A few more days passed, and the floodwaters outside gradually receded, leaving only a lot of silt on the ground.
This mud was washed down from the mountain; the water accumulated here, and the mud settled here.
There are now many animal carcasses piled up in the stream, and with the hot weather, the carcasses quickly became smelly and rotten.
To avoid the stench from rotting animal carcasses and to prevent bacterial growth that could make people sick, the Taoist priest, Lu Chuan, and Grandpa Zhao dug pits near their homes to bury the animal carcasses as the floodwaters receded.
Xu Han stayed at home to take care of Mu'er and cook three meals a day.
Since the rain stopped, Xu Han's pregnancy symptoms have been getting better day by day. In just a few days, her face has noticeably gained some weight, and she is no longer as thin and bony as before.
"You're back! Come wash your hands and have some dinner," Xu Han said quickly as she saw the three of them carrying shovels, hoes, and other tools.
"Don't come any closer. Let's take a shower first, then we'll eat," Lu Chuan said quickly as he saw Xu Han approaching.
"What's wrong today? Why do I have to take a shower?" Xu Han asked, puzzled.
"It's alright, take Mu'er to eat first, I'll talk to you later," the Taoist priest said.
The three of them then went directly into the backyard, intending to boil water for a bath.
Seeing this, Xu Han didn't say anything more and started eating with Mu'er.
When the three of them returned to the front yard, Xu Han could smell the herbal scent on them from afar.
"What's going on? Why are they using herbs?" Xu Han was even more puzzled. Had the animal carcasses outside already rotted? Or what was going on?
"It's nothing. We have a child and a pregnant woman at home, so we're just taking precautions to avoid any accidents," Lu Chuan explained.
“That’s good. Is it because the animal carcasses outside have rotted? I could smell the stench from afar when you came back,” Xu Han said.
"Yes, they weren't rotting yesterday. It's probably because of the high temperature these past two days that the bodies decomposed faster. Today, when we went to deal with the bodies, we found that many of them were infested with maggots and smelled bad," the Taoist priest explained.
"Luckily, we cleaned up the animal carcasses near our home first, otherwise the house would have been unbearably smelly," Lu Chuan said.
"What's the situation outside? Are there still many animal carcasses?" Xu Han asked again.
“There are still some, but they are all quite far from here. All the ones near my home have already been checked and dealt with,” the Taoist priest said while eating.
It has to be said that these people have really good appetites. They saw so many rotting animal carcasses during the day, and they can still eat now. Their appetites have not been affected at all. Xu Han has to admire them.
"Are we still going to bury the bodies? They're already stinking. It's not good for your health to deal with them. What if you get infected?" Xu Han said worriedly.
"Yeah, we're not going anymore. The three of us think the same way. We'll stop going starting tomorrow. Anyway, the areas near our homes have already been cleaned up."
"Plagues are unpredictable, but prevention is always very helpful," Grandpa Zhao said.
“Your Grandpa Zhao is right. From today onwards, everyone should be more careful. Try not to use the water outside if possible. Didn’t we store a lot of clean water before? Is that enough?” the Taoist priest asked.
"It's enough. We stored a lot of water in the spring, which is more than enough to last through this period. We've been using the stored water for cooking recently. Since the heavy rain, we haven't used any outside water for drinking or bathing," Xu Han explained.
"That's good, but we still need to be careful in everything we do." The Taoist priest was relieved to hear Xu Han say that.
"I reckon there are already infected people outside. The plague spreads very quickly. I don't know if Yunyun can handle it," Grandpa Zhao said worriedly, thinking of his granddaughter.
"Didn't you give him a prescription to treat the plague before? Don't worry, everything will be fine. They should send word over in the next couple of days," the Taoist priest comforted him.
Upon hearing this, Xu Han couldn't help but sigh, realizing that she really couldn't compare to the Taoist priest and Grandpa Zhao.
It turns out that when Yunhua and the others came back last time, Grandpa Zhao and the Taoist priest had already told them what would happen next, as well as how to solve the problem and even how to escape.
Although Xu Han has the knowledge of a modern person, she still cannot compare with them in ancient times; her vision and thoughtfulness are completely inferior.
"Hopefully we can control it." Grandpa Zhao looked into the distance, lost in thought.
"Shall we fumigate the house with herbs again later?" Xu Han said.
Upon hearing this, Grandpa Zhao immediately came to his senses and said, "I had forgotten if Xiao Han hadn't mentioned it. It's time to fumigate the house."
I'll prepare some more medicine kits in a bit; everyone should wear one, and there should be several more hanging in the room as well.
"Okay, then I'll go make a few more sachets. They're simple and quick to make."
After Xu Han finished speaking, everyone started to go their separate ways, while Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest went to wash the dishes and clean up.
After everything was set up, it was already around 10 p.m., so everyone went back to their rooms to rest.
The next morning, Xu Han was woken up by noises outside.
Just as she was about to go out and take a look, she heard Yunhua's voice. Xu Han was completely bewildered and thought she had misheard.
When they got into the courtyard, they saw that it really was Yunhua. They looked around again, but they didn't see Zhao Yunyun.
"Yunhua, why are you back? Where's Yunyun?" Xu Han asked anxiously, unable to see Zhao Yunyun.
"Don't worry, Yunyun is fine. Someone is taking care of her. I came back to let everyone know I'm safe and sound, and also to bring some things for Master." Yunhua said with a smile when she saw Xu Han come out.
Xu Han was relieved to hear Yunhua say that.
"Have you eaten yet? Let's eat first," Xu Han asked again.
“Yes, the food is freshly cooked. You must be hungry after traveling such a long way. Let’s eat and talk.” Grandpa Zhao invited.
After Yunhua finished breakfast, she slowly began to tell everyone about the situation over the past year.
"Many places were affected by this rainstorm. Not only was the north severely affected, but the south was also affected as well."
Due to drought, no people live in the north anymore. Overall, apart from the loss of houses, the casualties and food losses are negligible.
But the situation was different in the south. The group of people who fled to the south had just settled down when they were hit by floods.
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