Chapter 67

After the tree roots have dried, a mixture of lime, wood ash, and loess should be applied to seal them to prevent cracking and bacterial infection.

At this stage, the main focus is on addressing this aspect; other aspects will have to wait. Tree root restoration cannot be completed overnight and requires a significant amount of time.

Before Qingyun could even go to the city to begin treating the patients, news arrived that Song Chaoli had also contracted the virus. "Where are the others?"

“Although the Second Prince has recovered from the plague, he is not experiencing any major flare-ups, and his symptoms appear to be mild,” Mu Helian said quickly from the side.

However, they have managed to control the epidemic very well in the past two days, and most of those affected are people who were prevented from leaving the city.

For several days in a row, not a ray of sun was seen. Dark clouds loomed over the city all day, their gloomy appearance dampening all interest, much like the mood of everyone in Muyun City at that moment. For dozens of miles around, all the villages were lifeless.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted, sobbing mingled with roars, and a group of people struggled to break down the door. The city patrolmen tried desperately to stop them. Amidst the chaos, beneath the magnificent brown gate, a solitary figure stood, hands behind his back, observing everything. Only after the attendant reported that Qingyun had safely returned to the dunes did Song Junwu finally feel a weight lifted from his heart.

The path to the sand dunes wasn't dangerous, yet he felt inexplicably uneasy. Meanwhile, the imperial physician beside him, witnessing this scene, was drenched in sweat, his back and face trembling uncontrollably as he wiped it away with his sleeve.

"My lord, I am utterly incompetent and utterly miserable." It is not that I have never experienced the plague before, but what I have seen this time is truly bizarre. Even with countless doses of medicine, I cannot cure people. Now, seeing the civilian riots, I am naturally to blame.

The man stared straight ahead, his face calm and composed. He stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. Just as he was about to say something, he heard footsteps behind him. Song Chaoyun's cold face appeared before the two of them. She quickly raised her hand to signal the imperial physician to dispense with formalities.

She leaned close to Song Junwu's ear and whispered, "My father has decreed that if we can't control the situation..." Her voice was steady yet chilling, and after a moment of hesitation, she uttered the next word that sent chills down one's spine: "Then burn the city."

After saying that, she followed the man's gaze and looked at the rioting crowd, "We cannot let the plague spread to other places."

Song Junwu's face was expressionless as he spoke firmly, "If that's the case, it won't just be one person from Muyun City who dies."

Many people in the surrounding villages have also been infected. If a massacre is to be carried out, then the surrounding areas will likely not be spared either.

Song Chaoyun said, "You should not do this unless absolutely necessary."

"I understand," Song Junwu replied. With a whoosh, the sword at his waist was drawn from its scabbard. Armor covered his bulging arms, and the leather straps wrapped around his arms bulged slightly from the exertion of his muscles. The sound of the sword being drawn was not loud in the noisy environment, but almost everyone heard it. The sound was like a knife cutting into the heart, making people feel a chill down their spines and stop in their tracks to look at the source of the sound.

Having witnessed everything, Song Chaohua pulled back several people who were about to step forward, gesturing for them to look away, "They're all people, don't go over there." Her voice was deliberately lowered, and suddenly it lacked its usual coldness.

Yinglian fidgeted with her fingers and asked cautiously, "Should we go back?" She was a little worried about Qingyun, as she hadn't heard any news from him yet, and thought that perhaps Lord Song had taken him back to the command post.

She was just that easy to understand; her thoughts were written all over her face. Song Chaoli chuckled and kindly reminded her, "I heard something happened outside the city too. Many trees have died inexplicably. Your Qingyun master must be quite busy."

Yinglian seemed quite unhappy with this form of address and quickly retorted, "The young lady has never treated me like a servant." The two had been like sisters since childhood and had never discussed the distinction between master and servant.

Seeing how much the girl was defending the other, Song Chaoli suddenly felt a pang of sadness. At this moment, she could also understand her second sister's feelings for her eldest sister. She wasn't one to hide her emotions; if she was unhappy, she would immediately speak her mind. "You're never this good to me. I even feed you and provide you with shelter. You're such an ingrate!"

Hearing this, Yinglian turned to look at her, "You are equally important." Her eyes were serious, with a kind of insistence on making things clear. When she looked into those eyes, Song Chaoli was slightly taken aback.

Song Chaohua: "..." Seemingly unable to bear the almost flirtatious way the two were talking, she interrupted and said that they would not take this route and would go back by another route.

The two readily agreed. Seeing that Yinglian was carrying a medicine box and it was inconvenient for her, Song Chaoli wanted to take it from her, but was refused again. "Don't be ungrateful."

Her words carried a hint of threat, but Yinglian seemed completely unfazed, covering her mouth and chuckling, "You're a princess, so let me handle this."

"Princess also..." She had just started to speak when she was interrupted by a cough. The two paused and looked at the person walking ahead. As if noticing their gaze, Song Chaohua was startled and turned to look at them. "What are you doing?" But as she spoke, her fair face turned bright red and she continued to cough.

“You wouldn’t…” Song Chaoli pointed at her in surprise, taking a few steps back.

"Could it be that I've already developed a sickly aura?" I didn't dare say these words out loud, because I was really afraid of being hit by the other party.

The atmosphere suddenly fell silent, and the previous bickering ceased completely.

Noticing that her third sister was secretly pulling Yinglian's hand and backing away together, Song Chaohua didn't even feel like scolding her. However, she did feel a surge of heat in her head and her body ached terribly.

"If you're worried, go back to your own homes." Her tone was devoid of emotion as she threw out this sentence before turning into the alley. She hadn't taken more than a few steps when she felt someone pull her back. Song Chaohua turned around expressionlessly, and a hand holding a handkerchief gripped her wrist tightly. Sweeping her wrist upwards, she saw Song Chaoli frowning. "No, what if you collapse on the road?"

Yinglian quickly stepped forward and whispered in her ear, "That's really impolite of you."

As soon as Song Chaohua's gaze shifted from that hand, she saw that the other person had already withdrawn it. If it weren't for the mask, she would have been able to see the woman's pouting lips beneath the mask, as if she felt a little wronged. However, Song Chaoli did think so. Knowing that the other person had such a thing, shouldn't they be more careful? It wouldn't be good if they were both caught in the act. She wasn't afraid that the other person would be unhappy.

Song Chaohua: "No, that won't happen."

Song Chaoli: "Yes!"

...

After a while, Song Chaohua, who was still coughing violently, seemed unable to bear the other party any longer and casually said that she would follow if she wanted to.

"Where is Song Chaoyun?" Qingyun was in a hurry, seemingly unaware that her cloth shoes were mostly wet. She was organizing medicines in the cloth shed.

"She went to the village." It was Song Chaoyun who had called her out and told her to wait here for Qingyun to return.

The table was cluttered with bottles and jars. "This one," she said, holding up a bottle, "is for people with mild symptoms." Doxycycline, it can even treat cholera.

She had already packaged everything before calling Mu Helian in. Qin Yao came in with her. When Qingyun saw Mu Helian's face, she was stunned for a moment, probably because Lin Wanjun's face suddenly flashed into her mind. Although she had many questions to ask, time was of the essence, so she quickly gave instructions on the treatment plan for the next day.

This stuff is expensive, even just redeeming it with points is ridiculously expensive. In the modern world, a 1ml serving of ready-made doxycycline hydrochloride solution costs over 700.

Qingyun chose this product primarily because it can be taken orally, eliminating the need for injections.

Before she could finish explaining, another figure walked in. The other person was obviously also surprised that there were three people in the tent. Song Junwu's ears were ringing steadily, which was why he didn't hear the conversation. He couldn't help but rub his forehead, feeling a sharp pain in his head from time to time.

"You can continue." With that, he made a move to leave, but Qingyun called him back. Now he could only suppress his discomfort and force himself to listen to what the other person had to say.

"I can go with you, but you can't go and have direct contact with the patients."

"Why?" Qingyun asked, puzzled.

"Because it's unsafe," Song Junwu replied patiently.

Qingyun disagrees with this statement. For patients who are already in serious condition, doxycycline alone is ineffective. Only stronger antibiotics, such as gentamicin, can be used to directly inhibit bacterial protein synthesis. However, these antibiotics can only be administered intramuscularly or intravenously, and their oral absorption efficiency is extremely low, so they are practically useless.

"There's nowhere safe in Muyun City right now," Qingyun continued upon hearing this.

She wanted Song Junwu to gather all the patients in one place, but as soon as she said it, she thought of the villagers who were also outside the city. If one person were to give injections to hundreds of people here, the villagers would practically be waiting to die.

Would it look strange if I took the needle out?

After all, these people have never seen plastic before. What if they think she's crazy and arrest her?

System: [They might worship you like a god, or they might execute you.] (Waves helplessly) [But you have three or four powerful backers, so you should be fine, right?]

Qingyun wanted to, too! But there was an even bigger leg behind these big legs! Everyone was at a loss with this complex plague, and even the imperial physicians couldn't find a way to treat it. If she could save the entire city just by taking out a plastic tube, wouldn't that dog emperor want to beat her even more?

System: (Picking electronic boogers) [Well, it depends on whether you want to save me or not.]

To everyone else, Qingyun suddenly stopped moving, as if she had been lost in thought. After a moment, she let out a deep sigh, looking quite melancholy.

I want to cry, I want to shout to the heavens, "Goddess! You've raised me so badly!"