Prince Qi couldn't help but laugh. "I didn't do anything. I just told him that the Queen Mother's birthday was coming up and she said she liked pearls from the East China Sea, preferably the round and plump pearls produced there. In order to please the Queen Mother, he went to the East China Sea to look for pearls."
Prince Qi said it lightly, but Su Qing knew it was not that simple. Maybe something was waiting for the prince in the East China Sea
In the past, I thought the Crown Prince of the Great Zhou was a waste and good for nothing, but this Crown Prince of the Northern Desert is even more of a waste. He is also cruel and lustful, and many women in the capital have fallen victim to his murderous hands.
Go to the East China Sea and cut off one of his arms or one of his legs, we have to teach him a lesson.
After Qin Zhou left, Empress Cao went to see the emperor and told him about Qin Zhou's attitude.
The emperor was furious, but at this time, he received news that the Zhou army was approaching twenty miles away.
The Emperor of Beimo panicked and quickly ordered the Prince Zhenguo and the old general to enter the palace, but he received the news that both Prince Zhenguo and the old general were ill.
The imperial physician was summoned, and he said that both of them were infected with the disease.
"Your Majesty, how could this prince and the old general suddenly contract the epidemic? And Qin Zhou suddenly changed his attitude. This is too weird." Queen Cao said.
The Emperor of Beimo raised his ferocious face and said, "Xia Zian is right. The epidemic is about to break out."
"Ah?" Queen Cao was shocked.
"The number of deaths reported from the epidemic areas is rising day by day. Since the earthquake, 100,000 people have died from the earthquake and epidemics. This is still a conservative estimate." The emperor said in a deep voice.
"How could this happen? The epidemic wasn't so serious before Xia Zian came. Why did the epidemic get worse after she came?" Queen Cao asked in confusion.
The emperor had a gloomy face, "It's not Xia Zian who's causing trouble. She doesn't have such great ability."
"What should we do?" Empress Cao was worried. "Now the victims are pouring into the capital. How long can we hold them back?"
The emperor smiled coldly, "Don't resist, just settle them down."
"How to resettle them?" Empress Cao was puzzled, but looking at the emperor's vicious eyes, she suddenly understood a little, "The emperor means to resettle the victims in one place, and then..."
"That's right. Then completely blockade Ancheng, Qicheng and Luo County. No one is allowed to go in or out. Kill anyone who comes out. In that way, in less than half a month, all the epidemic patients will be gone and the epidemic will naturally be cured." The emperor said sinisterly.
This is a massacre!
Empress Cao said happily: "What a good idea! This way, we can save military rations to send to the border."
"Well, it's just that Qin Zhou needs some work." The emperor pondered for a moment, "I'm afraid the old general can't subdue her."
Empress Cao looked at the emperor and said in a low voice: "Perhaps, Qin Zhou should be replaced. Cao Ji is now a powerful figure..."
The emperor angrily rebuked, "You are so confused. Is the current Qin Zhou still the same Qin Zhou who was promoted at the beginning? You said you would change him? And don't think about always recommending Cao Ji. He is not yet a capable person and is far from Qin Zhou."
Cao shrank back, "But what should we do now? She holds great power. If she rebels..."
Queen Cao didn't dare to say anything more.
The emperor really didn't understand why the situation changed so quickly. He had clearly taken the initiative, but now he was in such a passive position.
What did Murong Jie and Xia Zian do? They clearly did nothing but spread rumors. Why did Qin Zhou believe them
That's the person he has employed for ten years.
What went wrong? Could it be that God really wanted to destroy him
"The elimination operation must be carried out immediately. We must hurry up and do it now while the rumors are not widespread enough and other prefectures are unaware of it." The emperor was determined. "Also, kill Xia Zian. In this way, Qin Zhou will not be deceived by her again."
"How should we deal with Muzhai?" asked Queen Cao.
The emperor uttered a word from between his teeth, "Burn!"
Empress Cao nodded and said, "Let Cao Ji handle this matter?"
Cao Ji is her maternal brother. Over the years, she has always wanted to recommend her maternal family members to the throne. However, even though the emperor values and favors her very much, he is always unwilling to use anyone from the Cao family.
"Let him do it." The emperor finally relented.
Empress Cao smiled, stood up and bowed, "Yes, then I will send someone to pass on your order!"
Cao Ji now only holds an idle official position in the Ministry of War and has never been reused.
He believes that he has lofty ambitions but has never been able to realize them.
People like this have been suppressing their ambitions for a long time, and once they find a channel to vent, they can achieve extraordinary results.
Zi'an was very excited when she found out that the golden key was the moneywort. She took Lingli and ran all over the mountain. However, as Lin Dan said, the northern desert is relatively cold, and as far as she knew, the moneywort grows in tropical or subtropical areas, so they ran all over the mountain but couldn't find it.
It is impossible to rely on the court to supply medicine now, but Zi'an has to get some first for experimentation.
So, she had to ask Gao Fengtian to help buy some golden keys.
But Gao Fengtian did not bring the golden key, he brought people here personally.
"The prince asked me to take you away." Gao Fengtian said solemnly.
Zi'an asked, "Leave? Why leave? I found the recipe."
"The emperor is making a big move." Gao Fengtian lowered his voice, "This time, I am here to evacuate the villagers. The good emperor of Beimo wants to burn down the village."
"What?" Zi'an was shocked. "How can he make such a decision? There are thousands of people here."
Gao Fengtian sneered, "What are the lives of thousands of people to him? He has ordered people to place the victims pouring into the capital in Ancheng, and promised to send doctors and food over. In addition, Ancheng, Qicheng, and Luo County are blocked, and no one is allowed to enter or leave, except for those who deliver food and medicine."
"Isn't this a good thing?" Zi'an didn't understand. There was no problem in gathering the victims and delivering food and medicine.
"He sent Cao Ji to do this, and the food that was collected these days has been transported to the border at an accelerated pace."
"What do you mean?" Zi'an's face changed drastically. "Are you saying that he wants to trap these disaster victims and let them starve to death?"
"Yes, Concubine Qing has already found out the news. The Emperor and Empress Cao have this plan."
Anger enveloped Zi'an, and she clenched her fists, "How could he do this? These are his people!"
"For him, territory is the most important thing."
"I was wrong. I shouldn't have let people spread the news. I have harmed these victims." Zi'an felt a dull pain in his heart. If she hadn't announced the epidemic, the victims would not have flocked to the capital.
"Don't blame yourself. It has nothing to do with you. Even if you didn't spread the virus, the emperor had no plans to provide disaster relief. The epidemic would still spread and they would still die, either from illness or starvation. The result would be the same." Gao Fengtian comforted.
Zi'an calmed down, now was not the time to blame himself.
"Where is the prince? Where is he now?" Zi'an asked hurriedly.
"Your Highness, go find General Long, and then General Long will join forces with the peace faction to force the emperor to abdicate. However, the prerequisite is that there must be enough troops to resist the Imperial Guards and the patrol troops. So, this depends on Qin Zhou."
(End of this chapter)