As the days passed, the master who carved the woodblocks also settled down. I packed up a random warehouse and let these old masters live in it, and then started work. Although engraving and printing books were enough for a periodical and magazine, it was not flexible enough. For movable type printing, lead movable type and tin movable type require tools one by one, which is very difficult.
What is being started now is wooden movable type. Although it is not bad for use, quantitative changes can also lead to qualitative changes. Zheng Xiong kept the list of old masters given by Zhang Yi and used them all to make wooden movable type.
There are about 100,000 Chinese characters, but there are only a few thousand characters in daily use. According to statistics, 1,000 commonly used characters can cover about 92% of written materials, 2,000 characters can cover more than 98%, and 3,000 characters have reached 99%. %, the statistical results of Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese are not much different.
Although there are many Chinese characters and even derivative glyphs, it is difficult to calculate an accurate number. However, from the Shang Dynasty to the present, there are no more than 300 core Chinese characters that are most frequently used and have stable meanings. These core Chinese characters occupy 70% of the number of characters in any text, and the remaining 29% consists of 2,000 Chinese characters.
The lonely 1% belongs to the other tens of thousands of Chinese characters, most of which are "one-off" Chinese characters that appear once or several times in the literature, or are only used in specific circumstances.
A thousand commonly used characters are enough, but Zheng Xiong also plans to print a batch of medical books. Therefore, Zheng Xiong was not going to take the usual path and directly outsource the characters one by one, agreed on the requirements, and paid according to the difficulty of the strokes.
The only thing that can limit human beings in this world is the spread of knowledge.
Except for the systematic printing of the classics handed down from ancient times, medical books were written by oneself for future generations for family inheritance. At most, the most circulated are handwritten copies, which is very difficult to spread.
Besides, the price of paper alone is not within the reach of ordinary people. Ordinary paper costs 0.1-0.6 taels per 100 sheets, that is, every 100 sheets costs 100 to 600 taels, and one piece of paper costs 1 to 6 taels. , ordinary people cannot afford it.
That is to say, starting from the Song Dynasty, the price of bamboo paper dropped. The Huanglian paper of the Jiangxi Official Manufacturing Bureau in the Yongle Year of the Ming Dynasty was made of bamboo. The price is also very low, only about 60 yuan per hundred sheets. In other words, the cost is low, but books are not cheap at all. Most people simply can't bear to read books that are often read several times or more than a dozen times.
In the early Ming Dynasty, Song Lian wrote in "Preface to Ma Sheng in Dongyang": The family was poor and had no way to read the book, so he borrowed it from the house where the book was collected and recorded it by hand. Many poor children relied on borrowing and copying books to study. Under such difficult conditions, generations of famous officials and scholars emerged.
It can be imagined that even orthodox Confucian scholars had to rely on copying and borrowing books to study. How difficult the social environment for miscellaneous studies such as medicine was.
The paper mill must also build one, otherwise the cost cannot be reduced. Journals are easy to say, and a magazine is not a book. The cost can be controlled within a consistent range. If you want to print books, paper making is indispensable.
The more I think about it, the more headache I get. Many things have alternatives, so just purchase them directly. But since you are the boss, you have to be careful with your budget.
I feel like it’s better to do it myself, as I can control costs very well.
The first issue of the journal contains Zheng Xiong’s examples of alcohol and caesarean section, which should attract people’s attention. After publishing two issues for free, you can gradually charge for it as it becomes popular. This is a long-term plan and cannot be rushed.
The stalls have been opened, and it is a bit difficult to rely on just one alcohol at this stage. I have to think of ways to make some money.
On this day, the pregnant woman who had a caesarean section was officially discharged from the hospital. The hospital also sent people over after getting the news.
The team was led by an imperial doctor from Tai Hospital, who was also at the eighth level. Zheng Xiong had been promoted two levels due to merit due to alcohol. According to the general process, he was promoted to Taiyuan Hospital, but Zheng Xiong was a serious official, and the promotion system was in the Ministry of Personnel. Taiyuan Hospital has its own promotion system, so there is little overlap between the two parties.
The Imperial Hospital also greeted him when he came over, so Zheng Xiong had no choice but to come forward to receive him. Others didn't have the opportunity to do so, and letting them go would only offend people.
When the two met, Zheng Xiong spoke first with some questions.
"Doctor Hu?"
"Um"
Dr. Hu is also a great person. He was Lao Zhu's doctor in his early years. Over the years, he has treated many people and has been promoted to the rank of imperial doctor. This is all due to his true ability.
There is not much enthusiasm for Zheng Xiong, and Zheng Xiong is not unhappy at all. The attitude of others towards you depends on your strength.
Besides, this is just a common problem among technicians. They live in old homes. Besides, when working in a hospital, it is necessary to be cautious in words and deeds. Otherwise, you will not know what happened if you are gone one day.
Be concise and to the point.
"Well, everyone who has come from afar, please drink some tea and eat some snacks first. It won't be too late to go back later."
"After walking for so long, I'm really thirsty, so I'd rather pick it up."
Hu Yuyi and a group of four or five people followed him into Zheng Xiong's office. Zheng Xiong occupied one of the two side halls.
"You're welcome. Come and serve tea and snacks."
After the tea and water were filled, Dr. Hu ate some snacks and drank the tea, then he said.
"Zheng Tiling, I heard that your Huimin Pharmacy intends to issue a report, but I don't know if this is true."
"Well, it's true. I also thought Tai Hospital could publish a few papers. The level of medical skills of Tai Hospital is obvious to all, and Tai Hospital is definitely something people look forward to."
"Our hospital can join in the discussion, but we have to take the lead in this matter."
Zheng Xiong thought about it, and it was okay. He didn't care about the fame and fortune. It could really improve the overall level of doctors.
"I have no problem with Taiyuan Hospital taking the lead, but since Taiyuan Hospital takes the lead, it has to pay for it. You know, printing one issue of the journal costs a lot. I originally planned to free a few issues first, and it would be best if Taiyuan Hospital can pay for it. But that’s it.”
After listening to Zheng Xiong's words, Dr. Hu felt a little embarrassed.
"I have also come here under the order of the Master of the Hospital. It concerns the face of Taiyuan Hospital, so I would like to ask you to be accommodating. I must be aware of the money. It is good if Taiyuan Hospital does not lose money. This year, it has also supported various places. There’s really no money for a large piece of medicinal materials.”
Zheng Xiong was speechless because he had no money and wanted to get away with nothing. Although it made sense, you could pick peaches if you wanted to, but you couldn't take advantage of them all because they were cheap.
"The original copy of the classics from the Tai Hospital will be made available to me. I will use them to extract and study them."
"This doesn't work either. There are many classics in it that you can read but not excerpt."
"This won't work, and that won't work either. What's the point of reading it? I can remember a few words myself."
Dr. Hu didn't say much. He just came to bring a message. He didn't realize how big an impact this matter would have.
Zheng Xiong was not in the mood to give in, so he took someone to see the pregnant woman, explained the process in detail, and finally got a bottle of alcohol for free.
When the seven-day deadline came, I got all the papers, but they were not of good quality, so the guy who had undergone two surgeries wrote some thoughts. Practice makes perfect. The more you do it, the more you will feel it. Now it has opened the door to a new world for him.
Zheng Xiong himself has also written two articles, discussing the effect of alcohol on trauma infection, the impact of caesarean section on the body, the possible dangers during surgery, and the role of alcohol in pregnant women during surgery.
He also wrote that you are welcome to share your experience. Nanjing Cheng Huimin Pharmacy is staffed 24 hours a day, and once your shared experience is adopted, you can receive tens of thousands of dollars. Any unique medical skills can be accepted by family pharmacies. As long as they are proven to be effective, they can get a share of the book's publication or buy it out.
The wooden movable type package in the early stage was sold out, so the typesetting was quick, time was tight, and the paper was also newly purchased. The first issue of the journal was completed quickly, and Zheng Xiong chose four articles in total for himself and the lucky person who had undergone two surgeries. Others were asked to vote on four articles, and eight articles were made into a booklet.
After everything was done, it was handed over to the post station, and the post talisman applied for it early. As long as you are within the system, it will be easy to get through if the things you send are not excessive. The compilation of periodicals was no longer counted as letters, so I went to the delivery office of the inn.
