Half a month passed in a blink of an eye. Compared with the peaceful capital, the people in the fiefdoms had already died horribly. The plague was raging and there was no medicine to control it.
The people were in pain and despair and rioted, but were suppressed by the police and shot.
Under absolute oppression, the people went mad. Those infected with the plague secretly jumped into the Grand Canal to commit suicide under the cover of night. Their bodies floated along the river and most of them were discovered.
But a very small number of them flowed into the capital and were salvaged. They were simply thought to have drowned and were hastily buried.
Little did they know that a plague was quietly brewing.
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Riverside in Xicheng District, Beijing
Many women were squatting by the river, beating clothes with mallets, but no matter how they washed, there was a strange smell, which resulted in less and less laundry work.
"Aunt Liu, you're here to do laundry too. We can do it together and chat to kill time."
Liu Cuilan nodded and called out, "Come here, big sister. The water flow is faster here, so it's cleaner. How are the jobs you've been getting lately?"
The dark and thin woman sighed, scrubbing the soap nuts vigorously, and said helplessly: "It's not very good. Many people who worked for me before said they felt uncomfortable and itchy after wearing the clothes."
"You said it smelled bad. You said we've been washing for years and there's no smell. I even scrubbed it with soap nuts several times. That shouldn't be the case."
"Besides, this water is living water, flowing down from the mountains. It's not stagnant water that would stink. I really can't figure out what's wrong with it."
Liu Cuilan nodded repeatedly: "That's not true, I'm the same way. I used to have more than ten families looking for me, but now there are only two left. I can only wash it once and then go home to get well water to wash it again."
The dark and thin woman's eyes lit up, and she said anxiously, "I'm almost dying of worry about whether this method will work. If it works, I'll do it this way, otherwise our family will have no money to eat."
"That's fine. We used to come here to wash because it was convenient. At worst, we can just go back and rinse with well water. It should be much better."
He said as he brought his hand close to his nose to smell it, frowning.
"Big sister, why don't you smell it too? I feel like this water... has a strange smell. I can't put my finger on it, but it's just weird."
"Yes, let me smell it."
The thin, dark woman lowered her head to hold the water and vaguely saw something in the water. She paused, picked up a bamboo pole and tried to pick it up, waiting for the thing to float up so that she could see it clearly.
The two screamed: "Death, death!"
Soon people from the yamen arrived, and many common people came to watch the excitement. Before they could get a clear look at the dead body, the foul smell wafted over, and they all covered their mouths and retched.
The coroner took a look and found that the body had swollen and rotted. He didn't know how long it had been soaking in the river, so he could only take it back to the government office to determine the cause of death.
The onlookers looked at the river water and their eyes fell on the people washing clothes. They felt a tingling sensation on their backs and shouted, "I've been itching all over lately. It turns out there's something wrong with the washing water."
"Hiss, this is really unlucky. I'd better wash it myself at home from now on. The water that has been used to soak corpses is so dirty."
After the body was carried back to the yamen, the coroner began to perform the autopsy without stopping. There was a bang, the sound of a knife falling to the ground, and the young apprentices all looked at their master.
Puzzled, he asked, "Master, what happened? But there's something wrong with the body. Was it suicide or homicide?"
The coroner was trembling and backing away repeatedly, looking at the corpse with horror. He hurriedly rubbed his hands and then got some wine to wipe them, and he didn't stop until his hands turned red.
By the time it was over, sweat was on his forehead and his voice was trembling: "Xiao Qi and Xiao Ba, hurry up and find the adults and tell them that I have something important to say."
The two men had never seen their master like this before, and were a little scared for a moment, so they ran out in a hurry.
Soon a middle-aged man in official uniform came.
Qi Ming said sternly, "Coroner, what happened to this body? What was the cause of death? Do you have any clues about the murderer?"
The coroner fell to his knees with a thud, his face filled with horror as he said, "Sir, this body wasn't murdered, nor was it suicide. It was...it was killed by the plague. The internal organs have all melted away."
"I think he was in so much pain before dying that he jumped into the river and was swept along by the current. I'm afraid this isn't the first one, and it won't be the last."
"If the bodies of plague victims were to enter the capital, and a plague were to break out there, the people in the palace might also be infected. If something were to happen to His Majesty, the whole country would be in danger."
When Qi Ming heard this, his pupils shrank, his legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground. He asked anxiously, "Say it again, are you sure this is the plague?"
The coroner nodded and said seriously, "I've examined the body carefully. There are abscesses on the body, and the internal organs have dissolved. Other than that, there are no other fatal injuries."
"Should this matter be reported?"
"Wait, it's just one corpse. Maybe it's just a coincidence. We can't guarantee it's the plague. This is no joke."
"If it turns out not to be true, I'll lose my official hat. Do you know how much panic this will cause if it gets out?"
Qi Ming waved his hand and stepped back to put some distance between them. He said with a cold look in his eyes, "Don't spread this matter to anyone, or I will never let you go. Let me go back and think about it."
With this he stumbled away.
Xiao Qi and Xiao Ba reached out their hands to help their master up, and said with a worried look on their faces, "Master, what should we do now? Should we continue to stay here? What if this is really a plague?"
"The officials can run away, but how can we? I heard that places with plagues are always burned down. I don't want to... die, Master."
The coroner took a deep breath and said slowly, "Let's go. We can leave secretly under the cover of night. We can't stay here even if we have to row a boat."
"You two go back and pack your things now. Remember to only take the valuables. Leave the unimportant things behind. We're leaving tonight. We can't take this risk."
"Yes, Master, we will listen to you."
As it gradually darkened, the three of them rowed away in the cover of darkness. When Qi Ming came to look for them the next morning, they were gone.
Before he could get angry and arrest the person, several more bodies were found one after another. The cause of death was exactly the same as the previous one. There were no fatal wounds on the bodies, only pus-filled and internal organs.
Qi Ming did not dare to report it, so he asked someone to bury the body immediately. He went back and started packing up his things, pretending to be sick and leaving the city.
Emperor Gan was still unaware of this and was enjoying himself with his concubines in the harem. The sound of stringed instruments drifted into the air, along with the men's wild laughter and the women's sweet giggles.
When the Imperial Master walked in, he saw the lewd scene and subconsciously frowned: "Your Majesty, I have read your fortune and found that the capital is in great danger. You'd better leave as soon as possible."
“……!!”
"Master, what are you talking about? Didn't you say that after the earthquake, the capital would be safe? Why is it a sign of great disaster now?"
"It's just an accident."
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