Chapter 63

The imperial envoy sent by the court arrived with a secret edict. The envoy was the Minister of Justice, Ye Jing. The Ministry of Justice oversees judicial and penal matters, and officials from this department tend to be more ruthless in handling such issues. The new emperor appointed the Minister of Justice as the envoy to Raozhou.

Seeing that it was the Minister of Justice, Prefect Zhu felt uneasy.

Prefect Zhu saluted.

Minister Ye waved his hand, “Prefect, you should first look at the secret edict from the emperor.”

The two entered the study. Minister Ye, with a stern expression, was invited by Prefect Zhu to sit in the chief seat. His subordinate handed the secret edict to Prefect Zhu with both hands.

Prefect Zhu opened the edict, and his face grew paler as he read the contents. After reading it, he said to the Minister of Justice, “Sir, actually, I wrote another memorial yesterday and sent it urgently to the capital. You may not know, but the diarrhea disease in Yuanbao Town has been controlled, and the patients have recovered. So, diarrhea is not uncontrollable or incurable. The county magistrate of Yuanbao Town came up with some methods to prevent the spread of the disease, and they have been very effective. The patients in Yuanbao Town were cured using these methods.”

The contents of the secret edict were as he had feared. The new emperor ordered the massacre of all disaster victims outside Yuanbao Town and their immediate incineration.

Moreover, any disaster victims appearing in the southwest were to be killed on the spot to prevent the spread of the diarrhea disease. If the disaster victims had already entered a town or village, the entire town or village was to be sealed off and burned, killing everyone, even those not infected.

Prefect Zhu couldn’t bring himself to carry out such orders, especially now that he knew the diarrhea disease could be controlled. He couldn’t follow the secret edict’s instructions to massacre the people and disaster victims.

Prefect Zhu felt a deep sense of sorrow.

Historically, even during plagues, emperors would seal off villages and towns but also send imperial physicians to treat the people. If treatment and control were impossible, they would quarantine the area but not immediately massacre the quarantined people, letting them die naturally instead.

Prefect Zhu didn’t know the specifics of how the diarrhea disease was discovered among the disaster victims heading to the capital or how the new emperor decided, but he guessed it was similar to now. The new emperor and the empress dowager didn’t consider treating the disaster victims and patients, opting for direct extermination instead. He feared that even if the second memorial was sent to the capital, the new emperor and the empress dowager would not believe that the diarrhea disease could be controlled and cured, and would still order him to kill everyone.

Minister Ye, upon hearing this, remained expressionless. “The new emperor sent me here merely to supervise the prefect.”

Prefect Zhu trembled as he spoke, “Sir, but those people have already been cured. They are living, breathing people. Even though three villages were affected by the disaster victims, they are also improving. In a few days, we should receive good news. Please reconsider, Sir. Can you not wait a few more days? By then, my memorial should have reached the capital, and the emperor might change his decision after reading it. Can you please delay for a few more days?”

Minister Ye still maintained his expressionless demeanor but said, “I am getting older, and the journey has been exhausting. I fell ill upon arriving in Raozhou. Please find me a place to stay and a doctor to examine me.”

Prefect Zhu was stunned for a moment, then choked up, “Thank you, sir.”

As an imperial envoy, Minister Ye would not believe the Prefect’s words without verification. So, before ‘resting,’ he went to Yuanbao Town to see the disaster victims living by a grove, under oilcloth shelters. They seemed to be living well, with food and drink, and looked much healthier than the disaster victims he had seen outside the capital two months ago. Some were still too thin, with sunken cheeks, but their spirits were good, and their faces had a healthy flush. These were likely the patients who had recovered from the diarrhea disease.

Minister Ye, not wearing his official robes, went over to ask questions.

The disaster victims told him that the county magistrate of Yuanbao Town was a good man who devised protective measures and brought doctors to treat them. They were fortunate to have such a good magistrate and also praised Young Lady Xu from Yuanbao Town.

These disaster victims had never intended to go to the capital. They were from the same village and had taken the wrong direction, fleeing to the southwest. They didn’t know that the disaster victims who went to the capital were discovered to have diarrhea disease and were ordered to be killed. Many fled in fear, only to be hunted down by the new emperor and the empress dowager’s men. The capital was not a safe place.

Minister Ye knew that the county magistrate of Yuanbao Town had done a great job, but who was this Young Lady Xu the disaster victims mentioned?

Naturally, Minister Ye asked, and the disaster victims said, “Young Lady Xu is the owner of Xu’s Food Mansion. When we were sick, she provided us with food. Her cooking is like food from the gods. We’ve never tasted anything so delicious. My wife wanted to keep living after eating Young Lady Xu’s food. She didn’t want to die from the illness.”

They had been eating Young Lady Xu’s food for half a month and had heard about her from the yamen officers and doctors.

Even they, after tasting such delicious food, had a renewed will to live, believing that despite the current hardships, things would get better in the future.

In short, Young Lady Xu’s cooking gave them hope.

Minister Ye didn’t expect that the Young Lady Xu the disaster victims spoke of was just a cook. He didn’t think much of it, assuming she was a kind-hearted cook who took care of their meals. He thought that no matter how good a country girl’s cooking was, it couldn’t compare to the imperial chefs. It was just that these disaster victims had never eaten good food and, after fleeing with empty stomachs, naturally found anything delicious.

Minister Ye did not enter Yuanbao Town. After seeing the situation of the disaster victims, he returned to Raozhou City.

Upon returning to Raozhou City, Minister Ye also wrote a memorial and sent it to the capital. In the memorial, he detailed the situation of the disaster victims and diarrhea patients, confirming that they had indeed recovered and that the diarrhea disease was under control and no longer spreading. He hoped the emperor would reconsider and change his decision.

In the following days, Minister Ye temporarily stayed at the Prefect’s residence.

Prefect Zhu also breathed a sigh of relief. When he returned to the inner courtyard, the Old Lady Zhu, trembling slightly, came over and called his name twice.

Old Lady Zhu was already in her early seventies. Although her life was considered long, her health had been deteriorating in recent years. Her eyesight had worsened in the past two years, and she needed a maid’s support to go out.

Old Lady Zhu was also very concerned about the disaster victims and patients. By now, almost everyone in Raozhou City knew about the disaster victims in the southwest, and that some had contracted diarrhea. Even though there were no cases of diarrhea in Raozhou City, they were using the preventive methods provided by County Magistrate Yang.

The people of Raozhou City also knew that the diarrhea patients in Yuanbao Town had been cured, as Prefect Zhu had posted a notice to inform and reassure them.

So, Old Lady Zhu was very worried that the imperial envoy sent from the capital would disregard the people’s and disaster victims’ lives. Hearing her son’s footsteps outside, she immediately had the maid support her out of the room.

Prefect Zhu hurriedly went forward to support his elderly mother, gently saying, “Mother, why did you come out? You should rest well in your room.”

Old Lady Zhu asked worriedly, “Wenyin, has the imperial envoy arrived? What does the emperor plan to do with the disaster victims and diarrhea patients?”

Prefect Zhu did not hide the truth from his mother and explained the situation. Old Lady Zhu couldn’t help but stomp her cane, wanting to curse the new emperor for his foolishness but fearing it would implicate her son. She could only sigh repeatedly, “Wenyin, you must not do such a foolish thing. The patients have been cured, and the diarrhea disease is no longer spreading. You must not follow the emperor’s orders to massacre the people and disaster victims. This will bring divine retribution.”

“Don’t worry, Mother.” Prefect Zhu supported his mother into the room. “I understand. The imperial envoy is also a good person and has not forced me to massacre the disaster victims or seal off the villages and towns. He has also written a memorial to the capital. There should be room for negotiation, so don’t worry. Just focus on your health. We might still find my sister, and you will have a chance to see her again.”

Old Lady Zhu had given birth to two children: a son and a daughter. The son was naturally Prefect Zhu. Prefect Zhu also had an older sister, who was more than three years older than him. When Prefect Zhu was about one year old, his sister was kidnapped.

The Zhu family was just an ordinary household. Old Lady Zhu had to take care of the younger children and couldn’t afford maids or servants. Prefect Zhu’s father was out earning money, and at that time, Prefect Zhu’s sister was about four or five years old. She would occasionally play in front of their house, but one day, she was taken by a kidnapper. This was Old Lady Zhu’s greatest regret in life. Since her daughter was taken, Old Lady Zhu cried day and night. Even now, thinking about it, she couldn’t help but shed tears, and her eyes had long gone blind from crying.

From a young age, Prefect Zhu was instructed by Old Lady Zhu to hope that he could one day find his older sister.

Prefect Zhu kept this matter in his heart. Knowing how difficult it was for an ordinary family like the Zhu’s to find someone, he studied hard. After passing the imperial examination and becoming a jinshi, he was assigned to a local position as a county magistrate and slowly rose to Prefect. Over the years, he had been searching for his sister’s whereabouts but had found no trace.

Hearing her son’s words, Old Lady Zhu smiled bitterly, “I’m afraid I won’t live to see that day.”

She was aware of her own health condition, knowing that she was at the end of her life, with at most half a year left.

Prefect Zhu also understood this well, feeling a deep sadness in his heart.

Prefect Zhu’s letter was delivered to the capital three days later and entered the palace. At that time, the court officials were troubled by the disaster victims and the plague. Some officials submitted memorials to the emperor, arguing that the disaster victims should not have been directly massacred. They should have been quarantined first, and doctors should have been sent to treat the diarrhea patients. If the disease couldn’t be controlled, then other measures could be considered. Directly massacring the disaster victims only caused them to flee in fear, spreading the disease to other areas.

Now, hearing that some disaster victims had reached the southwest, the court officials were even more anxious. The southwest was a border area with heavy military presence. They feared that the diarrhea disease would spread to the military camps, causing the entire camp to collapse without a fight.

A few years ago, the eldest prince had led troops to severely weaken the neighboring Yu Kingdom. If the southwest military camp fell due to the diarrhea disease, the southwest would become Yu Kingdom’s territory. Losing the border would allow the Yu Kingdom to recover its strength and possibly continue to wage war against the Great Sheng Dynasty, leading to chaos and turmoil.

The court officials were indeed blaming the new emperor, feeling that he was too ruthless.

Even the court officials who had already bowed to the new emperor hoped to follow a wise ruler. The previous emperor’s death was suspicious, and the eldest prince was directly executed without giving them a chance to investigate. The new emperor ascended the throne and killed several of the most vocal ministers, silencing the rest. Even after the new emperor’s smooth ascension, the censors continued to criticize him for exiling the royal princes, princesses, and the empress, often using harsh words. That period was chaotic.

If it weren’t for the outbreak of diarrhea among the disaster victims, the censors would have continued their criticism. During their scolding, the court officials could sense the new emperor’s anxiety, fearing he might even execute the censors.

With the diarrhea outbreak, the court officials saw the new emperor’s handling of the situation and felt he was unfit. If it had been the previous emperor or the eldest prince, the situation would not have escalated like this.

At that moment, a letter from Raozhou City was urgently delivered to the palace.

The new emperor immediately said, “Quickly, present it to me.”

The inner court official hurriedly took the secret letter from the sweaty soldier. It was from the Prefect of Raozhou City. After reading it, the new emperor was skeptical. Could the diarrhea disease really be cured? Was the Prefect of Raozhou City deceiving him for credit?

Some court officials were anxious, “Your Majesty, is it a secret letter from the Prefect of Raozhou City? Has the diarrhea disease spread to the military camp?”

The new emperor waved his hand, instructing the inner court official to read the letter aloud to the court officials.

After hearing the eunuch’s reading, the new emperor couldn’t help but say, “Is Prefect Zhu trying to deceive me? Throughout history, diarrhea diseases have always been controlled by sealing off the source. How could it be cured?”

The court officials looked at each other, and one couldn’t help but say, “Your Majesty, perhaps the diarrhea patients in Yuanbao Town have indeed recovered. Didn’t Prefect Zhu’s first secret letter mention the preventive measures for diarrhea? I believe we can try it. If it works, it would be a great merit. We can post notices and send imperial physicians to the places where disaster victims appear. I don’t think Prefect Zhu would dare to deceive us about such matters.”

The officials had heard about Prefect Zhu’s integrity.

The new emperor remained silent. If Prefect Zhu’s methods had indeed cured the diarrhea disease, wouldn’t that make him seem like a foolish ruler who didn’t consider any methods and directly massacred the disaster victims?

Seeing the new emperor’s silence, the court officials continued to persuade and kneel.

These officials included some who were loyal to the eldest prince, some who were loyal to the new emperor and Empress Dowager Fu, some who genuinely cared for the people, and some with selfish motives. They all knew that if the new emperor indiscriminately killed the disaster victims and the implicated people, his reputation would be ruined.

Moreover, without the people, what would these officials be?

People are like water; water can carry a boat and overturn it.

Finally, the new emperor, annoyed, said to wait for the secret letter from the imperial envoy.

Three days later, the secret letter from the imperial envoy arrived in the capital.

The imperial envoy also stated that the patients in Yuanbao Town had recovered, with only one patient dying due to severe illness. Although the other three villages had disaster victims and patients, they were under control, and the patients were gradually recovering. He also confirmed that the preventive measures from Yuanbao Town were indeed effective.

The new emperor had no choice but to stop the Prefect and the imperial envoy from massacring the cured disaster victims. Instead, he sent people to the places where disaster victims appeared to provide relief, announce the preventive measures, and treat the patients.

The court was in an uproar, and every household in the capital was on edge. Especially Xu Qinyu’s mother, Madam Xue, who was very worried knowing that there were disaster victims in Yuanbao Town. Even her brother, Xue Liang, came to see her, saying he wanted to send a letter and some money to his niece, fearing she might be affected by the disaster victims at the border town.

The recipe Xu Qinyu had given Xue Liang had made his small tea stall quite profitable, earning about sixty to seventy taels of pure profit each month. His grilled meat skewers and milk tea had become quite famous in the capital, with many people willing to queue up to buy them. As summer approached and the weather became hotter, he grilled more vegetables and added some sour plum drinks, which also sold well, making his business even more prosperous. He had earned a lot in the past few months and wanted to send some money to his niece, but he couldn’t find anyone to make the trip. Recently, there were no criminals or exiles being sent to the border town, so Ma Liu had no opportunity to go there.

Speaking of Ma Liu, he received Xu Qinyu’s recipe for wooden barrel fermented tofu and had his wife and mother make a lot of it. Whenever he had time, he or his father would carry the wooden barrels and sell them in the streets and alleys. Initially, they could earn an extra two or three taels of silver per month. Later, as their wooden barrel-fermented tofu gained some fame, more neighbors started buying it, and they could earn five or six taels of silver per month.

Eventually, a restaurant started using their wooden barrel-fermented tofu as a cooking ingredient, and the taste was excellent. They began ordering it monthly.

Now, thanks to the wooden barrel-fermented tofu, their family easily earns over ten tals of silver per month.

Ma Liu was extremely grateful to Xu Qinyu. However, he hadn’t traveled to the southwest recently, so he couldn’t personally thank Young Lady Xu.

Xue Liang still prepared a two hundred tael silver note and a letter, giving them to Madam Xue to pass on to Ma Liu. He asked her to give them to Ma Liu whenever he traveled to the southwest again, so he could deliver them to his niece.

Madam Xue, worried about her daughter, added the red envelopes her brother had given her over the past few months and prepared to send everything to her daughter. She had also listened to her daughter and brother’s advice and stopped doing embroidery work.

However, the influx of disaster victims to the border town had made her anxious. The disaster victims who arrived in the capital two months ago had contracted diarrhea and were ordered to be killed by the new emperor. Now, with more disaster victims appearing in the border town, she was worried that her daughter, Yuniang, might be affected. If the new emperor ordered the killing of the disaster victims and the implicated people at the border town, what would happen to Yuniang?

Madam Xue couldn’t sleep these days. Fortunately, a notice was suddenly posted, stating that the diarrhea disease in Yuanbao Town had been cured, and now people would be sent to other places to provide relief and treat patients.

Madam Xue was relieved and planned to go to the temple in a few days to offer incense and thank the Bodhisattva for protecting her daughter, Yuniang.

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As for Xu Qinhui from the third household, she had known about the fate of the disaster victims from her maid a few months ago. Before they even entered the city, they were found to have contracted diarrhea and were ordered to be killed by the new emperor. Many escaped, leading to chaos among the court officials. More disaster victims appeared at the border town, and the new emperor continued to order massacres. The court officials continued to protest, feeling that killing everyone was too cruel. The new emperor was overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do. While the new emperor hesitated, Empress Dowager Fu, that madwoman, didn’t. She directly sent people to the places where the disaster victims had fled and killed all the disaster victims and the implicated villages and towns. Even the three villages and Yuanbao Town at the border were not spared, and they were massacred overnight.

Xu Qinhui didn’t pay much attention to this matter because, in her previous life, these disaster victims hadn’t affected her. Besides, the situation was resolved around this time. However, over the past month, she had been very hesitant because she only learned a month ago that her second sister and the family of King Shu were living in Yuanbao Town.

In her previous life, only King Shu and Madam Wen survived, likely because they never settled in Yuanbao Town and escaped the disaster. But in this life, the entire family of King Shu was alive and well, so their fate changed, leading them to settle in Yuanbao Town.

She learned about this from her second aunt over a month ago and had been debating whether to send a letter to her second sister. However, she couldn’t find a reason to do so. She couldn’t just tell her second sister and the family of King Shu that Yuanbao Town would be massacred due to the disaster victims and the diarrhea disease.

Moreover, she had some selfish motives. She didn’t know if King Shu was away from home at this time. She hoped he could survive because entering the palace was no longer an option for her. A few months ago, she injured her leg and disfigured herself to avoid being selected for the palace, so she couldn’t enter the palace anymore.

She believed that King Shu was the future emperor who would inherit the throne. He should survive this diarrhea disease, just like in her previous life. Her second sister, the sixth princess, the seventh prince, and the only bloodline left by the eldest prince would continue their fate from the previous life.

In her previous life, her second sister died of illness on the road, and the others died in a mudslide. Although they initially avoided this fate in this life, she feared their fate would not change, only the manner of their deaths, which would be due to this plague.

If that were the case, only King Shu and Madam Wen would survive in this life.

If so, wouldn’t she still have a chance to marry King Shu and eventually become the empress?

She hesitated for a month, and as things were about to settle, she could only accept it.

But just before dinner, her maid Ping’er suddenly came in, joyfully telling her, “Miss, Miss, it’s great news! A notice was just posted outside, saying that the diarrhea patients in Yuanbao Town have all been cured, and they found a way to prevent the spread of the disease. Now, the court is sending people to various places to provide relief and save people.”

Xu Qinhui was stunned. How could this be?

In her previous life, Yuanbao Town was massacred, and there was no way to prevent the spread of the diarrhea disease. How could it be different in this life? They avoided this deadly situation again.

Xu Qinhui was so shocked that she fell ill again.

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Leaving aside the various thoughts of people in the capital, Yuanbao Town had returned to its usual life in recent days. Small vendors had come out to set up stalls, and all the shops had reopened.

Xu’s Food Mansion naturally reopened. Uncle He, whose place is far from the three villages affected by the disaster victims, was not much affected and resumed sending seafood and milk to Xu Qinyu.

Xu Qinyu knew that the successful treatment of the diarrhea disease was because, although it was a plague, it was somewhat different from true cholera. It was actually milder than the various plagues in her world. The main reason for the severe spread of the diarrhea disease was that the disaster victims did not understand that diseases could be contracted through food and were not hygienic. As long as proper precautions were taken to prevent the spread of the disease, it was easier to treat than cholera and other plagues.

Once Xu’s Food Mansion reopened, many customers came for breakfast and dinner, having heard of her good deeds. It could be said that Xu’s Food Mansion had become famous throughout Yuanbao Town.

Speaking of this, Xu Qinyu initially feared wasting food. Later, the people of Yuanbao Town began to send her food and firewood, so she didn’t suffer any losses. She also knew that her good deeds would bring Xu’s Food Mansion a good reputation.

So, she did have some selfish motives.

She was just an ordinary person with excellent cooking skills. Everyone has a bit of selfishness, and she was no exception. She didn’t think having a bit of selfishness was a big deal. She wasn’t doing anything bad and could still do some good within her means. Isn’t that what most people do?

Additionally, Xu Qinyu could guess some of the new emperor’s actions. The new emperor and the empress dowager were capable of poisoning their own father and husband, showing their cruelty. The diarrhea disease here was a terrifying and easily transmissible plague. In this era, plagues were dealt with by sealing off the area and letting people die off naturally.

The disaster victims had already spread to Yuanbao Town. The new emperor might think that the disaster victims had come into contact with the townspeople and decide to quarantine the entire town, letting them die off naturally. If he were even more ruthless, he might order the massacre of the townspeople. What then?

So, in a way, she was also saving herself.