical Immortal

Chapter 597: Fetid Medicinal Herbs

"I’m sure this is the antidote, hurry up and pick them, we need to get down the mountain before noon, if we delay too long, these herbs will lose their effectiveness."

Yang Cheng spoke with absolute certainty.

No one doubted his words anymore, bending down to start picking the herbs.

However, the roots of the red herbs were very fragile, breaking easily and oozing some sticky liquid.

The faint fragrance of Hehuan Grass initially surrounded the area, but it was soon overwhelmed by a stench, causing people to occasionally retch.

Yang Cheng, known for his keen sense of smell, blocked his sense of smell with True Qi to prevent the odor from affecting him.

"Brother Cen, you’re amazing! We are about to throw up our bile, yet you remain unfazed."

Da Shan looked impressed, with Yang Cheng being his idol. Whether it was his medical skills or his character, Yang Cheng was unparalleled, surpassing even the Village Chief and Yue Ying in his eyes.

Seeing Da Shan’s pale face, Yang Cheng patted his shoulder and said, "If you’re feeling really uncomfortable, head down the mountain first and find Village Chief Yun, ask her to set up a big pot in the village, I’ll be brewing medicine later to detox everyone."

"Alright, I’m heading down now."

Da Shan nodded quickly, feeling exhausted enough to struggle even down the mountain.

Working together, everyone managed to escape the smelly place within an hour and returned to the village.

By then, Da Shan had already explained everything to Yun Chan, and the news quickly spread throughout the village.

The women were shocked, having always thought their men were useless, unable to function properly at just over thirty years old—not knowing they were actually poisoned.

Hearing the Little Divine Doctor would brew medicine to detox everyone, all the women mobilized to help, setting up two big pots and preparing the firewood.

As soon as the men were seen descending the mountain, Yun Chan led a group to greet them, but the moment they got close, everyone instinctively covered their noses.

"Heavens! What is this smell, so unbearable!"

Auntie Pang frowned, almost throwing up breakfast.

Yun Chan took a few steps forward but was overwhelmed by the smell, asking in shock, "Yang Cheng, is this really the antidote?"

"Yes, quickly get the fire going, we need to brew the medicine soon while it’s fresh."

Yang Cheng dropped his backpack, dumping everything into the pot without cleaning. There were no harmful substances on the mountain, just some dirt that posed no problem if consumed.

"Fresh? If you hadn’t said so, I would’ve thought you’d brought back a bunch of rotten fish!"

Yun Chan looked at the dark red herbs, incredulous.

Yang Cheng replied calmly, "Though it’s foul-smelling, it’s definitely effective. If these men aren’t treated, Hidden Cloud Village’s future generations will keep dwindling."

Upon hearing this, everyone realized the severity of the situation.

Knowing the men were exhausted from herb collecting, the task of brewing and tending the fire fell to the women.

They hauled water buckets, poured them into the big pots, and began boiling, the stench proliferating with the steam.

Retching sounds echoed throughout the village as people covered their noses with cloth strips, but the smell was pervasive.

Though the village used manure for farming, this smell was even more pungent, assaulting the senses fiercely.

After boiling for an hour, the herbs dissolved into a blood-red soup, making people nauseous just looking at it.

"Everyone who ate Hehuan Grass, come get a bowl to drink. We will brew medicine again tomorrow at noon until everyone recovers."

Yang Cheng’s words prompted the men to step forward, fill their bowls, but hesitated to drink.

"To be a real man, I’m going all in!"

A burly man shouted boldly, tilting his head back to down the concoction.

Afterwards, he quickly popped a candy in his mouth to barely avoid throwing up, but others without candies tasted the lingering flavor and couldn’t help but vomit.

"Pinch your noses and gulp it down, endure it. Without drinking the medicine, you can’t detox."

Yang Cheng advised, asking Kong Lingwen to fetch a bag of candies to distribute among everyone.

Both pots of soup were quickly finished, leaving the village men pale, feeling marinated in the stench.

"Alright, after finishing the drink, go home to rest. I need to rush back to bathe. In two hours, come to Da Shan’s house, I’ll do acupuncture to detoxify everyone."

Yang Cheng turned to leave, but was instantly stopped.

"Little Divine Doctor, the smell is too strong. Washing at home won’t cut it; it’s noon now, the river water isn’t cold, let’s wash in the river."

"Yeah! Washing in the river is refreshing."

With everyone urging, Yang Cheng fondly recalled bathing in the river during childhood with his grandfather, spending many an afternoon playing.

He smiled, saying, "You all go first, I’ll return home for a change of clothes and soap."

"Alright!"

Village men weren’t particular, sharing and using a single soap bar, returning home in just their underwear after bathing.

Arriving at the river, Yang Cheng found the village men already in the water, with some women nearby washing clothes and chatting.

"Little Divine Doctor is here! Come join us, the water is refreshingly cool."

Seeing him, everyone waved, beckoning him to join.

Initially shy, as there were many women nearby, Yang Cheng focused his gaze to see two of them were his Enlightenment brides; they’d done everything intimate, so bathing together was no big deal.

He removed his shirt and jumped into the water, using soap to cleanse away the stench.

"Little Divine Doctor, how long must we drink this medicine before fully recovering?"

Someone inquired curiously.

"Your poisoning levels differ, so will the duration of drinking the medicine. Your body situation, as I remember, requires at least seven days of drinking and a month of abstinence."

"What?"

Upon hearing this, the man’s face scrunched up, "My thirty-something wife has strong desires. If I don’t touch her for a month, she might cheat on me!"

Yang Cheng chuckled, explaining, "Most men in the village have the same issue; where would she find someone to cheat with? Besides, enduring a month is for future happiness. Don’t indulge yourselves, or the medicine won’t fully restore you."

"Lately, it’s the newlyweds who haven’t consumed Hehuan Grass, they’re strong and vibrant!"

"I’ve also heard Yue Feng hasn’t been intimate with Chunxing yet, being vigorous might seek out someone else’s wife for relief."

The men began gossiping, Yang Cheng listening intently, surprised that Yue Feng and Chunxing hadn’t consummated their marriage, still unsure of the reasons.