Chapter 552: I’m Not Afraid If Mother Isn’t Afraid!
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Pandemic! It must be a pandemic! We were so close to him, could we have already been infected?”
“All! I don’t want to die yet! Open the gates! Quickly open the gates and let me out!”
“Let me out! If we were to continue staying in Tianjing City, we’d be infected sooner or later! Open the city gates and let us leave!”
The open s.p.a.ce below the city tower was in chaos, with cries, curses, and pleas all mixed together.
At the northern gate, the commander, Song Chongliang, looked down at the scene below with a furrowed brow.
Beside him, his deputy expressed his concern, “Could it really be a pandemic? What should we do?”
Song Chongliang said, “Whether it’s a pandemic or not, we must guard the city gate. We can’t open the gates for anyone. Once we break this precedent, not only will the Emperor blame us, but others will also cause trouble when they see it.”
The deputy nodded in agreement.
They watched as the soldiers of Shuntian Preference surrounded the people on the main street at the city gate.
Upon learning that they were going to be guarded by soldiers and couldn’t go anywhere, those who had planned to escape the city immediately protested.
The clamor of protests, children’s crying, and shouts grew louder.
“Why should we be trapped here? We’re not sick!”
“Yeah! If you want to quarantine someone, quarantine those who are coughing! We’re all fine! Why are you locking us up?”
“Do you know who I am? How dare you lay a hand on me! I’ll tell you, try touching me once, and you’ll regret it!”
“Who gave you the authority to arrest people? Shuntian Preference? Bring him over here! I want to ask him why he dares to detain me!”
Since the people trying to escape the city had various backgrounds, including n.o.bles and wealthy families, many of them had bodyguards with them.
To avoid being captured and isolated, they attempted to resist.
The deputy commander saw the increasingly chaotic scene and asked, “General Song, should we help them?”
Song Chongliang, with a composed expression, said, “Do your own duty and don’t get involved in other matters! Do you think our job is easy? Just wait; something big will happen soon!”
At this moment, the wedding of Gu Qingluan and Feng Tianlan was only one day away.
A pandemic, wherever it occurred, was a terrifying infectious disease.
Even in the Cloud Plains Continent, once a disease like this struck, it brought suffering to living beings.
Upon hearing this news, Gu Qingluan couldn’t sit still and wanted to go out and see for herself.
Upon hearing this, Gu Xiaonan immediately said, “I’ll go with Mother!”
Gu Qingluan shook her head and replied, “You stay here. The situation outside is unclear and very dangerous.”
“I’m not afraid if Mother isn’t afraid!” Gu Xiaonan puffed up his little chest and blinked his big eyes. “I’ve been learning medicine from Mother, and I’ve read about pandemics in medical books, but I’ve never seen one with my own eyes. Let me come with you to gain some firsthand experience; otherwise, I’ll forever be just book smart.”
Gu Qingluan hesitated.
Gu Xiaonan’s argument was reasonable.
His talent in medicine was not inferior to her own.
However, medical expertise wasn’t a skill honed in isolation; it required countless practical experiences to develop exceptional skills.
“Alright, but you must be very cautious; pandemics are highly contagious.”
Of course, with Gu Qingluan’s abilities, even if she contracted the disease, she could cure it.
However, it was better not to get infected in the first place.
The terrifying aspect of pandemics lay not in the mortality rate, but in their strong infectivity. A physician could only treat a limited number of patients with their two hands.
Once a pandemic broke out, many patients who couldn’t be saved in time would die.
Furthermore, pandemics were a broad term, and each outbreak had different origins, requiring different remedies.
Until a cure was developed, the high infectivity of pandemics could result in countless deaths.
Gu Xiaonan nodded vigorously, “Yes, I’ll take good care of myself, Mother, don’t worry!”
Feng Yuanxi also stood up and said, “I’ll go with you.”
Gu Qingluan replied, “Yuanxi, you stay at home. If your father returns, let him know, so he won’t worry.”
Feng Yuanxi looked at her with his dark eyes and said, “I can ask the household servants to wait for Daddy. Mother, I want to go with you. I understand medicine as well, and 1 can a.s.sist you.”
Gu Qingluan saw determination in his eyes.
If she only took Gu Xiaonan and left Feng Yuanxi behind, he might misunderstand.
She sighed softly and ruffled his hair. “Alright, you can come with us, but be extremely careful…”
She gave them a bunch of reminders, and Feng Yuanxi obediently accepted them.
Gu Qingluan then took her two sons and set out.
As the carriage traveled down the main street, they could clearly sense that the street was much emptier than usual. Occasionally, pedestrians pa.s.sed by, hurriedly covering their mouths and noses as they walked.
The shops on both sides of the street were tightly closed, and the usual bustling atmosphere was nowhere to be seen.
This scene was somewhat reminiscent of when the Dingbei Army had surrounded Tianjing City last time, but it was also quite different.
That time was a man-made disaster, while this time it was a natural calamity.
“Mother, where are we going now?”