Yang Ci vomited and had diarrhea, nearly passing out, but ultimately pulled through. After taking the medicinal food, he fell into a deep sleep, his complexion improving somewhat.
After finishing everything, Lu Ming clasped his hands in a fist salute to Yang Biao and said, "This only requires continuous use of the medicine, with acupuncture treatment once every two weeks."
"Oh, thank you so much, Anmin. Your kindness is immeasurable." Yang Biao didn't mention payment, considering it a favor. "If you need anything in the future, just let me know, I won't refuse."
"You're too kind, sir. It's getting late, so I'll take my leave now. See you another day, farewell." Lu Ming didn't linger, but directly took his leave.
"Good, I will definitely visit you another day. By the way, is Anmin married?" Yang Biao cupped his hands in a salute, having originally planned to discuss his daughter's marriage, but he hadn't expected the other party to withdraw so quickly!
"My mother has found me a suitable match back in our hometown. We're engaged, but the marriage hasn't taken place yet," Lu Ming said honestly, though inwardly he wondered if the old man was going to introduce him to a woman.
The Imperial Palace, West Garden.
After Emperor Ling had enjoyed the service of the palace maids, Zhang Rang arrived.
"Your Majesty, Lu Ming went to Yang Ci's residence and left two hours later. It's said that Yang Ci invited him to treat his father," Zhang Rang reported quietly. This was something Emperor Ling had specifically requested regarding Lu Ming's whereabouts.
"Oh, is there anything wrong with that?" Emperor Ling didn't notice anything amiss. Social interactions were normal, but getting too close was.
"It's said that Yang Biao wants to marry his daughter to Lu Ming," Zhang Rang hesitated for a moment before revealing the information.
"Oh? Isn't Lu Ming already engaged?" Emperor Ling seemed somewhat surprised, stroking his chin. Men do indeed find it hard to resist the allure of women. "What are your thoughts, Father?"
Zhang Rang knew his place. Emperor Ling's address wasn't an invitation for him to become the emperor's nominal father. "This old servant has no thoughts."
"Hmm, issue a decree that Lu Ming treat Princess Wannian." Emperor Ling still used his daughter as a trump card. A daughter, after all, who doesn't have one?
Zhang Rang didn't hesitate and immediately agreed, "I will obey Your Majesty's decree. I will send someone to deliver the decree tomorrow."
"Hmm, that's settled then." Emperor Ling was also somewhat tired, so he waved his hand and dismissed him.
Lu Ming's abilities were indeed considerable; he was qualified to be an outsider entrusted with his affairs after his death.
A man without immediate worries will surely have distant anxieties.
Lu Ming was unaware that the wheels of history had turned. He was only thinking about cultivating connections to make his life more comfortable. After returning to his newly acquired residence, he slept with his new woman.
The next morning, Lu Ming woke up early. Looking at the mother and daughter beside him, his heightened desire filled him with energy. He mounted his horse and began to ride.
An hour later, Lu Ming left, full of vigor, leaving behind only the exhausted Wu Xian and her mother.
Wu Xian fared slightly better; she was only fucked for ten minutes before being let go. Having just lost her virginity, she wasn't severely punished.
Wu Xian's mother, however, fared much worse. She was fucked for almost an hour, and by the time Lu Ming left, her vagina was unable to close properly, a far cry from Wu Xian's narrow opening. Having been fucked the previous day, it recovered quickly.
Fa Zheng arrived early in the morning, finished the account books, and handed them over.
Lu Ming casually glanced through the papers for a while, then said, "The courtyard I used to live in is yours. You also need to recruit some attendants and scribes. Have you had breakfast? We'll go to the workshop outside the city together later; we have a big business deal to do."
Fa Zheng was very grateful. Although Lu Ming was a bit of a scoundrel, having defiled other men's wives and daughters, even his own mother, his mother was now Lu Ming's woman, and he himself was loyal to him.
Plus, the treatment had always been good, and he was treated generously.
He also felt an urge to die for a friend who understood him. "Not yet, my lord."
After they ate, Lu Ming took out a sheet of pure white paper, somewhat rough, but already quite good. "Here, try writing on it. Also, use this ink."
Fa Zheng picked up the brush and wrote, finding the ink very good, and the paper very smooth, much better than Cai Lun's paper.
Although the paper was good, it wasn't easy to preserve.
Therefore, bamboo slips are generally better; they last longer and are more durable.
However, bamboo slips are very troublesome to make, and a single scroll can't hold much.
"My lord, what is this?" Fa Zheng thought this kind of paper was quite good for writing. Actually, Cai Lun's paper from the Three Kingdoms period wasn't so bad; it was used often, but it was inconvenient to preserve, which is why it wasn't widely adopted.
During the period of warring states, Cai Lun's paper was used for sending letters, but it lacked the white powder coating, making it somewhat less prestigious.
The yellowish paper certainly didn't look very appealing.
"Xuan paper, a type of paper that can be used for writing. The scholars in Luoyang are all very wealthy; their money is our money. Jia Xu is going back; I've asked him to take some money back with him so he can start his work in Longxi County." Lu Ming was still short of money, and developing equipment and weapons was very expensive.
With enough money and materials, Ma Jun's side could produce well curbs, which would be practically invincible. In defensive battles, well curbs were a game-changer. Looking at the Xuan paper before him, Fa Zheng truly sensed Lu Ming's ambition.
This was a genuine ambition to carve out his own territory and even seize the entire world!
Such treasonous acts were utterly outrageous!
However, he was a scholar who valued filial piety; he couldn't disobey his mother's words and could only let it be.
Jia Xu, on the other hand, was a cunning strategist. Whether the world was in chaos or whether the Han dynasty existed was of little concern to him; as long as he could live, that was all that mattered.
"This is good stuff, my lord. If we can successfully market it, we'll surely make a fortune," Fa Zheng thought excitedly. His current shops were mostly fabric and general stores, not high-end businesses.
Furthermore, fabric was dependent on restocking; without it, the shops would face closure.
"That's right, so I'm going to set up a paper mill in the workshop outside the city, and the final step will be left to you. It won't be difficult for you to complete it. To make the paper white enough for painting, you need special materials. Xiaozhi, I'm not worried about the chaos in Bingzhou. What I'm worried about is Longxi County, so we need to take this opportunity to make more preparations." Lu Ming did all this in order to secure money and supplies.