"who?"
Shen Jintang felt a chill run down her spine, turned around abruptly, and strode quickly toward the direction in which she had just noticed the strangeness.
However, when she reached the corner, there was no one in front of her, only a cold wind howling past, swirling a few snowflakes in the air.
Am I overthinking things?
She frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.
After a moment, she seemed to remember something, shook her head helplessly, a bitter smile appeared on her lips, and turned to walk towards the government office in the west of the city.
"Master." As soon as he stepped into the government office, Xinghui greeted him with a worried expression.
Shen Jintang's heart sank, and he listened intently.
“It’s an epidemic.” Xinghui’s voice was low and urgent.
Shen Jintang thought to herself, "Just as I expected."
After the flood came the epidemic.
She quickly calmed down and ordered in a firm and composed tone: "Seal off the west side of the city. No one is allowed to enter or leave. Separate the infected from the uninfected. Gather all the doctors and increase manpower. We must bring the situation under control."
The soldiers brought by Shi Shu obeyed Shen Jintang's orders without hesitation and acted swiftly, quickly sealing off the west side of the city.
Xinghui and the doctors worked day and night, diagnosing and treating patients, caring for them, and prescribing medicine. They were extremely busy.
The people in the western part of the city who had not yet contracted the disease, upon learning of the plague's arrival, dared not linger and began clamoring to flee the area.
The troops brought by Shi Shu were in a state of chaos, and Shen Jintang was even busier than usual, running around every day dealing with all sorts of complicated matters, so busy that he barely had time to breathe.
It was seven days later that Shen Jintang managed to calm the refugees down.
During these seven days, Shen Jintang could only eat a few bites of dry food in the first rays of the morning sun before throwing himself back into his busy work.
She personally oversaw the construction of the quarantine area to ensure that everyone infected could be properly accommodated.
Only after the isolation zone was set up did Shen Jintang finally breathe a sigh of relief.
She dragged her tired body back to the temporarily cleaned room and almost immediately fell asleep.
The exhaustion of the past few days overwhelmed her like a tidal wave; her eyelids felt as heavy as if they weighed a ton, and her consciousness was swallowed up by darkness in an instant.
The room was silent, with only her soft breathing echoing in the air.
Sunlight streamed sparsely through the window, like golden shards, falling on Shen Jintang, but failing to wake her from her slumber.
She remained motionless, as if the whole world had nothing to do with her at this moment, with only her weary body silently telling the story of the hardships she had endured.
After a moment, a soft creak was heard, and the door was gently pushed open.
The scraping sound of the door hinges was particularly clear in the quiet room, and a ray of sunlight was brought in as the door opened, illuminating a small patch of floor near the entrance.
A tall figure slowly approached Shen Jintang, each step seemingly suppressing some inner impulse, the footsteps so light they were almost inaudible.
The figure drew closer, blocking the sunlight that was falling on Shen Jintang, and the room instantly darkened.
Shen Jintang's long eyelashes trembled slightly, as if she subconsciously sensed this sudden change.
Her breathing remained steady, but her slightly trembling eyelashes revealed a hint of vulnerability, as if she were having a bad dream.
Gu Zhixing stood by the bed, his gaze as gentle as water falling on Shen Jintang's face.
Her face was already thin, and the fatigue of this period of time made her look even thinner, with slightly sunken cheeks and chapped lips.
Seeing her like this, Gu Zhixing felt an indescribable pang of sorrow.
He stretched out his hand, his fingers lingered in mid-air for a moment, but ultimately did not fall.
He was afraid that once he touched her, he would be unable to resist pulling her into his arms and never letting go.
But Gu Zhixing's gaze lingered on her face for a single second, greedily and affectionately fixed upon her.
He longed to appear before her when she was lucid, to tell her that he had always been by her side, and that he missed her terribly.
But he dared not. He was afraid that if Shen Jintang said a word to him, even just a syllable, he would lose control and want to take her away from here, away from this dangerous place.
But he also knew that he was not yet capable enough to let her do whatever she wanted in Kyoto, and he could not give her the life she desired.
But he just couldn't stop himself from wanting to see her, even if it was just for a glance.
Just seeing him once could offer him a sliver of solace during this long wait, giving him something to look forward to.
He remembered that when he arrived in Yanzhou, it was the third day of the Lunar New Year.
That should have been a day for family reunion, but he was like a rat in a gutter, hiding in the shadows, silently watching Shen Jintang's every move.
He saw her eating, talking, and working with Shen Huaixu, so earnest and engaged.
When he saw that scene, his heart felt like it was being ripped apart; he felt extremely distressed.
Because Shen Jintang would never stand on the same side as him so earnestly, she would never tell him the truth, and would always keep it from him.
But she made no secrets from others, and even in order to save Shen Huaixu, she did not hide the fact that she knew martial arts.
He desperately wanted Shen Jintang to be completely open with him. He was willing to do anything for her, so why couldn't she just trust him this once?
He stood there, tilted his head slightly back, exhaled a breath of stale air, and closed his eyes.
In an instant, his heart was filled with helplessness and pain, as if he were tightly bound by some invisible force and unable to break free.
A moment later, he opened his eyes again, tiptoed to the bedside, and carefully covered Shen Jintang with a blanket, afraid of disturbing her sleep.
Then he stood aside, gazing at her quietly, his eyes filled with tenderness and longing.
After an unknown amount of time, Shen Jintang's eyelashes trembled slightly again.
Gu Zhixing's heart tightened suddenly; he knew that Shen Jintang was about to wake up.
He took one last, lingering look at her, his eyes filled with reluctance.
Gu Zhixing withdrew from the room before Shen Jintang opened her eyes.
"Has the medicine and troop strength not been arranged yet?" Gu Zhixing's handsome brows were tightly furrowed as he glanced at Chongyang.
Given the current situation in Yanzhou, the surrounding states must have been the first to hear the news. How could there be no reaction at all?
During this time, he instructed his guards to secretly help Shen Jintang build the quarantine zone, but manpower was limited and the help they could provide was also limited.
"My lord, I've already sent someone to take care of it."
Chongyang was filled with sorrow and secretly contacted the governors of various prefectures and counties. If the emperor found out, it would be suspected of forming cliques for personal gain!
However, he knew his master's temper, and there was no way to persuade him; he could only do as he was told.
Under normal circumstances, nothing will go wrong. No one would be so foolish as to talk nonsense. Besides, even if something does happen, Her Highness the Princess will take responsibility.
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