Moreover, it is a highly contagious disease. Given the current medical and sanitary conditions, if this disease were to appear, it would pose a risk of annihilating a city.
If those in power do not take precautions, it will be a catastrophe. They won't even have to wait for the Wuhuan people to move south; within half a year, the entire Wuchuan will be a ghost town!
Moreover, based on Lu Tu's medical knowledge, the allicin he already possessed could not cure smallpox; the only solution at present might be to kill him.
Lu Tu asked solemnly, "Have you told Wu Tianzhong's family that his daughter-in-law's illness is contagious?"
“I told them, I also made them sprinkle quicklime and sulfur everywhere, because my master had witnessed the horror of smallpox in the south, where thousands of people in the whole town died.”
It seems Zhang Miao is not a quack doctor; he is indeed quite skilled, or at least knowledgeable. This makes things much easier.
Lu Tu took out 100 taels of silver from his pocket: "Doctor Zhang, please help me purchase a large quantity of lime. It is a matter of great importance, and I must go to the Commandant's Office."
Zhang Miao naturally understood Lü Tu's meaning and nodded repeatedly: "Yes, sir, I understand."
Liu Hu followed naturally, but was stopped by Lü Tu: "Later, when Doctor Zhang comes back with the lime, you hire someone to send half of it back to the village and have them sprinkle lime on the places where people often go out and the outhouses."
Seeing Lü Tu's solemn expression, Liu Hu knew the seriousness of the situation and nodded, saying, "Yes, sir!"
Lu Tu went outside, brought Xiao Hei, and headed straight for the Commandant's Mansion. He told the guards at the gate to report, "Quickly inform Lord Yun that I have something extremely urgent to report."
After waiting for a while without any guards coming out, Lü Tu became impatient and handed his warhorse to the guard next to him: "Keep an eye on this horse for me."
"Yes, Captain."
Just as Lü Tu was about to enter the Commandant's residence, the guard who had come to announce his arrival came out and explained, "Lord Lü, the Commandant is not here. Is there any military intelligence you wish to report to Lord Yun? You can tell me, and I will pass it on to Lord Yun."
Upon hearing this, Lü Tu flew into a rage. Even though he and Yun Tian had fallen out over the Wang family, he had just said that it was an extremely urgent matter.
Does this mean Yun Tian is destined for failure and will never amount to anything?
Lu Tu sneered inwardly, but put on a relieved expression: "Since that's the case, there's no need to trouble you, sir. It was just a small matter anyway."
After saying that, Lü Tu turned and left. Since Yun Tian was putting on airs and throwing a tantrum, then he wouldn't be so ruthless as to ignore him.
Anyway, the smallpox outbreak originated in Wuchuan City, so it wouldn't matter to him if the city was littered with corpses.
However, Lu Tu still remembered the precious gifts Wang Miaoling had given him, so it wasn't unreasonable for him to inform her.
After turning his horse around and arriving at the Wang family's residence, the maids and servants of the Wang family all recognized Lü Tu after the last incident. Upon seeing Lü Tu, they immediately smiled and took the initiative to greet him.
"Greetings, Lord Lü!"
Lu Tu handed the horse to the servant: "Is your young lady at home?"
"Lord Lü, please rest in the main hall. I will go and inform him immediately."
"good!"
The difference between the two was enormous. At the Commandant's Mansion, Lü Tu couldn't even get through the door, but at the Wang family's house, as soon as Lü Tu sat down, pastries and tea were served.
Lu Tu didn't stand on ceremony. He hadn't been full from the previous bowl of noodles, so this was a good opportunity to fill his stomach. He quickly finished the plate of pastries.
The maids beside him, seeing Lü Tu eating with relish, smirked timidly, but Lü Tu didn't care at all.
Two more plates of pastries were brought to Lü Tu. Lü Tu took out the gauze that Song Yuxi had given him from his pocket, just in case Lü Tu got hurt, so that it could be used to bandage him in time.
Lu Tu carefully packed the two plates of pastries, intending to take them back for Song Yuxi and Nangong Huiyu to eat.
Wang Miaoling happened to see this scene. She was surprised to see that Lu Tu, as a military officer, was willing to put aside his pride and pack the snacks so that his wife could have a taste.
Lu Tu had just tucked the pastries into his pocket when he looked up and bumped right into Wang Miaoling. Without feeling embarrassed at all, he smiled and said, "Miss Wang, your pastries are really delicious. Do you mind if I take some back with me?"
Wang Miaoling shook her head: "I don't mind. Lord Lü always cares about his wife at home, which is truly enviable."
Upon hearing this, the maids beside him finally understood the logic behind it. They looked at Lü Tu with embarrassed expressions. They had all previously misunderstood Lü Tu as a glutton and never imagined that he would do this for his wife.
They are all women, so why can't they meet such good men?
"Lord Lü, what brings you here today?"
Lu Tu glanced at the maid beside him, and Wang Miaoling waved her hand to signal her to leave, leaving only her personal maid Cuiguo behind: "My lord, please speak freely."
"Miss Wang, have you ever heard of smallpox?"
"Smallpox?" Wang Miaoling frowned deeply, as if she was trying to think.
After a moment, he nodded: "I once overheard my mother chatting on a business trip. She said that decades ago, the Wuhuan people threw the corpses of smallpox patients into Wuchuan City, which caused a severe plague that killed many people."
Now that Wang Miaoling understands the seriousness of the situation, it's much easier to explain.
Lu Tu took a sip of tea, pressed the pastry down, and said in a deep voice, "Wu Zhongtian's daughter-in-law died of smallpox. Doctor Zhang Miao told me that."
"What!?" Wang Miaoling and Cuiguo exclaimed in unison, then stood up and paced anxiously.
"My lord, do you have any preventative measures in place?"
Lu Tu shook his head slightly: "That stuff is fatal once you get infected, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. But you can use quicklime to kill the plague. Have someone sprinkle it all over the house and try to minimize contact with outsiders."
After Wang Miaoling whispered a few instructions to Cuiguo, Cuiguo ran out.
He then smiled bitterly at Lü Tu and said, "Quicklime is easy to obtain, but my Wang family are merchants. How can we close our doors and stop dealing with people?"
Lu Tu sighed: "Which is more important, money or life? You decide for yourself. But once this smallpox outbreak is complete, don't count on anyone else. I just got turned away by Yun Tian. Judging from his attitude, he won't care."
"Thank you for your guidance, Lord Lü. On behalf of the entire Wang family of over a hundred people, I thank you."
Lu Tu stood up and nodded: "You're welcome, thank you for the pastries, they were indeed delicious." After saying that, Lu Tu strode away from the Wang family.
He came here to offer a reminder. He himself had been thinking about ways to treat smallpox all along the way. Did he really have to create penicillin?
That stuff is really too difficult to handle. If you don't do it right, it can grow into aflatoxin, which kills people faster than smallpox!
But for now, he can only try and see. If smallpox breaks out completely, their Kuishan Village will not be spared either. Not to mention how many people will die. In addition, Lu Tu's own two children are about to be born. This matter is really extremely troublesome!
If successful, it would be a great achievement for generations to come, a feat that would be recorded in the family genealogy and a temple dedicated to its merits. Which Chinese man could resist such a temptation?
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