When Huo Sijun received news of the plague, it was already seven days later. Coincidentally, two days before the outbreak, Leng Muran suddenly thought of staying at the manor for two days, so Huo Sijun took leave to accompany her.
The Emperor was preparing to find an excuse to send Huo Sijun out of the city. After all, in the hearts of the common people, he was like the pillar of the Dayu Dynasty.
If Huo Sijun remained in the capital, with his regard for the common people, he would definitely personally investigate the situation in the western district. At that time, the ignorant common people would surely believe that it was all the credit of the King of Binge Jian.
This way, it would have nothing to do with the court, or with himself as the Emperor. Therefore, as soon as he heard Huo Sijun say he wanted to take leave and go out of the city, the Emperor nodded in agreement without thinking.
However, in the end, Huo Sijun left, but the plague was far from as easy as Emperor Rui had thought. In just a few days, the plague in the western district began to spread rapidly, and it was already on the verge of being uncontrollable.
Emperor Rui had his own ulterior motives from the beginning. To claim credit for controlling the plague, he sent out only his trusted confidants.
In the past few days, when Emperor Rui heard his subordinates report the death toll, he always felt that the old ministers looked at him with disdain, as if they thought the plague was uncontrollable because he, the Emperor, was not competent enough.
On the fifth day of Huo Sijun's departure, news of the plague came from the western district again. It was said that several people from the Imperial Hospital had fallen. Emperor Rui was now thoroughly anxious, but he could do nothing but worry.
Now, those old ministers were no longer silent as before. They openly and covertly satirized Emperor Rui for being eager for quick success and for appointing people based on personal favoritism. As a result, things were muddled up, and the capital fell into panic and chaos.
The Emperor was so angry that his heart ached from their cold sarcasm. When they criticized others, their tongues were as swift as if they were jumping off a cliff. But when asked if they had any solutions, they all pretended not to hear, only knowing how to act foolish.
Emperor Rui was at his wit's end. At this moment, someone said, "Why hasn't the King of Binge Jian attended court recently?" The Emperor, sitting at the head of the table, his eyes lit up, and he quickly sent someone to summon Huo Sijun back to the capital.
While summoning Huo Sijun back, Emperor Rui secretly sent the Dragon Shadow Guards to the Huo Manor to bring Huo Qixiao to the palace. He wanted to ask Huo Qixiao why the plague, which was initially said to be a small outbreak, had become so severe.
Emperor Rui looked exhausted. After the shadow guards finally returned, they reported that Huo Qixiao had already left the capital several days ago, saying he was going out to find medicine to cure the plague for the Emperor, and it would take a few more days to return.
What? He still had several days to go!
Upon hearing this, Emperor Rui felt an intense headache. The plague had only broken out for a few days, and he was already dizzy from these messy affairs. Now, the person who could help the most had left the city...
Currently, the court was implicitly divided into several factions. Emperor Rui, isolated and helpless, had a group of confidants he had personally promoted but who were incapable. There were old ministers with ulterior motives, and those who simply wanted to protect themselves like old foxes.
Two days later, a group of people argued endlessly in court about the plague.
Today was the seventh day of the plague outbreak. White snow was falling from the sky. It was only the end of November, yet it was already snowing heavily.
When the Emperor went to court that day, he was again implicitly squeezed by the old ministers. Looking at the young officials he had promoted, who were all being scolded like grandsons, Emperor Rui felt his head buzzing!
These people were too young. Whether it was in handling affairs or in the way of governing, in every aspect, they were no match for those old foxes!
It was ironic. In just a few days, Emperor Rui's whole body had become puffy. He, the dignified ruler of a nation, was actually caught between these ministers and harassed from both sides.
Regarding the handling of the plague, Emperor Rui privately wanted his own people to go, because he had received Huo Qixiao's assurance that the plague could be resolved soon.
However, after the first few officials were sent out and confined to the western district, the remaining ones could talk eloquently, but when it was time for them to go, they all fell silent. They were simply not to be trusted!
Thinking of those officials who would not return, Emperor Rui worried about what would happen if he sent his own people again and they were also lost.
It was very difficult to arrange positions with real power and influence for his own people in the court now. With this thought, to reduce the loss of his own people, Emperor Rui felt that since they were all avoiding going to the western district, he would turn a blind eye and pretend not to see.
It was not acceptable to lose his own people, and the old ministers who did not share his intentions were even less reliable. These troublesome old fellows were not only unhelpful but also better than anyone else at finding fault.
Whenever something was discussed, they would make all sorts of insinuations and veiled criticisms. Not only that, but these people always liked to bring up old matters.
They said that the people the Emperor had sent out earlier had messed things up. The western district was now in complete disarray, and the plague there was severe. Even if these old bones went, they would probably be willing but unable. They asked the Emperor to send someone more capable to resolve the people's suffering as soon as possible!
Emperor Rui could recite these old sayings by heart after several days. Now, sitting on the dragon throne, his eyes kept looking towards the door, hoping for someone to report that the King of Binge Jian had returned.
Huo Sijun, how much longer will it take you to arrive?
He remembered that every time he attended court before, as long as Huo Sijun was present, no matter what he said or what measures he implemented, Huo Sijun would cooperate very well. And as long as Huo Sijun supported it, even if the officials were unwilling, they would eventually agree.
It was precisely because Huo Sijun had such astonishing prestige and enviable leadership that Emperor Rui became increasingly wary, as if in the eyes of those old ministers, he was merely Huo Sijun's puppet.
Listening to the noisy voices in the hall, it was the first time Emperor Rui missed Huo Sijun so much. However, his longing was not because he no longer suspected Huo Sijun of rebellion, but because he hoped he would return soon to take over this mess, so that the Emperor would not have a headache listening to it.
Although there were his own people in the court now, when facing these cunning old ministers, Emperor Rui still felt like he was alone. He couldn't rely on anyone!
And what about Huo Qixiao? He said he was going to find the divine doctor to get medicine for the plague. He didn't know if his journey was smooth, if he had found the divine doctor, and how long it would take to bring the medicine back. If this continued, Emperor Rui felt he would not be able to hold on any longer.
Just as everyone in the hall was still arguing about which officials should be appointed to handle the plague in the western district, someone rushed in from outside to report.
When Emperor Rui saw someone rush in, he thought it was Huo Sijun who had returned. He quickly sat up straight, looking at the person reporting with expectation.
The person rushed to kneel on the ground, offered a salute, and quickly reported the matter, "Reporting to Your Majesty, just now, the stationed general in the western district sent someone to say that, for some reason, this morning the common people in the western district wanted to rush out of the west city gate. The imperial guard intervened to stop them, and accidentally killed several common people. Now the guard and the common people are in a standoff, and if no one is sent to mediate, a riot may occur at any time."
When the Emperor heard this news, he was furious. Before one problem was resolved, another one had appeared!
While the plague issue was already causing him a headache, now this mess had also come up! They were all so troublesome!
It should be known that the guards stationed at the west city gate were specifically assembled by him after he ascended the throne. He had spent a lot of manpower and resources to train them meticulously.
Emperor Rui's goal was simple: after the guards had trained for a few years, they might be able to replace the Imperial Guards personally trained by Huo Sijun in the palace.
This way, he would have his own manpower in the palace.
Since he had only been on the throne for more than half a year, the training time for this group of people was still short, and they were far from meeting the standards of the Imperial Guards. Now, with the plague issue, Emperor Rui thought about it and sent them to maintain order in the western district.
He thought that this incident would not only train them well but also perhaps they could gain some merit in the end. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?
However, what Emperor Rui did not know was that most of the members of this guard team were juniors from the side branches of officials. For example, the younger brother of a concubine's family, the nephew of an official's inner chamber concubine, or the son of a favored neighbor.
They were all spoiled to some extent at home. Upon hearing that they could have a position in the imperial palace, their families used connections to get them in. Therefore, few people in this group had real skills or truly wanted to achieve something.
After a period of intensive training, the bad habits of these people had not improved much. On the contrary, after learning some superficial skills, they felt that they were acting on the Emperor's orders, so they put on an air of superiority.
After arriving in the western district, they were not only extremely arrogant, but even if a slightly ignorant commoner came forward to ask about the situation, they would immediately push and shove them away. If anyone refused to accept it and wanted to argue, they would directly resort to physical violence.
In fact, many people in the western district had not died from the plague in the past few days, but were beaten to death by the guards.
Under the inhumane suppression of the guards, the common people, who had endured for several days, finally could not bear it any longer and erupted.
The sudden plague had already made them wish they were dead. Now, their dying appearances were ugly, and the living were terrified. Who would have thought that the court would send a group of such prodigal sons who would arbitrarily beat and kill them?
It was likely that before the plague could be cured, all the common people in the western district would be beaten to death!
Just then, a person dressed as a eunuch walked over from the side of the hall and whispered a few words in the ear of the head eunuch.
After he finished speaking, the head eunuch quickly bowed and stepped forward, whispering to the Emperor, "Reporting to Your Majesty, the Dragon Shadow Guards just reported that the King of Binge Jian has entered the city..."
Before the head eunuch could finish, Emperor Rui interrupted him, "He's back? Then quickly summon him to the hall. I want to see him immediately!"
"The King of Binge Jian is not waiting outside the hall. It is said that after receiving the summons the day before yesterday, the Prince did not dare to delay for a moment. He rushed back in the heavy snow, and upon his return, he immediately led several teams of men and went directly towards the western district..."
The words spoken by the two were not deliberately lowered, so everyone in the hall could hear their conversation.
"Is it really the Prince who has returned?"
"Now that the King of Binge Jian has returned, it's really great! It seems everyone can relax for the next few days."
"Did you hear? The Prince rushed day and night without rest, and upon his return, he didn't even wait in the palace for an audience, but went directly to the western district!"
"They went to the western district? But the plague in the western district is at its peak right now. The old Prince is over sixty years old and advanced in age. If something happens to him, how will we explain it to the Prince's manor...?"
At first, when Emperor Rui heard that Huo Sijun had returned, he was truly greatly relieved. Even though he did not immediately enter the palace to pay his respects, Emperor Rui was still very happy.
Before he could be happy for long, Emperor Rui heard the ministers below him constantly praising Huo Sijun, which made Emperor Rui feel very uncomfortable!
On the other side, Huo Sijun arrived at the western district at full gallop. At this time, almost all the common people had come out. They were wearing patched-up old cotton clothes. A large crowd stood at the city gate. With goose-feather snow falling on their heads, they confronted a group of people in uniform, holding weapons.
Between the two sides, more than a dozen corpses lay on the ground, their horrific deaths a sight that dared not be looked at directly.
"The King of Binge Jian has arrived!"
When the common people heard that the King of Binge Jian had arrived, they all quickly knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Huo Sijun through the wooden fence. The guards on the other side, upon seeing that it was indeed Huo Sijun, quickly stepped forward and moved aside the obstacles blocking the way for him to enter.
Huo Sijun's clothes were wet with melted snow. He raised his hand, signaling everyone to quiet down first.
"Everyone, please rest assured, our court and the Emperor will find medicine to treat the plague for the people of the western district as soon as possible. You must have faith in us and go back to wait patiently for a few more days?"