An ugly girl starts off, then becomes a beauty

At the end of the year, the epidemic in the Chang'an area showed no signs of abating due to the change in climate, but instead became more serious. Not to mention other places, even in the capital, people were dying of the disease every day.

At the end of the month, Gao Heng's Guizhi Fuzi Decoction became known. The news spread quickly, and people from all over the country heard that the recipe was quite effective, so they rushed to buy and stockpile the medicine.

On the third day, Marquis Mu Wu's mansion received the medicinal herbs that were gifted from the Queen's Palace.

"It's all thanks to the fact that we have the queen in our house who cares about us." Fang Niu said to Cheng Niu, "As soon as the prescription was leaked, the dignitaries in the capital sent people to search for medicinal materials everywhere. Even if there were not many people in the house who were sick, they would stock up on medicine first, for fear that they would be unable to get it if they were sick in the future. It's hard to lose the lives of rich people, but it's pitiful that the people below can't get the medicine even with the prescription. Yesterday I heard that the government office distributed the medicine again. Do you know what happened? In the end, it was taken away by those merchants and resold at a high price."

This is the case even in Chang'an City, so one can imagine that it is even worse in other places.

Later, these words were naturally passed on to Sang Ling by Cheng Ao.

The master and servant were talking when the sun set, and the conversation was interrupted as they hurried Nie Ce back.

As usual, Nie Ce went to the bathroom in the wing to take a bath. Since the outbreak of the epidemic, he had strictly followed Sang Ling's epidemic control procedures in the mansion. Anyone who went out, no matter if they were masters or slaves, had to change all their clothes upon returning to the mansion and be carefully fumigated and disinfected before entering the house.

"What's going on outside?" Although he had just heard what Cheng Lao said, Sang Ling still wanted to ask Nie Ce again.

He definitely knows more than those old ladies.

Sang Ling saw him walk to the table, take a sip of water, and sigh, "It's a mess."

"Don't we have the recipe?" she couldn't help asking. "Does the imperial court know about those who deliberately hoarded and resold at high prices?"

After all, this happened right under the eyes of the world. Is there no one to do anything about this ridiculous thing?

Nie Ce raised his thick eyebrows and said, "The relationships here are complicated and intertwined. Many things cannot be solved at all. Even Your Majesty cannot solve them."

With this explanation, it was almost clear. No wonder the powerful merchants dared to hoard the medicine as soon as the prescription was leaked. Although she knew that the bureaucracy in Beijing was serious, she was not aware that corruption had reached this level.

Epidemics are no small matter. If not handled properly, it may become the fuse for the country's demise in the future. She was still trying to sort out her thoughts when she heard Nie Ce say, "Officials protect each other and officials and businessmen collude. This has been the case since the previous dynasty. The outbreak of this epidemic is just the tip of the iceberg. If we want to investigate, I'm afraid the entire court will have to be uprooted - even the Sang family cannot escape blame."

Even Sang Wu... Sang Ling was speechless for a moment, but regained her consciousness in an instant. What happened to Sang Wu was his own business. Although she would not kill her own relatives for the sake of justice, she did not want to involve her emotions in his life and death.

He moved closer and sat down opposite Nie Ce.

"That's right. Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. Isn't he afraid that his subordinates will be suppressed for too long and will eventually gather together..."

She didn't finish her words, but her meaning was clear.

The downfall of the Ji and Wang families was ultimately due to the corruption of the ruling class, and that happened only a hundred years ago. If this continues, isn't the emperor afraid of repeating the same mistakes?

"That's why I am here." Unexpectedly, Nie Ce smiled upon hearing this, leaned back, and draped one leg lazily on the felt mat. "Those who plan state affairs should carefully weigh the pros and cons. Your Majesty's vision is far superior to ours. Right now, the matter of Jiaozhou is important and concerns the foundation of the country. We must first settle the south and then deal with the situation at home."

As soon as the words fell, the fire clock on the wall made a clear sound, and it was the hour of Hai. Sang Ling thought about these words and couldn't help but smile bitterly. No wonder men in ancient times said that women are kind. She had been trapped in the house for a long time. Even if she had read for a few years and had some experience of later generations, she would easily be limited to the present.

She had clearly seen that the emperor wanted to centralize power, so why did she forget to make the connection? If the court officials wanted to govern an empire well, it was impossible to be completely clear-headed. There had to be sacrifices and gains. The emperor knew better than anyone which was more important, the military in the south or the sudden epidemic.

"What if the epidemic doesn't subside? If someone really rises up to rebel, wouldn't that further embolden Jiaozhou?"

If you can't have both, you have to take risks on one side. Especially when it comes to epidemics, whether the court is sincere or not, the results will be seen by everyone in the world.

Nie Ce shook his head again, "In two days, a new recipe will be out. The medicinal materials will be more common, and ordinary people can find them even if they go to the fields or hills."

The tone of his voice when he said this did not show relief, but rather a hint of helplessness.

Sang Ling was suspicious. "Can this new recipe be comparable to Guizhi Fuzi Decoction?" The wheels in her mind were spinning rapidly. "Or is it just to ease the competition for medicinal materials?"

The fact that I could ask this second question means that my guess has actually been confirmed.

The girl from the Sang family has always been smart. Unlike those students who only know how to study, her vision is so accurate and sharp that sometimes even Nie Ce feels scared.

The court was very secretive about the treatment of the epidemic, and only the three ministers, him, and a few guards knew the emperor's intentions. However, this Sang family girl could understand him after just two or three explanations. Nie Ce felt mixed emotions, and he didn't know whether it was good or bad that she could see through so much.

There was no direct answer, but he just kept staring at her.

After a moment, he nodded.

*

Because of this epidemic, there was no festive atmosphere at the end of the year in the country.

Although it is better than the worst time last month, it is still not completely safe, and the post-epidemic cleanup work is overwhelming every household.

These are all powerful and wealthy families, while the common people are still holding on to the new prescriptions that have no effect yet, anxiously waiting for the epidemic to pass.

As long as the imperial court could control public opinion, even if the new prescription had no significant effect, the poor people would still treat it as a treasure and place their hopes on it.

Gao Heng went to Huiyang, the place where the epidemic originated, in the middle of last month.

Sang Ling also knew about this matter. He had heard some of it from Aunt Cheng. He originally thought that he would at most stay until the New Year and would be back at least. After all, he had his widowed mother, Sang Feng'e, at home, who would take care of the whole family during the New Year. He had always been filial and would not abandon his mother.

Unexpectedly, when he came back on the last day of the year, he did not enter Gao Mansion, but went directly to Mu Wuhou Mansion.

The eldest son of the Gao family usually came to the Marquis's mansion to look for Nie Ce. The servant in the front yard also recognized this famous doctor and immediately led him to Jingsi Residence.

Unfortunately, Nie Ce had gone to the palace early in the morning, so Sang Ling was still doing the housework and receiving most of the visitors. After thinking for a while, he quickly went to Jingsi Residence.

After two months, the main hall of Jingsi House had become much quieter, and today was the first time that they had seen such a serious guest.

"Cousin." She smiled first.

They said they had moved on, but after all, they had never spoken to each other alone since their marriage, so it was a little unnatural for them to get along with each other. This always takes a process. She let out a sigh of relief in her heart and stared at the man who was kneeling in front of her. He looked much more haggard, just like Nie Ce when he came back from Xunyang, with dark circles under his eyes.

It is really hard to go back to Yang to cure the epidemic.

She was just about to say hello.

Gao Heng spoke first, "A Ling, I came here to ask for medicine."