33 Smallpox

◎A big reward always attracts brave men◎

The Eastern Palace was very quick. Fortunately, the Crown Princess was experienced. She had handled it the same way the last time she saw her father. All the palaces and gardens closed their doors tightly. But the people who had been locked up for a long time were reluctant. She still remembered the palace maids making trouble in Yongxiang. The guards went to suppress it and beheaded many people.

Cui Rumei was naturally the first to be unhappy. When the eunuchs came to tell her not to go out of the house, she started to make a fuss and demanded to know what was going on. "What's going on? What's going on? Why are you locking the door? Why?"

"This is the order from the Crown Princess. Please cooperate, Cui Cairen." Several young eunuchs did not tell the truth and just did as their master ordered.

But she didn't want to care about these things. She was used to making trouble, so she naturally didn't take Rong Qianyu seriously and started making trouble as usual.

"What does the Crown Princess mean? Why lock the door? Why? Do you have the order from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince? I don't care. I want to see His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, I want to see the Crown Prince. Why are you servants not letting me out?"

She rushed out of the house shouting and screaming, trying to attract Fu Hua's attention to come and rescue her. The young eunuch did not dare to stop her too much, but Fu Hua was now ill and bedridden, so he had no time to care about her.

Yuanqing was evacuating the palace servants from the courtyard when he saw her and rushed over to slap her. She had been holding this slap for a long time, but today, thanks to the Crown Princess's order, she finally felt relieved. She had been so domineering in the past, and so many things were caused by her. This slap was a way for the Crown Princess to vent her anger.

"The Crown Princess has ordered that anyone who disobeys will be executed immediately. Please, Cui Cairen, you'd better cooperate, otherwise His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will not be able to protect you!"

Cui Rumei didn't expect that this damn girl actually dared to attack her. She was stunned by the slap, "You dare to hit me, who are you to hit me!?" After being slapped for no reason, she became even more anxious. She was never weak in front of women and she wished she could strangle them to death.

"close the door."

Inside Fengyi Palace, everyone was worried and couldn't think of a solution.

"You suspect it's smallpox?" Fu Kang asked in disbelief.

"Yes, Imperial Physician Sun also said so, but after all, it is just one person's opinion. I request a consultation with the Imperial Hospital. This cannot be ignored at this time. If it is true, a plan should be issued as soon as possible."

Rong Qianyu's response and measures were very quick. Fortunately, everyone remained silent for the time being, preventing the spread of the disease. Everyone present was in a state of panic. They had heard that the Rongdi people had been plagued by epidemics in recent years, and they had never thought that they would eventually be infected.

The Great Zhou knew very little about smallpox, and most of it was based on descriptions in medical books, and the Imperial Medical Bureau did not have any effective emergency measures.

Bai Yi seemed particularly anxious. Her son was the first one in the palace to notice the symptoms. On a smaller scale, mothers worry about their own children, and she would be just as worried if it was Fu Tao. On a larger scale, Fu Hua was the crown prince and the legitimate son of the emperor. If something unexpected happened to him, all her twenty years of careful upbringing would be wasted.

The mother would rather suffer herself than have her children suffer. This sudden outbreak has caused her to worry too much recently, and she has gained a lot of white hair.

"There hasn't been an epidemic in the past fifty years on the Fourth of July. How could it happen so suddenly?" She cried a little, but she also tried to maintain her dignity as the mother of a country.

"I'm wondering if this has anything to do with the Rongdi in the northwest."

"It is probably transmitted from the northwest trade route." Fu Kang said.

"It's possible."

Generally, any major disaster is regarded as a warning from the gods, and the ruler must have done something wrong. Fu Kang has worked diligently for the past twenty or thirty years, and he believes that he is responsible for this disaster.

"Let's not worry about the cause for now. Right now, we need to figure out how to control and treat it."

The few of them couldn't come up with any clues. After all, no one had ever experienced an epidemic. Rong Qianyu had been infected before, and even if there was no countermeasure, her life was not in danger.

Volunteering to help share this burden was undoubtedly a great opportunity to win people's hearts, not to mention that he could also use it to help alleviate their difficulties. "Your Majesty, I request your permission to take care of the Crown Prince. Furthermore, I have a method of treatment and hope to redeem myself for meritorious service. I will help my father, the Emperor, and my mother, the Empress, with their worries and difficulties."

She knelt on the ground with an extremely sincere attitude, which surprised everyone present.

"You go take care of Hua'er, what will you do then?"

"Rongguo also suffered from smallpox in the past. I contracted it when I was young. This disease will never happen again. No one is more suitable than me."

"Do you really have a solution?" Bai Yi asked.

"I can't say it's 100% certain, but it's 60% to 70% likely. We can give it a try. Qianyu is willing to sign a military order. If it doesn't work, I will die as an apology."

"Then the Crown Princess and the Imperial Hospital will work together. If you have any good ideas, please tell me. I give you my jade pendant. Seeing this jade pendant is like seeing me in person. Please take more care. If anyone disagrees, you will have full authority to deal with it without asking for instructions. Pass on my decree. All palaces in the palace are to remain silent. Only people can enter and not leave. No one should go out unless necessary. Moxa fumigation should be carried out in the morning and at noon. Empty palaces should be vacated to accommodate patients. All clothing used by patients should be burned and buried."

"When I was six or seven years old, there was a smallpox epidemic in Rong Country. I later read books and folk remedies related to it. I do have a solution, but it's quite risky."

"Just tell me, we'll try whatever method we can." Fu Kang said.

"The Golden Mirror of the Medical Ancestral Sutra" states that you can use the finest smallpox scabs to seed the disease. Place them in a clean magnetic bell and use a willow wood pestle to grind them into a fine powder. If dry, add a few drops of water until the mixture is evenly mixed. Shape the smallpox into the shape of a date pit and secure it with a red string. Insert the seedling into the nostril. After the smallpox seedling is removed, its energy will gradually enter the body and spread throughout the five internal organs. After seven days, fever will set in. After three days of fever, seedlings will appear. After three days of appearance, seedlings will fully emerge. After three days of full emergence, they will swell. After three days of sufficient swell, the water will return and form a scab, and the disease will be complete."

Doctor Sun knew the recipe, but it was too risky. If he wasn't careful, it could lead to a larger-scale infection. "Isn't this method too risky? There's no precedent for this in the Great Zhou. How can we try and fail? What if it doesn't work? That's the Crown Prince."

"Although this plan is risky, it's not without a chance of success, and the chances of success are very high. This matter must be decided immediately and quickly. Your Majesty, the epidemic waits for no one. Although His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was the first to test positive, he has been back in the palace for many days. He has come into contact with countless palace servants during these days, many of whom are infected but have not tested positive. Such contact is not acceptable."

"How can we ensure safety?"

"Qianyu, some women have the humble opinion that for smallpox vaccination, the palace maids can be arranged to test the vaccine first, and the Imperial Hospital can continue to improve the method."

"Will you arrange for a living person to test the seedlings?" Bai Yi asked.

"yes."

"Isn't this too...how could anyone be willing to do that?" The imperial doctors whispered to each other, all feeling that this method was inappropriate.

But Rong Qianyu successfully persuaded them that if they failed to act decisively, there would be endless trouble. "The country is facing a great crisis, and this is the only way. I'm afraid there is no better solution. If Your Majesty is worried, Qianyu will personally mobilize the troops. A generous reward will surely attract brave men."

"What does the Imperial Hospital mean?"

Several highly respected physicians from the Imperial Hospital came together to formulate their plan and offer their opinion: "Open a smallpox clinic at the Imperial Hospital to oversee matters concerning the imperial palace. Recruit renowned physicians from around the world. Martial law should be imposed within the city walls. Smallpox shelters should be established in the suburbs of the capital, granaries should be opened for distribution, and a smallpox inspection office should be established to oversee all matters related to smallpox prevention within the city."

"Thank you all for your help."

"Then Qianyu will take her leave first."

"Crown Princess!" Fu Kang suddenly called her.

"Thank you for your hard work." He looked at Rong Qianyu with a firm gaze, as if she was his only life-saving straw, and almost all his hopes were placed on her.

After returning to the harem, Rong Qianyu urgently gathered everyone together to fight the disease quickly to avoid a wider spread of the disease.

The palace maids and eunuchs were all in a panic, covering their faces with gauze, with worried expressions on their faces. After all, the palace was the most dangerous place right now, even the crown prince had died, not to mention their own lives which were worthless, and if they died in vain, they would only be burned to ashes.

"It's a bit too hasty to call everyone together today. The main reason is that I have something to tell you. The country is facing a crisis, and I hope everyone can face it together. We already have an effective method, but it's not yet mature. I urgently need thirty palace maids to test the smallpox on themselves. This is a dangerous matter, so I hope you will be careful and thorough, and don't force anything."

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd erupted in an uproar. No one wanted to die as an unknown hero, helping others. "We, the servants, risked our lives to test the law, but if we die, will it be in vain?"

"Palace maids leave the palace at the age of twenty-five. If they pass the examination without any harm, all their salaries before leaving the palace will be settled in one lump sum, plus an additional reward of thirty taels. If they do not want to leave the palace, the rewards will be continued, and they will be promoted to female officials, enjoying court salaries, and will be given priority for appointment if their fathers or brothers pass the imperial examinations. If they pass away after the examination, the above salaries will be settled, and the reward will be added to fifty taels. I will personally provide for the support of your parents until their old age, and your fathers or brothers will be given priority for appointment if they are exempt from the provincial examinations."

The crowd buzzed with discussion. Some couldn't resist such a generous reward, while others harbored concerns. The palace servants whispered among themselves. The generous reward, the title of female official, and even priority in the imperial examinations for their fathers and brothers—such a great opportunity—everyone was thrilled.

But most of the palace maids present were girls in their late teens or early twenties. For them to gamble with the honor and disgrace of their family alone was indeed too costly.

"But we have been in the palace for different years, how should we pay the salary?"

We've already made preparations for this. "Then let's make a compromise. Seven taels of silver a month, that would make ninety taels a year. You can use this money to support your parents in their old age, or keep it for yourself, start some business, or renovate your house. It'll help you survive in times of peace and prosperity, and you'll have a more comfortable life in the future. It's all our intention. What do you think?"

A brave palace maid asked loudly: "Words are not enough. If they regret it later, we will have nowhere to complain."

"Yujie, bring me the imperial edict."

Rong Qianyu truly turned the tide this time. Those who had previously discussed her behind her back were now convinced. She was calm, composed, and composed, never panicking. She wasn't very old, even younger than some of the other maids, barely seventeen, but with all her arrangements, she had the air of a future queen mother.

In the past, we only knew that she knelt in the house every night to recite the female training, was plotted against by concubines, hated by her husband, and stabbed in the back by her subordinates, but this did not affect her calmness and decisiveness today.

It seemed that overnight she had transformed from a hesitant and indifferent princess into the prince's capable and independent wife, the most noble woman in the Zhou Dynasty.

"This is a drafted imperial edict, stamped with the Imperial Seal, the Phoenix Seal, the Crown Prince's seal, and my own personal seal. It was originally supposed to be approved by the Ministry of Internal Affairs before it could be issued. I know you are all anxious and worried about being deceived, so I hurriedly asked Your Majesty for it first to give you peace of mind."

She turned the imperial edict over and showed it to everyone. It was an edict written by Zhu Sha herself, and everyone felt much more at ease.

"Are you going or not?" A little palace maid patted the person next to her.

The maid hesitated again and again and still couldn't make up her mind. "I want to go, but I'm afraid of death. What if I die? I'm already engaged."

"You're only twenty, and you still have five years to leave the palace. That's four hundred and fifty taels. If you die, you can get another fifty taels, which makes five hundred taels. Even your father and brother can be exempted from the provincial examination. Don't you have a younger brother who's still in his prime? You'll need money to start a family and build a career in the future. Your parents aren't in good health, and they don't necessarily mean they'll die."

"What about you?"

The little girl was still childish and said, "I want to go. I'm nineteen, and I can get ninety taels more than you!"

"Then I'll go!"

“I’m signing up too!”

"I'm going too! I'm going too!"

There will always be brave men when there is a big reward. Everyone raised their hands to sign up. After all, it was all for their families. Most of the palace maids came from poor families with clean family backgrounds. With this money, they would no longer have to live a hard life and it would also be a way to fulfill their filial piety to their parents.

Cui Rumei's maid, Hua Xue, was eager to make a move. Two years ago, her hometown had suffered a disaster, her ancestral home had been flooded, and her parents were seriously ill. This money was life-saving money for her. She timidly wanted to raise her hand, but couldn't help but glance at her master's eyes. "I want it too..."

Cui Rumei was now extremely annoyed by Rong Qianyu's behavior. This time, she wanted to let her take the spotlight. "Shut up and don't embarrass yourself!"