snowstorm

As the waning moon moved westward, Xie Qiao squatted in front of a new grave, wiping the sawdust on the wooden monument with his hands.This tomb stands next to Mei Xiang's grave. Like Mei Xiang's stele, this wooden stele has newly engraved characters.Shunzi said that if there is no name on the stele, it is a lonely ghost, and he himself does not want to become a lonely ghost, so he cannot recognize his sister.

Behind Xie Qiao, Lu Jue and the old doctor also paid respects to the two graves.

At this time, the sound of "treading" horseshoes came from outside the bamboo forest, and even the bamboo leaves on the ground began to vibrate.Xie Qiao paused, then stood up and looked towards the direction outside the forest: the soldiers dispatched by Xu Lai Quai must have arrived.

Lu Jue helped the old doctor and followed Xie Qiao to the bamboo forest.

Thinking about it, Xu Lai also knew that the sooner the army came, the better. Where there was a plague, without an army, it would be impossible to eradicate the plague with just a few people, so he rushed to Luzhou as fast as possible, and used the fastest speed to get rid of the plague. hurry back.

"Oh my lord!" Seeing the person standing outside the bamboo grove, Xu Lai quickly got off his horse and rushed towards him. He didn't even have time to put the torch in his hand. He grabbed Xie Qiao's sleeve and snotted his nose. Tears: "Your Highness, fortunately you're fine, you scared the slave to death!" Holding a torch, he approached Xie Qiao's face and said, "Your Highness, you've only been away from the slave for a few days, why are you so thin? !"

Xie Qiao supported Xu Lai, speechless for a while, and said: "Why haven't I seen you for a few days, your eyesight has changed a lot, and you have become so--gross?" Xu Lai wanted to say something, but Xie Qiao chose He patted his shoulder with eyebrows, and said: "Your Highness is very good, but if you continue like this, Your Highness will really lose weight."

Xu Lai "coughed" embarrassedly when he heard this, stood up, and saluted Lu Jue and the old doctor next to him.

Zhang Xing, the prefect of Luzhou, saw that the two important figures in Jinling were actually in Zhoucun, and felt that it was extremely unreal.He was a little guilty, and his heart was beating a little fast.He got off the horse quickly and was about to salute when Xie Qiao waved his hand and said, "Time is short, let's start now."

Zhang Xing quickly leaned over: "But according to His Highness and Lord Lu's orders."

Xie Qiao then said, "Go into the village tonight. There is a well in the south of the village. When you enter the village, fill up that well first. There are cut bamboos and prepared tarpaulins in the bamboo forest. There is an open space in this village. You Let the soldiers set up as many tents as possible in the open space. There are still white cloths prepared in the forest, and when you enter the village, everyone must cover their mouths and noses and wear gloves."

Tents were set up in the Plague Land to isolate people infected with the plague, and Zhang Xing quickly said "yes".

Xie Qiao said again: "The plague here will not be cleared in two months. Naturally, the soldiers also need to eat and live. You live outside the village. There are open spaces in and outside the bamboo forest. You set up tents in the village and you will stay there. Take your place."

"In addition," Xie Qiao took out the prescription that the old doctor had just made up from his arms and gave it to Zhang Xing: "I have almost prepared most of the medicines, and this is still missing. You can send someone to the nearby villages and towns overnight Bought it, together with the food for the soldiers."

Zhang Xing took the list tremblingly, and quickly said "yes".He is really in a panic right now, he doesn't know what kind of wind blows the master of Jinling City to Zhoucun, not to mention when he arrives in Zhoucun, this Highness has made so many preparations by himself ...Thinking of Li Zhonglian's murder, he felt even more guilty.

Xie Qiao seemed to see through his thoughts, a smile appeared on his face, but his dark eyes were bottomless: "Master Zhang, what you want and do now is to clear up the plague in this village. do you understand?"

Zhang Xing's heart trembled, and he quickly said, "Your official understands."

……

The torches of the soldiers illuminated the entrance of the village and the bamboo forest brightly. Zhang Xing quickly assigned tasks, and the soldiers began to work as instructed.The sound of people and horses walking back and forth shook the dust, and the sound startled the people in the village. Several young people stuck their heads out at the entrance of the village to look. When they saw soldiers in armor holding torches everywhere, they went I was so scared that I hurried back to the village to report.

"The army has arrived, it will be fine, don't worry too much." Lu Jue looked at Xie Qiao's black eyes, patted Xie Qiao on the shoulder and said.

Xie Qiao was taken aback for a moment, then smiled at Lu Jue, his handsome brows and eyes were very dark because of the firelight: "Brother Huaiyu, if I say I'm tired, what will you do?"

He has not stopped moving since he came to Tai County. It is a lie to say that he is not tired at this time, but this tiredness is nothing compared to those lives, and Lu Jue and the old man are not more relaxed than him.When he said this, he just wanted to tease Lu Jue.

Lu Jue laughed when he heard this, even a slight smile appeared in those beautiful eyes.He walked a few steps closer, then stretched out his jade-like hand to press Xie Qiao's back of the head, and put the other's head on his shoulder.Obviously Xie Qiao has grown to be as tall as him, but he rubs Xie Qiao's hair like Xie Qiao when he was a child: "Qiaoer, you did a good job. You have worked hard."

Xie Qiao opened his eyes wide, and the tip of his nose was filled with the unique clear fragrance of Lu Jue's body. The temperature on Lu Jue's body was so real and warm.

"Bang, bang, bang", Lu Jue's heartbeat and his voice came into his mind through his ears, and Xie Qiao suddenly felt that as long as this person was there, even if it was the eighteenth floor of hell, he would not be afraid at all—— As long as there is this person.

"Cough." The old doctor let out a sound as if he was looking at the scenery with his hands behind his back, and then Lu Jue put his hands down.Xie Qiao stood up contentedly, and looked at the old doctor with a smile.His face was neither red nor out of breath, and he was not at all embarrassed. Xu Lai was blinded by the sight.

……

Xie Qiao glanced at the seemingly endless road in the village, and said, "We will enter the village tomorrow."

The old doctor nodded and said: "Tomorrow when I enter the village, the old man will diagnose the patients in the village first, and the patients will naturally be quarantined. Those who are not sick now will have to be observed for a while."

Xie Qiao said: "The army is here, these are naturally easy to do. But—" Xie Qiao squinted his eyes. If he wants to do it more smoothly and avoid some twists and turns, he will naturally have to stand up tomorrow.As for the people who are used to establish prestige, they are also ready-made.

Thinking of this, Xie Qiao recruited a soldier, whispered his orders, and the soldier led a few people into the village.Lu Jue glanced at Xie Qiao, then pressed his sword - he knew what Xie Qiao wanted to do.

……

Day two.

The soldiers had been busy all night, and once all the preparations were made, the old doctor had already been waiting not far from the tents that had just been set up in the village.Xie Qiao and Lu Jue entered the village, Zhang Xing naturally followed behind.

"Your Highness," a soldier stepped forward to salute Xie Qiao, and said, "You guessed well yesterday." He waved his hand, and the two behind him pressed one forward, who was the witch from this village.At this time, she was tied up and stuffed with a cloth towel, and when she saw Xie Qiao, she began to struggle and scream.

The soldier pointed at this person and said: "Yesterday we followed your order and guarded outside her house, and we saw this person carrying a burden and going to the back of the village at night."

A sneer appeared on Xie Qiao's face, he leaned over to look at the woman and said, "Didn't I say that? Put away your little thoughts."

Looking at Xie Qiao's dark eyes, the woman felt creepy, and a chill rushed from behind her head. She felt that the other party seemed to be looking at...a dead person...

Zhang Xing stepped forward and asked, "Your Highness, who is this person?"

Xie Qiao looked at the houses on both sides of the road, and said meaningfully: "This person will be useful later."

Zhang Xing didn't dare to ask again.

The village chief was found out, Xie Qiao did not reveal his identity, but only revealed Zhang Xing's identity, and the village knelt on the ground trembling.Xie Qiao glanced at Zhang Xing, and Zhang Xing ordered: "Go and call all the villagers here."

The village chief said tremblingly: "Well, they dare not come out..."

Xie Qiao glanced at the tied-up woman, a smile appeared on his face, but the smile didn't reach his eyes, and he said, "Just say, it's the witch who wants them to come out."

The village chief was taken aback for a moment, then quickly answered "yes" and went to work.

……

Sure enough, the villagers came out one after another. They looked at the bound sorceress at a loss, and looked at the official uniform on Zhang Xing beside Xie Qiao, with vigilance and fear on their faces.

Xie Qiao stepped forward, kicked the sorceress, and said to the crowd: "Your sorceress has something to say."

After that, he picked up the woman by the collar and said, "You already knew that there was a plague in this village, didn't you?"

The woman swallowed and said in a trembling voice, "Yes."

"In order to take advantage of the opportunity to make money, you deliberately called the plague the punishment of Concubine Jing, didn't you?"

"……Yes."

"In order to make it easier for you to collect money from the villagers, you deliberately don't allow the villagers to go out to ask for a doctor, and you don't allow the villagers to let the doctor in, right?"

The sorceress opened her eyes wide and was about to say something when she saw Xie Qiao's dark eyes staring straight at her: "Really?"

The sorceress was so frightened that she broke into a cold sweat, and blurted out a "yes".

After hearing this, the villagers had different expressions, most of them showing anger and panic.

Xie Qiao straightened up, and asked Zhang Xing beside him with his hands behind his back: "Master Zhang, what should this person do for disregarding so many lives for his own selfish desire?"

Zhang Xing hurriedly said: "Behead."

Xie Qiao smiled, and was about to draw Lu Jue's knife, when he saw that Lu Jue had already drawn the knife, he took two steps forward, and chopped off the woman's head under the sword with no expression on his face.The woman's face was still terrified, and her head just rolled to the ground.

Xie Qiao was taken aback for a moment, and a tingling warmth suddenly appeared in his heart: This person, at this moment, is always thinking of himself.He didn't want him to be stained with blood, so he did it himself...

The villagers looked at the head on the ground in silence for a while.

Xie Qiao said: "We brought a doctor who can cure your illness."

"Big brother, can you cure any disease?" A little girl hid behind a woman, looked at Xie Qiao and said timidly.

Xie Qiao's eyes softened, and he lowered his voice, and said, "With a doctor around, we can naturally cure the disease."

The little girl took half a step forward timidly, her eyes were innocent, she said with red eyes: "Can you cure sister Meixiang? She is dead, can you bring her back to life? She is my good friend, but she Dead, can you bring her back to life?"

There was another moment of wordless silence among the villagers, the woman quickly covered the little girl's mouth, and looked at Xie Qiao with a lost smile.