Qin Official

"Chief Zuo is really fearless if he doesn't know anything. How can you rashly play with the waters in the south of the Yangtze River?"

Inside the camp, the doctor Chen Wujiu shook his head when he heard that Ziying had washed his feet and crown in the Miluo River a few days ago.

"There is a poisonous archer insect in the south of the Yangtze River. When the summer moon is in the water, the insect is so small that it is invisible. When people bathe in the water or walk in the water, the insect attaches itself to the body and burrows into the skin."

Chen Wujiu pointed to the red rash on Ziying's hands and feet and said, "It was like this when I first got it. The skin is red like beans and millet. If you rub it with your hands, it will hurt like a needle prick."

These symptoms were all consistent. Ziying did not expect that tracing back to the ancients and imitating their actions would lead to such serious consequences. He did not care about the restraint and elegance of a prince and grandson, and asked urgently:

"Dr. Chen, what will happen if you get this disease?"

Chen Wujiu shook his head and sighed: "One month after the onset of the disease, the body suddenly became cold and hot, the hands and feet were aching, and there was also vomiting, yellow urine, abdominal tightness, and chest pain. As time passed, the poisonous insects traveled along the blood vessels to the liver and intestines and gnawed The five internal organs release poisonous water and accumulate inside, causing the abdomen to swell and look like a toad, like a pregnant woman, shaking and making noises, hence the name water poison..."

Gu, a small insect in the belly, can be described as very vivid. Chen Wujiu said that people who have been poisoned by water poison will not only have body swelling, but more seriously, they will also cough, chest pain, vomit blood, and suffer from general weakness. Various diseases will also follow, which may eventually lead to death!

"Everyone says that Jiangnan is humid and humid, and husbands die young. In fact, it's not because of the heat and humidity, but because of the poisonous insects in the water."

"May I ask the doctor how to diagnose and treat it?"

Chen Wu Jiu sighed again: "There is no cure for this disease..."

"Isn't this a terminal illness?"

Every time Chen Wujiu said something, Ziying's face turned pale. He is only in his early thirties, is it possible that he is going to die in Changsha?

He only felt a little dizzy, why was he so unlucky.

Chen Wujiu said: "Second Master Zuo, please be at ease. If you are infected by the water bug, you won't die immediately. Chief Zuo is a royal nobleman. With the blessing of the ancestral temple, he will definitely be able to find a way..."

After being so comforted in front of Ziying and leaving the camp to report the matter to Hei Fu, Chen Wujiu said with some gloating:

"Marquis Changnan, it's true that the water poison doesn't matter whether it's a prince, a prince or a fisherman, as long as it's flesh and blood, they will dig into it!"

…

"To Gu insects, we are all just fish and meat, there is no distinction between noble and poor, wise and foolish."

Heifu shook his head helplessly. Humans claim to be the spirit of all things and the top of the food chain. However, above the top, inside the human body, there are countless parasites crawling around, gnawing at the body's five internal organs day and night. Compared with the visible beasts, these tiny insects are the biggest natural enemies of human beings.

Speaking of which, Ziying was really unlucky to receive such a gift from nature just after he came to Jiangnan.

"How serious is he?"

"Not too heavy."

Chen Wujiu said: "It's also good luck. He doesn't suffer from acute fever like other northerners. It should be a chronic disease. After this incident, this prince and grandson will probably not dare to go into the water rashly again. With the rich food and clothing, he doesn't have to work hard." , living another ten or twenty years is not a problem.”

He showed a mischievous smile: "But I deliberately made the illness a bit serious. The deputy supervisor must be able to put himself in his shoes and understand the difficulties of using troops in the south. And His Majesty, who is far away in Xianyang, learned that even the supervisors were infected. Naturally, I won’t blindly rush Changnanhou.”

"It sounds like a good thing, but I'm not happy about it."

Hei Fu sighed and said, "You are right. Even the supervisors sent by the imperial court are infected with the disease, let alone ordinary soldiers and civilians. If this continues, most of the soldiers in the southern expedition will be sick and weak and unable to fight. Isn’t it just empty talk to achieve peace in Vietnam in two years?”

After arriving in Changsha, Heifu discovered that the local garrison was facing a disease that had plagued Hunan for more than two thousand years: schistosomiasis.

Although the scientific name is "Schistosomiasis japonicum", that is only because it was first discovered and named by the Japanese. In fact, this small parasite is found throughout the subtropical region.

Heifu remembered that he went to the Hunan Museum in his previous life, and what impressed him most was that the owner of the Mawangdui Han Tomb actually had a large number of schistosomiasis eggs in his stomach, even among the nobles. It is conceivable that this disease is widespread in Changsha County.

And it has been raging for a long time. Until after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Dongting Lake, Poyang Lake, and Taihu Lake were the most popular areas for the plague god, let alone now.

More than ten years ago, when conquering Yuzhang and building the city of Nanchang, soldiers in Heifu's army suffered from skin rashes, fevers and diseases after wading into the fields. Many more people suffered from weakness. , symptoms of overeating and weight loss.

Everyone attributed this to the hot and humid climate in the south of the Yangtze River. However, Heifu, who was also a southerner in his previous life, knew that this was caused by schistosomiasis. He pointed out the correct cause of the disease, named it "water poison", and reported the matter to the court.

Unfortunately, there were not many soldiers and civilians stationed in Yuzhang, so this matter did not attract attention. Even Qin Shihuang didn't take it seriously when he read the "Southern Expedition" presented by Hei Fu.

So Heifu's old subordinates kept his policy in mind, drank more well water and boiled water, and set up public toilets in cities and rural areas to prevent patients' feces from entering the running water directly. In flood-infected areas where snails appear, building dams and reclamation is really not possible. We would rather abandon the fields and find other high-lying areas to open up wasteland...

Therefore, although schistosomiasis has always existed in Yuzhang County, it has been controlled to a certain extent.

It all depends on people. Changsha County next door is not doing so well.

The year before last, a large number of northern troops poured into the local area, wading in rivers and working in the fields. At least one-third of the 80,000 soldiers and civilians were infected with the disease. Thousands of northern soldiers who were not adapted to the local climate suffered from complications and died. Those with chronic diseases also lost their combat effectiveness and were left in Changsha.

When Heifu came, he found that there were many people with bloated bellies in the camp. This late-stage symptom was due to the accumulation of water in the abdomen. In addition, their faces were thin and their bellies appeared larger.

Fortunately, schistosomiasis can only be contracted through contact between people and infected water, and cannot be directly transmitted from person to person. Otherwise, there would be no need to fight this battle, and Heifu could come directly to collect the corpses for them.

However, late-stage patients with swollen bodies do not have much time to live, and even lose the possibility of treatment.

All Heifu can do now is try his best to save those infected people whose condition has not worsened.

"I'll leave the treatment of Ziying and those patients to Brother Chen."

Hei Fu bowed to Chen Wujiu. As early as ten years ago, he informed Chen Wujiu about the water poison in Yuzhang. As a subordinate of the Great Medical Order, Chen Wujiu personally went to the south to contact the patients. , looking for a cure.

Inspired by the reference opinions provided by Heifu, he has found a good medicine. After ten years of research, he has achieved a small success. Although it cannot guarantee a complete cure, it can alleviate the condition and prevent chronic patients from swelling to death. …

"Do your best without any blame."

Chen Wujiu accepted his promise and hurried out to ask the Changsha County government to recruit people to help him collect the medicinal materials.

Although treatment is needed, what is most urgent now is prevention.

The Changsha area is intertwined with river networks and densely populated with lakes, making it a suitable breeding ground for snails and a serious endemic area for schistosomiasis. Summer is about to begin again, and summer and autumn are the most susceptible periods to infection. If we are not prepared, we may be waiting for another outbreak.

In the long run, Changsha is the only place the Southern Expeditionary Army must pass through. If preventive work is not done well, when the new army training in Wuchang arrives next year, a large number of people will lose their combat effectiveness. Heifu can't bear to lose his direct descendants like this.

But doing this in the barracks alone is of no use.

The area surrounding the Southern Expedition garrison activity is Xiang County, the seat of Changsha County. In addition to the villages and towns dozens of miles around the city, there are at least 5,000 households.

At least 20% of patients contract the disease in urban areas, and even more in rural areas, 30 to 40%. Tens of thousands of people eat, drink, and drink carelessly, causing schistosomiasis eggs to circulate in the water bodies around the city. This makes the entire Xiang County an epidemic area, which has been passed down from generation to generation. Children who develop dwarfism due to infection and never grow up can be seen in almost every village.

Looking at this scene, Hei Fu also lamented how difficult the people's livelihood was. Water poison was like a curse in the South. It would remain in this land for more than two thousand years. Regardless of whether you are rich or poor, if you are not careful, you will be with the bugs for life. .

Until New China will usher in the dawn and send away the raging god of plague...

The first thing Heifu did was to move the entire camp away from the epidemic area and Dongting Lake, and build a new camp in a flat area fifty miles south of Xiangxian County.

Liting is named after the large number of Li trees. In later generations, this place was called "Zhuzhou", a place with easy access and convenient transportation. Although the surrounding area is currently sparsely populated, densely forested, and even inhabited by tigers, leopards, and elephants, it is still a hub for traveling north and south.

The army wants to escape from the epidemic area, but it is not Heifu's style to abandon Xiang County, which has been shrouded in plague for thousands of years.

Before leaving, he went into the city to visit the Changsha County Sheriff.

For Changsha Shou, this meeting was not a pleasant one. As the commander-in-chief of the Southern Expedition, Changnan Hou gave him a scolding scolding. In the end, he actually blamed the local government for the soldiers' illness.

It is said that it is precisely because of their inaction that the people of Changsha live in a disorderly manner, and patients defecate and defecate anywhere by the river, polluting the rivers and lakes, which leads to thousands of soldiers getting sick and losing their combat effectiveness...

"Therefore, Sun Ying, King of the Supervisory Army, fell ill when he entered Changsha County and his life was in danger. Therefore, our southern expedition army was defeated in Changsha before it could fight the enemy! This is all the fault of the county guard. I will definitely report this to Your Majesty! "

Heifu's words were strong. The Changsha County Sheriff couldn't bear such a big charge, so he quickly promised that he was willing to cooperate with the Southern Expeditionary Army to prevent diseases together.

Hei Fu's expression softened slightly, and he made a few requests on the grounds of preventing and curing diseases.

And the first one is, of course, his famous skill...

"If you want to prevent the plague of poisonous insects, you must first build public toilets!"

…

After seeing off Hei Fu with a smile on his face, the Changsha County Sheriff had a uncertain expression. As a two-thousand-stone border official, he always spoke his mind in Changsha, but facing the powerful Marquis of Changnan, he could only cooperate carefully. Don't dare to be offended in the slightest.

He could only curse: "Sure enough, everyone said that Wei Heifu has two hobbies, one is farming, and the other is public toilets. Whenever he goes to a place, he must go there first. If you want to tell me, his title should not be called Changnan Hou. It’s time to call the public toilet!”

ps: Chapter 2 is at night