Manbao, wearing a mask, stood beside the cow, carefully and quickly extracting the scabs with tongs and placing them into a jar. She had already collected quite a few this morning.
Seeing Jiu Lan appear not far from the barn, Manbao nodded at her, then put down the tongs and closed the jar. She turned her neck towards Imperial Doctor Lu, who was on the other side, and said, "Imperial Doctor Lu, it's time for lunch."
Manbao carried the jar inside, placed it on a shelf, washed her hands, and then removed her mask.
Imperial Doctor Lu slowly moved inside. After standing all morning, his calves and the soles of his feet felt a bit numb.
He placed the jar next to Zhou Man's before going to wash his hands and remove his mask.
After removing it and breathing in the fresh air, he remembered that he had already had smallpox, so there was no need for him to even wear it.
But since he had already worn it, he didn't mention it.
