Chapter 504 Perfect Solution (First Update)

"That won't do!" Gu Changqing refused without even thinking.

He had experienced firsthand how terrible plagues could be; almost every disaster or war was followed by an outbreak of disease, the only difference being the severity and urgency.

Some epidemics can be contained in time if they are detected early and controlled effectively; however, deaths and injuries are still unavoidable.

He wouldn't allow her to put herself in danger.

"I'm a doctor, I'll be fine," Gu Jiao said, taking out a small medicine box from her small basket, putting on gloves and goggles, and then putting on an isolation gown.

When Gu Changqing saw her take out so many strange things from a small medicine box, he was at a loss for words.

"you……"

He opened his mouth.

Gu Jiao fastened the last two straps on her isolation gown and said to Gu Changqing, "With these, I'm not afraid of getting infected!"

Logically, protective suits should be the most effective, but there were no protective suits in the first-aid kit, only surgical gowns, and only one of them appeared, which was her size.

No one can change Gu Jiao's decisions. Even if Gu Changqing questions him about killing someone, Gu Jiao will still go with him unless he puts her here with acupuncture. But if the soldiers of the former dynasty return, she will be in danger if she is left here alone with acupuncture.

After much deliberation, Gu Changqing had no choice but to agree to let her go.

Gu Jiao didn't bring her red-tasseled spear, so she drew the dagger from her waist.

Gu Changqing handed her his dagger: "Use this."

This dagger is longer and sharper than Gu Jiao's dagger.

"Okay." Gu Jiao didn't refuse.

"Leave the door open," Gu Changqing said.

"Mm," Gu Jiao replied.

See? She's obedient most of the time.

Gu Jiao, carrying a dagger, arrived at the door of the assassin's house and knocked.

The footsteps came from the direction of the wooden bridge. The assassin thought they were soldiers from the remnants of the previous dynasty, so he opened the door.

The moment the door opened, the assassin sensed something was wrong. He slammed the door shut, but it was too late. Gu Jiao braced herself against the door and thrust her dagger straight at the assassin's waist and abdomen!

The assassin closed the door as a conditioned reflex, and immediately regretted it afterwards. Why did he close the door? He should have just killed him!

However, the opportunity was fleeting. If he attacked Gu Jiao directly, Gu Jiao might not succeed.

Gu Jiao's slash was swift, ruthless, and precise, giving the assassin no chance to breathe.

She pulled the knife out, and blood splattered all over her!

The assassin fell straight to the ground, not understanding how he had died.

When Gu Changqing saw that the blood of the assassin had splattered all over Gu Jiao, he quickly stood up from behind the bushes and strode towards Gu Jiao.

Gu Jiao gestured for him to stop, saying, "I'm fine, don't come any closer!"

These are all infected bloodstains.

Gu Changqing stopped on the bridge, looking at her with concern.

Gu Jiao dragged the assassin into the small wooden hut, where firewood was burning. Gu Jiao originally planned to burn the body along with the hut, but after hesitating for a moment, she changed her mind.

She searched the house but couldn't find a shovel, so she knocked on the door of the next room.

But the people inside didn't dare to open the door at all.

She then tried several other cabins, but without exception, no one opened the door for her.

"Is it because I didn't speak? Do they not know who I am, or do they think I am someone else?" Gu Jiao was hesitating whether to speak when the door of the small wooden house at the far east end opened.

The young man, who had just tried to escape but was brutally injured by the assassins, limped out.

The young man looked curiously at Gu Jiao, who was dressed strangely, and then at the corpse lying in a pool of blood in front of the assassin's room. He recognized it as the assassin's body.

He was stunned.

Gu Jiao simply walked over to him and asked, "Do you have a shovel?"

The young man was taken aback again. A girl?!

This...this is a girl!

"Do you have a shovel?" Gu Jiao asked again.

"Ah, yes, yes, yes, you... young lady... uh..." The young man didn't know how to address her and stammered, "Do you want a shovel?"

Gu Jiao: "Yes."

The young man turned to grab a shovel, but perhaps due to his nervousness and panic, he crashed into the door, making him dizzy and seeing stars.

After he entered the room, Gu Jiao heard the deliberately hushed conversation coming from inside.

Who's here?

"I don't know him, but he's probably not one of Prince Yi's men."

Prince Yi, the leader of the remnants of the previous dynasty, is said to be the prince consort's uncle.

"You're insane! They won't let us talk to anyone outside, and they won't let us open the door for anyone outside, or they'll kill us!"

"What difference is there between us being here and waiting to die? Besides, she killed that person, she must have come to help us!"

"How do you know that!"

"I don't care, I'm going to escape!"

After saying that, the young man came out with a shovel.

He handed the shovel to Gu Jiao: "Here you go."

Just as Gu Jiao was about to reach for it, he remembered something, immediately pulled the shovel back, took a step back, and said to Gu Jiao, "We are people who have contracted the plague. Be careful not to get infected."

"I know." Gu Jiao stepped forward and took the shovel from his hand. "Thanks."

"Hey—" The young man wanted to say something, but Gu Jiao had already turned and left.

Gu Jiao dug a hole behind the village. When she was halfway through, the young man came over and said, "Do you want to dig a hole? I'll help you."

"No need," Gu Jiao said.

Despite being rejected, the young man still took another shovel and slid into the pit.

Gu Jiao glanced at him but didn't say anything more.

Two people are much faster than one person, and in no time a large pit was dug. Gu Jiao jumped on it and pulled him up as well.

The young man hesitated at first, but seeing that she was wearing gloves, it seemed that this did not count as physical contact, so he handed his hand to Gu Jiao.

Gu Jiao dragged the body of the assassin over, threw it into the pit along with firewood, and set it on fire.

The young man swallowed hard, a mixture of fear and curiosity in his eyes, and asked, "Did you really kill him?"

He had said that to his roommate to appease him, but deep down he found it hard to believe.

That's a real expert!

"Mmm," Gu Jiao hummed in agreement.

The young man asked in confusion, "Who are you? Why did you kill him? Were your relatives also captured by them?"

At this point, he scratched his head and said sheepishly, "Ah, did I ask too many questions? You didn't have to say anything! You killed him, you're a good person!"

Gu Jiao's expression didn't change much. She asked, "Who are the people locked up here?"

The young man said, "There are all kinds of people, from peddlers to gentry."

Gu Jiao asked, "Not a villager living here?"

The young man said regretfully, "The villagers here were killed by them long ago. We were all captured later. Our families were also captured by them. If we don't obey, they will torture our families, or send our families here to die."

Gu Jiao looked at him: "And you? Why didn't you listen?"

"I have no family." The young man's mood plummeted. His family was all dead, killed by the remnants of the previous dynasty.

I see.

Gu Jiao paused for a moment and said, "Those soldiers only come to deliver food every day, do they do anything else? For example, do they check you or something?"

The young man shook his head: "No, they wouldn't dare come close. You're the first one. Seriously, aren't you afraid of getting infected? Or... have you already been infected?"

"I wasn't infected," Gu Jiao said.

The young man hurriedly said, "Then you'd better leave here quickly! They'll be bringing dinner in a little over an hour. If they find you here and that you killed one of their men, they won't let you off the hook!"

Gu Jiao: "What's your name?"

The young man said, "My name is Shen Xuan, and my parents call me Little Stone."

Gu Jiao stared at him intently: "Little Stone, can I trust you?"

...

An hour after leaving Lingguan City, Gu Changqing and Gu Jiao found the grove where they had previously hidden their horses and led them out.

"Are you really alright?" Gu Changqing asked.

He was asking about her health.

Gu Jiao misunderstood, thinking he was worried about the situation in the village.

She said, "The soldiers would leave the food box and leave without ever checking if the people inside were still there. When delivering breakfast, the assassin would knock on his own door, which was a signal that he was still alive. As long as the soldiers knew he was still alive, they wouldn't question the situation in the village. Little Stone moved into the assassin's house, and from then on, he would knock on the door every day."

Gu Changqing then asked, "What about the others? Will they betray him?"

Gu Jiao said, "If they wanted to save themselves and their families, they wouldn't."

She promised to save their families and left enough medicine so that they would not die from the plague as long as they took it diligently and on time.

In addition, Gu Jiao also told them that the Gu family army had arrived at the border, and the young master of the Gu family army was standing on the wooden bridge.

The imperial court did not abandon the territory of Zhao, nor did it abandon the people on the border.

Gu Changqing was deeply moved; his sister was indeed very capable.

"How long will the treatment take?" Gu Changqing asked.

“Seven to ten days,” Gu Jiao said. “He will carefully consider the escape route in the next few days. If the city is attacked, notify him in advance, and he will lead the people in the village to escape. He will not escape to crowded places, as he understands the contagiousness of the plague.”

Gu Changqing pondered for a moment and said, "In that case, there will be no worries."

The original plan was to attack Lingguan City first. Lingguan City has a special geographical location, forming a pincer movement with Yuegu City and Ye City. After capturing it, attacking Ye City would be a two-pronged attack.

Of course, when attacking Lingguan City, it is easy to be attacked from both sides by the remnants of the previous dynasty and the Chen army in Ye City.

Gu Changqing was not afraid of the enemy forces from the two cities joining forces. He had already found out their troop strength: 30,000 troops guarding Lingguan City and 30,000 troops guarding Ye City, while the Gu family army had 100,000. Even if they attacked the Gu family army from both sides, he was not afraid.

Beiyang City is on the other side of Ye City. As long as they act quickly enough, the enemy forces in Beiyang City won't be able to get there in time.

"It seems like Beiyang City is getting reinforcements," Gu Jiao said.

"Is there such a thing?" Gu Changqing frowned slightly.

Gu Jiao nodded: "Yes, that's what Xiao Shitou said. When he was taken to the prefect's mansion, he overheard a conversation between the prince consort and a general from the Chen Kingdom."

The State of Chen originally had 80,000 troops stationed on the border. After hearing that 100,000 Gu family troops were marching towards the border, Prince Bo also dispatched 100,000 troops from various parts of Chen.

The Chen army, with 20,000 of its 80,000 troops already lost, plus the remaining 30,000 troops of the previous dynasty, still has 90,000 troops left. As long as there is no outbreak of plague, the Gu family army should have little trouble dealing with these 90,000 men.

But if Chen's 100,000 reinforcements had arrived, the story would have been quite different.

Gu Changqing nodded: "From this perspective, the 30,000 troops in Beiyang City are not such a big threat."

The 100,000 reinforcements on the way are the real deal.

Gu Jiao said, "But if we can always outnumber the enemy, we can minimize the casualties of the Gu family army. In that case, even if the Chen Kingdom's reinforcements arrive, we might still have a chance of winning."

Gu Changqing: Why do I suddenly feel that bullying the weak with the many is a good thing?

What Gu Jiao didn't say was that, rather than figuring out how to deal with Chen's 100,000 reinforcements, she wanted to find out as soon as possible the former dynasty's assassin hiding in the shadows.

Without the plague incident, Gu Changqing wouldn't have gone to look for medicine. So, when would that assassin find an opportunity to attack Gu Changqing?

The two returned to Moon City together, and after entering the city, they went to the military camp first.

As soon as they arrived at the gate of the military camp, the two saw Prefect Cheng, who looked very excited.

Prefect Cheng was covered in snowflakes, indicating that it had snowed in Yuegu City after they left, and that Prefect Cheng had been waiting in the snow all along.

"General Gu! Doctor Gu!"

When Prefect Cheng saw Gu Changqing and Gu Jiao, his eyes lit up, and he greeted them with a cupped hand.

He already knew Gu Chengfeng and Gu Jiao's identities and was extremely grateful that he hadn't offended them.

Gu Changqing looked at him and asked calmly, "Is there something you need?"

"ah……"

The slightly serious tone made Prefect Cheng's heart skip a beat. He suddenly realized that Gu Changqing was questioning him about why he had abandoned his post and appeared here.

The ancient city of Yuegu has just finished a battle, and there are still many things to take care of. As the governor of Yuegu, he should be dealing with the resettlement of the people.

"I just came from the soup kitchen." He couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. Fortunately, he had indeed been braving the wind and snow to provide relief to the disaster victims all afternoon. "I'm here to report the situation to General Gu."

"It's cold outside, come inside first." Gu Changqing lifted the tent curtain and let Gu Jiao into the tent, his tone gentle, completely different from the serious General Gu just now.

After Gu Jiao went inside, Gu Changqing's tone became indifferent again: "You don't need to report your own duties to me."

"Ah...yes! Yes!"

General Gu's mood changes faster than turning the pages of a book.

Prefect Cheng muttered to himself, but smiled awkwardly and said, "I have something else to report to General Gu."

"What is it?" Gu Changqing asked.

"The old Marquis has woken up!" Magistrate Cheng said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)