"nature."
Xie Bufeng walked in, sat next to Wen Qingci, and spread out the map drawn on parchment on the table.
The faint scent of ambergris mixed with the aroma of wine was like a cloak, covering Wen Qingci when he was off guard.
Xie Bufeng's hair had just been washed and was still damp, and there was a hint of fatigue between his brows that was difficult to conceal.
But the cold and murderous aura on him was somewhat diluted by this.
Wen Qingci couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Little did they know that all this was done deliberately by Xie Bufeng.
The young emperor was very cautious, fearing to disturb him.
"Lianhe is surrounded by mountains on all sides, with only one path connecting it to the outside world. The terrain of the entire city gradually decreases from the south to the north. Most people in the city rely on their own wells for drinking water..."
Xie Bufeng's voice flowed out from Wen Qingci's ears.
Wen Qingci followed his finger and looked at the map carefully, with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
This map is overly carefully drawn.
Not only are every street and house marked out, but the flow of groundwater is also roughly depicted based on the depth of the wells in various places.
In order to conceal his tracks, Xie Bufeng brought only ordinary attendants to Lianhe County.
They clearly did not have the ability to draw such a detailed map.
This picture could only be drawn by Xie Bufeng, who as a general had carefully studied the direction of mountains and rivers.
And if Wen Qingci was not mistaken, the handwriting on the map was indeed his.
Xie Bufeng has already become more mature and reliable than Wen Qingci had imagined.
"From this map, it seems that there may be two underground rivers in the east and west of Lianhe County. Although there are also people infected in the east of the city, the number is far less than that in the west of the city."
So the problem is likely to be in the underground river in the west of the city.
Wen Qingci nodded slowly.
Logically speaking, you should be happy if you find the source.
But at this moment, both of them had very serious expressions and remained silent.
They remembered the same thing: to the southwest of Lianhe County, which is the possible source of the underground river, is the open space where corpses were buried in the city.
Wen Qingci's heart sank. "The lime in Lianhe City is almost exhausted. During the burial a few days ago, not enough was thrown away. Since the source of the underground river may be in this direction, we must not be careless anymore."
At this point, Wen Qingci already understood what Xie Bufeng came to discuss with him.
Nowadays, we can no longer simply bury the bodies as we did in the past, but have to burn them.
Although Wen Qingci did not say it explicitly, the meaning of his words was very clear.
Burning and burying with quicklime were both common ways of dealing with corpses in ancient times.
But compared with the two, people are obviously more accepting of the second one.
After a moment of silence, Xie Bufeng nodded slowly: "... So, we can only burn it."
After he finished speaking, he looked back toward the door and said, "It's getting late, sir, you should get some rest." Then he put away the map and prepared to leave.
"Wait!" Just as Xie Bufeng stood up, Wen Qingci's voice came from behind him, "When do you plan to burn it? Then... I will go with you."
His voice was not loud, and through the white gauze and veil, it became vague and unreal.
But there is seriousness in the words.
Wen Qingci was not seeking his permission, he was simply informing him.
Xie Bufeng hesitated for a moment, then replied softly, "The day after tomorrow at noon."
"Okay." Wen Qingci nodded slowly and watched him leave.
Lianhe was far away from the palace, and Xie Bufeng was no longer the "Grand Prince" or the emperor who was high above everyone else.
He was dressed in cloth like everyone else, busy here, focusing on his business.
Xie Bufeng's temperament has become much more stable without him noticing, and he is no longer as sharp as he was when he was young.
After the reunion, Wen Qingci would actually forget how dangerous it was for him in "Fu Ming Tang" at some point...
*
In fact, Wen Qingci didn't need to ask at all, the news of the cremation spread throughout Lianhe in a blink of an eye.
Before the time came, the open space was already filled with people.
They stood in front of the firewood and were very excited.
The place was in chaos early on.
The hot summer sun hurts people's eyes.
Xie Bufeng had already arrived at the open space, but he did not order the officers and soldiers to separate the noisy crowd around him.
On the contrary, he personally explained the reason for all this.
In fact, it was even noisier in Xie Bufeng's ears at this moment.
Curses, insults, and all kinds of dirty words that have been heard and not heard before filled the open space.
But Xie Bufeng was not angry at all.
It wasn't because he was used to the sound.
It was because Xie Bufeng once again thought of Wen Qingci...
When Wen Qing left his childhood, was he as desperate as he is today
Even more lonely and helpless than them.
Xie Bufeng's heart was tightly entangled.
The firewood had been laid out, and the first batch of corpses were placed on it.
The next moment, flames broke out.
The raging fire made the already hot summer air even hotter.
The heat flowed like waves, rushing towards Wen Qingci who had just arrived here.
Forcing him to retreat continuously.
On the other side of the open space, someone saw Wen Qingci first.
Accompanied by the crackling sound of burning fire, an old man holding his grandchildren, stumbled towards him, and knelt on the ground with a thud.
"Doctor, doctor, save us-"
"Please, save us!"
He stretched out his sallow, withered hand, grabbed the hem of Wen Qingci's clothes, kowtowed, and cried bitterly, "You are a doctor from Songxiu Mansion. There must be a way, there must be a way to save us, right?"
The two children he led also knelt on the ground with their grandfather.
They put their hands together and prayed as if they were praying to God: "Please, doctor, save my parents!"
"Wow... I don't want them to die."
"I didn't expect them to be burned by the flames as well."
Suddenly, there was a buzzing sound in Wen Qingci's ears.
He knelt on one knee on the ground, subconsciously wanting to help the three generations of grandparents and grandchildren stand up: "Can you guys stand up first? I will do my best and find a way."
He was covered in dust and looked disheveled.
"Doctor, can you please take a look at my mother? Can you see if she is asleep?"
In an instant, the scene in front of Wen Qingci became blurred.
Only the boy was left, repeating his prayers.
Even... the boy's appearance had changed.
He was no longer the dusty and dirty guy he was just now, but became exactly the same as the young Wen Qingci.
A spot of cinnabar appeared on his forehead, brighter than blood.
In a trance, Wen Qingci actually returned to the Yuzu Stream.
"It floats lightly when picked up, but disappears when pressed hard, floating like a piece of wood..."
"How to do how to do?"
"Why can't you diagnose any pulse?"
Little Wen Qingci took the pulse of the person on the couch with trembling hands, eager to save them.
I long for them to open their eyes and gently touch my head like they used to.
It would be better if my medical skills could be more advanced.
In a trance, Wen Qingci couldn't help but clench his palms.
If only... I were really the original owner.
If he was the one in Lianhe today, he would definitely find a way.
The fire was blazing and the air was filled with a choking smell.
—Countless corpses wrapped in straw mats melted silently in the flames.
Think of a way to save them.
The desire in Wen Qingci's heart grew stronger and stronger.
The brain also began to ache.
At this moment, the child who was holding his arm suddenly burst into tears and stumbled into the flames: "Mother, mother—"
Without time to think, Wen Qingci subconsciously stood up and walked forward, hugging him tightly in his arms.
Wen Qingci covered the child's eyes with trembling hands: "Don't look, don't go over there, okay?"
Although the child was only about seven or eight years old and was very thin, he suddenly burst out with incredible strength and pushed Wen Qingci away.
"No, I want to see my mother!"
Even though there was a veil between them, Wen Qingci could still clearly see... At this moment, his mother had been completely engulfed by the flames.
A tear fell from the corner of Wen Qingci's eye.
There was sudden silence in his ears.
For a moment, Wen Qingci couldn't tell whether he was the ordinary sophomore student a thousand years later, or the imperial physician born in Shanyujian in "Fu Ming Tang".
I have studied medicine for many years, isn't it just to prevent there from being other people like me in this world
Wen Qingci's eyes became extremely confused.
That evening in Shanyujian, he, like the person in front of him, prayed repeatedly for someone to help him.
At that time, Shanyujian was already empty.
But today's Lianhe... at least I am here.
Save him.
Wen Qingci struggled to stand up and pulled out the child who almost stepped into the fire.
The next second, he fell backwards heavily due to inertia.
However, the imagined pain did not come, and Wen Qingci actually fell into a familiar arms at this moment.
Xie Bufeng appeared at some point and hugged him tightly in his arms.
—At the moment before his consciousness completely disappeared, Wen Qingci actually saw a hint of blinding panic in those always cold amber eyes.
The next moment, Lianhe County and the raging fire disappeared.
Wen Qingci saw...
Wearing a moon-white gown, I sat in the bamboo house in the Divine Doctor Valley, holding a pen and carefully organizing the notes on the draft into a book.
He was still green at that time and looked only about fourteen or fifteen years old.
After finishing a chapter, he turned the book back to the first page.
After hesitating for a moment, he finally carefully wrote the four big characters "Xinglin Jie'e" on it.
Wen Qingci's heart calmed down at this moment.
It is a familiar medical book that I can almost memorize.
But at this moment, while silently reading the content, Wen Qingci actually recalled the original owner's thoughts when he wrote it.
He held his breath and stared at the medical book intently.
Countless memories buried deep in my heart and twenty years of accumulated knowledge all became clear at this moment.
"Wen Qingci?!"
"Wen Qingci!"
Xie Bufeng's heart felt empty in an instant.
More than a year ago, the scene in Taishu Palace reappeared in his mind.
There were flames all around, but Xie Bufeng only felt bone-chilling cold.
He seemed to be back to that day...
After losing and regaining something, one becomes more anxious and worried.
Without caring about anything else, he shouted Wen Qingci's name loudly.
But the person in his arms didn't move at all and didn't hear his voice at all.
Xie Bufeng hugged Wen Qingci tightly and went upwind, away from the choking smoke.
As he moved, his left hand, which had been resting weakly on his chest, suddenly fell heavily down.
Xie Bufeng subconsciously took his hand into his arms.
The wide and thin sleeves of summer clothes inadvertently slid down with Xie Bufeng's movements.
The next moment, the pale and slender arms and the numerous scars on the skin were all exposed before his eyes.
Xie Bufeng also forgot to breathe at this moment.
(End of this chapter)