The Lucky Farmgirl

Chapter 2127 - 2102: The Gift

Mr. Zhuang is now a sixth-ranked Assistant Lecturer, and the Crown Prince didn’t change his position, instead directly assigning him to a part-time job at Honglu Temple.

The Minister of Honglu Temple was aware of the internal matters and didn’t mind having another person added to the department. He told his subordinates, "If nothing unexpected happens, in a month or two His Majesty will send someone to the Western Regions to find the method of smallpox inoculation. By then, Honglu Temple must send a representative. If Zhuang Xun doesn’t go, would any of you like to go along with Imperial Doctor Zhou from the Imperial Hospital?"

Those who originally thought Zhuang Xun was occupying a position had nothing to say immediately.

The Western Regions, are they really such easy places to visit?

Especially since they are a group of scholars; forget it, just doing translations at Honglu Temple is pretty good.

And so, Mr. Zhuang’s appointment letter arrived just like that.

Manbao was jubilant and happily told Bai Shan, "This way, we can go out to study freely without resigning from our posts."

Bai Shan was also delighted, after all, they previously planned on giving up the investment in Zhuangzi over the next two years, who knew things would suddenly take a turn for the better?

He asked, "How are the conditions of the twelve patients?"

"Six have completely recovered from smallpox," Manbao said, somewhat downcast, "Number Five didn’t make it through last night, but Number Seven improved a lot today. I used three sets of acupuncture on him yesterday, and today his fever has subsided more than half. As long as it doesn’t relapse, he should recover."

"The conditions of the others are also improving."

Bai Shan said, "Then we could submit a memorial discussing the journey to the Western Regions."

Manbao nodded, "Let’s wait until all the medical records are completed; that way we’ll have more confidence when submitting."

Within a few days, the remaining five patients gradually emerged from danger. The smallpox marks on their bodies faded away. Some couldn’t help but scratch, leaving pockmarks, but compared to their lives, few cared about that.

Moreover, they were all serious offenders.

Manbao organized their medical records and presented them to the emperor along with Director Xiao and Imperial Doctor Lu.

The emperor showed little emotion, but he was actually a bit excited inside, "Given the current probability, even if we don’t find the cowpox method, human smallpox inoculation could still be used."

Manbao and Director Xiao exchanged a glance, bowed, and responded, "It is feasible. If faced with a smallpox outbreak, proactive inoculation is much better than accidental infection. However, the drawbacks of human smallpox inoculation are visible; the reaction is still somewhat severe, and many people can’t resist scratching, resulting in pockmarks on their faces."

Pockmarks are like scars, which remain a serious condition.

The emperor pondered and nodded, handed the medical records back to Director Xiao, and after letting him and Imperial Doctor Lu withdraw, retained Zhou Man.

He said, "The empress has some questions for you, please stay and have lunch with her."

Manbao was slightly surprised but lowered her head and agreed.

Actually, it was the emperor who wanted to ask her something. Their movements weren’t small; recently Bai Erlang had been saying his farewells to everyone in Chongwen Pavilion, even receiving gifts.

The emperor asked her, "Are Bai Shan and Bai Cheng going with you to the Western Regions?"

Manbao lowered her head, somewhat guilty, and responded quietly, "They also want to see what the Western Regions are like."

The emperor snorted lightly, "Is it to see what the Western Regions are like, or was this a planned study trip from the beginning?"

Manbao didn’t expect the emperor to know and didn’t dare to argue.

The emperor leisurely walked with his hands behind his back, speaking only after a while, "Young people, I understand, they should indeed travel more; reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Even for a consort, having more experiences is beneficial."

Manbao nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, the teacher always says Third Junior Brother doesn’t have much foresight and should go out and experience more."

The emperor glanced at her and asked, "So, there really is a cowpox method in the Western Regions?"

Manbao immediately replied solemnly, "I heard this from a Western Regions merchant, Your Majesty, how would I dare to lie about such a matter?"

The emperor also thought she wouldn’t lie about such a thing, and asked just to confirm.

He sighed, "If that’s the case, then go back and make preparations."

Manbao was elated, immediately bowing, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will not fail the mission."

After her bow, she asked, "Should I still accompany Her Majesty for lunch?"

The emperor: "...Mingda and Changyu are still waiting for you; hurry up and go."

Manbao quickly bowed and withdrew, heading towards the empress’s palace.

The emperor shook his head, and Gu Zhong laughed, "Your Majesty, Lord Zhou still looks like a child."

The emperor said, "After all, she is not very old. So I have hesitated whether to really let them go to the Western Regions; three young people are still too young."

"Isn’t Assistant Lecturer Zhuang also going?"

"But he is too old."

The emperor recalled something and suddenly smiled, "This matter is not urgent, let’s wait a little longer; by then, I’ll assign a couple more people to go along with them."

Gu Zhong was puzzled, but the emperor didn’t explain, leisurely walking away with his hands behind his back.

When Manbao arrived at the empress’s palace, Mingda and Changyu were sitting cross-legged on the couch embroidering flowers. Upon seeing her, Changyu immediately tossed away the embroidery hoop she was holding and jumped down, not bothering to put on her shoes, she ran directly towards her, "Are you here to check on Mother Empress’s condition?"

The empress glanced at the flower Changyu was halfway through embroidering, shook her head, and no longer constrained her.

Manbao smiled at Changyu and first bowed to the empress.

The empress asked with a smile, "Did His Majesty send you here?"

Manbao nodded, "His Majesty sent me to check on Your Majesty, and said you have something to talk to me about."

The empress knew the emperor had agreed to let them go to the Western Regions. She smiled faintly and turned to look at the chief palace maid.

The chief palace maid then turned to the inner room and soon came back holding a box.

The empress opened the box, revealing a short dagger inside with a black leather sheath. She took it out and drew the dagger halfway, light reflecting off the blade, producing a dazzling glare.

Turning the knife with a smile, she said, "This is the knife of the late Princess Pingyang. You are going to the Western Regions, and with such a long and dangerous journey ahead, I don’t have anything else to give you, so I’ll give you this knife that Princess Pingyang used. I hope it will keep you safe."

Manbao was surprised and hesitated to accept it, "Give this to me? Will it be alright?"

The empress sheathed the dagger and placed it in her hand with a smile, "There’s nothing wrong with it; His Majesty is aware of this too. Smallpox is no less than a flood or a beast; if you find a way to control and prevent it, the merit is equal to that of a prime minister. You deserve this knife."

Manbao held the short dagger and after a while nodded seriously, "Don’t worry, Your Majesty, I will do my best."

To work with Teacher Mo to discuss the cowpox method and then implement it.

The empress nodded in satisfaction and said with a gentle smile, "Have lunch here today."

She glanced at Mingda sitting nearby, stood up with a smile, "I have some palace affairs to handle, you two talk first."