Song Dynasty: Yuan Dynasty, you didn't expect this, did you? I'm still alive.

When the national treasury is full, the implementation of the imperial decrees is as smooth as sailing with the current, and the efficiency is far greater than in the past.

In front of the bulletin board on the streets of Xinxiang, as soon as the constables circled the new policy articles with their vermilion pens, onlookers crowded forward, their fingertips tracing the yellowed hemp paper, their eyes full of eagerness and expectation.

The people of the Eastern Song Dynasty soon truly felt the warmth of Lu Junyao's new policies.

Serious illness has always been a sword hanging over the heads of ordinary people. A prolonged illness can often drag a well-off family into a desperate situation of ruin and death. Such examples are commonplace in the city.

Now, the words "The imperial court will coordinate the treatment costs for serious illnesses" on the bulletin board have spread like wildfire among the people.

An elderly man with white hair trembled as he stroked the notice, his cloudy eyes brimming with tears. He repeatedly asked the young man beside him, "Is this true? Is the imperial court really going to take care of our serious illnesses?"

Upon receiving an affirmative answer, the old man choked back tears and murmured, "This is an immense act of benevolence, a blessing that relieves suffering and delivers from calamity!"

However, this warmth did not last long, as Lu Junyao keenly sensed the hidden dangers of the policy.

He lightly tapped the table with his fingertips. On the table lay a secret memorial handed over by the censor, and a layer of frost settled between his brows.

The secret report clearly states that some imperial medical clinics colluded with drug dealers, using the pretext of treating serious illnesses to prescribe expensive medicinal herbs, treating the national treasury as a lucrative source of personal wealth.

"If this continues, even if the national treasury is full, it cannot withstand such erosion," Lu Junyao said in a deep voice, pressing the tightly folded paper flat with his fingertips.

He immediately summoned officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Imperial Medical Academy to draft standards for diagnosis and treatment overnight, explicitly prohibiting medical clinics from prescribing medications that exceeded the standards. At the same time, he stipulated that a special inspection team would be formed every year to review the medical clinics' expense accounts one by one and examine whether the use of each medicinal herb was reasonable.

While such measures cannot completely eradicate the deep-rooted problem of corruption, they serve as an effective remedy, quickly curbing the disorderly loss of public funds.

Meanwhile, the newly established "New Medical Research Institute" of the imperial court, nourished by ample funding, has shown remarkable vitality.

Inside the institute, the courtyard paved with blue bricks is filled with ceramic medicine jars and glasswares. Researchers, dressed in uniform blue cloth, shuttle between the herb garden and the laboratory day and night.

With stable research funding, they repeatedly extracted and purified hundreds of Chinese medicinal herbs to screen out the effective components; they also purchased a large number of Japanese slaves from the Japanese archipelago as subjects for drug experiments.

The experimental procedure was rigorous and brutal: the purified drug was first applied to the Japanese slaves to observe whether they produced a toxic reaction;

After confirming that the drugs were harmless, the Japanese were then deliberately infected with various diseases to verify their efficacy.

If they encounter a rare disease that is difficult to induce, the researchers will approach the affected people and ask them if they are willing to cooperate with the experiment. Some people look fearful and refuse resolutely; others, who are seriously ill and have no hope of survival, have a resolute look in their eyes and nod with trembling hands: "Since we are going to die anyway, we might as well take a gamble and maybe leave a way out for future generations."

In just three short years, the New Medical Research Institute has delivered an amazing result, with several drugs whose efficacy far surpasses that of traditional Chinese medicine being launched.

One of the juices extracted from Artemisia annua is named "Artemisia annua juice".

Limited by the technological level of the Eastern Song Dynasty, although it was impossible to extract high-purity artemisinin, only simple purification could be achieved. Even so, it became a miracle drug for treating malaria.

People in the southern epidemic area no longer need to fear the invasion of "miasma". After taking Artemisia argyi juice, there is a considerable chance that malaria patients who were originally on the verge of death can get out of bed and walk a few days later.

Having solved the problem of people's livelihood and medical care, Lu Junyao then ignited the third fire - raising the salaries of officials.

More than fifty years have passed since the founding of the Eastern Song Dynasty, and the first group of merchants who made their fortunes through trade have already amassed a vast fortune.

With their substantial capital, they dominate various industries, and even when officials send people to engage in business, they often fail in the fierce competition.

Over time, the officials who had spent ten years studying hard and overcoming numerous obstacles to finally enter officialdom gradually lost their sense of justice.

In the imperial court, officials often complained privately: "We, who have studied diligently and fought countless battles to cross a single-plank bridge, only to obtain a minor official position, are living more comfortably than those ignorant merchants?"

With their mindsets out of balance, the practice of harassing, exploiting, and even engaging in corruption and bribery against businessmen has become increasingly rampant.

Lu Junyao was fully aware of this, but was unwilling to launch a large-scale investigation into the official group.

He knew all too well that under the political structure of the Eastern Song Dynasty, excessively monitoring officials was tantamount to courting death.

Of all the prime ministers, only Wen Tianxiang had the courage to take on this important task; the others were all based in the officialdom and were simply unable to implement thorough oversight.

"The surplus silver in the national treasury is useless if it is left idle." Lu Junyao stood in front of the window of the imperial study, looking at the green bamboo swaying in the wind in the courtyard, and slowly spoke, "Money is dead. Only when it circulates can it play its true value."

This is a lesson he learned from trade and commerce during his time governing India.

Using the national treasury surplus to improve the lives of officials can both stabilize the court and allow the money to flow back into the market, achieving two goals at once.

Like a new broom sweeping clean, Lu Junyao's three initiatives brought about a new era in the Eastern Song Dynasty, impacting people's livelihoods, healthcare, and the imperial court.

Many astute officials and scholars discerned from these measures Lu Junyao's core governing principle—improving people's livelihoods.

In Lu Junyao's view, the Four Books and Five Classics, which were regarded as the standard by scholars, can ultimately be reduced to these four simple words.

The Eastern Song Dynasty did not halt its development despite the departure of a few individuals; on the contrary, it flourished even more under the impetus of new policies.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, it was the fifty-eighth year of Jingyan (1333).

In the streets and alleys of Xinxiang, vendors selling newspapers throng back and forth, their cries of "Extra! Extra! Latest article from Xinxiang Medical Research Institute!" echoing throughout the city.

According to the imperial court's administrative order, every local newspaper was required to set aside a fixed section to publish articles from the New Medical Research Institute, with the aim of popularizing medical knowledge and correcting some unhealthy lifestyle habits of the Song people.

In the past, these articles were mostly simple advice like "drink more hot water" and "air out your clothes frequently," which people would read but didn't really care about.

But today, the content in the tabloids has caught the eye of all readers.

In its article, the New Medical Research Institute solemnly announced that it has successfully conquered scurvy and that the disease can be effectively prevented simply by eating fruits and vegetables regularly.

The article also mentions at the end that several new canneries have opened in Xinxiang, which can preserve fruit for a long time and prevent it from spoiling.

Scurvy was the sailors' deepest nightmare.

After spending a month or two at sea, one will feel fatigued, drowsy and weak.

Two or three months later, the gums will swell and turn purple, and bleed profusely with the slightest touch. The teeth will also begin to loosen and fall out.

If the condition is not effectively treated within three months, systemic bleeding will follow, eventually leading to death in agony.

Many veteran sailors, upon seeing the contents of the tabloid, immediately put down their wine bowls, their eyes filled with disbelief and ecstasy.

By this time, the people of the Eastern Song Dynasty had already developed a deep trust in the imperial court.

After the news spread, sailors from all over flocked to the cannery in Xinxiang.

The cannery had just opened and was offering promotional deals, with the fruit cans being incredibly cheap.

The sailors gathered around the stall, looking at the brightly colored pieces of fruit in the earthenware jars, then at the tabloids in their hands, and without hesitation took out their copper coins to buy them.

This new type of canned food is made using glass bottles, corks, and rubber seals.

Although the production process is not complicated, it is full of wisdom derived from natural science: First, the fresh fruit is carefully washed, peeled, pitted, and cut into pieces, then briefly blanched in hot water to prevent discoloration and soften the flesh; next, glass jars are sterilized by boiling in water, and after cooling, the fruit pieces are tightly packed into the jars, filling them about eight-tenths full; then, white sugar and water are mixed and boiled until the sugar is completely dissolved, and the hot sugar water is poured into the jars, ensuring that the fruit is completely submerged; finally, using the principle of thermal expansion and contraction, the rubber rings and corks are tightly sealed. Fruit preserves processed in this way can be stored for up to nine months.

Each seemingly simple step is backed by a profound understanding of cell biology and chemistry.

Without the research and accumulation of the New Medical Research Institute, it would have taken countless years for folk craftsmen to master this skill through trial and error alone.

The sailors who bought the canned fruit ate it regularly, strictly following the advice in the tabloids, during their subsequent voyages.

To their surprise, the scurvy that had plagued them had actually disappeared.

An old sailor stroked his strong gums, tears welling in his eyes: "The stubborn ailment that has plagued us sailors our entire lives has finally been conquered!"

This major discovery caused the cannery's business to boom instantly.

Orders from all over the country poured in like snowflakes, long queues formed day and night at the factory gate, and workers worked overtime but still couldn't keep up with demand.

Those officials who learned of the news in advance and rushed to open canneries naturally made a fortune, with their warehouses overflowing with silver.

The breakthrough in scurvy and the popularization of canning technology were like removing the last shackles on the Eastern Song Dynasty's ocean voyages.

The long-standing obstacles that had prevented the Song people from venturing into the deep sea were completely removed, and a great age of exploration belonging to the Eastern Song Dynasty officially began!

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, it was the sixtieth year of Jingyan (1335).

In a courtyard house in the south of Xinxiang City, Guo Yun, who was nearly sixty years old, sat in the main room, looking at the business accounts piled up on the table, and sighed heavily.

This was his seventh business failure.

Seeing his childhood friend Yang Zhi make a name for himself through business, he was also tempted to try his hand at commerce. He used his salary from the Gewu Academy to enter the business world, but he did not expect that doing business would be a hundred times more difficult than solving mathematical problems. After several setbacks, he not only exhausted his savings but also lost a lot of money.

Guo Yun completely abandoned the idea of ​​traveling as a merchant and instead devoted all his energy to studying the "heavenly book" (a classic text on the study of things).

On this day, he specially invited several old friends who were in business to come over as guests.

Inside the main room, the aroma of tea wafted through the air. Guo Yunduan sat in the head seat, his gaze sweeping over the assembled merchants, and said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, do you wish to be remembered in history?"

Zheng Zhao, sitting at the lower end of the table, with his large, round belly protruding, toyed with his teacup. Hearing this, he chuckled, his tone somewhat mocking: "Master Guo, just say what you want. How much silver do you want this time?"

The other businessmen laughed along, their eyes full of understanding—Guo Yun always sought their help when he was short of money.

Guo Yun straightened his expression and solemnly said, "I don't like money, and I'm not interested in it."

"Pfft!" Zheng Zhao spat out the mouthful of tea he had just taken a sip of. He wiped his mouth and laughed so hard he almost fell over. "Is Master Guo switching careers and preparing to open a storytelling hall? That sounds even fresher than the jokes in those stories!"

Guo Yun, however, remained unperturbed and said with a serious expression, "I'm serious. I have a way for you. All you need to do is sponsor me, and I guarantee that you will be remembered in history and your names will be remembered for generations to come."