Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 503

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 503
The officials each voiced their opinions one by one.
“I have heard that while scars can be removed, one must be prepared for at least half a year of treatment.”
“However, if smallpox scars can be eliminated through this method, the quality of life for commoners would certainly improve.”
“The method is peculiar, and only a handful of people can employ it. How many will truly benefit from such treatment?”
“The doctors have unanimously stated that prevention takes precedence over treatment. Now that the fact of smallpox prevention has been revealed, everything else is merely supplementary.”
Yi Bu-sangeo spoke.
“Of course, I have no intention of diminishing their merit. However, the Baekrin Medical Guild has already received sufficient rewards. To heap additional honors upon them for presenting such a precious treasure would be excessive.”
Since ancient times, those who presented precious treasures to the Emperor received commensurate rewards.
There were actual accounts of ordinary farmers discovering treasures in their fields and presenting them to the Emperor, receiving fiefdoms as compensation.
This was why Yi Bu-sangeo had stepped forward in opposition.
He had to voice his objection before the Emperor’s words fell, so that his position would stand on firmer moral ground.
The Emperor’s words were worth their weight in gold and could not be easily retracted.
So why was he opposing so vehemently?
It was because Yi Bu-sangeo’s family had long been in the same boat as the Hwaju Medical Institute.
Moreover, because the smallpox crisis had ended so quickly, the budget allocated to his ministry had been reduced.
Han Yi-jeong had decided to make a fool of Yi Bu-sangeo.
She threw herself into a full prostration and cried out.
Drawing strength from her lower abdomen, she projected her voice powerfully from her throat.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty! Though I am unworthy to speak, a great reward must surely be bestowed! They have provided both prevention of smallpox and treatment for scars, and presented such precious treasures with unwavering loyalty. Please demonstrate the magnanimity of our nation and allow them to redouble their efforts!”
Take that, Yi Bu-sangeo!
This is the resentment of the chicks!
As Han Yi-jeong cried out, her faction—featuring the Eunuch General’s lackeys—echoed her words in support.
“Allow them to redouble their efforts, Your Majesty!”
Politics is a wilderness.
In a way, it resembles the rituals of primitive tribes.
When the chieftain cries out, the left and right arms beneath him echo in support.
And those beneath the left and right arms join in with bows to match the rhythm.
In truth, they are not deeply moved by what the chieftain sings.
Often, they cannot even understand what is being said.
Yet by crying out together, they signal that they are one tribe—a ritual of unity.
Mindless chorus!
Sure enough, at Han Yi-jeong’s full prostration, the faces of Yi Bu-sangeo and his allied faction turned ashen.
“Your Majesty, as the Analects teach, excess is as bad as deficiency. Excessive rewards are worse than no reward at all. Please show mercy and understanding!”
“Please show mercy and understanding!”
‘Tsk, this bastard knows how to project his voice well.’
In the back row of those shouting together were even the chicks that Han Yi-jeong had personally raised.
Now that her ministry had been transferred, she had decided to commit all her strength to this line of support.
This is what power is.
The chicks she had raised day after day with red bean tea become strangers the moment the coop is moved.
‘That damned dog….’
But there’s a different feeling when an enemy I raised with my own hands becomes an enemy, compared to a complete stranger who was once a foe.
In Han Yi-jeong’s heart, within the pages of her cat diary, the names of the chicks she had raised together were written side by side.
“Enough.”
At that moment, the Emperor raised his hand to silence both sides.
At times like this, everyone must hold their tongue.
The Emperor was sensitive to noise and greatly disliked unnecessary chatter when he was about to make a decision.
Silence blanketed the hall.
Soon, His Majesty began speaking word by word, as if reading a judgment.
“First, the merit of halting the smallpox that plagued the realm is truly immense. This has relieved the concerns of all people under heaven and eased my mind, so I cannot help but bestow a reward.”
His tone was as blunt as always, yet I sensed something subtly softened in it.
‘That stone is actually capable of saying such things?’
He was a man of stone and wood, forsaking all luxury, women, and every pleasure a human might feel.
The imperial harem existed in name, but he was famous for never setting foot there.
He reviews state affairs, returns, reads memorials, and sleeps.
He eats just enough in a day to survive.
Then he wakes and reviews state affairs again.
Even if you placed a block of stone in that seat, it would possess more sensitivity than him.
For such a man to show such joy!
“Moreover, by presenting such a precious treasure and bringing joy to me, just as we must set an example through punishment for transgressions, so too must we set an example through rewards for merit. Furthermore, Jegalling, Patriarch of Baekrin Medical Institute, participated in the war and achieved great merit, for which I have already bestowed the rank of Third Rank Medical State Earl. His contributions to the empire are immense. Therefore, I grant him a fief of one thousand households and permit him to maintain a private force.”
“…!!”
Everyone’s eyes widened in shock.
A private force. What is a private force?
It refers to private soldiers, and in the distant past during the Spring and Autumn period, there was an era when the private forces of regional nobles were their very armies.
This tradition continues to this day, but in the Hwa Empire, private soldiers are strictly restricted, and only the imperial family who have opened princely households may possess them.
However, very special positions were occasionally granted private forces.
Either way, official permission was what mattered.
Officially, those called martial artists of Gangho are bandit gangs committing illegal acts and unauthorized armed groups.
They are not suppressed only because the losses outweigh the gains. From the perspective of those in power, Gangho martial artists were a headache.
In such circumstances, if Baekrin Medical Institute receives permission for a private force, what happens?
They are treated as officially recognized military forces.
The repercussions in Gangho would be beyond imagination.
‘Why? Why does he wish to grant authority similar to the imperial family?’
Even Han Yi-jeong had not anticipated this.
I quickly scan the face of my grandfather, the Emperor’s trusted confidant.
His expression is as usual—humble and smiling—but because I am his granddaughter, I know.
My grandfather seems to know something.
‘Grandfather. What exactly… do you know?’
What is His Majesty’s true intention? And what is this hidden secret?
“Your Majesty! Granting a private force is impossible for anyone save the masters of princely households. Please reconsider–!”
“Please grant your understanding, Your Majesty!”
The moment those words ended, the Emperor immediately responded.
“…Very well then. I shall grant two thousand households of tax-yielding land. Does anyone object?”
The instant he finished speaking, everyone shouted as if they had been waiting.
“We obey Your Majesty’s command!”
“We obey your command!”
Ah, I see.
The subsidiary villages were a feint.
From the start, he had deliberately brought up the subsidiary villages as a trick to grant more tax-yielding land.
‘His Majesty must hold the Patriarch of Baekrin Medical Institute in very high regard.’
Indeed, no other official had accomplished such merit in recent times.
So it made sense that he would favor him.
‘But why subsidiary villages specifically?’
If he was going to use a feint, there were many other options available.
What was the reason for deliberately using the Prince’s privileges as part of the deception?
Han Yi-jeong pondered this internally… but her grandfather was not the type of man to solve such riddles for her.
‘With this, two thousand households of tax-yielding land near Baekrin Medical Institute in Jiangsu Province now belong to them.’
This meant that taxation rights and some administrative authority would fall under Baekrin Medical Institute’s control. That was what granting tax-yielding land meant.
Granting rights over those who lived there.
It was a privilege granted only to the Prince’s household or founding merit families of rank three or higher.
Of course, the judicial system and laws had to follow the Great Code of the Hua Empire, but that posed no significant problem.
Now it was clear that even the magistrate of Hangzhou could not act carelessly toward Baekrin Medical Institute.
It was a remarkable achievement.
‘I should purchase three mirrors from Baekrin Medical Institute.’
Looking around, it seemed the other officials felt the same way.
The sound of a jackpot echoed.
* * *
“Hoo~ Look at this. My already handsome face has become even more radiant, hasn’t it?”
At the same time, in Prince Ju-wang’s residence.
Prince Ju-wang gazed delightedly at his own face reflected in the mirror.
“The Patriarch has presented us with a fine item.”
“Lang-lang, what are you doing? Come here and look together. Let’s admire it!”
Yu Rang-hu approached the Prince’s side with an embarrassed expression.
The mirror reflected Yu Rang-hu’s face with remarkable clarity.
Of course, befitting a Prince’s residence that favored luxury and indulgence, there were many mirrors.
But never before had they seen a mirror that reflected so cleanly.
Suddenly Yu Rang-hu gazed at Prince Ju-wang in the mirror.
She deliberately made a striking expression as she peered into the mirror.
Clear, well-defined brows and bright red lips. And shoulders developed with graceful lines.
“There is nothing about this that displeases me.”
“Yes, I agree with you.”
“Sigh… I could gaze upon this for all day without tiring. How did the heavens bestow such martial talent and a beautiful face upon one person?”
The attendant immediately seized the opportunity to flatter her.
“Haha, truly befitting Prince Ju-wang. Your radiant visage shines so brilliantly—it is beyond admiration.”
“Indeed it is? Hehehehe.”
She burst into hearty laughter.
She had always been confident in her appearance and frequently gazed into mirrors.
Seeing her beauty reflected so vividly only delighted her further.
“Ah, behold this flawless, crystalline skin as expected. And these well-defined muscles—they rival even Mount Tai itself.”
The attendant rubbed his hands together eagerly.
“Indeed, Your Highness. Though I have praised your beauty until my tongue grew weary, today I realize no words of mine could match this single mirror.”
“Haha. No, no. Hmm, Lang-lang, why do you still seem embarrassed?”
“…”
“Speak.”
“I… I’ve noticed I’ve gained some weight recently, and it troubles me a little.”
“Is that not a good thing?”
It was true. Yu Rang-hu had always eaten sparingly.
After I dispelled his loneliness, his appetite increased considerably, and he gained more flesh and muscle than before.
Yet for a dancer, a slender frame was considered ideal.
Even now, the Prince worried in his heart that Ju Wang-ya’s affection might wane.
Knowing his feelings, Ju Wang spoke as if unaware.
“Hmm… good. Bring me ink stick. The finest ink stick mixed with black jade.”
“What? Surely not?”
“A poem has come to mind after so long. I shall inscribe a verse upon this mirror.”
She, who loved refinement and elegance, suddenly felt inspired to compose poetry.
Since the war ended, she had indulged in dance, song, and wine, but had not written poetry.
This was extraordinary indeed, and it was proof of how joyful Ju Wang truly was.
‘Soon another poem will spread throughout Gangho.’
Her verses always circulated among both the common folk and scholars alike.
Some called her poetry vulgar, speaking of extravagance and indulgence, while others praised it as the work of one who understood true refinement.
Now that she had demonstrated her power once more as both ruler and subject, all the renowned figures of Gangho from Luoyang to Hangzhou would surely desire this poem.
The servants hurried forth with ink stick, inkstone, and brush.
She selected a thick brush the size of a child’s fist.
“…”
After deliberating for a while, she suddenly wrote in one fluid stroke.
Only four characters were inscribed.
-Bright Mirror, Azure Mirror: The clear mirror gleams like the blue moon.
‘The crimson mirror is likened to the sun. Then the azure mirror must be a metaphor for the moon.’
Now this verse would spread through the mouths of Gangho’s renowned figures.
And the historians would surely record this tale.
Ju Wang gazed at his own poem for a long while before speaking.
“If I’d known it would turn out like this, I should have practiced on paper first. It’s been so long since I’ve written—the characters are a bit crooked.”
Well, perhaps that too is its own charm.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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