Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 256 The Rise of the Fushe Society and its Reckless Talks on Government Politics (Part 1)

The Empress is pregnant, and Zhu Jue will soon become the Emperor.

He seemed to have been infused with a magical power, his whole body brimming with energy.

This is probably how it is for most first-time fathers.

This is his first time becoming a father, even though he has lived two lives. He's really excited.

The sixteenth day of the first lunar month, Gengyin, was the first day of his duty at the start of the year. There were usually the most memorials, and in the past, he would frown when he saw so many memorials.

This time, however, he didn't say a word, picked up the memorial and began to review it, handling it with great enthusiasm.

He probably thought to himself that it would be worth it no matter how hard it was, in order to leave his beloved son a prosperous and glorious Ming Dynasty.

Unexpectedly, while he was reviewing memorials, a voice suddenly announced from outside, "Minister of Rites He Ruchong requests an audience."

What's this guy doing here?

He really didn't want to deal with the officials outside the court, especially these cliques and factions that formed cliques for personal gain.

Anyway, after dealing with the rebels and the Jurchens, he would have to purge all the cronies in the outer court, so he couldn't be bothered to deal with these guys.

Who would have thought that these guys would come knocking on our door again?

He thought for a moment, then announced loudly, "Announce."

Soon, He Ruchong strode in, cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."

Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then asked, "Minister He, what brings you to my court?"

You really don't care about anything else, all you do is rob people.

You've forgotten something so important!
He Ruchong cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, the imperial examination for the Xinwei year is about to begin. Who do you think would be suitable to serve as the chief examiner and co-examiners?"

Oh, it's that time of year again for the provincial and imperial examinations.

Time flies! Three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Zhu Jue nodded slowly, then decisively said, "Let's have Sun Yuanhua, the top scholar of the previous year, as the chief examiner, and Guan Shaoning, the third-place scholar of the previous year, as the co-examiner."

In fact, the last provincial and palace examinations did not select any talents who would be remembered in history. There was only one person, Sun Yuanhua, and Sun Yuanhua did not even pass the imperial examination in history.

However, the successful candidates in the imperial examinations were all quite good. Those who were recruited into the inner court and carefully trained were almost capable of handling things independently.

Guan Shaoning is a typical example of this. At this time, Xu Guangqi had gone to the Americas to oversee the development there, and the agricultural administration of the Ming Dynasty was still being handled by Xu Guangqi's disciple.

This young man is quite capable in his work. Whether it's the supply of sweet potato and potato seedlings in the Central Plains and Liaodong, or the planting of mulberry and tea trees in Hubei, Hunan, and Sichuan, he has done a very good job.

As for Sun Yuanhua, he was now capable of developing artillery on his own.

Therefore, he simply appointed these two people to preside over the imperial examination.

There's nothing wrong with that.

The Ming Dynasty originally had a custom that the top-ranking scholar from the previous imperial examination would preside over the next provincial examination.

He Ruchong didn't say anything more and simply bowed and said, "Your subject understands."

It's a bit strange that this guy doesn't say anything.

The provincial examination and the palace examination are of paramount importance to scholars. The chief examiner of the provincial examination is also a good opportunity to cultivate his own faction. Why do these officials in the outer court seem to have given up and have no intention of fighting for it at all?
Zhu Jue stared blankly at the man's back for a moment, then quickly resumed processing the memorials.

This is abnormal, and he's not afraid of any tricks the officials in the outer court might pull now. Anyway, these guys rely on rebels and Jurchens to turn the world upside down, and now he's suppressed both the rebels and Jurchens, so they can't turn the world upside down.

In other words, no matter what these guys do, they can't cause any major upheaval, and he's too lazy to think about it anymore.

After quickly finishing processing the memorials, he led Wang Chengen, Fang Zhenghua, and others into the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

At this time, the emperor's uncles Zhou Jian and Zhou Xuan were already waiting in the main hall, and the huge desk in the middle of the hall was filled with various prescriptions and medicinal materials.

Zhu Jue took a closer look and nodded with satisfaction.

At this time, the medical foundation of the Ming Dynasty was quite good, especially after the publication of the "Compendium of Materia Medica". The medical industry of the Ming Dynasty can be said to have reached its peak in more than a thousand years.

This is because medical masterpieces such as the "Huangdi Neijing", "Shennong Bencao Jing", "Nan Jing", "Zhouhou Beiji Fang", and "Shanghan Zabing Lun" were all written more than a thousand years ago. Since the Jin Dynasty, more than a thousand years have passed, and the medical level of the Ming Dynasty has made significant progress.

If we only consider the development of medicine, the Ming Dynasty should be the first in the past thousand years.

However, the development of medicine in the Ming Dynasty was mainly theoretical, with little practical progress.

This can be seen from the prescriptions and medicinal materials that Zhou Jian and Zhou Xuan presented.

Nowadays, there are countless prescriptions for treating common diseases; there are more prescriptions on the table than medicinal herbs.

The problem is that the medicinal herb cultivation industry in the Ming Dynasty has never developed, and the production of finished medicines is almost non-existent. The finished medicines that Zhou Jian and Zhou Xuan presented were only traditional medicines with a history of over a thousand years, such as Liuwei Dihuang Wan, Niuhuang Jiedu Wan, and Guilinggao. The rest were just raw medicinal materials on the table.

Zhu Jue picked up Liuwei Dihuang Pills and Niuhuang Jiedu Pills and examined them carefully. He then understood that the reason why prepared medicines couldn't develop in this era was because the problem of moisture prevention or deterioration prevention was difficult to solve.

This problem has been solved in later generations.

As for how to prevent moisture and spoilage, it's simple in some ways, but also a bit difficult in others.

If you don't care about the efficacy of the medicine and only care about preventing moisture and deterioration, then it's simple: just mix it with a moisture-resistant filler, dry it, make it into tablets, and then pack it in a glass bottle.

The problem is that many medicines cannot be crudely manufactured using such simple methods, as doing so would greatly reduce their efficacy or even render them ineffective.

He wasn't a professional in this field, so he really didn't know what kind of medicine needed to be made to ensure its efficacy.

Fortunately, he still knew very well what common medicines from later generations looked like.

He thought for a moment, then explained in detail: "Xiao Jian, Xiao Xuan, prepared medicines are actually not limited to pills and decoctions."

For example, in the simplest case, we can remove the dregs from the medicine, add sugar, and boil it down to a paste that resembles sugar granules. This is a prepared medicine, which patients can simply take by dissolving it in hot water. We call this kind of medicine a powder.

For example, we can boil the medicine, remove the residue, mix it with dry starch, dry it, and then use a punch press and mold to press it into tablets the size of a fingernail. Patients can swallow it directly with warm water. This kind of medicine is called a tablet.

For example, we can add various excipients to some medicines to prevent spoilage. Such medicines are like soups and are called decoctions.

Also, we can coat these pills with a layer of starch or something, and then press them to allow the starch on the surface to tightly lock in the medicinal ingredients inside.

After these medicines are made, we can seal them in glass bottles with corks so that they can be stored for a long time without spoiling.

Oh, I didn't know that medicine could be made into so many different kinds.

Zhou Jian couldn't help but nod excitedly and said, "Your Majesty is wise, I understand."

No, you don't understand yet.

Zhu Jue shook his head slightly and said, "The reason why there are so many preparation methods for this medicine is because of its medicinal properties. Some medicines can only be made into decoctions. Making them into powders will greatly reduce their efficacy or even render them ineffective."

Some medicines are fine when made into powder, but problems arise when other excipients are added. Some medicines can only be made into pills, not tablets.

You all need to carefully examine each one to see which medicine is suitable for which form. If possible, then tablets are naturally the best option. If not, then you'll have to try powders, pills, and decoctions one by one.

Ah!
Do we have to try them one by one?

Zhou Xuan couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, how do we test this?"

Zhu Jue replied without hesitation, "Naturally, we should test it on people who are actually sick."

Uh, doesn't that mean you didn't say anything at all?
Zhou Xuan said with some helplessness, "Your Majesty, where are we going to find so many patients to test the medicine on?"

This problem is simple.

Zhu Jue thought for a moment, then instructed: "You can buy a shop in the most prosperous area outside Xi'an Gate and open a pharmacy to treat ordinary people for free, without charging a single penny."

You can post a notice at the entrance of the pharmacy stating that you will provide free medical consultations and medication to ordinary people suffering from common illnesses. The only requirement is that all patients must visit the pharmacy daily to check on their condition.

Oh, free medical treatment, and they even deliver medicine!

People with common illnesses will probably come to see him, since it doesn't cost a penny.

Zhou Xuan nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty is wise, I understand."

You don't quite understand yet.

Zhu Jue then carefully instructed, "Developing the pharmaceutical industry is not so easy. You also need to consider building pharmaceutical factories, pharmaceutical equipment, the supply of medicinal materials, costs and profits, and so on."

"Alright then, you can discuss the construction of the pharmaceutical factory with Yuan Guozhang, the pharmaceutical equipment with Chang Gung, the supply of medicinal materials with Guan Shaoning, and the costs and profits with Shi Gao."

Oh, I can ask so many people for advice.

Zhou Jian nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, I understand."

You guys are really all talk and no action.

There are many issues that you don't consider.

Zhu Jue then advised, "The initial investment in making medicine is extremely large, and you probably can't afford it. Here's what I'll do: I'll give you a limit of one million taels. If you need money, just go to Xiao Hui to withdraw it. If one million taels isn't enough, I'll add more later."

Uh, even a million taels might not be enough!

We really can't afford that.

Zhou Jian was taken aback for a moment before nodding repeatedly and saying, "Your Majesty, I understand."

(End of this chapter)