Chapter 771

The Great King's mood instantly improved after plucking Qiao Yi's wool, and after returning to the city he also went to the Northern Border Medical Bureau for a round, saying he wanted to visit Zhang Tonghe.

"Such a nice house, such a big place, such excellent teaching staff—haven't you developed the Gold Wound Pill yet?" the Great King was shocked. jpg

Zhang Tonghe: "... I, the humble commoner, feel ashamed."

……Well. I know some medicinal ingredients are missing, but you can draw analogies—haven't you researched any…other kind of pill?

Zhang Tonghe felt the king had come on purpose to anger people.

Good fellow, in his mouth, offhandedly, he calls the Golden Wound Divine Pill of flesh and white bone the same as the fish meat balls from Excellent Sea Pavilion, as if a little effort could pound it out.

……If in my remaining life I can research a new pill formula that has half the effect of the Lesser Golden Wound Pill, my life would be sufficient." He no longer mentions the Greater Golden Wound Pill; he just heard that, because it's too expensive, their medical bureau currently hasn't had the chance to obtain one for research.

Tsk tsk! If my master heard me say something so lacking in ambition, I'd already have been expelled from the school! Divine Physician Zhang, your attitude is unacceptable!" The king said pompously.

Zhang Tonghe:...

I, a humble commoner, am foolish.

Huh?! You're the Chief Physician of the Northern Border Medical Bureau, yet you keep calling yourself a humble commoner all day—don't think that just because you say 'humble commoner' you actually are one!" The king said warily.

You think you can run away? No way, you know that!

Zhang Tonghe:...

I don't know… Your Majesty, amidst your busy schedule, are you here to supervise the progress of the Golden Wound Divine Pill research, or is there some other matter?

…Well. Let's not talk about this medicine for now—how are the military physicians you've trained? Can they be deployed now?" This is the king's purpose for this trip. The king is still quite eager for the military physicians; he can see they'll be needed soon.

Upon hearing that, Zhang Tonghe thought, "This works; finally there's something I can answer."

Zhang Tonghe immediately summoned a line-up for the king, saying these are the elite of the Northern Border Medical Bureau.

The king walked around them, examining each one's physique, occasionally reaching out to pat their arms and shoulders, as if he knew what he was doing.

A military physician who only knows medical skills won't do; they must be able to march immediately and keep up with the speed of a large cavalry unit…. Your physiques look rather ordinary—don't let it happen that when you go south to suppress the rebellion, someone collapses in the vanguard camp and the military physicians only arrive next month; then I'll really have to give your medical bureau a taste of its own medicine!

Zhang Tonghe: ……Certainly, he's just here to cause trouble.

The king, hands behind his back, criticized the medical bureau all around; as he was leaving, he didn't disdain them, but directly took this batch of military physicians, packed them up, and threw them all into the East Major Camp. Hmm, it's not too late to start training their physical fitness now.

When the Northern Border began to pay grain taxes with great fervor, the imperial examination palace exam finally was about to start.

Even before it started, the king was already angry.

This guy is very dissatisfied with the list.

The Xun clan of Yingchuan, the Kong clan of Lu—none of the good scholars are participating, right?! I recall these two places haven't rebelled yet!

Xie Yuan, calm and composed, said, "Yingchuan is right beside Luoyang; maybe they're still the main force protesting the imperial examinations." This remark successfully made the king angry enough to puff up like a pufferfish.

I want to use them now, but they're putting on airs! When the sons of farmers grow up later, what use will they be?! The peasant base is so huge… later, if they want to enter officialdom, it'll be too late! I'll make it so they can't rise high, and they'll decline completely!

Xie Yuan, having been put through the wringer by the king, has developed a conditioned reflex: the unhappier the king, the calmer Xie Yuan becomes. "The official school in the Northern Border has only been open a few days. Even if farming families have a scholarly sprout, they've only just learned to recognize characters. By the time they grow up, it'll still take fifteen to twenty years."

That's also correct.

The king wanted to scratch the wall but held back; after a while he calmly said, "What's the rush? I'm only just over ten; I can wait! Do the aristocratic clans really want to compete with me in longevity?!" He won't give them a ladder; he'll wear them out.

Suddenly remembering that the family good at studying also includes his maternal uncle's household, he began flipping through the roster noisily. "Has anyone from the Yang clan arrived?"

Xie Yuan thought, "By now, the Yang clan has no other choice. The grain and supplies you've given to support your attack on Chang'an, and the future clan head, are both in your hands."

Among the students from Grand Agriculture taking the palace exam, there are two with the surname Yang; I heard from Xie Tu that their scholarship is not bad.

Upon hearing that, the king was satisfied: "It's still the Yang clan that knows how to educate children; I'll definitely grant my maternal uncle an honorary position as the Chief Libationer of the Northern Border Academy!"

Xie Yuan:...

Generally feel that the king's recent promises are even more hollow.

How could he know that recently the Phoenix Group's business has been poor, and the king has been following Bai Yang in reading idle books, his promise‑making technique improving day by day.

This year's palace exam, as usual, has questions set by Xie Yuan; most participants are from the Northern Border and its vicinity. The quality is uneven, with a perfunctory air, and the king, who's a poor student himself, dislikes it greatly.

The first cohort had the Southern Xie and Northern Yang, plus a prodigy from Changzhou named Zhou Huang who was making waves in the Armory Bureau. The second cohort? Mediocre!

The farthest south on this exam list is Guanzhong; beyond that, there's nothing. The king, having already ascended the throne, can't watch the Great Jin split apart, pay lip service while ignoring imperial edicts. This guy rolled up his sleeves, stayed silent, and first recalled Changli.

【King's Diary:

September 9, You Prefecture, clear.

The court is still urging me to pacify the feudal lords, implying between the lines that I shouldn't provoke new rebels before dealing with the existing rebel kings!

I'm furious!

They don't know that after I scrimped and saved, exhausted my wealth, took on debt to raise cavalry, I can't tolerate even a little anger!

——Short‑tempered, Bai Li Jing, who's been vending for years with a zero balance.