261. Kill without mercy
Shenyang Nong slapped his thigh hard, his face full of regret: "It's all my fault! It's all my fault for being too stubborn before. If only I had brought you the amulet earlier! I was always worried that the amulet would be contaminated with disease and would be bad for you. Now it seems that I almost ruined everything!"
He became increasingly remorseful as he spoke, his voice filled with lingering fear: "This talisman was delivered by a child named Lin Fuman, entrusted by the Princess of Fukang County. Lin Fuman braved the heavy snow all the way from the capital, and almost contracted the plague, just to bring this talisman and medicine to cure the plague. I didn't believe in her medicine before, but now that I think about it, I was really senile!"
"Did the county magistrate send it through someone?" Xie Wenling and Shenyang Nong were clearly paying attention to different people.
His gaze softened, and his originally cold eyes seemed to have been warmed by lukewarm water.
No wonder this amulet has such strange abilities; it turns out it's her.
She protected him once again, as if from the unseen realm.
“Yes,” Shenyang Nong nodded, his tone full of emotion, “Miss Lin also said that Princess Fukang is waiting for you to return to the capital. Your ability to wake up this time is thanks to Princess Fukang’s kindness and Miss Lin’s persistence.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than a commotion erupted outside, a mix of soldiers' shouts and civilians' clamor.
Xie Wenling frowned, threw back the covers, and was about to get out of bed when he asked, "What's going on outside?"
"Sir, you've just woken up and are still weak. You should rest a little longer!" Shen Yangong quickly stepped forward to stop him, but Xie Wenling gently pushed him away.
Although Xie Wenling's steps were still a little unsteady, he immediately prepared to get to work: "It's so chaotic outside, something urgent must have happened. I have to go and see."
He walked to the door and just as he lifted the curtain, he saw a soldier running over in a panic, his face pale.
When he saw Xie Wenling standing in front of him, he was first shocked, then as if he had found his pillar of support, he quickly reported: "It's bad! There's another riot! More and more refugees are entering the city, and many plague patients have taken advantage of the chaos to escape. Now everyone is saying that 'if you get the plague, you will be locked up and left to die,' and many people have started to rebel!"
Xie Wenling's face instantly turned cold: "Where is the magistrate? What is he doing?"
"It was all caused by the county magistrate! He tried to run away with his men again, but we stopped him. He then claimed that our efforts to control the plague were useless and that everyone would die in the end, and that running away was the only way to survive! The people panicked when they heard him!"
"They're courting death," Xie Wenling immediately ordered. "Send men to the county government office immediately and confine the magistrate inside. Without my order, he is not to step out of the county government office! Also, send two teams of men to search for the escaped plague patients. Anyone who resists or deliberately conceals their illness, along with the rest of the people, shall be killed without exception!"
"Kill them without mercy?!" Shenyang's farmers and soldiers were shocked.
Shenyang Nong quickly stepped forward to dissuade him: "Sir, you mustn't! Those patients were also incited. If we kill them directly, it will probably cause even greater panic, and then it will be even harder to control!"
"Panic?" Xie Wenling sneered. "If we don't kill them now, and they spread the plague to more people, the entire Qiuhe City will become a dead city. That's when it will truly be out of control!"
If they had given up on treatment and opted for a complete lockdown...
So he could understand if the patient ran away.
But now, apart from the incompetent magistrate and his gang, none of the people he brought have given up. They are all still fighting on the front lines, doing their best to save everyone.
They did not harm the patients, did not abandon the patients, and the patients had no reason to run away.
They knew perfectly well that their escape would only cause the plague to spread, making things increasingly out of control and leading to the deaths of more innocent people.
Therefore, he could neither understand nor forgive the patient's escape.
Xie Wenling looked at the soldiers, his tone leaving no room for argument: "I'll say it again, just kill them! Gather them at the city gate, kill them, and then burn their bodies, so everyone knows what will happen to them! Go!"
The soldiers were intimidated by Xie Wenling's imposing manner and dared not argue further. They quickly obeyed the order and ran out.
Shen Yangong wanted to say something more, but Xie Wenling stopped him with a look: "Imperial Physician Shen, I know you are soft-hearted, but now is not the time to be soft-hearted. The situation in Qiuhe City can no longer be delayed. Only by using severe measures can we suppress these people and save more lives."
Looking at Xie Wenling's almost ruthless gaze, Shenyang Nong sighed inwardly, but finally nodded.
He knew Xie Wenling was right; Qiuhe City was like a powder keg about to explode, and only a strong approach could suppress this chaotic momentum.
Xie Wenling then turned to the guard beside him and instructed, "Go and inform all the merchants in the city that anyone who takes the opportunity to raise prices or hoard grain and medicine will have all their property confiscated and will be given fifty strokes of the cane. Let them know what the rules are!"
The guards obeyed and left, and Xie Wenling leaned against the door frame, coughing softly a few times.
His anger had taken a toll on his body, and his face had turned even paler.
"Sir, why don't you go back to your room and rest for a while? We'll keep an eye on things here," Shenyang Nong suggested, looking at his weak appearance.
“No need,” Xie Wenling shook his head. “I have to stay here and watch over things until the city is in order. The county magistrate is waiting for me to return, and the people of Qiuhe City are waiting for me too. I can’t fall.”
Several sharp screams rang out in the distance, followed by a gradual fading of the chaotic noise.
Not long after, the soldier from before ran back to report: "Sir! The plague patients who escaped have been caught and killed, and their bodies have been burned. After seeing this, the people in the city dared not cause any more trouble, and the merchants have started selling their goods normally again!"
Xie Wenling nodded, his expression completely calm.
Shenyang Nong watched this scene from the sidelines, his heart filled with mixed emotions.
Although Lord Xie is young, he possesses a calmness and decisiveness far beyond his peers. His act of killing one to warn a hundred, though cruel, truly brought order to the chaotic situation.
only……
Will this be criticized?
Xie Wenling leaned against the doorframe, watching the streets gradually return to order in the distance. He lowered his head, took out a handkerchief, poured the ashes of the amulet into it, and carefully wrapped it up.
-
Meanwhile, in the quarantine camp at this moment...
Lin Fuman was leaning against the window organizing her belongings when she suddenly heard several shrill screams from afar, followed by a commotion among the crowd.
Her heart tightened, and she quickly went to the crack in the window to look outside.
Several soldiers were seen escorting a group of sickly-looking people toward the city gate. The people had sallow complexions and were clearly infected with the plague.
Lin Fuman saw the little boy who had maliciously infected her with the plague; he was still crying out, "I don't want to die! I really don't want to die! I won't do it again, I won't run away again!"
The soldiers replied coldly—
"No one wants to die, and those who have been infected by you don't want to die either!"
"If you keep running away, who will believe you?"
"Yes, even if Lord Xie didn't give the order, we couldn't tolerate you anymore. Qiuhe City is in such chaos right now, and you've done a lot of work to help!"
"Lord Xie, this order is excellent. We are not people who are soft-hearted."
The next second, a flash of cold light appeared, and with a dull thud as they fell to the ground, those people were instantly killed.
A large fire broke out, and the cold wind carried the smell of burning food, making Lin Fuman shiver involuntarily.
"It's too cruel..." She covered her mouth, her eyes filled with shock and fear.
She knew the chaos needed to be stopped, but how could she just kill the patients?
Seeing wave after wave of people being killed and burned filled her with terror.
Even if you really have to kill, killing a few leaders would be enough, why kill them all?
The thought that this was an order given by Xie Wenling, who had just woken up, made her feel even worse towards Xie Wenling. She even began to regret that she had gone to such lengths to save such a demon.
The Xie brother whom Little Moon cared about was actually such a cold-blooded person...
"Cough cough cough... Ugh..." Lin Fuman suddenly felt a sharp pain in her throat, followed by a violent cough. Her chest felt tight as if a stone was pressing on it. She bent over and coughed for a long time before spitting out a mouthful of bloody phlegm.
She raised her hand to touch her forehead, and the burning temperature confirmed that she had been infected.
She wasn't too flustered; instead, she immediately realized this was a good opportunity.
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