"The stamen of the white peony in spring is twelve taels, the stamen of the white lotus in summer is twelve taels, the stamen of the white hibiscus in autumn is twelve taels, and the stamen of the white plum blossom in winter is twelve taels. Dry these four stamens in the sun during the spring equinox of the following year and grind them together with the medicinal powder. On the day of rain, take twelve taels of water from the falling sky, twelve taels of dew from the day of white dew, twelve taels of frost from the day of frost, and twelve taels of snow from the day of light snow. Mix these four types of water evenly and make them into longan-sized balls. Place them in an old porcelain jar and bury them under the flower roots. When the illness strikes, take one out and eat it. Spend one tael and two taels of yellow cedar soup and give it to the patient … "
"How is it?" Shuijing looked at the youth sitting on the first chair on the right and asked earnestly, "Did you see anything?"
This youth was called Wan Li. Shuijing had spent a lot of effort to kidnap him from Godly Medical Valley. Because of this, he didn't dare to take half a step into Godly Medical Valley. He was afraid that the Valley Master, that eccentric old man, would treat him with all kinds of poison.
"It's just a medicine for the rich," Wan Li casually tossed it on the table and said lightly, "This prescription looks mysterious, but it's effective."
Shuijing and Wen Dongyan were stunned at the same time.
"But that girl did see an effect after eating it. Many doctors have seen her in the past, but none of them worked." Shuijing was puzzled.
"The treatment of the rich is different from that of the poor. The poor only need to spend a few copper coins to cure an illness, but the rich may not be effective even if they spend thousands of taels." Wan Li slowly explained, "Especially when treating children, every medicine is thirty percent poison. Children's bodies can't withstand too strong of a medicine, so they need to reduce the dosage appropriately. Most rich families love their children as much as their lives. If the young master or young mistress can't take the medicine and causes other illnesses, the doctor who treated them will bear the brunt and become the target of everyone's anger. Therefore, these doctors try their best to use milder medicine to protect themselves. But if the milder medicine is too much, the efficacy of the medicine will decrease. "
Shuijing nodded, deeply understanding. The doctors of the common people were like this, and the imperial physicians in the palace were all shrewd people. The concubines in the imperial harem and the womenfolk in the manors of the princes, dukes, and ministers had endless tricks up their sleeves. There was nothing they couldn't do. Naturally, the imperial physicians were trained to turn a blind eye, to deceive themselves, to protect themselves, and to lie through their teeth.
"Isn't there a pack of medicinal primers? Will it have any special effects?" It was difficult for Wen Dongyan not to think about it when it came to the scabby-headed monk.
Wan Li smiled and said, "If this medicine really has a miraculous effect, then Miss Xue should be cured after taking it. She shouldn't take one every time she gets sick. It treats the symptoms but not the root of the problem. The effect is just like rock candy and pear water. There's not much difference. "
Shuijing and Wen Dongyan were enlightened. "That makes sense."
Wan Li continued, "This Cold Fragrance Pill, if you're lucky, you'll need one or two years to make all of them. If you're unlucky, you might not even get all of them in ten years. Furthermore, this was a task that required a lot of effort. Without a lot of manpower, material resources, and financial resources, it was impossible to complete. This Xue family is really rich. "
Wen Dongyan patted his forehead twice with the goose feather fan and asked, "Master, if two young ladies had the same illness, and one drank rock candy and pear water while the other ate the Cold Fragrance Pill, what would you think?"
What else could he think? The two of them were not on the same level. Even ginseng and bird's nest couldn't compare to the Cold Fragrance Pill. One had to know that ginseng and bird's nest could be bought with money, but the Cold Fragrance Pill couldn't be bought no matter how much money was spent.
Shuijing somewhat understood Wen Dongyan's meaning.
Because Empress Tai Mu fought together with the Emperor Tai, the current dynasty was not as harsh on women as the previous dynasty. In addition to visiting relatives and friends, women were also allowed to participate in some banquets, or go sightseeing with their sisters in the company of their family servants. They were not raised in a boudoir without anyone knowing.
Some of the banquets would even hold a talent competition to determine the most outstanding person. Whether the host gave some rewards or praise, it was a kind of glory. This was a disguised way to promote their fame.
The most important thing in a woman's life was to get married. Although it was all arranged by parents and matchmakers, under the conditions of the same family background, they had to start looking at appearance, character, talent, and so on. This young lady's poem had won first place, that young lady's painting had been praised by so and so … because the madams had a good impression of them, when looking for a daughter-in-law, they would first think of them.
Just like the concubines in the harem, the more unique one would be able to attract the emperor's attention. Without any unique characteristics, they could only grow old alone in the harem.
Xue family in Jinling was very rich. As the saying goes, "In a good year, there is good snow. Pearls are like earth and gold are like iron." This was used to describe the Xue family. Xue family was not an ordinary imperial merchant. They were the descendants of Xue Gong of Ziwei. But even with these titles, Xue Baochai was still unable to break free from the restrictions of being a merchant's daughter.
Among scholars, farmers, businessmen, and businessmen, the status of merchants was the lowest. In ancient times, there was even a law that said that merchants were of lowly birth and could not intermarry with commoners and farmers. Although there was no such law in the current dynasty, many customs had been passed down. Small families or government officials with no foundation might not mind, but large families or scholarly families with a bit of background were not willing to marry merchants. Many rising aristocrats were the same. They even avoided merchants for fear of being called nouveau riche who did not know the rules.
Xue Baochai's identity as a merchant's daughter prevented her from marrying into a large family that paid attention to family background. Unless it was the Jia and Wang families, which were known as the Four Great Families together with the Xue family.
Of course, she could also participate in poetry gatherings and banquets to gain a good reputation in the hopes that the madams would forget her identity as a merchant's daughter. But even if Xue Baochai was proficient in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and was more skilled than others, it was impossible for her to win. The daughter of a merchant could not win against the daughter of a government official. This was almost an unwritten rule.
If Xue Baochai wanted to change her situation, the best way was for her father or brother to take the imperial examination. Even if her family produced a scholar, it could change her situation and allow her to marry into a good family.
This Cold Fragrance Pill was also a solution. Just the process of making it was enough to make people raise their eyebrows. Moreover, it had the name of an overseas immortal. It immediately made Xue Baochai stand out from the rest. The stench of money that covered her body also disappeared, adding a bit of a celestial aura.
It had to be known that anything related to a 'celestial' would cause people to feel reverence and yearn for it. To say something disrespectful, the founding emperor of each dynasty would always say that he had a fortuitous encounter or that his mother dreamed of a dragon when she was pregnant with him. It was just a way to buy people's hearts. As for whether it was true or not, only the emperor himself would know.
"No way …" Shuijing's expression was a bit strange, "You mean that the scabby-headed monk gave her the Cold Fragrance Pill to help her find a good marriage? How old was the girl from the Xue family at that time? "
Wen Dongyan slowly opened his mouth and said, "There is something that this subordinate hasn't had time to report to Master. That scabby-headed monk also gave the girl from the Xue family a golden locket. On the front and back of the locket were engraved the words' Never leave, never abandon, forever young '. It just so happened to correspond with the words' Never lose, never forget, immortal longevity, everlasting prosperity 'on Jia Baoyu's psychic Baoyu. Since ancient times, there has been the saying of a golden match. "
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