Chapter 597
The Eunuch Party's Activities
The main hall of the Imperial Medical Academy was quiet.
Chen Ji sat alone in the magistrate's seat, turning to the page he had seen yesterday, his thumb pressing on the spine, his gaze slowly moving across the lines.
Footsteps echoed outside, and the muffled pounding of medicine came from the pharmacy. People were arguing in hushed tones about the ingredients in a prescription. The sounds seemed to subside as they reached the main hall entrance, as if suppressed by something.
At this moment, the pharmacy was filled with the bittersweet aroma of astragalus and angelica mixed together. The medicine being decocted on the stove was bubbling and steaming, and the heat made the window paper damp and soft.
While pretending to keep accounts, the magistrate secretly peeked into the main hall.
That figure in red sat upright behind the desk, from dawn to mid-morning, without ever changing its posture.
The abbot said with a look of disdain, "That eunuch faction has actually taken my seat. How utterly shameless!"
Zhou Fangping, holding a small bronze scale, muttered under his breath, "I think it might be a good thing for Viscount Wu Xiang to be in charge of our Imperial Hospital... Have you heard? The old master of the Tang family passed away last night, but Tang Shun didn't dare to cause trouble at our Imperial Hospital today. In the past, he would definitely have made a huge scene."
The abbot flew into a rage: "How dare you speak up for the eunuch faction?"
Zhou Fangping shrank back: "You could only swallow your anger when Tang Shun came yesterday. It's not just this time. The old lady of the Ministry of Revenue's official position has been sick for half a month and hasn't gotten better. She pointed her finger at you and cursed you, but you didn't dare to say a word..."
The magistrate's face flushed red: "I'm only doing this because the Ministry of Revenue is allocating money to us. What will you eat and drink without money?"
Zhou Fangping realized he had spoken too harshly, so he immediately changed the subject: "Academician, the rejuvenation medicine that the fourth branch of the Xu family requested has been prepared. Who would you like to send it?"
The academy glared at him, his beard trembling: "You have to ask me about such a trivial matter? Why don't you just go and deliver it yourself?"
Zhou Fangping muttered under his breath, "Aren't you the registrar now? These things are usually arranged by the registrar..."
"You son of a bitch, Chief Clerk..." The Imperial Physician turned around to look for the large scale in the pharmacy, wanting to give Zhou Fangping a beating, but before he could find it, Zhou Fangping had already run out with the Rejuvenating Medicine in his hand.
The pharmacy fell silent again.
The abbot picked up his pen again, but couldn't write a single word in the account book. His gaze drifted unconsciously toward the main hall, then back again, then drifted again, then back again.
He entered the Imperial Medical Academy as an apprentice at the age of seventeen, passed the medical examination at the age of twenty-three, was promoted to clerk at the age of thirty-one, became a judge at the academy at the age of forty-two, and finally sat in the position of academy director at the age of fifty-two.
It took him thirty-five years to get to that position.
But Chen Ji only took one day...
The magistrate couldn't help but look towards the main hall again, just in time to see the judge carrying a bowl of tea as he passed by the door.
He waved his hand: "Here, here, I'm thirsty."
The judge hesitated for a moment: "Sir, this is for Viscount Wu Xiang."
The chief minister's face froze, and he said with great distress, "Why are you so lenient with the eunuch faction? Let them thirst for it!"
The judge still hesitated: "But..."
The academy envoy angrily retorted, "Is he the academy envoy? Am I the academy envoy?"
The judge hurriedly reminded him, "Keep your voice down, don't let him hear you, what if he kills you?"
The abbot remained silent for a long time, while only the medicine in the stove bubbled and gurgled in the pharmacy.
But he still couldn't swallow his anger, and lowered his voice to hiss, "What kind of place is our Imperial Hospital? It's a place to treat the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, and the princes. It's a third-rank government office! How can you let a eunuch sit in the main hall like this?"
The judge, holding his teacup, hesitated, unsure whether to leave or stay: "Your Honor, that's true, but..."
"But what do you mean, 'but'?" The Imperial Physician snatched the teacup from his hand and drank it all in one gulp. "If outsiders say that our Imperial Medical Academy has sided with the eunuch faction, what will become of my reputation?"
At this moment, Liu, the registrar who had just returned from Changping, hurriedly entered the Imperial Hospital and went straight to the main hall.
Liu, the registrar, had a very loud voice. Before even entering the main hall, he started cursing and shouting, "Your Excellency, those damned bastards have mixed small fritillaria bulbs into the Sichuan fritillaria again. And the astragalus root, they didn't even remove the roots properly, and the quantity is reduced by a full 30%. Damn it, do these bastards really think they can ride roughshod over us just because they've recognized a thief as their father? Are you going to do anything about this? If you don't, I'm going to the Meridian Gate and bang on the Dengwen Drum!"
Just as Liu, the registrar, stepped into the main hall, he suddenly froze.
He saw Chen Ji sitting behind the table, and the other person's bright red robe with a qilin emblem and his dignified, upright posture with his webbed feet, and he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.
Registrar Liu took half a step back and looked up at the lintel. He then looked at the seat the man was sitting in; it was indeed the seat of the Imperial Censor.
Chen Ji looked up at him: "Is the fritillaria cirrhosa adulterated? Is the astragalus membranaceus underweight?"
Liu, the registrar, made a gurgling sound in his throat.
Chen Ji waited for two breaths, and seeing that he did not answer, he asked again, "Where is the account book? Let me see it."
Liu, the registrar, subconsciously looked behind him, his gaze searching for the figures of the academy magistrate and the academy judge in the courtyard. Finally, he found the two of them through the pharmacy window.
Chen Ji followed his gaze and glanced at the pharmacy. Inside, the academy director and the academy judge both shrank back.
He withdrew his gaze and said slowly, "I'm asking you a question. What are you looking at the judge and the registrar for?" Registrar Liu was momentarily bewildered...
The judge and the registrar?
If the person in the pharmacy is the registrar, then who am I?
Seeing that he was stunned and silent, Chen Ji lowered his head to look at the book again and said in an unquestionable manner, "Bring me the account book."
After a moment's hesitation, Liu, the registrar, turned and ran to the pharmacy.
As soon as he entered the pharmacy, he rushed to the Imperial Hospital Chief Physician: "Sir, how did that murderer end up in our Imperial Hospital? Why is he sitting there? Why are you hiding here? How did you become the Registrar?"
The abbot snapped, "What's the rush? Asking so many questions at once, which one should I answer first?"
After a long pause, Clerk Liu asked, "What exactly happened?"
The abbot sighed and said, "It's a long story, all because of the persecution by the eunuch faction... What did the eunuch faction just say to you?"
Registrar Liu glanced back to make sure Chen Ji was still looking down before saying, "He wants me to show him the Imperial Hospital's account books. Should I take them?"
The Imperial Physician's face was as black as the bottom of a pot. He squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth: "What does he have to do with my Imperial Medical Academy? Why should I give it to him?"
Clerk Liu was taken aback: "Why don't you go and talk to him?"
The abbot remained expressionless: "I will not go."
The chief physician sighed, "Just give it to him. Anyway, our Imperial Medical Academy is a clean and honest department, and we're not afraid of him checking our accounts... You know, he might want to investigate the medicinal herbs. If he's willing to stand up for our Imperial Medical Academy, that would be a good thing."
The Imperial Physician sneered, "The eunuch faction is in cahoots, a den of snakes and rats. This was their doing. Do you think he would stand up for my Imperial Hospital? Go, give him the account books and let's hear what he has to say!"
……
……
Registrar Liu took the account book back to the main hall and politely placed it on the table with both hands: "Viscount Wu Xiang, this is the account book for the purchase and sale of medicinal materials this year. Please take a look."
Chen Ji didn't open it immediately, but instead tapped the cover lightly with his finger: "How long has this adulteration been going on?"
Registrar Liu forced a smile and said, "Reporting to Viscount Wu Xiang, this is a long story. The medicinal herbs in our Imperial Hospital are all tributes from various places every year. Fritillaria cirrhosa comes from western Sichuan, and Astragalus membranaceus comes from Shanxi. In principle, they are all top-quality goods. But last year, a treacherous merchant surnamed Li recognized the eunuch... the Director of the Imperial Household Department as his adoptive father, and with this relationship, he managed to secure 60% of the medicinal herb business."
Liu, the registrar, took a breath and continued, "The man surnamed Li has only just taken over, and he's already started using inferior ingredients. Not only are the medicinal herbs of poor quality, but the quantity is also short. He claims it's a hundred catties, but at most seventy catties are delivered to us."
Chen Ji opened the account book: "Have you submitted any memorials to the imperial court?"
When Liu, the registrar, brought up the matter, he became furious and said indignantly, "We submitted it, but once our report was sent to the palace, we never heard from it again. Shortchanging patients is a minor matter; if the medicine is wrong, the medicine won't be effective, and patients could die if they take the wrong medicine."
Chen Ji asked curiously, "Who supplied the medicinal herbs before the man surnamed Li took over?"
Registrar Liu honestly replied, "Previously, all the medicinal herbs in the capital were supplied by Bailu Pavilion, and they were genuine. But last year, Bailu Pavilion was censored... and the Secret Service raided it, so the supply of medicinal herbs was cut off."
Chen Ji pondered, "The medicinal herbs are for use in the palace. What if a noble in the palace uses the wrong medicine? Will no one care?"
Liu, the registrar, was indignant: "He is the adopted son of the director of the Imperial Household Department. Who dares to control him? Moreover, this Li is extremely shrewd. He knows that only 10% of the medicines from the Imperial Medical Academy are used in the Imperial Pharmacy, and the rest are for outsiders. Therefore, he makes sure that the medicines in each batch of goods are of the same quality as those from the Imperial Pharmacy."
Chen Ji opened the account book and looked at it page by page. The main hall was so quiet that only the rustling sound of turning pages could be heard.
After an unknown amount of time, he looked up, pulled out a discarded prescription from beside him, wrote his name on the back, and handed it to Liu, the registrar: "Take this to the Eagle House Department for Jiao Tu and Yun Yang."
Clerk Liu asked in confusion, "Why are you looking for them?"
After handing over the prescription, Chen Ji lowered his head to read again, casually saying, "Take the account book with you and tell them I ordered the Li family's property to be confiscated."
Liu, the registrar, slowly opened his mouth wide.
ransacking the house?
ransacking the house?!
Are they going to raid the Li family's property?
Liu, the registrar, assumed that Chen Ji was also a member of the eunuch faction. He either tried to appease Chen Ji with kind words or promised to report the matter to higher authorities, but then, like the memorials submitted by the Imperial Medical Academy, they disappeared without a trace.
But he never expected that Chen Ji would start by confiscating his property. He asked in surprise and doubt, "Are you really going to confiscate our property?"
Liu, the registrar, looked down at the discarded prescription in his hand.
The front is written in a rather conventional style as "Jisheng Fang" (a traditional Chinese medicine formula), while the back is even simpler, with only the words "Chen Ji" (meaning "traces of the past") written on it.
He couldn't understand how such a thin piece of bamboo paper, without any polite words or stamp, could lead to the confiscation of the Li family's property simply by taking it to the Eagle House Bureau.
Liu, the registrar, hesitated for a long time: "Can we really confiscate the Li family's property? He has the Imperial Household Department's director as his godfather."
Chen Ji didn't even look up: "The ledger in your hand is the evidence. If all else fails, you can check the warehouse. With both witnesses and physical evidence, even if he recognized Buddha as his godfather, it wouldn't work. Go ahead, this is how the eunuch faction operates." (End of Chapter)