Chapter 1712 - Cannot Accept Disciple

Liu San firmly refused. Just then, Zhang Yikun, standing nearby, uttered an "Oh" and said, "Isn't this the book you dried out the other day?"

Yu Qing thanked Zhang Yikun as well. "Exactly. I must also thank Master Zhang for preserving this piece of my ancestral heritage."

It turned out that on the day Yu Qing was rescued, all his luggage and valuables had been lost to the water. When the nurse was stripping off his wet clothes, she found this oilcloth-wrapped book tucked in his bosom and handed it to Zhang Yikun for disposal. Master Zhang had paid it little mind and simply ordered it dried and returned. Liu San, happening to be present and having once taken an interest in restoring ancient books, intervened: "It can't be sun-dried. Although it was wrapped tightly and didn't take on much water, exposure to sunlight will cause the pages to stick together, the paper to crinkle, and the ink to blur. If this book has any value, wouldn't it be a pity to ruin it like that? Use fine cloth to blot the water, place it in a dry box, weight it down, and surround it with quicklime to absorb moisture. Change the lime daily, and in two days it will be dry."

The maid followed these instructions, and the book was indeed saved.

Zhang Yikun laughed and said to Yu Qing, "You'd better keep this book as a memento. Your Benefactor Liu has no need for it." He took a book from Liu San's shelf and handed it over. "Look at this one—how does it compare to your family heirloom?"

Yu Qing accepted it. The title was Collection of Folk Remedies, and the line below read "Compiled by Liu San, Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Academy of Sciences, Australo-Song Temporary Court." He flipped through it quickly and found that the formulas in his own hand-copied volume were mostly present, with only minor differences in combination. He was both astonished and embarrassed, stammering and unable to speak.

My book is clearly an ancestral secret volume, he thought, never shown to outsiders. I thought it priceless, but who knew this benefactor is a grandmaster of the medical arts? He knows ten times more wondrous prescriptions than my family ever possessed. My attempt to "offer parsley"—to show off before an expert—has only made a fool of me.

His face flushed crimson with dejection.

Liu San couldn't help shooting a glare at Zhang Yikun. This fellow still has no social grace. Can't I see his treasure isn't worth much? But why expose it and embarrass him? He comforted Yu Qing aloud: "An ancestral heirloom has special value to you; keep it safe and don't let it be damaged. Besides, since your family also practices medicine, you must be a colleague. I'll give you this book as well."

But Yu Qing knelt and kowtowed again. "This humble one is now homeless. Having met such a divine physician as my benefactor, I beg you to accept me as a disciple. I wish to follow at your side and serve Master for the rest of my life, to repay the grace of my rebirth."

Liu San saw his sincerity, and noting that he seemed clever and capable, was quite inclined to accept him. But then he remembered the recent security education lectures given by the Political Security Bureau and their various warnings. This Yu Qing was of unknown origin, and the Bureau lacked the capacity to investigate his true background. Taking him in rashly would pose a significant hidden danger.

He hesitated.

Seeing Liu San's reluctant expression, Yu Qing knew he was in a difficult spot and dared not make a sound.

Zhang Yikun stepped in to smooth things over. "Doctor Liu here doesn't accept disciples lightly. How about this: we're going to open a pharmacy in Guangzhou World. You can serve as the resident doctor there. First, it gives you a livelihood; second, it allows Doctor Liu to instruct you from time to time."

Though not a formal apprenticeship, this would allow him close contact and frequent instruction. Yu Qing was overjoyed and declared that since Liu San was like a reborn parent to him, he wished to take his master's surname and change his name to Liu Qing as a show of loyalty.

Liu San demurred: "That won't do. Ancestral surnames cannot be changed lightly."

But Yu Qing insisted. Finally, Zhang Yikun mediated, suggesting he change his name to Liu Yuqing. Both parties agreed. Liu Yuqing then paid respects to his "fellow apprentices," and the matter was settled.

Liu San ordered his apprentices to take him away to organize his things. Once they were gone, Zhang Yikun said, "This man's background is unclear. You'd better be careful."

Liu San dismissed the concern. "Even if he is a spy, surely his appendicitis wasn't faked..."

"That spy Wang Qisuo captured in Lingao didn't intentionally take a knife for Emperor Zhao either. This fellow is from Shaanxi too—who knows if he's been sent by Li Zicheng or Zhang Xianzhong."

"You're seeing soldiers in every bush. Does Li Zicheng possess such capability?" Liu San expressed his disbelief. "Besides, he's tens of thousands of li away from us. What use is planting a mole here? Sending a message back and forth would take a year."

"You're just careless—a 'naive romantic.'" Zhang Yikun shook his head. "You don't know the twists and turns in the bellies of these Ming people. They're much trickier than we are."

"Enough, enough." Liu San hurriedly changed the subject, and they returned to their interrupted conversation. He smiled and said, "Runshitang is a small business, unlike you, Boss Zhang, with your great wealth and power. Please look after our business in Guangdong in the future. About opening a branch here..."

Runshitang currently had no direct branches in Guangdong; the outlets there were all joint ventures cooperated through Yang Run Kaitang, selling proprietary medicines—essentially just counters. Now that they were launching the Guangdong Campaign and had the ready-made base of Guangzhou World, Liu San had urged the bigwigs in the Health Department to support Runshitang's advance into Guangdong by opening a Runshitang Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital. This would promote the efficacy of various TCM drugs and also serve to recruit Guangdong's TCM talent.

Unfortunately, the bigwigs in the Health Department were mostly TCM skeptics. Fortunately, TCM and acupuncture had proven fairly effective and had solved many medical problems after D-Day, so Liu San still had a place in the department. But on the matter of opening a Runshitang branch with the nature of a "TCM Hospital," Doctor Shi and others were less than enthusiastic—after all, this would squeeze resources from the Provincial-Hong Kong General Hospital. Section Chief Deng, who handled administrative affairs, dragged his feet in every possible way, leaving Liu San helpless.

Finally, the Commerce Department expressed strong interest, and the project was approved. However, because it was a Commerce project, it could only be a pharmacy with a resident doctor.

Zhang Yikun patted his belly and laughed. "Easy, easy. My word still carries weight on this patch of ground at Guangzhou World." He had done well for himself in Guangzhou over the past few years, full of ambition and living a life of luxury—he already had the airs of a standard Ming wealthy merchant. "We're not strangers. Brother Liu's business is my business, no question. However... though I bear the title of a rich man, in reality all assets belong to the Yuan Council. I'm just the maid holding the keys—managing the house but not the master. Don't be fooled by all the storefronts, staff, and silver I have here; if I want to spend money or use resources, I have to apply to my superiors first and move only after approval. Of course, since Brother Liu has asked, I will do my utmost to help where I can. It's all service to the Yuan Council, haha."

Liu San saw his slippery speech—a torrent of words without one solid commitment—and felt a bit annoyed. "Old Zhang, when we first met a few years ago, you were a straightforward fellow. How have you become so reeking of copper cash now? Has the corrupt feudal atmosphere of the Ming crushed you? Indeed, once a man has money, he changes, haha."

Zhang Yikun was displeased to hear this, though his face remained beaming with spring warmth. "Little Liu, your words wrongfully accuse me. If you don't run the household, you don't know the price of firewood and rice. If you were out here bearing some responsibility, you'd understand our difficulties on the outside. Take the preparations for Guangzhou World these past few years—though we relied on the lingering prestige of our attack on Guangzhou and had the support of the Special Reconnaissance Team's 'kill-but-don't-bury' tactics, it still took immense effort."

"Don't pretend—who's wronging you? You, my friend, have a greatly troubled conscience."

Seeing the conversation going off course, Zhang Yikun changed the subject to discuss the Guangdong Campaign. "So many transmigrators have come this time—it looks like the Yuan Council is going to make a big move here."

"Although there's no specific plan yet for this offensive on the mainland, it's different from previous attacks. Before, attacking Guangzhou or Xiamen was hit-and-run—kill but don't bury. This time, landing on the mainland means staying. Establishing effective rule is much harder than simple destruction."

"It's not like we lack experience. Aren't government production and construction proceeding impressively on Hainan, Taiwan, and Jeju?"

"It's different. In those places, we had overwhelming superiority in military, organizational, and manpower terms. Bluntly put, those were marginal areas of Ming society—ruling power was weak, and the populace wasn't strongly attached to it. Once on the mainland, we'll face a hundred times more feudal subjects and deeply entrenched feudal forces. It won't be as easy as imagined."

"I don't see what the big deal is. Did the Manchu Tartars have more people than us when they entered the Pass? Were their production relations more advanced? Their whole system of total slavery was worse than the Ming's, yet didn't they rule China in the end? Don't forget they were the most successful dynasty in feudal society. Why? Because a hard fist is truth."

"I feel the time isn't right yet. We should plan for the long term. I strongly disapprove of launching a war now, listening to the adventurism of those military types. If we wait another ten years, until the Ming, the Manchus, and the roving bandits have fought each other to exhaustion—no, until all three are ruined and all of China is plunged into misery—wouldn't it be easier and win more popular support if we went in then as liberators and saviors to pick the peaches?"

"That was the original idea. The problem is, we can't wait another ten years." Zhang Yikun rubbed his head, sighing with emotion. "Though people can live to seventy or eighty, how many years can one truly work? I was over thirty on D-Day; now I'm over forty. How many five or ten years are there in a life?"

Liu San opened his mouth, intending to mention "Project Nanshan" that the Health Department was researching, but realizing the project was classified and mentioning it rashly would put great pressure on the department, he decided against it. Still, he couldn't help dropping a hint: "You say you're over forty, but how is your energy compared to the past?"

"Actually quite good. I don't feel any signs of decline." Zhang Yikun didn't catch his meaning. "Maybe it's because our natural environment is good, we eat organic food, and live disciplined lives."

(End of Chapter)