Man-eating bird 1
"Yidu is in disarray. Firstly, the Prime Minister has stirred up public opinion, blaming the Emperor for failing to govern the state; secondly, a sudden epidemic has broken out in the city, and there is no cure. I urge you to return quickly. (Sinking)"
Just as Xie Mowen's demonic sect members were creating chaos in Ninghai City and taking advantage of the confusion to kill Feng Huai and his mistress, Xiao Congzhi and his group were already rushing towards Yidu.
As Shen Zhuo conveyed in his message, Yidu is eagerly awaiting your return. Therefore, he travels day and night without rest, changing his steed every three hundred li, galloping at full speed through the biting cold wind, his eyes never straying.
When they arrived outside Yidu City, Xiao Sizhao was already half dead.
Xiao Congzhi stopped the horse by suspending the reins, turned his head to look at Xie Mowen, hiding a hint of reluctance, and calmly said, "I'll go in first."
Xie Mowen reached out and touched Xiao Congzhi's cheek. He would never make such an inappropriate move in front of Xiao Sizhao, but he was really reluctant to do so now. He lowered his eyes and instructed, "Be careful in everything."
Xiao Congzhi lowered his head and gently kissed Xie Mowen's palm. Without further delay, he moved his legs and rode away.
Xie Mowen stared at Xiao Congzhi's departing figure for a long time without looking away, until the figure completely disappeared from sight.
Xiao Sizhao was completely oblivious to this tense and unpredictable situation, as he was currently panting heavily with his head against the horse's head. Two days prior, Xiao Congzhi had suggested that Xiao Sizhao slow down and lag behind, but Xiao Sizhao had righteously refused, saying, "How can I leisurely slow down when Your Majesty has delayed me for a day?"
But during the two days of travel that followed, Xiao Sizhao regretted his actions countless times. Xie Mowen and Xiao Congzhi had truly been riding at breakneck speed, only slowing down to eat on horseback when they were hungry. Right now, he was barely breathing, while the other two were full of energy.
Fortunately, Xie Mowen was not entirely without conscience. He turned his horse around to stand behind Xiao Sizhao, pressed his back against the person's back, and circulated his inner energy, pulling the person back from the brink of death.
“We shouldn’t have gone to Jiangnan,” Xie Mowen explained. “Our detour from Anling to Jiangnan was a secret operation, and the timing couldn’t be too far off, or it would arouse suspicion from the Jiang family. In addition, Yidu was in disarray, so we had no choice but to hurry.”
Xiao Sizhao looked up at Xie Mowen seriously. With Xiao Congzhi not around, Xie Mowen immediately became more serious and composed. He vaguely remembered that Xie Mowen was indeed like this when they first met, and even seemed quite shrewd. However, after many things happened, his memory became blurred.
"I'm sorry." Xiao Sizhao's lips moved, and she uttered these words so softly that they were almost inaudible.
Xie Mowen chuckled, reined in the horse, and continued, "But Cong Zhi was very happy during his trip to Ninghai, so you don't need to worry about it."
Xiao Sizhao nodded blankly. He couldn't see why the emperor was happy, but right now... he secretly glanced at Xie Mowen. He roughly knew how Xie Mowen could possibly be worthy of the emperor.
Xiao Congzhi rode his horse through Yidu City. Yan Hong, the Right Commander of the Imperial Guards, happened to be patrolling at the palace gate. Upon seeing the emperor, he hurriedly opened the palace gate. Xiao Congzhi did not stop for a moment, only nodded slightly to Yan Hong, and went straight back to Zichen Palace.
Ge Yun, who had been waiting in the side hall, came out to greet the sound, his expression exaggerated and his voice booming, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty! You've finally returned! This servant has been waiting for you day and night!"
Xiao Congzhi remained seated on his horse, his hand gripping the reins tightly. His eyes were slightly lowered as he glanced down at Ge Yun with a cold look in his eyes. When Ge Yun ran up to him, his expression instantly softened with a warm, gentle smile as he asked in a clear voice, "What is there to look forward to?"
"The capital city and surrounding areas have been in complete chaos these past few days."
Xiao Congzhi dismounted and landed behind Ge Yun, then walked towards the Zichen Palace without responding.
Ge Yun hurriedly instructed people to take care of the tall horse that the emperor had ridden back, and then followed after him with small, quick steps.
What happened to Yidu?
Ge Yun stood with his head down, and after a pretentious sigh, he began to speak, “Half a month ago, a strange disease suddenly broke out in Yidu. It had no cause. Those who contracted the disease had a persistent high fever and were covered in red rashes. There was no cure for this disease, and without exception, every patient would die of suffocation a few days after the onset of the disease.”
Xiao Congzhi frowned and asked, "Has the imperial physician been consulted?"
"I've examined it, and they say the pulse is erratic. The crucial point is that this disease spreads extremely quickly. The imperial physician who went to see the doctor once also contracted the disease three days after returning, so we dared not send anyone else to see him."
"Which imperial physician?"
"It's Physician Liu. Yesterday's matter is over, and he's currently isolated in his own residence, but... I'm afraid things will be difficult for him."
Xiao Congzhi twirled the folding fan in his hand, pondering. The epidemic was completely unexpected and a crucial variable, but Ge Yun was not the right person to answer his questions.
Before Xiao Congzhi could figure out the next step, someone from Zichen Palace came to visit.
If we were to rank them, Xiao Congzhi would least like to deal with the Empress Dowager. Just the fact that the Empress Dowager held the title of "Mother" would cause many inconveniences. For example, no matter how unwilling he was, Xiao Congzhi would have to immediately get up from his seat, take a few steps forward, kneel on one knee, lower his eyes, and humbly pay his respects.
"Greetings to the Empress Dowager."
The Empress Dowager stood before Xiao Congzhi, not allowing him to rise, but sternly rebuked him, "Emperor, you are the ruler of a nation, responsible for the people. How can you abandon Yidu, the affairs of the state, the nation, and the people, and go sightseeing everywhere!"
Xiao Congzhi gently closed his eyes and replied in a low voice, "Your subject knows his mistake, but he really did not know that a major event had occurred in Yidu."
The Empress Dowager paused slightly, then changed her mind, her tone becoming calmer, but she still didn't let anyone get up. "Even without the plague, the coming-of-age ceremony is in a month, and the emperor should be ruling in his own right by now. How can he leave the capital from time to time?"
Xiao Congzhi slowly clenched his fist, his hand hidden in his sleeve. The Empress Dowager's test was subtle, and he could hardly respond properly. "Your subject has failed Prime Minister Jiang's teachings and fears I am not capable of serving the country."
The Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes as she stared at the top of Xiao Congzhi's head, then walked to the head of the table and sighed calmly, "Alright, get up."
After standing up, Xiao Congzhi kept his head down and did not look directly at the Empress Dowager. His demeanor was not one of fear, but rather one of dejection.
The Empress Dowager was very pleased to see this and slowly said, "The Emperor should not underestimate himself. However, the matter of assuming personal rule is indeed of great importance, which can be discussed later. What is urgent now is the calamity of the epidemic."
"Your Majesty is right. Tomorrow, I will work with the court officials to draft a set of regulations."
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Father has already made up his mind; it's just a matter of waiting for the court to implement it."
"That's good, Prime Minister. You've worked hard and made great contributions."
The Empress Dowager's smile deepened, and she spoke a few more intimate words while maintaining her airs before getting up to leave.
Xiao Congzhi smiled and escorted them all the way to the palace gate. Only after they had gone did he turn cold in a secluded spot. To this day, he had no intention of holding a grudge against the Jiang family's various ways of crossing his bottom line. Whether they used condescending tactics to belittle him or gentle persuasion, the root cause was simply their unwillingness to relinquish power. He had a way of dealing with them all.
During my trip to Jiangnan, I learned some old stories about my mother and the late emperor. I can't help but feel that fate is playing tricks on us, and I can't blame people for their scheming.
While Xiao Congzhi was feigning friendship with the Empress Dowager, Xie Mowen led Xiao Sizhao into the city.
After catching his breath for most of the hour, Xiao Sizhao followed Xie Mowen closely, managing to ask, "Are we really going to the Imperial Guard?"
Xie Mowen nodded but did not respond.
"What does Your Majesty mean by this?"
It was Xiao Congzhi's idea to have Xie Mowen go straight to the Imperial Guard and find Yan Hong to settle him after entering Yidu.
Xie Mowen was observing the situation inside Yidu City and had no intention of answering Xiao Sizhao's question.
Xiao Sizhao looked left and right, feeling uneasy. "Do you know what kind of rumors were circulating when I left the Imperial Guard a month ago? Now that more than a month has passed, they are probably even more exaggerated."
Xie Mowen glanced back at Xiao Sizhao and said calmly, "He has his reasons."
Xiao Sizhao touched her chest, comforting herself inwardly. After a moment, she raised her head, quickened her pace, and went to Xie Mowen's side, her eyes shining as she looked at him. "So, His Majesty doesn't tell you everything?"
Xie Mowen paused, frowned, and looked at Xiao Sizhao, saying irritably, "I'll know when things happen. How can we have so much time for every little detail?"
Xiao Sizhao looked away and nodded, clearly thinking that Xie Mowen was struggling to make amends.
Xie Mowen was in a good mood, but Xiao Sizhao's expression angered him. He raised his voice and emphasized, "You've been here the whole way, can't we even exchange a few words?"
Xiao Sizhao pouted.
Xie Mowen clenched his teeth, thinking that this person was not Xiao Congzhi's cousin, and then he made his move.
They didn't manage to make a move, so they went to Yan Hong's residence, politely presented their visiting cards, and waited for someone to invite them in.
Nearly half an hour passed, and there was still no movement from inside the mansion. Xiao Sizhao asked softly, "Why is it taking so long?"
"The city of Yidu is much more desolate than it was a month ago, probably because of the epidemic. The secret letter didn't say much about the epidemic, but judging from the situation, it must be spreading very easily and quickly. It's normal for Yan Hong's family to be more serious about it."
"According to Your Majesty, this disease is neither smallpox nor plague?"
"If so, the secret letter will explain. If it doesn't mention it, then it's an illness that has never occurred before. I will investigate after I see Yan Hong."
"Xie Mowen...where did you come from, and what is your identity?"
Xiao Sizhao had wanted to ask this question for a long time. Xie Mowen seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Although he was called a member of the martial arts world, even those with names and surnames were generally known to the common people. It would be normal for him to be an unknown nobody, but how could an unknown nobody accomplish such things in Ninghai and catch the emperor's eye? Not to mention that Xie Mowen's words and insights had always been extraordinary. It was truly strange that such an extraordinary person could not be traced back to any source.
Xie Mowen glanced at Xiao Sizhao and said calmly, "My identity in the martial world is not important. What's important is..."
At this point, the door to the Yan residence opened, and Xie Mowen lowered his voice and continued, "In this scheme, what identity does he intend to assign me?"
Yan Hong himself opened the door. When he saw that it was indeed Xie Mowen, whom he knew, he felt dizzy. However, he was unsure of the relationship between the emperor and this person, so he could only politely welcome him into the mansion.
Xie Mowen waved his hand and stood outside the door. "Now that I've seen you, I won't go in. I've only come to ask Commander Yan to do something for us: find us a position in the Imperial Guard tomorrow."
Commander Yan didn't think Xie Mowen had come to ask him for a favor; it seemed more like he was delivering some secret order. He dared not disobey and even asked, "Is there anything special about this position?"
"No, Commander Yan can arrange it as he sees fit."
Yan Hong sighed slightly, nodded in agreement, and seeing Xie Mowen turn to leave, hurriedly added, "These past few days, the epidemic has been rampant in the city, Young Master Xie, please be careful in everything."
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