We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Chapter 1002 Method of Smallpox Vaccination

"Good! Good! Good!" Hua Chang'an said three times, his excitement overflowing.

He immediately turned around and ordered the medical officers who had followed him: "Quickly! Send the Marquis and the others to the newly set up isolation camp in the southwest corner, carefully examine their injuries, and treat them as critically ill patients."

"Take this cow to that smallpox vaccination room and assign someone to guard it carefully, without fail!"

"Yes!"

The medical officers and soldiers immediately sprang into action. Some took the cattle rope from Ma Zhong's men, while others pushed over the prepared stretchers.

Just then, Hua Chang'an himself took a step toward the ox.

Seeing this, Yang Zhongsi instinctively grabbed his arm: "Wait! This sick ox is dangerous..."

Hua Chang'an, a doctor, was no match for Yang Zhongsi's strength and was immediately dragged so hard he could not move.

He had no choice but to stop and turn to look at Yang Zhongsi.

Although she was wearing a mask, the wrinkles around her eyes smoothed out, and she explained with a smile, "Don't worry, General, this cow has cowpox, which is different from human smallpox."

"It is not easy for cowpox to spread, and even if one is infected by chance, the symptoms are very mild, just like having a minor illness."

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhongsi suddenly realized what Hua Chang'an had said before, and then he let go of Hua Chang'an's hand and followed him toward the cow.

Hua Chang'an squatted down without any hesitation and carefully examined the blisters on the cow's udder.

He even gently touched it with his fingers to feel its firmness and the fullness of the sap, muttering to himself, "Good...good! The sap is plentiful, it's the perfect time to use it!"

Yang Zhongsi stood aside, watching the chief imperial physician fondle a cow's udder as if he had discovered a rare treasure, with that particular expression on his face...

Even with his vast experience and knowledge, he couldn't help but feel an extremely strange sensation at this moment.

"Cough cough cough." Yang Zhongsi couldn't help but cough a few times, pointing at the cow and asking, "Dr. Hua, now that we've found this sick cow, what should we do next? How exactly should we use this cowpox vaccine to treat the soldiers and civilians?"

Hua Chang'an withdrew his hand from stroking the cowpox blisters, slowly stood up, and said clearly, "General, finding the sick cow is only the first step, but also the most difficult one. The rest will be much simpler."

"The most urgent task is to get more cattle immediately, the more the better."

“The smallpox vaccine obtained from just this one cow cannot meet the vaccination needs of my army and the people of Qiongzhou.”

Yang Zhongsi nodded: "This matter is easy. Just leave it to me. Even if there is not enough in Qiongzhou, I will immediately order an emergency mobilization from Leizhou, Gaozhou and other places, and transport it by sea."

As the Grand Marshal of the Army, mobilizing resources was his forte.

Cattle are an important farming tool and there are many cattle in the country, but cattle infected with cowpox are truly rare.

And if you have one sick cow, you can get more sick cows. Don't say that's inhumane; there aren't many animal protection organizations these days.

“Alright, the matter of the cattle will be left to the commander.” Hua Chang’an agreed and continued to explain, “With enough cattle, we can produce smallpox vaccines in batches.”

"The method is not difficult. Just shave the hair off the entire body of the selected cow and use a sharp blade to scrape tiny wounds on the soft parts of its skin."

As he spoke, he gestured with his hands: "Then, the pus from this cow is applied to the wounds of these cows. After the calves are infected with cowpox, they will develop a large number of blisters all over their bodies, and the pus contains the pus, which is far better than repeatedly taking it directly from this cow."

"In this way, we can obtain a continuous supply of high-quality smallpox vaccine."

Yang Zhongsi listened very attentively. This method sounded somewhat unbelievable, but upon closer examination, it made a lot of sense.

Just as good seeds are sown on fertile soil in hopes of reaping a greater harvest, so too is smallpox vaccination.

As for pharmacology related to immunity, Yang Zhongsi didn't understand it, but he figured it was probably similar to the principle of fighting poison with poison.

It is said that His Majesty came up with this treatment method. Yang Zhongsi couldn't understand why His Majesty could always come up with such bizarre ideas.

Hua Chang'an changed the subject and continued, "As for inoculating people, that's even simpler."

"Use a sterilized knife to gently make a shallow incision on the recipient's skin."

"Then, use a needle to extract the fluid directly from the cowpox blisters and drip it onto the shallow incision to allow it to seep in."

"Within three days, redness and swelling will appear at the vaccination site, which indicates that the cowpox virus has taken effect. Once the scab falls off on its own, the person is considered to have been successfully vaccinated and has developed resistance in their body, and will be free from the fear of smallpox scars for life."

After listening, Yang Zhongsi's thick eyebrows furrowed tightly, and he pondered, "It sounds like there are still considerable risks. If the operation is not done properly, or if the human body reacts too violently, wouldn't that be dangerous?"

Hua Chang'an nodded frankly, his eyes showing no evasion: "That's right, but when it comes to matters involving epidemics, is there any foolproof method?"

"The smallpox vaccination method was discovered by His Majesty's unique wisdom, guiding us to find it. Compared to the extremely dangerous method of variolation, it is ten or a hundred times safer."

"This is currently the only promising way to control acne, and even with the risks, we must try it!"

Intimidated by his imposing manner, Yang Zhongsi took a deep breath and suggested, "In that case, should we find a group of people to test this method first before implementing it on a large scale?"

However, Hua Chang'an shook his head slightly: "General, there's no need to worry. I am the head of the Imperial Medical Academy, naturally..."

Before he could finish speaking, Yang Zhongsi's expression suddenly changed, and he hurriedly interrupted, "No! The Imperial Academy Minister Hua is entrusted with a great responsibility by His Majesty and is in charge of the overall situation. How can we allow you to personally risk your life to become the drug human?"

"Rest assured, my Daqing army has no shortage of loyal and brave soldiers. If there truly is no one else, I, the commander..."

Before he could finish speaking, Hua Chang'an looked at him with a surprised expression, as if he had said something strange.

"What are you saying, General? I mean, as the head of the Imperial Medical Academy, I naturally have the right to decide who should be the first to conduct the experiment."

"Aren't there still many Southern Army prisoners of war imprisoned on Qiongzhou Island? To verify the smallpox vaccination method, we should first use them as test subjects. After confirming its safety and effectiveness, we can then use it on our soldiers and the people of Qiongzhou."

"There must have been prisoners of war who were about to be executed, so why would you use your own people for testing from the start?"

Yang Zhongsi was speechless for a moment, and opened his mouth.

Only then did I realize that I had been working hard for several days and was a little dizzy, and had actually forgotten about this.

Yang Zhongsi composed himself and solemnly bowed to Hua Chang'an, saying, "In that case, I will trouble you, Physician Hua. Everything will be arranged according to the divine physician's wishes."

Hua Chang'an's expression was solemn. He returned the greeting respectfully and replied in a deep voice:

"I will not disgrace my life!"