ADWMCES Chapter82

Chu Fengqing touched his lips with his fingers, lowered his eyes slightly, and looked at his knuckles, the blood on his knuckles was glaringly red.

He pursed his blood-stained lips, trying to think about the current situation. The blood on his lips seemed particularly abrupt against his pale face, adding a sense of fragility.

Chu Fengqing calmly took his own pulse. In almost the blink of an eye, he compared his symptoms with those of the epidemic one by one and then came to a conclusion.

He got the disease.

Chu Fengqing was stunned for a moment as he looked at the pile of medicine names, wondering what he should do next.

Should he talk to Ji Yujin first?

“Uh…” Chu Fengqing suddenly realized this: he had never left the mansion, and everyone he interacted with was from there. If he fell ill, then the people in the mansion…

He opened the door and called the servant’s name several times, but heard no response.

In order to reduce the number of people he could come into contact with, Ji Yujin did not keep many servants in the mansion. Including the cooks and the maids who cleaned the house, there were only five or six people in total. Fortunately, the mansion was not too big, so this many people were enough.

Chu Fengqing wiped the blood off his lips with a handkerchief and then walked towards the yard. On the way, he shook his head, which was a little unclear, and touched his forehead with his cold hand to test it. It was hot.

As expected, he had a fever. After walking a few steps, he leaned against the stone sculpture next to him to rest for a while. His steps were so light as if he were walking on cotton.

The servant who was sweeping the floor saw him and hurried over to ask him what he wanted.

Chu Fengqing glanced at him, and seeing that his cheeks were abnormally red, he took his pulse.

……

Chu Fengqing let go of his hand and whispered, “What’s your name?”

The man was stunned for a moment, then replied, “My Lord, this humble one’s name is Ah Da.”

Chu Fengqing wrapped himself in fox fur, his black hair scattered behind his back, and it slid forward a little as he moved. His voice was weak. “Ah Da, lock the door of the mansion. No one is allowed to leave the mansion nor is anyone allowed to come in.”

He paused as he spoke, “Including Lord Ji.”

Ah Da blinked. Although he didn’t understand why, he was just a servant and couldn’t make the decision, so he trotted to close the door.

The people in the mansion also contracted the disease. The disease spread very quickly. Several people had been eating and living together in the same mansion for several days. Come to think of it, no one could escape.

Chu Fengqing returned to the room and poured himself a cup of hot tea. Fortunately, Ji Yujin and Imperial Physician Li were not in the same mansion as him; otherwise, they would all be infected, and he would not know what to do next then.

Holding the hot tea, his cold hands finally felt a little warmer.

Chu Fengqing looked at the prescriptions on the table and realized that he had to hurry up while his situation was not serious yet.

It just so happens that he can contact the patients now…

Chu Fengqing called several people who were sick into the house and carefully checked their pulses one by one. Some of them didn’t understand what was happening at first, while some were more sensitive and had already discovered that something was wrong with their bodies and became suspicious early on.

It was just that no one dared to speak up or even see a physician. Had they not been infected with the plague but were moved to the eastern part of the city, the outcome would have been the same.

Now seeing Chu Fengqing both shutting himself in and taking the patient’s pulse, they had a clearer guess in their minds.

One of them bravely asked, “My Lord, you have called us all here and checked our pulses. Is it that we… are we sick?”

Chu Fengqing took the pulse of the last person and looked at his tongue. There were six people present, including him, and all of them were infected with the disease. However, there was still one person missing in the mansion—the servant who had taken care of him was nowhere to be seen. The doorman said that he went out to fetch water.

Hearing the man’s question, Chu Fengqing was a little embarrassed, but now that things have come to this, it is better to tell the truth than to hide it. “En, everyone present has been infected with the disease, so we cannot leave the mansion for the time being. As for the follow-up arrangements, it depends on Lord Ji.”

He paused and added, “Sorry.”

This sentence was like a drop of water dropped into a boiling oil pan, which exploded. Several people shouted in disbelief, and then there was a long silence.

After a moment of silence, several people began to sob quietly. One of the women kneeled down in front of Chu Fengqing and said, “Lord Chu! This old woman knows that you are from the capital. You are very powerful. Please save us. This old woman is not afraid of death, but I cannot die yet. My silly son at home is waiting for me to bring him food.”

“Silly son” isn’t a nickname; it simply reflects what she said.

As a result, several people in the room kneeled down in front of him. Chu Fengqing didn’t have time to help them up and let go.

From the time he discovered he was sick until now, Chu Fengqing has remained extremely calm.

Who isn’t afraid of death? Chu Fengqing was also afraid. Since childhood, he had unconsciously grown accustomed to the idea of death. At one, at ten, and now at nineteen, people had always said he wouldn’t live past twenty, and at times, he even believed it himself.

But now that his parents have suffered the pain of losing a son once, he cannot bear to let them go through it a second time. Besides, he still has Ji Yujin. If he dies, Ji Yujin will be alone again, and he also cannot bear that.

So he resolved to keep living until the very day life could no longer be sustained.

“Don’t worry, I don’t want to die either. I will do my best.”

The sunlight shone through the window frame, and the restless dust in the beam slowly calmed down after meeting that person. Chu Fengqing’s cold voice miraculously soothed everyone’s anxiety.

……

On the other side, Ji Yujin’s eyes turned red after hearing the servant’s words. He jumped on his horse and ran towards the mansion where Chu Fengqing was.

Zhao Li was afraid that something might go wrong, so he quickly mounted his horse and chased after him.

When he arrived at Chu Fengqing’s mansion, Ji Yujin found that the door was closed. He knocked on the door, but no one answered even after waiting for a long time.

Zhao Li stopped him and advised, “Master, please consider the overall situation.”

Ji Yujin ignored him, his face sank, and he took a few steps back. Just when he was about to break in, a voice finally came from behind the door.

“Ji Yujin?”

Chu Fengqing expected that he would receive the news, but he didn’t expect him to arrive so quickly.

“Qing’er!”

“En.”

Ji Yujin: “Open the door for me.”

After he finished speaking, there was silence on the other side of the door for a long time. Ji Yujin frowned and repeated, “Be good, open the door for me.”

This time, a sigh was heard from the other side of the door, and then Chu Fengqing’s voice was heard, his tone was light and slow: “Ji Yujin, I have been infected with the plague.”

Guessing is one thing, and actually hearing it is another. Ji Yujin curled up his fingers helplessly. Usually eloquent, he was speechless this time and couldn’t utter a word for a long time.

Finally, he pulled the corners of his lips and said, “It’s alright…”

Ji Yujin pushed the door and wanted to go in, but Chu Fengqing didn’t open it for him.

He clenched his fist and said, “Don’t be afraid… I’m here.”

Chu Fengqing was slightly stunned, his heart skipping a few beats. He had been keeping extremely calm because he had to be calm in this line of work. But at this moment, he slightly relaxed his suppressed emotions, his fingertips clenched until they turned white.

He responded softly, “En, I’m not afraid.”

Ji Yujin just opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by Chu Fengqing. “Ji Yujin, I can’t see you for the time being.”

This city is neither big nor small, with tens of thousands of people, and anything can happen now. It won’t work without Ji Yujin in the city now.

“Give me a little more time. You do your part, and I’ll do mine.”

Ji Yujin clenched his teeth, filled with frustration. At this moment, he resented Chu Fengqing’s composure, he was still considering the bigger picture even now.

Both of them are no longer children and have responsibilities on their shoulders.

It was quiet both inside and outside the door.

The veins on the back of Ji Yujin’s clenched fist popped up, and then he loosened his fist suddenly. “Five days, I’ll give you five days. After five days, no one can stop me from seeing you.”

Chu Fengqing nodded, then suddenly realized that he couldn’t see it, so he said, “Alright.”

Ji Yujin’s eyes darkened. No one knew how much effort it took him to make this decision. He did not stay for long. He left almost the moment the two of them finished talking. He was afraid that he would regret it.

Ji Yujin returned to another mansion and spent all his time doing things. Fortunately, the source of the disease has now been found.

On the other hand, Imperial Physician Li was also very anxious when he heard that Chu Fengqing was ill, but he also had no solution for the time being.

Chu Fengqing took advantage of the fact that he still had some strength to carefully study the pulses of the several people. Every time he took a pulse, he felt as though he had missed something, yet when he racked his brain, he could recall nothing, leaving him with a pounding headache.

On the second day, Chu Fengqing was unable to get up. His body was so sore that he could not move at all. His lips were cracked due to a day and night of high fever. The most torturous thing was the coldness that penetrated from his bones. He had always feared the cold, but he had never felt it this intensely. The fox fur and the charcoal stove offered no comfort whatsoever.

“Exhale…”

His breathing became a little heavier. Most of the people in the mansion were also sick. The daily meals were delivered to the door and then picked up by people. Fortunately, the doorman in the mansion was strong and his symptoms were not serious, so he was responsible for delivering the daily meals.

In fact, among the few people, Chu Fengqing’s symptoms were the most obvious, and his condition was the most serious. The others could still take care of themselves, this was also related to his weak body.

Chu Fengqing tried several times before he finally succeeded in getting up. He leaned against the head of the bed for a long time, his face was pale and blue, which was really ugly.

He took his own pulse and wrote down a prescription on a piece of paper. His symptoms were the most severe, and his pulse reacted the strongest, so he ended up testing every prescription he wrote, effectively becoming the one who tried the medicines himself.

It’s just that he doesn’t know what went wrong, the medicine was still a little less effective.

However, this prescription proved highly effective as a preventive measure. Upon receiving it, Imperial Physician Li immediately informed Ji Yujin.

Ji Yujin worked day and night, arranging everything properly. When it was late at night, he would occasionally take a break. At that time, he would climb onto the roof and look towards Chu Fengqing’s mansion. This was the only place from which he could see the courtyard that Chu Fengqing resided clearly.

As if extending his life, after that did he continued to work.

Gradually, the bodies in the water source were cleared, and quicklime was spread throughout. The wells in the wealthy households were reopened, and the city’s residents were forbidden from leaving. All water sources were thoroughly checked. The person who was responsible for handling the bodies was found out and executed immediately. Food was scarce in the city, so supplies were borrowed from a neighboring city. All the lonely elderly and children were placed under the care of a coordinated group…

With Ji Yujin’s desperate efforts, the city became orderly again. Zhao Li and others thought that all his abnormal behavior was just because of Chu Fengqing’s matter.

Unexpectedly, on the third day, Ji Yujin called all the responsible people over and arranged all the matters in the city in an orderly manner. After the arrangements, he asked everyone to leave, leaving only Zhao Li.

Ji Yujin threw the token with his name on it onto the table and said, “Help me for a few days.”

Zhao Li’s eyebrows twitched fiercely. “Master, please stop joking.”

Ji Yujin glanced at him and threw him a document, which described the possible problems that might be encountered next and the strategies to deal with them.

“I’ve already taken care of everything that needed attention. It’s nothing serious,” he said, pausing before adding, “Besides, I’m not dead yet. If anything happens, just inform me.”

Although he didn’t say what he was going to do, but Zhao Li knew. He felt a pang of anxiety, worried that Ji Yujin might act unorthodoxly, yet there was no one nearby with whom he could discuss it.

There was a shortage of manpower in the city before, so Qing Niao was borrowed and is now busy with other things.

Ji Yujin had been trying his best to control his emotions in the past few days, and only now did he let go of his inhibitions. His eyes were frighteningly red, and a violent aura surrounded him. He was so violent that he seemed to have just come down from the battlefield, and his whole body was filled with murderous intent. Zhao Li only took one look at him and was so frightened that he lowered his eyes, not daring to look up again.

After many days, he wore his red official robe for the first time. The bright red made him look even more formidable, as if it might offer some hint.

Ji Yujin’s fearsome reputation as a killer wasn’t without cause. Only those who served under him truly knew how ruthless he had been in those years. Some even claimed that his red official robe was dyed with blood, and there was reason to believe it.

“This is my limit. I have done what I should do already.” Ji Yujin spoke slowly, his red lips pressing together slightly. “Don’t try to stop me. I don’t know what I might do.”

Zhao Li knelt down slowly, not daring to raise any objections, “Yes.”

It was already late at night. Ji Yujin took off his red official uniform and put on a moon-white robe. The light color suppressed some of the hostility in him.

He walked to the outside of Chu Fengqing’s mansion. The door of the mansion was still closed. He frowned slightly, walked to the wall next to it, jumped up, and the next moment he was standing on the wall. The several foot-high wall could not stop him at all.

After landing in the mansion, he walked towards Chu Fengqing’s room with ease.

Chu Fengqing did not sleep well at all. He seemed to be in a chaotic state. Everything around him was grey, with a few shadows flashing by occasionally. The feeling of being unable to sleep and unable to wake up made him extremely tired.

The most uncomfortable thing was his body. He felt as if he were engulfed in flames, the heat almost unbearable.

At this moment, he felt something cold touching his face, and then he was helped up. In his hazy state, it felt as if a mouthful of warm water had been poured down his throat, easing his discomfort significantly.

But the coldness disappeared after a while. Chu Fengqing frowned and unconsciously leaned towards the cold place and touched it with both hands.

Ji Yujin moistened his chapped lips with water, put a wet cloth on his forehead, watched him lean over to him in a dependent manner, and quickly took him into his arms. All the violence in his eyes was replaced by heartache.

He leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips, paying no mind to the plague or whether he could hear him, and whispered hoarsely, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist and come anyway.”