Noble's Woman Guide

Chapter 84 - Separation

As the plague in Shuzhong broke out fast and fiercely, it hit the disorderly royal court like a big wave and instantly awakened those prominent family officials who live in clover, but what distressed them most was none other than their own money.

It is known to all that Shuzhong's natural environment is abundant and is richly endowed with natural resources. It is the second largest province capital after Wangdu and its prosperity is second to none in the south. The city surrounded by the bend of Yong River is very vast with great numbers of buildings and weaved with horse-pulled carriages. There are completely no vacant shops found on the main street and alleys while constant peddling persists unceasingly. Dark-skinned Hu merchants, dance girls with half breasts exposed and play boats with silver bells drifting along the lake are all indispensable parts of this place that completely washes off the murky water of the worldly mortal affairs as well as the hustle and bustle of the world.

This situation naturally attracted many people to come here to do business and the prominent families are of no exception. Merely the Wang and Xie family have invested a large amount of money to buy houses and shops to carry out trades. Now with the outbreak of the plague, the losses are difficult to estimate. On the second day after the news was spread out, various memorandums concerning plague control measures appeared in the royal court discussion and there were no quarrels between the parties as all of them were unprecedentedly of one mind.

However, the present Emperor just leaned idly on the dragon throne's armrest from the moment he entered the Hall of the Golden Chimes and merely allowing the ministers taking turns to present their petitions without response, as if this was just a trifle matter and could be solved with a snap of the fingers.

[T/N: 金銮殿 (Jīnluándiàn) - popular name for the Emperor's audience hall / throne room]

Seeing this behavior of Chu Sanghuai, Yue Ting could not help but feel somewhat nervous.

The epidemic this time was extremely fierce. Not only was it spreading fast, the death toll was also rising steeply. If medical officers and medication are not delivered sooner, perhaps there would be a greater disaster whereby the thousand-year-old ancient capital will likely be destroyed just as such. It was impossible for Chu Sanghuai not to understand this, yet he was actually so relaxed. If he did not already have a way to deal with it, then he was precisely planning some deathly trap, so heedful precaution against him is necessary.

Thinking of this, Yue Ting cast an unobtrusive glance at Chu Jinglan who had his thin lips pursed tightly and hadn't spoken since entering the hall. He was evidently thinking about something. While on this side of the hall and headed by Wang Xie, various families were still enthusiastically offering their opinions.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, there is no room for anymore delay as there is now recurring chaos in Shuzhong. This Minister deems that we should quickly deploy manpower such as medical officers to treat the ills, army forces to reinforce the city and to preserve the dyke from the three nearby Qu, Guan and Ding states in order to overcome the epidemic in Shuzhong, so that other provinces will not be affected."

Once Xie Miao finished, Xie Si from the Shu clan of the Xie family stood out unexpectedly and said, "This Minister seconds the motion. In order for the common people's peace of mind, the royal court should send someone to take charge in Shuzhong. This Minister wanted to nominate myself, however, my humble position is not enough to undertake this important responsibility. This Minister heard that Lord Wang's hometown is in Shuzhong and as the senior minister of two monarchy, the local people will most likely feel the imperial grace and will not dare to use the disaster to cause trouble if you can personally take on this encounter."

Wang Jian immediately cut him with a severe look when heard those words.

The bloodshed cases of the two families have yet to be solved while the three divisions have been oppressed in all respects that no one dares to continue the investigation. It was also because of this, the two families believed that the other party had bought over connections which caused the cases to drag on until now. Privately, they have tacitly agreed that each other is the murderer, hence these endless fights both inside and outside the royal court.