Chapter 16
It should be said that the Persia not only fulfilled their promise, but they also did it very well. They brought the Greeks to a fertile land. The land was densely covered with farmland and surrounded by more than a dozen rich villages. The Greeks even vacated two villages for the garrison camp and prepared a lot of delicious food.
After a few days of exhaustion and hunger, the soldiers ate to their heart's content.
The next day, when Dyvers woke up, he felt that his fatigue had been swept away, and he was full of energy. Thinking of what the Persians had done, he was a little confused. If this was a strategy of arrogance, was it really necessary to pay such a big price? Could it be that this was a country that bullied the weak and feared the strong, just like the Northern Song in China's history?
He tried to recall what the university professor he had invited to teach him when he was studying at the Party School in his previous life. The professor had said that the Persians took advantage of the decline of the Medes and Assyria, the hegemons of the Mesopotamia, to rise to power. Because Cyrus had adopted a policy of tolerance for the cultures and religions of all races, all races surrendered wherever they went, and their territory snowballed.
How could such a vast territory be managed? First of all, Persia's birthplace, Persia Polis, was the capital and was personally ruled by the king. Mesopotamia was the most fertile area and was directly ruled by the king. Other areas were governed by governors. Most of the ethnic groups were autonomous and paid taxes regularly … Wait a minute, Mesopotamia was directly ruled by the king of Persia!
Devers had a flash of inspiration. In his memory, when the mercenaries passed through Silesia, Cyrus the Younger allowed the Greeks to plunder. But after crossing the Tapisacus River and entering the Mesopotamia, the management was much stricter. Even when they bought things, they had to pay according to the price. Could it be … Could it be …
"Devers, come with me to see Asistes!" A big hand pulled Devers up and interrupted his thoughts.
"Who?" Devers asked Hilos in confusion.
"Asistes is Antonios's nephew. Yesterday, when he was crossing the wooden bridge, the bridge suddenly broke and he fell into the river. The broken wood also pierced a big hole in his thigh. Unexpectedly, this morning, his whole body was hot, and he was unconscious. He even said some strange things, and the doctor could not do anything about it. Antonius wants you to take a look! "Hilos said anxiously.
"Strange words?! It seems that he has already reached Hell and encountered Rhadamantos. I reckon there's no hope. " When Olivers saw Hilos glaring at him, he quickly corrected himself. "Of course, Devers. You are Hades' Beloved. He has no choice but to come back to life!"
Devers looked troubled. "I really want to help, but I don't know how to treat illnesses."
Hilos comforted him, "Antonius understands. It's just that for someone who is about to lose a loved one, he has to give it a try even if there's a little hope. "
Facing Hilos's expectant gaze, Devers was silent. His nervous mood just now slowly calmed down. Even if I can't save Asistes, can I erase the help I've given to everyone these past two days?! Apart from pretending to be mysterious, can't I gain their trust with my abilities?! Without this nickname, perhaps some of Menon's jealousy and hatred toward him could be relieved.
Thinking of this, he nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go with you."
"I'll go too." Giogris, who was in the room, also stood up.
… …
They came to a room with closed doors and windows. There were shadows in the room.
"Dyvers is here!" His words quickly made the people make way for him.
Devers came to the bed and saw a young man in his twenties lying on the bed, his eyes closed, his lips dry, and his body red. There was a wedge-shaped wound about six centimeters long near his left thigh, and the wound was swollen to the size of a fist. He was talking nonsense, and his hands and feet were twitching, but he was held down tightly by someone.
Devers first put his hand against the patient's forehead, and it was so hot that it burned his hand. He then gently pressed his hand against the swelling, and green pus flowed out of the wound. His fingers felt sticky, and there was a faint fragrance.
At this moment, the man who was holding down the patient raised his head, looked at him, and said, "I applied sesame oil made from grape leaves to the wound, hoping to calm him down, but it doesn't seem to be working."
"His name is Helps, and he's our camp's doctor," Hilos said in a low voice, seeing the Devers's confusion.
Such a strong man was actually a doctor?! Devers looked at him and blurted out, "Why don't you use bloodletting?"
"Is it necessary to use bloodletting? I was considering that in case of bloodletting, it would take a long time for Asistes to recover, and we're on our way home! " Helps explained, "I even used what little 'maleficarum' I had left, but it seems that the spice therapy didn't work at all." He looked a little depressed.
No wonder there was a strange smell in the air, and I thought it was the body odor of these people. Didn't the West love to use bloodletting to treat diseases before the Renaissance? Devers thought about some interesting stories about the ancient West that he had read in his previous life.
"Oh, what's your name? Which camp did Antonios invite the doctor from? "Helps asked.
Devers hesitated, thinking about how to answer. Antonios, who was waiting anxiously at the side, interrupted, "He's Devers! The 'God's Favored' of Pluto Hades! " After saying that, without looking at Helps's expression, he asked the Devers anxiously, "Asistes … Does he still … have hope?"
"I'll try my best, but I might not succeed," Devers answered cautiously.
"Just try your best! Just try your best! " Antonios's tired face had a hint of relief, "Do you need us to prepare the altar and the statue of Hades now?"
"What for?"
"For praying!"
Devers glanced around. Except for Helps, who was watching coldly, the others were looking at him with anticipation and excitement. They were waiting to see the "God's Arrival"!
Devers found it funny, and said solemnly, "I don't know how to pray. I don't know how to pray either. But I know some other methods of treatment, and I can try it. If you only want God to save Asistes, then I can only leave! "
"Oh!" Some people groaned in disappointment.
Antonios seemed to understand something, and immediately said firmly, "We'll do as you say!"
Devers said this because, first, he wanted to find a way out if his treatment failed, and second, he didn't want these people to associate him with God.
"Ask everyone to wait outside! … Open the doors and windows! … Boil a jar of water, find a few clean linen cloths, and put them in the boiling water! At the same time, find a sharp, unrusted knife, and put it in the boiling water! … Also, bring a few jars of cold water into the house! " Devers instructed slowly and clearly in a loud voice.
Antonios, Hilos, and Giogris didn't question him at all. Instead, they began to carry out his orders seriously, rushing around.
Helps originally thought that Devers was a witch doctor, and he didn't look friendly at all. Now that he saw that his arrangements were quite serious, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Devers, how are you going to treat him?"
"The wound didn't bleed a lot, so obviously, the blood vessels weren't injured. However, the wound is red and swollen, and there's pus, and there's a high fever. It's obviously caused by the wound infection, so we can first debridement and reduce the fever," Devers explained in detail. For modern people, this was just common sense. However, in this uncivilized era, people often thought that it was the work of gods and spirits, which was why witch doctors were so popular. Helps had previously thought that Devers was a witch doctor.
After listening to Devers's words, Helps' eyes lit up, "This is similar to the method that Hippocrates proposed to treat fractures, 'debridement, traction, and reduction.'"
"Hippocrates of Kos?" Devers was very familiar with this name. After all, Hippocrates was known as the "Father of Western Medicine."
"Yes. Do you know him? "
"I'm not familiar with him, but I've heard of him."
"When I passed by the Aegean Sea, I wanted to visit him, but he wasn't there. Although many doctors in Greece don't agree with him, he has indeed cured many people. "
Seeing Helps' regretful and envious look, Devers had an idea, "Can you be my assistant later?"
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