After several doctors were tied up and placed under house arrest, the wooden village finally became quiet.
Zi'an began to prepare the prescription. Although he didn't know what the golden key was, perhaps some medicine could replace the golden key.
What I am more worried about now is whether Princess An can convince the Emperor of Beimo.
That night, Princess An sent someone to deliver a message that the prescription had been given to the emperor, but she didn't know what the emperor's plans were.
Zi'an was even more worried. If even Princess An couldn't convince the Emperor of Beimo, then the situation would be really bad.
Two days later, Qin Zhou returned to the capital with a hundred thousand soldiers and horses. The cavalry marched through the plague-ridden area in a mighty force. Qin Zhou could hardly believe what he saw.
Is this her Beimo
She had planned to go directly to the palace to meet the emperor, but General Qin stopped her and asked her to go back home to change clothes before he would accompany her into the palace.
Qin Zhou was a little surprised, because his grandfather had taught him that whenever he returned from a military campaign, he had to go to the palace to meet the emperor first.
Now they are stopped halfway, could something have happened
Qin Zhou never disobeyed his grandfather's orders. After stationing the soldiers outside the city, he immediately returned home.
When I returned to the gate of the mansion, I saw that the old general was already dressed neatly.
"Granddaughter greets grandfather!" Qin Zhou knelt down to greet him.
"Get up," General Qin looked at his granddaughter proudly. Whenever she came back from the battle, he would always feel proud, as if he saw his own younger self. "Grandfather will enter the palace with you. The Empress Dowager's birthday is coming soon. Grandfather will enter the palace first to pay his respects to her."
Qin Zhou knew that his grandfather rarely came to the palace, and he might not even be present on the Empress Dowager's birthday.
She knew the situation was serious, especially after seeing what she had seen along the way, she was truly shocked.
I felt a little annoyed. Xia Zian had been here for so many days, but was he useless
The grandfather and grandson talked for a long time in the carriage, and General Qin told Qin Zhou everything that Prince Zhenguo had said.
Qin Zhou was not as excited as the old general after hearing this. She thought deeply for a moment, "This plague is not that simple. Grandfather, what I have seen along the way is starving people everywhere and corpses piled up like mountains. It really horrifies me. Perhaps what Xia Zian said is not an exaggeration or he is intentional to cause panic among the people of Beimo."
General Qin didn't expect Qin Zhou to say this, and couldn't help but feel a little annoyed, "You actually believe that Xia Zian? Have you seen her? She is the regent princess of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Do you really believe that she is really here to treat the plague in our Northern Desert?"
Qin Zhou said, "Grandfather, I don't believe her. I only believe what I see with my own eyes. I send reports back to the court every day, and I know the news from the court. So far, the death toll from the earthquake is only over 30,000. I don't believe it."
"Whether you believe it or not, it doesn't matter. Thirty thousand people and three hundred thousand people are essentially the same. Those who are dead are dead. If Xia Zian's words are allowed to spread in the Northern Desert, then the court will lose its prestige and the people will panic. If the Great Zhou takes advantage of the situation and invades, how can we resist?"
"But," Qin Zhou thought for a moment, "if, as Xia Zian said, this plague will break out, not to mention spreading to other countries, just spreading to our Northern Desert territory will be a disaster for us."
"Ridiculous. I am 72 years old this year. I have seen many plagues in my life. No matter how dangerous the plague was, it was eventually cured. After the earthquake, there were many casualties. What's so strange about the plague? As for what you saw along the way, it is because there are not enough disaster relief personnel in the country now, and the bodies were not handled in time, so there are piles of them."
Qin Zhou respected her grandfather very much. When she heard him getting angry, she did not dare to argue anymore and said, "Grandfather, don't worry. Your granddaughter knows what to do."
"That's good." General Qin said with satisfaction.
After a pause, he continued, "I heard that Xia Zian is the best at confusing and buying people's hearts. You must not be fooled. Although Da Zhou and Bei Mo have had a peace treaty for many years, deep down, they have long regarded Bei Mo as an enemy. Remember, no one in this world would be so stupid as to come to rescue the enemy country when it is in trouble. Murong Jie and his wife came here with a conspiracy."
Qin Zhou thought back to the time she had talked with Murong Jie. There was no doubt that Murong Jie was the most unfathomable and difficult person she had ever met in her life.
The result of that negotiation was beyond her expectations, because Murong Jie actually agreed to invite old Prince An Ran. In the end, when he failed to invite old Prince An Ran, he sent his own princess over.
It's actually a bit worrying that it went so smoothly.
"Grandfather, where is Murong Jie now? Is he also in Muzhai?" Qin Zhou asked.
"He is not in Muzhai. I heard that he went down the mountain, but no one knows where he went. Grandfather is now worried that he will disguise himself and mingle in Kyoto to get close to the people who advocate peace. If the people who advocate peace connect with each other, it will be very troublesome for us."
He thought of the peace faction and immediately started cursing. "These people who advocate peace have a lot of nonsense in their heads. They actually think that peace is within their grasp. Little do they know that peace can only be achieved through war. If you don't fight, how can you deter others? How can you make people afraid and not dare to attack? How can you... cough cough!"
General Qin was a little excited as he spoke, and he coughed several times.
"Grandfather, don't get excited. You and that group of people won't be able to make it. The emperor and the queen are suppressing them." Qin Zhou comforted him again and again.
She knew that her grandfather had fought in battles for many years and had always been proud of it. The Qin family could only demonstrate its value through fighting.
After the old general coughed, he took a few deep breaths and felt a little breathless. "After all, I am old and my body can't stand it. Grandfather is getting worse year by year. You must carry the Qin family. Don't do anything that will disappoint Grandfather."
"Granddaughter knows." Qin Zhou glanced at his back and agreed.
After entering the palace, General Qin did not go to see the emperor, but went to pay his respects to the empress dowager.
The Qin family is a very peaceful family. Those who have retreated will never come forward on their own initiative unless summoned by the emperor.
Therefore, the emperor felt at ease using it.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you, Your Majesty! Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you, Your Majesty!" Qin Zhou entered the hall and knelt down.
The emperor and empress smiled as they looked at the heroic female general Qin Zhou, who was dressed in golden armor.
"I told you that you don't need to perform the kneeling ceremony." The emperor said kindly.
"Your Majesty, there is a difference between the ruler and his subjects, and etiquette cannot be abolished." Qin Zhou stood up and said respectfully.
The queen smiled and said, "You've had a hard journey. Come and sit down."
"Thank you, Her Majesty, for allowing me to sit down!" Qin Zhou then sat down.
"Have the 100,000 soldiers been settled now?" asked the emperor.
"Your Majesty, everything has been settled. After a short rest, we can set off to the disaster area immediately." Qin Zhou said.
"Well, that's good. Now that you're back, I feel much more at ease. By the way, what are the movements of the Great Zhou army?" asked the emperor.
"Your Majesty, since the withdrawal, the Great Zhou army has remained on hold."
"Well, Qin Bao is in the army, so I am relieved."
Qin Zhou said: "Your Majesty, since the grain and grass were burned, although the nearby prefectures have sent grain and grass, it is not enough to continue. We still need to raise a large amount of military rations. Otherwise, once the Great Zhou launches an attack, our army will not be able to resist at all."
(End of this chapter)