Chapter 26
An ox cart was parked beside the stone steps outside the county government office. The driver was an old farmer with dark and rough skin, who looked to be in his fifties or sixties.
Zhou Hanzhang was getting off the ox cart, and Lu Tong, who was standing beside him, raised his arm slightly so that if Shangguan accidentally fell, he could support him in time.
This is a good opportunity to make a great contribution to Shangguan's heart.
However, after Zhou Hanzhang landed on the ground and stood firmly, this hand was not used, and Lu Tong calmly withdrew his arm.
Zhou Hanzhang went to the fields of the village outside the city to conduct a secret investigation in the morning. He was not wearing his official uniform at this time, but a brown shorts, and there were traces of dried mud on his hands.
"Lu Tong, after you organize the things we found these days, give them to Lu Jue and see if he can use them."
In the past few days, Zhou Hanzhang has been taking Lu Tong to check the villagers' grain harvest this year, to see how much grain the villagers can leave for their own consumption after paying taxes.
The collected information was given to Lu Jue, who was asked to compare it with the situation in previous years to see whether this year's grain surplus could sustain the villagers through the winter and until next year's farming season.
"I will hand it over to Master Lu after I have sorted it out."
The two men were talking as they walked towards the gate of the county government office, but before they went in, they heard shouting from behind.
"Han Zhang."
When Zhou Hanzhang heard the familiar voice, he immediately turned around and looked over.
Shi Yanqing took a few quick steps to them and stopped before continuing to speak.
"Hanzhang, I have a patient here who said he was asked to bring you a letter."
After saying that, she turned to the side and looked at the Lin sisters following behind her.
Zhou Hanzhang's gaze followed this movement and looked over, at two strangers.
"May I ask who entrusted you with this mission, young lady?"
Lin Yun stepped forward and handed over the envelope.
She replied, "The man said that once you have read the letter, you will understand. Although he saved my life, he did not reveal his identity to me."
Hearing this, Zhou Hanzhang stopped asking questions. He took the envelope, but didn't open it. Instead, he turned his head to look at Shi Yanqing.
"Would you like to come in and sit for a while? It just so happens that several of my subordinates have been feeling unwell these days and haven't seen a doctor yet."
Shi Yanqing, who was about to refuse after hearing the previous sentence, immediately nodded and agreed.
"Since Doctor Shi still has something to do, Duo'er and I won't disturb him. Let's go back to the inn and rest first." Lin Yun waited for them to finish talking before speaking.
After the Lin sisters left, Shi Yanqing followed Zhou Hanzhang into the county government office.
When they arrived at the room where they usually received guests, there were already several people sitting inside, young and old.
"Yanqing, these are the people I was talking about. Lu Tong has already told them, so you can just go and see the doctor later."
Zhou Hanzhang explained to Shi Yanqing in a low voice, and then pointed at his clothes, "I'll go change clothes first and come back later. Shi'an will be here with you later."
Shi Yanqing nodded.
After Zhou Hanzhang left, one of them stood up and said.
"Doctor Shi, we are all clerks serving the county magistrate. We have been on errands with him these past few days and have been feeling a bit under the weather. We caught a cold without realizing it."
After understanding the situation, Shi Yanqing took off the medicine bag that was slung across her body. She got a round stool and sat next to an empty armchair, while Shi'an stood behind her and watched over her.
"Come one at a time first. Once I'm done examining you, I'll prescribe medicine for you all together. Is that okay?"
Several clerks looked at each other, and then the clerk who spoke first sat down first.
They actually didn't believe in the county magistrate's wife's medical skills, but since their superior had spoken, they, the subordinates, had no choice but to obey.
At least you have to keep up appearances.
Seeing the person sit down, Shi Yanqing began to take his pulse.
She twitched her fingertips, looked up at the clerk, and asked, "Do you get up often at night? How many times do you usually get up?"
Clerk: "A lot, usually three or four times."
As if the question had hit the nail on the head, the clerk couldn't help but continue after answering, "When I was young, I never got up at night, but now I have to get up every night. I often have to get up just after falling asleep. Since then, I've hardly had a good night's sleep, and I don't have much energy when I'm on duty during the day."
"Doctor, look at the dark circles under my eyes. They're much heavier than those of my colleagues. People think I'm having too much sex, which I can't explain."
Seeing that the man was about to continue talking, Shi Yanqing quickly interrupted him.
"Do you feel soreness in your waist and knees, or chills in your limbs?"
The clerk's eyes lit up when he heard this. He had thought that the question just now was a coincidence, but he didn't expect that the county magistrate's wife was the real deal.
"Yes, yes, yes. I thought it was because I didn't get enough rest that my back ached. As for being afraid of the cold, well, that's probably true. I do wear thicker clothes in winter, but that's also to prevent myself from catching a cold and having a fever."
"Well, there's been a bit of a cold wind these past few days. We've all caught a cold."
Shi Yanqing withdrew his hand from taking the pulse and asked again.
"Since you didn't get up often at night before, did you go to the clinic to see a doctor after you started getting up so often?"
The clerk shook his head.
"No, it's not a serious problem. I just get up more often at night. Why would I need to see a doctor? Besides, seeing a doctor costs a lot of money. I'm just a clerk. My monthly salary is just enough to cover the expenses of my family. I don't dare to see a doctor."
As soon as these words were spoken, several clerks who were watching the fun also echoed them.
The young clerk inside was a little confused. "How much does medical treatment cost? Our salary is quite high compared to those waiters in the inn. I can save a lot of money every month."
"That's because you haven't started a family yet," a portly clerk said, his tone of voice unfamiliar to you. "If you did, this salary wouldn't be enough. You'd understand then."
"Yes, Xiaokang, you should save more money now before you get married."
"Yes, that's right."
The atmosphere in the room was heated.
Seeing that the topic was being brought up again, Shi Yanqing felt helpless and had to tap the table with her fingertips to make the men stop talking.
Stop talking about men’s married life.
She doesn't want to listen.
But Zhou Hanzhang should be fine, he doesn't have to worry about supporting his family.
"Alright, alright, stop chatting. I'm done. Xiaokang, you, you'll be the second one to come over and let Doctor Shi see you. Lao Li will be the third, Brother Jiang will be the fourth, and Lao Zeng, you'll be the last one."
The first clerk to see the patients, Yan Zhong, stepped forward to arrange the order of seeing the patients. The other clerks did not raise any objections and sat in their seats waiting as instructed.
Xiaokang was the second person to see Shi Yanqing. He was in good health, but he caught a cold and had been having a runny nose and coughing for the past few days.
Shi Yanqing didn't prescribe any medicine for him, just told him to drink more warm water.
As for the remaining three clerks, Shi Yanqing had to write a prescription and ask someone to get the medicine.
"All of you have some minor ailments, but Xiaokang doesn't have any at the moment." Shi Yanqing said as he wrote the prescription.
"He is still young." Yan Zhong said with a smile.
Shi Yanqing glanced at him and said, "He is indeed still young, but he should also pay attention to his living habits. Otherwise, he will be like you when he gets older."
Xiaokang said: "Hmm? I will definitely pay attention to my living habits."
"I've prescribed a seven-day supply of medicine for each of you. When you're done with your shift, go to my pharmacy on Xiang'an Street and get some. The herbs there are cheap, so it won't cost you much. At most, it'll just save you a few drinks."
"Hehehe," Yan Zhong smiled and shook his head. He was a little happy now. "Don't worry, Doctor Shi. We will go get the medicine after we finish our shift."
After the five people left, only Shi Yanqing and Shi'an were left in the room.
She put the paper, pen and pulse pillow on the table into her medicine bag, stood up and walked out.
Why did Zhou Hanzhang take so long to change his clothes? Was he dealing with something urgent?
"Shi'an, I have to go to the teacher later. Please tell Hanzhang when he comes."
Shi An said respectfully, "Madam, I'll take you there if you want."
Shi Yanqing shook his head: "I can go by myself. Remember to remind Hanzhang to eat when it's time for dinner. He forgets to eat when he gets busy. I'm really not afraid that his health will be damaged by this."
"I've made a note of it."
After Shi Yanqing finished speaking, he went out and prepared to leave. Before he left the courtyard, a young clerk in a light red official uniform came after him. He looked about seventeen or eighteen years old.
The young clerk came running, still panting. He stopped and exhaled, then said, "Madam, the county magistrate has an urgent matter to discuss, and he sent his subordinates to speak to you."
"Just when I came out, Master Bai asked me to move some things, which delayed me for a while. Madam, please forgive me and don't take it to heart."
Shi Yanqing had nothing to be angry about. She took out a piece of candy from the small pouch in her medicine bag and said, "I heard your breathing is different from others. I made this candy myself using medicinal herbs. You will feel better after eating it."
The young clerk was stunned for a moment, then took the candy, opened the paper package and ate it.
"Thank you, ma'am."
Shi Yanqing smiled and said, "If you feel uncomfortable in the future, you can come to see me. I opened a clinic on Xiang'an Street. My medical skills are pretty good."
Not long ago, Zhou Hanzhang went to the rest area to change into clean clothes.
Unexpectedly, Lu Jue came to him just after he changed his clothes.
It is said that this year's grain output is lower than in previous years, and the people may not be able to have enough food after the New Year.
After hearing the news, Zhou Hanzhang could no longer accompany Doctor Shi to see the patient. He summoned a small clerk and asked him to go to the reception area to explain the situation.
Then he called Lu Tong over, and the three of them sat at the table to discuss the solution.
"Master Lu, do you mean that these grains can fill us up until the New Year, but we won't be able to fill us up after the New Year?" Lu Tong asked.
Lu Jue nodded: "That's right."
"In that case, I think we don't need to pay too much attention to this matter." Lu Tongdao, he was an orphan since childhood, eating food from hundreds of families and growing up with hunger and fullness.
I have a rough idea of how much food ordinary people eat every day.
"Since this year's grain reserves are no more than in previous years, I think the people themselves will realize this. They won't eat recklessly, they will only eat until they are half full. It's not a big deal, we've always done it this way before."
Zhou Hanzhang frowned. He did not agree with Lu Tong's point of view.
But it is undeniable that what he said is true.
"But you can't forget those people without land, those orphans without homes, how are they going to survive?"
Lu Jue said calmly.
He took out a document from the desk beside him and handed it to Zhou Hanzhang and Lu Tong to read. It recorded the number of civilian deaths in previous winters, which was increasing year by year.
And this year, if they don't find a way to change it, it will be the year with the highest number of deaths in Yunshui County in nine years.
How would Zhou Hanzhang write the report to the court then? The Zhou family was already disliked by the Empress, so what would she think if the death toll increased during his tenure?
Lu Jue knew that since he came here and became Zhou Hanzhang's mentor, he had to take all aspects into consideration.
Otherwise, he, a half-crippled man, would be of no use at all.
Zhou Hanzhang on the side also thought of this.
He decided, "Lu Tong, send someone to count the number of orphans and elderly people without relatives in the next few days. There are still more than two months until the Chinese New Year, so we still have plenty of time. As long as we solve the food shortage problem in these two months, then this matter will be over."
Lu Tong still showed some disapproval on his face, but he felt a little happy in his heart.
Perhaps as an official, Lu Tong had a lot of things to consider, but as an orphan, Lu Tong had very few things to consider.
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