Chapter 372: Chapter 372: Gradually Taking Effect

The next day.

Just like any other day, Ai Shengbing listlessly drank his medicine.

Then he lay back down, waiting for the inevitable end.

However, that afternoon, as Wang Xiufang prepared to drain the fluid from Ai Shengbing’s chest, her hands suddenly froze.

It was a small task she performed every day: removing the drainage bag connected to the catheter in Ai Shengbing’s chest and emptying the accumulated fluid.

Each time, the mixture of blood and fluid she poured out would nearly fill more than half the drainage bag.

But today, when she opened the valve, she noticed the mixture of blood and fluid in the bag was significantly less than before.

She rubbed her eyes in surprise, thinking she must have been mistaken.

She checked again and again. The fluid in the drainage bag was indeed about a quarter less than usual.

"How could this be..."

she murmured to herself, her heart a mix of shock and apprehension.

’She didn’t know if this change was good or bad. Has his condition worsened?’

’Or... is the Chinese medicine actually working?’

She didn’t dare say anything, afraid this was just a flash in the pan or some kind of bad omen.

She continued to carefully tend to her son, praying silently.

On the third day, with a heart full of unease, Wang Xiufang went to drain her son’s chest fluid again.

This time, when she saw the drainage bag, her breath caught in her throat!

The mixture of blood and fluid in the bag was nearly half of what it had been the day before.

It wasn’t just less; it was a drastic reduction.

Moreover, she also noticed that her son’s wheezing had become much lighter, no longer the heart-wrenching gasps from before.

He could even lie flat for a short while without being immediately forced to sit up by the tightness in his chest.

"Son, son, you... how are you feeling?"

Wang Xiufang’s voice trembled with excitement.

She sat on the edge of the bed and grasped Ai Shengbing’s frail hand, a whirlwind of elation, shock, and disbelief churning within her.

Ai Shengbing looked at his mother, a little dazed.

He could sense his mother’s excitement,

but he felt the changes in his own body even more profoundly.

"Mom, I... I think I’m a little better,"

he said weakly.

His voice was still hoarse, but it was no longer as faint as a thread.

What surprised him most was that

he felt his heart palpitations had also improved a lot.

Before, his heart had pounded like a chaotic drumbeat in his chest, leaving him unable to eat or sleep in peace.

Now, although he could still feel his heartbeat, that frenzied sensation had greatly diminished, replaced by a relatively calm rhythm.

The suffocating feeling of being shrouded in the shadow of death seemed to have dissipated a little as well.

Wang Xiufang was so excited she became incoherent. "It’s true, it’s true... Son, your chest fluid has decreased so much, and your wheezing sounds lighter... Dr. Li is a Divine Physician! This medicine is working..."

Ai Shengbing looked at his mother’s face, streaked with tears of joy.

A long-lost glimmer of hope ignited within him—a powerful desire to live.

This wasn’t just the relief brought by the medicine; it was the call of life’s own instinct.

Just as mother and son were immersed in their joy, Dong Chen called again.

"Ms. Wang, how is the patient’s condition? Has there been any improvement from the medicine?"

Dong Chen was calling to check on the situation.

If the patient’s condition hadn’t improved, he was ready to immediately reprimand Li Xu.

If the patient’s condition had improved,

he could proceed with the next phase of his plan.

Wang Xiufang said excitedly, "My son’s condition has improved! Dr. Li’s medicine is truly miraculous!"

Dong Chen replied cheerfully, "See? I told you Dr. Li is highly skilled and would have a solution. Tell me the specifics."

Wang Xiufang excitedly relayed her son’s condition in detail: "...the chest fluid has decreased a lot, his wheezing is lighter, and the palpitations have eased..."

Listening to Wang Xiufang’s detailed description, Dong Chen felt a sense of smug satisfaction.

’Everything is going just as Zhang Lin predicted.’

’Li Xu’s prescription can indeed treat the surface symptoms and temporarily alleviate the fluid in the chest.’

On the surface, he encouraged Wang Xiufang, telling her to continue taking Li Xu’s medicine.

After hanging up, he thought for a moment and then called Reporter Li Yang. "Reporter Li, there’s a new development. Ai Shengbing’s condition has improved. The fluid has decreased, and his wheezing and palpitations are also noticeably better. You can do a follow-up report. Make sure to spread this good news and let everyone know how amazing Chinese medicine is."

Dong Chen’s plan was simple: the higher you build someone up, the harder they fall.

He wanted everyone to see Li Xu "cure" Ai Shengbing’s surface symptoms,

so that when the time came,

and the patient’s condition suddenly worsened, it would be clear that Li Xu had failed to cure him after all.

This would utterly ruin Li Xu’s reputation.

When Li Yang received Dong Chen’s call, she was a little puzzled. ’Isn’t Dong Chen a critic of Chinese medicine?’

’Why is he being so helpful?’

She couldn’t figure it out.

But, upholding her professional ethics as a journalist, she went to Ai Shengbing’s home to conduct an interview.

She photographed the drainage bag, which showed a clear improvement, recorded Wang Xiufang’s excited descriptions, and captured the look of renewed hope in Ai Shengbing’s eyes.

Soon, a follow-up report titled, "Another Chinese Medicine Miracle? Terminal Lung Cancer Patient Shows Significant Improvement, Dr. Li Xu Achieves Another Success!" once again appeared in the newspaper.

The report detailed the changes in Ai Shengbing after taking the medicine, including the reduction of fluid in the drainage bag.

Many people were astonished when they saw the report.

"Is this for real? Even terminal lung cancer can be improved? This Chinese medicine is just too incredible!"

"That ’curing illness with yellow earth’ thing was already bizarre enough, and now they can even treat cancer? Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?"

"But the report has pictures! The fluid in the drainage bag really is a lot less!"

"Maybe it’s just a temporary remission. Cancer isn’t that easy to cure."

Everyone remained skeptical.

But undeniably, Li Xu’s fame reached a new height.

Li Xu also saw Li Yang’s follow-up report.

He put down the newspaper and contacted Wang Xiufang to ask for a detailed, real-time update on Ai Shengbing’s condition.

"Dr. Li, thank you so, so much! My son is much better now. The chest fluid has noticeably decreased, his wheezing is lighter, he can finally get a peaceful night’s sleep, and his palpitations are much better."

Wang Xiufang was so excited on the phone she was practically incoherent.

After listening carefully, Li Xu also breathed a sigh of relief.

According to the principles of Chinese medicine, wheezing and palpitations are caused by the pressure on the heart and lungs from "Phlegm-Fluid stagnating in the chest."

Now that these symptoms had clearly improved,

it meant the first stage of treatment had achieved significant results.

"Very good. Ma’am, please continue to have the patient take the remaining medicine according to the prescription."

Li Xu instructed, "After the seven doses are finished, the fluid buildup in the patient’s thoracic cavity and pericardium should be mostly resolved. At that point, it will be time to proceed to the next stage of treatment."

He hung up the phone, lost in thought.

’The first stage of treatment solved the surface symptoms—the problem of phlegm-fluid and effusion.’

’But the "internal syndrome" of lung cancer, the tumor itself, still requires a deeper level of conditioning and treatment.’

According to the treatment plan from his intel, the next stage of treatment required a very important medicinal ingredient: Chicken Gallbladder.