Lock and secure

Bei Zhenming paused for a moment, then continued walking forward. Seeing that the emperor was in a bad mood, Zhu Shengyuan did not follow him in, but stood guard at the door.

The desk was piled high with letters and notes, memorials piled up like a small mountain on the side, and there were even quite a few memorials piled on the ground.

Bei Zhenming stood alone in the room for a while before walking over and sitting down.

After an unknown amount of time, Bei Zhenming fell asleep with his head propped up. In the second half of the night, cold wind blew into the house through the gaps in the window. Bei Zhenming, who was sleeping uneasily, woke up with a shaking shoulder from the cold.

The candlelight was still burning, and there was no one in the room. Bei Zhenming slowly stood up, closed the window, and sat back down at the desk. His eyes were drawn to a curled-up note under the table. It didn't seem to have any words written on it, but rather some kind of drawing.

Bei Zhenming pulled the note out suspiciously, his eyes fixed on the diagram. His mind, like rusty gears, slowly turned, gradually replaying the bloody scene of the attack on the National Cemetery two years ago. He stood up abruptly, his movement so violent that several piles of memorials on the table clattered to the floor.

"Ah! What's wrong? What's wrong?" Outside the door, Zhu Shengyuan was in a state of stress due to dozing off. When he heard the sound, he pushed the door open suddenly. Seeing the memorials on the ground and the emperor with a gloomy face, he couldn't help but shiver.

"Your Majesty?" Zhu Shengyuan asked cautiously.

Bei Zhenming's face was gloomy as he handed the note to Zhu Shengyuan: "Where did this news come from?"

Zhu Shengyuan swallowed hard, took the note, examined it carefully, and then replied, "This... this was sent back from the front a few months ago."

Zhu Shengyuan rummaged through a pile of letters for a while, found one, and handed it to Bei Zhenming. "Your Majesty, this is from one of our men. The letter mentioned that General Zhenbei had injured his right shoulder and couldn't wield a sword, and that the princess had sent one of her men to fight in the battle in your place."

Bei Zhenming took the letter and read it carefully, while Zhu Shengyuan muttered to himself, "Your Majesty was furious about the gunpowder incident at that time... He didn't read the letter and remained here."

"The men around Princess Yong'an?"

Zhu Shengyuan nodded, "According to the letter, this man has killed thousands of enemies in battle. His martial arts skills are extremely high, even comparable to those of Prince Yong'an."

"What's that man's name? What's his relationship with Princess Yong'an? Send someone to investigate!" Bei Zhenming's voice was cold and majestic.

Zhu Shengyuan took the order and left, leaving Bei Zhenming alone in the room.

Xiao Bi…is that you? Looking at the familiar shape on the note, some memories from long ago surfaced in his mind. The anguish between Bei Zhenming's brows slightly relaxed. Looking at the pile of memorials on and beside the desk, Bei Zhenming reached out and picked up one and began to review it.

This batch of comments was approved until the morning court session. Perhaps because of the anticipation in his heart, Bei Zhenming felt a long-lost sense of relaxation and refreshment. Even the ministers, whose blood pressure would soar if he only glanced at them for a moment, now seemed much more pleasing to him.

During this period, the Dacheng Kingdom was in turmoil, and the morning court proceedings were naturally complex. They ranged from commercial cooperation with Qi, the spread of smallpox in the northwest, and the burial arrangements for the Queen Mother, to the trivial matter of a county magistrate in Yuanzhou abandoning his post due to fear of contracting smallpox.

Bei Zhenming, who had been reviewing memorials and reading letters from all sides all night, already had a general understanding of what had happened during this period. He quietly watched the ministers exchange sharp words and debate, and even showed no resentment when the old ministers indirectly accused him of being passive and decadent and inactive during this period.

After arguing for several hours, seeing that no one could make a decision, the officials finally quieted down.

"Your Majesty, you cannot ignore the people who have fled south to avoid smallpox. If you continue to let them go, I'm afraid the capital will be plagued by smallpox soon!" Censor Fu.

Bei Zhenming: "My dear ministers, please be patient. What you are worried about is also what I am worried about. However... a method of preventing smallpox in the northwest has been found."

"Have you found a way to prevent it? How is that possible? Even the palace doctors are helpless against this!"

The ministers talked a lot.

"impossible!"

"Your Majesty, are you joking?"

Zhu Shengyuan stepped forward at the opportune moment. "My Lords, Princess Yong'an has discovered a method for preventing smallpox by vaccinating with cowpox. The instructions are right here. His Majesty knows you wouldn't readily believe it, so he has dispatched personnel from the Imperial Hospital to conduct a trial in the Dali Temple dungeon. If you're interested, please follow the progress of this trial."

A pamphlet about smallpox vaccination was passed around, and everyone was nauseated upon reading it. The pamphlet was incredibly detailed, even featuring illustrations drawn in the style of sketches. The text alone was enough to overwhelm one, and the realistic images were even more unbearable to look at.

Some people couldn't help but dry heave after reading it. Bei Zhenming frowned. This kind of behavior was extremely inappropriate during a court session, let alone regarding a serious matter like smallpox.

Bei Zhenting's face fell, and he immediately ordered his men to drag the retching minister out and give him twenty lashes of the cane.

The ministers all shrank their necks and dared not say anything more. Even though they were extremely opposed to the vaccination, they did not dare to say anything more.

No one objected. Bei Zhenming then explained the trade and cooperation matters with Qi State and the arrangements for the construction of Qiansui Mausoleum. He also made specific arrangements for the issue raised by the ministers regarding the people in the counties surrounding Xizhou fleeing smallpox.

northwest.

The streets of Huyan County were deserted, with every household and shop closed.

Luo Yao was exhausted. He had just escaped from the county government office where he had been vaccinated against smallpox. He rode his horse slowly towards the forest garden.

Since the outbreak of the epidemic in the northwest, the hardest-hit areas in Xizhou have been strictly sealed off, the infected people have been isolated and treated, and the people have been asked to reduce going out.

Reducing outings means losing the source of livelihood. Without work, there is no income; without income, it is difficult to maintain a livelihood.

In order to solve this problem, Luo Yao, relying on the power of Fule Money House and Zhou Yu, the eldest wife of the Zhou family, and with the full support of Bei Zhenting, took quick action and purchased large amounts of grain and vegetables in the surrounding villages and towns.

The procurement tasks outside Xizhou were assigned to Zhou Yu, while the supplies within Xizhou were raised by Fule Money House.

Fortunately, the court allocated enough silver, and there were no major problems in the disaster area for a long time.

Linpu is the largest supplier of vegetables, fruits and melons outside Huyan County. It is connected to more than a dozen villages. The land is flat and fertile, which is a rare fertile land in the northwest.

These days, spring cabbage has reached the market season for many families, and Bei Zhenting sent people to buy it early in the morning.

When Luo Yao left the city, he saw carts full of cabbages and other wild vegetables and fruits outside the city gate.

The sun has set, and a heavy setting sun hangs in the sky.

Bei Zhenting, who had a rare moment of free time to come for an inspection, was chatting with Li Qingyun. Hearing the sound of horse hooves in the distance, Bei Zhenting turned in surprise. Luo Yao dismounted and walked towards Bei Zhenting, rubbing his aching shoulders and stretching his stiff neck as he walked.

Looking up, he saw Bei Zhenting looking at him. Luo Yao quickly ran up to him and stood in front of Bei Zhenting, pouting with a look of grievance on his face.

"I'm so tired, I'm really dying of exhaustion..."

Bei Zhenting raised the corners of his mouth slightly and reached out to brush away the messy hair on his forehead. "Yaoyao has only been gone for three hours, why are you tired?"

The epidemic in the northwest has been incredibly busy these days. To control the further spread of smallpox, Luo Yao has to personally handle many issues. He hasn't had a good night's sleep or a good meal in a long time. Finally, the vaccination work has stabilized. I had originally planned to check on the vaccination status today and then go home to sleep, but who knew...

Luo Yao held his head high as if he had no bones. "I'm just tired. Your Highness, you don't know what I've been doing for these three hours. It's that... Mr. Zhang, the one registering names at the yamen. He unfortunately got an upset stomach. When I went there, the queue of people waiting to register after being vaccinated was... so long!" Luo Yao gestured exaggeratedly, his finger pointing to the horizon. "We were short on manpower, so I helped out for a while. Who knew that Mr. Zhang would drag on for three hours, right up until I finished writing the name of the last citizen of the day."

Luo Yao complained as if he was acting coquettishly, with a hint of anger, as if he was a child seeking comfort.