My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 430 New Strange Tales of the Office of Transmission, Part Two

However, this time the hot topic is bad news.

At the end of September, sporadic cases of acne appeared in Zhigu.

Smallpox is a type of pox. This time, the authorities in Tehku reacted quickly and immediately isolated the patients who had fallen ill.

After Li Shizhen verified Su Ze's theory that smallpox was caused by microorganisms, doctors in the Ming Dynasty had new guesses about smallpox.

Smallpox is also transmitted through "microbes," but it may be more terrifying than schistosomiasis, as it can be transmitted through human-to-human contact.

To this end, Imperial Physician Li Shizhen also formulated regulations for epidemic prevention in Zhigu, requiring that patients with smallpox be gathered together, and that once a patient died, their clothes and body be burned together, and the tools used by the patient should not be reused.

Understanding how smallpox spreads does not mean that you can control it.

However, smallpox spread too quickly, and Zhigu was a city with a very high population mobility. The symptoms of smallpox spread rapidly, showing signs of spreading towards the capital.

This naturally caused panic in the capital.

In the twenty-third year of the Jiajing reign, a smallpox epidemic broke out in North China.

During that epidemic, cases even appeared within the Forbidden City, and Emperor Jiajing moved to the Western Garden to avoid the epidemic, which was a very important reason.

This time, however, the government and the public are even more worried.

Because the crown prince was young, smallpox was extremely deadly to children. In the 23rd year of the Jiajing reign, the mortality rate of children who contracted the disease was as high as 70%!
The emperor is seriously ill, and the crown prince is still young. What if something goes wrong?

This time, the cabinet quickly united. First, the chief minister, Gao Gong, took the lead in writing a letter requesting a temporary halt to land transport to Teko.

The grain transport boats had to stay on the river for three days, and only those without symptoms could enter the capital.

Zhang Juzheng, the second Grand Secretary, submitted another memorial requesting the Ministry of Revenue to allocate funds specifically for epidemic prevention in the capital and for the treatment of the epidemic in Zhigu.

The emperor naturally approved.

The Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs also petitioned to abolish the system of allowing eunuchs and palace maids to leave the palace for leave, prohibiting them from entering and leaving the palace at will, and requiring the Red Helmet Generals and Imperial Guards to stay in the palace to guard the city and prevent the spread of smallpox into the Forbidden City.

The emperor naturally agreed.

The entire capital was shrouded in the shadow of smallpox, and many nobles and relatives of the emperor hid in their estates outside the city to avoid the epidemic.

At this very moment, Imperial Physician Li Shizhen once again submitted a memorial, presenting the "cowpox vaccination method"!
According to Li Shizhen, he had studied this while he was in Nanjing and found that patients who had been vaccinated once would not get the disease again.

In many places in Southern Zhili, people understood this principle and would form nursing teams composed of people who had been vaccinated against smallpox to take care of those who were sick.

Inspired by this, Li Shizhen first studied the human method, which involved having healthy people actively contract smallpox when they were in good physical condition, and then carefully caring for them to recover, thereby gaining immunity to smallpox.

Initially, Li Shizhen had people wear the patients' clothes or come into direct contact with the patients. Then he discovered that the powder from the scabs of smallpox could be used to infect people with smallpox.

This method of deliberately infecting a portion of the population to gain immunity has a much lower mortality rate than direct infection, and Li Shizhen also promoted it in the Yingtian region.

However, everyone's physical condition and immune system are different, so there will still be cases of death.

Infecting with smallpox did not necessarily lead to death, but to intentionally infect oneself with smallpox to gain immunity and then die was a truly hellish joke, and this method was quickly abandoned.

More importantly, smallpox primarily killed minors, and the mortality rate among minors remains high, thus lacking the value for widespread application.

When Li Shizhen was in Southern Zhili, he also wrote to Su Ze to ask about this issue and inquire about ways to improve the system of human resources.

Su Ze was amazed by Li Shizhen's research on smallpox; he was just one step away from discovering the cowpox vaccination method.

It seems that the empirical approach to medicine enabled Li Shizhen's medical skills to advance by leaps and bounds.

The earliest smallpox vaccine in the original timeline was developed by people like Li Shizhen.

It involves using the smallpox virus from infected patients to actively infect healthy people, thus giving them immunity.

However, this method was quickly phased out because doctors discovered a better method: smallpox vaccination.

The method involves using "cowpox," a smallpox virus that infects cattle, to actively infect healthy people, thereby granting them immunity to smallpox.

Smallpox usually causes only mild discomfort and rarely has a fatal reaction.

After the smallpox vaccination method was invented, human vaccination was immediately phased out.

However, Suze did not know how to find cowpox.

Su Ze used the "Memory Sachet" to recall his knowledge about cowpox and finally wrote a letter to Li Shizhen.

In the letter, Su Ze did not directly mention the smallpox vaccine, but instead raised a medical question to Li Shizhen.

Many diseases present with different symptoms in each person, so how do we diagnose a patient's illness?
Traditional Chinese medicine has been summarizing the problems of diseases for a long time and has put forward various pathogenic hypotheses.

Traditional Chinese medicine primarily diagnoses through pulse diagnosis, hence these books are generally referred to as "pulse studies."

During the Jiajing era, Li Shizhen wrote "Binhu Pulse Study," which is a comprehensive work summarizing the pulse studies of past dynasties.

The most difficult part of treating illness is actually diagnosis.

The principle of treating the symptoms means that once you know what the disease is, you can find the treatment method by consulting medical books.

However, the symptoms of various diseases are different. Even in the time before Su Ze traveled through time, diagnostics was still one of the most difficult disciplines in medicine.

After Su Ze's reminder, Li Shizhen began to summarize the symptoms and study diagnostics. He then categorized these studies and revised "Binhu Pulse Study".

If there is a disease with milder symptoms than smallpox, is it smallpox?
Li Shizhen was also fascinated by Su Ze's question.

At this very moment, Li Shizhen was summoned to the capital to treat the emperor.

After becoming the Imperial Physician, Li Shizhen gained official status and requested the cabinet to issue an order requiring the capital region to report difficult and complicated illnesses to the Imperial Hospital.

By chance, Li Shizhen discovered several strange cases of illness.

The symptoms of this disease are similar to those of smallpox, and the course of the disease is also similar to that of smallpox, but it is far less severe.

The sick family and their neighbors all survived safely and without any lasting effects.

Li Shizhen rushed to the house and found that the family ran a dairy farm.

Dairy farming is a new industry.

After Su Ze wrote an article in the Yuefu Xinbao explaining that eggs and milk could strengthen the body, the Naval Academy first built its own cattle farm to provide milk for the naval students.

The Military Academy followed suit, and the Military Academy and its preparatory school also began providing milk.

Meanwhile, some wealthy families in the capital also began to subscribe to milk powder for their children.

As a result, farmers who specialized in raising dairy cows appeared outside the city.

Li Shizhen thought of Su Ze's problem, so he began to carefully observe and inquire about the course of these patients' illnesses.

Finally, he discovered that some of the cows on the dairy farm were also sick.

The cows also developed smallpox sores, and the family contracted the disease while at work.

Li Shizhen was very excited, and he personally collected samples from cows. He then informed Su Ze of his discovery via carrier pigeon.

Su Ze was even more surprised, not expecting that Li Shizhen had discovered cowpox so quickly!

Su Ze encouraged Li Shizhen to conduct further research, but also advised him to be careful and suggested that he set up a place outside the city for his disciples to conduct the research.

Li Shizhen understood Su Ze's meaning. As the Imperial Physician, his top priority was the emperor's health. Therefore, he followed Su Ze's advice and assigned his disciple at Jinling Medical College to be in charge of smallpox research.

Just then, smallpox broke out in Zhigu.

At this time, Li Shizhen naturally disregarded everything else and decided to submit a memorial proposing the "smallpox vaccination method".

This matter naturally sparked a new round of discussions within the imperial court.

Even the high-ranking officials in the imperial court were unsure whether the smallpox vaccination method was effective.

The epidemic in Zhigu was spreading rapidly, and the cases were getting closer and closer to the capital.

Li Shizhen himself was unsure whether the smallpox vaccination method was effective.

The research period for the smallpox vaccination method was too short, and there were not enough cases. In Li Shizhen's view, it was not as reliable as the human method.

However, when Li Shizhen corresponded with Su Ze, Su Ze encouraged Li Shizhen to propose the "ox method" at this time.

The reason is simple: if the smallpox vaccination method is promoted at other times, the resistance to its promotion is very high, but when smallpox is spreading directly, the resistance to its promotion is actually the lowest.

If the smallpox vaccination program can truly stop the spread of smallpox, then the popularization of the program will be much easier in the future, and this epidemic can serve as a touchstone for the program.

Encouraged by Su Ze, Li Shizhen submitted a memorial to the emperor proposing a method for treating smallpox.
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Due to the smallpox epidemic, the imperial court strictly ordered officials to remain in their government offices to work, and to return home after finishing their work.

Those high-ranking officials who had the authority to enter and leave the palace were required to report their itinerary daily and avoid going to crowded areas.

For Shen Yiguan, this is an epic weakening.

Su Ze hadn't heard Shen Yiguan's voice for several days, so he returned to his office in the Ministry of Justice.

However, today Su Ze handed a memorial to Xu Shuli, the official in charge of delivering memorials.

When Xu Shuli saw Su Ze's memorial, his heart skipped a beat, but upon seeing the title of the memorial:
"Memorial Requesting the Establishment of a Bureau for the Prevention of Vaccination of Smallpox"

Xu Shuli breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the title of the memorial.

Oh, it was about the smallpox vaccination program.

It is said that Su Ze and Li Shizhen admired each other and had many exchanges on medical skills, and it seems that this rumor is true.

Xu Shuli was also puzzled. Was Su Ze really a star descended from heaven? Why did he know everything, and even his medical skills were comparable to those of the great master Li Shizhen?
After reading the title of the memorial, Xu Shuli basically knew its contents. Wasn't it about the Bureau of Health Preservation?
The Baosheng Medical Bureau was established in the Song Dynasty and, like the Yangji Academy, was a state welfare institution.

Baosheng Medical Bureau was a government-run medical bureau with doctors employed by the government who were responsible for medical work in a certain area.

However, this system was feasible in the Song Dynasty, but the Ming Dynasty could not implement it due to financial constraints.

Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty created a simplified version called the Huimin Pharmacy.

The pharmacy is responsible for selling some affordable medicines. Ordinary people can also go to the Huimin Pharmacy to get prescriptions and treatment for common illnesses such as headaches and fevers.

However, it's not suitable for complex or rare diseases, so it can only be considered a simplified version of a medical welfare institution.

Su Ze's proposal to establish the Baosheng Medical Bureau is a reasonable one.

Su Ze also supports the smallpox vaccination program, so it seems that the smallpox vaccination program is indeed feasible.

"Please have Xu, the Chief Clerk, personally deliver this memorial to Li, the Vice Minister of Justice."

Xu Shuli immediately said:
"Please rest assured, Lord Su, I will send it over immediately."
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Li Yiyuan, the Commissioner of the Court of Judicial Review, has been in a good mood lately.

Because of the epidemic in Zhigu, all the government departments strictly ordered their subordinate officials not to submit reports unless there was a reason.

As a result, the Office of Transmission received far fewer memorials and was able to relax for a rare moment.

Today, Li Yiyuan, the Commissioner of the Court of Judicial Review, took a liking to calligraphy and had his men lay out Xuan paper, where he wrote the four large characters "Nothing to do today".

Li Yiyuan liked it more and more as he looked at it. He had performed exceptionally well today, and this was the most satisfying piece of calligraphy he had written recently.

Just as Li Yiyuan put down his pen, the official in charge of records, Xu Shuli, walked in.

Li Yiyuan's heart skipped a beat.

It's already spread within the Office of Transmission that as long as the Director of Transmission says there's nothing to do today, the Office of Transmission will be busy for a long time.

When Xu Shuli handed over Su Ze's memorial, Li Yiyuan's heart raced even faster.

When Li Yiyuan, the Commissioner of the Court of Judicial Review, saw the memorial, his initial reaction was the same as Xu Shuli's.

The Bureau of Medical Protection was established in the capital to pilot the smallpox vaccination program.

Seeing this, Li Yiyuan smiled. It seemed that the Bureau of Health Preservation and the Smallpox Prevention Act would not face any opposition, and that he had been overreacting.

But after seeing what came next, Li Yiyuan's anxiety completely died!

In the last paragraph of his memorial, Su Ze explained that the current epidemic was a threat, so he requested the court to leave the appointment and dismissal of officials below the seventh rank, as well as the daily affairs of the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, to the Grand Secretariat.

Li Yiyuan's hand trembled slightly. He rubbed his eyes, confirmed what Su Ze had written, and then slumped into the armchair.

Xu Shuli quickly stepped forward and helped Li Yiyuan up. He asked in confusion:
"Didn't Su Tongyi propose the establishment of the Baosheng Medical Bureau?"

Li Yiyuan glanced at his useless subordinate, too lazy to waste words with him, and directly told Xu Shuli to leave the office.

This isn't about establishing the Bureau of Life Preservation! Su Ze clearly wants to use this to enhance his authority!

Su Ze has some nerve!
The power of the Ming Dynasty's cabinet varied greatly; sometimes it had the title of prime minister but not the actual power, and sometimes it had the actual power of a prime minister but not the title.

This also meant that every change of imperial power and every change of cabinet ministers had a huge impact on the continuity of Ming Dynasty policies.

The root cause is that the cabinet department is not legitimate.

No document in the Ming Dynasty clearly defined the powers of the cabinet, nor did it define the status of the Grand Secretary as the head of all officials.

The extent of the cabinet's power was purely tied to factors such as the cabinet ministers' abilities and the emperor's trust in the cabinet.

However, Su Ze is now taking advantage of the smallpox epidemic to request that "the appointment and removal of officials below the seventh rank, as well as the daily affairs of the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers' offices" be transferred to the Cabinet!

Although this is only a small step, it represents a big step in the revival of the power of the cabinet minister.

Was it intentional or accidental?

Li Yiyuan shook his head. Others might have been careless, but Su Ze must have done it on purpose!
This will inevitably spark controversy between the ruling and opposition parties.

My leisurely days are going to be ruined again!

Thinking of this, Li Yiyuan quickly tore off the sign that read "Nothing to do today"!
(End of this chapter)