Inside the Shangshutai, a small table was set with a few dishes, and a jar of mellow wine was being poured into a wine vessel.
Guo Jia and Xun Yu were drinking.
But... after three rounds of drinks.
With a "bang," the entire Shangshutai descended into chaos.
Countless guards, officials, and maids, carrying basins and towels, shuttled back and forth in a frenzy. Before long, several scholars from Yingchuan hurried over, including Xun Yu, their eyes fixed on the scene with anxious anticipation.
Several medical officers were forcefully ushered in by the officials...
"Fengxiao? How is Fengxiao?"
The question was from Ju Shou...
They had been chatting happily at the official residence during the day, but now... Fengxiao had come to the Shangshutai and fainted, his face ashen white as paper, lying on the bed, barely clinging to life.
"He was fine just a moment ago," Xun Yu's tone was filled with sorrow and regret. "We were in good spirits today, so Fengxiao and I had a few more drinks. Who would have thought... who would have thought Fengxiao would faint."
This...
Ju Shou's eyes suddenly narrowed.
"Fengxiao is the manager of the wine workshop, not drunk even after a thousand cups. How could he... faint from drinking?"
A question was asked...
A medical officer replied, "Reporting to Lord Xun, it has been confirmed: intestinal paralysis!"
Ah... ah...
As the words "intestinal paralysis" were uttered, the atmosphere in the entire Shangshutai turned cold.
Whether it was Xun Yu, Ju Shou, or the scholars and clerks from Yingchuan... all of them had their eyes wide open, their countless pupils filled with disbelief!
Ancient intestinal paralysis is equivalent to modern appendicitis...
Although in later generations, treating appendicitis only requires a single incision, a simple procedure.
But... in ancient times, it was an incurable disease!
Anyone who contracted "intestinal paralysis" was almost declared dead.
"How could it be intes... intestinal paralysis?" Xun Yu's legs trembled, and he instinctively took a step back. If he hadn't been supported by a clerk beside him, he would have nearly fallen to the ground.
He had also eaten these dishes, and drunk the wine... Why was he unharmed?
"It takes more than a day for ice to be three feet thick," the medical officer stated truthfully. "Everyone in Xuchang knows that Officer Guo manages the wine workshop... He's immersed in wine jars every day, and he can't live without it... And... and he every night..."
The medical officer had wanted to say that Guo Jia was a new groom every night...
But the words got stuck in his throat and he couldn't speak them.
But the fact was so, there were three causes for intestinal paralysis: one was obstruction, meaning the open end of the intestine at the "appendix" was blocked by foreign objects, roundworms, or polyps. The intestinal fluid within could not flow out, causing increased pressure in the appendix, leading to pain and fainting!
The second cause was infection. After the appendix was blocked, the bacteria within would multiply rapidly, producing many toxins!
High concentrations of toxins could damage the appendix's inner lining, causing ischemia, leading to infection, gangrene, or even perforation.
As for the third cause, it was an appendix that was too thin, too long, or appendicitis caused by an appendix deformity!
In fact...
Based on this theory, it was easy to determine that Guo Jia's appendicitis was the second type!
Every day, several large jars of wine, and every night, engaging in marital relations with different young ladies to deduce the changes in the world's situation.
It was obvious that Guo Jia's resistance had collapsed, his gastrointestinal function was disordered, and it was not surprising that his appendix was infected.
"Can it be cured?"
Xun Yu walked up to the medical officer and asked anxiously.
Guo Jia was not just a fellow villager from Yingchuan, but a close friend... and someone who would fight alongside him to bring peace to the world for ten thousand generations!
However...
Xun Yu's voice was loud, but the medical officer just shook his head.
Intestinal paralysis... was an incurable disease!
"Where is the divine physician Zhongjing? Where is the divine physician Hua?" Xun Yu blurted out.
"Does Lord Xun not remember? The Chancellor's headache... the two divine physicians have been summoned to Ye City."
A clerk quickly replied.
"Quick, quick, send a letter to the Chancellor! Invite the two divine physicians back!" Xun Yu hastily ordered, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he quickly added, "No... not only invite the divine physicians back, but also send a letter to Xuzhou... Xuzhou's Donghai Commandery, to inform Lu Ziyu of Fengxiao's situation immediately! Quick... be quick!"
Lu Ziyu was widely recognized as a "medical immortal" in the medical community today, and Guo Fengxiao was his close friend, and an absolute core member of his official residence!
This matter could not be kept from him!
Rarely...
This usually calm Lord Xun was now showing signs of tension!
He was completely flustered, in a panic!
...
...
As the sun set, several more large ships docked near the port of Donghai Commandery in Xuzhou.
Before the new batch of large yellow croakers could be unloaded, they were already snapped up by merchants in the vicinity...
After a brief period of bustle, the port returned to its quiet state.
In contrast, the posthouse near the port was brightly lit.
Several red drums were placed on a high platform in the posthouse, and a woman in a red robe with her face wrapped in white gauze danced gracefully, her drumsticks constantly opening and closing.
The drumbeat first vibrated, then became lingering and mournful, with pauses and melodious rhythms, and after a long time, the drumbeat stopped.
The woman with her face wrapped in white gauze said with a smile:
"Lord Lu, you pause to listen, do you recognize this instrument."
Although there was a slight foreign accent, the Chinese spoken by this foreign woman was quite authentic...
Lu Yu replied, "None of my many wives are skilled at the drum, but... if it comes to playing lingering and mournful melodies, the zither is more suitable. I have a wife named Liu Xue, who is the Grand Princess of the Han Dynasty. If there's an opportunity, I can introduce her to you!"
Hearing this, the woman in white gauze looked up, and beneath the thin gauze, her smile at Lu Yu could be seen.
"Lord Lu, facing the woman before you, you mention other women. Am I not attractive enough?"
That's right...
This woman with her face wrapped in white gauze was Himiko, the Queen of the Yamatai Empire.
Judging by her appearance, she was only in her early twenties.
For a moment, Lu Yu found it difficult to associate her with the ancient texts that described her as "unmarried in old age," "serving ghosts and spirits," and "bewitching the masses"—a witch, a legendary queen of the Yamatai Empire.
"Queen, you have traveled across the ocean. Surely it is not to talk about these things?"
Lu Yu decided to get straight to the point.
He knew very little about the Yamatai Empire and Himiko. He only knew that it was the predecessor of the island nation, and she was a highly mysterious female ruler.
Beyond that, Lu Yu knew absolutely nothing; it was almost a blind spot in his knowledge.
"Lord Lu appears to be a straightforward person, and I am also a straightforward person. I have brought over thirteen hundred maids, and the Yamatai Empire also has tens of thousands of young, beautiful women of suitable age. If Lord Lu can help me, I am willing to offer ten thousand of them as a thank-you gift."
Uh...
Himiko's words made Lu Yu pause...
He admired the Yamatai queen's communication style, and the reward she offered was indeed simple and unpretentious!
"The Queen seems to misunderstand me. I, Lu Yu, am a person with the world in my heart, and I have separated myself from low-level vulgarity. If the Queen has something to say, she might as well say it directly. Whether I help or not does not depend on the beauty and number of maids!"
"Oh!" Himiko nodded calmly. "Since landing, I have heard of 'two wives in a Marquis's mansion,' and that there are many beautiful women of unparalleled beauty in the Marquis of Baima's mansion. Lord Lu truly has the world in his heart and has separated himself from low-level vulgarity!"
Lu Yu suddenly realized... these islanders were not good at conversation.
One sentence completely killed the conversation.
Who would have thought... at this moment.
Himiko smiled charmingly, then her expression became serious. "I also heard that Han people like to joke, so I was just joking!"
"In fact, I came across the ocean... because there was a civil war in the Yamatai Kingdom!"
"How so?" Lu Yu then sat down on his knees...
And the Queen of the Yamatai Kingdom before him remained kneeling!
"Lord Lu probably doesn't understand our Yamatai Kingdom..." Himiko explained, "In the early days, the Yamatai Kingdom was primarily male-dominated. Later, a civil war broke out, and a woman was jointly appointed as king! And I, Himiko, am the first queen!"
"As for our Yamatai Kingdom, its capital is in the land of Yamatai, and under the empire, there is an alliance of thirty small states! I will appoint a great official in each small state to inspect the local area and collect taxes from them!"
"We grow rice and ramie there, and the women also raise silkworms and plant mulberry trees, spin hemp threads, and make silk brocade. Weapons are made of wooden bows and iron arrowheads. The state has markets. Below my status, there are distinctions between adults, lower households, slaves, and laborers. Adults all have four or five wives and are the upper ruling class, while lower households have two or three wives. There is a clear difference in status and hierarchy between the two. Slaves refer to the status below lower households!"
As it was their first meeting, Himiko revealed information about the Yamatai Kingdom one by one.
Hearing this...
Lu Yu smacked his lips. If Himiko's description was accurate, the Yamatai Kingdom was somewhat like a primitive tribal society, or even transitioning from a slave society to a semi-slave, semi-feudal society.
Besides that, Lu Yu also paid special attention to one point: the weapons of the Yamatai Kingdom were wooden bows and iron arrowheads... In that case, if the steel guns and steel armor of the Dragon Cavalry were present there, wouldn't the combat power be overwhelmingly victorious?
Based on this point...
Lu Yu was very curious about what the so-called rebellion meant!
"The Queen mentioned a civil war earlier?"
"Yes!" Himiko nodded. "It was a vassal state under us called 'Kunu Country.' They have been ruled by men for generations and do not accept the Queen of the Yamatai Empire! Therefore, they launched a rebellion..."
"And then?" Lu Yu suddenly became very curious...
People are inherently gossipy!
Moreover, the Yamatai Empire was too interesting. A subordinate state ruled by men under an empire ruled by women rebelled, and then the two sides fought!
To put it bluntly, the men of the island nation rose up in rebellion. How could Himiko, a woman, stop them? This was also why she had so many maids on her ship!
As expected... Lu Yu's guess was not wrong at all.
"Our Yamatai Kingdom fought several battles with Kunu Country, and in the end... we were defeated!"
Mentioning the sad past, Himiko gritted her teeth. "In terms of numbers, we were superior to the other party, but their leader was too formidable, and my subordinates were no match for him!"
Understood!
Lu Yu completely understood!
As the saying goes, ten thousand soldiers are easily found, but one general is hard to find...
Himiko lacked any capable fierce generals!
From this perspective...
Lu Yu felt that he had a chance to conquer the Yamatai Kingdom!
It would not be bad to make the Yamatai Kingdom a colony or a vassal state of the future Great Wei!
His eyes fixed, and this idea, once it appeared, quickly spread. For a moment, Lu Yu had many thoughts about the Yamatai Kingdom!
...
...
Ye City, Chancellor's Residence, in the garden.
Cao Cao and Xu Chu were sparring. Xu Chu wielded a great saber, dancing with powerful force, while Cao Cao used a sword, his movements fluid and his momentum sharp, surprisingly not inferior to Xu Chu.
Just then, Cheng Yu was brought to the garden entrance by the Hu Ben Army, quietly observing without daring to disturb.
After a flash of saber light, both Cao Cao and Xu Chu sheathed their weapons. Xu Chu respectfully saluted Cao Cao, "Chancellor's swordsmanship is perfectly refined, and this subordinate could barely parry!"
Hahaha...
Cao Cao laughed heartily. He took a towel from a maid to wipe his sweat. "Zhongkang, do you think I can't tell that the Tiger Marquis is deliberately letting me win?"
"It is not that I am deliberately yielding, Chancellor. Your headache has recurred today, so your movements are slightly weaker!" Xu Chu added.
"Haha!" Cao Cao laughed again. "Zhongkang, you are the most honest villain by my side, how have you also learned to speak with such eloquence? Do I not know your martial arts? If you were not content to remain in the background, would the world only recognize the peerless Lu Bu and the ancient fierce general!"
Xu Chu lowered his head. "Chancellor is truly invincible!"
Speaking of this, Cao Cao noticed Cheng Yu.
"Chancellor Cheng has returned?"
"Cheng Yu pays his respects to the Chancellor! The Dragon Cavalry, following the deployment of Commander Lu, abandoned the attack on Gongsun Du of Liaodong and only sent me to Liaodong as an envoy. As Commander Lu predicted, Gongsun Du killed the Yuan brothers and handed their heads to me. Gongsun Du of Liaodong is willing to become the Chancellor's vassal!"
Cheng Yu cupped his hands and reported in detail...
"Good! The Dragon Cavalry annihilated the Wuhuan and pacified Liaodong. Good... Good!" Instantly, Cao Cao's spirits were lifted.
Cheng Yu continued, "I heard in Liaodong that the Chancellor's headache had recurred, but looking at you today, the Chancellor's spirits are rejuvenated, so the rumors must be false! I say, now that Sizhou, Xuzhou, Yanzhou, Yuzhou, Qingzhou, Youzhou, Jizhou, Bingzhou, Liaodong, and Liaoxi are all in the Chancellor's hands, the Chancellor should be overjoyed, so why would he have a headache?"
"Haha!" Cao Cao waved his hand. Cheng Yu was indeed the number one persuader in the Dragon Cavalry!
His words were always pleasing to hear!
In fact...
Only Cao Cao himself knew how much physical exertion he had to expend to suppress the increasingly frequent headaches.
Cao Cao had to admit that he was getting old, and for many things, he had the will but not the strength!
"Chancellor Cheng, I ordered Pi'er to build three high platforms in this Xuchang, named the Bronze Sparrow Terrace, the Golden Tiger Terrace, and the Ice Well Terrace. Pi'er reported yesterday that they would be completed in more than half a year!"
Cao Cao spoke eloquently, and Cheng Yu was a little confused about what Chancellor Cao meant.
Cao Cao's voice continued.
"For this conquest of the four northern prefectures and the pacification of Liaoxi and Liaodong, you and the generals of the Dragon Cavalry have made considerable contributions, but I have not mentioned any rewards. It is not that I do not want to mention them, but rather that I plan to confer titles upon the civil and military officials of Cao's camp on the Ice Well Terrace and the Dragon Cavalry generals on the Golden Tiger Terrace when these three high platforms are completed!"
Hoo...
Hearing this, Cheng Yu was startled. He quickly cupped his hands. "Chancellor Cao's actions will surely bring joy to the officials, boost the morale of the three armies, and unite the hearts of the people throughout the Central Plains and the northern territories!"
"Haha!" Cao Cao laughed.
Cheng Yu, however, spun his eyes. How sharp he was, naturally noticing a detail.
"Chancellor bestows rewards and confers titles upon the three armies on the Ice Well Terrace and the Golden Tiger Terrace, but what about the Bronze Sparrow Terrace? What is its purpose?"
Hoo...
Hearing this, Cao Cao let out a soft sigh. He looked at Cheng Yu, his eyes becoming sharp...
But soon, this sharpness quickly subsided.
"I finally understand why Lu Ziyu always chooses Chancellor Cheng to serve as an envoy for the Dragon Cavalry. He is indeed exceptionally intelligent and has discerning eyes!"
"Chancellor exaggerates!"
"You deserve it!" Cao Cao patted Cheng Yu's shoulder and continued, "As for the Bronze Sparrow Terrace you asked about, it naturally has its purpose, but that purpose cannot be revealed now. Wait and see, haha!"
This...
Not to mention, Cao Cao's selling of this secret completely piqued Cheng Yu's curiosity.
Just then.
"Report..." A Hu Ben armored soldier quickly entered the garden...
Seeing Cao Cao about to report, but seeing Cheng Yu present, he immediately closed his mouth...
Cao Cao waved his hand. "Zhongde is one of us, speak, what is it?"
Hearing Cao Cao's order, the Hu Ben soldier then spoke.
"Something has happened at the Xuchang Official Residence!"
"Guo Fengxiao, the Deputy Head of the Official Residence, has fainted. The medical officers diagnosed him as... intestinal paralysis!"
Intestinal paralysis?
Upon hearing this...
Both Cao Cao and Cheng Yu's expressions changed.
Everyone knew that intestinal paralysis was an incurable disease!
This...
Cao Cao pondered for a moment.
The Hu Ben soldier continued to report, "Lord Xun has sent a letter to the Chancellor, asking to invite back the divine physicians Hua Tuo and Zhang Zhongjing..."
Cao Cao narrowed his eyes. "This intestinal paralysis? Can they cure it?"
"I don't know!" The Hu Ben soldier truthfully replied. "Lord Xun has also sent people to Xuzhou's Donghai Commandery to invite the Marquis of Baima... The Marquis of Baima is the medical immortal of the apricot grove, perhaps he has a way!"
Heh...
If not for this Hu Ben soldier's reminder, Cao Cao would have forgotten that Yu'er was also a "medical immortal of this era"!
"Immediately order Hua Tuo and Zhang Zhongjing to return to Xuchang!"
"Yes!"
The Hu Ben Army agreed and was about to leave.
"Wait!"
Who would have thought that Cao Cao would directly call out to stop them.
Xu Chu caught some extra meaning. "Chancellor, you mean to..."
Cao Cao raised his head. "Now that the northern border is pacified, it is time to return to Xuchang! Coincidentally, Shangshutai has also invited Lu Ziyu back!"
Speaking of this...
Cao Cao's eyes slightly narrowed. He looked in Xu Chu's direction.
"Zhongkang, you and I sparred just now, and you said I, Cao Cao, am invincible! Haha... Let me tell you, with the Dragon Cavalry, Tiger Leopard Cavalry, and Qingzhou troops, on land, no one is my match. But when it comes to naval warfare, we are still far from 'invincible'!"
Cao Cao waved his hand.
"Arrange the carriage immediately and return to Xuchang!"
"Yes!" Xu Chu solemnly agreed, feeling that Cao Cao's words were full of meaning!
And at the same time, inexplicably...
The pain in Cao Cao's forehead gradually began to rise!
This wind in the head was becoming more frequent!
...
...