Chapter 56: Chapter 51 Ji Xun_3
She exchanged a few words with Lu Tong and then left with the Dong Family’s carriage.
Du Changqing watched the carriage disappear and with a puzzled tone, said, "Whose family is that? They speak with quite the authority."
"The Dong Family of the Minister of the Imperial Treasury," she replied.
Hearing this, Du Changqing widened his eyes in surprise, "The Dong Family? The one with the consumptive youngest son? How did you get involved with them?"
Indeed, Du Changqing had been one of Shengjing’s wealthy and idle young masters. He was well aware of the private secrets of the noble families.
Lu Tong looked towards the end of West Street, "If I rember correctly, the mature dicine departnt is under the jurisdiction of the Minister of Imperial Treasury."
A thought struck Du Changqing, "You’re thinking of..."
"Bullying by taking advantage of one’s position, who doesn’t know how to do that?" she said softly.
Lu Tong added quietly, "If one is to take advantage, it should be done in a grand manner."
...
The Mature dicine Departnt was located beneath the southern corner tower just outside of Shengjing, and it was the official governnt-run pharmacy of the Liang Dynasty. All manufactured drugs sold in the dical halls and pharmacies of Shengjing City had to be verified by the Mature dicine Departnt.
The dicine Examiner Officer, Lou Si, was in high spirits at the mont, lounging in his chair and humming a tune.
He was neither a dical officer in the research departnt of the pharmacy nor a daily inspector who barely opened his eyes. The position of dicine Examiner Officer was truly a lucrative one. All finished drugs sent by the various pharmacies had to pass through his hands, and whether they could be sold or not depended entirely on his whim.
This power was inconspicuous within the Imperial dical Bureau and the Hanlin dical Institute, but in the Mature dicine Departnt, it was the best position for collecting graft.
Sitting in his chair, planning which restaurant he would revel in after his shift, Lou Si was caught off guard when a young pharmacy aide ca in and said, "Master, Doctor Ji from the Hanlin dical Institute has arrived."
Lou Si was startled and sat upright, "Ji Xun? What does he want?"
He had just stood up and straightened his clothes when a hand lifted the long curtain and a young man with clear and elegant features walked in.
The aroma of dicinal herbs wafted through the Mature dicine Departnt like mist in a valley. The youth was dressed in a simple, light blue silk gown, his long hair secured with a green jade hairpin, tall and slender like a solitary crane, exuding an air of a refined hermit.
As he approached, Lou Si hurried forward with a smile, "Doctor Ji, what brings you here?"
This young man with the appearance of a carefree crane was nad Ji Xun. He was the youngest Imperial Physician in the Hanlin dical Institute. Oddly enough, Ji Xun’s father was an Academician of Guanwendian, his grandfather was a Hanlin Academician, and his elder brother was a Scholar of the Fuwen Cabinet. It was a family of civil servants, yet he had been captivated by dicine from a young age. He had refused the imperial civil service examination, secretly participated in the Imperial dical Bureau’s spring exam, and beca the youngest Imperial Physician in the Hanlin dical Institute.
Ji Xun was exceptionally intelligent, and his temperant was cool and composed. Initially, Academician Ji did not approve of his youngest son’s decision to beco a dical Officer in the palace. However, Ji Xun’s dical skills were extraordinary, and during his ti at the Hanlin dical Institute, he developed many new dicinal formulas that were adopted by the Imperial Apothecary. Both the Emperor and Empress praised him continuously. Even without relying on the Ji Family’s reputation, Ji Xun was a celebrated figure in the palace, a talented dical Officer praised by all.
Such a celebrated individual was not soone Lou Si, a re dicine Examiner Officer, could afford to offend. Knowing Ji Xun’s high-minded nature, Lou Si asked anxiously, "Doctor Ji, your visit today is for...?"
Ji Xun motioned a child beside him to step forward, and the child presented a red paper booklet.
"The Imperial Apothecary has selected a batch of formulas for the Mature dicine Departnt to manufacture and sell."
Lou Si, flattered, took the booklet, smiling, "For such a small matter, just a word and I would have personally taken care of it. There’s no need for Doctor Ji to make the trip himself."
"It’s no trouble," Ji Xun replied, his expression indifferent.
After delivering the booklet of formulas, he seed ready to leave. Lou Si was about to offer more flattery when that sa young pharmacy aide ca in again, his expression a bit odd, saying, "Master Lou, soone is asking to see you outside."
"Who is it?" Lou Si glared at him. "Don’t you see Doctor Ji here?"
"It’s soone from Renxin dical Hall." Seeing Lou Si frown, unable to recall at the mont, the young aide added, "It’s the one whose tea prescription we confiscated on West Street earlier today."
"Confiscated a finished drug prescription?" Lou Si rembered, "Ah, that one!"
Ji Xun paused mid-step, looking at Lou Si, "Why was the prescription confiscated?"
Lou Si put on a smile, "Doctor Ji might not be aware, Renxin dical Hall used to be a legitimate dical hall. But after the old master died, he left the dical hall to his good-for-nothing youngest son. That kid is a wastrel, only knows how to travel about day and night, indulging in pleasures, with no understanding of pharmacology. Recently, he recklessly concocted a tea and sold it in the Capital City. As the Mature dicine Departnt’s dicine Examiner Officer, how could I allow them to play with the common people’s health? Of course, it had to be stopped."
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