My girlfriend is from 1949

Chapter 4: Seeking Help - Two Small Yellow Croakers

During the Republic of China era, penicillin was a life-saving drug, and its price was as high as gold!

Even in Xibaipo, there is only one left in stock.

Even when the leader was sick, they couldn't bear to use it and gritted their teeth and endured it.

Ultimately, this penicillin was used to save a child from an ordinary family.

It was precisely because of this that it deeply stung the heart of the great man, and that a few years later he was able to produce penicillin independently, bringing down its exorbitant price and making it a drug that ordinary people could afford.

However, the current situation is dire. The Kuomintang has blocked trade and strengthened regulations, making it difficult to buy even with money.

Only occasionally, on the black market, can one purchase one at a high price.

Lin Wan is going to the black market tonight with the determination to potentially sacrifice herself.

Now that I've traveled to 2025, I'm asking this question on a whim.

However, limited by her perspective, she still felt that a Class A strategic material like penicillin would be a controlled item in peacetime, and would be difficult for ordinary people to buy!

"Penicillin?" Chen Huai'an blinked, puzzled. "You want to buy penicillin?"

"Yes!" Lin Wan nodded her head vigorously, her eyes full of anticipation.

During the Republic of China era, the common name was penicillin, and only someone as educated as her, who also worked in journalism, would know that the official name was penicillin.

Chen Huai'an lit a cigarette and thought carefully, "Penicillin is a prescription drug and is strictly controlled. Ordinary people can't buy it."

You can buy penicillin at pharmacies, but it's for oral administration.

Although a prescription is required, it's just a formality.

At most, the staff will remind you: Don't drink alcohol for seven days.

Otherwise, if you take cephalosporin and drink alcohol, you might just leave without warning!

Whether it's amoxicillin or cephalosporins, you can buy them with money.

However, when Lin Wan mentioned that the unit was "tube," it meant that it was a powder injection vial in a glass ampoule.

With the promotion and overuse of antibiotics, if you get sick or inflamed, you can get an injection at any small clinic.

In theory, it is very easy to use.

However, buying it and taking it home to use is not so easy.

Penicillin has an allergy rate, and severe allergic reactions can be fatal.

If an allergic reaction occurs in a hospital or clinic, the doctor will immediately administer anti-allergy medication as an emergency measure.

However, if patients inject the product themselves after buying it home, they may experience allergic reactions, such as difficulty breathing, anaphylactic shock, or even death!

In today's environment where you have to pay compensation if something goes wrong, wouldn't you be extorted until you go bankrupt?

If any medication purchased from a clinic causes problems, a single violation of regulations can lead to financial ruin.

Who would dare to sell?

In Chen Huai'an's understanding, hospitals and clinics are afraid of problems and dare not operate in violation of regulations, so it is difficult for ordinary people to buy penicillin powder injections.

When asked about an injectable form, I answered "injectable," which was a fairly standard answer.

"I see..." Lin Wan said calmly, as if she had expected this answer.

After all, in her understanding, it was normal for strategic materials like penicillin to be strictly controlled.

But human life is at stake, so we must try again.

This is why she was willing to risk being ambushed by the Secret Service to buy medicine on the black market.

Lin Wan pursed her red lips, thought for a moment, and gave an explanation in a low voice.

"One of our transportation stations was discovered by the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, and the comrades immediately evacuated."

At that time, Comrade Wang Hai, one of the members of our group, was responsible for covering the rear.

Although he successfully lured the enemy away, he was also wounded in the shoulder by the Secret Service.

The bullet was removed, but the wound showed signs of infection.

The patient is now experiencing redness, swelling, and fever.

If penicillin is not used in time, it can be life-threatening!

So the transportation station exchanged its remaining funds for two small yellow croakers, and I went to the black market to buy medicine.

Given the current tense situation, there is a high possibility that secret service agents are operating in disguise on the black market.

I carried a gun only to deal with emergencies.

Lin Wan recounted the whole story, her voice filled with anticipation and worry.

After thinking for a moment, he lowered his head and pulled up a corner of his mandarin jacket.

With slender fingers, she forcefully tore open a slit and took out two gleaming gold bars from the hidden compartment.

"These are small yellow croakers cast in Shanghai by Tongfeng Yuzhu. I'd like to trouble you to exchange them for two more for me here..."

Lin Wan extended two slender fingers, her expression solemn.

After a brief hesitation, I gritted my teeth and pulled one back.

"One or two small yellow croakers are fine, one is fine too!"

His voice was firm, and his eyes were filled with deep anticipation.

In 38, due to the tense war situation, penicillin was strictly controlled, and even the entry and use of it in hospitals had to be recorded.

Originally, a small yellow croaker could buy a box of four on the black market, but now, due to the tense situation, a small yellow croaker can only buy one.

Lin Wan gritted her teeth and only bought one dose in order to buy the life-saving medicine and to motivate the other party to help.

As for the remaining money, consider it a reward for his hard work running errands and taking risks.

After all, we're not familiar with each other yet. If you're asking someone to risk getting arrested to buy controlled drugs, you should at least give them some benefits, right?

Given that our comrades don't develop drug resistance, one dose should be enough to save their lives.

Chen Huai'an's eyes lit up when he saw the small yellow croaker.

This is the first time I've seen a real small yellow croaker from the Republican era.

At today's gold price, exchanging two small yellow croakers for a vial of penicillin is like using a cannon to kill a mosquito—I've never made such an extravagant deal before!

However, when he heard that the revolutionary predecessors were injured while protecting their comrades and urgently needed medicine, his expression gradually became solemn.

He had read relevant documents that showed that the conditions in our army were harsh back then, and the lack of medicine caused many soldiers to die in vain or be forced to have limbs amputated.

If penicillin had been available back then, it could have saved at least half of the soldiers' lives.

Those wounded soldiers will not be forced to have limbs amputated.

It is thanks to the selfless sacrifices of these predecessors and martyrs that we are able to enjoy the peaceful and tranquil life we ​​have today.

Only then can we lie on the sofa, scroll through our phones, and order takeout while other countries are plagued by war, people are displaced, and live in fear of conflict.

These are all things that our martyrs gave their lives for us during that difficult era!

Chen Huai'an felt a sharp pain in his heart when he thought about these things, and his knuckles turned white as he gripped the glass.

I used to feel heartbroken when I thought about these things, but now there is an opportunity to save the lives of the wounded soldiers.

Any conscientious Chinese person would feel their blood boil and a sense of mission ingrained in their bones when faced with this situation!

"Phew!"

Chen Huai'an took a deep breath, suppressing the surging passion in his heart.

Although penicillin is strictly controlled, I had a six-month experience as a pharmaceutical representative and had also been a regional distributor for several children's drugs.

The only reason people work for companies is because the competition is too fierce and they lose money in business.

He has other ways to buy things that ordinary people can't.

Looking at the delicate face before him, Chen Huai'an nodded emphatically, "Don't worry, I will definitely buy the medicine!"