Due to the limitations of 19th-century scientific and technological factors, Jerome and Dr. James were unable to produce physiological saline like that of later generations. They could only choose the oldest method by distilling and sterilizing 500 milliliters of water at high temperatures, adding well-evaporated and concentrated well salt crystals three or four times, and mixing them in a ratio of 1 to 0.009 to make a semi-finished physiological saline.
The physiological saline was injected into Louis Bonaparte's body by Dr. James through intravenous injection, barely bringing a hint of color back to Louis Bonaparte's severely dehydrated body.
"Your Highness, drink this!" Dr. James brought a bowl of thick, slightly greenish liquid to Louis Bonaparte's mouth.
The liquid was simmered from willow bark and some mixed ingredients even Jerome was unclear about, supposedly having analgesic and gastrointestinal regulatory effects. The salicylic acid contained in the juice made from willow bark could alleviate Louis Bonaparte's fever.
Louis Bonaparte barely opened his mouth, and the steaming green juice was poured into his mouth.
Perhaps because the taste of the juice was too inhuman, Louis Bonaparte obviously threw up the moment he drank it. Seeing this, Dr. James hurriedly took a towel from the copper warm water basin under the pillar bed, wrung it out, and gently placed it on Louis Bonaparte's mouth to prevent him from vomiting all over the place.
By consulting information on cholera in Britain more than ten years ago, Dr. James could roughly determine that cholera transmission routes were mostly via food and water. As long as the transmission routes and sources of the cholera virus were strictly controlled, cholera could be prevented. The old stubborns at the Royal Medical College kept advocating ventilation methods, which were simply not feasible!
Louis Bonaparte's Adam's apple moved slowly as he struggled to swallow Dr. James's medication.
After slowly removing the towel from Louis Bonaparte's mouth and folding it, Dr. James folded the rectangular towel into a tofu-shaped block, handing it to Jerome with a warning: "This towel has been contaminated with the patient's bodily fluids and can no longer be used. Burn it!"
Jerome, who took the towel, nodded, understanding the dangers of the cholera virus better than anyone.
The reason cholera frequently occurred in slums and rarely in wealthy areas was not only because the poor couldn't afford doctors but also due to a lack of correct understanding of cholera. Often, when someone contracted cholera, they would still have close contact with cholera patients, leading to a scenario where one person catches cholera, and the whole family dies.
Such reckless burning behavior like Jerome's was absolutely unacceptable to ordinary wage earners. Those workers, who even had to share a pair of pants, simply didn't have that much wealth under normal circumstances, let alone in 1848 when the economic crisis hadn't recovered.
Jerome placed the towel that might be contaminated with the cholera virus into the kindling basin beside the fireplace in the first-floor living room. He took the flint and kerosene-soaked fire-starting cotton from the fireplace, and the sparks generated from the flint scraping against the fireplace ignited the fire-starting cotton. The inner blue and outer flames were pinched by Jerome and thrown into the kindling basin, igniting the towel inside.
Accompanied by the production of black thick smoke, a pungent smell of burning wool rushed into Jerome's nostrils.
Percy and Fleury, still on the first floor, rushed to open the doors and windows for ventilation. After completing all this, Jerome returned to the second floor, with Percy closely following behind.
By this time, Dr. James had already packed up everything, carrying a small wooden box and preparing to leave.
Before leaving, Dr. James didn't forget to advise Louis Bonaparte to take it easy and warned Jerome and Howard to be cautious.
"Percy, help me see the doctor off!" Louis Bonaparte, looking slightly better than before, said to Percy.
"At your command!" Percy bowed to Louis Bonaparte, accepting the command.
After Dr. James and Percy left, only Louis Bonaparte, Jerome Bonaparte, and Howard remained in the room.
The scene fell into dead silence for a moment. After a brief lull, Louis Bonaparte, who had somewhat recovered some spirit, spoke hoarsely to Howard, "Dear Howard, could you fulfill a request of mine?"
"Louis, go ahead!" Howard said earnestly, holding Louis Bonaparte's hand.
"Could you trouble yourself to buy me a newspaper? I haven't read one in a long time!" Louis Bonaparte pleaded to Howard.
"Louis, I promise you!" Howard immediately agreed to Louis Bonaparte's request.
Louis Bonaparte smiled and mentioned several newspapers in one breath, such as The Times, Polar Star, Rheinland Newspaper [Note 1]…
Howard noted down the newspapers Louis Bonaparte mentioned, then, in a doctor's tone, reminded Louis Bonaparte to rest well before leaving to buy the newspapers for him.
Only Louis Bonaparte and Jerome Bonaparte, the two cousins, were left in the room.
Just as Jerome didn't know how to start the conversation, Louis Bonaparte's voice reached his ears: "Howard is truly a smart girl!"
"Hmm?" Jerome Bonaparte was a little puzzled by Louis Bonaparte's meaning.
"My dear cousin, you don't really think I sent her out to buy newspapers, do you?" Louis Bonaparte said with a smile in his hoarse throat to Jerome.
Jerome finally realized, "Cousin, you wanted to send her away?"
"Exactly!" Louis Bonaparte nodded and then sighed, "I said Howard is a wise lady! I don't want her involved in our business! To the family, she's still an outsider! Especially after I'm gone, I'm really afraid she'll…"
"Cousin, rest assured! The family will not cause her any trouble!" Jerome comforted Louis Bonaparte.
"I hope I'm just overthinking!" Louis Bonaparte showed a mocking expression, "Those uncles of mine certainly won't let me have any peace of mind!"
Then, he paused and added a sentence, "Of course, excluding Uncle Jerome, I deeply thank and miss Uncle Jerome!"
"I see you obviously miss my sister."
Jerome silently added a sentence in his heart, still respectfully saying, "My father also misses you very much… Of course, and my sister!"
"Mathilde, my God!"
PS: 1. Polar Star, the official newspaper of the British Charter Faction, a left-wing ideological newspaper. After being expelled from Prussia, Marx published articles in the Polar Star.
Rheinland Newspaper, a newspaper founded by Marx during his time in the Rhineland, did not last long before being banned by Prussia. Its content was published in Britain through reprints by Polar Star.