Chapter 81 (Combined Chapters)
Even if an ordinary person can read, they may not understand Buddhism. Fortunately, the lady-in-waiting that the family hired for Fu-jie was well-versed in Buddhism, especially the Diamond Sutra. In addition to consulting her, Miao-zhen also inquired with Xiao Su-yin about which nun was good at explaining the Diamond Sutra. She specially spent fourteen taels of silver to hire someone to teach her.
She had told Xiao Jingshi all this beforehand. Xiao Jingshi knew that Miaozhen was definitely not the kind of person who would be seduced by monks and Taoists, and even said to her, "If you have any questions, you can ask me."
"Well, I'll ask you when I've learned enough. Otherwise, if I ask you about everything, it'll be too much." Miaozhen said with a grin.
Xiao Jingshi glanced at her and saw that she looked eager to try, so he didn't want to delay her: "Go ahead and learn, I won't bother you anymore."
Miaozhen went to see it first, and after studying it, she really learned things she didn't know before. For example, the Diamond Sutra is divided into thirty-two parts, which was divided by Prince Zhaoming. Also, the king of Shravasti mentioned above is King Prasenajit of the Surangama Sutra.
Just as Miaozhen was learning these things with great enthusiasm, Lou Qiongyu thought that when her fourth sister-in-law first married into the family, she had indeed copied Buddhist scriptures to please her mother-in-law. She had also copied them along with her, and she even went to burn incense with her mother for many years, so she could be considered to have some understanding of Buddhism.
She knew that these nuns were often feigning sincerity and honesty, using sweet words to swindle women out of their money, but she felt it was inappropriate to remind Miaozhen of this. If she did, people would think she was being nosy.
She told her husband, Xiao Jingtang, who had just returned from the academy, about it. Xiao Jingtang replied, "You should worry less. Just take good care of our Miao-ge and Wei-jie. Your sister-in-law is a very shrewd person. You might be fooled, but she won't be."
"That's true, it's a good thing I didn't say those things." Lou Qiongyu knew the principle that when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head.
Xiao Jingtang didn't care about any of that. Because of his brother, he was doing very well at the prefectural school, so he didn't care about anything else. His family wasn't actually this wealthy when he was a child. His father only had a pharmacy back then. Later, after obtaining a tea permit, he started running a boat business, which made things better for him.
She calculated that the family's assets amounted to approximately two to three hundred thousand taels of silver. In the future, each of the three brothers could receive one hundred thousand taels, which would be enough for a lifetime.
Therefore, he couldn't understand why some of his classmates studied so hard that they would hang their heads from the rafters and prick their thighs with awls, rub their faces with ice and snow in winter, and get sores on their buttocks from sitting so long. Some even got sick from studying.
For families with considerable wealth like theirs, as long as they don't recklessly invest money in businesses, they already have enough to live on.
Unfortunately, Lou Qiongyu didn't understand. She always felt that Xiao Jingtang wasn't working hard enough, and she mentioned this to Miaozhen, saying, "Fourth Sister-in-law, you must make sure Fourth Brother urges him to work harder."
Miao Zhen thought that if Xiao Jingtang were only a teenager, they would definitely try to persuade him. Xiao Jingshi had tried to persuade him before, but now Xiao Jingtang was already in his late twenties, and it would be hurtful to talk about these things again. But seeing Lou Qiongyu's anxiety, she smiled and said, "Don't worry, I will talk to your second brother when I have time."
"Thank you very much, Fourth Sister-in-law," Lou Qiongyu said.
She stayed in the capital, without any familiar relatives or friends. At first, she tried to make some arrangements, but now she felt extremely lonely. She longed for her husband to pass the imperial examination and become an official, so that she wouldn't have to go through this so often.
But Miaozhen didn't know she could help with her emotions, because Miaozhen herself was quite adaptable no matter where she was, and she always applied what she learned.
It was like when a woman came to see Miaozhen for treatment. Miaozhen discovered that the woman had an irregular diet and liked to drink unboiled water, which was why she always had inexplicable stomach aches. You couldn't persuade her with scientific methods, but fortunately, Miaozhen knew that she was a Buddhist, so she said, "'The Buddha sees 84,000 insects in a bowl of water.' You should boil the water before drinking it. Also, Buddhist disciples brush their teeth with willow branches after every meal. Since you are also a lay disciple, why don't you follow this rule?"
Miaozhen breathed a sigh of relief when she managed to persuade the female patient to recover.
When Miaozhen told Xiao Jingshi this example, Xiao Jingshi couldn't help but praise her, saying, "She is truly a talented person."
Xiao Jingshi was somewhat envious of Miaozhen. Why was his own life so boring, while the people and things that Zhenzhen encountered every day were so interesting?
Thinking of this, he recalled something: "Our Minister Wan of the Ministry of Personnel is a member of Yan's faction, and his character is truly despicable. I had already refused to appoint Zhang Shihua as an official because of his previous misconduct, but this fellow heard that he had offered generous gifts to bribe me, so he was appointed as the prefect."
"He was even promoted to prefect?" Miao Zhen thought to herself that the officialdom was truly dark.
Meanwhile, Zhang Shihua sent thirty loads of congratulatory gifts to the Minister of Personnel, including a large amount of jade, gold and silver jewelry, python robes, and various brocades, spending nearly five thousand taels of silver like water.
Xiao Jingshi shrugged: "We don't care about any of that. Unless the person behind him falls from power, it's useless."
"Forget it, one or two of us can't change the chaos. As long as we do our own thing well and have a clear conscience, that's fine," Miaozhen said.
Xiao Jingshi sat down again and said, "You're right. Even our family used to have to bribe people and find backers. It's just that we merchants bribe people to prevent them from damaging our businesses."
Unbeknownst to him, Xiao Jingshi was also coming to understand the rules of being an official, realizing that being a good person was even more important than being a good official.
Zhang Shihua made new official robes and happily took his wife and children to take up his post. Miaoyun never expected that after her encounter with Xu Ling was resolved, Zhang Shihua was promoted to the prefect of Wanzhou, which was even larger than Xinzhou.
Sure enough, all this talk of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness is nothing but a trick to fool children.
Zhang Shihua also said to Miaoyun, "Look how worried you were before. So what if Xiao Jingshi is in the Ministry of Personnel now? I've taken the path of the Minister of Personnel. What can he do to me?"
Miaoyun remained silent for a moment before saying, "I want to add some sesame oil to the temple in the capital before I leave."
"Okay." Zhang Shihua was already immersed in joy and didn't care about these trivial matters.
A year after Xu Ling's matter was resolved, she dared to go out and visit her own home. Unfortunately, her mother had already passed away, and her father, who was so old, was still doing hard labor. She felt extremely guilty and left some money to buy two servants to take care of her father before she could feel at ease.
Meanwhile, Miaozhen was doing a free clinic at Baiyi Nunnery today. She hadn't been here for quite some time. There were many people coming for the free clinic, and she examined and treated them all. Finally, at lunchtime, she saw Miaoyun, who seemed to have been waiting for her for a while.
"I didn't expect you to do so many good deeds!" Miaoyun thought to herself that Miaozhen was trying to mold her into a saint.
Miaozhen laughed and said, "This is nothing. Some women in the capital also give a lot of alms. I've only come here two or three times this year."
Miao Yun covered her mouth and smiled: "You're still the same, like a female student. How can you survive in the officialdom? I've heard about your reputation, but sometimes reputation doesn't matter as long as someone is in control. It's all up to someone else's whim."
Miao Zhen thought that she could help Xiao Jingshi climb up to Governor Lu and Prime Minister Huang, and even have a respectable position in the palace, so why did Miao Yun say such a thing?
But she had no intention of showing off in front of Miaoyun, because she always felt that Miaoyun was talking strangely and acting a bit pretentious. So she just said, "You know me, I don't care much about those interpersonal relationships. Just do your best."
Miaoyun then asked Xu Erpeng and his wife, "How are Second Uncle and Second Aunt?"
"They're doing well, but my father has gained a bit more weight. He said it's a good thing the cloak I sent back was too big; it fits him perfectly." Miaozhen couldn't help but laugh when she thought about it. After saying that, she asked Miaoyun, "How are your uncle and aunt?"
Miaoyun covered her face and wept: "My mother has passed away."
In fact, Miaozhen couldn't quite remember what Huang looked like anymore, but seeing her like this, she kindly comforted her, saying, "Sister, please accept my condolences."
Miaoyun wanted to reminisce with Miaozhen about the past, but Miaozhen looked at the sun and said, "I'm going to do the free clinic now. I'll talk to you again when I have time."
Watching her leave quickly, Miaoyun couldn't help but complain, "Miaozhen hasn't changed at all. She only focuses on her own things and ignores everything else when she's busy."
Miaozhen was indeed like that. She always felt that if she focused her attention on others all day, was overly enthusiastic, and liked to teach others, people would get tired of her in the future, and she would not make any progress.
After the free clinic, Miaozhen was exhausted and went back to sleep.
She now spends about an hour each day studying Buddhism. She has been studying it for a month now, but she still feels very unfamiliar with it. She starts studying it as soon as she gets up in the morning.
After another month of study, Princess Chang'an had already married, and the princess's household sent invitations to Miaozhen to come to the residence. The princess's residence was converted from the former residence of a high-ranking official. Her younger sister, Princess Ning'an, was actually slightly more favored than Miaozhen because she was raised by Consort Shen.
Although Princess Chang'an was the eldest princess, she was still a young girl. When she saw Miaozhen, she scolded, "Why doesn't Physician Xu come here to play?"
"I think the princess is currently enjoying her honeymoon, so it wouldn't be appropriate for us to come and disturb her," Miaozhen joked.
Princess Chang'an obviously didn't respond to that, but simply smiled and told Miaozhen to continue teaching her, even calling her "Master Xu" as a sign of respect. Miaozhen, based on her own medical experience, started by teaching her how to take the pulse and examine the tongue, but this wasn't something that could be learned overnight, so Miaozhen had no choice but to say, "Then I'll come once every ten days."
“But I would like you to come every three to five days.” Princess Chang’an always felt a sense of warmth whenever she saw Miaozhen.
Miaozhen readily agreed: "Okay, but I'm worried that it might be inconvenient for you sometimes. How about this, whenever you're free, just send someone to let me know in the morning, and I'll try my best to finish up and come over."
In the early part of the dynasty, the estates granted to princesses were relatively small, at most around a hundred qing (approximately 66.7 hectares), and were mostly bestowed by the emperor. Starting from the reign of Emperor Xianzong, the granting of estates increased year by year, reaching an extravagant level during the Jiajing era, when Princess Chang'an possessed a thousand qing of land.
Although Miaozhen received many rewards, she felt heartbroken when she told Xiao Jingshi about them: "The rich own vast fields while the poor have nowhere to stand. When I hear this, I wonder if the people in the outskirts of the capital still have land to cultivate?"
"You didn't say that in front of the princess, did you?" Xiao Jingshi looked at her.
Miaozhen shook her head: "Of course I won't say that. This has nothing to do with the princess. Those vassal kings have much more land than the princess."
"It's good that you know, but it's a pity that it's useless for us to talk about these things. The problems of the country are there from top to bottom." Xiao Jingshi understood this principle very well.
Xiao Jingshi is no longer the easily angered person he used to be. Miao Zhen thought that the Ministry of Personnel was indeed different; dealing with people must be the most tiring thing in the world.
Even someone like Xiao Jingshi has become a bit more tactful.
Hearing Miaozhen's teasing, Xiao Jingshi smiled and said, "I now realize that it's not easy to do something well. It's not a matter of ability, but entirely a matter of personnel. For example, when you do something, you need to pay attention to your direct superior. If your superior is capable, we subordinates can just do our jobs. But if your superior is weak, no matter how capable we are, we won't get anything."
“So many people who want to climb the social ladder aren’t necessarily after power and wealth; they just don’t want to be held back. Let me tell you, when I was a disciple of Madam Tao, whenever she called me, I had to run off to make abalone with bones no matter what was going on at home. But now that I’m independent, to be honest, I only make abalone with bones occasionally.” Miaozhen shrugged.
Xiao Jingshi said, "That really makes sense."
It is also said that Cen Yuan's three-year term as a principal clerk in the Ministry of Revenue has expired. He was an extremely moderate official who did not offend others much, nor did he deliberately do anything corrupt. Therefore, he failed to be promoted to assistant minister and was transferred to the Ministry of Justice as a principal clerk.
Of course, the Ministry of Revenue was actually of a higher status than the Ministry of Justice. Cen Yuan was not very satisfied with this. Some of his colleagues were even transferred to the Ministry of Personnel as principal officers because of their outstanding work.
Frustrated by his official career, Cen Yuan wasn't in a good mood at home either.
Xiao Suyin also knew why. After her elder brother returned, he learned that Cen Yuan had treated her badly, favoring his concubine over his wife, and even intentionally suppressing her. Otherwise, given the Gao family's prominence, they wouldn't have acted this way with just a slight gesture.
Xiao Suyin thought that although it was true that a wife would be honored if her husband prospered, if someone like Cen Yuan rose too high, she would be in even worse shape.
For this reason, Xiao Suyin went back and expressed her gratitude to Xiao Jingtian and Madam Gao. Although she didn't say it aloud, she added an extra layer to the gifts she gave. Madam Gao, however, did not deny her contribution: "We just didn't help with the mediation. Fourth Brother also put in a good word with them."
Xiao Suyin came over to Miaozhen to thank her again, and Miaozhen smiled and said, "We didn't help much, we just handled it impartially."
"I'm really afraid that if our family helps him with all sorts of favors, he'll get promoted and won't even care about me anymore," Xiao Suyin sneered.
Miaozhen held her hand and said, "Just keep this to yourself, don't say it out loud."
Xiao Suyin nodded with a smile, and the smile was still on her face when she returned. When Erxi told her that Cen Yuan had gone to Aunt Zhou's place, she didn't even raise her head.
She now completely sees through Cen Yuan. Did that Aunt Zhou really think she was Cen Yuan's true love? No, she'll find out in the future.
By the time Miaozhen reached the twelfth lunar month, she had learned a portion of the Diamond Sutra. That's just how she is; no matter how old she is or whether she's married, she has real perseverance when it comes to learning something.
Unfortunately, I often have to go to Princess Chang'an's residence to teach medicine, and each trip takes about an hour, so I now have to spend my free time in the evenings studying.
Today, I have to bring a little tail with me, because Zheng Ge'er's foster mother is sick, and his two maids, Miao Zhen, are worried about her, so they brought her directly to the princess's residence.
Princess Chang'an was delighted to see Zheng Ge'er and even had some pastries and candies brought to him: "Your name is Zheng Ge'er, right? Do you like these things? If you don't, I'll get you something else."
Zhengge'er is usually a very energetic child. He is four years old this year and is at the age where he talks a lot. Hearing Princess Chang'an say this, he said in a loud voice: "I ate two bowls of rice before I set off. Now my stomach is full and I don't need to eat anything."
"Shouldn't we thank the princess?" Miaozhen reminded her.
Zhengge'er smiled and said, "Thank you, Princess."
Princess Chang'an had the little maid play with her, while Miaozhen taught her how to understand these medical books and showed her her old medical practice logs, explaining them in great detail.
In fact, this can be considered a form of companionship. Although the princess has countless people around her, she is very willing to spend time with someone like Miaozhen who understands medicine, is well-versed in poetry and literature, has a decent status, and has no conflicts of interest.
After only half an hour of teaching, Granny Meng came in and said, "Princess, the Prince Consort requests an audience."
Princess Chang'an looked at Miaozhen apologetically, and Miaozhen smiled and said, "Princess, I'll wait for you here. You should go see your husband first."
She had always thought that the princess and her husband lived together, but later she learned that the princess needed an imperial decree to summon her husband, and the husband had to go through a steward like Granny Meng to pay his respects to the princess. This showed that these people had extraordinary power.
Even Miaozhen, who received Princess Changning's apprenticeship gift last time, took five taels from it to reward them.
Princess Chang'an returned shortly after leaving, her face beaming with a smile. She then said to Miaozhen, "I've kept Master waiting a moment today. Please stay for dinner later; you can have a meal with me."
"That won't do," Miaozhen shook her head.
Princess Chang'an asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"
Seeing that Granny Meng had left, Miaozhen whispered, "It's not easy for the prince consort to see the princess. Even common couples need time to cultivate their relationship after marriage, let alone you?"
If it were any other princess, she would never have said these things, but Princess Chang'an lost her mother at a young age, was kind and gentle, and lived alone in the princess's residence without any female elders to teach her these things, so Miaozhen said a few more words.
“But I don’t have much to say to him either.” Princess Chang’an rested her chin on her hand and looked at Miaozhen, then asked curiously, “Master, were you and Steward Xiao on good terms from the beginning?”
Miaozhen shook her head and then smiled, "At first, we only met once when we got engaged. I only knew that he was handsome, and then I forgot about him and focused on studying medicine. Later, when I was seeing patients, I ran into him again. Gradually, we became a little more familiar with each other. After we got married, we often found time to talk, and our relationship got pretty good."
After Miaozhen finished speaking, Princess Chang'an seemed to want to hear more, so Miaozhen said seriously, "Come, let me tell you about the illnesses here and how they are diagnosed."
Princess Chang'an looked utterly disappointed.
Half an hour later, when Miaozhen was about to leave, Princess Chang'an had someone pack a food box full of osmanthus flower cakes for her to take back. She said reluctantly, "I will come to see you again in a few days."
Miaozhen smiled, bowed, and withdrew. Princess Chang'an also gave Zhengge'er a large kite.
At dinner, Miaozhen placed a plate of osmanthus flower cakes on the table and said, "I heard that these osmanthus flower cakes are a palace craft that can warm and nourish the spleen and stomach, but people with yin deficiency and excessive internal heat should eat less of them to avoid internal heat."
After taking a bite, Sister Fu couldn't help but say, "It's delicious, but it's a bit sweet."
Xiao Jingshi then smiled and said, "Zheng-ge'er didn't misbehave today when he came with you, did he?"
"He's such a good boy. The princess just gave him a kite, and he said he'd like his older brothers and sisters to take him to fly kites when the weather is nice." Miaozhen patted her youngest son's head.
For some reason, Xiao Jingshi recalled the days when his family used to go to the Pingjiang Earl's Mansion for a free meal. Although it was embarrassing, he couldn't help but feel that the food tasted delicious back then.
So Xiao Jingshi ate two osmanthus flower cakes in one go. Seeing that he liked them, Miaozhen said, "I'll make some for you to take to the yamen tomorrow."
"These things made in the palace can't be bought with money, yet you're so generous."
"So what? This way, others won't know who's behind you, but seeing these internal artifacts, they won't dare offend you."
Xiao Jingshi felt a warmth in his heart; his wife truly always thought of him, no matter when or where.
Speaking of Princess Chang'an having dinner with her husband in the evening, this husband was also selected by the Ministry of Rites and the eunuchs. He was handsome and well-versed in poetry and literature.
Princess Chang'an recalled Miaozhen's words and asked what books her husband, Zhang Tao, was reading. She added, "I am currently studying medicine under a famous doctor in Suzhou, so I was a little late in responding when I heard you were coming."
When Zhang Tao saw that the princess was actually explaining to him, he quickly bowed and said, "It was I who disturbed Your Highness."
Princess Chang'an, who had just learned how to take a pulse and was eager to try it out, said when she saw him like this, "Let me take your pulse."
Zhang Tao blushed upon hearing this and agreed. She took a while before saying, "Hey, how come your pulse is so fast? It seems I'm still not good enough and need to learn more from my master."
Seeing her like this, Zhang Tao, who had been chosen as the princess's consort, couldn't be considered stupid. He thought to himself, "Next time I come, I'll let the princess take my pulse, okay?"
When Princess Chang'an saw him say this and his blushing face, her heart skipped a beat and she seemed to understand something.
Zhang Tao thought to himself that it was worth spending a hundred taels to bribe Granny Meng in order to meet her; this meeting was indeed worthwhile.
Miaozhen never expected that with just a little guidance, Princess Chang'an and her husband's relationship would improve. When she visited again after the New Year, she discovered that Princess Chang'an was already pregnant.
“Master, I owe my pregnancy so much to you. You not only taught me medicine but also helped me take care of my health. Otherwise, I certainly wouldn’t be in this situation.” Princess Chang’an trusted Miaozhen very much.
Miaozhen also said, "Anyway, I come here often. If you have any minor ailments, please don't suffer in silence. Be sure to send someone to tell me so that I can know sooner and treat you earlier."
"Don't worry." Princess Chang'an touched her belly and listened to Miaozhen talk about the auspicious and inauspicious days, which she remembered.
Everyone was on good terms, but unexpectedly, Xiao Jingshi's grandmother passed away. When the news came, both Xiao Jingshi and Xiao Jingtian, who were officials, had to go home to observe mourning. Miaozhen felt a little regretful and made several extremely precious copies of the methods for handling normal and difficult childbirth, which she then sent to Princess Chang'an.
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