Chapter 234: Rising Momentum

…

That year, Li Shishi followed her mother into Fanlou and knelt before the matron, Lady Li.

Li Shishi's mother fell to her knees with a thud and pounded her forehead against the blue stone slab, its sharp clanging echoing as she begged Lady Li to examine Li Shishi's hips, saying Li Shishi had a cinnabar mole on her lower back—a sign she was a triple-gate embryo.

Lady Li lifted Li Shishi's clothing.

Li Shishi trembled all over but dared not move an inch.

Yet her body's instinct made her tighten her lower back.

This caused the cinnabar mole on Li Shishi's lower back to take the shape of three door seams.

Lady Li was overjoyed; she not only agreed to keep Li Shishi but immediately adopted her as her daughter, naming her "Li Shishi," vowing to personally teach her the arts of survival.

Lady Li gave Li Shishi's mother eighty guan.

As she pressed her fingerprint, Li Shishi heard her mother squeeze out through clenched teeth: "Don't blame your mother—I'm just finding you a way to live."

The next day after entering Fanlou, Li Shishi was shoved into a body-shaping jar, roasted with charcoal fire, and subjected to brutal training.

Even more agonizing was that Lady Li forcibly stretched Li Shishi's pelvis into the shape of three fused gates.

The pain was beyond words, and Li Shishi never wished to recall it again.

In short, under the coercion that failure meant torture, Li Shishi trained daily, not only acquiring the legendary triple gate but mastering exceptional skills.

Lady Li was deeply satisfied with Li Shishi's aptitude and diligence, waiting only for her to grow up so she could reap mountains of gold and silver.

But man's plans are no match for heaven's; before Li Shishi could grow, she was accidentally thrust into the palace, and all the blood and treasure Lady Li had invested in her vanished like water in a basket.

At this moment, Li Shishi wore a Luoshen-themed outfit, her waist flowing like water over the felt tent—soft, alluring, and striking.

Zhao Yu had seen the world, yet he was still stunned by Li Shishi's sudden, overwhelming charm; when she swayed close to him, he seized her and pulled her onto the bed…

Li Shishi knew far more than just the childhood skills she had learned.

Over the years, Zhang Chun had studied countless odd arts to please Zhao Yu, and she frequently hosted grand social events—surprise parties, cosplay nights, and more.

Among the women who attended, many possessed extraordinary talents.

Though Li Shishi never participated, she always served nearby; over time, her innate talent allowed her to master formidable skills.

So, how to put it? That night, Zhao Yu was utterly satisfied.

The only thing that left Zhao Yu slightly unsatisfied was that Li Shishi's stamina was still lacking.

Zhao Yu couldn't help wondering, "If I gathered all five famous courtesans together, would I finally be fully satisfied?"

"No rush—there will come a day."

…

The next morning, Zhao Yu did not wake Li Shishi, exhausted from the night before; instead, he rose himself and stepped out to be attended by other palace servants for washing and dressing.

Zhao Yu did not stay for breakfast but went to the training ground.

As expected, Li Lin was already waiting there early.

Then Li Lin accompanied Zhao Yu in practicing "Prisoner Fitness" and "Yoga."

Practicing "Prisoner Fitness" was uneventful, since it was mostly Zhao Yu training alone, and Li Lin merely watched.

After all, Zhao Yu had trained for so many years; Li Lin had long since taught him everything, and now he had surpassed her.

But when Zhao Yu began practicing "Yoga," Li Lin had to join him.

There is a claim that "Yoga" is a set of bedroom postures connected to temple courtesans of that era.

Whether true or not, it doesn't matter.

Only this: practicing "Yoga" truly benefits male-female interaction, especially when practiced together.

Today, as Li Lin accompanied Zhao Yu in practicing "Yoga," she noticed his residual heat had not fully dissipated.

With her vast experience, how could Li Lin let this hinder Zhao Yu's work for the day?

The only pity was that Li Lin was pregnant and could not satisfy Zhao Yu fully.

Fortunately, not long after, Yuan Qing Cheng arrived as usual to bring Zhao Yu breakfast.

With Yuan Qing Cheng's arrival, Zhao Yu's residual heat vanished completely.

After breakfast with Li Lin and Yuan Qing Cheng, Zhao Yu went to court, accompanied by Zhang Chun, Ye Shi Yun, Liu Mingda, Zhang Nan, Xiao Puxian, and Li Lin.

…

After the customary greetings between ruler and ministers, Zhao Yu, who had been Emperor for over seven years, asked with relaxed ease: "Any memorials to submit?"

Seeing Seeing Seeing Zhang Dun stepped forward as usual and reported:

"Song Jiang's gang, under the campaign led by Zeng Xiaoyun, has fully withdrawn from Jingdong East Road, entered Hebei, and shifted to Hedong. Hou Meng went to Liang Shan Bo to offer amnesty to Song Jiang; Song Jiang said that if the gentry cease resisting reform, he will immediately bind himself and surrender; otherwise, he will kill every last gentry who denies the people a way to live."

"The case of Hu Jing of Laizhou has been fully investigated: his family concealed 7,362 mu of land. As per regulation, the Department Magistrate of Laizhou, Zhang Shao, has distributed half to the informants Hu Ming and thirty-one others; the family's property has been confiscated, yielding 123,677 strings of gold, silver, banknotes, and copper coins. Half remains in Laizhou for development; half is submitted to the national treasury. Thirteen members of Hu Jing's family have been executed; ninety-four have been branded and exiled; three hundred seventy-six female relatives have been sent to the Teaching Bureau." "The Dengzhou port is expected to be completed by September this year; the Mizhou Banzhao Town port will be later, expected completion by late November."

"The Department Magistrate of Dengzhou, Su Chunlei, reported that his prefecture now has 832 physicians—twelve times more than in Jianzhong Year One—and medical care has greatly improved; however, medicine is now scarce, and he requests permission to use part of the confiscated farmland for growing medicinal herbs."

"The Ministry of Rites reports the list of successful candidates for the imperial examination: Cai Ni and six hundred seventy-one others."

"The King of Pagan, Kyansittha, has sent envoys to pay tribute; they have arrived at the Huaiyuan Guesthouse. The guesthouse attendant requests that our Great Song's northern-bound treasure ships sail to Jingcheng to intimidate the Pagan envoys."

"The Transport Commissioner of Jinghu North Road, Kang Zijian, reported that thanks to the superior seeds and the 'Qingcheng Agricultural Manual' bestowed by Yuan Niangniang, his region's grain output has more than doubled since Jianzhong Year One; his people wish to erect a living shrine for Yuan Niangniang and request a portrait of her."

"…"

As usual, Seeing Seeing Seeing Zhang Dun reported dozens of matters at once—political, economic, military, educational, civilian, diplomatic—all covered.

The most critical priority was that Song Jiang's rebel army had withdrawn from the Shandong Peninsula and would not delay its development.

This was only natural.

After all, this region is currently the most critical priority for the Zhao Song dynasty's development—no delay allowed.

Yet the court did not ease its enforcement of the Two New Policies just because Song Jiang's rebels had left.

On the contrary, to fully implement the Two New Policies, the court now permits anyone to report land concealment; whoever reports it, regardless of status, receives half the concealed land, while those who concealed land face confiscation of property and extermination of their clan—no mercy.

Since Ye Shi Yun produced the "Ye Shi Yun Medical Manual," Zhao Yu ordered its vigorous promotion.

Seven years have passed, and the "Ye Shi Yun Medical Canon" presented medical knowledge in a concise, clear, and accessible manner, enabling those without deep medical backgrounds to quickly learn and master basic medical skills, helping the Zhao Song Dynasty cultivate a large number of grassroots barefoot physicians.

According to incomplete statistics, during these seven years, the number of physicians in the Zhao Song Dynasty has exceeded one hundred thousand, effectively alleviating the shortage of professional medical personnel in rural areas.

Its medical scope covers a wide range, from common illnesses like colds and coughs to more complex internal medicine, surgery, and obstetrics and gynecology conditions, each with corresponding diagnostic and treatment methods, allowing these rapidly developed grassroots barefoot physicians to handle most common diseases in rural areas and provide timely medical services, improving the diagnosis and treatment rate of diseases in rural regions.

Moreover, with the promotion of the "Ye Shi Yun Medical Canon," the public gained much knowledge of hygiene and disease prevention, such as mosquito and fly extermination, and water disinfection, helping to raise public awareness of hygiene and health, promoting the formation of good hygiene habits in rural areas, and reducing the occurrence of diseases at their source.

It can be said that Ye Shi Yun's contribution is immense.

Merely in safeguarding mothers and newborns, Ye Shi Yun has saved countless lives.

Precisely because of this, as early as three years ago, people began erecting life shrines for Ye Shi Yun; many even compared her to the famous physicians of the Warring States period, Bian Que, and the late Eastern Han physicians Hua Tuo and Zhang Zhongjing, calling these four the Four Great Physicians of China.

Speaking of it, the vigorous promotion of both the "Qingcheng Agricultural Book" and the "Ye Shi Yun Medical Canon" benefited from Seeing Ma Xiao Jiao's improvements in papermaking and printing technology.

Seeing Ma Xiao Jiao innovated the ancient papermaking process, making paper finer, more supple, and durable, drastically reducing costs, so that books were no longer luxury items exclusive to the nobility but became everyday goods affordable to ordinary people.

And Seeing Ma Xiao Jiao's water-powered automatic printing press greatly increased the speed and volume of book printing.

The vigorous development of these two technologies greatly promoted the production and circulation of books, enabling works like the "Qingcheng Agricultural Book" and the "Ye Shi Yun Medical Canon" to rapidly spread to every corner of the Zhao Song Dynasty.

It can be said that although Ye Shi Yun, Seeing Ma Xiao Jiao, and Yuan Qing Cheng all achieved considerable success after their arrival in the Northern Song, bringing unprecedented change and hope to this world.

After Seeing Seeing Seeing Zhang Dun finished his report, Cai Jing stepped forward and reported: "Japan has once again refused to become our Great Song's most-favored-trading-nation, and does not wish to abolish its maritime restrictions, purchase bans, and waiting-period regulations."

In early Song times, Japan enacted a "closed-country" policy known as the "maritime restriction," prohibiting Japanese officials and citizens from traveling overseas without permission, with violators sentenced to exile.

Similarly in early Song times, Japan issued a "purchase ban" prohibiting private acquisition of Tang goods, restricting domestic demand for overseas commodities to reduce international trade.

During this period, Japan also enacted the "waiting-period regulation," stipulating that foreign merchants (and their ships) must wait at least two years between consecutive visits to Japan, limiting the frequency of Song merchants' arrivals.

Nevertheless, despite these restrictions, due to the Japanese aristocracy's demand for Tang and Song goods and the lure of enormous profits, private trade between Song and Japan still persisted.

But this level of trade could no longer satisfy Zhao Yu's ambition to vigorously develop maritime trade; thus, Zhao Yu specially dispatched envoys to Japan, seeking to break Japan's trade blockade through diplomacy.

Now it appears this path may be unworkable.

Zhao Tingzhi then reported: "Large-denomination paper money is one guan, five guan, ten guan; small-denomination also includes one hundred wen, two hundred wen, three hundred wen, five hundred wen. High value invites disaster: idle people have begun counterfeiting; even if we behead them daily, the trend cannot be stopped. Those producing counterfeit notes are not merely common folk in alleyways, but often come from wealthy families and scholar-official households. If this continues for even a year, it will inevitably lead to great disaster. I humbly beg Your Majesty to swiftly apply Lei Ting's law and exterminate them all."

There is nothing to debate: for counterfeiters, regardless of identity, they must be crushed with the harshest measures; thus, Zhao Yu approved Zhao Tingzhi's petition.

Notably, under the guidance of Zhao Yu and other transmigrants, the Zhao Song Dynasty's currency is rapidly evolving toward the currency system of the Yuan Dynasty—advancing into the paper money era a century or two ahead of schedule.

Its advantages are that, compared to metal currencies like gold, silver, and copper coins, paper money is light and portable, more convenient for large transactions and long-distance trade, promoting commodity circulation and economic development. Moreover, the court, by issuing unified paper money, standardized the monetary system, replacing the previous chaotic situation of numerous currency types and complex conversions, facilitating nationwide economic exchange and trade. Furthermore, by controlling paper money issuance, the court can moderately regulate the economy and gain revenue such as seigniorage during issuance, increasing state income.

Its disadvantages are that if the court recklessly overissues paper money, it will cause currency depreciation and soaring prices, severely affecting people's livelihood and economic stability. Moreover, paper money's value depends on the court's credibility; if the court fails in managing issuance and maintaining trust, compounded by factors like war, public confidence in paper money will gradually erode. Furthermore, although Seeing Ma Xiao Jiao has developed advanced banknote paper and the Fifth Daughter has offered many effective anti-counterfeiting suggestions based on later-era methods, due to technological limitations, anti-counterfeiting measures remain relatively limited and can still be replicated by skilled forgers.

This undoubtedly tests the court's resolve to combat counterfeit currency even more severely.

Overall, although the Zhao Song Dynasty still faces numerous problems, under the careful governance of Zhao Yu and his ministers, it operates well overall, achieving considerable progress in politics, military affairs, economy, people's livelihood, education, and diplomacy, and has even begun to show signs of revival.

Precisely because of this, although Zhao Yu severely cracked down on the scholar-gentry class, provoking strong discontent among the scholar-officials, the court and the realm have not descended into chaos; instead, they have been revitalized with unprecedented vitality and energy due to these reforms.

Many scholar-gentry, scholar-officials, and officials, though unwilling, have gradually realized that the wheel of history has rolled forward irreversibly; only by going along with the trend can they preserve their family's legacy and avoid being erased in the long river of history…

…

(End of Chapter)