After Being Mistakenly Taken for a Fellow Traveler by Emperor Long Aotian - Chapter 25

With the matters at the Imperial Medical Bureau settled, the Emperor felt relieved. He turned to Chief Physician He and inquired, “About the previous epidemic…”

 

“I’ve brainstormed with the medical staff and we have come up with several solutions.”

 

As they conversed, Zhou Xun listened attentively while pondering the name “Lu Xiandao.”

 

He had encountered this person before and had also heard of him.

 

He might have heard of this person because of Zhou Cai.

 

When Zhou Cai followed Rong Fen into the capital, he was appreciated by a prominent Confucian scholar and became his disciple, leaving Jiangzhou to study in the capital. During the Spring Festival, Zhou Cai returned home, and a group of youths surrounded him, curious about what the capital was like, asking him to tell them about life in the capital.

 

Zhou Cai mentioned that there were many high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital, making Jiangzhou pale in comparison. People in the capital had to adhere strictly to etiquette and be cautious in all matters.

 

Several children were not interested in such matters, so they urged him to tell stories about his learning journey and if he had encountered any interesting incidents. Had he met any famous youths? Zhou Cai then picked a few incidents to share with them, and it was during that time that Zhou Xun first heard the name “Lu Xiandao.”

 

In Zhou Cai’s description, this person was arrogant due to his noble birth, speaking very rudely to others.

 

In short, he was not easy to get along with.

 

However, when Zhou Xun went to the capital to prepare for the imperial examination at the Prince’s Mansion, he had a brief encounter with the notoriously difficult Lu Xiandao.

 

That encounter took place at a lantern festival. Zhou Xun was feeling annoyed by his studies and had never seen a lantern festival in the capital, so he ventured out from the Prince’s Mansion alone.

 

The lantern festival was crowded, and Zhou Xun was not interested in the games, but rather in a stall selling fans, where he spent quite some time.

 

The patterns on the fans were all hand-painted. It was not surprising to see stalls selling hand-painted fans at the lantern festival, but Zhou Xun was not stopping to admire the beautiful patterns on the fans but because…

 

The paintings on those fans were incredibly ugly, bizarrely so. Zhou Xun was curious who had the courage to set up a stall here.

 

—It was almost like a public execution.

 

Perhaps because the stall owner knew how ugly his fans were, there was no one in the stall, only those variously shaped and grotesque fans lying there. Zhou Xun looked at the brave fans for a long time, feeling uncomfortable all over, and pondered for a while in his heart how he would change them if he bought these fans to make them look relatively normal—at least not so bizarrely ugly.

 

After completing his imaginary revisions, his mood improved slightly, and he decided to leave.

 

But as he turned around, he saw someone next to him reaching out and stealing a purse from a young lady.

 

Out of a sense of justice, Zhou Xun chased after him into an alley, only to be surrounded by people, realizing he was just a weak scholar.

 

Lu Xiandao happened to be patrolling there at that time.

 

Several pickpockets were caught and sent to the authorities, and the young man in crimson guard attire was not very polite to Zhou Xun, saying, “You have a strong sense of justice, but your brain is too dull. Judging by your appearance, you’re a scholar taking the exam this year, right? There are constables patrolling everywhere along the streets, why didn’t you report to the officials?”

 

Zhou Xun:…

 

Zhou Xun walked out of the alley, passing by the fan stall where he had just stopped. The stall owner saw the crimson guard behind him and greeted the young man, saying, “Master Xiao Lu, this scholar was looking at the fans on your stall just now.”

 

Zhou Xun:…

 

Zhou Xun turned around, and the young man said indifferently, “It seems your taste isn’t great either.”

 

Zhou Xun was momentarily speechless. The young man then instructed his attendant beside him, saying, “He’s injured, take him back.”

 

He then disclosed his temporary address. Upon hearing his temporary address, the young man paused for a moment and asked, “You’re staying at the Fifth Prince’s Mansion?”

 

Zhou Xun was puzzled by this, and the young man looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before finally saying, “I can’t tell you’re related to Zhou Cai.”

 

This was the only encounter between Zhou Xun and Lu Xiandao, but he always suspected that he remembered this incident. One reason was that Lu Xiandao was one of the few people who didn’t like Zhou Cai, and the other reason was that Lu Xiandao’s fans were just too ugly.

 

However, Lu Xiandao was indeed a straightforward person, so it would be appropriate for him to handle the matter of the orphan left by Chief Physician Zhang.

 

The Emperor looked at the several proposals presented by Chief Physician He, but not being well-versed in medical knowledge, he found them incomprehensible. Due to his mother’s influence, Zhou Xun had some understanding of medicine, so he took the proposals to review.

 

After much discussion among the three, Chief Physician He sighed and said, “When it comes to epidemics, if we want to find an expert, it must be Chief Physician Zhang. When he was in Xizhou, he also formulated a special prescription based on the local disease characteristics, but it still lacked a little… sigh.”

 

He sighed again, “It’s just a pity…”

 

The Emperor fell silent too.

 

“Ah!” He suddenly pounded the table angrily, “Medical quackery! Medical quackery! Misleading people with medical quackery!”

 

In the end, the three of them selected a relatively safe plan from among the many proposals. However, what was written on paper was ultimately shallow, and without treatment and adjustments based on the local conditions and characteristics of the disease in Xizhou, the best results could not be achieved.

 

However, if it was only used to stabilize the situation at the time, it would be sufficient.

 

Just as Chief Physician He was about to take his leave, the Emperor stopped him again, “Wait, I have an idea, do you think it’s feasible?”

 

Chief Physician He immediately replied respectfully, “I’m willing to listen attentively.”

 

After pondering for a while and organizing his thoughts, the Emperor glanced at Zhou Xun.

 

Zhou Xun saw the words “seek encouragement” in his eyes, so he nodded to him.

 

“Chief Physician He…” The Emperor cleared his throat, “Have you ever considered the cause of the epidemic?”

 

“Well…” Chief Physician He was stunned.

 

Why did the Emperor suddenly inquire about the cause of the epidemic?

 

Drawing on the medical knowledge he had cultivated over the years, he cautiously replied, “It’s due to the disharmony of the seasons and the imbalance between warmth and coolness. During this time, people are prone to infection by perverse qi, leading to illness. If evil winds enter the body, the disease can easily spread and even lead to the destruction of families…”

 

The Emperor listened to his words and continued, “So what exactly is this evil wind?”

 

Chief Physician He thought for a moment and replied, “This kind of evil wind is a type of malign qi. It is intangible and invisible, without form or smell.”

 

The Emperor continued, “Then where does it come from?”

 

It seemed as if the Emperor had a thousand whys, and Chief Physician He was momentarily caught off guard by his questions. After pondering for a while, he continued, “This evil wind originates from the heavens and is transmitted to the earth. It is because people have violated the timing of heaven that it arises, as a punishment from the heavens.”

 

The Emperor:…

 

The Emperor opened his mouth as if he were struggling with his words again. However, Chief Physician He misunderstood his meaning and hastily knelt down, saying, “The epidemic is a test given to the people by the heavens. Your Majesty need not blame yourself. Your Majesty governs with benevolence and cares for the people. The heavens see Your Majesty’s sincerity and will surely bless the people of Xizhou with good fortune!”

 

The Emperor:…

 

“Well,” the Emperor weakly said, “Chief Physician He, have you thought about how to prevent the epidemic?”

 

Chief Physician He thought for a moment and sincerely replied, “Through sacrificial rites.”

 

Under the Emperor’s gaze, Chief Physician He felt as if he understood the Emperor’s intention. He suggested, “Is Your Majesty planning to set up an altar to pray for the blessings of the people of Xizhou?”

 

The Emperor fell silent for a moment and said, “No, I just want to test the waters. We shouldn’t wait until the disease occurs to take remedial action, but rather prevent it beforehand…”

 

Chief Physician He said, “Therefore, Your Majesty has conducted sacrificial rites every spring, praying for favorable weather in the coming year…”

 

The Emperor:…

 

…

 

“The Emperor wants to establish official medical institutions in various prefectures?” Chief Physician He pondered over this unfamiliar term for a moment, feeling somewhat uncertain about the Emperor’s intention. “So, what would these institutions be used for?”

 

“The Emperor wants to establish unified management for folk doctors and medical clinics. Through standardized testing to assess their medical qualifications and monitoring the medical data of each clinic, which will be reported annually to evaluate the clinic’s rating,” the Emperor tried to explain in layman’s terms. “In addition to this, starting with the Imperial Medical Bureau, a medical school will be established to recruit students interested in studying medicine for unified learning of medical skills… um, with subsidies.”

 

After the Emperor had explained most of his ideas, Chief Physician He considered for a moment and said, “Establishing a medical school within the Imperial Medical Bureau may be feasible, but it may be difficult to immediately set up official medical institutions in various regions and manage and evaluate medical practitioners… Most folk doctors rely on experience to treat patients, and there are various folk remedies. It would be very difficult to establish a unified evaluation standard.”

 

Zhou Xun heard the Emperor muttering, “Oh… Beyond the current level of productivity?”

 

Zhou Xun thought for a moment and gave a suggestion regarding the Emperor’s earlier point, “However, as Your Majesty said, good hygiene habits are the foundation of everything. It’s possible for the magistrates to promote habits such as boiling water to ward off evil spirits and using alcohol to prevent illness, and vigorously advocate for them.”

 

The Emperor nodded in satisfaction and said, “That works too.”

 

Zhou Xun added, “The concept of a health bureau is somewhat novel. But it can be prepared for. However, manpower is a problem. As Your Majesty said, these people should have strong professional qualities, but the manpower at the Imperial Medical Bureau may not be enough.”

 

Chief Physician He then said, “I will go back and prepare for the establishment of the medical school.”

 

With this matter tentatively settled, after Chief Physician He left, the Emperor stretched lazily and said somewhat gloomily, “Sacrificial rites? Why sacrifice? When it comes to illness, it’s managed by viruses; when it rains, it’s controlled by atmospheric circulation. Why does everything have to be attributed to the heavens? Can the heavens handle everything?”

 

He grumbled for a while, and Zhou Xun watched him nearby.

 

After scratching his head for a while, feeling extremely frustrated, the Emperor suddenly said, “Forget it, let’s not think about it. It’s the rest day, let’s rest first!”

 

As he spoke, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he turned to Xiao Li Zi, saying, “How many concubines are there in the palace?”

 

Xiao Li Zi: ?

 

The Emperor: “The male kind.”

 

Xiao Li Zi counted and reported a number. The Emperor then asked, “Is there a useful grassland in the palace?”

 

Xiao Li Zi thought for a moment and said, “Yes.”

 

The Emperor was very pleased and exclaimed, “Great!”

 

Xiao Li Zi glanced at his expression and then secretly glanced at Zhou Xun, asking, “Does Your Majesty want to invite the concubines to accompany the carriage?”

 

He sighed inwardly.

 

The Emperor seemed to have taken an interest in Young Master Zhou a few days ago, but now he was asking for other concubines to accompany the carriage. Indeed…

 

The heart of an emperor is truly fickle.

 

The Emperor nodded. Xiao Li Zi’s guess was confirmed, and he sighed inwardly again, “Then… Shall I go to the Chuxiu Palace to find a concubine?”

 

“One won’t be enough,” the Emperor exclaimed enthusiastically, “I want twenty-two!”

 

Xiao Li Zi: ?!?

 

Twenty-two?

 

Xiao Li Zi was dumbfounded.

 

Twenty-two at once?

 

Your Majesty… this is truly… beyond his imagination!