Henan Provincial Government, a county town severely affected by the plague.

"I have already said that if Master wants to help those poor families, I will not stop you. This is a good deed that will accumulate merit."

"But Master, our family has so little wealth, can't you keep some for yourself? Regardless of how I feel, the eldest and second brothers all depend on you for food."

"There are so many servants in our courtyard. The master can only take care of the lives of other families, but not his own family."

"Now we are honored to have His Majesty King Yu pay attention to those of us who are suffering from the plague and send us a solution."

"But our family is so poor now that we can't even afford to buy lime."

"The plague outside is so serious. Other people have lime at home, but we don't. Will the plague come to our house?"

"Master! If this plague comes to our house, how will we survive!!!"

The noble lady in linen clothes bowed her head on the table and cried continuously.

Seeing this, Song Lichang remained silent and said nothing.

Seeing his wife crying, Song Lichang finally couldn't help it. He slammed the teacup on the table and shouted, "Enough!"

It suddenly became quiet.

"What do you know, woman? The government has already issued a notice that lime is free. Even if you are rich, what can you do? Can the Wang family next door give him more?"

After Song Lichang scolded, he explained.

Hearing this, the woman argued, "Master, how could he tell others how much lime the neighbor Wang's family sent over?"

"At this time, we only need to spend more silver. Those officials will certainly give us more. As long as we give enough silver, the county magistrate will approve more for us."

Song Lichang said with a little anger: "Women's opinions, the county magistrate is not that kind of person, no matter how much money he offers, he will not accept it."

The woman dared not argue, and could only mutter, "Master, how can you know the difference between using and not using money if you haven't used it?"

"snort!"

Song Lichang snorted coldly and didn't bother to pay attention.

Even though the plague is so serious today, there has been no plague in the Song Mansion so far. This is mainly due to Song Lichang's personal habit: mysophobia.

Song Lichang had a slight mysophobia and couldn't stand dirt and mess. Even the pigpen in the kitchen of his mansion was cleaned spotlessly by his servants.

After the plague broke out, Song Lichang donated a large amount of money for disaster relief.

When the plague struck, some people who were infected with the plague and could not survive, while they were hungry, attacked the wealthy families.

I'm about to die, so why can't I just die with a full stomach?

That's how it happened, and some wealthy families in the city were directly conquered by the plague.

The madness before death is difficult for normal people to understand.

However, due to Song Lichang's good reputation, no matter how poor the people were, they did not choose the Song Mansion.

Hygiene and reputation are the reasons why there has been no plague in the Song Palace so far.

One point is that Song Lichang strictly implemented the notice issued by the government.

It is related content on preventing plague compiled by Zhu Ying.

In addition to hygiene, it also explains that plague can be killed by high temperatures.

It is recommended that people in plague-affected areas cover their mouths and noses and use boiling water to kill the plague.

In the Song Mansion, all people who go out must take a hot bath when they come back.

All clothes must be changed and boiled in hot water before they can be used again.

In the front yard of the Song Mansion, a large pot of boiling water was set up for this purpose.

Song Lichang left the lobby and returned to his study to find some peace and quiet.

Although what his wife said was unpleasant to hear, Song Lichang also knew that there was not much savings left in the mansion.

The harvest of early rice was not very ideal either.

This shows that for a long period of time, they could only barely make ends meet, and if the plague lasted too long, he would have to sell some of his property to survive.

Just when Song Lichang was in the study, thinking about what to do next.

There was a sudden loud noise outside.

This made Song Lichang, who had already been quarreled, rub his brows and said to the housekeeper outside the door: "Old Zhang, go and see what's going on."

"Okay, sir." The sixty-year-old butler walked briskly to the front yard to check the situation.

"This world, eh, life seemed to be getting better, but how come something like this happened? Today is really hard to bear."

Song Lichang sighed in his heart.

Song Lichang's father died in the war at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, but the Song family has a large number of clan members here.

With the help of clan connections, Song Lichang quickly stood up.

Although Song Lichang was engaged in business, he also passed the imperial examination and became a scholar, which exempted him from part of the taxes.

Of course, on the surface, Song Lichang is not a businessman. Although he does make money through business, it is naturally someone else who is in front of the stage.

This is also what many landlords did. They would just find a servant who had signed a contract to sell himself and give him the title of a merchant. The actual operation, of course, took place behind the scenes.

This is true for all real big businessmen, or big grain traders.

Even if you don't have the title of scholar, at least you are considered a scholar, which is the level of scholar.

The Ming Dynasty is now in the Hongwu period and is eager to recruit talented people.

But there is no such thing as a poor scholar.

If you pass the examination to become a scholar, not only will you be exempted from corvée labor, you can also be granted some good farmland, so at least you won't have to worry about food and drink.

But being a scholar is not that easy.

Only after passing the boy's test can one be considered a scholar, otherwise one can only be called a student.

The boy's examination consists of three stages: county examination, prefectural examination and academy examination. The benefits of being a scholar are not so easy to get.

There are white-haired boys everywhere.

Of course, the scholar’s ​​meager income was nothing to Song Lichang, who was doing business.

At this moment, a burst of hurried footsteps came and the door was pushed open.

The old butler looked excited and said, "Master, outside... outside..."

Song Lichang frowned and asked, "What's going on outside?"

"I don't know what to say, please go and take a look, sir." The old butler said hurriedly.

He had never been to school and didn't know how to describe the situation outside.

Upon hearing this, Song Lichang stood up and strode towards the front yard.

At the front gate, many servants and maids gathered together and were very noisy.

"What a disgrace to make so much noise!"

Seeing this, Song Lichang scolded loudly.

When the servants heard the master's voice, they immediately became quiet.

"What's going on?" Song Lichang asked in a deep voice to the nearest servant.

The servant quickly replied: "Master, there is a lot of lime outside."

"What!"

Song Lichang was a little skeptical. He didn't ask any more questions even though he had done something wrong, and walked straight towards the door.

The gate was already open, and by going around the screen wall, you could see what was happening outside.

Outside the gate, there was a white-haired old man in linen clothes, standing there quietly.

Next to him were a large number of sacks.

From the overflowing white powder, it can be seen that it is all lime.

When Song Lichang saw the old man, he recognized him immediately. He was the village chief of a village near the county town.

In the Ming Dynasty, almost every village has only one surname.

"Chief Zhao, what are you doing? Why did you bring so much lime?" Song Lichang walked forward and asked in confusion.

When Patriarch Zhao saw Song Lichang coming over, he quickly took a few steps back and kept a certain distance from Song Lichang.

Patriarch Zhao’s mouth and nose were covered with a silk cloth.

He only bowed deeply to Song Lichang from a distance, and then said, "Please stay, Mr. Song!"

Patriarch Zhao’s meaning was very clear. During this special period of the plague, we must maintain a certain distance.

"I am ashamed to be the head of the Zhao family. Since the plague, more than half of the 589 households in the village have died. I have no choice but to go to the county town for help."

"We, the Zhao family, have no connections. We have no work to do in this city. After we run out of dry food, we can only beg on the streets."

"Thanks to Mr. De's generosity, my Zhao family members are able to survive."

"The entire Zhao family is grateful. This is a great favor that the Zhao family cannot repay."

After saying this, Patriarch Zhao bowed deeply again, then prostrated himself on the ground and kowtowed.

Seeing this, Song Lichang wanted to go over and help, but Patriarch Zhao's kneeling legs moved backwards, so Song Lichang had to give up.

After bowing, the Zhao clan leader stood up and continued, "Thanks to the court for not abandoning us, and to His Royal Highness King Yu for his great grace in granting us lime to treat the plague."

"However, after I received the lime, I learned from the official that the lime was distributed throughout the city according to household registration."

"After I heard this, I called the clansmen together to discuss this matter. It is time for us to repay the master's kindness."

"Please, sir, don't refuse!"

After Patriarch Zhao finished speaking, he bowed again.

At this moment, Song Lichang felt mixed emotions.

Looking at the hundreds of bags of lime around, he wanted to say something, but the words were stuck in his throat.

The reason why he spent all his family wealth to help poor families like the Zhao people was because of his father's teachings since childhood.

Song Lichang's father was a refugee from the Yuan Dynasty.

The number of Han refugees at the end of the Yuan Dynasty was beyond imagination.

The reason why Song Lichang's father was able to survive was that he received help from others when he was about to starve to death.

When his father passed away, he held Song Lichang's hand on the bed and finally said: "The reason why I can survive is because of the help of my benefactor."

"But I can no longer find any trace of my benefactor, and I don't know how he is doing now, or how his descendants are doing."

"Promise me that you will help others as much as you can, and if you can, help the descendants, relatives and friends of your benefactor."

"I can rest in peace in my grave."

It is because of this that Song Lichang has squandered all his family wealth today.

After bowing, Patriarch Zhao turned around and left, obviously worried that Song Lichang would refuse.

Seeing this, Song Lichang sighed deeply.

The old butler came over and asked hesitantly: "Master, these limes..."

Song Lichang looked at the back of Patriarch Zhao and the members of the Zhao family who were hiding in the nearby streets.

Then he bowed deeply.

After he stood up, he said, "Let's move back to the mansion."

Upon hearing this, the servants immediately became excited, and the young and strong ones carried sacks of lime and walked in.

Lime in plague areas is almost as valuable as gold.

Moreover, the government now has strict restrictions and does not allow buying and selling. It can only be based on government quotas.

Even if you want to give gifts or ask for more through backdoors, it is not allowed.

If you act like a troublemaker at this time, you will lose your job.

After Song Lichang returned home, he happened to meet his wife who came to him to inquire about him.

The wife obviously knew the situation and smiled happily.

"Master, I..."

Song Lichang waved his hand, interrupting the conversation, and said, "No need to say more, remember to have the servants use the lime well, especially those rat holes, which must be filled up."

"I understand."

After dealing with his wife, Song Lichang returned to his study, with the corners of his mouth rising slightly.

It is said that one should not expect anything in return for doing a favor, but at this critical moment, after receiving such a reward, Song Lichang's mood was completely different from before.

But things obviously didn't end so quickly.

Not long after Song Lichang returned to the study, the old butler came over again.

"Master, there are people from the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce looking for you outside."

Song Lichang was a little confused. Why did the people from the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce come here at this time?

As an actual businessman, he is certainly no stranger to the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce.

This behemoth not only has a deep background in the Ming Dynasty, but the profits it generates from the Snowflake Salt it controls every year are inestimable.

But Song Lichang didn’t have much interaction with them.

After thinking for a while, Song Lichang ordered: "Invite them to the lobby to serve."

Since guests are welcome, Song Lichang naturally had no reason to refuse the meeting.

However, the old housekeeper said with some embarrassment: "Master, I have already called them, but they don't want to come into the house, so they just waited at the gate."

"It's said that it's an order from the Chamber of Commerce that you are not allowed to visit."

When Song Lichang heard this, a light flashed in his eyes, and he went straight to the gate again.

At the gate, Song Lichang saw two men who were wrapped very tightly.

Except for the eyes, even the hands were covered with silk gloves.

Obviously, there is a high level of knowledge about the plague.

Seeing Song Lichang coming out, the two bowed to each other, and Song Lichang returned the greeting and said, "I wonder if everyone from the Qunying Chamber of Commerce has come to my house for any business."

The two looked at each other, and one of them took out a fine document from his pocket, handed it to Song Lichang with both hands, and said respectfully:

"According to the requirements issued by the General Association, the Qunying Chamber of Commerce invites Mr. Song to serve as the president of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce branch in Henan Province. Please review it."

Upon hearing this, Song Lichang took the document in disbelief and began to check it on the spot.

The above content is an invitation to Song Lichang to serve as the branch president of Henan Qunying Chamber of Commerce.

Song Lichang was a little bit unbelievable.

This is almost pie in the sky.

It is no exaggeration to say that it is a step to heaven.

At the end of the document, there is also information about Song Lichang’s monthly salary.

In addition to the basic monthly salary, you can also enjoy dividends from the quarterly total profits of the entire Henan Qun Ying branch.

Although the number is not high, the total amount is difficult to estimate.

"May I ask Mr. Song if you can agree to this?"

Seeing that Song Lichang didn't say anything for a long time, one of them couldn't help but ask.

Song Lichang is a good man, but he is not a fool.

This shouldn't happen, that would be stupid.

"I am honored to receive your kindness. I dare not refuse." Song Lichang said with a bow.

The two looked at each other again, and one of them took out a booklet and handed it over.

"President, this is the detailed information of the Chamber of Commerce in the city. It has been communicated long ago. All arrangements in the city are at the discretion of the President."

…

It has been more than half a month since Zhu Ying arrived outside Ruyang City.

During this period of more than half a month, Zhu Ying, as the King of Yu, coordinated all matters related to the plague.

The original 40,000 cavalrymen now probably only number less than 20,000.

The other cavalrymen were responsible for patrolling the checkpoints and supervising the delivery of supplies such as food, lime, and masks.

Zhu Ying never underestimates people's greed.

Whether it is officials or businessmen, it would be a miracle to expect them to show kindness at this critical juncture in today's world.

Song Lichang is a miracle, but don’t take such miracles as the norm.

Strict control is the most important thing.

However, judging from the memorials submitted every day, the plague in the entire Henan region is now basically under control.

Cats were sent into the wild in great numbers to catch mice.

The continuous use of rat poison in the city, coupled with policies such as lime and isolation.

The plague had no incubation period, and the situation soon began to improve.

In fact, as far as the plague is concerned, the reason why it is so terrifying and so many people have died is mainly because we don’t know the transmission route, and we are unfamiliar with it and feel fear.

As long as you understand the weaknesses, there is nothing to be afraid of.

On this day, information about Goryeo was sent to Zhu Ying.

Ye Yueqing accompanied him to pour tea. After Zhu Ying finished reading, he sighed: "What a great Master Daoyan is. He really dares to do it."

Zhu Ying had never thought that Yao Guangxiao was so brave.

With the help of his trump card in Goryeo, he forced Lee Seong-gye to give him troops.

Later, he led an army of 150,000 to defeat the Japanese invaders.

An army of 150,000.

This is not about suppressing the Japanese pirates, this is simply attacking Japan directly.

Zhu Ying could see clearly some of the meanings conveyed by Yao Guangxiao.

In more than a month, we will set out for the expedition to Tsushima Island.

"Good fellow, I was right about you. Now Lee Seong-gye is really in trouble."