[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin":3,"chapter-the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-271":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The First Iron Rice Bowl of Great Jin",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},151957,261,"Chapter 271: Tripartite Rule","the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-271",271,"\u003Cp>With the emergence of the Guardian Families, in just a few short months, the Medical Department underwent earth-shaking changes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, Meng Qingyao ignited the Dan Fire on the Second Street of Nine Streets, and with the assistance of Dan Ze, the number of second-rank alchemists increased significantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Next, the Divine Tree bestowed eighteen secret realms, leading to the establishment of the Spirit Realm Pavilion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then came the appearance of the Dan Ding Altar, which expanded the square dozens of times, causing a surge of spiritual energy throughout the Medical Department, making it the place with the richest spiritual energy and the most suitable for cultivation within the capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, the successive appearances of Danyuan Peak, Shenhe Peak, Qingyao Peak, and Xuanhuang Peak not only expanded the territory of the Medical Department further but also secured the Guardian Order that allowed for the recruitment of Guardian Guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the guards responsible for maintaining the order and safety of the sacred grounds, the emergence of the Guardian Guards marked the establishment of a unified framework for order management within the Medical Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Medical Department was no longer a mere medical branch under the rule of the Chu royal clan, no longer bound by the control and management of the imperial family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, order management in the Medical Department was dictated by the Guardian Guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the foot of Danyuan Peak, the Personnel Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi turned through the apprentice register with a expressionless face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Pharmacist and Hua Shuran, along with the other seven, stood by, their faces all showing some unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no helping it—Danyuan Peak had been around for over three months, and yet they had only managed to recruit about a thousand apprentices so far.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Excluding the more than seven hundred retired Demon-Suppression Army soldiers, eighty-plus members of the Hua clan, and over a hundred people from the Wuyi Marquis Manor, they had only managed to recruit a few dozen others sporadically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Director, right now the Qihuang Hall, Dan Ding Altar Square, and the Nine Streets are all under the control of the Guardian Guards. Although they haven't restricted those inside the Medical Department, movement and communication everywhere have clearly decreased.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Those who were originally interested in joining our secret realm now don't dare make any moves.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"People inside the Medical Department don't dare approach Danyuan Peak, and outsiders can't even get through the gate, so they know even less about our situation here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Prince of Shou won't let us set up a registration point at the entrance, so we can't introduce the Danyuan Secret Realm to outsiders. I was thinking, maybe we should recruit people from outside the Medical Department—like at the city gate?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi looked at the speaker in surprise. Of the eight medicine apprentices assigned to the No. 13 Qihuang Hall, she had been somewhat resistant to everyone except Xu Pharmacist, to the point that she hadn't even remembered their names.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Feng noticed Hua Changxi's hesitation, guessed that she had forgotten his name, and quickly introduced himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Director, I am Wan Feng. Since I was young, I've loved studying medicine. When I came of age, I entered the Medical Department as a medicine apprentice. Later, by luck, I tested positive for wood and fire spiritual roots and began to delve into alchemy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Back when the higher-ups were assigning medicine apprentices to the Qihuang Hall, I used all the silver I had saved to pull some strings, and that's how I got into No. 13 Qihuang Hall.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Being able to follow you, Director, is the greatest fortune of my life. By now, I've already committed 'The Complete Guide to First-Rank Spiritual Plants' and 'The Complete Guide to Processing First-Rank Spiritual Medicines' to memory.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The seven people including Xu Pharmacist: \"...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What a Wan Feng—seizing any opportunity to sell himself to the Director.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi looked at Wan Feng and was not put off by his self-recommendation. From his words, she could tell that he was truly thinking about how to recruit more apprentices for the Danyuan Secret Realm and was actively paying attention to the changes in the situation within the Medical Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Meng Qingyao, Yan Qianying, and Gu Xing obtained the Guardian Orders, with the support of the forces behind them, they all successfully recruited Guardian Guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In just one or two months, the security management of the Medical Department underwent three changes in authority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first time, Meng Qingyao used her hundred Guardian Guards to seize control of the Medical Department from the imperial clan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second time, after Yan Qianying recruited Guardian Guards, she joined the competition for control of the Medical Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a round of negotiations, Meng Qingyao took charge of order in Qihuang Hall and Dan Ding Altar Square, while Yan Qianying was responsible for order on the Nine Streets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The third time, Gu Xing, relying on the Heavenly Division, also recruited Guardian Guards and took over from Meng Qingyao the task of maintaining order in Qihuang Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From then on, the order management of the Medical Department was divided among these three.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of the current situation where the Medical Department was split into three factions, Hua Changxi sighed: \"I didn't expect the Dong'an Prince's Mansion to be even more powerful than I imagined.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was not surprised that the Guardian Families and the Heavenly Division had laid out plans in the Nine Nether, but she was somewhat astonished that the Dong'an Prince's Mansion had also made arrangements there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the Five Finger Mountain, she had saved the Dong'an Prince's life. If not for her, the Dong'an Prince would likely have died at the hands of the Shura Gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She found it hard to imagine that someone who still needed to be saved by her would have the ability to orchestrate plans in the Nine Nether.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as Hua Changxi let out this seemingly random sigh, the eight people including Xu Pharmacist were all confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, some of them still guessed the underlying meaning of her words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Sirong: \"Director, the reason Hall Master Yan was able to recruit Guardian Guards wasn't thanks to the Dong'an Prince's Mansion, but because of the support of the imperial clan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi was surprised: \"Wasn't it said that the four non-imperial princes aren't really obedient to the imperial clan? Why would the imperial clan support Yan Qianying?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Sirong: \"Because the current Princess of Dong'an is Princess Zhaoyang, who was born of the Grand Emperor.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that both Wan Feng and He Sirong were eager to showcase their abilities before Hua Changxi, Hua Shuran, knowing Hua Changxi was unfamiliar with the imperial family, also spoke up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Princess Zhaoyang was born of Consort Dowager Dou, and she is the full sister of Prince Xiang.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"After the Prince of Dong'an's wife passed away, the Grand Emperor personally issued an imperial decree, betrothing Princess Zhaoyang to the Prince of Dong'an.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Shuran paused: \"Princess Zhaoyang has only one son, Yan Xiaoyang, a direct disciple of the Taisu Palace Grandmaster. He and Shiniang are fellow apprentices. According to what the Earl Manor knows, the two are very close.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi's eyes widened. She hadn't expected to hear news of her Shiniang. Looking at Hua Shuran, she said, \"Can the Earl Manor still get information from Taisu Palace?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, Hua Shuran and He Sirong exchanged helpless glances, gaining a deeper understanding of just how oblivious Hua Changxi was to matters outside her own affairs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Sirong reminded her: \"Celestial Master Zhang himself comes from Taisu Palace.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Hua Changxi couldn't help but think of Wen Lanzhou, who managed the No. 4 Qihuang Pavilion for Celestial Master Zhang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She hadn't interacted much with the other Qihuang Pavilion masters, but every time she saw Wen Lanzhou, he would smile at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before, she had found it inexplicable, but now she finally understood the reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi wanted to inquire more about Hua Shiniang, but with so many people present, she suppressed the urge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a direct disciple of the Taisu Palace Grandmaster, Shiniang should be doing well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that Hua Changxi asked no further questions, He Sirong continued: \"Although Princess Zhaoyang is a stepmother, she has treated the three young masters born of the Prince of Dong'an's previous wife fairly well and has never sought the position of heir for her own son.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Shuran took over: \"I heard that Princess Zhaoyang is preparing to return to the capital.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi merely nodded and showed no other reaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yaoshi's information channels were not as good as those of Marquis Wuyi Manor and Earl Dingyuan Manor. Not wanting Hua Changxi to keep focusing on He Sirong and Hua Shuran, he quickly handed over two invitations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ninth Young Lady... Pavilion Master, these are from Qihuang Pavilion and Lingjing Pavilion.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Hua Changxi could open the invitations, Wan Feng spoke up indignantly: \"Pavilion Master, they're after 'The Complete Guide to Processing First-Rate Spirit Plants.'\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi glanced at him, then flipped through the invitations. After a moment of silence, she smiled at Xu Yaoshi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Go tell Shen Qianfan that 'The Complete Guide to Processing First-Rate Spirit Plants' can be shared with the other Qihuang Pavilions, but I want to teach classes at Qihuang Pavilions No. 1 through No. 9.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for Lingjing Pavilion... tell Meng Qingyao that the Danyuan Secret Realm must set up a registration point at the entrance of the Medical Department. If she can help me resolve this matter, I'll give her 'The Complete Guide to Processing First-Rate Spirit Plants.'\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1591,"2026-05-29T04:10:48.594Z","2026-06-01T04:29:08.487Z",1,"deepseek-v4-flash","b74e7526c845aa88ec8aa878dc458354d3fe1f18360fd778b0def3e552aa1bfc","the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-272","the-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-chapter-270",547,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-first-iron-rice-bowl-of-great-jin-cover.jpg"]