Live Broadcast: My Blunt TCM Practice and My Patients Are Dying Online - Chapter 79

After seeing Huang Guo off, Qin Jiang turned his gaze to the old lady standing to the side.

“Ma’am, it’s your turn now.”

Having witnessed Qin Jiang’s medical skills, Tang Ping and his wife were already filled with profound admiration for him. This made them even more confident about finding a cure for the old lady.

Once the old lady was seated, Qin Jiang asked with a smile, “Ma’am, what seems to be the trouble? Where do you feel unwell?”

The old lady was silent for a moment before replying, “I don’t feel unwell anywhere. I’m perfectly healthy.”

Qin Jiang looked towards Tang Ping.

Tang Ping hurriedly explained, “Dr. Qin, it’s true my mother doesn’t have any other specific ailment. It’s just insomnia.”

Qin Jiang let out an “Oh.”

“Insomnia isn’t a major issue. We can prescribe some sleep aids.”

Tang Ping shook his head with a bitter smile.

“Sleep aids don’t work. My mother has had insomnia for forty years.”

As soon as Tang Ping said this, the netizens in the live stream became very interested.

“Insomnia for forty years? That’s hard to believe. I get neurasthenic after just one week of insomnia!”
“What’s the big deal? I’m twenty-three, and I’m up until two or three AM every night.”
“Buddy, you’re probably scrolling through Douyin until two or three. That’s not called insomnia.”
“Never had insomnia. Can someone explain? Is it really that terrible?”
“I haven’t either, so I don’t get why it’s considered an illness. Isn’t being unable to sleep a good chance to get work done or play games?”
“Let me put it this way, friend. Insomnia doesn’t just mean you can’t sleep; it also makes you feel irritable and drains your energy for doing anything else.”
“If you force yourself to stay active, there’s a high risk of sudden death.”
“So, if this old lady has truly had insomnia for forty years and has remained healthy until now, that’s practically a miracle.”

As a doctor, Qin Jiang naturally understood even better how agonizing insomnia could be for a person.
There had been sleep deprivation experiments conducted abroad.
After three days without sleep, a person starts showing signs of mental confusion.
After seven days, a person becomes monstrous—extremely irritable, largely loses the ability to communicate with others, and may even engage in self-harm.
Sleep is crucial for everyone.

Therefore, when Tang Ping said the old lady had suffered from insomnia for forty years, Qin Jiang’s first reaction was disbelief.

“By ‘insomnia,’ do you mean she lies in bed but can’t fall asleep?”

Tang Ping shook his head.

“No, it’s not about lying in bed unable to sleep. She just doesn’t feel sleepy at all.”
“For these forty years, my mother hasn’t had the slightest desire to sleep. And when she can’t sleep at night, she gets up to do chores.”
“It was easier when she lived in the village. She’d just do farm work when she couldn’t sleep. But ever since moving to the city, there hasn’t been much for her to do.”
“Dr. Qin, I feel this condition is starting to affect her mentally. When we talk to her now, her responses are always a beat slow.”
“I’m really worried she might develop dementia.”

Tang Ping’s concern was quite reasonable.
People nowadays generally face immense life and mental pressure.
Problems might not show when young, but various mental issues can surface in old age.
However, what Tang Ping described was simply unbelievable.
Not needing to sleep a wink all day, capable of doing farm work at night—how had the old lady’s body endured this condition?

Qin Jiang still couldn’t accept it and asked, “Is it possible that there are times when you’re not home, and the old lady actually does sleep?”

It was no wonder Qin Jiang thought this way.
Previously, he had treated a patient who claimed not to need to eat. It turned out the patient did eat but had simply forgotten.
Could the old lady be in a similar situation, having forgotten she actually did sleep?

As soon as Qin Jiang finished speaking, the child, Tang Ji, volunteered, “I can vouch for my grandma. She definitely hasn’t been secretly sleeping.”
“During the day, Grandpa keeps her company. At night, Grandma keeps me company.”

Hearing Tang Ji say this, Tang Ping and his wife were taken aback.
“Xiao Ji, are you saying Grandma stays with you every night?”

Tang Ji nodded.
“Yeah, every night Grandma stands in my bedroom, just staring at me like that.”
“I’ve wet the bed several times because Grandma scared me.”

The netizens were instantly amused.
“Hahaha, this is hilarious! This old lady is something else, going to stand in her grandson’s room at night.”
“Wow, forget the kid. If my grandma came and glared at me by my bedside in the middle of the night, I’d probably wet myself too!”
“Why do I feel this isn’t insomnia but more like the old lady is possessed?”
“Dr. Qin: Believe in science.”

It was only then that Tang Ping and his wife fully grasped the situation.
Tang Ping quickly asked, “Mom, what were you doing going into Xiao Ji’s room in the middle of the night when you should be sleeping?”

The old lady said, “I couldn’t sleep.”

Tang Ping: “…”
Well, that made sense, sort of.

“But you still shouldn’t go into Xiao Ji’s room! Look how scared you’ve made the child!”

The old lady seemed a bit hurt.
“I know Xiao Ji gets scared, so I stopped going to his room later on.”
“I thought about preparing some food in the kitchen at night, but I was afraid of disturbing you all.”
“I had no choice. I could only sit alone in the living room, drink some water, and watch TV dramas.”

Mystery solved!
So the ‘ghostly figure’ they had seen when getting up at night was actually the old lady!
The old lady herself couldn’t sleep but also didn’t want to disturb her family’s rest.
So she stayed alone in the kitchen or sat in the living room.
She didn’t turn on the lights, so family members getting up at night only saw a dark silhouette.
Ironically, the old lady thought she was hiding well to avoid frightening her family, so she wouldn’t move or speak, just standing there.
It was precisely this standing still that terrified Zhu Hong, making her think she had encountered a ghost.

Tang Ping didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
“Mom, you… even if you can’t sleep, you shouldn’t just stay in the living room. It’s really spooky.”

Hearing this, the old lady began to cry sadly.
“I can’t stay in the bedroom; it would scare you all.”
“I can’t stay in the living room either; it also scares you all.”
“So what am I supposed to do at night when I can’t sleep? Do you want me to leave the house at night?”
“I told you I don’t like living in the city with you. I can’t find anything to do all day; I’m practically getting sick from boredom.”
“I’ll leave! I won’t be a bother to you. I’m going back to the countryside!”

The old lady had a fiery temper too. She was ready to leave right then and there.
Tang Ping and his wife hurriedly stepped forward to stop her.

Zhu Hong comforted her in a gentle voice, “Mom, we’re not blaming you. That’s why we brought you to see the doctor, isn’t it?”
“Dr. Qin is so skilled. She’ll definitely be able to treat your condition.”

Zhu Hong shot Tang Ping a look.
“What are you standing there for? Help Mom back to her seat.”

Tang Ping acknowledged and quickly guided the old lady back to sit in front of the triage desk.