What angered him most was that the officials below him were telling the refugees who had already entered the city and settled down to leave. Some even told him to drive the refugees into a village and, if any of them contracted cholera, to kill them all and burn the village down to prevent future troubles.
Is this something a human being would do? The refugees might not have had cholera yet, but they contracted it after being brought to a village and coming into contact with the infected. Isn't that harmful?
Today he summoned all the doctors in Jinnan City, but none of them had a way to treat cholera. He has already submitted a memorial to the Emperor to see if the imperial physicians have any solutions.
Upon hearing this, the prefect's wife turned pale with fright. "My lord, is it really cholera? What should we do? I'll have the guards send the children to the capital, otherwise...!"
"What's the panic?" the prefect scolded. "Jinnan City hasn't even had it yet. You're already throwing yourselves into chaos. It's not safe to send them anywhere now. I heard from the officials below that people who have cholera are suffering from diarrhea and vomiting, and some are even developing fever. The doctors in the city say it's caused by polluted water. It must be that the bodies of some refugees fell into the water, and then others drank the water and got cholera."
"We don't know where this water source flows to, or where there are cholera cases. If we send the children back to the capital and they encounter cholera cases and get infected, what should we do? Just stay home and don't go anywhere."
The prefect's wife was uneasy, but she still instructed, "I understand, sir. You should go take a bath and rest, otherwise you'll have to get up early again tomorrow morning."
After the prefect and his wife returned to the backyard, Xia Hua looked at An Shuyi and asked, "Shushu, this plague is cholera. Can the medicine from your trading system cure it?"
An Shuyi nodded, "Don't worry, it can be cured!" If she was still worried before, after hearing the prefect describe the symptoms of cholera, she was certain that these medicinal herbs were the treatment for cholera.
Previously, because she was unsure which type of plague those medicinal herbs were for, she asked Xiao Wu about the effects of several herbs. Xiao Wu told her that they were all for treating diarrhea and vomiting, but since febrile diseases were also appearing, the only option was to have a doctor perform acupuncture and use the herbs together.
Xia Hua said, "If it can be cured, then let's go back. Now that it has been confirmed that it is that kind of plague, and this prefect does not seem to be a corrupt official, let's just wait until there are people with the plague in Jinnan City before we come to find the prefect."
An Shuyi nodded, and the two returned the way they came, back to the city wall, took out the grappling hook, hooked it, climbed down the rope, retrieved the grappling hook, found their horses, and rode back to Peach Blossom Village.
When they returned to the village, it was already midnight. Village Chief Lin was still making ice with his men. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw them return. As for what the two women were doing, no one asked.
The next morning, everyone in the village spontaneously went about their own business: some carried ice to the village entrance, others built workshops, and still others cut down trees. An Shuyi and Xia Hua also separated and went to watch them build walls. The villagers of Xinglin Village had already dug the road into the village, and it would be finished by the afternoon at most.
At lunchtime, everyone gathered around An Shuyi and Xia Hua again, listening to their conversation.
"Shushu, the beams at my workshop will be installed this afternoon. Do you want to come and see?"
An Shuyi thought for a while, "The wall at the village entrance is almost finished now. We'll build a little more this afternoon and it'll be done. I won't go to watch. Once it's finished, I'll have them go dig up the road so we can pave the village roads tomorrow." The wall is already over three meters high, which is just the right height.
"And this house, there's still time, so let the villagers of Xinglin Village dig out the foundation first, and then we can find some professionals to build it."
Once the workshop was built, the clansmen got busy, but there wasn't time to dig the foundation, so it was more appropriate to let the villagers of Xinglin Village do it.
Xia Hua nodded, "Okay, then I'll have them work a little longer today to try and finish building the ice-making workshop. Tomorrow we'll go to Jinnan City to see if the molds are ready."
Hearing that we could go to Jinnan City tomorrow, An Shuyi was also happy. "If we go to Jinnan City, it won't be a problem to have them pave the roads, right? Aren't there still some workshop floors that haven't been laid yet?"
Xia Hua glanced at Village Chief Lin, who was squatting on the ground eating, and said, "Don't worry, with so many people, we can put the blue tiles on by tonight. Then everyone can work hard to pave the workshop floor first. I'll teach them once, and they'll know how to pave the road tomorrow."
“Yes, Sister Xia is right,” Village Chief Lin nodded. “Sister An, you can go ahead. I will watch carefully tonight and make sure I see the paving process clearly without any mistakes.”
“Alright then,” An Shuyi turned to look at the others, “Don’t just look at it yourself, everyone should look carefully, we can’t make any mistakes. If the mold is ready by tomorrow, then we can start making ice in the workshop the day after tomorrow.”
"By the way, wood, are there any woodworking people in the tribe?" She doesn't have the molds for making paper yet, and she also needs to prepare those big barrels. Later, she can build a few pools in the workshop.
After finishing the rice in his bowl, Village Chief Lin said, "Some of you, Sister-in-law, can do it. Uncle Qi taught him before, and his two sons can do it too. In the past, the furniture that needed to be made in the village was all made by their family. If you have anything to make, just give it to him."
“Several other uncles also know how to do it, but they do fine work, such as tables, chairs, cabinets, beds and such for wealthy families. However, those are large items, and we didn’t need them before. We haven’t made them for decades.”
An Shuyi hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise. The work was meticulous, and the pieces were all large. "Mu Tou, go ask your uncles if they can make furniture for us. Once Changye has finished making the things I need, let his family make them too, so we won't have to go to Jinnan City to buy them."
There are still six uncles left, and there are even more aunts and grandmothers than uncles. They are all about the same age as the clan leader, around sixty years old. The uncles can probably make some furniture, otherwise the furniture she wants to make will have to be brought back from Jinnan City. Those beds and cabinets are all delicate items and cannot be damaged.
"Sister-in-law, I'll go ask her later!" Village Chief Lin couldn't agree immediately, so he could only go and ask.
But no sooner had he finished speaking than a voice came from afar, “Wood, you don’t need to ask, we’ve agreed to this. It just so happens that some of us from our hometowns are currently unemployed, so making furniture is a good idea.”
An Shuyi stood up. "Thank you, Third Uncle. I'll calculate the money for you when it's done well."
"It's no big deal, no need to give money!"
"That won't do. We have to pay money. This isn't just for my family; it's for more than twenty households here. Each household will get one set. Uncles, can you do it?"
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