Cao Qinmo didn't care what Sun Miaoqing thought; as long as her daughter could have a happy life, nothing else mattered.
If it weren't for the fact that she was in Chuxiu Palace, she would have loved to grab Yinxiu and jump up, laughing out loud.
Overjoyed, Cao Qinmo grinned and said, "Your Majesty, I suddenly remembered that I have something to do, so I won't disturb you any longer."
"If Your Highness finds my cooking skills good after you've used this Jade Dew Dumpling, I will make some for you from time to time and send them to you. Please do not refuse, Your Highness."
Sun Miaoqing nodded. "Since Sister Cao has something to do, she should go ahead and attend to it. But is it really alright for you to suddenly act like this?"
Cao Qinmo smiled so hard her eyes narrowed into slits. "Of course, no problem. I suddenly thought of something wonderful. I've never been so happy before."
"Your Majesty, rest assured, I am perfectly fine."
Sun Miaoqing hesitated, watching Cao Qinmo's departing figure, her joyful expression like that of someone who had won the lottery.
Forget it, it's not really her business anyway. It's more important to study cosmetics with Lingrong.
After developing eyeshadow and similar products, she plans to research and develop perfumes. Eventually, she envisions expanding beyond France, turning the entire country into her perfume factory!
On the day chosen by the Imperial Observatory, three days in advance, everyone bathed and changed clothes. Led by the eldest son and the Empress, they worshipped the gods of Heaven, Earth, and all the heavens.
Then, offerings were made to the ancestors of the Aisin Gioro family, and a large, chubby orange tree recounted why there was a mass vaccination.
Meanwhile, the Goddess of Smallpox was worshipped in the inner palace, and it was strictly forbidden to stir up smallpox or splash water on it. At the same time, monks from the Baohua Hall set up an altar to perform a grand water and land ritual to pray for peace.
The Imperial Medical Academy was also on high alert, with all the imperial physicians staying in the palace as a precaution.
After everything was prepared, the chubby orange cat appeared in front of Prince Zhuang and other members of the imperial family, as well as several key ministers of the previous dynasty and even the historians.
Without even flinching, he calmly allowed Physician Lu to administer the smallpox vaccination in front of everyone.
Meanwhile, the concubines remained in their own palaces, and the servants around them were temporarily replaced by palace maids and eunuchs who had contracted smallpox.
Sun Miaoqing looked at the tightly closed doors and windows. The imperial physicians and others could only stand outside, both to guard against any eventuality and to avoid seeing the concubines' bodies.
Inoculation with smallpox inevitably requires making a small incision on the skin and then applying powdered scabs. This task could only be done by palace maids; even eunuchs were not allowed to perform it.
Mai Sui and Mai Qing, carrying the prepared items, said respectfully, "The auspicious time has arrived. Your Highness, we respectfully request that you be vaccinated against smallpox."
Sun Miaoqing felt uneasy. The way these words were spoken made it sound to her like the auspicious time had arrived and that her servants were respectfully inviting Her Highness to depart.
It's creepy!
Fortunately, she was certain that there was no risk involved, as long as the knife and gauze were thoroughly disinfected.
Sun Miaoqing didn't let them operate it directly, but asked, "Is this knife newly made? Before today, it hasn't been used for anything strange, has it?"
Mai Sui said, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, the scalpels used for this smallpox inoculation were all newly prepared by the Imperial Household Department and have not been used before."
"Furthermore, as instructed by Physician Lu, it has been soaked in alcohol for half an hour. Before use, it must be heated with fire and then wiped with alcohol before it can come into contact with the Empress's body."
"The prepared gauze is the same. It is washed with clean water and soapberry, then soaked in lime water for half an hour. After it is cleaned, it is boiled in a pot and then dried in the sun and stored away."
Upon hearing this, Sun Miaoqing smiled. These were all things she had told Physician Lu beforehand. In those days, there were no tetanus shots available, nor were there any antibiotics.
What if the food isn't clean enough and causes a bacterial infection? When someone is down on their luck, they can even choke to death while drinking water!
In her past life, she had heard her family say that someone in her hometown had accidentally cut themselves on a bamboo strip while doing bamboo weaving.
I didn't pay attention at the time, but later I died of tetanus. That's so unfair!
Who would have thought that tetanus, an anaerobic bacterium, could take a life in a wound that wasn't very deep!
Sun Miaoqing didn't want her good intentions to backfire, that she was trying to save someone but ended up causing their death.
"In that case, let's get vaccinated."
Sun Miaoqing took off her left shoe, revealing her snow-white, jade-like foot. Every time she saw her delicately cared-for feet, she felt incredibly grateful that they had never been bound.
Otherwise, with those humiliating, ugly, deformed, and unbearably painful feet, she didn't know what she was capable of doing!
Mai Sui and Mai Qing exchanged a glance. When they were taught this, they were told to inoculate smallpox on their arms...
Sun Miaoqing noticed their predicament and said directly, "I don't want to have it implanted on my arm; it would be troublesome if it left a scar."
"You can do it right on the soles of your feet, it will work just as well."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Mai Sui thought to herself, no wonder Consort Cheng is so favored, she has even considered the possibility of scars.
They must have put in a lot of effort elsewhere as well.
Putting everything else aside, the soles of the feet are much more sensitive than the hands; the pain sensation is at least several times stronger.
However, she still had to maintain some dignity when facing unfamiliar palace maids; it was just that pretending to be a man was really difficult...
On the first day, I didn't feel anything. Since I couldn't go out, I could only stay in my bedroom and embroider.
The next evening, several blisters appeared on the soles of her feet. They were a little itchy but tolerable. If the blisters had been smaller, she would have thought it was athlete's foot.
(Back in biology class, we learned that athlete's foot comes in tiny blisters. Some people also get them on their hands; that's because the athlete's foot has spread to their hands. When I was in school, I often saw my neighbors putting toothpaste on their feet.)
The imperial physician listened to their description at the door and had a bowl of medicine brewed and brought in. Apart from tasting more bitter than usual, Sun Miaoqing hadn't yet noticed any other effects.
On the third day, the blisters around the wound looked ripe and shiny.
Sun Miaoqing stared at the soles of her feet for a long time, then picked up the scissors, intending to just poke them open, just like she used to poke pimples.
However, she was desperately stopped by two palace maids. One held her hand and cried, refusing to let go, while the other brought a small knife, saying that the imperial physician had blessed her and that the blister must not be punctured.
If she gets too itchy, the two of them can use strips of cloth to tie her up.
Sun Miaoqing felt helpless; she wasn't that upset yet...
When I woke up on the fourth day, the blister had shrunk by half.
By the fifth day, the smallpox had completely disappeared. After examining the patient's pulse, the imperial physician immediately announced that the inoculation was successful. After bathing and changing clothes, the patient was allowed to take a walk in the courtyard.
Apart from a few blisters, I felt perfectly comfortable throughout the entire process. On the contrary, the people waiting outside were all very nervous.
Once Chuxiu Palace returned to normal, the other palaces were almost back to normal as well. The Imperial Garden became lively again, filled with concubines who had been confined for so long, going for walks together.
Apart from a few people with weaker constitutions who had a more severe reaction and developed a fever for two days, the others, like Sun Miaoqing, only developed a few blisters around their wounds.
The chubby orange tree excitedly shared the results of the first batch of vaccinations with the court officials. It immediately declared that they should work diligently and quickly, racing against time, to ensure everyone in the capital was vaccinated.
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