After leaving the palace, the biggest trouble is eating. Li Yu now has to go to Jinyu Alley every day to eat at street stalls. After exercising early in the morning, he runs to the noodle stall in Ding Deshan.
There were not many people today, and I also saw Eunuch Wei, whom I had met for the first time at the noodle stall. There was a middle-aged man next to Eunuch Wei. Eunuch Wei seemed to respect him very much, and kept nodding and bowing.
Li Yu took a few steps forward, and Ding Deshan immediately pointed at him and said, "Eunuch! The person coming here is the Li Yu you are looking for!"
Li Yu was stunned: Looking for me? Why is a eunuch in the palace looking for me?
"Hey, he turned out to be a young boy!" Eunuch Wei came over with a smile, "Good morning, Master Li! Let me introduce you, this is our Master Liu, he is looking for you."
Li Yu didn't know Master Liu, but since Eunuch Wei was so polite to him and called him "Master", it seemed that he was an official, so he politely said: "I have met Master Liu."
Mr. Liu cupped his hand and said politely: "That's polite. I'm just a seventh-grade official in name only. I can't be called a master in the capital."
Li Yu felt that he was not so famous and could have official fans, so he asked: "I wonder what you want from me?"
Mr. Liu paused and said with a smile: "I am also like this... I am a person from Xinglin who has some connections. I have something to ask you for advice today."
It turns out that he misunderstood that he was a doctor! But think about it, the content of the article in "Declaration" is indeed about medicine.
Li Yu said: "To be honest, I am not a doctor. I just have a superficial understanding of disinfection and disinfecting."
"That's right! This is exactly why I came here. Your Excellency seems to have stayed in foreign lands?"
Li Yu nodded: "Yes."
"Great! You must have been to a foreign hospital, and you can give me some advice."
Li Yu thought in his heart: He is a doctor and an official, could he be an imperial doctor?
Mr. Liu continued: "I wonder if you have time to come and sit in my pavilion?"
Li Yu thought for a while and said, "Okay, where is your medical clinic?"
After all, you are the first person to come here because of your article, so you still have to be somewhat responsible.
Mr. Liu immediately said happily: "Not far, not far, just outside Di'anmen, Fangzhuangchang Hutong."
As soon as he left, Li Yu ordered two pancakes and went there with him while eating. However, Eunuch Wei did not come with him.
Fangzhuanchang Hutong is in today's Nanluogu Alley. When he was in college, whenever his classmates came to Beijing to play with him, Li Yu would bring them over to try some snacks.
It doesn't matter if it tastes good or not, the atmosphere will rise first once you see the huge crowds of people.
Today's Fangzhuangchang Hutong is naturally integrated into Nanluoguxiang and has become a commercial street. It is said that there is also a fried noodles in the alley that Nicholas Tse has eaten. But in the Qing Dynasty, there was a real brick factory here, specializing in baking noodles.
Square tiles used in the imperial palace.
As soon as Li Yu and the two arrived at Mr. Liu's medical clinic, they saw an old man waiting at the door with a skinny little boy. Judging from his clothes, he came from a poor family.
When the old man saw Master Liu coming from a distance, he rushed over and knelt on the ground, crying: "Master Liu, you are here! Just keep my child, I really can't afford it anymore."
Mr. Liu was a little unhappy: "I told you, it's God who won't reward me with this meal. Your child is too thin."
The old man grabbed his trousers and said, "He is still young. As long as he eats, he won't be so thin."
Mr. Liu couldn't get away, so he sighed and said, "Okay, okay, let me check it out."
Upon hearing his words, the old man quickly got up and wiped his tears, pulling the child to Master Liu.
The little boy was a little timid, but he was too hungry and had no strength. Master Liu looked around him, and then suddenly someone came...a crotch picker!
I go!
Li Yu's eyes nearly popped out of his head! Just now, he thought he was out of kindness and wanted to treat poor children.
Now Li Yu suddenly reacted!
What kind of doctor is he?
He is clearly a knife maker who specializes in cleansing people! And he is also one of the two largest knife makers!
Unexpectedly, the first person who found me because of the disinfection article was actually a surgeon!
But this is too... too outrageous!
However, due to the medical conditions at that time, the mortality rate was indeed frighteningly high.
For example, there is a detailed record during the Tianshun period of the Ming Dynasty: the eunuchs guarding Huguang and Guizhou selected 1,565 captured children at one time, and presented them to the court after cleansing. As a result, 329 people died! The mortality rate was as high as 20%!
The medical level in the late Qing Dynasty was not much better than that in the Ming Dynasty. The only advantage of professional knifemakers like Xiaodao Liu was that they could provide several months of medical care and reduce the mortality rate as much as possible.
In fact, there was also a special purification agency in the palace at that time, which was the Department of Punishment of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Those who have watched Qing palace dramas may have heard of its name, but most of them watched how they tortured palace ladies or concubines who failed in palace battles.
But in fact, in addition to taking charge of minor cases that occurred in the Three Banners, the Shenxing Department mainly managed eunuchs. It was relatively tolerant towards palace maids and would expel them at most. As for the concubines, they would not dare to interrogate them even if they were killed. That was a right that only the emperor and empress had.
.
The Shenxing Division's ablution techniques are not as good as those of private knife makers, so most eunuchs still choose to be purified by knife makers with better skills.
The most famous knife makers in the capital are Xiaodao Liu and Bi Wu. They send about 160 high-quality eunuchs to the palace every year. It is for this credit that the Ministry of Internal Affairs awarded them the seventh-grade crown.
It is said that the knife maker will keep the cut part, which is called "treasure". In the future, if any eunuch becomes prosperous, he will come back to them to redeem it so that they can be buried together when they die. After all, no one wants to be a eunuch in the next life.
Even the thousand-year-old Wei Zhongxian doesn’t want to!
No wonder Eunuch Wei was so polite to him just now. Most likely, the knife was made by Liu Jing's hand.
Ahem, this Wei is not that Wei!
After Xiao Dao Liu finished the examination, he said to the old man: "The child is okay. If I can find a guarantor when I go back, I can take over the matter."
Purification also costs money, and the operation fee is 6 taels. If you include the boots, hats, robes, and clothes purchased before entering the palace, as well as the expenses for recuperation, diet, recovery, etc., the cost will be more than dozens of taels.
But those who purify themselves are basically poor people who have no money at all. They usually take the money on credit and pay it back slowly later, so they need a reliable person as a guarantee.
The old man wiped his tears and said, "Thank you, Mr. Liu! I will go find the guarantor right away!"
After the old man left with the child, Xiaodao Liu turned around and said to Li Yu with a smile: "I'm really sorry to keep you waiting for so long." Then he pointed to the courtyard door and said, "Come in and have a seat."
When Li Yu heard this, he immediately felt a chill in his crotch.