Section Ninety-One: A Visit to the Maternal and Child Health Hospital

"You mean the infant delivery rate at the Maternity and Infant Care Hospital you run is thirty percent higher than elsewhere?" Empress Wu Zetian asked in great surprise.

At that time, medical standards were low. Childbirth was perilous for pregnant women, and the mortality rate for newborns was high. No one had expected the maternity hospital to achieve such an astonishing delivery rate.

Success was never a matter of chance. The Maternity and Infant Care Hospital did not rely on much advanced technology at all; it simply clung firmly to one creed: cleanliness and hygiene. The central hospital sent out inspection teams to every branch, examining them again and again, and anything that could not be handled according to the rules had to be corrected.

In addition, the hospital had an unwritten rule: it did not casually admit pregnant girls under fifteen.

All expectant mothers were checked for age on admission. If they were too young, the hospital would find every possible excuse to turn them away and refuse them entry.

"No beds available!" was one of the most common excuses.

If the visitor pointed out that there were plainly beds available, the hospital would answer without the least embarrassment: "Oh, we're carrying out routine cleaning and disinfection. The central hospital is coming for inspection, so the beds are temporarily out of service!"

"If there are no beds, why can other people still be admitted?"

"Oh, she made an appointment earlier!" In any case, whether there had been an appointment or not, the hospital would claim there was one. In short, pregnant girls under fifteen were refused admission.

In those days, people married young, and very young mothers were not yet fully developed, making childbirth even more dangerous. With the medical technology of that era, many problems simply could not be solved.

Naturally, a carefully screened group of patients would have a much higher success rate.

Princess Qianjin of course would not mention such a rule. She spoke only of the good points, and Wu Zetian listened with great interest. After all, she herself was a mother of many children and had experienced childbirth several times, each time balancing precariously between life and death. She said thoughtfully, "If I had had a Maternity and Infant Care Hospital back then, that would have been wonderful. If the whole empire had more hospitals like this, that would be even better!"

Then she would not have had to live in such fear and anxiety, and the people of Tang would have been able to bring more children into the world.

In a backward feudal age, human hands were immensely valuable. More Tang subjects would clearly benefit the state.

"Your Majesty, you are welcome to visit the Maternity and Infant Care Hospital," Princess Qianjin said, seeing that Wu Zetian was troubled by other matters and wanting to cheer her up.

"Very well!" Wu Zetian said happily.

She was a woman of action. As soon as she made up her mind, she ordered her carriage prepared at once.

The empress set out in state for the Maternity and Infant Care Hospital to conduct an inspection, and the royal procession and escort filled an entire street.

Passersby, curious, asked what was happening. In the crowd, the planted touts who had already been arranged immediately began advertising at the top of their lungs: "Because this maternity hospital has the highest infant delivery rate in all of Tang, the Empress herself has come to inspect it!"

"Oh, the Empress has come in person. What exactly is a maternity hospital?" one passerby asked, not understanding.

This time, there was no need for a tout. Enthusiastic neighbors gave him a detailed explanation, letting him understand what a maternity hospital was.

After hearing the neighbors' introduction, everyone knew, everyone understood, and the hospital's reputation gradually spread.

By afternoon, under Princess Qianjin's guidance, the Empress toured the Maternity and Infant Care Hospital.

Its traditional Chinese-style interior was arranged with simple elegance, the greenery neatly trimmed, and the doctors' and nurses' uniforms perfectly uniform.

The most eye-catching features were the lamps, distributed densely over a wide area. Some were polished metal, gleaming with reflected light. Princess Qianjin explained that when night fell, the place would be brightly lit, shining as if it were day.

"On nights when a child is born, all the lamps are lit. We even have a special position for lamp attendants," she said.

Wu Zetian pondered this and said, "The lights illuminate the road by which the children come into the world, helping them arrive safely. Excellent!"

"Your Majesty is wise!"

The hospital mainly operated pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology. It was clean and bright. The old Chinese physicians were hale and vigorous, and the young nurses were full of spirit. In and around the delivery rooms, Wu Zetian saw clean bundles of clothing, furnaces for boiling instruments, and water basins reserved for disinfection.

It did not seem especially mysterious, and yet it had produced a thirty percent higher success rate?

When she voiced this question, Princess Qianjin told her, "We never kept it secret. Everyone knows the procedures. We want these techniques to spread throughout society. But no one has been able to truly learn them and put them into practice."

"Why not?"

"Because this is the victory of a system," Princess Qianjin told her.

"A system?"

"Yes, a system."

"Did he say that?" Wu Zetian asked suddenly.

"Exactly."

At Princess Qianjin's answer, a pair of blazing eyes appeared in Wu Zetian's mind, fire-bright and fixed upon her, along with that powerfully built body, overflowing with strength.

What kind of man was he?

He had dared to annihilate the locusts, doing things many scholar-officials had not dared to do.

Those officials had stood by and watched the locusts devour the crops, offering nothing but cold commentary, leaving the people of Tang homeless and the emperor and empress unable to eat in peace, while they themselves drank wine and ate meat at home.

He had slain the bandits on Mount Xindu and won the praise, "Heroes have been born young since ancient times."

The soap factory's launch, the maternity hospital—all had been orchestrated by him alone. Such deeds, bringing benefit to all under heaven, were not the work of a mere brute warrior.

His character was lofty indeed; he had handed over the gold from Laizhou without reservation. That was not something an ordinary person could do.

Wu Zetian had her channels of intelligence, and she had heard it said among the people that Feng Xiaobao was a Daoist guardian deity, a reincarnation of Li Nezha, the Thunderous Third Prince from the Temple of Lord Lao. Li Nezha was a conqueror of demons and a protector of the faith, a child deity and guardian of children. How fitting that he should be connected with a maternity hospital. Otherwise, why would he have done nothing else, and instead specifically founded a maternity hospital?

As she mused on all of Feng Xiaobao's qualities, Wu Zetian suddenly felt her body react again.

Feeling embarrassed, she pressed her legs tightly together and followed Princess Qianjin forward with a somewhat stiff gait.

Princess Qianjin, meanwhile, caught a subtle scent amid the fragrance and a barely perceptible gleam flashed through her eyes.

As they were touring the place, they heard a burst of noise from outside. Princess Qianjin was somewhat displeased, while Wu Zetian remained comparatively calm.

Soon, Wu Zetian's trusted attendant, Yang the Eunuch, returned from investigating and reported, "There is a family outside who wants to come in. The wife is about to give birth!"

"This..." Princess Qianjin hesitated, but Wu Zetian said with delight, "This is an auspicious omen. Bring her in at once so she may deliver here!"

Princess Qianjin thought to herself that if it were a difficult labor, what kind of omen would that be?

Fortunately, when the woman was brought in, she turned out to be the young wife of the Liu family, and she had already given birth to two children before. That made things much easier.

At a respectful distance, Wu Zetian, for the first time no longer in court dress and instead wearing a white coat, watched with great interest as the midwives and nurses busied themselves. Perhaps because the Empress's fortune was exceptionally strong, before long the Liu wife gave birth to a sturdy baby boy.

When the child's cry was heard, a smile spread across Wu Zetian's face. Following the nurses' instructions, she personally wrapped the lucky newborn in swaddling cloth.

The Empress handled it with such skill that everyone praised her in unison.

The newborn was given the name Liu Ye, and ten thousand new cash coins were awarded to the family.

His parents were overwhelmed with gratitude and delight. To think that the Empress herself had delivered their child! They kowtowed again and again without end.

After inspecting the Maternity and Infant Care Hospital, Wu Zetian was in excellent spirits. She gladly wrote an inscription: "Maternity and Infant Care, the Place of Hope."

From then on, the Maternity and Infant Care Hospital was officially renamed Hope.

The hope of Tang. The hope of humankind.