An Shuyi found two relatively thick stones at the back of the village, but they were too big for her to move. She could only wait for Lin Changyu to have time to have them moved back.
When the prefect returned to Jinnan City with the medicinal herbs, he instructed the doctors to divide the herbs into packets and deliver them to the villages affected by cholera. He also ordered the villagers not to leave the villages and to stay there.
The same was true for the people of Jinnan City. Within a few days, the cholera outbreak was brought under control. Anyone showing symptoms was sent to a clinic, while some families went to get medicine and take care of their cholera-stricken relatives.
"Sir, the people of Anhe City are already taking the medicine, their conditions are stable, and they are no longer experiencing diarrhea or vomiting," the messenger reported.
The prefect nodded. "It seems the medicinal herbs His Majesty ordered from other prefectures have arrived. What about Taiyuan Prefecture? Are they using the medicine?"
"My lord," the yamen runner hesitated for a moment before saying, "the prefect of Taiyuan Prefecture contracted cholera, did not receive treatment, and unfortunately passed away. Now, Prefect Zhao is in charge."
The prefect stood up in surprise. "You said that old man in Taiyuan died of cholera? Has this been reported to the Emperor?"
The messenger replied, "Reporting to Your Excellency, Prefect Zhao has already submitted a memorial to the Emperor, who has instructed the Prefect to first resolve the cholera outbreak in Taiyuan Prefecture. The new Prefect will arrive soon."
The prefect sat down. "It seems that Taiyuan Prefecture is about to undergo another change. I already know about this. If there is anything, report it as soon as possible. You may leave now."
The cholera outbreak in Jinnan City is now under control, and the people in the surrounding villages are also receiving treatment. In a few more days, it should also be under control.
"Wang Ming, take out the disinfectant from the warehouse and distribute it to each village. Have the villagers scatter it on the ground, in the corners, especially around the latrines."
"The same goes for Jinnan City. Disinfectant must be sprayed everywhere, and this must be continued for three days. The clothes and bedding worn by those who have contracted cholera must be burned, their sleeping rooms must be disinfected, and their used bowls and chopsticks must be boiled in water."
"Instruct them not to drink the water from the river anymore, but to drink water from the well as much as possible. Only boiled water is safe to drink. If any villagers do not comply, they should be driven out of the village."
As long as there are no more corpses to contaminate the river, the water can be reused after flowing for a long time.
These past few days, no villagers from Xinglin Village have come to dig the foundation. An Shuyi and Xia Hua, along with their clansmen, spent two days planting all the fruit tree saplings, covering all three hillsides.
The tribespeople worked in the workshops during the day and watered the crops in the fields at night before going to sleep. They had never drunk polluted water or come into contact with people suffering from cholera, so they remained safe and sound.
Seven days after closing the village gates, An Shuyi sent her second son to Xinglin Village to check. If anyone in their village had cholera, he was to return; otherwise, he was to notify the villagers of Xinglin Village to go back to work. Fortunately, on the last day of work in Xinglin Village, the people of Taoyuan Village told them not to drink water indiscriminately or wander around, so no one in the surrounding villages had contracted cholera.
The villagers in Xinglin Village who had not contracted cholera came to work the next day. After they arrived, they dug for three more days and finally finished digging the foundation of the village. After the foundation was finished, An Shuyi and Xia Hua separated the villagers. Some villagers went to dig cave dwellings, while others went to dig the foundation and build a water pool.
That evening, the sky was overcast, and the weather hadn't been very good all day. Knowing that it might rain, An Shuyi told the villagers of Xinglin Village not to come to work the next day, but to come back when the rain stopped.
Before it even got dark, it started to rain. At first, it was just a few drops, but then it turned into a downpour. When the weather was bad, An Shuyi had the tribespeople move all their things into the workshop. Those things that weren't afraid of the cold were put in the room where ice was made, and the rest were put in other rooms.
When it rained, the people of the tribe had already taken shelter in the workshop. Fortunately, the workshop was big enough for everyone to stay inside. Looking at the heavy rain outside, everyone began to worry that it might be like the previous downpour, lasting for the next two weeks.
In the room where the grain was stored, the meal was already prepared. An Shuyi looked at the worried tribespeople and said, "Hurry up and eat. After you finish eating, get some rest. Don't worry, this rain won't last too long."
Just in time, the crops and fruit trees in the fields needed water, and this heavy rain came at the right time. Moreover, the bodies of refugees everywhere have already been burned, and this heavy rain can wash away the polluted water sources. Once the cholera patients recover, there will be no more cholera.
“Since Sister An says so, then we can rest assured. Let’s eat. I’m starving.” After saying that, Lin Changnian took his bowl to get the food.
The others thought it made sense, and they stopped looking so gloomy. They all spontaneously took bowls to get their food. Lin Changwu ate the food in his bowl and said, "Sister An, from now on, if we're not in our village, we shouldn't eat at our own homes. We should all eat together."
"When the time comes, we'll build a house, and a few people will cook every day. We'll buy grains and meat, and everyone can eat together. It'll be so lively eating together like that."
An Shuyi looked at him and said, "As long as you can convince all the clansmen and take responsibility for buying food and vegetables in the future, then I will agree." Anyway, there was nothing wrong with eating with them. Everyone in the village would be busy in the future, even the Zhao and Wu clans, so she agreed to have someone cook for them.
"Isn't Erwa in charge of buying grain and meat? Just let him do it."
“No,” An Shuyi explained, “Once this cholera outbreak is over, I have to let my second son go out and make his own way in the world. From now on, he won’t be responsible for buying food and meat.”
"I plan to have my second son find sales channels for us. Sales channels are finding buyers for the clothing, braised meat, ice, wine, and skincare products from our workshop. Next, we will build two more workshops, one for brewing wine and the other for making skincare products."
"So all these things need to be sold well. Of course, if there are eloquent people in the clan, they can go to Anhe Prefecture, Taiyuan Prefecture, Huatian Prefecture, the capital, or even further places."
"Introduce our products to others and let them come and buy them themselves. We only need to focus on making them. This way, business will be good, and we won't need to open a shop anymore."
The point is, if you open a shop, you don't have enough manpower. Although you can hire people, you can't do without your own people, and that would be too tiring. It's better this way: they just need to do the job, and if people want to buy, they can come and get the goods themselves.
The tribespeople who make ice will only make a lot when the weather is hot. They can use the rest of the time to brew wine, and she only brews fruit wine and makes skincare products. The embroidery girls and young wives can do it.
Lin Changqing asked, "Sister-in-law, does the Xuan paper business require sales channels...?" Although he didn't know what sales channels were.
An Shuyi shook her head, "No need, all of that Xuan paper has already been ordered by Baomozhai. They will buy as much as they can produce, so there's no need to worry about sales."
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