Chapter 809 The Importance of Population!
"...I overheard the officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War discussing the southward advance of our Great Tang's navy. As a member of the Imperial Medical Bureau, I also have some thoughts I'd like to share."
As Li San Niang spoke, she bowed to Minister Yu and the official from the Ministry of War who had spoken to her earlier. Minister Yu from the Ministry of Revenue pretended not to know and did not show any reaction, but the official from the Ministry of War with a thick beard nodded slightly to Li San Niang.
"Although I am just a female doctor who understands medical principles and can treat patients, I not only know that war costs money, but I also know that war is all about logistics, and that war will inevitably result in the injury or even death of our great Tang men!"
As doctors, healing the sick and saving lives is our sacred duty.
Before I even entered the Imperial Medical Bureau, I had already taught the physicians in the Department of Ulcer Medicine the effective methods for treating Jin's wounds free of charge. As a result, the number of casualties among our Tang soldiers in the Western Expedition against the Eastern Turks decreased by more than 80%.
I dare not take credit; this is all thanks to the doctors who accompanied me to the border!
However, we later discussed this further. If there were dedicated caregivers to help both the medical staff and the injured, more medical staff could be available to treat more injured people, and the number of survivors could be increased.
Therefore, I thought, why not train a special group of female healers to care for the wounded in the soldiers' camp?
"This humble official knows little of military affairs, but I do know that soldiers who have survived the battlefield are all formidable; they are the treasures of our Great Tang!"
Li San Niang's words truly brought a new experience to everyone in the hall. They didn't really think that Li San Niang's idea of training some female doctors into specialized army nurses was right; they were just surprised that Li San Niang, a woman who had only recently become a minor seventh-rank official, dared to speak so eloquently in the hall.
Knowing the power of pressing things through, Li Sanniang didn't give anyone a chance to interrupt. After talking about the army nurse, she continued, "Besides that, I have some other thoughts in mind."
My mother, Zhao Dani, is a midwife with over thirty years of experience. She has delivered babies for thousands of people in Chang'an, including two generations of her family.
I am a female doctor who has been learning medicine from my father, Li Hualin, since I was a child. However, because of my status as a woman, since I started practicing medicine at the Third Medical Hall of the Chang'an Medical Alliance in Yongpingfang, many women have come to me for treatment.
In recent years, I have delivered hundreds of babies, some of whom did not survive due to various illnesses.
Therefore, I have established a new type of midwifery school.
"Gentlemen, you are all more learned than I am, but I am not illiterate; I know the importance of the human population to the nation!"
As Li Sanniang finished speaking, she bowed to the person whose gaze was fixed on her. Even those who looked down on her as a nun in the hall listened to her words at this moment.
The phrase "人丁兴旺" (a thriving population) and "添丁进口" (adding more children to the family) refers to the population, and in some contexts, it specifically refers to adult men.
"Chengding" refers to adult males who are capable of bearing taxes and corvée labor.
In feudal society, population was everything!
With a population, wasteland can be reclaimed, land can be gradually restored, more taxes can be collected, and more people can perform corvée labor, which is of vital importance to the country.
The food consumed in the national war is grown by people, and people die in the war. The people, land and wealth that these people seize back are even more valuable.
So, Li San Niang really caught the attention of those officials who used to look down on her. After all, in their eyes, what could a woman possibly know?
Matters of national importance are not profound truths that women who spend their time around the stove can understand.
But now that Li San Niang had actually brought this up, it really aroused the desire of these people to continue listening. They wanted to know what else Li San Niang could say.
"If we want to increase the population, we can only have women give birth. But there is a saying that I'm sure you all know: childbirth is like passing through the gates of hell!"
You all have mothers, and some of you also have sisters. When you marry, your new wives will bear you children and carry on the family line.
Let me ask you a question: among the officials in this hall, surely some of you have heard of such a case, or perhaps you have women around you who died in childbirth, or even your own wives!
Yes and no?
Li San Niang loudly asked the question to the civil and military officials standing behind her, her sharp eyes sweeping over the dozens of officials in her sight.
With over a hundred people in the main hall, how could there not be women in their families who died during childbirth?
Some people thought of their own relatives who were like this, perhaps their mother, perhaps their elder sister, perhaps their bride, and they couldn't help but feel sad. Li San Niang could vaguely hear sobbing.
"But the birth of a baby is not the end of the story; it is only the first step. The real challenge is to protect this tiny baby and help it grow up safely!"
A woman, if she is lucky, may give birth to more than a dozen children in her lifetime, and if she is even more fortunate, more than half of them may survive.
But if things go wrong, it's already good if two or three children survive to grow up healthy.
How tragic this is!
Li San Niang lowered her head and reached out to touch her forehead, as if wiping away tears from the corners of her eyes.
"However, due to the natural differences between men and women, women are weaker and cannot cultivate much land or do heavy work. As a result, many families drowned their daughters in chamber pots or basins or even abandoned them in rivers or mountains when they were born young."
Li Sanniang turned around and respectfully bowed to Emperor Wu at the head of the table. "Thanks to His Majesty's foresight, who issued an edict many years ago prohibiting the indiscriminate drowning of female infants and providing millet for newborns, many people are now able to marry. Otherwise..."
Li Sanniang stood still, straightened her back, and looked around at the officials in scarlet robes. Her tone changed from pity and sorrow to decisiveness and a hint of murderous intent: "The birth of children is important, but the childbirth of women is even more important!"
Ladies and gentlemen, I wish to establish maternity wards specifically for women giving birth. Where maternity wards are not available, we can train modern midwives to increase the survival rate of both mothers and infants during childbirth.
A modern midwife can deliver hundreds of babies a year, with a success rate of 70-80%, which would mean an extra 70-80 people for the Tang Dynasty in the future.
One hundred midwives over ten years would amount to tens of thousands of women, and there were also female doctors who could save the lives of mothers and women, improve their physical condition, and help them successfully overcome the difficulties of childbirth.
It takes at least fifteen to twenty years for a generation to come of age. This matter is important; it's a great thing that benefits the present and future generations!
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