The Moon in the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 78: Serious Talk (Please subscribe, please vote)

When Nian Duan arrived not far away, Ying Zheng was very enthusiastic and quickly stepped forward to greet him and said, "Mr. Nian Duan, I am honored to have you here. Please take a seat in the hall."

Nian Duan bowed and said without any expression: "I am a commoner from the mountains and fields, paying my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Ying Zheng didn't care: "Sir, there's no need to be polite. Please come in."

After entering, Nian sat on the right side of Ying Zheng and spoke first, his tone cold: "Your Highness, the previous letter mentioned the technique of preventing smallpox and protecting pregnancy, I wonder if it is true or false?"

Ying Zheng was not annoyed, and said with a smile: "Sir, what are you talking about? How can such a thing be false? Besides, Zheng's words are worth a thousand gold, and he never speaks lightly."

Nian Duan heaved a sigh of relief and asked, "Your Highness, if this technique is true, I wonder if it is expensive?"

"Zheng believes that all the necessary things are cheap and can be used by everyone in the world without much cost."

Nian Duan was delighted, and his tone softened: "Your Highness, if that's the case, I will do my best to help you wherever you need me."

Ying Zheng smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, sir. This is easy to explain. I have a method, and what I need you to do is to confirm how to implement it. You need to test the relevant conditions of use, taboos, etc. one by one before you can summarize and compile them into a book."

"Please rest assured, sir. All you need will be provided by Daqin. Just do it with confidence."

"Although Zheng is young, he knows the hardships of the people and the difficulties faced by women and children. If it is granted by heaven, Zheng will do his best and be willing to pass it on to the world. He does not ask for anything else."

Nian Duan praised, "Your Highness is kind-hearted, and I admire you. Please tell me the method, Your Highness."

Ying Zheng restrained his smile and said solemnly: "Zheng has one more thing to say, I'll say it in advance, please don't blame me, sir."

Nian Duan suddenly became alert, thinking that this was a request, so he remained calm and said, "Your Highness, please speak first."

Ying Zheng said: "This method is that on the night when I was named the crown prince, a Jingwei bird appeared in my dream and turned into a human in the air. She claimed to be the daughter of Emperor Yan and presented her medical skills to me on the order of her father. The skills she presented were an instrument and a medical technique."

"Although it is a great deed, it is a little hard to express in words. This gift to Zheng is something that men and women need to pay attention to, as well as what pregnant women and babies need. It is inevitable that there are some impoliteness. Please forgive me, Mr. Nian Duan."

Nian Duan felt relieved and asked, "Is it just this matter?"

Ying Zheng said sternly: "There are differences between men and women, and we should not be presumptuous. You are a woman after all, so how can you be disrespectful?"

Nian Duan put his heart at ease, secretly feeling ashamed, and said in a gentle voice: "Your Highness is worrying too much. The priority of a medical disciple is to save lives. The difference between men and women is not worth mentioning in front of a doctor, especially when it comes to saving lives."

"Your Highness, there is no need to be shy. You can speak freely. When it comes to medicine, you cannot be shy about talking about it. You must be thorough and detailed."

"Besides, please forgive me for being rude. Your Highness is young after all. I am much older than you, so there is no need to be shy."

Ying Zheng thought to himself, I have developed too well in this life. Now if we talk about height alone, you are not much taller than me. Now that I have already said it, I will not hold back.

Ying Zheng praised: "Mr. Nian Duan is indeed a kind-hearted doctor. Since this is the case, Zheng can speak freely."

Ying Zheng asked someone to bring out paper and pen, placed them in front of Nian Duan, and asked him to take notes.

"This first prescription is a method for preventing smallpox."

Ying Zheng did not immediately mention the matter of childbirth, but first used his trump card to shock Nian Duan, and then he could talk about the rest. Ying Zheng explained the vaccination method to Nian Duan in detail, and Nian Duan took notes while listening. The more he listened, the more he thought it was feasible, and he was deeply shocked. This method could really solve the problem of smallpox, which was really a great merit.

Moreover, he now believed that Ying Zheng was a man favored by heaven, because Ying Zheng described it in such detail that Nian Duan could not help but believe it.

After the smallpox vaccination method was finished, Nian Duan couldn't help but praise: "Your Highness is a gift from heaven, and the Duke has granted it to the world. It is really a move that benefits the people. Nian Duan admires it. Thank you, Your Highness."

Ying Zheng shook his head and said modestly: "This is what I should do. It is given by God to benefit the world. How can I put it aside?"

At this time, Nian Duan already had a very good impression of Ying Zheng.

"Mr. Nian Duan, Zheng will talk about another matter."

Nian Duan nodded: "Your Highness, please speak."

Ying Zheng waved his hand to order the others to leave, and walked to Nian Duan: "Sir, please let Zheng use the pen."

Nian Duan handed the pen to Ying Zheng, who drew a birth forceps on the paper.

Although Nian Duan is indifferent to fame and fortune and has no reputation, she is indeed a student of a famous school and a true female traditional Chinese medicine expert. When she saw this thing, she thought of it being used by pregnant women and knew how to use it. Her cheeks instantly turned red and she felt shy.

It really is true that there is no more beautiful color in the world than a woman’s shy blushing face.

Ying Zheng found it quite amusing to see Nian Duan being so shy, but of course he showed no emotion at all.

She walked to Nian Duan's side, pointed at the forceps drawn on the paper, and carefully explained to Nian Duan how to use them.
The two were only two feet apart, and listening to Ying Zheng's earnest explanation, it was inevitable that they felt a little awkward even though it was clearly something that could save lives.

Of course, Ying Zheng didn’t care. This little thing was nothing.

Moreover, when it comes to medical matters, we cannot be careless and must explain them clearly.

Living people are precious national wealth, the more the better.

Nian Duan also gradually got into the state, taking notes seriously, and asking about some details from time to time. If Ying Zheng was not clear about something, he would write it down for the time being and study it later.

The more Ying Zheng spoke, the more he wanted to say. In today's era, it is often difficult to talk about such things, and there is no teaching or enlightenment about physical health knowledge, and it is usually not discussed in public. Physical health, hygiene protection, and precautions for pregnant women and children during growth are insignificant, but they are indeed extremely important. They are related to eugenics, and having more children, and have a huge impact on population growth.

Let’s not talk about anything else, just talking about the age for marriage and pregnancy, the Qin law stipulates that a man’s height of six feet five inches (about 150CM) is the standard for adulthood. A capping ceremony is held, and after "capping", he is qualified to get married. A woman’s height of six feet two inches (about 143CM) is considered an adult, and she is "betrothed" to marriage.

This age is probably around 15 years old. No wonder the mortality rate is so high for a woman to get pregnant and give birth at this age.

This is a huge loss for the country. In order to allow women to give birth a few years earlier, the country risks losing a healthy and alive woman. This is a huge loss in the long run.

Moreover, even if a woman under the age of 19 becomes pregnant, the probability of miscarriage is much higher than that of giving birth, not to mention that even if she survives until giving birth, she will still have to face the terrible mortality rate.

Of course, in addition to considering increasing the population as soon as possible, another reason for allowing the people under his rule to get married so early is to reduce social security problems.

There were no schools or entertainment activities in this era. Men aged fourteen or fifteen were the most unstable elements. If they were allowed to reach adulthood as soon as possible, they could be put in shackles and also go to the battlefield.

(End of this chapter)