My Imperial Advisor is ChatGPT

Chapter 30 The Standard of Truth is a "Talking" Corpse

The construction site of the Epang Palace was bustling with activity, but inside the Qilin Hall, the political center of the Qin Empire, a low-pressure atmosphere more suffocating than the summer heat was pervasive.

It wasn't because of war on the frontier, nor because of a deficit in the national treasury, but because of something insignificant.

A screw.

Li Si knelt in the center of the hall, holding a tray covered with black velvet. On the tray were two screws and nuts, crafted from fine iron and freshly delivered from the Imperial Workshop. His official hat was askew, and his forehead was covered in sweat, whether from the heat or from anxiety, it was hard to tell.

"Your Majesty, I...I am guilty." Li Si's voice was hoarse.

Ying Zheng sat on his imperial couch, still holding the double-walled ceramic cup filled with warm water and goji berries. He wasn't looking at Li Si, but rather at a pile of identical-looking crossbow parts laid out in front of him.

"You deserve to be guilty." Ying Zheng put down his cup, picked up two crossbows, and said, "Is this the 'Qin standard' you promised me?"

"I just tried it out. I removed the trigger from this crossbow and attached it to that crossbow. And what was the result?"

"It's stuck."

Ying Zheng's voice wasn't loud, but it struck Li Si's heart like a hammer.

"Li Si, tell me. If this were on the battlefield, and a soldier's crossbow broke, and he picked up parts from his comrade's belongings to try and fix it, only to find it wouldn't fit, should he sit down and slowly file it with a file, or wait to be hacked to death by the Xiongnu?"

Li Si banged his head on the ground, making a dull thud.

"Your Majesty! The craftsmen of the Imperial Workshop have done their best! Each of them received that 'standard ruler,' and they were all made according to the blueprints. But... but hand-polishing is inherently prone to error. Some were too heavy-handed, some too light-handed; a slight difference in the thread can lead to a completely different result!"

Li Si was in a bind. He was a Legalist, skilled at managing people, but managing this tiny lump of iron was harder than asking him to embroider.

Ying Zheng sighed.

He knew Li Si was telling the truth. Without machine tools or assembly lines, relying entirely on the craftsman's intuition to achieve "interchangeable parts" was nothing short of a miracle in ancient times.

"Little G," Ying Zheng murmured to himself, "Am I being too hasty?"

The blue screen in my mind flickered.

Your Majesty, industrialization is not a dinner party, nor is it writing an essay. It is the ultimate pursuit of 'precision'.

The current bottleneck lies in the "mother machine." Without high-precision lathes, standard screws cannot be manufactured.

But you can't stop. Because without standards, your railway won't last long, and your steam engine (still on the drawing board) will always leak.

Recommendation: Establish a tiered tolerance system. Allow for some error, but it must be kept within the acceptable tolerance range ("can be screwed in").

Ying Zheng rubbed his temples.

"Li Si, get up."

"I will not kill you, nor will I punish you. But this matter is not over."

Ying Zheng stood up, walked to Li Si, and picked up the screw.

"If the craftsman's feel for it is inaccurate, then eliminate that feel."

"Send word to the leader of the Mohist school. I want them to build a machine. Even if it's foot-operated or water-powered, they must create a special turntable (a primitive lathe) for 'cutting iron.' Keep the cutting tool stationary while the iron bar rotates. Surely the circle it cuts will be rounder than one ground by hand?"

"Furthermore, establish a 'Quality Inspection Department'." A ruthless glint flashed in Ying Zheng's eyes. "From now on, every screw produced by the Imperial Household Department must pass this 'ring gauge' (go/no-go gauge). Those that can be screwed in are qualified products. Those that cannot be screwed in not only have to be recycled, but the craftsman responsible will also be held accountable."

"Deduct his wages until he can keep his hands steady."

Li Si broke out in a cold sweat, but he also understood the underlying principle. This was applying the harsh laws and severe punishments used to govern people to govern things.

"Your subject...accepts the decree!"

……

Having solved the screw problem, Ying Zheng did not feel relieved. Another, even more troublesome problem was drifting into Xianyang on the south wind.

It smelled of decay.

Imperial Physician Xia Wuqie was standing outside the hall awaiting orders, with several other physicians standing beside him, their faces equally solemn. Behind them, instead of carrying medicine chests, they were carrying a corpse tightly wrapped in white cloth.

"Xuan Xia has no right to an audience!"

Xia Wuqie entered the main hall, first performed a grand salute, then did not rise, but knelt on the ground, his voice trembling.

"Your Majesty, an urgent report has arrived from the Lingqu Canal construction site in the south. In addition to malaria, a strange disease has also broken out."

"The patient suffered excruciating abdominal pain, defecating dozens of times a day, with the excrement resembling pus and blood, and eventually died of dehydration. Artemisia juice was ineffective against this disease."

"These are the bodies of laborers who died of illness, just brought back from the front. We are incompetent; we have searched through medical books and only know that it is 'dysentery,' but we do not know the root cause of the disease, let alone how to cure it."

Ying Zheng looked at the corpse, his brows furrowed.

Dysentery.

To modern people, it's just a matter of taking a few antibiotics, but in ancient times, it was a terminal illness and a nightmare for the army.

"Little G".

"Yes, Your Majesty."

This is bacterial dysentery. It could also be amoebic dysentery.

The cause is simple: unclean water. Feces contaminated the water source.

Treatment options include berberine (extracted from Coptis chinensis) or allicin (which you are already taking). However, the most fundamental approach is to cut off the transmission route.

[And...you need to make these doctors understand that 'illness enters through the mouth' isn't just an empty phrase, but actually refers to 'worms' going into their stomachs.]

Ying Zheng nodded.

He walked over to the corpse and covered his mouth and nose.

"Xia Wuqie, how many years have you been studying medicine?"

"Your Majesty, I have been practicing medicine for forty years."

"Then tell me, what exactly was inside this man's stomach that took his life?"

Xia Wuqie was stunned.

"This... might be damp-heat poison, or it might be evil energy entering the body..."

"Perhaps? I don't want perhaps!" Ying Zheng abruptly interrupted him. "What I want is 'certainty'!"

Ying Zheng turned around, his gaze sharp as he scanned all the physicians present.

"You spend all day reciting the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic and talking about Yin and Yang and the Five Elements. But how many of you have actually opened this body to see how rotten the intestines are? To see what that 'evil energy' actually looks like?"

The main hall was deathly silent.

Dissecting a corpse? That's utter disrespect! It's disturbing the peace of the dead and will incur divine retribution!

"Your Majesty!" Xia Wuqie trembled with fear, "Our bodies and hair are gifts from our parents, and we dare not harm them. Dissecting a corpse is... is witchcraft, not the proper path of medicine!"

"Nonsense!"

Ying Zheng roared angrily, making the hall reverberate.

"Is it necessary to kill thousands of living people for the sake of a so-called 'complete corpse'?"

"In my opinion, what's the point of Yin and Yang, or the Five Elements? If they don't work, then they're just nonsense!"

Ying Zheng walked to the desk, picked up a brush and wrote eight large characters, then threw them fiercely in front of Xia Wuqie.

The ink on that Qin paper was still wet, exuding a murderous aura:

Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.

"Xia Wuqie, I'm going to teach you a lesson today."

"The truth is not in the ancient books, nor in your mind, but in this corpse."

"Even though it's dead, it can talk. It will tell you how it died. If you dare to ask."

Ying Zheng pulled out a finely crafted dagger from his sleeve—the first "willow leaf scalpel" forged by the Shaofu using surgical steel standards.

"Take it."

Xia Wuqie took the knife with trembling hands, feeling it was even heavier than when he took the Tai'a sword.

"Your Majesty...where...will the incision be performed?"

"Right here." Ying Zheng pointed to a corner of the side hall, which had been converted into a temporary "dissection room." "I'll watch you dissect it."

"I want to see with my own eyes exactly where the culprit who killed my soldiers is hiding in their intestines!"

……

The next hour was a terrifying journey that shattered Xia Wuqie's worldview and that of the physicians present.

Under the pressure of Ying Zheng (and emboldened by the strong liquor provided by Zhao Gao), Xia Wuqie gritted his teeth and cut open the abdomen of the corpse.

No ghosts flew out, nor was there any black mist swirling around.

There was only a nauseating stench and diseased organs.

"Your Majesty... the intestines... the intestines are congested and swollen, and there are numerous ulcers." Xia Wuqie, suppressing his nausea, reported while performing the procedure, "Is this the location of the 'dysentery' lesions?"

Ying Zheng, wearing a mask (multi-layered silk), stood a few steps away, calmly observing.

"Little G, are these signs of a bacterial infection?"

Yes. A typical inflammatory response.

"Your Majesty, seeing with the naked eye is not enough. You must let them see the 'microscopic world.'"

Although they can't build a microscope, a high-powered magnifying glass (glass bead lens) allows them to see the "tiny insects" in the water.

Ying Zheng nodded, signaling Zhao Gao to bring up the prepared items.

It was a perfectly round, transparent glass bead inlaid with brass. This was the latest achievement of the Mo Family Optical Laboratory. Although the magnification was only a few dozen times, it was enough to make people see things that were invisible to the naked eye.

Ying Zheng had someone bring him a cup of seemingly clear river water (which was actually taken from a stagnant pond), and dripped a drop onto a glass slide.

"Xia Wuqie, come and see."

Xia Wuqie wiped the blood off his hands, brought the glass bead closer, and squinted.

Through the crystalline bead, the once still water droplets instantly transformed into a terrifying world in his eyes.

Countless tiny, transparent "things" are swimming, tumbling, and colliding wildly in the water.

"ah--!"

Xia Wuqie cried out in surprise and sat down on the ground with a thud, his face as pale as paper.

"Insects! There are insects in the water! So many insects!"

The surrounding physicians all gathered around to look, and then a chorus of gasps and retching filled the hall.

They drank the water their whole lives, unaware that it harbored billions of "demons"!

Ying Zheng looked at the terrified imperial physicians and said coldly:

"Did you see that?"

"This is the 'evil influence.' This is the 'root cause of the illness.'"

"What you call 'clarity' is nothing but a deception of the naked eye."

"Drinking raw water means ingesting these worms, letting them make their home in your intestines, eat your flesh, and drink your blood."

"Now, do you still think that my decision to provide the people with boiled water was unnecessary?"

Xia Wuqie got up from the ground, and this time, he knelt down from the bottom of his heart.

It's not about kneeling to imperial power, it's about kneeling to truth.

"Your Majesty... I am foolish! I... I know my crime!"

"This isn't water, it's clearly poison!"

Ying Zheng waved his hand, looking exhausted.

"It's good that you admit your guilt."

"From this day forward, the Imperial Medical Academy will be renamed the 'Great Qin Medical College.' This corpse is your first 'teacher.'"

"From now on, all death row inmates will no longer have their bodies dumped in the marketplace after execution. Instead, they will all be taken to the medical school for me to... investigate things and acquire knowledge."

"I want you to draw the direction of every blood vessel and the location of every bone."

"I want the doctors of Great Qin to treat illnesses no longer by guessing, but by observing, palpating, and relying on solid principles."

"Furthermore," Ying Zheng pointed to the cup of dirty water, "tell the world that anyone who dares to drink untreated water again is courting death, and they shouldn't come begging me for help!"

……

This day was destined to be recorded in the annals of the Qin Dynasty.

Although historical records may only vaguely state: "In the summer of the thirty-eighth year of Qin Shi Huang's reign, the emperor established a medical academy, dissecting corpses to seek medical knowledge, which shocked the world, but then brought great order."

But in a corner of the Epang Palace, a seed of modern medicine stubbornly sprouted amidst the blood and stench of corpses.

It was already late when I left the main hall.

The slightly cooler evening breeze blew on Ying Zheng, giving him a long-lost sense of comfort.

"Little G".

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Was I... a little too cruel today?"

[Cruel? Your Majesty, are you referring to the corpse, or to Xia Wuqie's fragile mind?]

If it's the former, and the corpse could speak, it would thank you. Because its death might have saved millions of lives.

If it's the latter, scientific progress has always been accompanied by the shattering of old ideas. The more thoroughly they are shattered, the more firmly they are glued back together.

Ying Zheng smiled.

"Yes. You can't build something new without destroying it."

He was just about to return to his palace to rest when he saw Zhao Gao sneaking around behind a pillar in the corridor.

"Zhao Gao, what are you up to now?" Ying Zheng was in a good mood and made a rare teasing remark.

Zhao Gao rushed over in a flash, carrying a steamer basket in his hands.

"Your Majesty! Great news! The Institute of Chemistry... oh no, I mean our canteen, has made a major breakthrough!"

"It exploded again?"

"It's not fried! This is for eating!" Zhao Gao lifted the lid of the steamer.

A fragrant aroma of noodles, unlike anything I'd ever smelled before, wafted over.

Inside the steamer lay several plump, fluffy, and steaming white buns.

This isn't the kind of unleavened dough we used to have; it's a real, fermented steamed bun.

"What is this?" Ying Zheng picked one up, squeezed it, and found it soft, like a cloud.

"Your Majesty, according to that 'periodic table'... uh, I mean chemical principles," Zhao Gao said smugly, "I purified 'pure alkali' (sodium carbonate) from the saline-alkali land. Then I heard from Prince Huhai that the dough turned sour because 'yeast' was farting... oh no, breathing."

"I was thinking, if we neutralize the acid and alkali, wouldn't that remove the sour taste?"

"So the servant kneaded the pure alkaline water into the sour old dough, and then steamed it in a pot..."

"Bang! It got bigger! It got whiter! And it's not sour at all anymore!"

Ying Zheng looked at the steamed bun in his hand that spanned an era, and then at Zhao Gao, who looked like he wanted praise.

He suddenly realized how wonderful this world was.

It's incredible that a deadly poison (alkali) and sour dough could combine to create such a delicious dish.

"Zhao Gao."

"This servant is here."

"Although you can't recite the entire periodic table, your ability to 'stir up' elements is truly unparalleled."

"Let's name this 'Qin Man' and promote it."

"I want the laborers building the Great Wall and the soldiers on the southern expedition to all be able to enjoy a hot meal."

"This, too, is combat power."

Zhao Gao beamed with joy: "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty! This servant will go... I'll go knead the dough right away!"

Late at night.

Ying Zheng stood on the high platform of the Epang Palace, holding the plump white steamed bun in his hand, and took a bite.

Soft and sweet.

He looked at the brightly lit city of Xianyang in the distance, and at the torches burning brightly on the construction site where workers were still working overtime.

"Enough to eat, enough to wear, no illness, and smooth roads."

"This is probably the 'eternity' I desire."

"Little G, I feel like my body is stronger than before?"

[Data shows: Your blood pressure is stable and your heart rate is normal. Although you still have some bronchitis, it's chronic bronchitis, and there's nothing that can be done about it. Overall, your current health is five times better than it was when you were on drugs.]

As long as I avoid making any more mistakes and staying up late, living past fifty (next year) shouldn't be a problem.

Ying Zheng chewed on a steamed bun, a slight smile appearing at the corner of his eye.

"next year……"

"Next year, I will go to the East China Sea to take a look."

"I heard that old swindler Xu Fu is living quite comfortably overseas? It's time for my fleet to be launched."

At this moment, on an island in the East China Sea, Xu Fu, who was teaching the locals how to farm, suddenly sneezed loudly.

"Who? Who is talking about this humble Taoist priest?"

He looked back at the vast sea, and a sense of foreboding rose in his heart.