Lin Zhihan's rank was not small. Anyone would know that he had to have a strong background to be able to reach the top in a single step, and his background was obviously Fei Lian.
In terms of quality, Captain Zhu was not even qualified to carry his shoes for him. Hearing his words, his heart couldn't help but shiver, knowing that today's perseverance not only offended King Mo, but also the Minister of Revenue and the Assistant Minister. He was someone that even King Yan wholeheartedly wanted to rope in.
He quickly smiled, "About this, this general dares not. Since Prince Mo has spoken, even if the commander is here, we must still give him face. If the envoy is to blame, this general will definitely ask for his forgiveness."
He made a gesture of 'please', and Lin Zhihan sneered. He waved his hand to signal the caravan to pass, and then retreated back into the inner city.
"Commander Zhu, is it possible for this prince's secondary wife to enter the city?"
Captain Zhu saw Xiao Yixiu's reserved smile and felt the hairs on his body stand up. He laughed dryly, "Sure, sure. I'll have to ask for the secondary wife."
Xiao Yi Xiu jumped onto his horse and pulled Gu Qing Li to sit in front of him. He turned around and looked at Captain Zhu with a smile, "Since I've been suffering from severe injuries, my anger has been increasing. The worst thing that can't be seen is someone making things difficult for the secondary wife."
Captain Zhu watched him leave with a head dripping with sweat. Suddenly, he felt that his head was a little unsteady.
"It's just a small matter, there's no point in making things difficult for them." Gu Qingli said, then remembered the outbreak in the inner city. She quickly said, "Take me to see the earliest illnesses and their families."
"Yes." Xiao Yixiu laid his chin on her shoulder and slowly closed his eyes.
Those who were able to live in the inner city were either rich or noble. Even the families of commoners were incomparable to those living in the outer city.
Although it was the house of a rich merchant, there was not even a doorman at the gate. They were all flustered servants, and when someone noticed that a stranger had entered the house and tried to stop them, the shadow guard behind Xiao Yi Xiu had already placed his saber against their necks. With a single word, they all became obedient.
Towards these people, Xiao Yi Xiu couldn't be bothered to reveal his identity. He said in a low voice, "Lead the way. We're going to see the first person to have the disease."
The servant was so shocked that his eyes widened. He shook his head for a while, but the knife only went into his flesh. He didn't feel much pain, but blood started to flow down the front of his clothes. He did not know how much he was hurt. Nodding fearfully, he led them deeper into the courtyard.
Since she hadn't seen a single master, Gu Qingli was curious and asked, "The main house isn't here?"
The servant was stunned for a moment before replying, "Master took the concubine and the young masters to the side courtyard to hide. This mansion only left the madame, she … She didn't ask too many questions, and didn't know what to do when it happened. She just prayed to Buddha for protection, and the housekeeper … "He took some silver and fled, and the mansion became even more chaotic."
Xiao Yi Xiu and Gu Qing Li looked at each other and understood. The tree had fallen and the monkeys had scattered. They wanted to take advantage of the loot to steal some of the weak spots and run away.
At first, Xiao Yixiu didn't want to interfere in other people's business, but Gu Qingli asked, "What's your status in the estate?"
The man mumbled, "I am... "Ordinary servants, made from generations of families, stayed a few years longer than others."
"You can take charge of matters in the manor later. Report the butler's matter to your wife, and then maintain order in the house. Don't let these people mess around."
The man looked confused. He did not know who they were, but he felt that it was useless for him to do so.
Gu Qingli said, "Now that the inner and outer city are sealed, those who have stolen are unable to leave the inner city. Once the plague is solved by another day, your host will definitely report it to the officials."
That person's face turned pale. He was a small-minded person, and it didn't take long for him to arrive at his destination. He didn't know about the news outside either, so how could he know about all this?
Gu Qingli ignored him and followed him to a courtyard. The main door was nailed shut with wooden boards, and outside was a heavy lock. The top of the wall was raised by more than two feet, obviously afraid that someone would climb out from inside.
"Is there anyone inside?"
That person replied, "Yes, one of my master's concubines and the two maids that serve her everyday are infected with that disease …" Bite anyone who sees you, you have no choice but to do so. "
"Since he's already gone mad, he can bite anyone he sees. Why is there no sound?"
The man did not make a sound. His expression was strange, but the knife on his neck tightened. He was so scared that he trembled and hurriedly replied, "It's been a few days. No one's sent food. It's probably …"
Gu Qing Li drew in a breath of cold air and said sternly, "How many days has it been? "How many days exactly?"
"Three... Four days. "
"They actually locked him up in secret from the government. Is they planning to lynch him?"
"Of course not... No, no, it's just because my master had left the outer city a few days ago and had seen someone infected with an epidemic, that black butterfly shaped spot appeared on his body first … "He was afraid, so he locked them up. He was afraid that the government would find out …"
Gu Qingli understood. She was afraid that the government would lock them up as suspicious contacts. If the healthy people were locked up with the suspicious people, there was a risk of infection. She then sneered, "He is so sure that he and the rest of the family are not infected?"
That person didn't dare to make a sound. Instead, he tremblingly went to lock the door.
The shadow guard raised his blade and cut off the wooden board nailed to the door. Xiao Yi Xiu entered first, but was stopped by Gu Qing Li. "I'll go in and take a look."
"What if they really are crazy enough to bite …"
"They won't bite me. They're afraid of me." Gu Qingli looked at him and smiled affectionately. Although the red veil covered her face, the gentleness in her eyes couldn't help overflowing.
Xiao Yixiu thought of the Gu in her body, but he still didn't want her to go ahead and walk beside her.
The inner courtyard was filled with dust and fallen leaves, the windows and doors were boarded up, and when they heard footsteps and voices coming in, there was a rustle, and then there was a weak slam on the door, and a low, hoarse growl that meant they had starved for too long and didn't have much strength.
The shadow guards cut down the wooden planks and kicked open the door. Surprisingly, there was actually someone lying on the ground behind the door. After being heavily kicked like that, they fell backwards, unable to get up for a long time.
When Gu Qingli saw it, she sucked in a breath of cold air. She hadn't expected to see such a cruel and bloody scene.
The person behind the door was badly mutilated with blood all over his face and his clothes were in a mess. His skin was exposed, either because of bite marks or because he was black and festering. The butterfly shaped spots could not be seen, and had already rotted into pieces.
He looked like he had escaped from a tribe of zombies.
Before they could regain their wits, a person suddenly jumped out of the darkness and pounced on them with a mouthful of bloody white teeth.
As soon as he got close, he changed directions halfway, as if he was afraid of Gu Qing Li's aura, and attacked Xiao Yi Xiu.
Xiao Yi Xiu raised his arm and drew out the blade from the shadow guard beside him. He turned the blade's hilt upside down and smacked it a few times with the hilt, sealing the man's acupuncture points and then fell to the ground.
Judging by the black and red bloodstains on his clothes, he must have been wearing a very new style of dress. Although his hair was in a mess and a large part of his scalp was torn off, it could still be seen from his face that he was a beautiful young woman.
This should be the 'aunt' that the person had mentioned. Sure enough, she heard his trembling voice: "Aunt Zhao!" However, his heart was filled with fear and he retreated backwards.