Poisonous Shadow
"The Pharaoh's lungs have been corroded by snake venom, and he relies entirely on rare medicine to keep his heart alive. If he continues to exert his divine power, or if his rage overtakes him, I'm afraid... I'm afraid he won't survive more than a month."
The sound was as light as a mosquito, but it exploded in Ding Wei's ears like a thunder.
Her heart suddenly twitched, as if it was cut by an invisible sharp blade, and the pain made her fingertips cold.
However, her face did not reveal any emotion, but her eyes, as calm as an ancient well, suddenly became bottomless.
retreat?
Absolutely not.
At this moment, the morale of the army was high. Once the news of the Pharaoh's serious illness leaked out, not only would the army's morale collapse, but it would also give the Hittites an opportunity to advance straight in, and Thebes would be doomed.
She took a deep breath, suppressed the fishy-sweet taste in her throat, turned around and issued a series of calm, almost cruel orders to the chief craftsman behind her.
Within three days, an unprecedented "royal tent boat" rose from the ground.
It is like a mobile miniature palace, with a solid hull covered with a gorgeous royal tent, but the inside is a different world - on one side is a couch covered with soft linen, and on the other side are dozens of small pottery stoves specially used for making soups and medicines.
Ramses was helped onto the boat while coughing violently. The blood he coughed up dyed his silk handkerchief red, which was a shocking sight.
He tried to force himself to say something to the soldiers, but Ding Wei gently held his shoulders.
"The Pharaoh's divine power needs to be rested before the final battle." Her voice was not loud, but it was clearly heard throughout the entire dock.
"I will be at Pharaoh's side, handling daily military affairs on his behalf. All battle reports must be submitted to me first."
As night fell, the wind from the Nile River, carrying moisture, blew the curtains of the king's tent.
Ding Wei personally stood in front of the medicine furnace, mixing the bitter wormwood, spicy vinegar and sweet honey in a strange proportion.
The medicinal juice rolled in the clay pot, emitting a pungent and complex smell.
Whenever Ramses convulsed due to severe pain, she would use her warm hands soaked in medicated oil to massage his acupoints with a unique rhythm and strength, helping him to expel the toxins in his lungs bit by bit.
She also issued a death order that no bad news should be heard by Pharaoh.
The fighting on the front line is in full swing.
Seti lived up to everyone's expectations. Like an awakened lion, he first rushed into the enemy camp with dozens of "fire boats" loaded with tar and hay. Overnight, he burned the floating bridge that the Hittites were proud of and cut off the enemy's supplies.
Then, he ordered his soldiers to dig all night and build temporary barriers with countless huge sandbags, which perfectly restrained the enemy's rampaging chariots and cavalry.
Victory news came in frequently, three important border towns were recaptured one after another, and the Egyptian flag was flying over the city again.
However, the joy of victory did not last long.
A strange "epidemic" spread in the army without any warning.
The infected soldiers initially suffered from high fever, then began to talk nonsense, and finally fell into a coma. All the medical officers in the army were helpless.
The news was strictly blocked and only reported to Ding Wei.
She personally changed into casual clothes and entered the quarantine camp wearing a veil.
Looking at the soldiers struggling in pain, she keenly sensed that something was wrong.
Their symptoms were not a plague, but more like some kind of mass poisoning.
She immediately ordered a thorough investigation of the water source, and found that everything was normal.
"If it's not water, then it's food." Ding Wei's eyes were as cold as ice.
She went straight to the cooking camp, where chaos was raging.
She casually picked up a piece of freshly baked dry food cake, put it to her nose and sniffed it. A very faint, almost imperceptible fragrance penetrated her nostrils.
Her brain was working rapidly, and she instantly remembered a record she had seen in the ancient books of the temple - "Dream Scorpion Powder".
A powder extracted from the tail gland of a desert scorpion. It is colorless and odorless. Once heated, it will evaporate into a hallucinogenic poisonous gas. Inhaling a small amount can cause mental confusion, while a large amount will directly attack the heart meridian.
"Pass the order down!" Ding Wei's voice was firm.
"All dry rations are destroyed! From today on, steamed rice in sealed clay pots. Before distributing food, every soldier must test it for poison using the silver spoon they are issued!"
Silverware will turn black instantly when it comes into contact with "Dream Scorpion Powder".
With the order, the panic quickly subsided, and several Hittite spies who had infiltrated the kitchen camp were indeed found.
Within three days, no new patients appeared in the army. A crisis that could have overturned the course of the war was resolved by her without making a fuss.
Just as Ding Wei stabilized the front line, undercurrents surged behind Thebes.
Deep in the dungeon, the high priest Amenhotep had been fasting for seven days.
He was emaciated and dying, as if he would take his last breath at any moment.
Seeing that he was doomed to die, the temple guards gradually relaxed their vigilance.
Just as a guard was feeding him water, a terrifying light suddenly burst out from Amenhotep's cloudy eyes!
He suddenly opened his mouth, and a thin needle hidden between his teeth, which was soaked in poison, shot out like a venomous snake and hit the guard's neck.
The guard fell to the ground with a thud before he could even scream.
Amenhotep snatched the key, but did not escape from the temple. Instead, he sneaked into a forbidden secret room like a ghost.
He lit the "Green Fire Altar" which was said to be able to communicate directly with the gods. The dark green flames reflected his crazy and distorted face.
He cut his hand and used his blood to write a crooked curse on the wall: "The god Amon has abandoned this city! Only by offering the blood and sweat of the co-ruling princess can the god's wrath be appeased!"
The forged "oracle" spread throughout Thebes overnight.
The people's awe and superstition were instantly ignited, turning into fear and hatred of the "evil concubine".
Countless people gathered in front of the palace. They shouted loudly, demanding that Ding Wei be handed over so that their blood could be used to sacrifice to the gods and appease their wrath.
When the news reached the front line, all the generals were horrified.
After listening to Hathor's secret report, Ding Wei showed a sneer on her face.
It turns out this is his backup plan.
Unfortunately, he thought he was in the dark, but he didn't know that his every move had already fallen into the chessboard set by Ding Wei.
The seemingly honest guard in the dungeon was her man.
"Don't panic." Ding Wei calmed everyone down and whispered a few words to Hathor.
That night, the basement of the palace was quietly opened.
A wax figure that was extremely similar to Ding Wei in figure and appearance was carried out, and the craftsmen dressed it in a gorgeous princess dress and exquisite jewelry.
At midnight, the palace gates were opened, and the wax figure was placed on a luxurious sedan chair and carried out by temple priests.
A mournful voice announced to the people outside the palace: "The princess is compassionate and cannot bear the suffering of the people of Thebes. She voluntarily goes to the temple and sacrifices herself to atone for her sins!"
The enthusiastic crowd was instantly boiling with excitement!
They surrounded the sedan chair as if welcoming a grand festival, and marched towards the temple square in a mighty procession.
In the center of the square, the blue fire altar was burning fiercely. Amenhotep was wearing the robes of the high priest and holding an obsidian dagger, ready to preside over this bloody "sacrifice".
Just as he raised the dagger and was about to stab the "Princess" in the heart, countless torches suddenly lit up, illuminating the entire square like daylight!
The elite palace guards led by Seti came like divine soldiers from heaven, surrounding Amenhotep and his loyal followers from all directions, and their cold blades were instantly placed on the necks of Amenhotep and his loyal followers.
The crowd fell into dead silence.
Amenhotep watched in horror as the "dingwei" on the sedan chair slowly melted in the firelight, revealing the wax inside.
At this time, a figure slowly appeared on the terrace at the highest point of the temple.
Ding Wei was dressed in military uniform, with her long hair tied up. Her eyes were as sharp as an eagle as she looked down at the frightened people below.
"He deceives people and forges oracles. This is the high priest you believe in!" Her voice, blessed by divine power, was clearly heard by everyone.
"What you want is not God, but chaos! And I will not let anyone trample on order with faith!"
In the royal tent, after Ramses finished listening to the report of the whole process, a long-lost smile finally appeared on his pale face.
He forced himself to sit up, and under the concerned gaze of the generals, he ordered someone to bring a heavy golden box.
He opened the golden box in public, and inside lay a scepter made entirely of gold and lapis lazuli.
The top of the staff is a blooming lotus, and on the body of the staff, two closely related names are engraved in ancient hieroglyphics - "Nefertari Uther".
"Nefertari means 'the most beautiful one'; Uther means 'my glory'." Although Ramses' voice was weak, it was full of unquestionable majesty.
He personally handed the princess's scepter, which represented supreme glory and power, to Ding Wei.
"From this day forward, she is not only Egypt's co-ruler, but also the sole queen of Upper and Lower Egypt. Her status is equal to that of the pharaoh, and she has the same power over life and death as the pharaoh!"
As soon as he finished speaking, all the soldiers inside and outside the boat, including Seti, knelt on one knee, their right hands touching their chests. A roar like a tsunami resounded through the sky: "As you command, my Pharaoh! As you command, my princess!"
Ding Wei held the scepter in her hand, feeling mixed emotions.
However, at this peak of glory, a burst of hurried horse hooves sounded from afar, and a messenger rushed onto the deck, bringing bad news that was enough to make the whole of Egypt tremble.
"Report! The three dams upstream of the Nile River, Asyut, Sohag, and Qena... have been blown up! A devastating flood is sweeping downstream! Over twenty villages downstream may be completely flooded within a few days!"
In an instant, all the cheers and glory froze.
Ramses was out of breath and almost fainted again.
Ding Wei rushed to the military map as soon as possible. Her eyes passed over the villages that were about to be flooded and the fertile river valley, and were fixed on an area upstream on the map that was marked in red and almost no one dared to set foot in.
The terrain of that area surprisingly overlaps with the outline of a forbidden area recorded in the ancient book "Ra's Left Eye".
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