Su Mi asked the people standing in a row beside her, who were also curiously eyeing the unfamiliar object on the table.
Upon hearing Su Zhiqing’s question, they naturally nodded.
“I brought it from home—why would I lie to you?”
“It’s just a bowl of water, nothing valuable. I brought it from my kitchen.”
“Mine’s from home too.”
“I scooped mine from the water vat at home.”
…
“Since everyone is so certain, let me show you firsthand just how clean the untreated water you brought from your home water vats really is.”
Having received their confirmation, Su Mi wasted no time.
Next, the surrounding villagers watched as Su Zhiqing took a small slide from an aluminum box, dipped a little stick into a bowl to transfer a drop of water onto the slide, placed it under that strange device, turned a knob with her hand, and then stepped aside.
“Alright, you can come up one by one. Don’t touch the microscope or anything else. Just place your eye on the eyepiece as I did and observe.”
The group was somewhat confused, and for a moment, no one moved.
“I’ll go.”
Just as Su Mi was about to pick someone, the team leader couldn’t hold back and took the lead.
What followed made everyone forget their annoyance at not being able to go home for dinner on time, piquing their curiosity one by one.
Those who went up to observe through the microscope one after another wore expressions of disbelief mixed with a hint of disgust.
An outsider might not have understood their looks, but these were people who had grown up together in the same village—who didn’t know each other?
This only heightened everyone’s curiosity.
Su Mi took a drop of water from each bowl or basin the villagers had brought and placed it under the microscope for observation.
If the first person found it hard to believe, and the second was incredulous, then by the third, fourth, and everyone who looked afterward, they had no choice but to accept that the untreated water they drank was truly filthy!
The thought that every seemingly clear, clean sip of water they drank daily was teeming with wriggling bugs and eggs was too much to bear.
Even the young men couldn’t stomach it, pushing through the crowd to rush outside and vomit.
Their reactions made the others even more restless.
Su Mi didn’t keep them in suspense, inviting those interested to come up and look—with the condition, of course, that they not touch anything with their hands.
Su Mi was quite satisfied with their adverse reactions.
All the educated youths present also took turns looking.
They knew what the device was in theory, but actually observing through a microscope was a first for them.
So, after curiously taking a look, they returned with regret.
“Alright, alright. Time is limited, and everyone has worked hard all day, so I’ll keep it brief. The experiment I conducted today simply involved taking the ordinary untreated water you’re familiar with, placing it under this microscope, and magnifying it dozens of times—making the microorganisms in the water visible to the naked eye.
Now, I believe you all understand how many organisms and germs are present in our daily drinking water!
These are all alive, as you saw them wriggling—quite active indeed!”
Drinking water like this, with parasites clinging to your intestines and stomach, absorbing nutrients from your blood—do you think you’d get sick?
Don’t claim you’re in good health and wonder why others fall ill from drinking it while you don’t.
That’s where you’re gravely mistaken. You’re like fish slipping through the net—secretly pleased, but in reality, this is unacceptable.
Let me put it this way: you could have lived healthily to 80 or even 100 years old, but by drinking untreated water long-term, these parasites inside your bodies suck away your nutrients, robbing you of 30 years or more of life.
You could also think of it like this: you finally buy a pound of meat to improve your family’s diet, only for roundworms in your belly to absorb all the nutrients. Doesn’t that feel like a loss?”
Su Mi tried her best to explain using terms everyone could easily understand.
Sure enough, as soon as she said this, the gasps and murmurs around her grew louder.
“The solution is actually quite simple: boil untreated water before drinking it, avoid drinking it raw, and don’t eat undercooked food. For example, if you enjoy eating raw cucumbers or tomatoes, it’s best to wash them thoroughly and peel them, or rinse them with saltwater first and then clean water. I know many of you find this troublesome, thinking you’ve lived this long without washing them and nothing bad happened—after all, that’s how you’ve always done it.
But if you think that way, you’re gravely mistaken. A good habit can also save your family a significant amount of money without you even realizing it.
Also, remember to wash your hands properly before meals and after using the toilet. There’s an old saying: ‘Illness enters through the mouth,’ and there’s truth to it.
As for whether to follow this advice or how to do it—of course, I can’t control everything. As a doctor, I’m simply sharing professional advice on how to avoid certain illnesses.
Whether you take this advice or not is up to you. Alright, it’s getting late today, so I’ll stop here. If there’s time in the future, I’ll talk more about other topics,
like how to avoid snakes entering your homes as the weather warms up and mosquitoes become more abundant in the mountains, or how to prevent heatstroke in the summer.
That’s all for today. Let’s wrap it up.”
Su Mi’s attitude, however, made some stubborn-minded people reflect.
After all, Su Mi was right—she was merely sharing health knowledge as a doctor. Whether to act on it was up to them.
Some still brushed it off, while others felt it was time to change, especially for the sake of their children.
After finishing, Su Mi began packing her things, such as the microscope and the disinfectant wipes she had brought out earlier.
As for the basins and bowls, their owners would take care of them.
“Is that all, Xiao Su?”
Village Chief Niu’s expression was somewhat unpleasant—not directed at Su Mi, but because he had seen several magnified water droplets earlier and was still feeling queasy.
Seeing Su Mi packing up her tools, he grew restless.
“Uncle Village Chief, haven’t you noticed how late it is? Besides, everything takes time. If I talk about one thing today and another tomorrow, over time, everyone will develop habits and truly understand. If I dump everything at once, not only would time be an issue, but the key is whether people could remember it all in one go!”
Su Mi was both amused and exasperated. She understood Village Chief Niu’s mindset, but health promotion was truly not something that could be accomplished overnight.
“Putting on an act, striking a pose—I never expected this woman to be so scheming.”
Bai Xianxian was so jealous her eyes nearly turned red. She knew all too well that if Su Mi succeeded in promoting health awareness…