Chapter 1457
Siege of the City, Plague Outbreak in the Capital City [4]
Chapter 1457 Siege of the City, Plague Outbreak in the Capital City [4]
"Big Brother, you're alive!" Deputy General Lang shouted.
"Yes, Uncle Lang, you all must live too," Jiang Dalang replied, feeling that he had become more human in this life.
The Prince of Ye and his deputy general Lang did not delay any longer and led General Liang into the city.
The King of Ye did not lower the curtain of his royal carriage so that the people of Wei on the road could see him.
Some of the bolder ones would even greet him, talk to him, ask him questions, or praise his father-in-law's descendants for their great abilities and for helping the city a lot.
"Yes, my father-in-law's sons and nephews are all meritorious contributors to the country." The King of Ye replied to the Wei people in the city with a proud smile.
Wei Min was shocked. He felt that the King of Ye was kind to him, and he also felt that the fact that the King of Ye could talk to them about such everyday things showed that the battle outside the city was not so intense.
Hey, it's just a show to calm public sentiment.
The performance was good; at least the people of Wei could enjoy a few more days of peace.
……
After seeing off the Prince of Ye and his men, Jiang Dalang didn't rest. He went to consult with General Chu and, after receiving approval, immediately instructed Xue Feng, Lan Hu, and others: "Keep a close eye on the enemy's poisoning positions. I need to go down into the anti-plague isolation chamber again. It will take at least half a day, and at most a day and a night. I will definitely come out."
"Understood." Xue Feng, Lan Hu, and the others responded.
Xu Sanjun followed Jiang Dalang, wanting to protect him so that he could concentrate on his work.
"Sanjun, take this box to Xiao Mi. She asked me to keep it safe." Jiang Dalang handed a mechanical box to Xu Sanjun.
Xu Sanjun understood, took it, and solemnly guaranteed: "Yes, I will definitely deliver Mr. Qin's things to Mr. Qin."
He then called out to Xiao Yi, "Take some men and protect our Qianhu."
"Hey, don't worry, Sanjun, I'll definitely protect Qianhu and make sure he doesn't lose a single hair!" Xiao Yi was practically swearing a solemn oath to him.
Xu Sanjun's forehead tingled as he heard this: "Be quiet, don't disturb the commander."
Uh, Xiao Yi knew that Sanjun was saying he was a chatterbox, so he solemnly promised, "Understood, I'll definitely shut up and not babble!"
"Let's go." Jiang Dalang stepped down from the city wall, finally stopping their nonsense.
After arriving at the secret chamber beneath the city wall, Jiang Dalang locked himself inside and meticulously drew the cannons of the Great Sheng Dynasty from memory.
To be honest, Sheng Ting was more knowledgeable about the structure and manufacture of the internal components of firearms than Qin Su... simply because he was the emperor of the Great Sheng Dynasty and the only person in the royal family who knew everything about firearms.
Moreover, emperors instinctively guard against creators of weapons that are too powerful... Yunfu and his disciples are all targets of the Great Sheng Emperor's vigilance.
Su Su was more interested in studying medicine, so Sheng Ting was better at making utensils.
The soft rustling sound of fine charcoal pencils falling on paper... First, a finished cannon was drawn, then individual parts were drawn, and then the disassembly parts of each part during casting were drawn.
So detailed that at least ten disassembly drawings can be created for a single component.
He would draw and stop intermittently, and immediately correct any mistakes in his drawings.
……
While Jiang Dalang continued writing diligently, the city also stirred. Clang clang clang!
"By royal decree of the Prince of Ye, to prevent the enemy from poisoning people and causing epidemics, all households with medicinal herbs such as Scutellaria baicalensis, Lonicera japonica, Fritillaria thunbergii, Forsythia suspensa, Cicadae periostracum, Scrophularia ningpoensis, Isatis indigotica, Viola yedoensis, Rheum palmatum, Borneol, etc., are to be immediately taken to the Provincial Administration Commission. Merit will be calculated according to the weight of the herbs. After the war, merit can be exchanged for gold, silver, houses, land, pardons, and plaques of commendation. Those with high merit may be granted official titles and ranks!"
Inside the city, messengers, clerks from various neighborhoods, and patrolling civilians were all shouting the royal decree.
He then shouted, "No legitimate groups from the government, military, or civilian sectors will enter homes to ask for medicinal herbs. Anyone who requests entry will be treated as a bandit! This excludes major pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals!"
Damn it, isn't this blatantly trying to make their pharmacy suffer huge losses?
Inside the headquarters of Changji Pharmacy in Northeast China, dozens of managers and supervisors from various branches were having a private talk behind closed doors. Upon hearing the shout, they all looked at Manager Xiang, Manager Zhao, and Manager Wen.
The three chief stewards are the people of the three owners. When Changji Pharmacy encounters a major event, as long as the three of them agree, they can temporarily act as the owners behind the scenes to make decisions.
The three chief stewards remained silent, and the atmosphere in the room was as still as water, so heavy that it was hard to breathe.
"Manager Zou and Steward Lu of Dongming Prefecture, you have dealt with the Qin family before, and the Prince of Ye is the Qin family's son-in-law... How many stockpiled medicinal herbs do you think we should give up this time to gain both fame and fortune?" Chief Steward Zhao asked.
What they wanted was fame and fortune, but they never considered giving it away for free or giving it away and then fading into obscurity.
Manager Zou and Steward Lu stood up together, bowed to the three chief stewards, and first expressed their loyalty: "Once the master's things are given away, we must get back several times the return, otherwise it is our dereliction of duty as subordinates."
Good heavens, they're all so greedy!
"But the Qin family is no pushover. After several clashes, the Qin woman proved to be as greedy as a bandit!"
"Now that the Qin family possesses weapons of war and merits for defeating the enemy, the Qin family daughter will only become more arrogant... and Master Zheng again..."
With a bang, it was the mild-tempered Second Steward Xiang who slammed his hand on the table. He glanced at everyone present and said, "Zheng Si is a criminal, and has nothing to do with you and me who abide by the laws of the court... If you continue to speak in favor of the main criminal Zheng, then my Xiang family will withdraw from Changji Pharmacy."
This?
"Second Chief Steward Xiang is exaggerating. Changji Pharmacy is a legacy left by our ancestors. How can we just give up like that?" Chief Steward Wen looked at the others and warned, "Use your brains when you speak and act... Remember, we are all loyal subjects of the Great Wei. We must not fail to lend a hand when the Great Wei is in trouble."
"Ha," Chief Steward Zhao sneered, and asked, "Then how much stock of medicinal herbs do you all think is appropriate to offer?"
Listen to the shouts outside. Is being a loyal subject of the Great Wei Dynasty so easy?
This means that Changji Pharmacy is going to have to use up all the medicinal herbs they've stored for hundreds or even thousands of years.
The most valuable medicinal herbs in the pharmacy were all collected slowly over hundreds of years, not accumulated in just one or two years.
Once the medicine storehouse is opened, all those high-quality medicinal herbs that are hundreds of years old will be emptied out!
You're overthinking it, working class. The King of Ye isn't that much of a bandit.
Knock, knock, knock. A knocking sound came from the door. The shopkeeper announced from outside, "Gentlemen, someone has come from the shop. It is Magistrate Zheng himself. He said he would like to invite you all out for a meeting."
What? Magistrate Zheng has come in person!
The dozens of people inside the room were shocked. Some hurriedly tidied their appearance and prepared to meet the son of an official who was one of the owners behind the scenes.
Some were furious at Zheng Tongpan for betraying the powerful and influential families: "How dare he show his face!"
“Be careful what you say. This is the son of our master, and he has already risen to the position of prefect at such a young age. If he survives this battle, his future will be limitless.” Chief Steward Wen was the first to stand up and called to everyone, “Everyone, go out and pay your respects to the son of our master.”
"Yes," replied dozens of managers and stewards from various branches across the country.
When Judge Zheng saw them, he was quite surprised... Their conspiracy, which he had stumbled upon, was not hidden away, but they all came out to see him.
It's clear they wanted to pin the blame for Changji Pharmacy being forced to donate medicinal herbs on him.
Sure enough, after exchanging pleasantries, the managers, both big and small, pleaded on behalf of the three chief stewards: "Young Master, this matter is far too serious. We can't make the decision. If the masters blame us, how will we survive?!"