Chapter 1639: Chapter 1614: Not Qualified

There’s nothing in this world faster than time, and before Manbao finished checking the Acupuncture Studies, the holiday had already arrived.

Then they happily rushed out of the palace for the vacation and headed home.

Once home, Manbao couldn’t resist being lazy, so she handed a medical book she’d already checked to Bai Shan, “Can you help check for typos?”

Bai Shan wasn’t very willing, he had a lot of coursework too, alright, and he had plans to go out with his friends.

“Yin Huo’s ‘illness’ should be better, we even said we’d go visit him. Isn’t this a medical book? Why not let your students check it instead?” Bai Shan suggested, “Not only can they look for typos, but they can also see if there are any other mistakes. Haven’t you been teaching them acupuncture all this time?”

Bai Erlang didn’t want their wonderful holiday time to be spent at home either, so he encouraged from the side, “Exactly, the eunuchs and maids in the palace have all been poked by them, I’ve heard even the guards went to them for acupuncture, they should have learned it by now?”

Manbao pondered while stroking her chin for a moment and then immediately turned to pack up her things, taking two of the three medical books she’d written, “Let’s go find them.”

Bai Shan then ran back to get her a sun hat, “Wait a moment, let’s go out and have fun too.”

Old Zhou, who wanted to take advantage of his daughter’s holiday to get closer to her, came over only to find Manbao and the group already vanished.

Zheng Gu and Ms. Doctor Liu were in Jishi Hall doing medical studies, where they now go to the Eastern Palace every morning; sometimes they could handle the cases themselves, and sometimes, if there were questions, Manbao would occasionally go over.

When she went over, she would solve their doubts, but if she didn’t go, she’d let the questions accumulate, basically, unless there’s a special situation, Manbao needs to go to the minor hall once.

Anyway, they were all in the Eastern Palace, not particularly far, just a fifteen-minute walk, considered a stroll.

When Manbao arrived, Zheng Gu and Ms. Doctor Liu were occupying Manbao’s consulting room together, treating people, having just sent off a patient, with no one else following.

Compared to other doctors whose rooms were bustling, theirs was just too quiet.

Manbao poked her head in to look for a while, asking, “I’ve seen no issues in the pulse records you wrote, why are there so few people coming to you for treatment?”

Ms. Doctor Liu was so ashamed, wishing she could lower her head to the ground, while Zheng Gu also blushed slightly, softly explaining, “They think our prescriptions aren’t that effective.”

Manbao, flipping through their pulse records and prescriptions, said, “That’s normal, even now I wouldn’t dare to say my prescriptions are better than Doctor Ding’s or anyone else’s, take it slow.”

Manbao continued, “If you’re lacking on some fronts, make up for it with others. For instance, Ms. Doctor Liu, you’re a woman, surely female patients would prefer to choose you for treatment.”

Ms. Doctor Liu then looked at Zheng Gu with a face full of resentment.

Zheng Gu: …

He hesitated, “Should I walk around more frequently, and leave the consulting room to you alone?”

Manbao said, “You’re really silly, just take turns coming in. Moreover, you now have strengths, the acupuncture learned in the palace every day shouldn’t be kept unused, should it? For the same price you also offer acupuncture, if it’s only once or twice, that’s fine, but when it becomes frequent, when your reputation spreads, people would come seeking your treatments.”

Manbao, despite her small stature, adopted a sincere and earnest demeanor, “You guys are still young, this is the time to learn skills, so don’t just think about making money. Acupuncture involves needles and manpower, not money, so go all out with it.”

Zheng Gu and Ms. Doctor Liu: …

The two exchanged a glance and silently nodded in agreement.

Manbao picked up her pen and took the treatments, drafting new prescriptions based on their pulse records, “You can compare and look at them, the prescriptions you’ve written actually don’t have much problem, further advancement requires pondering by yourselves.”

“However, that’s not the most urgent matter right now, the most urgent is you help check these two medical books for any errors or omissions.”

When the two saw the bold Acupuncture Studies title on the medical books, they were shocked, “Master, are we allowed to check these?”

“Why not, you’ve learned all the content in here. If you come across anything unclear, even better, jot it down and I’ll explain later. Oh, also check for typos, it’s going to be engraved later.”

Acupuncture Studies starts with the most basic medical knowledge, the first year mainly learning acupuncture points and some basic medical knowledge, only afterward moving to specific acupuncture techniques.

If Zheng Gu and Ms. Doctor Liu didn’t know these basics, they’d really need to study hard again.

With the heavy responsibility passed on, Manbao happily went off to play with Bai Shan and the others.

By this time, the weather was gradually cooling down, although several cities near the capital experienced drought this year, it didn’t affect the streets still bustling with vendors and tourists.

The group had arranged to meet at the bookstore, Yin Huo, having been on sick leave at home all this time, wasn’t busy, so he arrived early and waited at the bookstore.

When Manbao and the others arrived, he’d already read half a book.

Upon faintly hearing their voices, he replaced the book on the shelf and went out with Changshou.

Manbao examined his complexion carefully and remarked, “You took sick leave, but you don’t seem any chubbier, haven’t you eaten anything tasty in these eight days?”

Yin Huo: “… No, unexpectedly, I felt a bit uncomfortable not going to school suddenly.”

Manbao and the three were only left feeling envious.

Bai Shan glanced outside, asking, “Why hasn’t Liu Huan arrived yet?”

Yin Huo pointed to the teahouse opposite the bookstore, “Let’s wait over there.”

The four then moved locations.

Liu Huan arrived tardy by a full half-hour, prompting Bai Erlang to complain, to which Liu Huan chugged a cup of tea and said, “It’s not my fault, blame those two.”

Liu Huan pointed at Bai Shan and Zhou Man, “I ran into my grandfather as I was leaving, didn’t you ask me about the matter of official land? So I asked, and received a scolding from my grandfather instead.”

Bai Shan was curious, “If you don’t know, you ask. Why would Minister Liu scold you?”

Manbao said, “Right, it’s either possible or not possible, just a word, why get angry?”

Liu Huan initially felt his grandfather’s anger was justified, but after their questioning, and upon reflection, indeed, why was his grandfather angry? On what grounds was he criticized?

Liu Huan suddenly straightened his chest, “Indeed, I’m not giving anyone a pass, I’m just asking because I don’t understand, it’s merely seeking advice.”

Bai Shan nodded, then asked, “And what did Minister Liu say?”

“Minister Liu said there’s precedent for this sort of thing, but,” Liu Huan exerted effort to convey the significance of his grandfather’s words, “but in the end, lots of official lands become private lands.”

Not only were Manbao and the three stunned, even Yin Huo was shocked, “Why would official lands become private lands?”

“Naturally, some families that planted for ages do so until it becomes private land, of course, those families aren’t ordinary ones. Hence though the number of government officials doesn’t increase much, the official lands keep expanding precisely because every once in a while, a portion of official lands disappear,” Liu Huan explained to Zhou Man, “For you, currently you don’t have the qualification to quietly transform official lands into private lands from Ministry of Revenue.”