"Thank you, sir!" Upon hearing this, Yun Zhourong and the others were overjoyed.
"Hey brother-in-law, we're out of food here, remember to bring some over!" Liu Pingkang said again.
"I understand, I'll find a way." Although the magistrate agreed, his expression was clearly serious.
Seeing this, Yun Zhourong and Ji Minxiu exchanged a glance. Given the current situation, they estimated that the county magistrate didn't have much grain left.
"Let's wait and see," Ji Minxiu said in a low voice.
"good."
Yun Zhourong nodded. With Ji Minxiu around, she felt quite at ease.
Lady Feng was escorted back to the post station. After she finished writing a letter to her master, she was assigned to empty the chamber pot.
"What? I'm not going! I'm not going!" Lady Feng shouted in protest.
"You don't have to go, then you can go hungry."
Liu Pingkang said with a disdainful look, "We don't support idlers here. If you want to eat, you'd better behave."
"I'd rather starve to death than go!" Lady Feng remained defiant.
"Fine, then let her go hungry. Men, lock her up, and don't give her any water or food!" Liu Pingkang immediately ordered his men to drag Lady Feng away.
"Even the county magistrate is wary of the person behind her. Aren't you afraid of retaliation?" Yun Zhourong said with some concern.
"Oh, doctor, you are so kind!"
Liu Pingkang concealed the murderous intent in his eyes and said with a smile, "You don't need to worry about that. Let's talk about the smallpox vaccination first."
"That's right. Smallpox is effective for people who haven't developed the disease, but it's ineffective for those who have. So we have to separate the villagers first."
After Yun Zhourong finished speaking, she suggested, "As I mentioned before, all the sick people should be sent to the post station for me to take care of. The others should be vaccinated against smallpox and then go home to isolate themselves."
"Alright, that's all we can do for now."
After saying that, Liu Pingkang stood up and clapped his hands. "Everyone, follow me. Now bring all the villagers here. Anyone who dares to resist, kill them."
"yes."
Soon, all the couriers and the guards escorting Yun Zhourong and his party also set off.
This post station was of standard size, with a standard staff of twelve.
Three were sick, leaving nine more, plus six constables, making a total of fifteen.
Although their numbers were not large, they were all carrying knives, which made them very intimidating to ordinary people.
Before long, all the villagers were gathered at the entrance of the post station.
“The female healer has been brought along; all the villagers have been brought, without exception,” Liu Pingkang said.
"Okay, thank you." Yun Zhourong nodded and began to distinguish the villagers.
Twelve more villagers fell ill.
Three of them had smallpox, and seven had fever and cough.
So far, a total of four people have developed smallpox, and they are probably the first to be infected. They were assigned to the dormitory-style dormitory.
The remaining ten people, including Da Niu and the two from the large dormitory, were sent to single rooms on the second floor.
Of course, these ten people were further separated into those with mild symptoms and those with severe symptoms, so that they could be observed at any time and to rule out the possibility of a common cold.
"It doesn't seem too serious yet," Liu Pingkang said.
"That's because there aren't many people who have fallen ill yet. Smallpox has an incubation period. If it's delayed for a few more days, many more people will fall ill."
After Yun Zhourong finished speaking, she led out the cow that had been vaccinated against smallpox and said to everyone, "The sooner we get vaccinated against smallpox, the sooner we will be able to fight against it. I hope everyone will cooperate."
"That's utter nonsense! Why get cowpox instead of regular smallpox vaccination?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a thin, middle-aged man with a short beard and triangular eyes stepped forward.
"It's Dr. Yang!"
Upon seeing him, the villagers instantly became excited, pleading, "Mr. Yang, please help us get vaccinated! We'll pay any price!"
After the village was set on fire, the villagers realized the government's attitude: they wanted them dead.
Nothing is more important than life; right now, all they want is to survive.
"The method of smallpox treatment is unreliable!" Yun Zhourong frowned.
Before this, she had never heard of smallpox inoculation, because it was not popular in the Dasheng Dynasty, and the methods used were smallpox clothing and smallpox pulp, both of which were highly toxic and had a very low success rate.
Of course, there are successes, but those are purely due to good luck.
She knew that Ji Minxiu had shown her the relevant information.
I never expected to actually encounter a smallpox specialist; there are still very few people doing this job.
"Hmph, those who die are just unlucky. Every disease carries risks, and who can guarantee that nothing will go wrong?" Dr. Yang said with an air of self-righteousness.
"You're talking nonsense. It's obvious that your method won't work. I can guarantee that, except in special circumstances, the vast majority of people will be fine with smallpox," Yun Zhourong retorted seriously.
"How dare you spout such arrogant words? I'd like to know how you inoculated people with smallpox?"
Upon hearing Yun Zhourong's words, Yang Doushi's eyes flashed with anger, but his face remained expressionless.
He thought to himself, "This cowpox vaccine is probably real. I absolutely cannot let that method be used, otherwise my method of variolation will no longer be profitable!"
“Simply make a cut on your arm and then get vaccinated with smallpox,” Yun Zhourong said.
"Hahaha, this is utterly ridiculous! Smallpox enters through the nostrils and travels through the air, which is the proper way; but your cowpox treatment creates wounds and travels through the blood, which is the heretical way!"
Upon hearing this, Dr. Yang excitedly shouted to the crowd.
"That's right, it must be a heretical practice. How can people be vaccinated with smallpox!"
"Exactly, what if it turns into a cow?"
"Yes, I've never heard of anyone surviving an animal disease, like rabies, which is a death sentence for humans."
"That's right, and besides, cowpox occurs in that area of cows, what if..."
"..."
When the other villagers heard this, they all objected, especially the women, who were worried that they would also get smallpox on their breasts.
Instantly, the scene descended into chaos.
Yun Zhourong was furious when she saw the villagers' strong reaction. She thought that the smallpox doctor was deliberately stirring up trouble and didn't want the villagers to get vaccinated!
"Enough! You all have to get vaccinated against smallpox, or you'll all die!" Liu Pingkang threatened the crowd with a cold voice, drawing his sword.
"I think you just want us dead!"
Yang Doushi was not afraid at all. He hid in the crowd and continued to shout, "You must be in cahoots with those government officials. When you saw that you couldn't kill us by burning us, you wanted to use this method to kill us!"
"That's right, we'd rather die than plant it!" The villagers shouted excitedly upon hearing this.
"How dare you spread such nonsense here! I'll grant your wish!" Liu Pingkang, a man of fiery temper, drew his sword and was about to slash at Yang Doushi.
What are you trying to do?!
Yang, the smallpox doctor, was instantly terrified and kept hiding behind the villagers, crying out, "Save me! If I die, no one will be able to get vaccinated, and everyone will die from the disease!"
"That's right, Dr. Yang cannot die!" Upon seeing this, the villagers immediately stepped in front of them.
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