Chapter 22

< Chapter 22: Germination... Carcinogenesis? (15) >

Chapter 22: Germination... Carcinogenesis? (15)

"Sei's letters are truly fascinating."

"Excuse me?"

"Come here."

Sejong called Hyang to his side and continued, pointing at the Latin sentences with his hand.

"These words keep appearing in various places, indicating they show the case of the sentence subject. And from how the words are written, this part seems to indicate the beginning sound of a word, this part the middle sound, and this part the ending sound. So, they combine to form one character. And the characters that indicate the middle sound seem to be these, these, and these. From how they form words and sentences, it appears that the Sei people represent pronunciation rather than meaning. Am I right?"

"Yes, that's correct!"

Hyang, who was half in a daze, stammered in response.

'Real genius! No, a monster!'

In a short time, Sejong had grasped not only the definite and indefinite articles of Latin but also the structure of words and the concept of phonetic writing.

This was the moment when Hyang truly felt Sejong's genius, which he had only known from textbooks.

Sejong, who had picked up the book again and continued reading, turned to Hyang.

"Do all the Sei (Western barbarians) use this script?"

"No, they use it as a basis, but it varies slightly."

Hyang selected books from France and Germany and placed them on the desk.

"Hmm... Hmm..."

Sejong stroked his beard as he alternately examined the books from France and Germany and the Latin books.

"The forms of the characters are largely the same, but there are some variations in the characters that determine pronunciation... Hmm..."

Sejong, who had been humming, looked at Hyang with a serious face.

"Prince."

"Yes, Father."

"What do you think about creating our own script for Joseon?"

'Here it comes!'

Hyang, who was inwardly cheering, answered promptly.

"I believe it is absolutely necessary to have our own script for Joseon! How many people can read the Chinese characters that the literati revere as true script? And how many of those who can read them can write them properly? If Chinese characters are the true script, why would they use idu (a mixed script)?"

"You must have found it difficult to write essays."

"Hehe!"

Seeing Hyang's childlike reaction, Sejong chuckled and nodded.

"Haha! I remember struggling when I first wrote an essay. I spent over an hour composing a poem, but Father and Grandfather burst out laughing when they read it."

Sejong, reminiscing about his childhood, looked at Hyang.

"Indeed, the language of China and our language of Joseon are completely different, which is a problem. It's not easy for commoners to file grievances if they can't write them down easily. The problem is that creating a script is not an easy task."

"Father, with the wise people around you, it will be easy if you make up your mind."

Sejong shook his head at Hyang's words.

"If I announce that I will create a script, the Jiphyeonjeon (Hall of Worthies) will become my enemy from that moment."

"Father."

Hyang called out to Sejong, who looked like he had a lot to say, but Sejong did not continue and stood up.

"It's late. You should go to sleep now."

"Yes, Father. You should also get some rest. Your health is essential for the stability of Joseon."

"Brat..."

Sejong, who was about to leave the room with a chuckle, stopped and turned to Hyang.

"I hope you grow up quickly and reach the age of zixue (15 years old)."

"Excuse me?"

"Go to sleep."

After seeing Sejong off, Hyang prepared for bed. Lying down on the quilt laid by the palace maids, Hyang suddenly sat up and muttered to himself, as Sejong's words before leaving the room kept echoing in his mind.

"This is giving me chills."

* * *

While preparing for the smallpox vaccination of the palace residents and the people of Hanyang, the palace, especially the inner medical bureau, was bustling with activity.

Jeong, the head of the inner medical bureau, was checking the situation with the doctors.

"Are the needles for the smallpox vaccination prepared?"

"100 have been prepared."

"100 is not enough! Prepare 200 more!"

"What about the cows?"

"5 have been prepared!"

"How many people can be vaccinated with 5 cows?"

"If everything goes as planned, we can vaccinate everyone in the palace and the six government offices who haven't had smallpox, with plenty left over."

"Good! Also, make sure to record the lifespan of the pus collected from the infected cows accurately!"

"Understood!"

"And how much alcohol for disinfection have you secured?"

"It's being distilled continuously."

"Make sure you have enough. We can't afford to run out."

"Understood, sir."

After sorting out the situation, Jeong let out a small sigh.

"Phew~. Disinfection... This has increased our workload several times. The Prince promised, but will it really work?"

* * *

At that time, the concept of disinfection was almost non-existent. It was common not to wash hands when examining patients, and reusing needles was a daily practice. However, these practices were completely overturned with the implementation of the smallpox vaccination.

"Disinfecting the cows? And boiling the needles too?"

In response to Jeong's question, Seodol bowed his head and answered immediately.

"Yes. As you can see, the cows are covered in dung. If not handled properly, it can cause infection."

"I understand the risk of infection, but why the needles?"

"When we first administered the smallpox vaccine, one patient had a severe reaction. We used the same needle on another patient, and the reaction spread. Since then, we boil the needles after each use and dry them thoroughly with clean cloth before using them again."

"I see."

Seodol's explanation made Jeong nod and record the details. Hyang, who had been watching from the side, decided to add some "MSG."

"May I add a few words?"

"I will listen attentively to the Prince's words."

"I've read some of the Sei's medical texts. They are compilations of knowledge from the Roman Empire's military doctors."

Hearing this, Jeong dipped his brush in ink and prepared to take notes. It was well-known that the Prince had many valuable medical texts that they did not have. They all wanted to see these texts, but no one had the nerve to ask the Prince to show or lend them. So, when Hyang offered to share, they couldn't afford to miss the opportunity.

"In one of the texts, it says, 'All tools used in patient treatment must be boiled in hot water and wiped clean with a clean cloth before being used on the next patient. All bandages and bedding used on patients must be boiled and washed, then dried thoroughly in strong sunlight before reuse.'"

"Thoroughly dried before reuse."

"Yes! And another point, 'Doctors must keep their hands clean when touching patients. After treating one patient, they must wash their hands thoroughly and dry them with a clean cloth before touching another patient. When treating wounds, the doctor must clean the wound with alcohol.'"

"Clean the wound. Will this really be effective?"

"According to the text, it has a definite effect. So, I believe it would be beneficial for us to adopt the same methods."

"I will consider the Prince's words carefully."

Jeong bowed his head in response to Hyang's words.

The doctors, after hearing and recording Hyang's words, were divided in their opinions.

"Being clean is good, but isn't this too excessive?"

"No, from my experience, patients recover much faster when the bandages and bedding are clean."

"Can we really trust the medical practices of the Sei?"

"They are also people who strive to save lives. I don't think we should dismiss them outright."

The doctors, who were divided in their opinions, eventually reached a temporary agreement.

-We will follow the Prince's advice and prepare as much as possible to see the results in the field.

While the doctors of the inner medical bureau were making this decision, Hyang was categorizing the Latin books and whistling softly.

"I added a bit of 'MSG,' but the medical texts from the Eastern Roman Empire were unexpectedly good."

Among the Western books brought by the envoys, a significant number were medical texts from the Eastern Roman Empire. However, what was surprising was that while many books in other fields had been translated into Chinese, the medical texts had not been translated at all. The reason for this was found at the end of a rare Chinese translation.

-The medical practices of the Sei do not consider the five elements (Wuxing) in the use of herbs and are not afraid to use knives to treat both external and internal injuries, making their methods extremely aggressive. Therefore, there is no need to pay attention to the medical practices of the Sei.

Reading this blunt statement, Hyang chuckled.

"Wait 500 years and see."

Contrary to the Chinese evaluation, Hyang highly valued the medical texts from the Eastern Roman Empire.

"Their level is higher than expected. Is it because they are descendants of the Roman Empire?"

What particularly caught Hyang's attention was the book on public health. It was filled with content about the installation of water supply and drainage systems and the layout of cities to prevent fires. Hyang muttered to himself as he examined the book.

"Since the city of Hanyang is still incomplete... Should