Chapter 63 Plague Strikes
Wen Ning tensed her back suddenly as if she had been scalded.
Xibao's cry of "sleepy" was still lingering in the air as she struggled out of the man's arms using her hands and feet.
Xie Jinglan was much calmer, but his eyes held some unfulfilled emotions, as well as helplessness towards the brat.
Xibao rubbed his eyes with his little hands, and his little face was red from sleep.
He stood there in a daze, obviously not fully awake yet.
Judging from his appearance, he probably didn't see anything.
Wen Ning breathed a sigh of relief quietly, and tucked the scattered hair behind her ears with her fingertips, the remaining warmth on her face still lingering.
She softened her voice, squatted down and held Xibao in her arms.
"Mother is here."
Holding Xibao's warm little butt in her palm, Wen Ning dared to turn her head to look over at the armchair.
"I'll take him back to his room and put him to sleep first," she whispered.
Xie Jinglan's gaze was lingering on her, but he could only nod helplessly.
The sound of Wen Ning's footsteps holding Xi Bao gradually faded away, and the warmth on Xie Jinglan's face slowly faded.
"Qing Feng."
He spoke in a deep voice, his tone already cold and clear.
The sound of clothes scraping against blue bricks could be heard immediately in the corridor.
As soon as Qing Feng stood firm, he bowed and said, "I'm here."
"Order the secret guards to investigate two people. One is Zhang Zhenghe, a sacrificial servant of the Imperial Hospital, and the other is Ning'er's master Cai Huichun."
The man paused his fingertips on the table and said, "See if the two have handled anything unusual, such as poison."
"yes."
Qing Feng was about to leave when he heard his master add, "Also, send a message to the provincial government. There are signs of an epidemic in Yu County. While it hasn't spread yet, it needs to be monitored immediately. Have them supervise the Yu County government and implement strict prevention and control measures to prevent further damage."
"yes."
Seeing his master waving his hand, Qing Feng accepted the order and retreated.
Wen Ning had just coaxed Xibao to sleep and was tucking in the corner of the quilt for him by the bed.
The moonlight slanted down onto her figure through the carved window lattice, outlining her slender waist like a jade carving.
She slowly straightened up, but suddenly felt a warm sensation on the back of her neck, startling her so much that she almost cried out.
The man's breath, wrapped in the coolness of bamboo dew, drifted over, wrapped around the thinnest part of her waist, and pulled her into his arms with irresistible force.
"Why don't you come look for me?" His slender fingers stopped at the woman's waist, and his fingertips with thin calluses gently rubbed the soft flesh.
Wen Ning shrank her waist and couldn't help but tremble, "Xibao, Xibao just fell asleep."
She had only been gone for a quarter of an hour, but Xie Jinglan felt like she had been gone for a very long time.
Finally, I couldn't wait to find her.
Xie Jinglan grabbed her wrist, flipped his palm and turned her around.
Just as he was about to lean over and kiss her, Wen Ning struggled in his arms.
"No, no, if you wake him up, I'll have to coax him again."
She knew how difficult it was to coax a child to sleep, and she was even more unwilling to do that kind of thing next to the child.
The man glanced at the little girl sleeping soundly on the couch, and his sword-like brows frowned almost imperceptibly.
The night they had together was short, but this little brat wanted to take up most of it.
Xie Jinglan suddenly turned around, pinched the soft waist in his hands and carried the person to the table by the window.
"Ah!" Wen Ning cried out in shock, but the sound was swallowed back as soon as it came out.
Xie Jinglan leaned one knee against the edge of the table and slowly untied the jade belt around his waist.
He leaned over and brushed his nose against her frightened lips. "Do you want to continue coaxing the child, or coax me first?"
Wen Ning was secretly annoyed. This man was really hateful. He had clearly calculated that she was taking care of the child and didn't even dare to speak loudly.
"Put me down, or the candlestick on the table will fall."
Her lips were sealed before she could finish her words, and Xie Jinglan deliberately pushed the table leg with his knee.
The candle flame swayed violently, and Wen Ning could only punch his shoulder with her fist in anger.
The texture beneath the brocade was as hard as stone, but hitting the shoulder with a pink fist felt like tickling.
The man laughed softly in his throat, and finally let go of the soft lips that had been sucked until they were bright red. He asked in a hoarse voice, "Do you want to do it here?"
His voice was filled with unfinished passion, and his fingertips were still lingering on her slightly swollen lips.
Wen Ning panted, her porcelain-white face flushed to a rouge color, but she couldn't do anything to him. She could only glare at him in anger and annoyance, "Go, go to your bed!"
The smile in Xie Jinglan's eyes deepened. He curled his lips, picked up the person, and walked slowly towards the inner room.
Outside the window, the shadows of bamboos danced, outlining the undulating shapes on the hibiscus tent.
The scent was soft and lingering, and this time it really lasted a very long time.
…
For several days, the patients in the village suffered from high fever and rashes, but strangely, no one's symptoms worsened.
Wen Ning stayed here like a shallow embankment, temporarily preventing the spread of the disease.
But this short-lived peace was as light as a feather in the face of the panic in Liancheng and even most of Yuezhou.
The red throat and pox epidemic has spread like wildfire and can no longer be suppressed.
The medicines in the pharmacy were sold out, and people were crowded outside the clinic, with cries and shouts from morning to night.
That day, the prefect and the magistrate of Yu County staggered to the door.
Before he could even open his mouth, he fell to the ground and apologized, "I was stupid and didn't listen to your warning, sir. I thought it was just a common pox, which led to this disaster..."
Xie Jinglan's eyes were like blades, piercing the two of them.
"How dare you! You're pretending to be rude to me, falsely claiming to have taken epidemic prevention measures, but in reality you're just shirking your responsibilities! Do you think the lives of the people are worthless, or that my words are unworthy of attention?"
When the two heard this, their faces turned pale and cold sweat broke out on their foreheads.
Xie Jinglan banged his knuckles on the table, his voice colder than ever. "How dare you gamble with the lives of the people of this state? Then I will also gamble today. I will bet on whether your heads can still be safely attached to your necks before the imperial edict arrives!"
The county magistrate knelt twice and kowtowed heavily, "I admit my guilt! I was foolish! I trusted the doctor wrongly, thinking it was just a common pox, and I was relieved for a moment..."
Xie Jinglan sneered at this, "You wrongly trusted the medical officer? You didn't wrongly trust the medical officer, but you didn't want to trust a woman! It's because she's a woman, so you feel that if you believe her, it will undermine your official authority!"
The prefect and the county magistrate trembled with their backs, and all their words of defense were stuck in their throats.
They don't just disbelieve it.
When they first heard that the Marquis had trusted a country woman, they secretly sneered:
It's ridiculous that a dignified marquis was bewitched by a country woman!
Now that the epidemic is raging and corpses are piling up like mountains in the government office, we realize that a disaster is imminent.
The prefect was sweating profusely, but he didn't bother to wipe it off.
"My Lord! I know I was wrong! I beg you to show me mercy, Miss Wen. Miss Wen can help the patients in the manor, so she must have a way to save the people of Yuezhou! I beg you to let Miss Wen help. As long as we can overcome this difficulty, I will leave you at your disposal!"
Xie Jinglan knew that this matter was of great importance. If he allowed Wen Ning to come to the stage to treat the epidemic and the epidemic could be subsided, that would be a good thing.
But if it doesn't work, I'm afraid it will harm her.
Glancing at the two people lying on the ground, Xie Jinglan said in a deep voice, "I will keep your heads in mind for now! But the epidemic is no small matter. Miss Wen can assist, but the decision-making is still up to you. I will take care of the rest!"
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