Yanzhou.

"How's the situation in the west of the city going?"

Shen Huaixu looked tense and hurried towards the west of the city.

He knew very well that a major epidemic would follow a major disaster, so he arranged for people to fumigate with mugwort and distribute medicine to ward off the disease. However, he still failed to prevent it.

Three hours ago, my men came to report that a large number of people in the west of the city had developed diarrhea, vomiting, and high fever, and that the disease was highly contagious.

This is very likely an epidemic.

"The situation is unclear at the moment, but Miss Xinghui has already gone there," Shishu replied.

Xing Hui is skilled in both poison and medicine. As soon as the news arrived, Shen Jintang sent her over to treat her.

"good."

Hearing that Shen Jintang already knew about this, Shen Huaixu breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't know why, but he had become extremely dependent on Shen Jintang lately. It was as if as long as Shen Jintang took over the handling of things, there would be absolutely no mistakes.

Therefore, even if an unexpected incident occurs now, as long as Shen Jintang is there, she can deter those officials with ulterior motives in the county government, and he can leave the county government with peace of mind to deal with other matters.

"Go and take my command to mobilize troops. First, isolate the area where the disease first appeared. No one is allowed to enter or leave without my order. Then gather all the doctors in the city and block the news."

Nobody wants it to be an epidemic, but if it is, we must act quickly to get it diagnosed and treated. At this time, the isolation of patients and the treatment by doctors become crucial.

"yes."

Upon hearing this, Shi Shu immediately took the command token given to him by Shen Huaixu and turned around to carry out his mission.

Shen Huaixu hurriedly boarded the carriage and asked the driver to take him to the west of the city.

The county government office where they lived was in the center of the city, and it would take at least half an hour to get to the west side of the city. The epidemic was spreading rapidly, and they could not afford to delay; they had to race against time.

"Faster."

The carriage was jolting violently, as if it were about to fall apart at any moment.

Shen Huaixu sat in the carriage, his heart filled with anxiety.

"yes."

The coachman was doing everything he could, gripping the reins tightly with both hands and leaning forward, trying to keep the carriage steady.

But last night's heavy snowfall was too fierce. The thick snow was crushed under the wheels and quickly melted into mud, sticking to the wheels and severely hindering the carriage's progress.

"drive--"

The coachman swung the whip again, the tip drawing a sharp arc in the air and making a crisp whistling sound before striking the horse heavily.

The horse, in pain, neighed and charged forward with all its might.

The surrounding snowfield was silent, with only the crunching sound of the carriage rolling over it.

The ground was covered with snow, and the distant mountains were shrouded in a layer of white mist, their outlines becoming soft and blurred, like a traditional Chinese ink painting.

The nearby trees were bent over by the weight of the snow, with long icicles hanging from their branches. Occasionally, a few snowflakes would fall from the sky, landing on the carriage or the coachman's shoulder, and then quickly melt into water droplets that slid down his cheeks.

The sky was overcast, with dark clouds hanging low, creating a very oppressive atmosphere.

"Whoosh—"

Suddenly, a whooshing sound shattered the oppressive silence as a sharp arrow shot straight toward the groom's chest like lightning.

The coachman's eyes widened in terror, his body instinctively trying to dodge, but it was too late.

With a "thud," the arrow pierced deep into flesh, and blood gushed out instantly, staining his clothes red.

The coachman screamed, his body jolted violently, and he fell headfirst off the carriage, crashing heavily onto the snow, splashing up a cloud of bloody snowflakes.

The carriage suddenly went out of control. The horses panicked, raised their heads and let out a shrill neigh, kicking wildly and dragging the carriage around recklessly.

The wheels slipped in the mud, making a screeching sound, and the car shook violently, as if it were about to fall apart at any moment.

The surrounding snow was churned up by the horses' hooves and wheels, turning the once pristine white snow into a muddy mess, like a tarnished painting.

"What happened?"

Hearing the noise, Shen Huaixu sensed something was wrong and hurriedly lifted the curtain to look outside.

The coachman's body lay to one side, his blood staining the surrounding snow a horrifying sight.

Before he could react, "whoosh—" another arrow shot out, grazing the edge of the carriage and getting stuck hard in the wheel.

The carriage instantly lost its balance, making a dull thud before overturning to the side.

Shen Huaixu was violently thrown out, his body arcing through the air before crashing heavily to the ground.

He felt a sharp pain throughout his body, and his vision blurred with stars, as if the whole world was spinning.

He gritted his teeth and struggled to get up from the ground, only to find that a group of masked men in black had surrounded him.

They held swords and knives, their blades gleaming coldly, and approached him step by step.

Shen Huaixu immediately became alert, his body tensed up instinctively, and his hands clenched into fists.

He quickly scanned his surroundings, trying to find any possible escape route, but the men in black had already surrounded him, leaving him with almost no chance of escape.

He could feel the murderous aura emanating from them, cold and bone-chilling.

Mountain bandits?

A guess flashed through Shen Huaixu's mind, and his eyes were fixed on the leader of the men in black.

The other person was tall, and only a pair of cold eyes were visible under the black veil covering his face, revealing cruelty and ruthlessness.

The man slowly raised his long sword, the tip pointing directly at Shen Huaixu, and sneered, "Lord Shen, your luck isn't so good."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!