Green Mountain-Chapter 745 - 596: How the Eunuch Party Operates

The main hall of the Imperial Hospital was quiet.

Chen Ji sat alone in the Hospital Director's seat, flipping to the page he had read yesterday, his thumb pressed against the spine of the book, his gaze slowly moving between the lines.

Outside, footsteps came and went, and the muffled sounds of grinding medicine came from the pharmacy, with whispers of someone's debate over the role of sovereign, minister, assistant, and messenger in a prescription. These sounds reached the main hall's entrance and immediately lowered by three tones, as if pressed down by something.

In the pharmacy at this moment, the mixed sweet and bitter scent of Huangqi and Female Ginseng permeated the air, and the medicine boiling on the stove bubbled, the steam causing the window paper to become damp and soft.

The Hospital Director pretended to record accounts while quietly tried observing the main hall.

The red figure sat right at the desk, from 5 to 7 AM to 9 to 11 AM, without even changing posture.

With a disdainful expression, he remarked: "That Eunuch Party really sat in the old man's chair, most shameless."

Next to him, Zhou Fangping held a small copper scale, muttering: "I think, having Marquis Wu Xiang stationed at our Imperial Hospital might be a good thing... Have you heard, the Tang family's old man passed away last night, but Tang Shun didn't dare to cause trouble at our hospital today. If it were any other day, he would surely have made a fuss."

The Hospital Director became furious: "Why are you speaking on behalf of the Eunuch Party?"

Zhou Fangping shrank his neck: "Yesterday you had to endure Tang Shun as well, not just once, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue's mother was sick for half a month without recovery, and he pointed at you and cursed, and you didn't dare to speak..."

The Hospital Director's face flushed: "I'm also considering the Ministry of Revenue allocating us silver. Without silver, what will you all eat and drink?"

Zhou Fangping realized he spoke too harshly and immediately changed the subject: "Hospital Director, the Xu Family from four houses requested rejuvenating medicine, it's packed now. Who do you think should deliver it?"

The Hospital Director glared, his mustache trembling: "Such a small matter still needs to ask me? Couldn't you deliver it yourself?"

Zhou Fangping mumbled softly: "Aren't you the Chief Clerk now? Usually, these tasks are arranged by the Chief Clerk…"

"Chief Clerk your mother…" The Hospital Director turned to look for the large balance beam in the pharmacy, intending to give Zhou Fangping a beating, but before he found it, Zhou Fangping had already slipped away with the rejuvenating medicine.

The pharmacy settled back into quiet.

The Hospital Director picked up the pen again but couldn't write a word on the ledger. His gaze would unconsciously drift toward the main hall, glance once, come back, glance again, come back.

He began as an apprentice at age seventeen in the Imperial Hospital, became a Medical Officer at twenty-three, advanced to clerk at thirty-one, promoted to Dean at forty-two, and finally took the Hospital Director's seat at fifty-two.

He had spent thirty-five years to reach that position.

While Chen Ji just took one day...

The Hospital Director couldn't help but glance at the main hall, seeing the Dean holding a bowl of tea passing by.

He waved: "Bring it here, I'm thirsty."

The Dean hesitated: "Sir, this tea is for Marquis Wu Xiang."

The Hospital Director's expression froze momentarily, then spoke painfully: "Why be so kind to the Eunuch Party? Let him thirst!"

The Dean continued hesitating: "But…"

The Hospital Director snapped angrily: "Who's the Hospital Director, him or me?"

The Dean quickly cautioned: "Keep your voice down, lest he hears, what if he kills you?"

The Hospital Director was silent for a long time, only the bubbling medicine on the stove remained audible in the pharmacy.

Yet he couldn't swallow this resentment, whispering fiercely: "What sort of place is our Imperial Hospital? It's where the Emperor is treated, where the Empress Dowager and Prince are treated, a Standard Third Rank government office! And now letting an Eunuch Party sit in the main hall, what does that look like?"

The Dean stood there, both holding and not holding the tea: "Sir, as you say, but…"

"But what?" The Hospital Director snatched the tea bowl, drinking it all: "Should outsiders say our Imperial Hospital has sided with the Eunuch Party, what face will I have left?"

At this moment, Liu Zhubu rushed into the Imperial Hospital, heading straight for the main hall.

Liu Zhubu was loud, not even inside the main hall yet but already shouting: "Hospital Director, those damned ones have mixed fake Fritillaria into our batch again. And Huangqi, the roots weren't cleaned completely, the weight was three-tenths short. Damn it, do they really think by befriending thieves, they can step over us? Will you manage this, or should I go to the Imperial Palace Gate and beat the Petitioning Drum?"

As Liu Zhubu stepped over the threshold of the main hall, he suddenly froze.

He saw Chen Ji sitting behind the desk, adorned in the bright red Qilin Embroidery and with an imposing presence, and anxiety creeped up.

Liu Zhubu stepped backward slightly, glanced up at the archway. Then he looked at the seat occupied by the man, indeed it was the Hospital Director's chair.

Chen Ji looked up at him: "Fake Fritillaria? Short weight on Huangqi?"

Liu Zhubu swallowed thickly.

Chen Ji waited a moment, seeing no response, asked again: "The ledger? Bring it for me to see."

Liu Zhubu instinctively glanced back, searching the courtyard for the presence of the Hospital Director and the Dean, and finally spotted them through the pharmacy window.

Following his gaze, Chen Ji looked toward the pharmacy, where both the Hospital Director and the Dean simultaneously shrank their necks.

He returned his gaze, speaking slowly: "Why are you looking at the Dean and the Chief Clerk when I asked you a question?"

Liu Zhubu was momentarily bewildered...

Dean and Chief Clerk?

If the one in the pharmacy is the Chief Clerk, then who am I?

Chen Ji saw him in a daze, not speaking, and lowered his head to read again, indisputably saying, "Bring the accounts book here."

Liu Zhubu hesitated for a moment, then turned around and ran to the pharmacy.

As soon as he entered the pharmacy, he rushed to the Hospital Director: "Sir, why has this troublemaker come to our Imperial Hospital? How did he end up sitting there? Why are you hiding here? How did you become the Chief Clerk?"

The Hospital Director scolded lowly, "Why are you panicking? Asking so many questions at once. Which one should I answer first?"

Liu Zhubu held back for a while: "What on earth is going on?"

The Hospital Director sighed, "It's a long story, all due to the persecution by the Eunuch Party... What did that member of the Eunuch Party say to you?"

Liu Zhubu glanced back to confirm that Chen Ji was still looking down before saying, "He asked me to bring him the accounts book of our Imperial Hospital. Should I do it?"

The Hospital Director's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot. He squeezed out a few words through his teeth, "What business does he have with our Imperial Hospital? On what grounds should we give it to him?"

Liu Zhubu was startled, "Then should you go and tell him?"

The Hospital Director remained expressionless: "I'm not going."

The Dean sighed, "Better give it to him anyway. Our Imperial Hospital is just a clean government office, we are not afraid of him checking the accounts... You know, he might be investigating the medicinal materials. If he is willing to stand up for our Imperial Hospital, it would be a good thing."

The Hospital Director sneered, "The Eunuch Party is in collusion, the snakes and rats in the same nest, they orchestrated this all along. Would he stand up for our Imperial Hospital? Go, give him the accounts book and listen to what he has to say!" 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

...

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Liu Zhubu returned to the main hall with the accounts book, and respectfully placed it on the desk with both hands, "Marquis Wu Xiang, here are this year's accounts for the procurement and distribution of medicinal materials, please have a look."

Chen Ji did not immediately flip it open, he just gently tapped the cover with his finger, "How long has this falsification been going on?"

Liu Zhubu stiffly replied, "In response to Marquis Wu Xiang, it's a long story. The medicinal materials of our Imperial Hospital are tributes collected annually from various places. The Chuanbeimu is produced in Western Sichuan, and the Huangqi is from Shanxi, theoretically all top-notch goods. But last year, a crooked merchant surnamed Li recognized the Chief of the Imperial Supervision as a godfather. Using this connection, he took over sixty percent of the medicinal material business."

Liu Zhubu took a breath and continued, "As soon as the one surnamed Li took over, he began substituting inferior goods. The medicinal materials were not only poor in quality, the weights were also short. Outwardly, it was said to be a hundred kilograms, but by the time it reached us, it was at most seventy kilograms."

Chen Ji opened the accounts book: "Did you submit a petition to the court?"

Liu Zhubu, upon mentioning this matter, was filled with righteous indignation: "We submitted one, but as soon as our petition was submitted into the palace, it was never heard from again. Insufficient weight is still a small matter, but if the medicinal materials are incorrect, the efficacy will be incorrect, and if the patient takes the wrong medicine it could be fatal."

Chen Ji curiously asked, "Who provided the medicinal materials before Li took over?"

Liu Zhubu honestly replied, "Previously, all the medicinal materials in the Imperial Capital were supplied by Bailu Pavilion, genuine and fair. But last year, Bailu Pavilion was raided by the Spy Department, and the supply of medicinal materials was cut off."

Chen Ji pondered, "The medicinal materials are used in the palace; what if someone important in the palace uses the wrong medicine, wouldn't anyone handle it?"

Liu Zhubu, filled with anger and injustice, said, "He's the adopted son of the Chief of the Imperial Supervision, who would dare to handle it? Moreover, this Li is extremely shrewd. He knows that only ten percent of the medicinal materials in the Imperial Medical Hall are used in the Imperial Pharmacy, the rest are used by outsiders, so he ensures that the medicinal materials for the Imperial Pharmacy are not lacking in each batch."

Chen Ji flipped through the accounts book, page by page, and the main hall was so quiet that only the rustling sound of turning pages could be heard.

After an unknown period, he looked up, took out a scrap prescription paper from his side, wrote his name on the back, and handed it to Liu Zhubu: "Take it to Eagle House Office for Jiao Tu and Yun Yang."

Liu Zhubu was puzzled and asked, "What for?"

After handing over the prescription, Chen Ji lowered his head to read again, nonchalantly saying, "Take the accounts book there and tell them I said to raid the Li Family."

Liu Zhubu's mouth slowly opened wide.

Raid the family?

Raid the family?!

Just like that, the Li Family is to be raided?

Liu Zhubu thought that Chen Ji, being a member of the Eunuch Party himself, would either gloss over the matter with nice words or promise to report it upwards, and then, like those petitions from the Imperial Hospital, it would vanish without a trace.

But he never expected that Chen Ji's first action would be to raid the family. He exclaimed in disbelief, "Really raid the family?"

Liu Zhubu lowered his head to look at the scrap prescription in his hand.

On the front, it was scrawled with a standard "Life-saving Prescription," and on the back, it simply had the name "Chen Ji."

He couldn't understand, there were no formalities or seals, just this thin bamboo paper. Could taking it to the Eagle House Office alone really lead to the Li Family being raided?

Liu Zhubu hesitated for a long time, "Can the Li Family really be raided? He is the adopted son of the Chief of the Imperial Supervision, after all."

Chen Ji did not even look up, "The accounts book in your hand is the evidence, and even if that's not enough you can verify in the warehouse, all the witnesses and material evidence are present. Even if he recognized Buddha as his godfather, it wouldn't work. Go, the Eunuch Party operates just like this."