Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved-Chapter 490: The Portrait of the Emperor and Empress, Forever Immortalized

Chapter 490: Chapter 490: The Portrait of the Emperor and Empress, Forever Immortalized

For Murong Jiu, the biggest surprise of the day was that just before Wang Yingluo was about to leave, she suddenly remembered that high-proof alcohol can sterilize and kill germs, greatly reducing the risk of wound infection.

The phrase "sterilize and kill germs" seems to be from a later era, but it was understandable.

The method of using strong alcohol to disinfect had existed for a long time, but due to the concentration of the alcohol, the effect was naturally not very good. More often, they used strong heat to sterilize tools such as knives and silver needles.

What Wang Yingluo meant was that using high-proof alcohol would kill many invisible viruses and bacteria.

Viruses were easy to understand, but bacteria were something Murong Jiu was hearing about for the first time. In any case, these were the culprits causing wound infections.

Wang Yingluo had previously taught the method of distilling spirits. By simply distilling to extract a higher concentration, one could produce the disinfecting alcohol she referred to.

Murong Jiu was eager to try this and wanted to share the news with her master.

Over the years, countless people had died from infections caused by festering wounds.

Especially on the battlefield, some soldiers who had limbs severed managed to escape with their lives, but most would die from infections, resulting in other complications.

After Wang Yingluo left, Jun Yuyan said to Murong Jiu:

"No wonder I kept smelling a strong scent of alcohol while I was unconscious, it was Wang Yingluo using high-proof alcohol to disinfect my wound. In fact, her knowledge of herbs is very limited, and the medicine she fed me was all common stuff. After all, it was my own strong constitution that got me through this, don’t you think so, Empress?"

Jun Yuyan had never considered Wang Yingluo a lifesaver.

At first, when he lost his memory, he felt she had ulterior motives.

Later when he learned the truth, he even blamed Wang Yingluo for taking him away and missing the rescue by the Hidden Guard and the Empress. With the Empress’s medical skills, Wang Yingluo wasn’t needed at all.

Murong Jiu replied with a smile, "Isn’t it nice that she was willing to put in the thought for you?"

Jun Yuyan had a strong will to survive, "I just hope she stays far away from me. If she weren’t still useful, just for the crime of deceiving the Monarch, I would have had her head chopped off."

This meant, her actions didn’t count as putting in thought but as the crime of deceiving the Monarch.

"I, on the other hand, wish there were a few more people like her. We could understand more clearly what the future holds and bring change to Great Yan."

Because of the alcohol matter, Murong Jiu was in a very good mood. Being able to reduce the risk of infection would save more lives in the future, an immeasurable merit.

"Then you’ll have to get Beloved Minister Lou to extract more words from her."

Lou Zixi listened to the Emperor and Empress exchanging words, then his name came up, and he was momentarily speechless.

What could he do? Of course, he could only agree.

Who made the Emperor a hands-off manager?

For the sake of the relationship between the Emperor and Empress, he also had to take on the responsibility.

However, he didn’t want to get too close to Wang Yingluo either. Although his wife Ah Wan was aware of his deeds, getting overly involved with another woman was unfaithful to his wife, and he had a good understanding of Wang Yingluo’s character. There would be more tactics to use in the future.

But as for Wang Yingluo’s abilities, no one had seen them in use, so everything had to be done with extreme caution.

Lou Zixi and Manager Chai were both busy.

The success of the papermaking technique and Printing Technique would allow more books to be printed for the people throughout the country.

High-proof grain alcohol also needed to be marketed.

The production of soap was also nearing completion.

Of course, Jun Yuyan was also very busy. Every day in Great Yan, countless events occurred and many issues required the Monarch’s attention.

Murong Jiu first met with her master, and after returning to the palace, she kept herself busy. With a more convenient method of bookmaking available, she had the idea of printing more concise medical books, ones that ordinary people could understand.

For instance, for a common cold, what symptoms to look for and methods of treatment, how to handle various types of trauma, how to differentiate between stomach pain and abdominal pain, and so on.

Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of these principles; in truth, most commoners have no understanding of even the simplest medical theories. Some commoners, lacking the money for medical treatment, endure their illness as long as they can before seeking help when there’s no other choice.

With the spread of these medical texts, in the future, ordinary people will be able to make their own judgments when they are ill, thus avoiding delays in receiving timely treatment.

She discussed her idea with her master and Jun Yuyan, and both were very supportive.

So, in the following time, Murong Jiu devoted herself to compiling new medical books.

Jun Yuyan also helped her organize the books, research the materials, and in his spare time, he did not forget to continue painting her portrait.

This portrait painting, done intermittently, took over a month to complete.

Murong Jiu hadn’t seen it until Jun Yuyan had completely finished it, at which point he let her take a look.

"Your Majesty has painted it beautifully," she said.

The expression was so lifelike.

However, such a painting could only be privately appreciated by themselves; it absolutely could not be shown to others.

Murong Jiu actually didn’t mind, but Jun Yuyan treasured it as if it were something extremely precious, personally treating it against decay, pests, and moisture, and then preciously stored it in one of his secretively locked boxes.

"Later, I’ll have someone build a few secret chambers to specifically house the Empress’s paintings," he said.

Upon hearing this, Murong Jiu was amused yet thought it unnecessary to treasure it so dearly.

Although she was depicted in a somewhat seductive pose, because she was lying on her side, with her curves clearly outlined, the clothes on her body were painted quite firmly, and there would be no harm even if it were admired by others.

"Next time, I’ll paint another portrait for you, so that it can be passed down to our descendants, letting the world know just how beautiful my Empress is!" he declared.

"Then Your Majesty’s heroic stature must also be included," she replied.

Murong Jiu said it offhandedly, but it suddenly sparked a bright idea in Jun Yuyan’s eyes.

"The Empress is right, I will immediately find the best portrait painter to create a painting of the two of us, so it may be passed down through the ages!" he exclaimed, excited.

This display of enthusiasm unexpectedly made Murong Jiu’s heart race and her cheeks redden.

The thought of future generations viewing her and Jun Yuyan’s portraits filled her with a peculiar sense of wonder.

True to his word, Jun Yuyan did secretly instruct someone to search for the best portrait painter.

However, he also enjoyed painting his Empress and would continue to do so when he had spare time; he wanted to fill his future secret chambers with his Empress’s portraits.

"The Empress likes that too, right?" he asked after giving his instructions, returning to see the Empress’s cheeks still flushed and her earlobes looking tender and tempting. His heart raced as he spoke, reaching out to take her hand.

He loved his Empress, loved everything about her, including her soft and fragrant body.

Murong Jiu hadn’t even managed to respond when he eagerly cut her off.

Murong Jiu’s body softened, and her cheeks turned even redder. She gently pushed him away, "It’s not dark yet, and supper will be delivered soon."

"I’ll skip supper. With such a delicacy before me, why would I need supper?" he teased, becoming increasingly irreverent.

Murong Jiu gave a gentle push without much force, her touch soft and boneless, almost as if she was inviting his advances. Jun Yuyan laughed with delight, swept her up horizontally in his arms, and strode towards the bed canopy.

...

Wang Yingluo had been busy outside the palace for nearly half a month, earning a lot of credit.

She returned to the palace, full of confidence.