sbdcsierra Chapter 221 I'm a doctor!
Chapter 221 I'm a doctor!
Xue Wanyue knelt on the ground, her eyes lowered, looking at the back of her hand where Xue Wanning had scratched her, her eyes filled with indifference.
She gently comforted Xue Wanning, "Big sister, it's time for me to go back. Don't worry, I will bring you something on the day you leave the capital. Please take care."
After saying that, she carefully withdrew her hand, glanced obediently at Xue Wanning, slowly got up, and turned around with her head down.
Xue Wanning felt slightly relieved as she watched her timid back.
In any case, there is still a chance.
Unseen by anyone, a strange smile curved beneath Xue Wanyue's veil.
……
On the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month, the last court session before the New Year was held. The Emperor sat on the dragon throne, his eyes slightly narrowed as he watched the officials below summarize the various matters that had been handled before the New Year. After the court session ended today, the imperial seal was sealed and the court session was suspended until after the Lantern Festival.
Every year-end, the emperor would be overwhelmed with trivial matters, and he was getting sleepy listening to them. Just as he was about to wave his hand and let them handle it themselves, a young eunuch came in from the outer gate, whispered something in an official's ear, and handed him a letter. The official hurriedly reported the matter to the calm and collected Chief Minister Song.
The Grand Secretary Song was startled and almost lost his footing. He immediately walked out, clutching the letter and sweating profusely, and said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, an urgent letter from the Northwest has just arrived. Please take a look."
The Emperor frowned slightly, and the officials below began to change their topics and whisper among themselves. In the past two years, the war in the Northwest has decreased sharply, and correspondingly, military spending has also decreased significantly. Many people praised the newly appointed Northwest General Sheng Junyao for being young and promising, and believed that if he were to be stationed in the Northwest permanently, the Northwest might finally be able to stabilize.
There haven't been any large-scale battles in the Northwest for the past two or three years, so there haven't been any urgent reports. Anything that comes up at this time must be something important.
The chief eunuch Feng Kang had already taken the letter, opened it respectfully, examined it, and then handed it to the emperor.
The Emperor skimmed through the letter, becoming increasingly alarmed with each reading. His anger was palpable, and he nearly threw the beaded ornament he was holding. But by the end, he was utterly astonished.
Although those below could not clearly see his expression, they could vaguely sense the change in his aura. The entire court fell silent for a moment, so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
After the Emperor finished reading the letter, it took him a while before he instructed Feng Kang, "Read it to them."
Feng Kang quickly glanced at the letter and began to read it aloud. Even though he had served in the palace for half his life, he was still so shocked by the not-so-complicated words on the letter that his palms were sweating and his voice was unsteady for a moment.
The officials below were even more shocked.
What did Sheng Junyao say? He said that some merchants, under the guise of trading, had brought smallpox into Yangguan City. After this news spread, Yangguan City was attacked by foreign tribes and nearly fell. Many civilians and soldiers in the city unfortunately contracted smallpox and died. Fortunately, several doctors at the border accidentally discovered a method to prevent smallpox and, with a do-or-die attitude, tried it and achieved excellent results.
He had already made the preventative measures public in his letter, firstly to find a stable way to prevent smallpox as soon as possible, and secondly to request His Majesty to send someone to thoroughly investigate the matter, as he suspected that someone was deliberately spreading the disease and endangering the border.
Before the letter was even finished being read, the entire court was in an uproar.
The two things Sheng Junyao mentioned were more shocking than the last.
Everyone present clearly understands what smallpox represents throughout history, and it is simply unbelievable that someone has now found an effective way to prevent it!
Even more inconceivable is that someone would actually use such vile means to try and disrupt the border; it is an utterly heinous crime deserving of death. Throughout history, deliberately spreading plagues has been a capital offense punishable by the extermination of entire families. It should be understood that any plague, if mishandled, could potentially destroy a city.
If smallpox were to enter Yangguan City, it could not only destroy the city itself, but also the Northwest Army, causing unrest in the Northwest, with unimaginable consequences.
The court officials discussed the matter extensively, almost completely forgetting that the annual holiday was about to begin. It took nearly an hour before they finally reached a conclusion: a team of imperial physicians would be immediately dispatched to the northwest to verify the claims of smallpox prevention. Furthermore, the Ministry of Justice, in conjunction with the Ministry of War, would send an imperial envoy to Yangguan City to investigate the plague.
……
Ever since Lu Yangyang told Wen Yu about the smallpox prevention, he had been forcibly dragging her to the cowshed to look for cowpox for the past few days. He even volunteered to get vaccinated himself. Lu Yangyang couldn't refuse him, so she had to accompany him everywhere. Until one day, he received the news and simply abandoned Lu Yangyang without saying a word and ran away. Only then did Lu Yangyang have time to return to the Duke of Sheng's mansion.
As soon as she entered the mansion, she was stopped by Sheng Junyi, whom she hadn't seen for many days. Sheng Junyi asked her directly, "Did you go to Yangguan City in the Northwest a few days ago?"
Lu Yangyang always ignored him, not even giving him a glance, and simply walked past him.
"Lu Yangyang! This is a serious matter. The plague in Yangguan, Northwest China, is no joke. If you go, can you tell me what happened? How is my brother?" Sheng Junyi, who usually didn't care much, couldn't help but feel anxious because this was no ordinary matter. He took a few steps to Lu Yangyang and blocked her way.
Just then, Sheng Yunzhu, who had just returned from outside, was also stunned when she heard their conversation: "What? Yangyang, you went to the Northwest? To where my older brother is? Isn't there a smallpox outbreak there? You, you..."
Before she could finish speaking, the maids and servants around her who heard her voice instinctively moved several steps to the side, looking at Lu Yangyang in horror, as if she had already contracted smallpox.
Sheng Yunzhu also turned pale and took several steps back, extremely anxious: "This, this... Yangyang, why, why didn't you say so earlier? You've only been back for five or six days. If, if you got infected, then, then the Sheng State Duke's Mansion, and, and many other people, wouldn't they be easily infected?"
Lu Yangyang glanced at her, then looked at the servants who had gathered around to watch the commotion but dared not approach. They usually entered and exited the mansion through the side gate, and she was no exception. Sheng Junyi had probably come to confront her as soon as he heard the news. Besides her, there were quite a few servants who had been coming and going, and now they were all gathered around her, about a dozen people, all looking at her with fear on their faces.
That's... ridiculous.
Lu Yangyang had initially ignored them, but seeing Sheng Yunzhu convincingly claim she had smallpox with just a few words, she couldn't help but laugh. So she simply walked over to Sheng Yunzhu, grabbed her by the collar before she could react, leaned close, and nodded.
“You’re right. I did go to Yangguan City. There were many patients with smallpox in the city. I’m a doctor, so of course I had to take care of them. I took care of them for a long time. Every day, people died from festering sores all over their bodies. I touched these hands every day.”
As he spoke, he touched Sheng Yunzhu's face with one hand.