“Dr. Qin, please save our child! Our Xiao Ao is so pitiful!”
The woman started crying the moment she stepped into the clinic.
Anyone unaware of the situation might have thought she was attending a funeral.
“Stop.”
Qin Jiang quickly stopped her, saying sternly, “Explain the situation, don’t just cry. It might disturb the neighbors.”
The woman was surprisingly adept at switching emotions. Seeing Qin Jiang didn’t appreciate the tears, she stopped crying immediately.
Viewers in the live stream burst out laughing.
“This woman’s crying act is pretty good! She can turn it on and off just like that.”
“With her masterful control, she’s way more skilled than those celebrity actors.”
“What’s with the kid’s getup? Isn’t Dr. Qin a TCM doctor? Exorcism probably isn’t his strong suit.”
“Not necessarily. In the old days, Chinese medicine and shamanistic practices weren’t strictly separated.”
“Don’t ask, just watch Brother Qin handle it.”
After letting the woman calm down a bit, Qin Jiang asked for some basic information.
The woman’s name was Zhu Hong, from Shujia Village on the outskirts of the city.
Her husband was Shu Chuan, and their son was Shu Ao.
Their life had been ordinary and uneventful until, about a month ago, their son somehow became ‘possessed’!
Zhu Hong’s eyes welled up again as she reached this part.
“Our Xiao Ao was always very obedient before, even a ‘Model Student’ at school. His teachers often praised him.”
“But ever since he became possessed, he can’t go to school anymore. His appetite changed, he doesn’t eat properly, he’s picky.”
“He doesn’t sleep well at night either, often having episodes in the middle of the night.”
The more Qin Jiang listened, the stranger it seemed.
“Ms. Zhu, I’m not quite following. Is your son possessed, or is he sick?”
Shu Chuan explained from the side, “We took him to the hospital. The doctors all said they couldn’t find anything wrong.”
“We also invited the village Ritual Master to take a look, but it didn’t help.”
“While the Ritual Master was performing the ritual, our son had an episode and bit him.”
As Shu Chuan spoke, he pointed to another man.
It was only then that Qin Jiang noticed this man, dressed in rather garish, colorful clothing that clearly didn’t look like a mainstream profession.
The man awkwardly showed his index finger and asked, “Dr. Qin, this wound should be okay, right? I won’t get rabies, will I?”
The moment the Ritual Master said this, the live stream chat went wild.
“Hahaha, this Ritual Master seems pretty incompetent, getting bitten by a kid during a ritual!”
“Help, why is my brain automatically imagining the kid biting his hand!”
“Not only is his magic weak, but he also lacks basic science knowledge, worrying about rabies.”
“A Ritual Master seeking treatment from Dr. Qin… isn’t that like a deity asking a mortal for help?”
“Kid Brother here is fighting against superstition!”
Most netizens, being relatively well-educated, generally didn’t believe in things like Ritual Masters or spirit mediums. So seeing the Ritual Master get bested by a child amused everyone greatly.
Qin Jiang looked at the Ritual Master’s index finger.
Wow, that’s quite a bite.
A large patch of skin was already purple, indicating the tissue was nearly necrotic. Half of the Ritual Master’s fingernail had also been bitten off.
It gave an idea of how frenzied Shu Ao must have been.
No wonder they had to bring him in tied up with rope.
“That wound has a risk of severe infection. Rabies is unlikely. I have some alcohol here; use it to disinfect it yourself.”
Reassured by the diagnosis, the Ritual Master felt much better. He was afraid he might lose his life without even earning the money.
While the Ritual Master went to disinfect his wound, Qin Jiang pointed at the child and asked, “Why is he dressed like this?”
Zhu Hong explained, “The Ritual Master said it. He said our Xiao Ao’s madness is severe; he must be possessed by a ghost.”
“He said ghosts aren’t used to the clothes modern people wear, so they get angry and agitated.”
“But if we change into clothes from their dynasty, the ghost feels more comfortable, less angry, and more stable.”
Qin Jiang was taken aback.
“There’s such a theory?”
Perhaps feeling his professional expertise was being challenged, the Ritual Master emphasized while disinfecting his hand, “Yes, of course there is!”
“Think about it. If you died, and after a few hundred years, you possessed one of your descendants.”
“But then you found out your descendants’ clothes were just two pieces of cloth, wouldn’t you be angry?”
Qin Jiang fell silent.
This Ritual Master has quite an imagination.
“How do you know our descendants’ clothes will only be two pieces of cloth?”
The Ritual Master said with full confidence, “Isn’t it obvious? Look on the streets, those young girls, aren’t they wearing less and less?”
“And those live streams on phones, look at those female streamers, how little fabric are they using? It’s almost not enough to cover them.”
“In our village, only sows show that much skin.”
This statement from the Ritual Master made the live stream viewers erupt.
“Well said! Who knew the Ritual Master, despite being superstitious, had such upright values!”
“I mocked him earlier. I’m sorry, I was wrong. I apologize to him.”
“Let’s be real, guys, I’ve been dissatisfied with this social trend for a long time. It’s time to clean it up!”
“Hey, upstairs, I advise you not to meddle in other people’s business.”
“It’s nice to look at, I enjoy it, and I suggest more people dress like that.”
“You know, the Ritual Master’s argument has logic. In a few hundred years, if humans overcome shame, there might really be very little cloth involved.”
“If that’s true, I’d be agitated too if I time-traveled there. This Ritual Master might be onto something.”
Qin Jiang finally understood why professions like Ritual Masters and spirit mediums could make money in the countryside.
Forget whether they have real skills; their eloquence alone is beyond ordinary.
It seems like nonsense, but they can make it sound plausible.
Tight logic, impeccable reasoning. Isn’t it frustrating?
Feeling helpless, Qin Jiang could only play along and ask:
“Alright, let’s say your theory makes sense. Dressing him in clothes the ghost is used to helps control its emotions. But how did you determine which ghost possessed him?”
The Ritual Master widened his eyes.
“He told us himself.”
The Ritual Master removed the cloth gag from the child’s mouth.
It was like flipping a switch.
The child’s face contorted fiercely, his eyes glaring with ferocity, as he shouted, “I am Zuo Zongtang, murdered by your Shu family!”
“I will take revenge on your Shu family! I will take revenge on all of you!”
“Grr! Grr!”
Qin Jiang: “…”
Netizens: “…”
Qin Jiang had imagined many possible symptoms the child might have.
He just never expected this one.
Possessed by a ghost is one thing, but such a famous ghost?
Zuo Zongtang, is it?
So, what does Li Hongzhang have to say about this?
