Chapter 62

In general, things become valuable due to their rarity, and the study of traditional Chinese medicine is extremely difficult. To achieve even a small success is no less challenging than a scholar studying for ten years in seclusion. Those with profound knowledge and experience in tasting hundreds of herbs and practicing medicine for years would be better off directly participating in the imperial examinations.

During the Ming Dynasty, to become an imperial physician required passing through very strict and layered examinations, which would take at least ten years.

Although practicing medicine to save lives is highly respected and well-paid, the social status of physicians is far lower than that of officials. For example, the highest-ranking official in the Imperial Medical Institute, the Director, is only a fifth-rank official, which is the highest position a physician can attain.

Therefore, physicians are always scarce, and truly skilled and renowned physicians are even rarer. Even if the Xu family wanted to invite a famous physician from the capital, they would have to send a dedicated person to repeatedly invite them, and each visit would require at least 20 to 30 taels of silver for travel expenses, with the cost of an imperial physician being several times higher.

It's not that the Xu family is harsh on their servants; it's simply that they cannot afford it. With so many servants in the household, if every one of them needed to see a physician for a headache or fever, the Xu family would be bankrupt within a year.

Moreover, their status is not high enough to invite such physicians. Xu Hao once asked several physicians who came to the house for consultations and learned that by the Ming Dynasty, traditional Chinese medicine had become a very rigorous and specialized field. The difficulty of becoming a physician was no less than passing the examination to become a scholar.

Furthermore, a physician is not expected to cure all diseases, but rather, the field has been subdivided into over ten specialized departments, such as the Major Pulse Department, Minor Pulse Department, Cold Damage Department, Gynecology, Pediatrics, Ophthalmology, and Oral and Dental Department.

When Xu Hao lived in the manor, he saw the suffering of the common people who could not afford to see a physician or who saw incompetent rural Mongolian physicians. The tragic scenes are still vivid in his mind.

The most terrifying thing is encountering an incompetent physician, who can turn a minor illness into a major one, or even cause death.

Given this, and with Qingwen's sneer, Xu Hao was determined to be self-reliant. He remembered the Korean drama "Dae Jang Geum" and thought about teaching his maids medical skills. This way, they could not only treat their own family but also help the surrounding villagers.

Traditional Chinese medicine is known for its depth and breadth, and Xu Hao would not let the maids learn everything. They would focus on gynecology, pediatrics, and common diseases. As for the prejudice against women practicing medicine, Xu Hao did not care. It's not like they would be practicing openly; who would care what happens behind closed doors?

There were female physicians in the Ming Dynasty's imperial palace, and there are records of several famous female physicians throughout history. Although medical families traditionally passed down knowledge to sons but not daughters, there was no ban on women practicing medicine. As for using medical skills to commit murder, that's just a ridiculous idea. In a normal family, the likelihood of such an event is no greater than the chance of winning the imperial examination.

Xu Hao instructed the steward to invite a physician back and pondered how to bring a renowned physician to teach the maids. Often, these famous physicians, who value their family traditions and years of experience more than their lives, are reluctant to share their knowledge, which is one of the reasons why traditional Chinese medicine has gradually declined under the impact of Western medicine.

He decided to inquire if there were any elderly female physicians in the palace without children or family, and invite them to the house to be recognized as godmothers by the maids who wish to learn medicine, providing them with a comfortable life until their end. This way, there would be no worry about not learning the necessary medical skills.

The initial medical education is simple; any scholar can teach it, starting with medical texts like the "Nei Jing" and "Ben Cao Gang Mu." Gradually, some broad-minded physicians could be invited to teach for a period. With a theoretical foundation, practical experience would have to be gained through trial and error, as there is no other way.

Learning a skill is very attractive to most people. The maids would be able to pass it down to their descendants, so there would be no shortage of willing learners.

Xu Hao thought about setting up a school in the garden first, and if it proved effective, setting up another one in the village. Unfortunately, Western medicine was just beginning to develop at this time, or he would have liked to combine Eastern and Western medicine to open a proper hospital.

It was almost midnight when the steward finally brought back a middle-aged physician. Xu Hao led him into the inner quarters without a word. Zhulan and Qingwen, among the maids, widened their eyes, surprised that the young master had actually brought a physician.

The physician, with years of experience, remained calm and composed upon entering the Bamboo Garden. It was Qiu Xiang who felt embarrassed. Xu Hao frowned and said, "What's there to be embarrassed about when it comes to treating illness? Even the ladies in the palace have to be treated this way when they fall ill."

Qiu Xiang had a fever and headache caused by a cold. After the physician diagnosed her and prescribed some medicine, he gave some instructions and left. Xu Hao had already prepared ten taels of silver to give him.

After seeing the physician off, Xu Hao sighed and said, "Actually, I could have treated this illness. It's just that Qingwen pressured me, and now I'm heartbroken over these ten taels of silver."

Qingwen, holding the prescription, said, "If from now on, you always invite a physician whenever someone falls ill, I would be willing to serve you as a maid for the rest of my life."

Zhulan and Musue remained silent but had a look of expectation in their eyes. Qiu Xiang, lying in bed, sighed, "Don't make it hard for him. He has already spent three months' salary on me, and I feel very upset."

"An illness must be treated," Xu Hao said, deep in thought, pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back. "Why don't we learn some medical skills ourselves? Then we won't have to rely on others for minor illnesses."

Zhulan's eyes lit up, and she said, "That's a good idea. The village midwives, who learned a few half-baked techniques, enjoy a good life all year round. I don't aspire to wealth, but I would like to learn some useful knowledge to treat minor injuries and illnesses for my sisters and family."

"Smallpox techniques? Is that for treating smallpox?"

Xu Hao quickly asked, remembering the historical novels and TV dramas he had read about the Qing Dynasty, where children often died from smallpox and chickenpox, which were very terrifying. Smallpox was a highly contagious disease.

Zhulan nodded and said, "Exactly. We were all inoculated with smallpox by the midwives when we were young, and no one has had a rash in recent years, which is fortunate. No wonder the old lady sends a gift to the midwife every year. The elders say that in the past, many people in the village died from smallpox."

Xu Hao was stunned. He had never imagined that there was such a thing as variolation. In fact, it was his lack of knowledge. At that time, Europe was ravaged by smallpox, with over 150 million deaths over several centuries. In contrast, the death toll in China during the same period was much lower than in any small European country.

Variolation is said to have originated in the Song Dynasty and by the Ming Dynasty, there was already a wealth of experience in treating smallpox, passed down through generations. Smallpox was not a major threat to children's lives, especially in the south, where most children were inoculated early.

However, after the Manchus entered the pass, they distrusted traditional Chinese medicine, especially southern medicine, and with the influx of Westerners, smallpox became the most feared killer in the Manchu royal family. Both Emperor Shunzhi and Emperor Tongzhi died from smallpox, while Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Xianfeng, though they survived, were left with pockmarked faces.

Of Shunzhi's eight princes, four died, and of his six princesses, five died. Of Kangxi's 35 sons, 15 died young, and of his 25 princesses, 13 died. This shows the severity of the smallpox threat at the time.

Whenever smallpox appeared, the entire region would be completely sealed off, and anyone who concealed it would be punished by death.

It wasn't until the 17th year of Kangxi's reign that the southern variolation method was introduced to the north and the imperial palace. Kangxi took it very seriously and quickly promoted it to all the Eight Banners, the Mongolian grasslands, Korea, and Japan. At the time, Russia sent people to China to learn this technique, which then spread to Europe. For over a hundred years afterward, there were no records of deaths from smallpox in the Qing Dynasty. Eventually, based on this method, the West invented the cowpox vaccine, benefiting all of humanity.

Interestingly, in those Qing Dynasty novels, the protagonists often invent the cowpox vaccine to save the princes and princesses, and it often happens during the Kangxi era, which is a popular setting for time-travel stories.

After this incident, Xu Hao became even more respectful and trusting of traditional Chinese medicine. The next morning, he told his elder sister about his plan to have the maids learn medicine. Xu Qinglian, who was at a loss for what to do, volunteered to be the启蒙 teacher.

The news spread quickly, and many maids, eager to try, begged to learn. Xu Qinglian selected seven or eight literate, steady, patient, and honest disciples, including Zhulan and Musue. Qingwen was screened out due to her impatience.

Xiao Yushi was also very interested and joined the classes with the maids. Xu Qinglian taught the "Nei Jing" word by word, explaining it patiently. Xu Hao knew that learning medicine is not a one-day task, and it would be a success if even one person became skilled.

When he had free time, Xu Hao thought about related matters. He felt that childbirth was a very dangerous event in ancient times, and having more people to help during childbirth was always beneficial.

Xu Hao took preemptive measures and invited an experienced midwife. Since he could not personally explain modern postpartum care, he had the midwife do it. When his cousin gave birth, her husband was abroad, and he took care of her for a month, gaining rich theoretical knowledge and practical experience.

At first, the midwife was indifferent to his advice, but gradually she recognized the value and began to accept it humbly. She memorized all the new terms and applied them. Several times, when she assisted in childbirth, she spoke confidently about prenatal care, nutrition, and healthy childbearing, impressing the families. As a result, she became a well-known midwife, and many officials and nobles hired her to assist in childbirth and postpartum care.

Xu Hao was very pleased when he heard about this. He was glad he had not taken the initiative, or he might have become a revered postpartum care deity.

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