Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

These grooms, not wanting to be killed, quickly brought over the large tack for the "One-Zhang-Black" horse. With three men and six hands working together, they successfully put the tack on the horse in no time.

Give me An Daoquan!

Li Hanxiao flipped himself onto the "One-Zhang-Black" horse, placed An Daoquan on its broad back, and then spurred the horse into a gallop.

Li Hanxiao wanted to test the horse to see what it was like, and the result was very pleasing. The big black horse "One Zhang Black" was indeed just as the grooms had said, it had no temper at all.

"Brothers, let's go!"

Seeing this, Li Hanxiao immediately told everyone to get the horses and hurry up, but the three grooms rushed up and blocked their way.

"do what!"

Upon seeing this, Shi Xiu, known as "Desperate Saburo," immediately brandished his knife and forced the three men away. The three grooms quickly waved their hands, indicating that they meant no harm.

"Heroes, if you take this horse away, we won't be able to explain it to the owner. Could you please beat us up? We're injured, so just say you forcibly took it from us. We couldn't stop you, so at least we can save our lives!"

After saying this, the three grooms bowed and kowtowed repeatedly in gratitude.

Li Hanxiao was both amused and exasperated by their words, because the world was truly strange. These people who had begged others to beat them up were now thanking the people who had beaten them up in order to survive.

"go with!"

Li Hanxiao gave a signal to "Desperate Saburo" Shi Xiu, who understood and, with all his might, punched and kicked each of the three grooms, leaving some bruises on their faces.

"Is it enough?"

"Oh, that's enough! Thank you! Thank you!"

The three grooms, grimacing and helping each other, entered the stable, sprawled out on their backs pretending to be unconscious, while Li Hanxiao rode "One-Zhang-Black" and led the other three quickly into the woods to retrieve their respective mounts.

Once inside the woods, Li Hanxiao and his companions changed into their own horses, tied the "miracle doctor" An Daoquan to the "One-Zhang-Black" horse, and led it with the reins by "Desperate Saburo" Shi Xiu, along with the pack of dogs, to the agreed-upon location.

When they arrived at their destination, it was exactly where Old Man Wang Dingliu was waiting. Old Man Wang had already hired a carriage to wait there. Seeing that they had returned safely, his heart, which had been pounding in his chest, finally calmed down.

The group immediately unloaded the horses from the carriage, harnessed the "One-Zhang-Black" horse, put An Daoquan into the carriage and laid him down, and then Old Man Wang rode the horse that was originally harnessed to the carriage and set off at breakneck speed!

Now is not the time to stop. Li Hanxiao does not intend to let everyone rest until they have run seventy or eighty miles in one go, because the Zhu family's power in this Jiangnan region is too great, almost to the point of having connections everywhere. Staying here any longer will only increase the danger.

They ran from dawn until dusk, when it was completely dark. Li Hanxiao and the others had no idea where they had run to. It was late, and all they knew was that the area was full of mountains, and they could even hear wolves howling.

Li Hanxiao decided to camp there for the night, sending out his dozens of dogs to keep watch, while the group made a fire and ate something.

Li Hanxiao finally had the opportunity to check on the condition of the "miracle doctor" An Daoquan's wounds. To be honest, when he rescued An Daoquan from the water dungeon, Li Hanxiao was already prepared for An Daoquan to die on the way.

Looking at the condition of the "miracle doctor" An Daoquan again, Li Hanxiao found that the guy's condition was much better than he had expected. Li Hanxiao had previously thought that several of his wounds were already infected, but now, upon closer inspection, it turned out that the wounds were just swollen and not infected.

However, his injuries will take a long time to heal. There is basically no unscathed spot on his body, and even the fingernails on all ten of his fingers have disappeared.

Li Han thought to himself, "Zhu Ruxian really put 'miracle doctor' An Daoquan under torture, even pulling out his fingernails. I wonder if the Zhaizidong and Bai Mansion prisons in later generations learned this trick from Zhu Ruxian."

Knowing all along that the "miracle doctor" An Daoquan might be beaten half to death, Li Hanxiao had already asked Old Man Wang to spend a lot of money to buy a century-old ginseng before the operation, and was now brewing ginseng soup for An Daoquan.

Li Hanxiao knew that An Daoquan had been beaten so badly that he was probably severely injured. He should first give him ginseng soup to keep him alive, otherwise he would die on the road sooner or later.

"Chief, ginseng soup."

Wang Dingliu, known as "Living Flash Granny," brought over a bowl of ginseng soup and handed it to Li Hanxiao. Li Hanxiao then took out a hollow eagle feather tube, stuffed it into the mouth of "Miracle Doctor" An Daoquan, and used it as a straw to feed him the ginseng soup little by little.

Fortunately, An Daoquan could still drink the ginseng soup. After coughing twice and taking a couple of sips, he actually opened his eyes and said very weakly, "Fourth-grade ginseng, not very good..."

Li Hanxiao was shocked. He knew that identifying the growth period of wild ginseng was very complicated. Generally, the leaves were only used as a reference for identification. The main things to look at were the rhizome, stem, texture, and whiskers. In addition, there were five shapes and six parts. In short, it was very difficult to identify. Even an old mountain runner would not dare to say that he could identify the ginseng without making a mistake.

And this "miracle doctor" An Daoquan was able to tell that it was a fourth-grade ginseng after only drinking two sips of ginseng soup!

This is amazing!

This wild ginseng with four leaves is about 40-50 years old, while Li Hanxiao asked Wang Dingliu's father to buy a hundred-year-old ginseng. The age difference is almost half!

Li Han laughed without doubting that Old Man Wang was lining his own pocket. An old man like him had no reason to do so. He had never even seen what a hundred-year-old ginseng looked like, so he probably couldn't tell the difference at all. The people at the pharmacy had cheated him by passing off inferior goods as superior ones.

"Dr. An, you're awake! How are you feeling?"

Although this is a fourth-grade ginseng, it still has some effect. Li Hanxiao immediately inquired about An Daoquan's condition.

"Oh no, I'm injured all over now, I can't eat too much ginseng soup, some polygonatum would be more suitable... cough cough, by the way, who are you, and why did you save me from this predicament..."

In fact, "Miracle Doctor" An Daoquan woke up when Li Hanxiao and his group rescued him from the water dungeon and ran away in the manor. However, he was too weak and later fainted again. But he still knew the general process.

"I am Li Hanxiao, the master of Liangshan Marsh. I originally came to Jiankang Prefecture to ask Physician An to treat one of my brothers. Unexpectedly, I found Physician An imprisoned. After hearing what happened, I was filled with righteous indignation and rescued you. Now I am on my way to Liangshan Marsh."

After Li Han finished speaking with a smile, "miracle doctor" An Daoquan couldn't help but sigh.

He'll probably never be able to return to Jiankang Prefecture in this lifetime!

He knew that although he was spared, he had offended Zhu Ruxian after all. He was practically a criminal, if not guilty. If he continued to associate with these people, he would be doomed.

However, to be fair, although he was unwilling, Li Hanxiao was indeed his savior. Without him, he would probably have been fed to the crocodiles or snakes sooner or later.

Regardless of what happened, they gave him a chance to live. As for the rest of his life, he'll probably have to stay in Liangshan Marsh...

Finally, this vast world has left him a place to settle down...

What could he do about his fate?

"Cough cough cough, I thank you in advance for saving my life. I'm afraid I won't be able to return to Jiankang Prefecture in the future, so I'll have to ask for your continued care!"

An Daoquan then expressed his gratitude, which helped him build a closer relationship with Li Hanxiao. Li Hanxiao understood what An Daoquan meant, nodded, and said, "Of course, I will certainly treat Doctor An with special consideration!"

"However, if I want to reach you safely, you must find a way to heal me, otherwise I will surely die on the way. If we can reach a place with villages or towns, please find me a doctor and I will instruct him to save me."

An Daoquan said.

"Tell me what you need, Doctor An, and I'll help you!"

Li Han smiled and said.

An Daoquan smiled bitterly, "A doctor cannot heal himself, and it's difficult to save others than to save oneself. That's the rule. I can't save myself. You don't understand medical principles, so telling you won't help..."

Li Hanxiao then remembered the traditional rule of Chinese medicine, which is "a doctor cannot heal himself".

It is generally believed that doctors cannot heal themselves because they have a good understanding of diseases, medical principles, and pharmacology. When treating patients, they can objectively diagnose and treat according to the patient's condition. They prescribe medicine based on the disease and have few reservations, so they are often effective.

When treating themselves or their family members, they often have many thoughts and concerns, worrying that a certain medicine is too hot, too cold, harmful, or poisonous. They weigh the pros and cons and can't make a decision. When they start prescribing medicine, they carefully change the ingredients and adjust the prescription again and again.

The final prescription, with its ingredients violating the principles of monarch, minister, assistant, and guide in drug combination, suffers from a sharp reduction in efficacy; its dosage does not conform to the four properties of cold, heat, warmth, and coolness, and its purpose is unclear, resulting in a situation where it neither strengthens the body's resistance nor expels pathogens, thus leading to a less effective treatment. Many people believe that the saying "a doctor cannot heal himself" is determined by this kind of "self-preservation" human nature and "worry" mentality. However, this may not be the only reason.

Skilled doctors, on the other hand, pay closer attention to their health and take better care of themselves than ordinary people. For example, renowned physicians such as Hua Tuo, Zhang Zhongjing, Ge Hong, Sun Simiao, Qian Yi, and Li Shizhen all lived to be over sixty years old.

In ancient times, people over sixty years old were comparable to people over ninety years old today. Their longevity was clearly inseparable from their superb medical skills.

A doctor who usually pays great attention to maintaining his health will inevitably suffer from a serious and acute illness when he gets sick. With severe symptoms and advanced age, even the most superb medical skills may not be able to save him. This is why "a doctor cannot heal himself".

"Alright, once we reach safe ground, I'll fetch a doctor to treat you. Doctor An, would you like to eat something now?"

Li Han smiled and nodded, then asked.

What food is available now?

An Daoquan asked weakly.

"I cooked a pot of rice porridge and some dried biscuits."

Li Han smiled and said.

"I can't drink rice porridge, but you can boil it and skim off the layer of rice oil on top for me to eat. It'll be good for me..."

This rice oil is also a traditional Chinese medicine. Li Hanxiao knew that this stuff is the thick liquid that floats on the surface of the pot when cooking rice porridge. It has the effects of tonifying the kidneys and spleen, promoting urination and relieving urinary tract infections. It is mainly used to treat spleen deficiency and emaciation, kidney deficiency and infertility, and urinary tract infections.

So Li Hanxiao told the "living flashy old woman" Wang Dingliu to feed the "miracle doctor" An Daoquan some rice oil. This stuff was produced in very small quantities; a pot of rice porridge would only yield a thin layer, just a spoonful or two, enough to make your mouth smell nice.

As for rice porridge, according to An Daoquan, he probably can't eat it in his current condition. He told Li Hanxiao to give him some honey water to drink every day to maintain his strength, and to find a doctor to save him when they get to the village.

"What a fine horse! What a fine horse!"

Beside the campfire, Qin Zhi, the "Golden-Faced Buddha," was stroking the smooth fur of the "One-Zhang-Black" horse. This horse was huge, strong, and had good speed and stamina. It was extremely good at carrying heavy loads and had a gentle temperament. Its only drawback was that it was too big for normal people to mount, and it was difficult for shorter people to control and ride.

It's safe to say that who wouldn't love such a fine horse?

"Chief, are you really going to just give such a fine horse to that Du Xue?"

While stroking the fur of "One-Zhang-Black," Qin Zhi, the "Golden-Faced Buddha," asked Li Han with great reluctance.

"Yes, it is indeed a fine horse, but that Du Xue is truly a master. I was able to defeat him, probably by using a trick. I dare say that there is no one on Liangshan who can defeat him in a real fight. Do you believe me?"

Li Hanxiao's words left "Golden-Faced Buddha" Qin Zhi speechless, because it was indeed true. This "Nine-Headed Lion" Du Xue's martial arts were too formidable. If it were a real fight, probably no one on Liangshan would be able to defeat him.

Of course, this calculation also includes a draw. After all, even if someone on Liangshan could fight him to a draw, it wouldn't count as a victory over "Nine-Headed Lion" Du Xue.

"Yes, this guy's martial arts are too high. In my opinion, apart from you, the chieftain, the only person I've ever seen in my life who could possibly defeat him is my cousin..."

The "Golden-Faced Buddha" Qin Zhi was referring to was his cousin from the Luo family, Luo Yanzhi, a descendant of Luo Fang, the Duke of Yue of Chaling Prefecture.

"Is your cousin really that skilled in martial arts?"

Li Hanxiao never expected that Luo Yanzhi's fighting prowess could be comparable to that of "Nine-Headed Lion" Du Xue, which greatly exceeded Li Hanxiao's expectations!

"Yes, among us brothers, our martial arts skills are actually about the same. Brother Cheng Da may be a little lower than the rest of us, but my cousin Luo Yanzhi is a cut above the rest. His ancestor was a man who could lock up five dragons in a single day!"