"You’re talking about Aiden?"

Simon had some impression of this person. He had been recommended by Baldwin and later appointed as a mid-official in the Brambleford government office.

The position of mid-official in the Eldorian Empire was relatively minor, roughly equivalent to a modern-day city mayor’s secretary.

"Yes, yes, I think his name is Aiden." Medical Officer Oscar seemed to recall.

Currently, among Simon’s advisors, Baldwin was his top civil official, Lancelot his top military officer, and Percival his top merchant. Beyond these, he truly lacked capable individuals.

In the past, when he hadn’t been involved in governance, he hadn’t noticed this. But now that he needed capable people, he found himself short-handed.

Although Baldwin was competent, his abilities were limited. He couldn’t handle everything.

Moreover, Baldwin excelled in logistics. He was adept at managing horse administration, agricultural production, and infrastructure construction. However, when it came to handling special events, he often found himself at a loss.

In essence, Baldwin was similar to a figure like no other, highly skilled in administrative affairs but not suited to be a strategic advisor. Simply put, Baldwin was somewhat rigid and lacked finesse in political manoeuvring.

Almost every scheme against the noble clans had been planned by Simon alone, with Baldwin offering little assistance.

"So, what exactly is impressive about him?" Simon asked.

"He has many ideas." Medical Officer Oscar said casually, as he didn’t have a deep impression of Aiden. "It’s just that the common folk who come to me for treatment often mention him. They say that a few days ago, Aiden set a trap and captured a group of bandits, which amazed the local people."

"Really?" Simon showed interest.

Medical Officer Oscar continued. "Indeed, the people spoke of it as if it were a miracle. They said Aiden used some empty city stratagem, and over a hundred bandits didn’t dare to enter the village. At the time, only Aiden and a few constables were in the village." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Simon had been busy dealing with the local noble clans and had neglected many administrative matters in Brambleford. He hadn’t heard about this incident.

As for why bandits appeared outside Brambleford, it was simple: these bandits were former militiamen of the noble clans.

When the Goldwynd family was destroyed, some of their militiamen joined the Brambleford Army, while others became bandits. It wasn’t unusual for a former militiaman to become a bandit leader.

"Hmm, that’s impressive. He has courage." Simon praised, though he remained somewhat sceptical.

Recently, he had developed a habit of doubting first and verifying later. In his position, he had to question everything; otherwise, he might die without knowing how.

What others said was one thing, but seeing it for himself was another.

Setting aside the matter of Aiden, Simon asked Medical Officer Oscar. "How effective is the maggot treatment for festering wounds?"

Over the past two days, Medical Officer Oscar had been using the method Simon taught. Admittedly, the maggots had cleaned the patient’s necrotic flesh very thoroughly. Now, following Simon’s instructions, he disinfected the wound with alcohol, covered it with fresh meat, and changed the dressing every three hours.

The patient seemed to be showing signs of improvement.

"Your Highness, where did you learn these... Unorthodox medical techniques?" Medical Officer Oscar almost called them ’unorthodox methods’ but quickly corrected himself.

In truth, Simon was also sweating. He was betting on the fact that the environment of this era was relatively clean, with fewer bacteria on insects. Moreover, the maggots weren’t dug out of a latrine but were found in a rotten egg.

"That’s a long story. I’ll tell you when the time is right." Simon avoided explaining.

Medical Officer Oscar was frustrated. Since Simon wouldn’t say, there was nothing he could do. After all, this was the ruler of the six cities, a prince of the empire. He couldn’t force him to speak, though he really wanted to.

For Medical Officer Oscar, this was undoubtedly a breakthrough in medical techniques.

"However." Simon suddenly said. "I can teach you more methods. I’ve established a medical division in the Oxford Academy. If you’re willing to pass on your lifelong knowledge to the students, I’ll teach you. How about that?"

Medical Officer Oscar’s expression shifted repeatedly. His skills had been passed down from his father, who had learned them from his grandfather, and so on. Outsiders were never taught.

This was their livelihood, passed down through generations.

"My Lord, I’m afraid this old man is incapable of that." Medical Officer Oscar politely declined.

Simon was immediately displeased. Over the past few days, he had discovered a frustrating truth: whether it was medical skills or culinary techniques, these people never shared their knowledge with outsiders. It was always passed down from one generation to the next.

This was why they placed such importance on having male heirs and were extremely patriarchal. Since women rarely engaged in business, skills were only passed down to men.

As a result, these people relied on ancestral skills to make a living, but it also led to a severe lack of social resources.

The reason Medical Officer Oscar had become the medical officer was simply that his family was the most renowned medical family in Brambleford. There was no one else.

"In that case, I won’t force you. But I won’t hide my medical knowledge. Anyone who comes to the Oxford Academy to study medicine will be taught by me. And I believe that once they graduate, they won’t be inferior to your descendants." Simon declared.

Sweat broke out on Medical Officer Oscar’s forehead. The man before him was someone who had manipulated the noble clans of the six cities with ease. How could his small medical family withstand the prince’s schemes?

But if he really went to the Oxford Academy to teach, it would violate his family’s ancestral rules. Medical Officer Oscar was torn.

Seeing Medical Officer Oscar’s hesitation, Simon thought his combination of carrot and stick was working.

He had only been bluffing. He was human, not a superman. Teaching James and others chemistry, and Fjord and others physics, had already drained his energy.

He truly didn’t have the strength to lead a medical division now. But if Medical Officer Oscar joined, it would be different. At the very least, he could teach some basic medical knowledge.

Simon only needed to transcribe the medical knowledge from the system for him to study.

He didn’t expect Brambleford’s medical standards to reach any great heights in a short time. He just wanted these people to learn some basic surgical knowledge.

After all, he didn’t want his soldiers to die from minor injuries.

As the two stared at each other, a figure in green entered the medical hall. It was Joan.

She walked up to Simon and whispered something in his ear. Simon’s expression immediately turned strange.