Sky Curtain: My Happy Daily Life Exposed by Xiao Sizi

Chapter 78 The entire royal family came to watch the spectacle.

As night deepened, the makeshift thatched huts outside Chang'an City were brightly lit.

Lu Heng directed several apprentices from the Imperial Medical Academy to divide the prepared "Agastache and Eupatorium Decoction" into rough earthenware bowls.

The scalding hot medicine, with wisps of steam rising and spreading a warm hue in the lantern light, was a scene that subtly overlapped with images of people queuing for medicine in a hospital more than a thousand years later.

"Grandpa, take a rest." Lu Chen brought over a small wooden stool.

Lu Heng wiped his sweat but didn't sit down. His gaze swept over the people holding medicine bowls and carefully blowing on them, and he suddenly said in a low voice, "Great-grandson, do you know? Three hundred years ago, when my great-grandfather was expelling the plague, he also used a pot like this, the copper pot that has been passed down in the Lu family."

Lu Chen was taken aback: "A copper pot can be passed down for three hundred years?"

"More than that," Lu Heng smiled, the fine lines at the corners of his eyes particularly clear under the light, "My great-grandfather said before he passed away that the pot was passed down from the Han Dynasty, and the bottom of the pot was engraved with the four seal characters 'Lu Family Medicine.' Unfortunately, in the great fire fifty years ago, the pot—was gone."

He paused, then said in an even softer voice, "But the prescription is still there. The person is still here."

Lu Chen suddenly remembered the old wooden box his grandfather had given him before he died. Besides the handwritten copy of "Miscellaneous Notes on Epidemics," there was also a rusty copper plate at the bottom of the box, on which half of the character "制" could be vaguely discerned.

"Ancestor," his throat tightened, "I think there are fragments of that pot in my house."

Lu Heng turned his head abruptly, and in the moonlight, the young physician's eyes shone with an astonishing light. He didn't speak, but simply reached out and patted Lu Chen's shoulder with considerable force.

A series of hurried footsteps came from afar.

Cheng Yaojin strode over, followed by the eunuch from before. Both men wore expressions of delight: "Young master! Physician Lu! News has come from the palace again! His Majesty has heard that the medicine distribution outside the city has been quite effective, and has specially ordered the Imperial Kitchen to steam three hundred sesame cakes overnight. They are to be delivered immediately!"

"Flatbread?" Lu Chen's eyes lit up.

"Not only that," the eunuch respectfully added, "Her Majesty the Empress personally ordered that two courtyards vacated in the Yeting Palace be prepared for the temporary accommodation of seriously ill women and children. The Imperial Medical Bureau has also dispatched twenty medical students, who will arrive before dawn."

Lu Heng took a deep breath and bowed towards the direction of the palace: "Your subject, on behalf of the people, kowtows to express gratitude for Your Majesty's grace."

"Don't rush to thank me," the eunuch waved his hand and lowered his voice, "His Majesty has another message for me to convey privately." He looked at Lu Chen, then at Lu Heng, "His Majesty said: The Lu family has a physician who is dedicated to his duties, and a great-grandson who will help them across generations. This is a blessing from Heaven for the Tang Dynasty. Once the plague has subsided, I will personally inscribe the four characters 'Passing Down Medical Ethics' and bestow them upon the Lu family ancestral hall."

Lu Heng froze.

Although Lu Chen didn't quite understand the significance of those four words in the Tang Dynasty, judging from his ancestor's reaction, he knew it was an immense honor.

He instinctively reached out to help him up, but saw Lu Heng slowly straighten up, his eyes slightly red, but his voice unusually firm: "Please inform His Majesty that the descendants of the Lu family will certainly not fail to live up to this honor."

The eunuch nodded and then looked at Lu Chen: "Young master, could you leave a few of your plastic bottles for the Imperial Medical Bureau?"

His Majesty wishes to see.

"Of course!" Lu Chen quickly took out a few empty bottles from the box, then remembered something and added, "Sir, these bottles cannot be heated, nor can they be filled with anything too hot, or they will melt."

"Transformed?" Cheng Yaojin snatched a bottle first, curiously squeezing it. "Like wax?"

"More or less," Lu Chen thought for a moment and found a more apt analogy, "like—honey flows when it gets hot."

That's poisonous.

"Oh!" Cheng Yaojin suddenly jolted awake, quickly and carefully tucking the bottle into his robes. "You must remember this." He turned to leave, then stopped. "By the way, young master, are you going back tomorrow?"

"Yes," Lu Chen said decisively, "I need to buy tents and more medicine. These supplies won't last more than a few days."

"Good!" Cheng Yaojin patted him heavily on the shoulder. "If you need anything, just say the word. The Xuanjia Army may not have much else, but they have plenty of strength!"

The moonlight was setting in the west; it was already late at night.

The coughing in the thatched huts gradually subsided. Several of the children who were most seriously ill had their fevers subside after taking antiviral oral liquid and were now fast asleep wrapped in coarse blankets. The mothers sat around the fire, whispering words of gratitude.

Lu Chen and Lu Heng sat side by side on an overturned wooden barrel, sharing a compressed biscuit—which Lu Chen had brought from the modern world. It was Lu Heng's first time eating it, and he was so surprised by the sweet and salty taste that his eyes widened.

"Great-grandson," Lu Heng suddenly spoke, "do you think—there will still be a plague a thousand years from now?"

Lu Chen remained silent for a moment.

He recalled that winter of 2020, the empty streets, the long queues at the hospital, and the image of his grandfather wearing a mask standing on the balcony.

"Yes," he said softly, "but we will handle it better. We have vaccines, effective drugs, and more scientific prevention and control methods." He paused, then added, "Just like how you used Atractylodes macrocephala to fumigate your house, our methods of disinfection with alcohol are changing, but our desire to save lives has never changed."

Lu Heng nodded, his gaze falling on the sleeping children in the distance: "My grandfather said before he passed away, 'A doctor heals the person, not the disease. As long as the human spirit remains, the legacy will endure.'"

He turned to look at Lu Chen and suddenly laughed: "If your great-grandfather knew that a thousand years later a great-great-grandson would come back with these strange objects to help his ancestors save people, he would probably jump out of his grave with joy."

The two looked at each other and smiled. A night breeze swept through the crenellations of the city wall, bringing a refreshing coolness.

Outside the canopy, viewers from different dynasties each had their own thoughts.

In the Weiyang Palace of Chang'an, Emperor Wu of Han, put down his wine cup and said to the Grand Historian beside him, "Record the method of making the mask shown in the celestial canopy, and have the Imperial Household Department replicate it. It may prove very useful in times of plague."

The Grand Astrologer hesitated: "Your Majesty, that 'plastic'—"

"Use silk, fine hemp, and steamed cotton!" Liu Che waved his hand. "Can a living person die from holding their urine? The key is the principle of 'isolating the mouth and nose,' and the materials can be adapted to local conditions!"

On the other side, in Bianjing, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty.

Standing atop the palace tower, Zhao Kuangyin gazed thoughtfully at the glass-like bottles against the sky. After a long pause, he said to his prime minister, Zhao Pu, behind him, "If we could obtain this 'plastic' manufacturing method, the trade of our Great Song Dynasty would—"

"Your Majesty," Zhao Pu bowed, "I observe that while this item is unusual, the key lies not in the item itself, but in the 'epidemic prevention strategy.' Masks..."

"If these three methods of isolation and disinfection can be implemented in prefectures and counties, it will be better than acquiring a hundred rare and precious items."

Zhao Kuangyin was taken aback for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter: "Well said! We'll discuss this matter at tomorrow's morning court!"

At this very moment, beneath the city walls of Chang'an within the sky, the first rays of dawn had quietly climbed onto the eastern city wall.

Lu Chen stood up and stretched: "Grandpa, I should go back now. I'll try to be back before noon."

Lu Heng also stood up, took out a small cloth bag from the bottom of the medicine box, and stuffed it into Lu Chen's hand: "Take this."

Lu Chen opened it and saw a jade pendant tied with a red string. The jade was warm and smooth, and it was engraved with an ancient design.

The character "陆".

"This is a jade pendant passed down through the Lu family to the eldest son of each generation," Lu Heng said softly. "When my grandfather gave it to me, he said that seeing the jade is like seeing the person. You—wear it."

Lu Chen gripped the jade pendant tightly, the coolness of the jade pendant traveling through his palm to his heart.

"Grandfather," his throat tightened, "wait for me to come back."

"Okay," Lu Heng nodded, paused, and added, "Be careful on the road."

Lu Chen retreated to the shadows of the city wall, closed his eyes, and silently repeated "go back" three times.

A familiar cool breeze swept by.

When he opened his eyes again, he was standing in the living room of his apartment. The morning light was faint outside the window, and the horn of the early morning bus could be heard in the distance.

He lowered his head, and the jade pendant in his palm gleamed warmly in the morning light.

Lu Chen quickly took a shower, then lay down on the bed to catch up on sleep. After waking up, he would continue the battle!

At nine o'clock in the morning, he ran all over the outdoor equipment stores in half of the city and ordered thirty tents. He also contacted a pharmaceutical company and urgently ordered five thousand masks, one hundred boxes of disinfectant, and a batch of commonly used medicines.

Looking at the list he had drawn up, the clerk asked in surprise, "Sir, are you going to—open a pharmacy?"

Lu Chen smiled and said, "No, we need to save people."

At 11 a.m., all the supplies filled Lu Chen's garage. Standing in front of the mountain of cardboard boxes, Lu Chen relayed a message to Cheng Yaojin—of course, Cheng Yaojin had to keep his eyes glued to the screen, otherwise someone else would have to relay the message to him.

"General Cheng, the supplies are ready, I'll be right back. Please prepare manpower to move them."

He began to silently chant "Return to the Tang Dynasty," and then closed his eyes.

III.2.

Whoosh!

The air beneath the city walls of Chang'an suddenly rippled.

Cheng Yaojin was pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back when he heard the noise and suddenly turned around. He saw Lu Chen appear out of thin air, with more than a dozen large cardboard boxes piled up behind him.

"Young master!" Cheng Yaojin exclaimed with delight, "Wait a minute, what's this?"

He pointed to the several bulging, huge blue packages next to the cardboard box.

Lu Chen grinned: "Tents. They can provide shelter for the people from the wind and rain."

Before he could finish speaking, a commotion suddenly arose in the distance.

The two turned their heads and saw a large group of people coming from the direction of Zhuque Street. At the head of the group were more than twenty young men dressed in uniform blue robes, each carrying a medicine box. Behind them were several oxcarts, piled high with sacks. Further back was a group of palace servants carrying large, steaming barrels.

Lu Heng strode out from between the thatched huts, and when he saw who it was, his eyes reddened again.

"Medical students from the Imperial Medical Academy, here to assist by imperial decree!" the leading youth announced loudly.

"The Imperial Pharmacy is allocating 300 catties each of Atractylodes lancea, Pogostemon cablin, and Eupatorium fortunei!" the official escorting the cart announced loudly.

"The Imperial Kitchen has delivered twenty buckets of millet porridge!" The head of the palace servants bowed respectfully.

"Alright, alright! Let's split up and get to work!" Lu Heng felt in high spirits.

"Young master! How do we set up this tent?" Cheng Yaojin tugged at the eldest brother's tent cloth, already unzipping it.

"Oh, I see." Lu Chen gave them instructions.

The golden morning light completely bathed Chang'an City.

Beneath the city gate, where light and shadow meet, bustling figures move about.

Medical students in the Tang Dynasty were learning from Lu Heng how to prepare "Cangzhu Xunwu" medicine packets; Xuanjia soldiers were setting up tents under his guidance; and the people were lining up to receive porridge and medicine, their faces finally showing smiles.

He touched the jade pendant in his arms; its warm, smooth texture remained unchanged.

Outside the canopy, Ying Zheng stood up and walked to the palace gate.

The morning light shone into Xianyang Palace, casting a long shadow behind him.

"Issue my decree," his voice was not loud, but clear and forceful, "From this day forward, all counties and prefectures of the Great Qin shall establish 'Epidemic Prevention Stations.' In the event of an epidemic, isolation, disinfection, and medication shall be implemented simultaneously. The specific procedures shall be submitted by the Imperial Physician within three days, referring to the diagram shown in the celestial canopy."

The hall was completely silent.

After a long while, someone asked softly, "Your Majesty, what about the 'mask' and 'alcohol' hidden in the curtain of light?"

"If there's no alcohol, then fumigate the house with steamed vinegar; if there are no cotton masks, then soak fine linen in medicine." Ying Zheng turned around, his gaze sweeping over his ministers. "The key lies in 'reason,' not 'materials.' This principle remains unchanged for a thousand years."

He paused, then looked towards the eastern sky—where the dawn was breaking through the clouds.

"Throughout the ages, Qin laws may change, Qin systems may be altered, but if this heart that protects the people can be passed down," he said, emphasizing each word, "then I will have no shame before Heaven and Earth."

Datang.

Lu Chen helped set up the last tent, straightened up, and saw Lu Heng squatting in front of a child with a fever, wiping the child's forehead with a wet towel.

The child, about four or five years old, was delirious with fever, but whispered, "Thank you—Doctor Lu."

Lu Heng paused.

He gently touched the child's forehead, his voice as tender as if he were soothing his own child: "Don't be afraid, the medicine will be ready soon. When you get better, Uncle will teach you to recognize medicinal herbs, okay?"

The child nodded, closed his eyes, but the corners of his mouth curved slightly.

Lu Chen suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

He turned around, pretending to inspect the supplies, but heard Lu Heng's voice behind him: "Great-grandson."

"Um?"

"Thank you for bringing the supplies."

Lu Chen didn't turn around, but nodded vigorously.

Over here, Little Sizi, clutching a bottle of orange juice, gazed at the sky and muttered, "Brother, why aren't you getting fat yet?"

All the people of Chang'an were watching the sky, and they saw the modern young man tirelessly and risking his own safety to help the people.

Tang, in his fight against the epidemic, was deeply moved, and everyone exclaimed, "Young man! Well done!"

"Young man, you're a good person!"

"A life-saving bodhisattva!"

Even the concubines, palace maids, princes and princesses who had long lived in the deep palace, as well as the old Emperor Li Yuan, all saw the scenes of fighting the epidemic among the common people, and they were all astonished.

The concubines and palace maids longed to leave the palace and see the world.

"I want to go home!"

"I saw my brother! He's pushing his cart to buy groceries!"

Li Yuan: "It's been many years since I left the palace. It's so lively outside."

The people of all dynasties witnessed and learned from the process of combining modern resources with ancient manpower to treat epidemics.

in the hall.

Li Shimin was extremely excited, his eyes practically glowing with excitement, and he didn't sleep most of the night.

call!

Li Shimin abruptly rose from his throne, gazing at the scene in the sky where Lu Chen and Lu Heng were working together to treat the people. His voice trembled slightly with excitement: "Issue my decree! From this day forward, all wards in Chang'an shall follow the example of those outside the city and set up temporary medical tents, under the coordination of the Imperial Medical Bureau, employing a three-pronged approach of isolation, disinfection, and medication. Anyone with fever or cough may go there for treatment, and all necessary medicines will be allocated by the Imperial Pharmacy!"

The assembled officials in the hall responded in unison. Changsun Wuji stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, the Lu family is loyal and benevolent. They not only treated the current epidemic but also enlightened the people through the heavens. I request that Lu Heng and Lu Chen's achievements be recorded in history, and that an artist be commissioned to paint their portraits of administering medicine, which will be hung in the main hall of the Imperial Medical Bureau to commemorate their medical ethics."

Li Shimin nodded: "Granted. Furthermore, bestow upon Lu Heng and Lu Chen each one hundred taels of gold and one thousand bolts of silk. Although Lu Chen is not a subject of this dynasty, his contributions are undeniable. Grant him the plaque 'Great Tang Righteous Physician,' to be presented to him through the heavens upon his return to the mortal realm."

Before the words were finished, golden light suddenly flowed across the sky, and several lines of ancient seal script slowly appeared: "Epidemic Prevention Strategies of Ten Thousand Dynasties: The Great Tang Chapter Completed. With doctors united in heart and mind, and with the support of both ancient and modern times, the epidemic can be quelled."

The people of Chang'an knelt and shouted "Long live the Emperor!" Along both sides of Zhuque Avenue, officials led craftsmen to set up medical tents, and students from the Imperial Medical Academy busied themselves distributing medicine packets. The previous atmosphere of fear and anxiety was gradually replaced by orderly busyness.

Outside the city, by a thatched hut, Cheng Yaojin carried a box of face masks, his booming laughter making the tent rattle: "Young master, your method really works! I just tried on this 'mask,' it's a bit stuffy, but it definitely blocks the smell!"

As Lu Chen sorted through the alcohol bottles, he smiled and said, "General, you'll get used to it. Once the epidemic is over, these masks can still be kept for dust protection." He looked up and saw that thirty blue tents had been neatly erected, with seriously ill women and children given priority for accommodation. Imperial medical students moved among them, recording the patients' conditions. The rich aroma of medicine wafted in the wind, dispelling the lingering gloom.

Lu Heng was teaching a medical student to distinguish between patchouli and agastache when he caught a glimpse of the jade pendant on Lu Chen's waist shimmering in the sunlight, and couldn't help but smile gently.

He turned and walked toward the mountain of medicinal herbs, running his hand over the ink seal of "Shangyaoju" on the sack, and murmured to himself, "Grandpa, do you see? The Lu family's prescription—it has finally been passed down."

At this moment, outside the sky, ripples of time and space from different dynasties gently rippled. Inside the Weiyang Palace in Chang'an, Liu Che had already ordered craftsmen to make the first batch of "Han-style masks" out of silk, and the Shaofujian was supervising the manufacture of fumigation equipment for steaming cotton.

In Bianjing, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin summoned his ministers to discuss the "Regulations for Epidemic Prevention in Prefectures and Counties." Among them, the provisions on "isolation of sick wards" and "disinfection by vinegar fumigation" were all based on the imagery shown on the celestial screen.

In the Xianyang Palace, Ying Zheng glanced at the draft "Great Qin Epidemic Prevention Order" on bamboo slips and wrote with a stroke of his vermilion brush: "Immediately promulgate it throughout the land. The lives of the people are of paramount importance; the methods of epidemic prevention should be permanently established."

Within the Tang Dynasty, the morning light grew ever brighter.

Lu Chen handed the last batch of disinfectant to the Xuanjia soldiers when he suddenly heard a clear voice calling from afar: "Young Master! His Majesty summons you and Physician Lu to the palace for an audience!"