Reborn in a small village in the 1990s

Chapter 182

The villagers looked at each other, then at Xiangzi, who was lying weakly in Zhao Da'e's arms, and then at Old Li's wife, who was still very energetic. They all felt extremely sorry for Xiangzi and echoed Zhao Da'e's words.

“I think what this goose said makes sense. Xiangzi is so pitiful. Look how weak he is, he can’t even speak. Old Li, you and Uncle Liu can just pay some medical expenses, it’s nothing. But it’s Xiangzi who is suffering. Look at how he is. You should say less.”

Others said, "But Xiangzi looks really weak. I'm scared just looking at him. I don't want to eat any chicken, duck, or goose when I get back, for fear of getting chicken plague and developing the same red heat rash as Xiangzi. I don't want to spend so much money on treatment. What the village chief said makes some sense. It's best not to touch chickens, ducks, or geese that have chicken plague. At least that way we can keep ourselves healthy."

Another person said, "What you said makes some sense. Originally, I thought Old Li's wife and Qian Bin were right, but now it seems that the village chief is right. After all, the village chief has been in office for decades and is much more farsighted than us. If we really eat chickens, ducks, or geese with fowl plague and get sick, it will cost a lot of money. I don't want that."

Old Mrs. Li was immediately displeased upon seeing this. The people who had been speaking up for her a moment ago quickly switched sides to speak for others. She said anxiously, "Hey, why are you all taking Xiangzi's side? I'm a victim too, I also paid money. It's Xiangzi who's at fault. The chickens and ducks he bought were poisonous, what does his illness have to do with me? I've already been very lenient by not asking Xiangzi for compensation, why are you all blaming me?"

Zhao Da'e immediately retorted, "Everything has a cause and effect. Without a cause, there is no effect. Xiangzi got sick while buying chickens, ducks, and geese for you. It's like when you hire someone to build a house. If a worker falls and breaks a bone while building your house, is the employer blameless? Even if the worker's eyesight isn't very good, the employer still has to pay for medical expenses. That's the logic. Xiangzi went to buy chickens and ducks for you, he was working for you to earn money. If something happens at that time, you can't absolve yourself of responsibility. Don't you all agree with what I said?"

After Zhao Da'e's reminder, everyone realized what was going on, and several villagers agreed.

Regardless of the circumstances, Xiangzi did indeed go to buy chickens and ducks for Old Li and his wife. Since he fell ill, Old Li and his wife were responsible for him. Moreover, many people only then realized, upon seeing Xiangzi's condition, that eating random things could cause problems.

"Yes, yes, old woman Li, what are you up to? If Xiangzi hadn't come today, we wouldn't have known that eating chickens, ducks, and geese infected with fowl plague would have such serious consequences. Sigh! We were just talking to the village chief like that, and now... I'm so regretful!"

Old Mrs. Li, annoyed, retorted, "What does this have to do with me? Did I ask you all to criticize the village chief? You have mouths to speak, not mine. Whose fault is it? Don't push all the blame onto me. Everyone was criticizing the village chief together, and now you're bringing up old grievances and blaming me for everything. How can you be so shameless? Besides, we don't even know what caused Xiangzi's illness. Why are you saying it's something he got from working for me? How about this, give me those chickens. I'll go home, stew them, and see if they poison me. If something happens to me, I'll pay for Xiangzi's medical expenses. If nothing happens to me, then Xiangzi is trying to extort money from me."

The more Old Lady Li spoke, the more confident she became, even straightening her back considerably. She was determined not to lose money; at worst, she'd just eat the chickens and ducks Xiangzi brought back herself. What could happen? At worst, she'd get sick, or even die from eating them! The group was making a mountain out of a molehill.

In the past, life was tough. They'd eaten nothing but chaff, let alone meat. They'd even eaten field mice from the mountains. Those poisonous field mice that roamed the mountains couldn't kill Old Li's wife, so what chance did a few chickens have? Anyway, losing money was absolutely out of the question.

Qian Bin retorted, "Tch, I wonder if Xiangzi is just faking it. I saw how Xiangzi looked when he came over at noon. He was perfectly fine and even greeted the aunties standing at the door. He didn't look weak at all. I wonder if he's faking it and then came over to speak up for the village chief just to scare us."

Xiangzi remained silent in Zhao Da'e's arms. It wasn't that he didn't want to speak, but he was afraid that if he spoke, he would give himself away. In addition, he had taken too much laxative in the afternoon, so he was a little weak and didn't have the strength to say anything.

However, he did admire Qian Bin. He was able to guess the truth of the matter. Xiangzi thought that if he were to act it out himself and then Qian Bin said something like that, he would definitely feel guilty and stutter, which would give him away. He really couldn't act at all.

After hearing this, Zhao Da'e patted Xiangzi's hand, signaling him not to say anything more, as she would take care of everything.

These people were being unreasonable, so Zhao Da'e didn't think too much about it. He got up and walked straight towards Qian Bin.

"What do you mean? Are you saying Xiangzi is lying? Xiangzi is already in this state, why would he fake illness to deceive you? What are you up to? Besides, it's obvious you're involved everywhere. You're the kind of person who gets beaten up just for watching the show, and you're always spouting nonsense without any restraint. I've said my piece today. If something really happens to Xiangzi, big or small, can you take responsibility for it?"

Qian Bin was stunned by Zhao Da'e's imposing manner. He stammered for a long time, his face turning red, unable to utter a word.

Zhao Da'e continued, turning to the crowd, "Xiangzi developed these red heat rash, which is why he went to the clinic to see Chen Shuyi. He later learned it was likely chicken plague. Chen Shuyi can't cure it, so Xiangzi has to go to the hospital for medicine. You don't believe Xiangzi, and you even suspect my great-grandfather hired someone to put on a show. Fine, then where is Chen Shuyi at the clinic?"

He's not from our village; he's just a barefoot doctor. There's no need for him to lie for Xiangzi. Chen Shuyi said this illness is quite strange; once someone gets it, they don't get better for a long time. Why don't you ask Chen Shuyi and see if that's really the case?"

Zhao Da'e brought up Chen Shuyi, but Qian Bin scoffed, "Ha, fine, since you've brought up that cripple, then call him out. Let's see if Chen Shuyi will come out and stand on your side. I just don't believe that chicken and duck meat with fowl plague can be harmful. It's all just your nonsense."

Putting everything else aside, Qian Bin is incredibly stubborn. Even Chen Shuyi, hiding behind the crowd, had to admire Qian Bin: this kid didn't deserve to be beaten up.

However, Chen Shuyi also knew Qian Bin's character; this guy was a good-for-nothing. He was always gossiping about this and that, never telling anything serious, and always making up a string of lies. He was the kind of person you couldn't believe a word he said.

Chen Shuyi looked around and realized it was his turn to make his appearance, so he shouted, "Big Goose is right."

Upon hearing this, all eyes turned to Chen Shuyi. He stood with his hands behind his back, his face serious and his expression icy. Chen Shuyi had suffered from polio as a child, leaving him with some leg problems. Although his limp wasn't severe, and the villagers secretly called him "Little Cripple," it still bothered him greatly when he heard it back then.

The crowd automatically parted to make way for Chen Shuyi, allowing him to walk to the center. Chen Shuyi looked at Qian Bin and slowly said, "Da'e is right. Xiangzi's condition is indeed caused by these chickens, ducks, and geese infected with fowl plague. I'm a doctor; no one understands the serious consequences of fowl plague better than me. The meat of these infected chickens, ducks, and geese is inherently unclean and toxic. Even cooking it for a longer time won't help. Even the broth is unhealthy and toxic. If you drink it, you might experience vomiting or allergic reactions. If you eat too much, your kidneys, which are responsible for detoxification, will be unable to handle digesting so much." The toxins will eventually damage your kidneys, and that damage is irreversible. Only a kidney transplant or other expensive treatments at major hospitals can cure it. This process will cost several thousand to tens of thousands of yuan just to leave the hospital. If you want to tough it out and avoid going to the hospital, that's fine, but I guarantee you won't live long. Within a few years, your body will develop various problems due to kidney failure, eventually leading to death. This isn't just scaremongering; it's a real possibility. Your health is your own responsibility. If you don't even value it, then there's really nothing I can do.

What Chen Shuyi said wasn't wrong; this disease is indeed incurable. Moreover, many zoonotic diseases are particularly difficult to cure. The human immune system has very little chance of developing immunity to this virus.

Although the chances of contracting it are not very high, once you do, you're essentially disabled. This isn't just about this one virus; later viruses, such as brucellosis which are zoonotic (cattle, sheep, and humans), are even more serious.

Therefore, the state strictly prohibits the use of infectious viruses like these. Infected animals will definitely be disposed of in a harmless manner. Human health must always be the top priority.

Although Chen Shuyi didn't speak in a particularly impassioned way, his words essentially represented a definitive statement on the matter: chickens, ducks, and geese carrying the virus should not be eaten or touched.

“I’ve already had the village chief inform you. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. I don’t care; I’ve done my duty. You can listen to what the village chief says or not. The veterinary station will send someone down within half a day to collect all the sick chickens, ducks, geese, and other animals in the vicinity. After the notification, if you get sick, it’s your own business. Just take responsibility for whatever happens.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the surroundings fell silent. Zhao Tingming had told the story, and now the only doctor in the village, Chen Shuyi, said the same thing. In addition, Xiangzi had also fallen ill, so it must be true.

To be fair, Zhao Tingming has truly been a dedicated village chief over the years. Whenever there's something good, he's always the first to try and secure it for his village. If a man in the village beats a woman, he's always the first to step in and teach the man a lesson. And if any parents are away and their children are hungry, they can always come to the village chief's house for a meal.

Perhaps Zhao Tingming was too kind to these villagers, so much so that they thought it was all part of the village chief's job, and consequently, the villagers didn't show him much respect. Zhao Tingming was also very approachable, and as he got older, his personal authority diminished somewhat.

In addition, the recent commotion at the Zhao family's home has also had some influence on Zhao Tingming's chances of becoming the village chief.

When Old Liu realized it was true, he regretted his actions. He felt uneasy when he recalled the things he and the others had just said to Zhao Tingming: "I knew Old Zhao wouldn't lie to us. He never broadcasts anything like that for no reason."

Zhao Da'e frowned: "Old Liu, that's not what you just said. You still haven't changed your opportunistic ways even in your old age."

Old Liu was a little embarrassed: "You kid... I was just thinking that if the chickens and ducks are okay, it would be a waste to throw them away. But the goose, I wasn't targeting your great-grandfather, don't talk nonsense. Someone else is targeting your great-grandfather."

Old Liu's statement about someone else refers to Qian Bin.

Zhao Da'e squinted at Qian Bin: This bastard is a real piece of work. If it weren't for this bastard causing trouble, this whole thing would have been a simple matter of a word. After the notification was given, everyone would go home. At most, Xiangzi would go to the two families who sold chickens, ducks, and geese to extort some medical expenses. Afterward, everyone would spread the word, and that would be the end of it.

As it turns out, this good-for-nothing, after drinking some fake alcohol, did nothing of importance but just started causing trouble.

In Dongtaizi Village, the Zhao family was a large and wealthy household. Naturally, they wouldn't take Qian Bin seriously; otherwise, Zhao Tingming wouldn't have beaten him up. And Zhao Da'e didn't even consider Qian Bin human…

"You little punk."

Qian Bin was stunned. He looked at Zhao Dage with disbelief and asked, "Are you insulting me?"

Zhao Da'e scoffed, "You heard me right, you little punk. Someone like you, I should go home and drag all my uncles and grandpas out and beat you so badly your own mother wouldn't recognize you."

Zhao Da'e wasn't really threatening Qian Bin. If Zhao Da'e went back and shouted a few times, he could summon dozens of people. No matter what, they were all from the same clan and would support Zhao Tingming as village chief. Even if Zhao Tingming was wrong, they would say he was right.

Besides, Zhao Tingming was right this time.

Qian Bin got angry: "You're young, I won't stoop to your level."

Then he changed the subject: "Besides, it's not like I doubted the village chief myself; a group of people were doubting him just now. Why are you cursing me? What did I do to you? Besides, the village chief slapped me several times, and I haven't even had a chance to reason with him."