The conspiracy in Sichuan and Chongqing is now clear.
The proprietress smiled even more and said, "Your words are as sweet as honey, so of course I'd love to talk to you more."
Mu Ming asked directly, "Sister, are you aware of the plague in Sichuan and Chongqing?"
Upon hearing this, the proprietress paused for a moment and said, "Why are you asking about Sichuan, sister? The plague there has been going on for who knows how long, and no one dares to go there anymore."
Upon hearing this, Qi Wenzhe immediately glanced at Mu Ming, who explained, "I mainly heard someone mentioning it on the road, talking about Sichuan and Chongqing, and the plague, so I came to ask my sister."
After hearing this, the proprietress sat down and said, "Sister, to be honest, the plague in Sichuan has been going on for several months, and the imperial court has not made any move. Moreover, I suspect that this plague is not coming out of the ordinary."
Qi Wenzhe said, "Oh? What's wrong with it?"
The proprietress whispered, "I heard that the plague started a few months ago after the army entered the city."
Upon hearing this, Qi Hui's expression changed almost imperceptibly for a moment, then he quietly looked at her, waiting for her to continue.
Ji Shao asked in confusion, "An army? How could there be an army? Didn't the Emperor not send any troops to Bashu?"
The proprietress shrugged and said, "How would I know? Maybe they were transferred from somewhere else?"
Qi Wenzhe thought for a moment and asked, "What were they wearing?"
"Hmm... a coarse cloth tattered shirt," the proprietress said after thinking for a moment.
Mu Ming asked, "Then how did you know they were soldiers?"
The proprietress said, "Their ranks were orderly and their men were strong and sturdy. They were definitely not ordinary people. In addition, the soldiers guarding the city gate showed extra respect to their leader. I knew it at a glance."
...
Qi Wenzhe frowned.
The situation is a bit complicated. It's obvious who had the ability to train such a large army, but... why did they have to have a plague? And why did they conceal it? That's the only thing I can't figure out.
Seeing that no one spoke, Qi Hui smiled and asked, "Boss lady, how many people died in Sichuan and Chongqing?"
The proprietress thought about it carefully and said, "It seems like too much."
Mu Ming said, "If that's the case, then aren't all the people in the city dead?"
The proprietress smiled and said, "No, there are still many people. Some died at first, but then they stopped dying and just became sickly."
Ji Shao exclaimed in surprise, "How strange! He's just sickly now!"
The proprietress chimed in, "Yes, that's really something."
Qi Wenzhe suddenly said, "Let's eat first."
Upon hearing this, the proprietress stood up, understanding, and said, "Please enjoy your meal, sir."
Mu Ming smiled and said, "Sister, you can go ahead and get busy."
The proprietress glanced at her and then left.
After the meal, Qi Wenzhe said, "I want to go out and see if there is any way to cure the plague."
Qi Hui said, "Go ahead, this young master should go and rest."
...
Mu Ming stood in front of Qi Hui's door.
This guy actually took advantage of Qi Wenzhe's absence to order me around. I'd like to see what he's up to.
She knocked on the door and said, "Young Master, what is it?"
"Come in," Qi Hui said from inside.
After hearing this, Mu Ming pushed open the door and saw Qi Hui sitting in the bathtub taking a bath. Although Mu Ming was a little embarrassed, he obediently went in and closed the door.
She said calmly, "Young Master, what is it? You don't mean to make me watch you bathe, do you?"
Qi Hui slowly looked at her and said, "Serve this young master as he bathes and changes his clothes."
Mu Ming looked at him quietly, and after a short while, she sighed and finally gave in.
After helping Qi Hui get dressed, she waved her hand and said, "It's nothing, I'm leaving now."
Seeing that she was about to open the door and leave, Qi Hui quickly stepped forward and pinned her against the wall in his arms, even though Mu Ming was just facing away from him.
Qi Hui whispered in Mu Ming's ear, "Actually... a personal maid can also be a young mistress."
At this moment, Mu Ming was stunned. The meaning of the sentence was not difficult to understand, and she was not slow to realize it. This was Qi Hui's intention.
Mu Ming bit his lip, opened the door and left, leaving behind only the words, "Young Master is joking."
On the street, Qi Wenzhe walked and looked around. He saw a weapons shop and went in as if possessed. There were many good swords inside, but what attracted him the most was not the swords, but the miniature sword in the rectangular box next to it.
Qi Wenzhe asked in confusion, "What is this?"
The shop owner immediately smiled and said, "This is a sword pendant, used to decorate a sword."
After hearing this, Qi Wenzhe looked at the sword pendants with great interest.
Seeing this, the shopkeeper sensibly picked up a blue sword pendant and introduced it, "Young master, please look, this sword pendant is entirely blue, exquisite and small, and you can even have words engraved on it."
Upon hearing that it could be engraved, Qi Wenzhe smiled and said, "Then I'll take this sword pendant, but I'll have to trouble you to engrave something for me."
The shop owner smiled and asked, "What words do you want engraved? It will only take me fifteen minutes."
Qi Wenzhe said, "Qing, the Qing of being pure and flawless."
Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper replied knowingly, "Young master, is this a gift for your wife?"
Qi Wenzhe blushed slightly and said, "We... are not married yet."
The shopkeeper began skillfully engraving words on the sword pendant, saying as he did so, "Since you are so kind to your future bride, we must be getting married soon."
Upon hearing this, Qi Wenzhe immediately pictured the dashing woman in the blue dress who had her back to him but turned around and smiled, saying, "Wait for me."
Qi Wenzhe snapped out of his daze, unable to suppress the smile on his face. The shopkeeper, seeing this, smiled, blew away the wood shavings from the sword pendant, and handed it to Qi Wenzhe with both hands, saying, "This old man would like to congratulate you in advance, young master."
Qi Wenzhe took the sword pendant with one hand and paid with the other, saying, "Thank you."
Qi Wenzhe carefully put the sword pendant into his bosom, then stepped outside. At the door, a passerby coughed violently and eventually fainted.
Upon seeing this, Qi Wenzhe immediately stepped forward to take his pulse.
This person has a fever, is weak and fatigued; this is an epidemic!
But how could there be a plague here?!
Qi Wenzhe couldn't worry about that right now, and besides, he had already come into contact with the patient; it was too late to take precautions now. He could only remind others.
A man saw the man fall and was about to rush forward to help when he heard Qi Wenzhe shout, "Run! This is a plague! Go home, lock the door, and don't come out!"
Upon hearing this, everyone disregarded whether they could save anyone and immediately scattered and fled, leaving the streets deserted in an instant!
Although Qi Wenzhe was stunned for a moment, he still sighed and carried the person on his back, walking step by step to the foot of the mountain in the suburbs.
He gently placed the person on the ground, and then lay down himself, exhausted, after being in direct contact with someone infected with the plague for so long.
Qi Wenzhe felt himself getting hotter and hotter, and his head was throbbing with pain. His consciousness was slowly becoming hazy, and just as his eyes were about to close, he seemed to see a woman dressed in green.
Qing'er, I... I'm afraid I won't be able to wait for you any longer.
In his sleep, Qi Wenzhe felt someone putting herbs into his mouth. He instinctively chewed them and swallowed them.
When he woke up, it was already night. Qi Wenzhe slowly sat up and took his pulse. Although the plague was still there, he no longer had a fever, as did the person next to him.
Only then did Qi Wenzhe remember the woman in green he had last seen. He quickly looked around and found no one there. He sighed, "...It must have been a dream."
Meanwhile, Mu Ming was quietly observing him from the shadows. Qi Wenzhe's hand touched something beside him, and when he picked it up, he saw it was the herb catnip!
The herb catnip can induce sweating, reduce fever, relieve headaches, and is very helpful in the fight against epidemics!
At this moment, Qi Wenzhe finally saw a glimmer of hope. He spent the entire night searching for medicinal herbs on the mountain, testing any useful ones on himself before giving them to patients.
The next day, Mu Ming and Qi Hui arrived at the foot of the mountain in the suburbs and found Qi Wenzhe lying there asleep, surrounded by the herbs he had picked.
Three days later, Qi Wenzhe woke up in bed and immediately asked, "What time is it?"
Mu Ming said slowly, "It's already noon. You've been sleeping for three days."
Upon hearing this, Qi Wenzhe said anxiously, "Plague! I..."
Mu Ming interrupted, "Young Master, the plague is rampant outside."
Qi Wenzhe was taken aback, then immediately got out of bed and walked outside, saying, "All members of the Imperial Medical Academy, listen to my command! Now follow me to prepare medicine to eliminate the plague!"
Although the members of the Imperial Medical Academy did not understand, they still obeyed the order and said, "Yes!"
He ordered everyone in the Imperial Medical Academy to bring out all the herbs they had brought, along with those from the city's traditional Chinese medicine clinic; this was enough to save the entire city.
Qi Hui asked, puzzled, "What is he trying to do? Is he giving up?"
Mu Ming calmly replied, "He's saving people."
Qi Hui was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say. Ji Shao stepped forward and said, "I should also do my part."
Qi Wenzhe looked at him and nodded, then read out: "3 qian of Schizonepeta tenuifolia, 5 qian of gypsum, 1 liang of Scrophularia ningpoensis, 3 qian of Trichosanthes kirilowii, 1 qian of raw licorice root, 2 qian of Scutellaria baicalensis, 1 qian of dried tangerine peel, 2 qian of malt, 3 qian of medicated leaven, and 5 qian of Poria cocos."
Following his instructions, the staff of the Imperial Medical Academy divided the herbs into several portions. Qi Wenzhe continued, "Now begin decocting them in water and administering three doses to each person."
Three days later, the plague was indeed resolved according to Qi Wenzhe's method. He said to Qi Hui, "Your Highness, now that the plague has been resolved, we should go to Sichuan and Chongqing. The people there are waiting for us."
Qi Hui smiled slightly after hearing this and said, "Of course, the sooner we resolve this, the sooner we can return to the capital. Soon it will be the day when my elder sister and younger sister return to the capital in triumph."
Qi Wenzhe said, "I will go and make preparations for the trip to Sichuan and Chongqing."
Qi Hui watched his retreating figure and smiled in a particularly sinister way.
Half a month later, in the Sichuan and Chongqing region, Qi Hui led the way and said, "Prince Qi Hui of Pingshou has come here on His Majesty's orders to resolve the plague!"
Upon hearing this, the soldiers behind the city gate immediately opened it. The streets inside the city were deserted, and the gate remained tightly shut. After the entire group had entered the city, the city gate slammed shut with a loud bang.
In an instant, a group of people appeared and held knives to their necks. Ji Shao immediately said, "Who goes there?! We are all officials appointed by the imperial court!"
Qi Wenzhe looked at Qi Hui, who was being ignored at the front, and immediately understood everything.
Why did he have to come to Sichuan? Why did Sichuan have to have a plague?
Only in this way could Qi Hui legitimately enter his territory.
Why did an epidemic suddenly break out in Jiangzhou?
Because there was no plague in Bashu at all; the real plague was the one that occurred when they arrived in Jiangzhou!
Why not go to Sichuan and Chongqing the first time?
Because Qi Hui was stalling for time, he had always wanted to force Qi Qing to become emperor. He needed the right timing, the right place, and the right people. He was waiting for the right opportunity, and that opportunity was the day when Qi Qing and Qi Ru returned to the capital in triumph!
This was a conspiracy from the very beginning!
Qi Wenzhe roared, "Prince Pingshou! Why?! Why did you do this?! Aren't you good enough as you are now?!"
Upon hearing this, Qi Hui laughed loudly, rubbing his forehead: "Hahaha, good? I'm just a joke in the palace! Father, Mother, my elder brother, and all those elder and younger sisters, do you think they've been good to me?!"
"They have never trusted me! Never! Even the palace maids dare to gossip about me in private!"
"I will sit on that supreme throne and make all those who look down on me pay the price!"
Ji Shao said, "Your Highness! His Majesty treats you like a brother! And..."
Qi Hui angrily said, "Shut up! I don't want to hear your nonsense!"
Upon hearing this, the subordinate sensibly gagged him with a cloth. Then Qi Hui said, "Someone! Send a letter to His Majesty, saying that Imperial Physician Qi has resolved the plague and is wondering when he can return to the capital. Imperial Physician Qi is waiting for someone!"
In mid-May, during the talent show, Li Xingyi was forced to come out. This talent show only selected a few people, and after the selection, Li Xingyi went back to hide.
Not long after, Qi Dou received the letter and laughed, "Hongxing, pass down the order that Qi Wenzhe has rendered meritorious service in treating the plague and I will reward him handsomely. Let them return to the capital immediately!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
