“Can a strategist not ascend the throne?”
Chapter 264: The Selection of Works
Back during the Guangxi period, when Qiao Yan wanted to officially invite Hua Tuo to take residence in Leping, she had already considered inviting Zhang Zhongjing.
And perhaps this situation should be traced back even further, all the way to when she decided to plant yam in Leping and build up her first fortune.
By the time of the Song Dynasty, Zhang Zhongjing’s “Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases” had already turned into scraps, and the part about miscellaneous diseases had been compiled into the book “Essential Prescriptions from the Golden Chamber,” which contained records on yam pills.
It wasn’t hard to come to the thought of yam.
Compared to Hua Tuo’s groundbreaking achievements in surgery, Zhang Zhongjing was better at constructing a comprehensive system of traditional Chinese medicine, focusing his medical formulae on the major outbreaks he recorded, particularly the cold disease, which was practically a lifesaver for Qiao Yan’s practical applications.
Even though it wasn’t yet the year of Jian’an Ten when Zhang Zhongjing began writing his treatise, numerous disasters and illnesses plagued the era of Emperors Huan and Ling, and countless were still sweeping through Nanyang County. Zhang Zhongjing had been studying medicine with local doctors since he was ten, and now after thirty years—
That was quite enough to make him a qualified doctor.
To combat the upcoming locust plague and major epidemics, Qiao Yan was willing to sacrifice a portion of her profits to encourage intercropping bean crops, while firmly controlling the brewing industry in her hands. How could she possibly let such a medical saint as Zhang Zhongjing slip through her fingers?
If Qiao Yan hadn’t supported Liu Yu’s ascent to the throne in Chang’an, and if she hadn’t transformed her previous status in Bingzhou to border Jingzhou, it would have been nearly impossible to invite Zhang Zhongjing here.
After all, the Zhang clan from Nanyang and the official resume of Zhang Zhongjing’s father made it a no-brainer for Jingzhou to select him when it was time for recommending virtuous candidates. So he had been a government official in Jingzhou for over a decade.
Being in Bingzhou and Liangzhou, Qiao Yan had no authority to summon him; at most, she’d invite the out-of-work Hua Tuo.
Now, however, the conditions and needs to invite him were all met!
Hearing Wei Ji’s positive reply, Qiao Yan gestured for the young man from the Nanyang Zhang family to be brought before her.
As Qiao Yan observed his somewhat awkward demeanor, she chuckled: “This isn’t the time for a wine symposium; we’re on the outskirts of Chang’an, not in the city! You lingering here could easily be seen as wanting to admire the sunset in the fields of Chang’an and sober up. Am I really going to arrest you for loitering?”
The young man’s embarrassed expression softened a bit, “It wasn’t intentional; it’s just…”
Qiao Yan said, “Speak your mind! I noticed your unusual behavior when you heard that high-purity alcohol could prevent and treat diseases, so you clearly have something to say. Being all shy and circumspect is just going to delay important matters; it’s better to say it outright.”
Encouraged by her interruption, the young man replied, “Your Grace, I just heard that the alcohol prevents and treats major epidemics, and I lost my composure because during the great epidemic in the years of Guanghe and Zhongping, my Nanyang Zhang family’s population dropped from over three hundred to barely two hundred, losing about thirty percent of our relatives. My uncle, who learned medicine in his youth, is quite skilled, and in these past two years, he’s been focusing on cold diseases. Hearing about this thing being effective against epidemics but having limited sales, I thought…”
“To buy a few more for my uncle to take back to Nanyang.”
Seeming worried that Qiao Yan would think ill of his motives, he quickly added, “My uncle is indeed quite proficient in medicine, and if you don’t believe me, you can send someone to Nanyang.”
Qiao Yan responded, “That won’t be necessary. I’ve confirmed with Master He just now; if the Nanyang Zhang family hadn’t produced Zhang Zhongjing, I wouldn’t have called you in for questioning. But for your request to buy, we’ll leave it at that.”
The young man’s face instantly showed a tinge of disappointment, thinking maybe given Qiao Yan’s decisive implementation of liquor limits, he really shouldn’t make any rule-breaking requests. Besides, he was a Jingzhou native, not from the Capital.
But then, he heard Qiao Yan say, “In the past, He Boqi sought an evaluation of Xun Wenruo’s talent to assist a king. Now that Wenruo is serving as an official, his talents have emerged, truly possessing kingly assistance. I heard that Mr. He once remarked about Zhang Zhongjing, saying—’he uses refined thought but lacks the presence of an official, likely heading towards a great physician.’ Is that true?”
What He Yong implied was that even though Zhang Zhongjing was exceptionally talented, he lacked the air of an official; perhaps he was more suited to become a famous doctor in the world.
From the perspective of later generations, this remark was rather astute. But in today’s society, which favored officials over physicians, it was not really something that should be publicized.
So, it’s just that talents like Zhang Zhongjing might see this as a recognition of their dedication to medicine, prompting them to diligently seek ancient teachings and learn from others.
In any case, the young man didn’t know what attitude Qiao Yan had in mentioning this, merely stuttering, “That is indeed the case.”
Qiao Yan clapped and laughed: “Even though He Boqi is in Ye City, I believe in his eye for evaluating famous individuals. Since he said Zhang Zhongjing will become a good doctor, why not send him to Chang’an to decide for himself whether to be an official or a doctor?”
“I will extend invitations to doctors in Bingzhou to teach and compile texts, refine brewing techniques. What I aim for is nothing more than to help the people suffer less from the chaos and illness of the plague. In this matter, both officials and doctors have useful roles; the former is not necessarily superior to the latter. If one can work in their position for the greater good without coercing them, that would be excellent.”
“Due to the recent wars and plague, the court also intends to increase the number of medical officials. If Zhang Zhongjing genuinely has this ability, why not give it a try?”
The young man seemed taken aback, not expecting to hear such words from Qiao Yan.
But when he received the latest version of the “Emergency Prescriptions,” an alcohol sample, and an invitation letter personally written by Qiao Yan, and was escorted to a carriage back to Nanyang, he finally realized that what he had heard was indeed true.
The Grand Marshal of the court’s invitation to his uncle Zhang Zhongjing was certainly sincere, showing no neglect toward physicians whatsoever.
Thinking how his uncle wouldn’t forget his medical practice while in office, and considering what Qiao Yan said about the court intending to add more medical officials, perhaps his uncle truly could find a suitable position here, without wasting his earlier achievements in the bureaucracy?
He needed to rush back and share this good news with Nanyang!
As Qiao Yan watched him leave, she could confirm that today’s wine symposium had achieved all her intended objectives, even yielding a bit of unexpected gains.
Zhang Zhongjing… if she didn’t bring this guy under her wing, she felt a bit awkward when people made dumplings.
After all, the tradition of eating dumplings on the Winter Solstice started because of Zhang Zhongjing.
He was the one who had people wrap mutton and warming herbs in the dough and boil them, distributing the cold-reducing dumpling soup to the populace, which was the predecessor of dumplings.
By then, she’d have a legitimate reason to promote it!
She already had soy sauce; how could it be complete without dumplings?
As Qiao Yan thought of this, she withdrew her gaze and turned to find Lu Zhi looking at her with a rather ambiguous expression, “Lu Gong?”
Lu Zhi pondered for a moment before asking, “Ye Shu, forgive me for asking, but when exactly did you develop this soy sauce thing?”
“Why do you suddenly have such a question?”
Lu Zhi replied, “Years ago, in our correspondence, you’d mentioned Dongpo pork, quickly describing its recipe, saying it was made with sauce and stone honey to achieve its sweetness. But I always felt that flavor wasn’t as delightful as what you described. I thought the sauce didn’t compare to fermented bean paste, so I substituted it, and although it was tasty, it still felt lacking. Today, tasting the wings cooked with this soy sauce made me realize what was missing.”
He eyed her suspiciously, “You wouldn’t have come up with this years ago, would you?”
As far as Qiao Yan and the attendees said, the real groundbreaking shift for soy sauce originally came from all-ingredient fermentation techniques, which reduced the need for salt and eliminated the need to balance flavors with meat.
In other words, this wasn’t something easily formed unless conditions were just right.
Qiao Yan chuckled lightly a couple of times, “About five or six years ago I suppose.”
“So, they sent Chu Yan off to the Central Plains with some yams to sell, and while he was at it, he brought back a few wandering folks to build a fortress in Leping Mountain. Quite the productive side hustle, huh?”
But letting Lu Zhi cook with fermented bean sauce instead of soy sauce for all these years? Now that’s a story worth telling!
She continued, “Not pulling the trigger earlier on this soy sauce thing was a tactical move, you know. Soy sauce uses a lot of salt, which might mess with salt sales. And guess what? Salt is run by the government. Bringing it up too hastily when one region could take on the salt revenue of others? That’s just asking for trouble.”
Lu Zhi nodded, deep in thought, while Qiao Yan added, “But now the situation’s changed. The West Palace salt pools, Yuncheng salt lakes, and Jilantai salt pools are supplying salt to Liangzhou, Silu, and Bingzhou, and we’ve got our own troops keeping an eye on things. If we manage the salt prices for the noble families using it to make soy sauce, we’ll balance the market for both salt and soy sauce, boosting the treasury income. I’ll draw up some standards for how we handle it.”
At this point, Qiao Yan remembered something else.
Aside from the renowned physician Zhang Zhongjing being in Jingzhou, there’s also Liu Ba kicking around there too.
Besides Zhuge Liang, Liu Ba was also dealing with the finances for Shu Han. Although he only joined Liu Bei after he took over Yizhou, he hailed from Lingling in Jingzhou.
His move from Jingzhou to Yizhou came from the historical power struggle between Cao Cao and Liu Bei over Jingzhou.
If memory serves, he’s probably still in Jingzhou.
If Zhang Zhongjing might come to Chang’an due to the court’s focus on medicine, could Liu Ba be brought in for handling salt and soy sauce pricing?
Even if he hasn’t held an official position yet, we could pull him under our wing to gain some fiscal experience.
Liu Biao even sent his eldest son to Chang’an as an official to act as a hostage, so he surely wouldn’t mind Liu Ba!
Lost in her thoughts, Qiao Yan caught the keen interest in Lu Zhi’s gaze and replied, “Is there something tough to handle?”
Lu Zhi understood; Qiao Yan’s interest in reclaiming control over the liquor trade wasn’t just self-serving. It was also about preparing for locust plagues, droughts, and epidemics. The repairs on the Wei River after Changan’s stabilization were also aimed at disaster prevention.
Having such a crisis awareness was no surprise.
With the power they were gathering, it seemed like they could tackle just about anything that came their way.
The more Lu Zhi explored the strength she wielded, the more he felt that powerful figures like Yuan Shao from Jizhou and Gongsun Zan from Youzhou would eventually be dealt with one by one.
Only natural disasters proved to be the most unpredictable of foes.
“It’s not really that tough,” Qiao Yan replied, “I just feel we’re lacking manpower. You saw today’s negotiations; some didn’t openly oppose but their shallow, shortsighted views show they just care about their own benefits.”
She laughed, “Oh well, forget it. They’re not on my side anyway. Why let them ruin my mood? I heard you’ve brought your young son from Zhuo County to Chang’an lately. Is he trailing Longwen around, picking up legal knowledge?”
When Lu Zhi made that brave trek to Chang’an, thinking of the dangerous territory under Dong Zhuo, he hadn’t brought his family. He only left his youngest son to live with his two older brothers in Zhuo County.
His intention was to bond with his son for a couple of months before sending him off to Leping Academy, but then, thanks to him and Chen Ji moving in next door, Lu Yu wasted no time befriending Chen Qun, tailing him around asking questions, and he was one step away from calling him “teacher”.
Chen Qun was delighted to teach this bright kid, and hey, it gave him a chance to chat with Xun Yu about how to guide students.
Long story short, Chen Qun and Lu Yu hit it off really well.
While Lu Yu was having a blast with a great teacher and squeezing in more time with his father, Lu Zhi felt a tad vexed.
He was just a few years older than Chen Ji, yet here was his own son calling the other guy “teacher”—how did that even happen?
But seeing Lu Yu seem to find a direction in Chang’an, Lu Zhi was still glad.
Hearing Qiao Yan mention her need for more people and the talk about Lu Yu got him replying, “It’s fine for him to learn from Longwen a bit more. After a few years, when the youngsters at Leping Academy are graduated, we won’t be stretched for personnel.”
Perhaps because he thought of his outstanding little son, he didn’t feel too nostalgic about the old days.
Besides, if he had to feel something, it would’ve been when Qiao Yan took on the title of Grand Marshal, surpassing the Three Dukes. No need to wait till now for that!
Qiao Yan responded, “Indeed, let’s hope it’s sooner rather than later.”
If it wasn’t against the rules of nature, she would’ve packed some folks up for their positions already.
But for now… she figured she’d distract herself with the local activities in Chang’an.
After informing Liu Yu about the plan to swap soy sauce for the liquor business, it was time to get to the earlier decided task of selecting works.
The poems and artworks created for the atmosphere of Chang’an were sent to the Gui Palace’s Purple Hall.
Once everything was set up, at first glance, the place looked a bit like an art gallery.
Upon stepping into the hall, Qiao Yan saw the writings and paintings neatly organized on either side, allowing the officials in charge of the selection to stroll through and check out every piece.
Since every scholar treats their written words as another face of themselves, even the papers with “scroll quality” from the poetry side looked stunning, especially when written on slightly glossy mulberry paper—it was a sight for sore eyes.
However, delightful as it may be, admiring doesn’t always mean being moved or struck by it.
Compared to those flowery articles, aside from Wang Can’s already familiar Goddess Poetry, the piece that really caught her eye was a drawing of soldiers and a dog.
As paper had only recently seen breakthroughs and artists were few, with paints far less abundant than in later generations, the quantity of artwork in the hall was sadly low, let alone high-level work like the ‘Along the River During the Qingming Festival’.
Yet, this little corner of detailed illustration somehow managed to touch the heart deeper with its simplicity.
Qiao Yan glanced at the anonymous credit on the bottom left and asked the person in charge of recording, “Who created this piece?”
People in Chang’an thought they’d have to wait for the results to find out the identities of the anonymous entrants, but for Qiao Yan, it was easier.
Each creator had logged their piece when they picked up the paper and again when they submitted it.
She could easily find out.
The attendant flipped through the records and replied, “This piece was picked up from Lord Lu’s residence.”
Qiao Yan’s voice wasn’t too quiet, and with everyone curious about her preference, as soon as the words hit the air, all eyes turned to Lu Zhi.
Huangfu Song suddenly burst into laughter, “Lord Lu, anonymously entering a competition and drawing such a scene—very childlike, huh?”
But Lu Zhi froze on the spot as soon as he heard that.
Wait a minute! Though he did talk to Qiao Yan about that scene during the Chang’an demonstration, he didn’t make that painting!
If he wanted new paper, all he needed was to give Qiao Yan a heads-up, no need to set up this whole charade.
Realization hit him; it could only be his mischievous son, Lu Yu, who pulled this off!
No wonder…
No wonder there had been frequent barking in their courtyard recently, and when he asked, that kid just said it was wild dogs. He clearly borrowed that dog to bring home to paint!
Faced with the teasing gazes of numerous officials, Lu Zhi couldn’t help but rub his forehead.
Lu Yu, what on earth are you learning from Chen Qun? You’re just digging a hole for your old man!
