Yu Country, the third year of Zaiqian, Jiangnan Road, Yizhou City.
An early summer morning rain had cleansed the murky heat between heaven and earth.
On the Yizhou Bridge, pedestrians were like weaving threads, with carts and horses packed tightly. Beneath the bridge, the wide and deep river flowed quietly from south to north, bearing ships laden with salt, tea, grains, and other goods. Majestic ships of great size, thousands of hulls and tens of thousands of boats, some pulled by trackers, others rowed by boatmen, never ceased their labor.
The Yu Empire had inherited the Former Sui's Cao Transport system, and Yizhou City was one of the important nodes on the Yu Country's Cao Transport route.
It is said, "Wu Gate transfers grains and silks, traversing the sea to Penglai." And, "Sails turn in the Liao sea, bringing millet rice to Dongwu."
The ships traveling south and north brought a large influx of people to this city on Jiangnan Road, and with them... business opportunities.
The shops along the riverside at the head of Yizhou Bridge had all prepared for business before sunrise. Whether it was a teahouse, a restaurant, a tavern, or a rouge shop, a pawnshop, or a rice shop, all storefronts were spacious and grand, teeming with vitality. However, among the array of shops, one had its doors tightly closed, showing no sign of opening for business.
That was a medicine shop with a signboard reading "Security Hall."
SNAP.
The cloth that had wiped the counter was thrown aside. A hand belonging to a young man first slid heavily over the antique-looking paulownia wood counter, then moved closer to his eyes, inspecting whether any dust remained on his fingertips.
"It's finally clean."
The youth blew on his palm, carelessly threw the cloth into a basin filled with water, stretched lazily, and sat down in the chair behind the counter.
He appeared to be around fourteen or fifteen years old. He wore a gray gown shirt with a short crimson-white shirt underneath, a turban, and long boots. His features were ordinary, his expression unusually calm.
Li Ang, that was his name. Or rather, it was the name he bore in this life.
Four months earlier, the former owner of Security Hall, Li Ang's father, Li Hanquan, and his mother, Cui Yi, had successively passed away due to illness. During the mourning period, the bewildered Li Ang himself also had an accident—his mind began to be incessantly flooded with messy and fragmented memories.
Thriving metropolises with skyscrapers, steel vehicles speeding through the streets, cellphones, computers, the internet... And in that world lived an existence, also called Li Ang.
The source of the fractured memories shared his name, his surname; even his face was exactly the same. Was this a case of Zhuang Zhou dreaming he was a butterfly or a butterfly dreaming it was Zhuang Zhou? Or, perhaps, was it the legendary "transmigration"?
Li Ang shook his head, pushing away the jumble of thoughts, and focused his gaze on the familiar Security Hall Pharmacy before him.
The pharmacy was quite spacious. The floor was paved with stone tablets, and round stones propped up each of the four pillars. From the beams hung three thin ropes, each securing a thin wooden stick. Below these dangled packets exuding medicinal scents, as well as small wooden tags inscribed with names like "Xiao Qinglong Soup," "Ma Huang Soup," "Rehmannia Decoction," and other nourishing remedies.
Above the counter, flat bamboo baskets, medicine scales, and mortars for grinding medicine were placed among other sundry items. The wooden shelves behind the counter held boxes and ceramic jars filled with Ma Huang, kudzu root, ebony, Salvia miltiorrhiza, and other medicinal herbs.
"Young Master... our family is almost out of money."
A soft female voice interrupted his thoughts. Li Ang turned to see a young girl sitting in the corner of the shop, dressed in a light blue Maid Uniform. She seemed about the same age as Li Ang and had a cute oval face. She was slightly frowning, stacking a large pile of coins on the table.
Chai Cuiqiao, Li Ang's maid.
Eight years ago, a rebellion broke out in Zhou Kingdom, the southern neighbor of the Yu Empire. The rebels, like a wildfire, captured ten State Cities in a row. Facing military disaster, the people from the northern part of Zhou Kingdom fled their homes en masse, flooding into the Yu Empire. At that time, with the situation in turmoil, countless people were selling their children. Li Ang's mother, Cui Yi, decided to buy Chai Cuiqiao as a maid for Li Ang.
The Yu Empire, as a great power of the day with a vast Domain and robust national strength, also prided itself on being the most civilized. Clear laws stated that there were servants in the country and no slaves, so she was considered a maid.
"Hmm... how much is left?"
Li Ang sighed, stood up from his chair, and walked towards the maid. Even though he had experienced the interlude of Zhuang Zhou dreaming of a butterfly, gaining countless fragmented memories, Li Ang's consciousness had not changed. After his parents suddenly passed away, Chai Cuiqiao, who had grown up with him since childhood, became the person he trusted and was closest to in this world.
It should be mentioned that domestic servants in the Yu Empire would refer to their male master as "Ah Lang," "Master," or according to the master's rank in the family, as "Eldest Son," "Er Lang," or "Third Son." However, Li Ang, who had awakened fragments of modern memory, always felt that being called "Eldest Son" was somewhat odd. It gave him the feeling that in the next second, he would have to get up and take his medicine. As a result, he had Chai Cuiqiao call him Young Master or by his name when they were alone.
"Three thousand two hundred eighty-four flat money coins; seven hundred fifteen 'folded two' coins; seven hundred seventy-nine 'folded three' coins; four hundred twenty-one 'folded five' coins; two hundred twenty 'ten coins' coins; thirteen taels of broken silver; and twenty strings of flying money..." Chai Cuiqiao's slender, scallion-like fingers, suspended in mid-air, pointed here and there. She tilted her head, her expression somewhat perplexed, and said, "The total is..."
"Thirty-one strings and three hundred fifty-six copper coins," Li Ang walked to the table and sat down, adding, "plus thirteen taels of broken silver."
The Yu Empire used copper coins as its base currency. The so-called flat money was one small coin, the smallest unit in the copper coin system. The most circulated flat money was Kaiyuan Tongbao, which was round on the outside and square on the inside, eight parts in diameter, made of copper, tin, and lead, with a star and moon pattern on the reverse. Others included Qianyuan Heavy Treasure and Da Li Yuanbao, which were year money issued by previous emperors.
As for 'folded two' coins, 'folded three' coins, 'folded five' coins, and 'ten coins,' as their names implied, their values were two copper coins, three copper coins, five copper coins, and ten copper coins respectively. Higher denominations included twenty-coin, thirty-coin, forty-coin, fifty-coin, and even hundred-coin and thousand-coin large money pieces. Once the face value reached one thousand copper coins, it was called a string of coins.
As for flying money, it was the Yu Empire's paper exchange certificate. Due to the low value and heavy weight of copper coins, which were inconvenient for transportation, paper banknotes (similar to checks) were created. The piece of flying money now on the table of Security Hall Pharmacy was larger than the palm of a hand and made of high-quality Xuanzhou hard yellow paper, which was tough and not easily damaged. The center of the paper had the words "Twenty Strings" written on it. Below this, the time and place of the money deposit, as well as the responsible bank and person handling the procedures, were marked. The edge of the paper was surrounded by a complex, intricate, and beautiful anti-counterfeit pattern.
"Recently, the silver price is about eight hundred copper coins per tael, so thirteen taels of broken silver is ten strings and four hundred copper coins. All together, that makes forty-one strings and seven hundred fifty-six copper coins."
Looking at the pile of coins on the table, neither master nor servant spoke; silence fell for a moment. What lay before them was all the remaining usable funds of Li Hanquan and Cui Yi after operating Security Hall Pharmacy for more than a decade, left after their funeral.
Forty-one strings of coins—not a lot, but not a little either.
Li Ang sighed. "The prices in the city haven't changed much recently, have they?"
"They shouldn't have." Chai Cuiqiao counted on her fingers, saying, "White rice is 70 copper coins per dou (1 dou is about 6 kilograms; 10 dou make 1 shi), pork is 42 copper coins per jin, grass carp is 30 copper coins per jin, a Hu Bing is 2 copper coins, a sour filling (that is, a vegetable-stuffed bun) is 3 copper coins, a pear is 3 copper coins, and salt is 40 copper coins per jin..."
"For daily life, if we're only talking about food, the cost is 50 copper coins per person, totaling 100 copper coins per day for two people. This, however, only includes rice, salt, firewood, condiments, oil, meat, and vegetables. If we want to make one or two extra dishes or soups, the cost is about 130 copper coins per day. There's also the money for clothes, coal, stationery, books and periodicals, fruits and snacks, candles..."
Li Ang did some quick calculations: the daily cost of living for him and Chai Cuiqiao was 150 copper coins. If they wanted to maintain their previous moderately prosperous lifestyle, it would be 170 to 200 copper coins per day.
"Without any income, just eating through our savings, forty-one strings of coins will only last for about half a year."
Li Ang rubbed his temples, not expecting that the first problem he would face after transmigrating wasn't a fatal illness or corrupt officials, but the very real crisis of a middle-class family going bankrupt.
"Young Master, um, actually..." Chai Cuiqiao fidgeted with the hem of her Maid Uniform, hesitating for a long time before whispering softly, "I have some private savings."
Li Ang didn't quite hear her clearly. "What?"
"Ten... ten strings of coins." Chai Cuiqiao's cheeks turned red as she said coyly, "Madam gave me a monthly salary to buy whatever I wanted. Other than occasionally purchasing some fruits and snacks, I've been saving it up..."
"What are you thinking?" Li Ang smiled helplessly and reached out to flick her forehead lightly. "Keep that money for yourself. I'm not going to live off a maid."
Chai Cuiqiao covered her forehead with both hands, pouting silently in protest.
AHEM.
Li Ang coughed lightly, slapped his thigh, and said solemnly, "I plan to reopen the clinic."
"EH?" Chai Cuiqiao dropped her hands, her face filled with shock. "EH!"
"What 'EH'? We have to come up with a solution; we can't just sit around and eat through our savings."
"But..." Chai Cuiqiao opened her mouth, then hesitated.
Li Ang glanced at her, picked up the teacup from the table, and took a sip. "Are you afraid I'm too young and no one will trust me? Or are you worried that my medical skills aren't refined, and I might accidentally kill someone?"
"Uh..." Chai Cuiqiao looked up at the ceiling, her gaze fixed on the beams.
"Hey, you silly girl." Li Ang feigned annoyance, reached out to slightly mess up Chai Cuiqiao's hair, and said seriously amidst her protests, "I've read books like 'Treatise on the Origins and Manifestations of Various Diseases,' 'Thousand Gold Formula,' 'Qianjin Yifang,' 'Supplements to the Materia Medica,' and 'Elbow Emergency Methods.' Treating people will be absolutely no problem. I'm confident about this, so don't worry. By the way, what food do we have left at home?"
"Are you hungry, Young Master? There are two bundles of dried noodles in the kitchen, seven or eight eggs, and two small jars of pickled vegetables and soy-pickled vegetables..."
"Then make two bowls of fried egg noodles. Let's make do with that for a meal. After eating, I need to go out. The mourning period is over; it's time to pay my respects to my teacher and ask about the State School exam. If I can pass the provincial examination and become a scholar, everything, including opening a clinic, will be much easier."
"Oh, oh." Chai Cuiqiao nodded, not quite understanding. She turned and lifted the beaded curtain to head to the kitchen, but her face still held a hint of worry.
Li Ang watched her retreating figure vanish around the corner and sighed softly. One's own family knows their own affairs. As Cui Yi's designated half-daughter and future daughter-in-law, Chai Cuiqiao could be considered the person who understood Li Ang best in this world. If even she was so worried about him reopening the clinic, there was no need to guess what others thought.
Li Ang's fingers lightly brushed through his disordered hair; the eyes beneath his fingers shone even brighter. No matter how you looked at it, running a medical clinic at his age was a pipe dream, but...
Li Ang stood up from the chair, closed his eyes, and focused his breath. In the dim sunlight filtering through the thin paper window, he held his hands out in front of him, his palms cupping as if they were holding something.
A scalpel, slicing skin.
Retractors, exposing the abdominal cavity.
Suction devices, clearing pooled blood.
...
Li Ang's hands moved like those of a conductor on stage, gentle yet decisive.
Incision, hemostasis, ligation, drainage.
Excision, reconstruction, reattachment, transplantation.
Before his eyes, a virtual, recumbent human silhouette seemed to emerge, complete with eyes, nose, mouth, ears, heart, liver, spleen, and lungs. As Li Ang sliced the skin with the scalpel, the virtual figure's blood vessels, muscle bundles, and nerves were all exposed to view, in minute detail.
The dim light through the paper window was like a shadowless lamp. The sound of slippers shuffling across a sterile operating room floor seemed to echo in his ears, and a flood of various smells from his memory fragments assailed him.
The scent of disinfectant soap from scrubbing in.
The smell of flesh being cauterized by a high-frequency electrosurgical knife.
Even... the distinct, pungent odors of various disease lesions.
Li Ang's arms, suspended in mid-air, paused. He still couldn't recall his specific life experiences from the other world. Whenever he tried to think hard, all he could find in the ocean of memories were clear, neatly arranged data, like books on library shelves.
Inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, cell biology, pathophysiology, pathological anatomy, medical immunology, medical microbiology, physical examination, diagnostics, ultrasound, imaging, electrocardiography...
A vague yet profound emotion surged in his heart: the hardship of studying, the trepidation of holding a scalpel for the first time, the tired contentment after completing a surgery...
Li Ang slowly lowered his arms and opened his eyes, his gaze sparkling.
He was a surgeon.