The villagers were all filled with gratitude, insisting on kowtowing three times to Yang Mengchen, then praising the Emperor and Prince Chen for their sage and benevolent virtues before rising to their feet.
Watching the villagers, teary-eyed and simple, Yang Mengchen felt a faint sourness in her nose, blinked her eyes, and concealed the clear tears within.
"Although you have just suffered the ravages of smallpox, from now on, you all have immunity and need not fear smallpox anymore. Furthermore, the princess will select an upright and honest person to succeed as County Magistrate. I hope you all will cooperate well with the new County Magistrate, unite as one, and make your homes—and Dan Yang County—more prosperous and strong!"
"Yes!" The crowd responded with a determined look, their passionate voices nearly piercing the skies.
After arranging the follow-up work, Yang Mengchen led people to pay respects at the tombs of the villagers who died of smallpox, then came to the village entrance amidst the teary farewells of the villagers.
A streak of golden light rushed towards Yang Mengchen, its golden head affectionately nuzzling against her hem.
Gently stroking Xiao Jin’s head, Yang Mengchen turned her eyes to the soldiers, smiling and said, "You’ve worked hard!"
"Long live the princess, for thousands and thousands of years!" Everyone knelt and shouted in unison, feeling deep respect and affection for Princess Chen from the bottom of their hearts.
Arriving at the County Office, Yang Mengchen dismissed the local officials who were waiting to see her, arranged for Yang Cheng’an and the soldiers to rest (Mo Mei had already arranged rooms for them, and Hu Sheng’s family was detained elsewhere under close watch), and after a brief wash, she sat in the hall to listen to Mo Mei and Hong Ling report on the situation.
Mo Mei’s face was grave, "Reporting to the princess, based on the clues provided by Hu Sheng, we eradicated two secret bases—one belonging to the Dregs of the Previous Dynasty, and the other to an unidentified force. Moreover, following the trail, we captured quite a few people, but the ringleaders Young Master Huang and the mastermind behind the unknown force have hidden too deeply, and we were unable to capture them. However, both groups have been severely weakened by this operation, and they should no longer cause trouble for the time being;
Also, under the orders of Young Master Huang, Hu Sheng attempted to poison Noble son’s Luo while he was passing through Dan Yang County, due to the Luo family’s strong loyalty to the Emperor, especially since Noble son’s Luo is renowned. Their goal was to provoke a conflict between the Luo family and the Imperial Court, hoping to profit from the chaos;
Luckily, Noble son’s Luo and Nan Feng’s martial skills were profound and they were not killed by the poison. Hu Sheng had no choice but to use poison to capture both Noble son’s Luo and Nan Feng. Then they used objects from individuals infected with smallpox on them, and locked them in Hu family’s cellar, thereby ensuring that Noble son’s Luo and Nan Feng would die of smallpox."
"The small Dan Yang County actually harbors hidden dragons and crouching tigers, quite interesting," Yang Mengchen said with a smirk playing at her lips. "You continue the investigation with Xiao Guai, and make sure to completely eradicate the hostile forces lurking around Dan Yang County."
Mo Mei respectfully acknowledged the order.
"Reporting to the princess," Hong Ling said, seeing Yang Mengchen looking her way. "We didn’t find the seven people who escaped, but in a deep mountain cave a hundred miles away from Tieling Village, we found a treasure trove filling half the cave, invaluable beyond measure;
According to the ten people guarding the treasure, they are jianghu figures controlled by drugs, who were made to guard this treasure. As for who that person is, they do not know; fгeewebnovёl.com
Furthermore, the outbreak of smallpox in Tieling Village was intentionally caused by them, all because the initially infected Li Er accidentally discovered that cave. Fearing the secret of the treasure would be revealed, they decided to wipe out the entire village. But with only ten people, they couldn’t kill more than a thousand villagers, so they cruelly used smallpox to harm the villagers;
Now, Deputy General Qiu has taken five hundred soldiers to guard the cave, and over the past month, no one has come to claim it. Please decree what should be done."
Yang Mengchen’s eyes gradually grew cold and calm, like the chilling depths of an iced well, yet her face maintained a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.
"Since someone has sent us such a generous gift, we naturally cannot refuse it. Once things here are settled, transport it all back to the Capital to be added to the national treasury!"
"As you command!"
From the next day, Yang Cheng’an and the others began vaccinating the soldiers and the citizens of Dan Yang County.
As for Yang Mengchen, she first made Hu Sheng and Lu Tianhe’s crimes public, then beheaded the men of their families (without implicating the Nine Clans), sold the women into slavery, and thoroughly inspected all local officials. Those who needed execution were executed, and those who warranted dismissal were dismissed. She then personally selected a few known for their integrity to temporarily serve as officials of Dan Yang County to assist in restructuring the governance.
There was a fresh and clean atmosphere throughout Dan Yang County.
That night, Yang Mengchen was still dealing with government affairs in her study when suddenly, a breeze passed by, and she found herself in a slightly cool embrace.
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