Seizing this heaven-sent opportunity, how could Huo Qixiao give it up? Thus, he took the initiative to approach Chu Ruoqiao and strike up a conversation.
On the other side, Chu Ruoqiao, who had been thoroughly brainwashed by the Saintess, naturally knew that Huo Qixiao would have a period of great success in the Great Yu Dynasty in the future.
Furthermore, he was Huo Qiyuan's own cousin, and proximity breeds favor. Therefore, Chu Ruoqiao did not show any sign of rejection towards Huo Qixiao's initiative to strike up a conversation and build a connection.
After a brief chat, they discovered that both were heading to find the divine physician Gongsun Zan. Chu Ruoqiao was puzzled why, if Huo Qixiao knew Gongsun Zan's whereabouts, the Prince of Jianbian's mansion still needed to write a letter seeking help from her grandfather.
However, Chu Ruoqiao didn't overthink it. She also didn't expect that Huo Qixiao had already harbored the intention of eliminating the Prince of Jianbian's mansion and avenging the death of her beloved's family.
The two traveled together towards Changning Prefecture. After five days of non-stop travel, they finally found Gongsun Zan resting in a secluded village. Chu Ruoqiao informed him about the raging plague in the capital and handed him the letters from the Prince of Jianbian and the Duke of Chu.
After quickly perusing the two letters, Gongsun Zan understood the gravity of the situation and did not delay further. Accompanied by his two medicine apprentices, he, along with Huo Qixiao and Chu Ruoqiao, raced back to the capital at full speed.
Time quickly advanced to the eighth day of December. The temperature in the capital had dropped even lower than in the coldest times past. This winter was undoubtedly the most arduous and unbearable winter in the capital's history.
Many people who did not live in the western district heard that hundreds of people had already died there due to the plague. Although the common people dared not speak of it, they did not believe the court's claims that the epidemic had been contained.
Consequently, over these past twenty-odd days, many wealthy families had packed their valuables and taken their families to their estates outside the city to temporarily avoid the epidemic. Some of the more timid even hired carriages and fled with their entire families to other prefectures to escape the plague.
Today marked the twenty-seventh day since the outbreak of the plague in the western district. This was different from the rapid deaths that occurred within three to five days of the epidemic's initial spread. Although Physician Zheng Hong had not been able to develop a complete cure for the plague, through his continuous attempts and experiments, he had unexpectedly discovered that wood ash could indeed effectively prevent the plague.
Thus, later, when brewing the medicinal water, Physician Zheng Hong boldly added some wood ash. He then administered the brewed medicinal water to patients who had contracted the plague and were in severe condition.
The final result could be considered a reward for his painstaking efforts. Those patients who were on the verge of death, after being fed the decoction mixed with wood ash, were actually able to survive for several more days before succumbing to the illness.
It seemed that wood ash could indeed effectively control and prolong the time of viral outbreak in plague patients. However, to achieve a complete cure for the plague, adjustments to the proportions of the medicinal ingredients were still necessary.
After Physician Zheng Hong's twenty-eight days of arduous work, Chu Ruoqiao and the others finally returned to the capital with the Ghost Hand Divine Physician. Upon entering the city, Gongsun Zan wasted no time and headed directly to the western district to join the front lines of the fight against the epidemic.
Emperor Rui, who had been enduring anxious waiting in the imperial palace, was overjoyed to hear that the divine physician had finally been brought back! With the divine physician's arrival, curing the plague was now a matter of time. It had to be said that this Huo Qixiao was truly his lucky star!
Everything unfolded as Huo Qixiao had predicted. After diagnosing several plague patients, the Ghost Hand Divine Physician added a rare ingredient, "Tian San Xing," to Physician Zheng Hong's original prescription.
This was actually a herb with mild toxicity, typically growing in humid and hot regions with dense forests, and was not found in the capital. After being neutralized with other medications, the toxicity of Tian San Xing would dissipate, leaving behind its potent cough-suppressing and blood-stasis-resolving properties, which were precisely what was needed to treat the bloody cough associated with the plague.
With Gongsun Zan's participation, the plague was quickly brought under control. By December 25th, all patients could stop their medication. Due to the severity of their previous illnesses, everyone had experienced varying degrees of weight loss. With a bit of nourishing food and proper conditioning, they would gradually recover.
Although this plague lasted less than two months, the capital was clearly significantly impacted. Not only did the people in the western district have no income for two months, but other districts were also severely affected.
Not to mention the daily necessities of the people quarantined in their homes in the western district, and the constant brewing of large quantities of medicinal soup for the two isolated epidemic zones.
When Emperor Rui, in his desire to demonstrate his benevolent heart towards his subjects, had declared that all expenses would be borne by the court, all the money, grain, and medicinal herbs required for combating the plague were allocated from the national treasury. With so many mouths to feed and bodies to care for, this represented a considerable expenditure.
After the plague was completely eradicated, the Minister of Revenue, Bi Shoucai, arrived at the imperial study with a look of profound distress, holding a ledger. The moment Emperor Rui saw him, his head felt like it was about to split. These days, his greatest dread was seeing this particular minister.
This was because whenever Bi Shoucai came to the palace to see the Emperor, he had only one objective: to complain about the empty coffers, using various ingenious methods to do so, as if urging him on his deathbed. No matter what Emperor Rui said, he would invariably steer the conversation towards a lack of funds.
Truly, his name "Bi Shoucai" (which can imply saving money or being stingy) was not wasted! It seemed his parents had foresight in raising such a miserly fellow.
Seeing Emperor Rui troubled by the emptiness of the national treasury, Huo Sizhun took the lead in donating twenty thousand taels of silver. With the Prince of Jianbian taking the lead, even if other officials were reluctant, they could only produce banknotes and donate, then curse Huo Sizhun privately.
If the Prince of Jianbian's mansion was so wealthy, why didn't he just donate his own money? Why did he have to make them aware of it?
In reality, how much money did Huo Sizhun himself have! It had been more than a decade since the Great Yu Dynasty had engaged in large-scale warfare. Even when wars did occur, they were primarily for repelling foreign invaders, not for territorial expansion.
Thus, after each battle, the spoils of war were surrendered to the court, leaving very little for themselves. Even the rewards granted by the Emperor after victories were fixed.
Moreover, Huo Sizhun was a leader who greatly cared for his subordinates. Many times, he not only distributed the meager spoils of war among his men but even took a portion of the money and silver rewarded by the Emperor to share with them.
Another part was used to provide honorable burials for soldiers who died on the battlefield or to appease their families, ensuring their future livelihood was not jeopardized.
If Leng Muran were not so adept at making money and had businesses that were booming and spread throughout all the prefectures of the Great Yu Dynasty, judging solely by his salary and rewards, Huo Sizhun would likely not have been able to produce so much money, nor support so many men.
Emperor Rui offered only a perfunctory praise for Huo Sizhun's leading donation, his attitude no longer as cordial as before.
When it came to awarding merits for the treatment of the plague, Emperor Rui lavished praise only on the divine physician Gongsun Zan, the Duke of Guo's daughter Chu Ruoqiao who had found him, and Huo Qixiao of the Huo family.
Gongsun Zan was a recluse who did not place much importance on fame or fortune. He had repeatedly refused the Emperor's offers to recruit him. In fact, before the court's commendation ceremony, he had already left the capital and did not appear in court.
However, in order to demonstrate his resolve to value and recruit talented individuals, the Emperor still issued an imperial decree to the whole world, highly commending and praising Gongsun Zan for his outstanding contributions during the epidemic.
As Chu Ruoqiao, who had found the divine physician, she was naturally summoned to the palace. Not only did she succeed in gaining recognition from the citizens of the entire capital, but she also received praise from the Prince of Jianbian, Huo Sizhun.
Emperor Rui described her as gentle, kind, resolute, and brave, a model for the women of the capital. To win over the Duke of Guo's mansion, he even broke protocol and granted her the title of County Princess Jiayi, thereby elevating her status.
From then on, Chu Ruoqiao became a coveted acquaintance among the noble ladies of various mansions. She also became the preferred choice for a principal wife among unmarried aristocratic young men, enjoying unprecedented popularity.
After Huo Qixiao discussed with Emperor Rui, they both felt this was a rare opportunity. Gaining favor with the populace beforehand could also pave the way for future plans, so he also attended the commendation ceremony.
Although he attributed the finding of the divine physician entirely to Chu Ruoqiao, and humbly stated that he had merely encountered Miss Chu by chance, being deeply moved by her compassionate heart for the people, he had then resolved to accompany her in searching for the divine physician.
Although Emperor Rui did not reward Huo Qixiao as he had Chu Ruoqiao, he still allowed him to gain recognition from the populace and personally bestowed upon him the calligraphy "Heroic Spirit, Tender Heart."
After these three were all commended, the Emperor's expression underwent a noticeable change.
Regarding the guards who had initially sealed off the western district, and then the personnel from the Prince of Jianbian's mansion who took over the responsibility in the western district, Emperor Rui merely mentioned them in passing.
He stated that since they received their salaries from the court, it was their duty to resolve difficulties for the nation. This epidemic was a test for them, therefore, no rewards or punishments would be given.
The crowd below, hearing the implication of his words, began to speculate. If it was the initial guard team, they had turned the western district into a chaotic mess, so naturally, they should be punished, not rewarded.
However, after the people from the Prince of Jianbian's mansion took over, they managed the western district orderly, and no more innocent civilians died unjustly.
But judging by the Emperor's intent today, neither rewarding nor punishing them, did this clearly mean he was equating the guards with the people of the Prince of Jianbian's mansion?
Before everyone could recover from their various speculations, Emperor Rui's expression changed again, and he began to attack. He severely reprimanded Physician Zheng Hong, the head of the Imperial Hospital.
He stated that he should not have been helpless in the face of a minor epidemic, not only allowing so many common people to die from illness, but that such behavior was a disgrace to the court.
Physician Zheng Hong, who had faithfully served in the heavily afflicted area of the epidemic for over two months, not only received no commendation but was also reprimanded by the Emperor and even faced punishment.
If Huo Sizhun had not felt that the Emperor's words were somewhat biased and had not interceded to defend Physician Zheng Hong a few words, Physician Zheng Hong would have faced more than just a reprimand.
However, regardless of what other officials thought, after being reprimanded by the Emperor, Physician Zheng Hong's previous joy and spirit from curing the plague were immediately dampened by more than half. For a long time afterward, Physician Zheng Hong fell into deep self-doubt.
Perhaps he was truly incompetent and undeserving of his position? Various pressures weighed him down, making him feel exhausted. In the end, feeling utterly fatigued, Physician Zheng Hong simply resigned his post as the head of the Imperial Hospital, packed his medicine chest, and returned to his hometown to become a simple country doctor.
Even the diligent Physician Zheng Hong had all his contributions erased. Let alone the unknown individuals like squad leaders and executioners who participated in combating the plague.
Although they were not willing to go to the western district at first, they had braved the risk of infection for over a month, running around and sacrificing themselves.
However, after all their hard work, they not only received nothing but also, knowing that they had resided in the midst of the plague, their neighbors shunned them upon their return, treating them with utter disdain.
There were even those who went to excessive lengths, colluding with their neighbors to prevent them from passing their homes, fearing that the plague pathogens on them had not been completely cleared and might infect the surrounding residents.
All of this was deeply disheartening.
Huo Sizhun did not understand why Emperor Rui's temperament had undergone such a drastic change. However, he had never considered that Emperor Rui might intend to harm him. Therefore, whenever he encountered something he felt was unjust, he would argue with the Emperor.
Precisely because Huo Sizhun often argued with him, Emperor Rui increasingly felt that the Prince of Jianbian did not respect him, and many of his words seemed to be warnings.
Finally, when Huo Qixiao once again mentioned the Prince of Jianbian's mansion's disloyalty, Emperor Rui did not refute him.
The two planned every step of their subsequent actions. First, they dispatched people to the frontier to remind Xu Zhipeng to prepare in advance for the matters that had been assigned.
Meanwhile, Huo Qixiao was also working tirelessly to prepare the evidence that would be used to frame the Prince of Jianbian's mansion. Although he was not a member of the Prince of Jianbian's mansion, he was, after all, the eldest son of the Huo family. Benefiting from this familial relationship, he could freely enter and exit the Prince of Jianbian's mansion without restriction.
With everyone harboring their own secret intentions, time quickly passed until the New Year. At this time, the letter sent by Huo Qiyuan from the distant border was received.
In his letter, Huo Qiyuan stated that the Eastern Yao Kingdom had dispatched two hundred thousand troops, but instead of engaging in direct combat, they occasionally sent small squads to launch sneak attacks.
He had already made preparations to lead his troops to drive the Eastern Yao Kingdom back to their homeland as soon as the weather warmed up after the New Year. He estimated that he would be able to return to the capital to report for duty around April or May of the following year.