Chapter 43 The Outbreak
Li's father, who had scrambled back to Qin Tao's side in a panic, was immediately greeted with Qin Tao's warm concern.
"Ouch, why did you hit so hard?"
"Quick, Gui-ge, hold the torch closer so I can get a good look."
Qin Tao's performance was so heartbreaking. She carefully moistened a strip of cloth with water and wiped the blood from the wound that Li's father had inflicted by his grandmother's blow.
Li's father just sat there while Qin Tao wiped his wounds. He was truly heartbroken, and he really didn't expect that Li's grandmother would be so cruel as to hit him!
It should be noted that even when Grandfather Li was alive, he had high hopes for his eldest son.
Even if he had studied for many years without achieving anything, his grandfather was still willing to work to support all his school expenses.
Even though Li Wangming was much younger than him and had already passed the imperial examination, he still had no official title and his grandfather had never given him any bad treatment.
When Shi Tou discovered his affair with Qin Tao, and Li's mother divorced him that night, the two slaps Li's grandmother gave him were just for show; they didn't hurt at all.
Grandma Li probably couldn't bear to hit him.
But tonight, as Li's father sat there, feeling the pain in his forehead and recalling the words of Li's grandmother's accusations, he was truly heartbroken.
Li's father, who hadn't shed a tear while acting and wailing, suddenly burst into tears of heartache!
Qin Tao looked at the tears falling on Li's father's face with some surprise. She waved to Li Shigui, who then left with a torch, leaving Qin Tao and Li's father sitting there alone.
Qin Tao spoke slowly: "How can a mother and son hold a grudge overnight?"
"Wangguang, don't worry. Once we talk things out, things will definitely be alright."
As she said this, Qin Tao reached out to shake Li's father's hand.
Li's father remained motionless. He did not return Qin Tao's hand, but only looked up at Qin Tao. Without the firelight, and with the moonlight in the sky, he could not see her clearly. At this moment, there was no more grief in Li's father's eyes. Instead, he thought of what Qin Tao had done to him in the past few days.
What has Qin Tao been doing these past few days?
In fact, ever since the day Li's father returned from the prefectural city with a medicine packet and maltose, Qin Tao, who immediately took the medicine packet and maltose from Li's father, noticed that Li's father was different.
Yes, the moment Qin Tao got close to Li's father, she smelled the cheap perfume on him.
Qin Tao was a woman who loved to dress up. Before Li Wangtian was taken away by the soldiers to serve in the army, she was someone who would go to the county town to shop for cosmetics whenever she had the chance.
So how could she not know that Li's father had such a distinct scent on him as soon as he returned?
However, Qin Tao's strength lies in the fact that even if she knew, she wouldn't say it to his face. After all, all those words of love and affection she uttered to Li's father were just empty words. How could she possibly truly like Li's father?
However, Qin Tao felt somewhat uncomfortable about it.
That's human nature. Qin Tao didn't think she was wrong for what she did, but if the father of Li, whom she had seduced, was the same, she couldn't accept it.
Therefore, starting from that night, Qin Tao began serving rice separately to Li's father when cooking, and even the chopsticks used by Li's father were placed separately.
Mr. Li was a very shrewd man, so he noticed Qin Tao's actions immediately. At first, he thought he was overthinking it, but after observing her closely for the next few days, he realized that Qin Tao was showing her disdain for him!
How could someone as proud and arrogant as Li's father accept Qin Tao's disdain?
When I love you, you are "Little Peach";
When someone dislikes you, you become a "scheming woman".
Therefore, at this moment, when Li's father saw Qin Tao holding his hand, he felt a surge of hatred towards Qin Tao.
Meanwhile, Li Shiyue and Li Shiyang had been talking face to face for quite a while.
"...A flushed face, fever, red eyes, and a sore throat are all symptoms that indicate that the person is indeed ill."
Li Shiyue said this to Li Youfu, then turned to look at Li Shiyang: "Furthermore, Brother Shiyang, there are also several people in other families in our village who are like this."
Li Shiyue's words were like adding insult to injury. On their way here, two people had actually died in the village yesterday, both elderly people surnamed Li.
At the time, we thought that the old man was weak and had finally succumbed to his illness after more than a month of hardship.
So they simply dug a pit in the mountains and buried the person wrapped in a mat.
Looking at the two who were deep in thought, Li Shiyue organized her thoughts and then spoke again: "Grandpa Fu, Brother Shiyang, when we were in the prefectural city, did we see what those refugees outside the city looked like?"
They were so poorly clothed that they were practically cannibalistic due to extreme hunger.
At first, they might only dare to eat the dead, but what happened later?
Li Shiyang remained silent, but Li Youfu exclaimed in surprise, "Could it be that they...?"
Li Shiyue nodded to Li Youfu before continuing, "Otherwise, why would the people in the city shoot rockets into the crowd?"
There was certainly a shortage of food, but even if it wasn't enough, it should be enough to last for a while, since it was a prefectural city after all.
Even if there is a plague, seeking medical treatment and medicine is what the prefect should do; treating the sick and saving lives is what the prefect should do.
Something must have gone wrong that we are unaware of, which led the prefect to close the city gates and fire fire arrows at the refugees.
"It's Prince Jing'an! Prince Jing'an has rebelled!"
After saying this, Li Shiyang seemed to have revealed something, and his face visibly relaxed a lot. He then said, "I looked at the past official gazettes in the bookstore and found that troops were being mobilized to quell the bandits. But the capital is protected by the Imperial Guards. Why would the Prince of Jing'an need to mobilize troops to suppress the bandits?"
Li Youfu was so shocked by Li Shiyang's news that he almost fell to the ground. He jumped up with a thud, pointed a finger at Li Shiyang, and demanded, "You... why didn't you say so sooner! You... you..."
After hearing the news, Li Shiyang felt much more relaxed. He looked at Li Youfu, who had stood up, and replied with a helpless bitter smile, "Grandpa, what should I say? Who should I tell?"
Now that we've finished talking, what can we do?
We still have to flee to Dengzhou, don't we?
We'd better get to Dengzhou sooner; perhaps Mr. Chen will still be in Dongmu Port then, and we can truly escape this desolate place and find a way to survive.
"What should we do? How...how could this happen?"
Li Youfu kept repeating these two sentences. He turned around and said anxiously to Li Wangren behind him, "Quick, go and call Third Uncle and the others over. They need to know about this."
Li Wangren jogged off to find his third, fifth, and eighth great-uncles not far away. When Li Shiyue saw Li Wangming's back, she turned around and met Li Shiyang's gaze.
Yes, the affair between Li Wangren and Qin Tao was actually a secret between Li Shiyue and Li Shiyang.
Turning her gaze away, Li Shiyue finally said what she mainly wanted to say tonight: "That makes sense."
The prefect is already in dire straits himself, how can he possibly manage the refugees outside the city?
Only when the dust settles in Kyoto can Kyoto reissue imperial edicts to the various prefectures.
Therefore, the simplest way to deal with this plague is to address the problem at its source by eliminating the disease among the infected people.
But what do we do?
What will happen to those in our village who get sick?
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