After leaving the palace, the biggest trouble is eating. Li Yu now has to go to Jinyu Alley to eat at street stalls every day. After exercising early in the morning, I ran to the noodle stall in Dingde Mountain.
There were not many people today, and we even saw Eunuch Wei, whom we had met for the first time at the noodle stall. There was a middle-aged man beside 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! This 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", he seemed to be an official, so he said politely: "I have met Master Liu."
Mr. Liu cupped his hands and said politely: "You're polite. I'm just a nominal seventh-grade official. You 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 for a moment, then said with a smile: "I am also the same... a person from Xinglin who has some connections. I have something to ask your Excellency for advice today."
It turns out that he misunderstood that he was a doctor! But think about it, the content of the "Shenbao" article 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 to himself: 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, he is the first person to come here because of his article, so he still has 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, but 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 Nanluogu Lane and has become a commercial street. It is said that there is also a fried noodles in the alley that Nicholas Tse has eaten there. But in the Qing Dynasty, there was a real brick factory here, specializing in firing square bricks for 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 by 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're here! Just keep my child. I really can't afford it."
Mr. Liu was a little unhappy: "I told you, it's God who won't reward 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."
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 energy. Mr. Liu looked around him, and then suddenly someone came... someone licked his crotch!
I go!
Li Yu's eyes almost popped out of his head! Just now I 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 it’s also Xiaodao Liu, one of the two biggest companies!
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, during the Tianshun period of the Ming Dynasty, there is a detailed record: the eunuch 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 is 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 cleansing 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 maids or concubines who failed in palace battles.
But in fact, in addition to taking care of minor cases that occurred in the Three Banners, the Shenxing Department mainly managed eunuchs. It was relatively tolerant towards the palace maids, and at most they expelled them. As for the concubines, they would not dare to be interrogated even if they were beaten to death. 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. The two of them send about 160 high-quality eunuchs to the palace every year. It was also because of his merit that the Ministry of Internal Affairs awarded him a rank of seven.
It is said that the knife maker will keep the cut part, which is called "treasure". In the future, if any of the eunuchs becomes prosperous, they will come back to them to redeem them 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 9,000-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'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."
Cleansing also costs money, and the surgery fee is 6 taels. If you include the boots, hats, robes, and jackets purchased before entering the palace, as well as the expenses for recuperation, food, rehabilitation, etc., the amount will exceed 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 away his tears and said, "Thank you, Mr. Liu! I'll 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.
This is so scary! Who knows what you will see inside!
