Jinyi Spring

Chapter 67 Medical Clinic Opens

They also bought a young wife in her twenties, Sister Song, and three little girls aged eleven to thirteen.

Song Sao learned midwifery from Wang Sao.

The three maids were named Zisu, Zifu, and Mujin. Zisu studied at the medical clinic, Zifu studied medicine making, and Mujin followed Shaoyao to serve Feng Chuchen and her siblings and do housework.

To make the place more comfortable, the three rooms in the west wing of the house were all converted into single-door rooms. Aunt Wang lived in the north room, Banxia and Shaoyao lived in the west room, and the other four people lived in the main room. Uncle Wu's family also moved to this side of the house and lived in the back room.

Feng Chuchen's monthly salary is five taels of silver plus commission.

Aunt Wang was a midwife registered by the imperial court, equivalent to a "chief physician" in the previous life, with a monthly salary of one tael of silver and five hundred cash plus commission.

Zhang, the midwife, wasn't registered, but received one tael of silver plus a commission. The other two assistant midwives received eight hundred cash plus a commission.

These three midwives were all willing to work at the clinic, as it guaranteed them a stable income regardless of the weather.

The medicine-making master earns five taels of silver a month, Zhao's wife earns one tael of silver and five hundred cash, the medicine-dispensing master earns one tael of silver, the medicine-pounding assistant earns five hundred cash, and the miscellaneous worker earns eight hundred cash.

They didn't get a commission.

Banxia was an apprentice and was temporarily given 500 copper coins.

Peony, Uncle Wu, and Aunt Wu also received five hundred coins.

Song Saozi and several others, and Wu Youmo, are tentatively allotted 200 coins.

The servants' homes provide room and board, and except for Aunt Wang, their wages are lower than the other employees. They'll be raised later when the clinic makes more money.

Adding in other expenses, Feng Chuchen was prepared to lose money for the first three months, or even the first year.

She earned some money through other channels, and with the six hundred taels of silver given to her by Shangguan Ruyu, she was still able to ensure the normal operation of the clinic.

She's not afraid of losing money all the time.

The benefits of hospital births have already been proven in past lives. Giving it more time will allow people to see those benefits.

Starting this month, Aunt Wang and the others will keep all the money they earn for themselves and will not need to hand it over to the authorities.

Aunt Wang felt very embarrassed.

Only after Feng Chuchen insisted did Aunt Wang finally agree, adding, "I'm all alone. If the clinic needs money in the future, I'll take it out."

The fact that she could earn so much money made Peony very excited, and she even went home to tell her parents the great news.

"The house is beautiful, the interior is beautiful, and it's only a quarter of an hour's walk to the street. For longer distances, you can take a car... Life is even better than that of Miss Guo from the Guo family."

This made her two younger sisters envious and jealous.

However, the two households in front of the clinic and the household next to the Feng residence were very unhappy when they heard that the house was going to be used as a maternal and child clinic to deliver babies, fearing that the filth would affect their own homes.

They went to Feng Chuchen's house to reason with him.

This is because the Feng family has a powerful backing; if it were anyone else, they would have come knocking on their door long ago.

Feng Chuchen had already thought of this, and patiently explained her theory: "The delivery room is where Guanyin Goddess bestows children, how could it be unclean... The delivery room is located in the back, far away from your homes."

Despite saying that, they still hung red decorations at each household to ward off evil spirits and gave each family a red envelope containing one or two taels of silver.

The first two families were very satisfied. They received so much money, and the delivery room was indeed a certain distance from their homes. They also had red cloth to ward off evil spirits, so it wouldn't bother their own families.

Grandma Sun next door was still unhappy and kept grumbling.

Harmony brings wealth, and Feng Chuchen didn't want the relationship between neighbors to become too strained. That evening, he had Feng Buji deliver a bolt of silk from the Wen family, which stopped the Sun family from causing trouble.

Starting on the tenth day of the seventh lunar month, Feng Chuchen led people to post advertisements everywhere, not only in the city but also in the outer city and around Baima Village.

Tongji Women and Children's Hospital emphasizes prenatal checkups, promoting visits to the hospital from the start of pregnancy. The hospital establishes a medical record for each expectant mother to ensure the safety of both mother and baby to the greatest extent possible.

The clinic also promotes horizontal delivery to reduce the pain of childbirth.

With doctors like Feng Chuchen and midwives like Wang, better treatment and delivery services can be provided for both infants and mothers.

The first three mothers admitted to the hospital receive a 50% discount, other mothers admitted in July receive a 30% discount, and mothers admitted in August receive a 20% discount...

The Women and Children's Hospital has one Class A ward, which is a top-tier ward, and four Class B wards, which are ordinary wards.

Only mothers staying in regular wards are eligible for the discount.

Then there are some advertising slogans:

Give your baby the best, starting from pregnancy.

Focusing on the health of mothers and babies, from conception to growth.

A safe, comfortable, and reassuring home for mothers and babies.

……

Wherever the advertisements were posted, people would read them aloud, word by word, and a crowd would gather around to listen.

People were talking about it:

"That sounds good. Giving birth there would not only ensure the safety of the mother and baby, but also keep the home quiet."

"Tsk tsk, bringing pregnant women to his own clinic to give birth, isn't he afraid that all the filth will go to his house? Foolish woman, you've picked up a sesame seed and lost a watermelon."

"It was opened by the descendant of Doctor Feng, but she's lost her mind. She's afraid of bloodshed, so even her own men avoid her, yet she still invites them into her home."

"I heard the clinic is right next to her house. Good heavens, her brother has always been in poor health."

"Isn't this just killing her brother?"

……

Banxia was so angry that she told Feng Chuchen about these gossips, but Feng Chuchen didn't care at all.

Mindsets are not so easy to change.

Fortunately, she wasn't a revolutionary pioneer; the clinic reforms had nothing to do with politics.

However, even medical reforms cannot be too unconventional or overstep the bounds, and must avoid being exploited, especially by not contradicting the worldview and values ​​advocated by the ruling class, or at least not openly.

You have to do everything step by step and avoid risks.

Ancient rulers were very harsh on those who overstepped the bounds; the punishments were not just imprisonment or beatings, but beheading or even the most severe forms of execution.

A small clinic doesn't take a large slice of the pie and won't affect the interests of those in power. But it will definitely impact the interests of some midwives and small clinics. If they try to sabotage her, Feng Chuchen isn't afraid.

At the same time, detailed rules for entering the museum and production regulations were formulated and submitted to officials of the Imperial Medical Academy for review and approval.

Imperial Physician Li and Imperial Physician Fang were very interested, thinking that both the Imperial Medical Academy and private clinics could use these methods. Even Vice Envoy Fan, who disliked Feng Chuchen, didn't cause trouble, as these items also applied to the Fan family's Qianjintang clinic.

The kimchi jars have also been fired; ten of them have been fired.

Feng Chuchen bought pointed chili peppers, bell peppers, ginger, cowpeas, cabbage, and garlic, planning to pickle radishes in the fall. Unfortunately, there were no Sichuan-style green vegetables here, so she could only use Northeastern pickled cabbage to make pickled fish.

Feng Chuchen and her siblings especially loved this kind of pickled vegetable, while Aunt Wang and the others preferred the pickled vegetables from the north.

July 15th is the 44th anniversary of my eldest aunt's passing.

Feng Chuchen took Aunt Wang and Datou to Jiupoling to sweep the grave of her aunt.

I visited the ancestral graves last month, so I could have skipped it today.

But Feng Chuchen insisted on going.

Today is not only the anniversary of her aunt's death, but also the first anniversary of the original owner's passing, her thirty-fifth birthday in her previous life, and the first anniversary of her transmigrating to this place.

There's something else important to report to my aunt: her ninth copper thimble has been worn smooth.

This could be considered a milestone. It's a pity that my aunt is no longer here, and even if the needle is smoothed out, it's impossible for her to learn another needlework technique.

Last night she dreamed of her past life again, where she and her grandfather were treating patients at a clinic.

It's not strange to dream about a past life. She had dreamed about her past life several times before, but the dreams were very vague and she couldn't remember them after waking up.

What puzzled her was that yesterday she dreamt she was giving acupuncture to patients at her grandfather's clinic. The acupuncture technique wasn't the Shui-style technique her grandfather had taught her, but rather the one her aunt usually used. Moreover, the characters and scenes were incredibly vivid, as if she were actually there.

Even after waking up, Feng Chuchen was still immersed in the scene from her dream.

Arriving at Jiupoling at the beginning of the day, Jiupoling was still lush and green even in late summer, and the stream seemed to be a little thicker than before.

She knelt down and burned incense and paper money at the grave, then quietly recounted the preparations for the clinic.

She added, "Auntie, all nine copper thimbles are now flattened. It's a pity you can't teach me another needling technique. Although it's a regret, my finger skills have improved."
"Not only will it be helpful for acupuncture, but it will also come in handy in a fight. May my aunt's spirit in heaven bless me and Buji with everything going smoothly..."

She thought to herself, "May the original owner be reborn into a good family, and may my grandfather in my previous life be healthy and live to be a hundred years old."

She got up and looked down the mountain. The green reeds were clearly visible, with countless small mounds of earth inside.

Suddenly, she vaguely felt that the outline of the reed marshes resembled a giant infant lying at the foot of the mountain, with the plum trees as its head, the flowing stream as its waistband, and a few shrubs as its upturned little bottom...

It wasn't the "random graveyard" or "pil of dead" that people talked about, but a place where my aunt had built it herself, a place where blessings gathered.

May she live another lifetime, and may she contribute her modest efforts to the world's pregnant women and infants.

This place is peaceful and warm. Not only is their aunt watching over them from heaven, but she will also spend her whole life watching over them, praying for their happiness and well-being in their next life...

Feng Chuchen's eyes welled up with tears.

I never knew I could be so great.

After descending the mountain, the two people and the dog went to the reed marshes.

They moved very lightly, as if afraid of disturbing the "sleeping" child.

Feng Chuchen walked to the small mound under the plum tree, picked up the pebbles, reed fluff, and leaves on it bit by bit, and then swept it clean with the branch in his hand.

Then they went to clean other small mounds, sweeping them very carefully.

Aunt Wang swept with her, while Da Tou leisurely lay under the plum tree gazing at the sky.

After sweeping everything, Feng Chuchen stood in the middle, took out three incense sticks, lit them, bowed around the area, and then stuck them in the ground, silently reciting the Rebirth Sutra once.

She filled a water bag with water by the stream, and next to a small mound, she scooped up some soil, wrapped it in paper, and put it in a basket.

She has already used seven sticks of this incense and wants to make some more.

Seeing that busy, tall figure, Aunt Wang sighed deeply.

What a coincidence! The girl is always the first to stand in front of that little mound and the first to sweep it.

Fifteen years have passed, and that dying little baby has grown so tall.

She didn't know that today was her real birthday.

The eldest sister was afraid that her daughter would be saddened if she knew the truth.

Little did the older sister know that the girl was far more mature than her peers, possessed superb medical skills, and was prudent in her actions. She could tell her the truth before she even turned twenty...

After they returned to their old house and finished eating noodles, they picked several baskets of vegetables. Aunt Wang then delivered two packets of pastries each to Zhao Lizheng's and Feng Changfu's homes.

She came back and said, "I heard from Brother Feng that Feng Qi has been released from prison and returned to the village. How come that bastard didn't die in jail?"

Feng Qi owed the original owner of his life, so Feng Chuchen would definitely find a chance to deal with him.

He said, "He who does many unrighteous deeds will surely perish; he will not get away with anything good."

On July 18th, the sky was high and the air was crisp, with a gentle breeze and bright sunshine.

The first shop in Xiliu Hutong, Beianfang, has a large sign on its east gate. The golden characters "Tongji Women and Children's Hospital" shine brightly in the sunlight.

Two rows of uniquely styled large flower baskets were placed outside the east gate, and many round and heart-shaped red and green scraps of paper were scattered on the ground.

A joyous atmosphere prevailed.

Starting at the end of Chen Shi (7-9 AM), Banxia and Xiaojinzi, dressed in festive attire, came out with plates of peanut candies and distributed them to the onlookers.

Of course, we can't give out too many; just a few peanuts and a piece of candy to each person.

Before giving it to them, you should make them say, "Wishing you prosperity."

People say, "Wishing you prosperity."

Banxia and Xiaojinzi would then offer peanut candies, beaming with joy, saying, "Congratulations! Congratulations! May you get rich!"

More and more children gather here, their mouths brimming with sweet words, all in pursuit of a piece of candy.

With more children, there were also more adults, and soon the alley entrance and the area around the clinic were crowded with people.

At the end of the 9-11 PM, Grandma Hu, along with Hu Youjia, Hu Qingsong, and Hu Qingyang, arrived with congratulatory gifts.

Several people offered auspicious greetings, "Congratulations on your opening! May good fortune shine upon you and may everything go smoothly..."

Feng Chuchen was busy at the clinic when Feng Buji, who came out to greet him, bowed repeatedly.

He was wearing a red satin long gown with floral patterns, white silk trousers, and a red ribbon tied to his hair. His little face was rosy, and he looked incredibly cheerful.

"Thank you so much, sister-in-law, Sister Youjia, and my two nephews for taking time out of your busy schedules to come and offer your congratulations. It is truly an honor to have you here. We are deeply grateful..."

The young boy has started school, and all he says are polite platitudes.

Only his family knew that he had practiced these polite words for several days.

Grandma Hu laughed and said, "Buji is getting more and more handsome, and he's also gained some weight."

Hu Youjia smiled and chimed in, "He's becoming more and more successful."

The brothers Hu Qingsong and Hu Qingyang pulled Feng Buji to play outside the clinic.

"Go to the back and look at the ducks."

"We also need to see the small fish."

Feng Buji was reluctant, "If we go out, what will happen to my sister-in-law and Sister Youjia?"

Hu Qingsong pouted and said, "All you care about is playing with your little lady, are you even a man?"

Feng Buji blushed slightly and explained, "Sister-in-law Hu and Sister Youjia are guests. My sister is very busy and doesn't have time to keep them company. I shouldn't just think about having fun by myself."

Hu Youjia laughed and said, "You guys go out and have fun. My sister-in-law and I will enjoy the flowers in the yard and listen to the commotion next door."

Upon hearing this, Feng Buji instructed Xiao Mozi and Shaoyao to carry a small table out of the house and place it under the eaves. He then set out tea and snacks, lit mosquito repellent, and stuffed a sunflower doll into Hu Youjia's hand.

"My sister just made this, isn't it beautiful?"

After settling them in, he led the two Hu brothers and a few servants out.

Hu Qingsong also wanted to go through the side door of the clinic, which was closer to the river.

Just as Grandma Hu was about to stop them, Feng Buji said, "My sister won't let you go to the clinic."

My sister didn't believe that a clinic could bring bloodshed, and neither did he. But my sister said that just because they didn't believe it didn't mean others didn't...

Feng Chuchen happened to walk over from the side door and instructed the three servants, "Keep a close eye on the young masters. Don't let them get too close to the river. Let them play for half an hour and then go home."

Grandma Hu smiled and said, "Don't let Buji's young age fool you, he's very thoughtful. He made sure we were all settled before leaving."

Feng Chuchen laughed and said, "Yes, he worries about things even more than I do."