Chapter 140 Epidemic City

The two of them chatted and laughed, as if they had met again after a long time, or as if they had met for the first time.

On the way to the inn, they have to pass through an alley called Xinghua Lane, which is a commercial street in a residential area. Shi Yuan and Liu Wei originally planned to go shopping there together.

But now there is only myself and Jisong beside me.

The two turned a corner, and the wheelchair rolled over the gravel road and waded through puddles.

Jikong's movements paused for a moment.

There seemed to be some discordant notes mixed into the noisy sound of rain in my ears.

Liu Wei looked at him blankly and asked, "Little Master, what's wrong?"

Ji Kong's lips were trembling, and his hands tightly grasped the wheelchair's handle. He paused for a while before finally speaking in a hoarse voice: "Let's go another way."

The person lying in the middle of the road suddenly groaned, causing the person in the wheelchair to turn around like a frightened bird and look for him: "What's wrong? What's wrong!"

In the alleys of this Jiangnan water town, between the blue brick and stone tile buildings, there were rows and rows of stretchers placed in a disorderly manner. There were rolls of straw mats, pieces of cloth, and wooden frames. On the stretchers of various shapes and colors, there were patients lying on their backs, coughing in pain!

The crowd was so dense that the alley could not bear it. Various people were piled up at the entrances of Xinglin Alley. The person who kept walking among them seemed to be the doctor in Xinglin Hall. He had a white cloth covering his mouth and ordered his disciples with a solemn face to bring the people he pointed out into the hall.

It is hard not to think of something in this scene.

Jikong is also a man who has seen the world, and he was able to instantly connect the cause and effect of the city lockdown.

——A serious disease has appeared in Songcheng.

"Let's take another route." Jikong whispered, pushing the wheelchair back, trying to take a longer route and ignore the noisy and chaotic sounds behind him.

But just after they walked out a few steps, they saw several yamen runners wearing masks suddenly appear in front of them. The leader was obviously startled: "How did you get in!"

Then he turned his head and glared at his subordinates beside him in annoyance: "Who let them in!"

Jikong was obviously a little flustered. He quickly pushed his wheelchair forward and said softly, "This young monk and this female donor entered here by mistake."

But the leading yamen runner had no intention of listening to their explanation and just ordered, "They can't go out!"

Jikong's Adam's apple rolled nervously: "Wait, I misunderstood, I am a Buddhist..."

A few redwood sticks were thrown in front of him, completely blocking his way, and Ji Kong leaned back slightly.

The guards all looked grim: "Excuse me, you two! Please come with us!"

"What, what happened!" Liuwei said in panic at the right moment.

Jikong's face was filled with guilt.

How can I tell this to a friend I just met, that he pushed her home and put them both in prison?

***

There was a knock on the closed door.

Jikong's tense body relaxed. He was still not used to staying in the same room with people outside the temple.

He quickly stood up and walked forward, opening the door with both hands.

The visitor bowed and said, "Please Master Jikong, please save Songcheng!"

"Save Songcheng?"

Both of them were shocked when they heard this!

The visitor was the magistrate of Songcheng County. Just as Liuwei remembered, he was a reformist in the court of Nanzhou. In other words, he came from the elementary school founded by Shen Cuo and was a talent reserved for the young emperor.

But now, he probably couldn't remember that the national master who discovered them from the bottom of society had made a mistake.

Liuwei looked at the magistrate of Songcheng County secretly. The magistrate was wearing a wrinkled official uniform, his eyes were full of bloodshot, and his beard had not been shaved for several days. He looked embarrassed and anxious.

The county magistrate glanced at Liuwei and continued to explain the current situation in Songcheng.

Songcheng has been under lockdown for more than six or seven days, all because a horrific disease that no one has ever seen before has appeared in Songcheng.

The disease first causes a slight cough, and then some small blisters will appear on the body. This calm period basically lasts for four or five days, and then the whole body will be covered with small tumor-like bumps, including the face and hands. When crushed, a yellow-green pus will appear. It is said that this horrible thing will grow not only on the surface of the skin, but also inside the skin and around the internal organs.

At the same time, the coughing will become more severe and the person will no longer be able to move. The intense pain will torture the whole person and make him unable to move. He can only groan until he dies. The time of death varies according to the individual's will and quality. Some people may die quickly and some may die slowly, but without exception, they will never die peacefully.

The county magistrate widened his red eyes and said, "Master! If I am not mistaken, there must be an evil ghost causing trouble in Songcheng! I only ask the master to find out the evil ghost and bring peace to Songcheng!"

"In just ten days, nearly a thousand people have died. If this continues, Songcheng will be in danger! Today I will officially seal off the city! No one is allowed to enter or leave! I will deploy the city defense forces to manage it!"

Ji Kong was startled to see the county magistrate rushing towards him and grasping his hand tightly, almost deforming it. The county magistrate still exuded the stench of Xinghua Lane.

"Master, I know the rules of your Buddhist sect. As long as you get rid of this evil ghost, Songcheng will never let you down!" The county magistrate hinted, "Songcheng is located on a strategic road. The customs duties paid by merchants traveling here have reached astronomical figures. This year, Songcheng's taxes have not yet been paid."

"ghost……"

Jikong was a little dazed.

"That's right! Ghosts!" The county magistrate confirmed, "There were no signs! There are so many people involved! What other possibilities are there except those man-eating evil ghosts! Mage! Mage..."

The county magistrate grabbed Jikong's hands and said, "You are the only one I have left. You are the only one who can save Songcheng!"

Jikong nodded: "Okay, I will do my best to get rid of the evil ghosts in the county!"

"Okay, okay! I'll leave everything to the Master!"

The county magistrate's eyes filled with tears.

The county magistrate came to see Jikong in person only because he was a famous master in Nanzhou, the saint of Buddhism, who could exorcise evil. However, Liuwei was just a weak ordinary person who had accidentally entered the closed epidemic area. The county magistrate could not let her go, and he didn't know what to do for a while.

Jikong frowned and thought about it, but he seemed to be at a loss and caught in a dilemma.

Liuwei smiled and said, "My young master is going to save the people of Songcheng. How can I delay? I'll ask the yamen runners to pass on a message to my family. As for where I'm going, I'm seriously ill and have been soaking in medicine jars for many years. Although I can't become a miracle doctor due to long-term illness, I can grind medicine and help out. If my young master is still worried..."

The blindfolded beauty sitting in the wheelchair paused for a moment, lowering her head. The light from outside fell on her fair skin, gleaming with a slight luster. "After you save Songcheng, please say 'I have lived up to your trust' to me. I will definitely wait for you here."

Jikong was stunned, clenching the Buddhist beads in his hands, his heart full of passionate emotions, which made it swell slightly. He suddenly felt as if something heavy was tying him down.

"Donor, I understand."

***

Inn.

The bailiffs were sent away.

Gu Dingbang sat back with a blank look on his face. "Epidemic? The saint of Buddhism? Ghosts? There's a cult chasing us! I even gave birth to a child! Damn, I feel like none of my life's experiences have been as rich as these ten short days."

"..." Shi Yuan shrugged: "This is normal."

"Is this normal?" Gu Dingbang raised his voice, took his child into his arms, and then turned to look at the escorts who were also in a daze: "This is their normal reaction, right?"

"It's nothing, after all..." Shi Yuan picked up his long stick: "With the passage of time, everything will pass and become a yellowed memory, no matter how much suffering there was, how many people died because of it, how many people united for this, even if it is a sin..."

Gu Dingbang sighed and said, "Sister Yuan, my greatest wish is to become a hero when I am young, grow old in glory, and then return to my hometown, become an old man who wanders around the village every day, guarding the one-third acre of land in the village, and then be buried there."

"Oh, Daddy! Me!"

The eager octopus didn't hear him for a long time, so he quickly raised his hands to remind him.

"Oh! And my child, even though it was an accident, I will raise him well and then watch him make his way in the world..." Gu Dingbang chattered.

"Speaking of the little octopus, there is indeed a big problem. I hope I am just being overthinking." Shi Yuan pursed his lips: "Jikong is searching for evil spirits everywhere, how can the little octopus hide? Now there is Liuwei in front, Jikong will not search here for a while, and the little octopus's own Yin Qi is also very light, but if he really can't find it, what should we do..."

Gu Dingbang caught the child who was thrown into the air. The child is now four or five years old and his growth rate has begun to slow down, but he has eight arms and three eyes, which can be fully seen by the naked eye. If Ji Kong sets his sights on the octopus, he will definitely be discovered, there is absolutely no doubt about that.

The little octopus was thrown up and laughed happily, with his mouth wide open, revealing his teeth. He looked very much like Gu Dingbang, and his whole body was as delicate as a piece of jade, but the hard outline of Gu Dingbang was weakened, and became softer instead. The soft lines matched with the impactful facial features made him look particularly good.

"Didn't the county magistrate say there was a ghost in Songcheng? As long as the ghost is found in time, it will be fine!" Gu Dingbang's voice was a little lucky: "If it doesn't work, we can sneak out and look for it together!"

"As long as the ghost is still in Songcheng, we must not let him escape!"

The octopus also raised a few hands to chime in: "Catch the ghost! Catch the ghost!"

Shi Yuan couldn't help but soften his expression: "Okay, Auntie, I won't let the little octopus be discovered."

"Oh, right, Liuwei hinted in his message just now that he left a disguise book in his bag, asking us to disguise ourselves so as not to be exposed in front of Jikong... I'll look for it!"

Shi Yuan's words were full of trust.

Upon hearing Shi Yuan's words, the escorts who were originally fidgeting were immediately overjoyed: "The leader left a letter! That's great! You are worthy of being the leader! He really thinks ten steps ahead!"

"Big sister! We will help you find it! The leader has a deep personality! The place where he hides must be very meaningful!"

Liuwei choked and coughed twice.

"Are...are you okay?"

The girl in front of him asked in fear, but she still came over and patted Liuwei's shoulder nervously.

The girl was the daughter of the county magistrate, and was specifically asked by the county magistrate to take care of Liuwei, who was blind. Jingwen almost held her breath, still holding the herbs in her hand, tightly grasping them: "No, are you okay?"

Liuwei quickly pointed to the teacup in his hand to Jingwen: "I choked on it accidentally."

"It's okay, I'm glad you're okay..." Jingwen breathed a sigh of relief, and there was obvious uneasiness in her expression.

Liuwei comforted her softly while trying to find out information in a subtle way.

Perhaps Jingwen was under too much pressure. She was thrown into the pharmacy to help out when she was only eight or nine years old. In this environment where the epidemic was rampant, everyone knew whose daughter she was and praised the county magistrate for his righteousness. Therefore, even if Jingwen was afraid, she did not dare to show it at all.

All her worries were weighed down in her heart. Even if the girl tried to force a smile, her eyes and brows revealed deep melancholy. She could try her best to hide it in front of ordinary people, but the people in front of her were blind and could not see her expression. Jingwen finally seemed to relax a little because of this.

She still had her mother at home. If her mother had not just given birth to her younger sister, her mother would have gone out with them to the epidemic area, wholeheartedly practicing the county magistrate's idea that the families of public officials should also serve the people. Therefore, most of the people in the epidemic area were families of people in the county government.

With simple work and gentle words, the girl gradually became close to Liuwei. After all, if nothing unexpected happens, they will stay together until Master Jikong eliminates the evil spirits in the city.

"I heard from my mother that the Buddhist disciples have profound skills. The evil ghost that is causing trouble in the city will definitely be captured by Master Jikong. Then, everyone will be fine." Jingwen had hope in her eyes.

Liuwei also nodded.

It can be said that Jikong's appearance gave people in the county government a shot in the arm.

"By the way, Sister Yuan, I saw you gave something to Xiaoshu before. What was it?" Jingwen became curious. Xiaoshu was also a little helper at the pharmacy. He had only a grandfather at home who guarded case files in the county government office. His grandfather helped to carry grain, and Xiaoshu helped to grind medicine powder in the pharmacy. Xiaoshu was usually quiet and taciturn.

It was really surprising that I received something from Liuwei today.

Thinking of the child who was coughing cautiously and looked tired, Liuwei paused and his smile slowly deepened.

She put down her tools and took out a bag of something wrapped in oil paper from her pocket. She leaned closer and whispered, "I don't know when I threw this candy into my clothes. It came with the bag that contained the clothes. I was so happy when I found it today. It's delicious. Jingwen, come and have some too. Don't let anyone else know."

sugar?

Jingwen wiped her hands, looked around at the people helping at other tables, quickly took one and put it in her mouth, then quickly covered it with candy. The sweet taste instantly burst out in her mouth.

Jingwen happily ground the medicine for a while, but soon, the careful Jingwen seemed to have caught some contradiction.

She got some clothes to change into today, and the candy arrived today, but she saw Xiaoshu talking to Sister Yuan yesterday...

Jingwen looked at Liuwei strangely, wondering, Sister Yuan...why did she lie?

What secrets could there be between Xiaoshu and her...

That bit of curiosity emerged like a green grass in the heavy and frightening work, tickling Jingwen's already strong curiosity as a child.

Feeling Jingwen turning her head frequently, Liuwei continued with his work as if he was unaware.

But behind the scenes, the smile on his lips gradually deepened.