Practicing Medicine in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 38

The spring of the second year of Xianheng, mixed with the dry dust in the north, brushed people's expectant faces in the gray sky and the biting east wind.

It's a pity that this year name with a beautiful meaning did not follow its original intention, bringing the rain and peace that the people expected to bring to Guanzhong, which has been suffering from severe drought for a long time.On the contrary, it intensified as the end of the year went away. Accompanied by the cold spring breeze, the already depressed and declining agriculture in the northern country was deeply traumatized by the method of not falling a drop of water.

At that time, the emperor and empress went to Luoyang palace to take care of themselves, and left Li Hong as the prince of Jian Guo.

"I heard that there has been a famine in Guanzhong, and people have to eat elm skin and fluffy fruit to satisfy their hunger." Zuo Concubine Dai Zhide said, "His Royal Highness is a rich man, so don't be tired. I would like to visit you personally."

Li Hong stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the northern city of Meizhou. Meizhou was only a few hundred miles away, but it was far out of sight.

He looked into the distance, but saw a setting sun, and the sky was full of haze.

In the first year of Xianheng, the Holy Majesty had already ordered the opening of warehouses for food relief, but unfortunately, from the central government to the local governments, every time the relief food reached a checkpoint, a layer of oil and water was stripped off, and the actual distribution to the people may not even be as high as [-]% .

"Tell me to tell you that after three days, you can leave as usual, and everything will go according to my previous arrangement."

"Old minister..."

"Dai Gong doesn't need to say much." Li Hong smiled and pressed his slightly trembling arms, "Zhang Gong and Xiao Gong are like my left and right arms, and Dai Gong is like my brain. Although I went to Meizhou with my left and right arms, I left My thoughts and policies, I think, you can guard Chang'an."

Dai Zhide's expression was shocked, he looked at the young and noble crown prince in front of him, and nodded heavily.

"My minister, I will fulfill my mission."

-

Li Hong wanted to go to Meizhou to inspect in person, and ordered Zuo Shuzi Dai Zhide to lead a group of important officials of the Eastern Palace to stay in Chang'an.

In addition to Zhang Wenguan, Xiao Dezhao and other important officials in the entourage, there is also a group of imperial physicians carefully selected by Zhang Qiren. .

During the Zhenguan period, there was a great epidemic in Guanzhong. At that time, it was Sun Simiao and Shen Hanshan, the master and apprentice, who made great achievements in breaking the epidemic and saving the people.Therefore, although Shen Hanshan did not come from an imperial school, he was one of the doctors of imperial physicians, and he had an exclusive pavilion in Taichang Temple.

The matter was so important that Taiping, who had been allowed to accompany her, was crossed off from the accompanying list, and even the imperial physician who took care of her was temporarily replaced by Chen Jiwen, who took care of Pei Wang Li Xian.

"I also want to go to Meizhou with Brother Hong." Taiping was naturally unconvinced, and he didn't succeed in making trouble, and he didn't know where to learn a new method.

"Brother Imperial Physician said that I am the princess of the empire. I eat... eat the food grown by the people, and enjoy the offerings from the people, so... oh, so you must go to see the city outside the city with gratitude. People who farm the fields."

He stammered, his face blushed, and he finished slowly, and he knew that he had recited it impromptuly.

Li Hongyan nodded with a smile, finally it sounded reasonable, but whether it was original or not still needs to be considered.

On the other hand, Wu Yi's mouth twitched when he was listening. When did he say that?

If he can expand his short sentence "Go to the outside of Chang'an City to see the people who farm in person" into a well-founded and high-sounding article, you can know whose idea and handwriting you don't need to ask.

That child...he shook his head with a smile in his heart. After all, he has grown up. Not only can he memorize the medicinal materials, but he can even write a few sentences.

Li Hongyan didn't know where this little girl who was playing with words got her feelings of compassion, her playful eyes raised slightly, and disappeared from Wu Yi who was standing beside her.

Taiping has always been naughty and arrogant, so this is a good opportunity to teach her. As the most honorable princess in the empire, her arrival can also slightly soothe the hearts of those who are chilling in the winter wind.

"You..." In the end, he just patted his head helplessly, "Remember, I will let General Pei Yuan follow you. If you dare to run out of his sight, I will send you back to Chang'an."

Taiping cheered, no matter whether he is called Pei Yuan or Pei Fang, he will be bribed with a box of fruit at that time, what can't be negotiated!

If one box is not enough, then two boxes, there is no problem in this world that fruit can't solve!

The Imperial Medical Office decided on the accompanying personnel, and Chen Jiwen was temporarily in charge of the affairs of the Imperial Medical Office, so he couldn't leave for a while, and even Yan Ming had to obediently stay in the official school to read scriptures and books, watching Wu Yi pack the bags , step out the door.

"Yi..." He wanted to say a few words, but his concern rolled over and over in his chest, and he squeezed it into his mouth, and finally he could only say "Bon voyage".

Wu Yi smiled and nodded his thanks, following the prince and princess, how can there be any unsafe places.

-

Meizhou is close to Shaanxi, and a group of people travel lightly, but within ten days, they have already arrived at this barren land.

The crown prince and the princess came in person, and the prefect Wangling naturally did not dare to neglect at all, so he personally led a group of people, and stood in front of the checkpoint in Meizhou early, facing the wind full of yellow sand, respectfully waiting for the distinguished guests to arrive.

Unexpectedly, from dawn to dusk, before the arrival of Li Hong and his party, he couldn't help feeling a little panicked. Although Meizhou is only a hundred miles away from Chang'an, the folk customs are simple at the foot of the emperor, but during the severe drought, it is difficult to guarantee to go out. There are no tricksters and robbers, if the prince and his party are assassinated in Meizhou...

Just as he was full of doubts, several military generals rode over from afar, and the leader got off his horse and walked to the Wangling in two or three steps.

Wang Ling quickly laughed and said, "Your Excellency is..."

"I am Pei Yuan, the guard on the left side of the Eastern Palace, and I am here to deliver the crown prince's oral instructions."

Wang Ling hurriedly knelt down, his body trembling with fat almost sticking to the ground: "I would like to accept the order from the crown prince."

"The crown prince's oral order: the prince is busy with business, so there is no need to greet him specially. The palace and the princess have chosen another path, and they will rest in the Yongning county mansion for the time being."

King Chongji of Yongning County was the son of Wang Gui, a famous Prime Minister of the early Tang Dynasty, and he lived in the city of Meizhou.

Counting down three generations, Wang Ling and Wang Chongji were somewhat related, but Wang Chongji inherited his father's lofty integrity, and he didn't like to walk around and get close to him, let alone have any sympathy. One of the most wealthy nobles in the local area, but blind men met each other and did not recognize each other.

"Did you hear clearly?" Pei Yuan seldom smiled, and even when he smiled, it was often a sneer, with a pair of thick and sharp eyebrows raised, as if two daggers were hanging on a pair of indifferent eyes.

Wang Ling was knocked back to his spirit by his few words, he got up from the ground with a smirk, hammered his back for a day and then bent again, complaining in his heart, Pei Yuan had already taken out a suet white jade from his sleeve. Jade pendant, hand it to Wang Ling.

Wang Ling couldn't figure out the meaning of the jade pendant, but he didn't dare not to accept it. He carefully observed the expressionless expression of Little General Pei, and tentatively said, "I heard clearly, this jade pendant..."

"This is the jade pendant that the prince has brought with him for many years, and it was rewarded by the emperor in previous years." Pei Yuan did not raise his eyes, "The prince knows that you are transparent, like jade, pure and unbreakable, so I specially rewarded you with this jade pendant." , to honor your past years of achievements."

As soon as this remark came out, Wang Ling's originally three-point surprise mood immediately turned into horror. There was no praise or criticism in this remark, but it was actually a reminder of his way of being an official by offering a reward.

Baoyu is flawless, and whether his own official position is flawless or not, I am afraid the prince has already decided in his mind.

Thinking of this, he hurriedly knelt down again, his huge forehead slammed on the ground: "Please, General Pei, please give me a message, I respectfully receive this adornment, hang it in the courtroom every day, and always be alert to yourself."

Pei Yuan pressed his neck and nodded slightly, gave instructions to the left and right, then rode his horse and swung his whip, and left in the dust.

-

Wu Yi's impression of agriculture in the Tang Dynasty came only from the gossip of his neighbors when he was in Yuanzhou City.

In fact, agriculture in the Tang Dynasty was quite prosperous. Taking the north as an example, it was still popular at this time to harvest twice a year, wheat and grass—that is, early rice was planted in spring and harvested in summer, and late rice was planted in summer and harvested in autumn. There were two harvests in a year. The land is highly utilized.

At the turn of spring and winter, people will also plant some cold and frost-resistant vegetable crops such as cabbage.

In recent years, there has been a rare severe drought, and the rice in the paddy fields is still dry and obscure, green and yellow. Although it is the first time for Wu Yi to go to the field, he knows that the Tian family's painstaking efforts in the past few months have almost been wasted.

There are several canals dug in the field, but the water level is very shallow, and the simple pumping tools of the ancients are not enough to meet the basic requirements of the rice fields.

He knelt down and squeezed the soil beside the field. His tentacles were full of rough and dry sand. This piece of land is doomed to be fruitless.

Wu Yi was born in the [-]s who had never carried a hoe in his previous life. He didn't know how to use a hoe to plow the land. Produce food?

The problem is that there is definitely no scientifically proportioned fertilizer in this era, and people generally rely solely on human and animal manure to fertilize the land, and the two-crop sowing mechanism severely squeezes the nutrients of the land, and eventually it is completely lost in this extreme weather. ability to grow crops.

Wang Chongji, a native of Meizhou, obviously knows the situation better than him.

"The weather is not beautiful. The most important thing is to cultivate more than two crops a year. The land loses its maintenance and cannot retain water." He held up a handful of soil and spread it between his fingers. The dry soil was as fast as dust. leak down.

Li Hong thought for a moment and asked, "Is there any solution?"

Wang Chongji patted the soil in the palm of his hand, picked up the hoe that was lying aside, and with a strong lift, he shoveled up all the flagging rice in the field and buried it directly in the soil.

"Prince, you are..." Zhang Wenguan, the concubine of the right, pointed at him tremblingly, then pointed at the ground, and was speechless for a while.