Chapter 155 - Causes of Illness
historical
Fang Liu stayed longer to coax Chun Ni after chatting with her. Then she left shortly after making sure that Chun Ni had calmed down.
Fang Liu was filled with anger and grief when she heard the story from Chun Ni. She thought that Da Bao was ruthless and heartless as she relayed the story to the director and cameraman.
When the cameraman heard the story, he snarled, “That b*stard got what he deserves. That’s why he’s barking like a dog.”
The director echoed, “He brought this upon himself. This is just karma in action.”
Fang Liu agreed with the others. However, she explained to the two that she didn’t tell them this to spread hate or anger. Fang Liu paused and said with caution, “I think this incident is related to Da Bao’s condition.”
The other two were stunned, then the cameraman nodded and replied, “Indeed, Da Bao only started behaving like that after he killed the dog. Has he lost his mind?”
Fang Liu frowned. “If Da Bao had lost his mind, his inability to speak wouldn’t be the only issue.”
“Then what’s happening to him?” The director asked in puzzlement.
Fang Liu sat down and took a sip of water before continuing, “I have two theories, and one of them is that the dog is haunting Da Bao.” As Fang Liu said this, the others immediately waved their hands and said, “You can’t say such things, Doctor Fang.”
Fang Liu smiled and replied, “It’s just a theory. Although I’m a realist, there are many unknowns in this world that humans have yet to explore. Perhaps there are mysterious forces at play here.”
Fang Liu noticed that the others shared a look of fear and nervousness, then she continued, “The other theory is that there’s something wrong with Da Bao’s vocal cords.”
“His vocal cords?” The two said in unison.
Fang Liu nodded and recalled a case she had read about in an old book. The book told of a man who drugged, stole, and mutilated countless dogs. In his later years, he regretted what he did to those poor creatures, so he dedicated the remainder of his life to caring for dogs. He fed and served the dogs well.
Not long after, the neighboring folks found that the man could not speak the human language. He only barked while still behaving like an average human. When a village chief familiar with medicine heard about this, he went to the man’s home to investigate.
After studying the case for a long while, the chief noticed that the man’s Adam’s apple was deformed. The chief guessed that the man’s vocal cords had changed, causing him to become unable to speak and only bark.
This story was recorded in the county records. Later on, the records were damaged, and it was then written into the unofficial history of some authors interested in folk tales.
The director and cameraman were in disbelief when they heard this. One of them said, “S-Something like that actually happened?”
Fang Liu nodded and said, “Our program aims to treat rare diseases, so I’m going to make a bold guess and say that something has caused Da Bao’s vocal cords to change for a strange reason. That’s why he can only bark and not speak.”
The director and cameraman looked at each other and said, “So, what should we do?”
Fang Liu replied, “We should go back to the Tang family home.”
The older man was peeling peanuts in the courtyard when Fang Liu and the others arrived. When the older man saw the three people coming over, he became nervous and stared at them warily.
Fang Liu smiled politely and said, “Sir, please don’t be nervous. We came to ask you some questions. Has your grandson ever been sick or behaved strangely before developing his current condition?”
The older man thought for a while. Then he said, “Da Bao had a terrible fever that lasted several days, his throat became sore, and he also had nightmares.”
“Da Bao shouted at the top of his voice, saying something about a dead dog. He started barking soon after as if he was scolding the dog.
But he continued to bark even though his fever and nightmares went away.”
Fang Liu and the others exchanged looks, nodded, and thought, ‘As expected.’
Da Bao must’ve lost his voice when he had a fever and sore throat. He also had nightmares about the dog, so he started barking like one, damaging his vocal cords in the process. But for some reason, he still couldn’t manage to speak.
The older man finished speaking and looked at the others suspiciously. “Why did you ask me those questions? Do you know how to cure my grandson?”
Fang Liu pursed her lips and smiled. “You guessed it. I can cure your grandson.”
Fang Liu and the others returned to their hostel shortly after talking with the older man. The director looked at Fang Liu with a worried expression. “Doctor Fang, are you willing to cure that little b*stard?”
Fang Liu nodded. Then the cameraman mumbled, “Why would you save that little b*stard? I’d rather lose viewership and ratings than save that cruel child.”.