bullyxtreme Chapter 179 Plague Conspiracy
Chapter 179 Plague Conspiracy
Chief Supervisor Xiao's thought process is indeed quite bizarre; before anything has even happened, he's already thinking about renouncing his human status.
Jiang Xinyu was so happy to hear that he was willing to give up his human identity and live with her in the demon race that she could hardly laugh.
To be honest, if she could travel back in time, she really would like to take her husband with her.
To avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, Jiang Xinyu reiterated her identity as a human.
As for the "Hidden Universe in the Sleeve," he only said it was an opportunity he obtained in a dream. After all, the idea of being resurrected through possession was quite taboo in ancient times, and there was no need to mention it and cause unnecessary trouble.
Xiao Yuan didn't really care how he acquired this hidden universe; he was only afraid that he wouldn't know how his wife died in the future.
As long as his wife doesn't leave him, nothing else matters.
Seeing that his wife was being vague in some parts, Chief Supervisor Xiao wisely refrained from asking any questions.
She gazed intently at her lover, afraid that he would disappear in the blink of an eye.
He regretted it; he shouldn't have agreed to let his wife wait for him in the city. He wanted to keep his wife by his side at all times.
Jiang Xinyu didn't care, since she didn't want to be separated from Xiao Yuan anyway.
As for the inconvenience... it's not too bad.
There are latrines everywhere if people don't look up when they pee; just avoid them if you see them from afar.
She disguised herself as a man and followed Xiao Yuan closely, trying not to wander off alone. Surely no soldier would be so foolish as to urinate in front of the Grand Eunuch.
Xiao Yuan himself was conflicted.
He was both afraid that his wife might be in danger or inconvenient to keep by his side, and also afraid that she might disappear without his knowledge.
Jiang Xinyu, worn down by his nagging, finally threw him a copper coin, telling him to submit to fate.
Keep the front side by your side and temporarily separate the back side; there's no more scientific method than this.
In the past, even when faced with difficult decisions, Xiao Yuan would calmly analyze and compare the pros and cons before making a decision. He had never used such a childish and unreliable method before.
But that's how people are; they get confused when they care.
When people are extremely concerned about something and are afraid of losing it, they will place all their hopes on heaven, earth, and gods.
But in reality, even if there really are gods, they are very busy, okay? They don't have time to care about those trivial matters in the human world.
Burning incense and praying are all just self-deception. If everyone's prayers could be received by the gods, wouldn't the gods be driven crazy?
Zhang San said he couldn't find a partner.
Li Si said he wanted to get rich this year.
Wang Wu said his chickens weren't laying eggs.
Zhao Liu said his sow wasn't giving birth.
Each of you is burning incense worth 3 yuan and making a wish worth 30,000 yuan. How ignorant must the gods be to eat your offerings and then give you a wife?
But it was still a source of spiritual sustenance, and even Xiao Yuan, who never believed in ghosts, gods, or karmic retribution, was captivated by it this time.
I held the copper coin between my hands, shook it left and right, and prayed in my heart. Finally, I threw it out and watched it spin on the table. I was so nervous that I was sweating.
Xiao Yuan's actions were actually quite foolish, but Jiang Xinyu had no intention of laughing at him; she only felt a deep sadness.
I have prayed before the Buddha for thousands of years just to see you. The Buddha is an illusion, but my love is real.
The coin finally stopped spinning, and the face turned up.
Xiao Yuan gazed intently at Jiang Xinyu, "My dear wife, even Heaven knows I can't bear to be separated from you, but I'm sorry to have to trouble you."
At this moment, Xiao Yuan's eyes were bright with joy and affection. Jiang Xinyu straddled his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him.
Xiao Yuan was taken aback, then wrapped his arms around Jiang Xinyu's waist and deepened the kiss, not with the urgency of lust, but with extreme tenderness.
With Jiangxinyu's top-secret space, Xiao Yuan had a safe place to keep many of the things that needed special protection.
He even joked that when he got back, he would move all the valuables in the mansion to his wife's space, and he would live off his wife from now on.
Jiang Xinyu also released some essential disaster relief supplies stored in her space, which replenished Xiao Yuan's consumption over the past few days.
Since the lady arrived, Chief Supervisor Xiao's mood has never been bad, and even the slightly serious epidemic situation in some places cannot stop his good mood.
The wealthy merchants who had purchased the emperor's calligraphy naturally dared not default on their debts, and a steady stream of cloth, grain, and coal was transported to Xuzhou.
The cement supplied by the imperial court has gradually arrived, and it can be said that the disaster relief efforts are progressing quite smoothly so far.
Unfortunately, before the natural disasters subsided, man-made calamities struck again. The eleven counties under Xuzhou's jurisdiction had just reached the seventh upstream section when disaster struck.
Normally, floods are more severe the further downstream you go, not only because low-lying areas have to receive more floodwater, but also because of water pollution.
If a village upstream gets sick, it will inevitably affect the downstream area, as both excrement and corpses will carry the virus downstream.
However, if it is only a village downstream that gets sick, it will not affect the upstream area at all.
It can be said that the people living in the villages at the very top of the river are the least likely to be infected with the plague.
However, when Xiao Yuan's team arrived in Yongshun County, the situation there was shocking.
Too many people have died, and many have rotted and smelled because there are no able-bodied people to bury them.
The whole city was in chaos. When the imperial envoy arrived, no one greeted him. It turned out that the county magistrate and his secretary had suddenly died of illness, so no one was taking care of the area.
In a year of famine, the worst thing is for a group of people to be leaderless.
The county magistrate is dead, but the county government office and grain are still there. The powerful clans, gentry, yamen runners, and local ruffians have each formed their own factions to seize the resources.
These dead included not only those who died of illness, but also those who died in armed conflicts.
Regardless of how they died, the stench of their corpses attracted flies, polluted water sources, and spread plagues – a complete chain of problems, making Yongshun County the most difficult place for disaster relief.
Actually, dealing with just one city is manageable. In chaotic times, harsh measures are necessary; at worst, all the offenders can be beheaded.
The combined prestige of dozens of heads was enough to intimidate all the forces in the city.
Whether they are yamen runners, servants, or local ruffians, they are all helpless against regular troops, let alone the agents of the Eastern Depot.
Or rather, if Jiang Xinyu were to go in, one person could wipe them out.
But the problem wasn't the city, but a message they received.
The plague in the city broke out suddenly, without warning, in multiple locations, evenly distributed throughout the east, west, south, and north.
Their county magistrate and his clerk were both quite afraid of death; ever since the disaster, they've been hiding in the county office like cowards.
As a result, the two old men, who had never been exposed to dirt or outsiders, suddenly fell ill and died within a day.
It's strange how the infected people were spread out so evenly, almost one every five or six, or seven or eight households, as if it had been planned out in advance.
Xiao Yuan immediately thought of what Yan Fei had said about Zhang Zhongyi sending people to spread the plague, but Jiang Xinyu had a different opinion.
Plagues are not a panacea.
Different people have different immune systems, so even if they come into contact with the same pathogen, they may not necessarily get infected.
Moreover, it's too strange that the county magistrate and his advisor contracted the disease on the same day and died immediately.
The plague didn't seem to spread that quickly; it sounded more like poisoning. The benefits were obvious: a leaderless city in chaos would maximize the depletion of rescue personnel.
If she guessed correctly, people from Yonghe County, which is further ahead of Yongshun County, would soon come seeking help.
As for the extent to which the forces will be dispersed, that depends on where the other side intends to eliminate Xiao Yuan.
Along the way, the rescue team dispersed, and Xiao Yuan's team now has only more than 800 people left.
There are fewer than 40 loyal and capable agents left in the Eastern Depot.
Every relief soldier left behind needed to be assigned to be guarded by people from the Eastern Depot.
If Yonghe County requests their help, they will need to leave at least 300 people and 15 barbarians behind when they rush to Yonghe.
If another request for help is received in Yonghe, the personnel will have to be dispersed again...
After listening to his wife's analysis, Xiao Yuan's face grew even colder. It was indeed Zhang Zhongyi's doing; he only cared about the loss and not the consequences.
It seems the other side is determined to kill him. If he doesn't divide his forces and doesn't give the other side a chance to kill him, that old bastard probably has a backup plan.
Let's lure them out. Instead of letting them keep getting on our radar, we might as well take the initiative and wipe them all out in one fell swoop.