Getting on the pirate ship
The renowned gynecologist Wan Gongfeng was thus tricked into joining the treacherous scheme.
Soon it was time for Bai Shu to be summoned to the palace. Madam Bai and Madam Bai worked through the night to alter Bai Shu's new official robes to fit her perfectly. Madam Bai even said, "How about we fold some loose thread here for my little sister? We don't know if she will still grow taller. If the clothes don't fit, we can just untie the thread."
Madam Bai said it was a good idea and that they should find scissors to take it apart and redo it. Bai Shu felt sad looking at it and hugged her mother, whimpering, "It's as if I haven't been able to go home for so many years. I want to be like my father and brothers, able to go home for meals when I'm not on duty."
“You wish,” Madam Bai said. “Female physicians are employed in the inner court, unlike your father and other officials who work outside the palace. Although you can leave the palace, you need approval from the chief physician, the assistant physician of the Imperial Medical Bureau, the director of the Imperial Medical Bureau, and the inner palace. It’s incredibly troublesome.”
Bai Shu's mood grew even heavier: "Ah? How could this be?"
“It’s not usually approved unless it’s official business or a major matter,” said Madam Bai. “You receive a salary from the imperial court; do you think it’s so easy to ask for leave?”
Bai Shu was feeling down, but Madam Bai comforted her, saying, "Although you can't leave the Imperial Medical Academy, your brother can visit you often. Tell us what you need or what you're missing."
Bai Shu hugged her sister-in-law and cuddled up to her, saying in a spoiled tone, "I miss my sister-in-law. Brother, could you bring her with you?"
"You silly girl," Madam Bai said with a smile, tapping her head, "Why don't I start studying too, and take the Imperial Medical Academy exam next year, so I can go with you?"
"Okay, okay!"
Bai Shu playfully shook Madam Bai. Seeing the two of them bickering, Madam Bai laughed and said to Bai Shu, "You're about to become a lady-in-waiting in the palace, yet you still act like a child. If people saw your rascal-like appearance, who would believe you?"
While they were preparing food and supplies for Bai Zhu, Bai Gongfeng was writing furiously, compiling his life-saving secrets into a small booklet—a booklet that could be hidden in his sleeve.
Bai Gongfeng instructed his daughter: "You must watch it. It's not easy to work in the palace. In our line of work, skills are secondary. What's important is how to deal with people. You'll have to learn gradually. I don't have time to teach you anything now. Ask your master more questions in the future. A teacher for a day is a father for life. Just like you pestered me, you should pester your master in the same way. Ask him if you don't understand. Don't be afraid of bothering him."
The old physician Bai then took out a treasure box, which was filled with pills layer by layer, each labeled with a tag.
The old physician Bai said, "This is medicine to save your life. If you encounter a life-threatening emergency, just remember this phrase: 'Ping-ping-pang-pang Zixue Dan, Silent and Treasure Dan, and Confused and Muddled Niuhuang Wan.' These 'Three Treasures for Febrile Diseases' can make even the most urgent patient wait for two hours after taking them, enough time for your father and master to come and save you."
The box also contained several other medicines, including Suhexiang pills and Musk Heart-Protecting Pills, each with a label detailing its usage.
The old physician Bai explained everything to Bai Shu, who listened attentively and nodded, saying, "I've got it."
Bai Shu's two older brothers presented him with his medical notes from over the years. There were so many that they filled a large box that Bai Shu couldn't even carry it. He had Xiao Si carry it to the carriage, and Bai Gongfeng and Bai Jia Dalang, carrying his waist token, escorted Bai Shu all the way to the Imperial Medical Academy.
As the carriage entered the first palace gate, Bai Shu leaned out of the window, waved to Madam Bai and Lady Bai who had come to see her off, and said loudly, "I will take good care of myself! Mother, sister-in-law, wait for me to leave the palace."
The palace had two gates: Xuande Gate separated the palace from the city, and Cheng'an Gate separated the inner court from the outer court.
The Imperial Medical Academy was located in the outer court, between the two palace gates, on the east side. The east belongs to the element of wood, which represents vitality.
The saying goes, "Women cannot leave the Xuande era, and men cannot enter the Chengping era." Female physicians in the Imperial Medical Academy could move freely between the outer court and the inner court, while male physicians could freely enter and leave the outer court and the marketplace. Female officials needed the approval of the Yeting Court to leave the palace, and male officials needed palace maids to accompany them when entering the inner court.
The Imperial Medical Bureau has many superiors, including the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, the Court of Imperial Household, the Imperial Inner Palace, and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. It can also be controlled by the Empress Dowager and the Empress in the palace. Censors can impeach it, and the Court of Censors can also intervene. In short, they are all powerful figures. It's too complicated to explain in a short time, so let's not go into details for now.
The Imperial Medical Bureau, from top to bottom, had one Chief Physician, with a salary of 600 shi (a unit of grain measure). The Chief Physician's deputy was the Assistant Chief Physician, with a salary of 400 shi. Below them were three Assistant Physicians, Assistant Pharmacists, and Assistant Prescription Physicians, each with a salary of 300 shi. All imperial physicians were under the jurisdiction of the Assistant Physicians. Physicians who treated nobles were called "Palace Attendants," and these were promoted from ordinary imperial physicians, with salaries ranging from 300 to 200 shi. Ordinary imperial physicians had a salary of 100 shi; Atractylodes macrocephala (Bai Zhu) held this rank.
The gynecology and pediatrics department had three senior physicians and over twenty imperial physicians. Senior Physician Wan was the most senior, with three and a half apprentices under him: Bai Shu's eldest sister, eldest brother, and second brother, with Bai Shu being the fourth junior. There was also a female physician who followed Senior Physician Wan, but she had not formally become his apprentice.
When it was announced that the sixteen-year-old female physician from the "Bai Family" had arrived, all the imperial physicians from the gynecology and pediatrics departments came to see her. People from the neighboring departments of general medicine, incantation medicine, dentistry, ophthalmology, and even the pharmacist and physician came to see her, crowding the several government offices of the gynecology and pediatrics department to the point of being completely packed.
Wan Gongfeng led several disciples to chase people away, saying, "Go away, go away, they all have two eyes and one mouth, what's there to see? If you're so capable, go and snatch people from the Bai family. The Bai family still has a fourth son who hasn't entered officialdom yet, go find Bai Gongfeng."
Behind the Imperial Medical Academy, in the first two rows of side rooms, were the residences of the female physicians. Of the more than one hundred physicians in the Imperial Medical Academy, over thirty were female, mostly in the gynecology and pediatrics department. The most senior was surnamed Shen, and she was one of the three honorary physicians in the gynecology and pediatrics department.
Shen Gongfeng led Bai Shu around and said, "You'll be living here from now on. The room on the left is your senior sister's room, and the one in front is mine. You can come to us if you need anything."
As Shen Gongfeng was talking to Bai Shu, they suddenly heard a commotion outside. A tall and strong girl ran in and said, "Teacher, teacher, several of Yang Gongfeng's students have come over and say they want to learn from Master Bai."
Oh dear, this is terrible.
Bai Zhu was feeling very guilty. She was about to pretend to have a stomachache to avoid it, but then she remembered that everyone here was a master doctor, and it would be even more embarrassing if she couldn't hide and was exposed. It was the same when she was little; she could never fool her grandfather when she pretended to be sick to skip school. A couple of acupuncture needles would make her behave.
Bai Shu's legs went weak, and she wanted to ask her master for help.
But then Shen Gongfeng said, "Take a few fellow disciples and guard the door. Don't let them in. Honestly, all the people Yang Daizi brings out are idiots. Xiaobaitou just arrived at our Imperial Medical Academy today and can't even tell east from west. If they want to spar, they should wait a few days."
Atractylodes macrocephala has a feeling of surviving a catastrophe.
She thanked Lord Shen, saying, "Thank you so much, Lord Shen, for saving my life."
"Of course, I was entrusted by your father, so naturally I have to take good care of you," said Shen Gongfeng gently. "You've just arrived, so it will take some time for you to adjust. They're also curious, but they'll get used to it after this period. Apprentices are like their mentors. That old geezer Yang is focused on studying medicine, and his students follow his example. They may be a bit careless, but they don't mean anything by it, so don't worry about it."
"Yang the Fool" is the third person to be worshipped in the Department of Gynecology and Pediatrics.
Bai Zhu praised him, saying, "My grandfather, father, and elder brothers often discussed medical principles, which was quite interesting. I admire Lord Yang and his fellow disciples for their dedication to studying medicine and saving lives."
"That's good." Shen Gongfeng nodded and smiled. "I've often heard your father praise your exceptional intelligence, and it's certainly true. In a few days, I'll also have some questions I'd like to ask you."
Bai Shu was dumbfounded: "..."
Ugh, I want to slap myself, but I don't know if I'll have enough time.
That night, Bai Shu, in a desperate attempt to find a cure, burned the midnight oil, clutching her elder brothers' book boxes as a last resort, with only one thought in mind—
You're so dense! Hurry up and learn, hurry up and learn, hurry up and learn, hurry up and learn!
Memorize it quickly!
Bai Zhu's mind raced, but as we already know, those medical principles of wind, cold, heat, dampness, dryness, and fire, as well as the five elements (metal, wood, water, fire, earth), turned into a mushy mess after being stirred by Bai Zhu's clever little brain. The more he stirred, the stickier and thicker it became, so sticky it could be used to make shoe soles.
Bai Zhu propped up his eyelids, took the thickest acupuncture needle in his hand, and would prick himself whenever he felt sleepy, staying up all night to memorize the material.
In the dead of night, there was a sudden knock on the door.
Bai Shu was startled; her door wasn't locked. She called out, "Who is it?"
"My name is Fang Lingshan, and I live next door." A gentle voice came from outside the door.
Bai Shu got up and opened the door, and saw a woman in her early twenties. She was gentle and clean-looking, tall and slender, with a coat draped over her shoulders, as if she had gotten up in the middle of a nap.
Fang Lingshan said, "I got up in the middle of the night and saw that your light was still on. I wondered if you were having trouble sleeping because you're new here, so I knocked on the door to ask. Did I disturb you?"
"No, no," Bai Shu invited Fang Lingshan into the house, saying, "I'm not sleepy, I'll just read for a while."
Fang Lingshan saw the medical notebooks spread out on Bai Shu's table.
So many notes...
Fang Lingshan looked amazed and said admiringly, "These are all yours?"
Bai Shu nodded and said, "It's mine." Her brother gave it to her, so it's hers now. "Do you want to see it? What do you want to see? I'll help you find it."
Fang Lingshan admired Bai Shu even more. He thought to himself, "What a genius! The Bai family truly lives up to its reputation! Such profound family learning, and yet so diligent and studious, accumulating so many notes, still studying late into the night—truly amazing!"
Bai Shu felt that Fang Lingshan's gaze towards her had changed.
Admiration, respect, and... worship?
Bai Zhu didn't quite understand this change.
Fang Lingshan said gently, "Lord Bai, from now on, our Imperial Medical Academy will depend on you."
Bai Shu was stunned. "Ah? No, no, Lord Fang, I didn't..."
"Lord Bai, you are too modest," Fang Lingshan said, changing his address to a more respectful one. He bowed to Bai Shu and said, "I will rely on Lord Bai for guidance in the palace from now on. My skills are not yet proficient, and I will ask you for instruction in the future. I hope Lord Bai will not despise my stupidity."
Bai Shu, who was in dire straits, was on the verge of tears. She bowed to Fang Lingshan, bowing even lower, and said, "It is I who should learn more from my senior sisters."
Fang Lingshan admired Bai Shu even more, and her gaze softened when she looked at her. How could there be such a lovely girl? Not only was she from a family with a long tradition of learning and hardworking, but she was also so humble and approachable. What a wonderful junior sister!
Bai Shu never expected that on her first day at the Imperial Medical Academy, she would gain a gentle and devoted fan.
Bai Zhu: I didn't, I didn't...
Oh my god, help!
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