The Way of the Consort

Zong Zhen folded the letter paper and put it close to his heart in the lapel of his clothes. He turned around and strode out.

Standing on the porch, he carefully looked at the various flowers and trees in the garden. Ji Zhao didn't like to deal with people, but he was actually a lively person, so his yard was very lively and he planted many flowers. Under the moonlight, the shadows of the flowers and trees are charming and charming, and in the breeze, the air is full of soft fragrance of flowers.

It turns out that spring has come.

Zong Zhen suddenly jumped down the steps briskly, and walked out quickly.

Bao Qing and Cheng Shen looked at each other in surprise, and quickly followed him. Bao Qing whispered, "Your Highness! Aren't we going back the way we came?!"

His Highnesses ignored him, walked faster and faster, and walked directly to the gate.

On the way, when they met patrolling guards, everyone almost started fighting, but seeing clearly that this was His Royal Highness, they were all dumbfounded.Zongzhen didn't care to talk too much, he took three steps and made two steps and one step at a time. He walked a long way before everyone followed. Along the way, the servants of Pingyang Hou's mansion were dumbfounded one after another.

After all, His Royal Highness often comes here, and they all recognize them.

But it's too weird to appear here at this time!

And none of them saw His Royal Highness come in through the gate!Why did he go out? !

After all, they are sons-in-law, Cheng Shen smiled at them awkwardly, wanted to say a few words, but couldn't find a reason!In the end, they all lowered their heads and ran away with their Highness in a desperate manner.

Zong Zhen walked out of the gate, then strode to the back door. Instead of getting into the carriage, he found a random horse and turned over the door. He didn't say a word, and immediately ran towards the palace with a flick of the horsewhip.The rest of them chased after him in a hurry.

His Highness has never ridden a horse outside the palace!What is it all about in the middle of the night!What kind of stimulation did His Highness suffer in the consort's bedroom?But looking at their highness's enthusiasm, they don't seem to be in a bad mood, why? !

They were all at a loss.

As soon as he arrived at the East Palace, Zong Zhen ordered Bao Qing to pack his luggage: "Don't be too burdensome, it's important to hurry, and bring the things you need urgently."

After finishing speaking, Zong Zhen changed into light clothes and headed towards the Yanfu Hall. Bao Qing and Cheng Shen were dumbfounded. Their Highness didn't need help, they put on some clothes for going out and packed their luggage?What the hell is this going to do?

Also, it's only midnight, and His Majesty hasn't woken up yet!

Zongzhen sat in the Yanfu Palace in the middle of the night and waited until the beginning of Yinshi, when Emperor Renzong woke up. Hearing that his son had been waiting for a long time, he hurriedly called him in wondering.

Zong Zhen said solemnly: "Father, Zhou Yu, also Zhou Liangdi's uncle, the Empress Dowager's natal brother, is now the magistrate of Meizhou."

"Yes!" Renzong was taken aback by what he said, "but what's wrong with him?"

"Yes, there is indeed something wrong with him. There may be an epidemic in Meizhou. I got some news that Ji Zhao is going there at this time. I am really worried. I want to go there myself."

He used this as an excuse. In fact, in his previous life, this matter did not happen at this time.

Hearing what he said was so serious, Renzong was also taken aback. Thinking about it carefully, if it was such a big deal, Zong Zhen should have gone there, and it was also his experience as a prince. Besides, Ji Zhao was still there, so he did Worry.

Renzong didn't have the slightest doubt, and immediately agreed, and told him a few words, and then watched him go out.

After walking out of Yanfu Hall, Zong Zhen took a deep breath, and immediately quickened his pace to the palace gate.

They went by the way of few people, Zongzhen didn't take a carriage, he rode a horse, Baoqing and the others are still in a daze, they don't even know where their highness is going, but they have some guesses in their hearts...

Zong Zhen got on his horse, suddenly turned to look at them, and smiled at them.

The night behind him instantly brightened.

They all paused in place, and they hadn't seen such a smile for some time!

Before they could savor it carefully for a moment, there was a sound of breaking through the air, Zong Zhen flicked his whip, and his horse had already galloped out. They all recovered and followed.

Ji Zhao's journey this time was not as slow as before, after all, this time he came to do business, not play.

If riding a fast horse, it would take ten days from Jinling to Meizhou. It is unrealistic for Ji Zhao to ride a fast horse. He doesn't even know how to ride a horse. They work in two shifts, take turns to rest, and have been on the road at night.

Hurry up, they arrived in Meizhou after half a month.

Meizhou is very mountainous, and if you want to go to the city, you have to walk a section of mountain road. Fortunately, this section of road is well-built and not bumpy. They pass through the border during the day, and without accident, they can enter the city before dark.

Hurrying all the way, Ji Zhao felt that his whole body was going to fall apart. Seeing that it was almost here, everyone including him was very happy.Ji Zhao planned to have a good meal after entering the city, get a good night's sleep, and wake up early tomorrow morning to find Pei Rong. Meizhou is far less big than Jinling City, so he doesn't believe he can't find it, even if he isn't in Meizhou. , anyway, in the nearby state capital.

The plan was very good, and the scenery was also very good when crossing the mountain road to the city. Ji Zhao was rarely interested, so he raised the curtain and looked out. The breeze was blowing on his face, and he felt extremely comfortable.He relaxed, and the guards also rode their horses, chatting with each other with a smile.

After walking half the distance, Ji Zhao gradually realized that something was wrong. He frowned, looked left and right, poked his head out to look back, and then looked forward, and frowned even tighter.

Yin Ming, who had been riding a horse next to his car, came to the front, looking for something. Seeing his back, Ji Zhao called his name and called him back.

Yin Ming ran back: "Lang Jun..."

"Did you also notice something was wrong?"

"Yes..." Yin Ming nodded, "There is no one on this road, I want to go ahead and have a look."

"See what's wrong?"

Yin Ming shook his head: "I didn't see anything... still no one."

Ji Zhao thought for a while, and ordered: "Everyone stop first!" He said to Yin Ming again, "You and Du Bo take the guards of the Princess Mansion and run a few miles ahead to see what's going on ahead. Just wait there!"

"Okay!" Yin Ming pulled the reins, and ran forward with his men.

Ji Zhao and the others stopped at the same spot. After thinking for a long time, Ji Zhao couldn't figure out why this happened. It was clearly broad daylight and this was the only way to enter the city. How could there be no one there?He was also uncomfortable sitting in the carriage, so he simply jumped out of the carriage, Chen Xing advised him not to go down: "I still don't know what's going on here."

Ji Zhao didn't care: "There is no one around, don't worry, I'm just curious."

Chen Xing couldn't persuade him, so he got out of the car with him, and Coke and the others surrounded him. Ji Zhao looked around, but found nothing, so he walked to the side of the mountain road again.Of course, he was a person who fell off the cliff. He was very cautious, and he was still seven or eight steps away from the real edge. He squinted his eyes and looked at the village in the distance.

Not even a dog barking or a cock crowing. It was early morning and it shouldn't be so quiet.

Even though it was just the beginning of the day, the place was as dead and silent as an empty city.

Ji Zhao's brows were still tightly frowned, he kept looking into the distance, for about a quarter of an hour, he suddenly saw a large cloud of thick smoke, he quickly pulled Chen Xing: "Look, someone is burning something over there, isn't that Cooking smoke, right?!"

Although Chen Xing is an attendant, he is Ji Zhao's personal attendant, and he was also brought up by Jin Gui. He is not familiar with these things, and Cole next to him said: "This is not cooking smoke! When I was young, I was in my hometown in the countryside, and every June and July , When the wheat was harvested in the countryside, a large piece of wheat stalks was burned, and this kind of thick smoke must have burned many things."

"Is that so..." Ji Zhao's brows did not relax, "But, it's only March now."

"Small ones, why don't you go and have a look? From here to that village, just go down the mountain and cross the field ridge!"

"We're going into town later, how can I contact you?"

Ke Le smiled and said, "Don't worry, son-in-law, I have a way to contact Brother Du and the others."

"Okay, then I'll trouble you to make this trip. You have to remember, no matter what it is, you should watch from a distance and don't get involved. Safety comes first. If you know what happened, come back and find us!"

"No trouble, no trouble, don't worry!" After Coke finished speaking, he climbed on the horse neatly, turned around and ran down the mountain.

The fire seemed to have been burning for a long time, the thick smoke did not disperse, and it became thicker and thicker, the small piece of sky turned black, and Coke never came back. About an hour later, Yin Ming came back first.

Yin Ming said: "We ran forward for more than ten miles, but there was still no one. We tried to explore the forests and mountains by the roadside, but there was no one. Some teahouses along the way were also closed. I'm afraid you are worried. , come back first, Du Bo and he took two people directly to Meizhou City."

Ji Zhao only felt it was even more strange. Could it be that in broad daylight, you can still encounter ghosts hitting the wall?

Ji Zhao couldn't figure it out, but he wasn't the kind of cowardly person, so he quickly made a decision: "Let's move on! Let's see what's going on here!"

Yin Ming and the others investigated carefully, there was indeed no danger along the way, and they did not object to his decision.

After Ji Zhao got in the car, they continued to move forward. At noon, Du Bo brought someone back with a message.

Ji Zhao was taken aback when he heard that, he couldn't believe it: "You mean, the gate of Meizhou City is closed?"

"Yes!" Du Bo's face was very serious, "Not only is the city gate closed, but there is not even a guard guarding the gate outside, and even when we got to the gate, there was no one to be seen, not even a dog! The whole Meizhou City was dead silent, and the little one ran around the base of the city wall without listening to any sound. Thinking about the seriousness of this matter, I didn’t dare to delay any longer, so I hurried back first, what do you think?”

Ji Zhao's heart was beating a little faster, this, why is this similar to the rebellion in film and television works?

Who controls Meizhou City and wants to rebel?

He looked up at Du Bo, and asked cautiously, "Could it be that someone wants to rebel?"

"It's not impossible, son-in-law, what should we do now?"

Ji Zhao watched everyone look at him. He knew that these people were stronger than him, but he was the master, so he waited for a word from him. He thought he couldn't be cowardly either!He took a deep breath and gradually calmed down. No matter what happened, he must take care of it!

After all, he is a son-in-law, and he doesn't want the country to be in chaos. Once there is chaos, the people will suffer the most, such as the people in front of him.Moreover, even for Zongzhen's sake, he didn't want chaos.

Besides, it may not necessarily be a real rebellion, after all, there is no reason at all, Ji Zhao felt that they all took this matter too seriously.Ji Zhao told everyone his thoughts, and finally decided that they would continue on their way and stop at a place two miles away from Meizhou City. At night, Yin Ming and the others turned into the city to see what was going on.

Having made a decision, they planned to move on, but they saw Doctor Bai coming out of the carriage, standing aside, looking in the direction of Meizhou City with worry and thought, and Ji Zhaoduo asked, "Uncle Bai, what's the matter?" ?”

Doctor Bai came back to his senses, turned around and walked in front of him, and said, "Your Majesty, I thought of another possibility."

"What's possible?" Ji Zhao was curious.

"What if there is a plague in the city."

"Ah—" Ji Zhao gasped, and the others suddenly felt enlightened.

Doctor Bai continued: "I have experienced it before. You were not born at that time, and I was only in my 20s. The plague occurred in the area of ​​Mingzhou. The fishermen ate the things in the sea and contracted the plague. Many people died, and the city was directly sealed off at that time."

"Is it similar to Meizhou? There is no sea near Meizhou, so why?"

"Of course, this is just an old man's guess. It really doesn't look like someone rebelled in this situation. Although Meizhou is not near the sea, it is in the mountains. There are many miasmas and wild animals in the mountains. Some people eat things that shouldn't be eaten. .”

Ji Zhao suddenly felt that he had a direction, he looked back at everyone, and asked: "Uncle Bai, since we have this guess, we have to be careful, if it is indeed a plague, it can spread to others, how can we be sure whether it is true or not? "

Doctor Bai thought for a while, and then said: "When I was young and full of energy, there was a plague in Mingzhou. I took the initiative to go to Mingzhou, saved many people there, and learned a lot. Apart from war, the world The most terrifying thing is the plague. I have seen so many people die in front of my eyes. I have been collecting information about the plague in private all these years.

The causes of each plague are different, some of which are unknown to us, and the prescriptions are different for different causes.I came here this time, and I brought enough medicinal materials, but I can mix a few medicines, which can prevent most of the known plagues. "

Ji Zhao breathed a sigh of relief: "That's great!"

Fortunately, there are preventive measures, otherwise they would not be able to contact these people at all. If they get infected, they will break it before they can help others.

That being the case, they were no longer in a hurry to enter the city, and everyone went into the woods to find a flat place near the water, where Doctor Bai washed his hands and dispensed the medicine.

While Ji Zhao was waiting for Doctor Bai to dispense the medicine, Du Bo ran over with joy in his eyes: "My son-in-law, that boy Coke has a letter!" Du Bo handed him the note in his hand, and Ji Zhao quickly opened it to read, and the letter read However, a few lines of words are enough to make people tremble. After reading it, Ji Zhao's heart is settled.

There is really a plague in Meizhou!

The smoke they had seen earlier was indeed burning, but instead of straw, or any dry vegetation, it was burning people who had died from the plague.