"Why not treat it?"
The guard retorted, his head bowed as he rubbed the calluses on his hands. "With what? Survival itself is a struggle."
He sighed, "All the doctors in this city have been hired by Master Lin. How can we possibly contend with him, lacking both money and influence? Even the county magistrate relies on Master Lin to get by."
"Master Lin…"
Song Qingchao silently noted the name.
"Officer, how about this? Let me go in, and they won't enter."
The guard appraised her. "Miss, I've already told you, this is a dead city. You're healthy now; why expose yourself to such bad luck?"
He glanced around. "Everyone in the city says the Heavenly Maiden is angered! That sickly person is perhaps the root of this disaster sown by the Heavenly Maiden. To resolve this calamity, there's only one way!"
Though the guard spoke softly, in the profound silence, everyone could hear him.
"What way?"
Song Qingchao tugged at her sleeve, her brow furrowed as she drew closer. She had a premonition that the guard's method wouldn't be a good one!
"Burn him!" the guard whispered mysteriously. "As long as the one chosen by heaven is offered in a fire sacrifice, the Heavenly Maiden will be appeased and send down divine medicine!"
At his words, the previously placid crowd erupted in a frenzy of voices.
They were like rats trapped in a mire, each grabbing at the tail of the one in front, scrambling for the single rope of salvation.
Song Qingchao wanted to refute this absurdity.
But suddenly, all eyes turned to Song Qingmu.
The man who had instigated the disturbance earlier was the first to speak. "Him! He's been sick since we left Chang'an! I saw it all, his body covered in pustules! He must be the one infecting us!"
"Yes, yes, and his hand has always been wrapped in white cloth. I suspected from the very beginning that he carried some kind of illness!"
The thin woman who had previously splashed water on Song Qingchao also stepped forward. "I'll testify, I saw it all!"
She pointed at Song Qingchao. "She is his elder sister! They are together all the time. This girl was fine at first, but then she also started to become sickly. She must have been tainted by this bringer of bad luck!"
Song Qingchao listened to the ceaseless stream of venomous words.
Her whole body trembled.
After all they had done for Mumu, how dare they, how dare they speak of him like this!
Song Qingchao immediately shielded Song Qingmu behind her, her voice laced with icy coldness. "Let's see who dares to touch him!"
The crowd exchanged glances, hesitant.
But finally, the man who had spoken first shouted, "Burn the root of misfortune!"
Immediately, everyone echoed him, slowly closing in.
Song Qingchao, protecting Song Qingmu, retreated step by step.
She looked at these people, who had lost their reason, like a horde of unthinking zombies advancing relentlessly.
They were numb, devoid of any emotion.
Even with the guards and Shouxian blocking them with weapons, they pressed forward without hesitation.
"Ignorance,"
Song Qingmu's voice drifted faintly from behind.
Song Qingchao gripped his hand. This was her first time witnessing the power of superstition.
But she was not an officer, nor did she bear any responsibility.
As the guard had said, human lives were cheaper than grass.
Even if she killed a few people today, it wouldn't change anything!
She didn't want to kill, but if she didn't resist, they would be the ones to die. She couldn't hand Mumu over!
Song Qingchao dodged Shouxian's unsheathed sword and lunged forward.
"Don't force me!"
Some people paused for a moment, but soon, as if hypnotized, they continued their advance.
"Elder sister, I…"
"Don't speak!" Song Qingchao cut him off. "After all this time, you're not still hoping for death, are you?"
She was on the verge of breaking down. If Song Qingmu truly acquiesced, she feared she might lose her sanity.
"Elder sister, no, I meant, let's enter the city together."
At this moment, the guard intervened. "Entering the city is a dead end!"
He turned his head. "Do you know why we're guarding here? Do you really think we're just preventing people from entering?"
Song Qingchao and her brother retreated. "Then why?"
Song Qingchao was unclear about this matter.
In her previous life, this plague had also occurred.
But how it ended was unknown.
The people of Chang'an only knew that the epidemic suddenly ceased on a snowy winter day.
It was as if someone had been crying out in pain from their hand, and the speed of their recovery made people think they had cut off a hand.
It was like picking vegetables; a section had rotted, and it was simply cut off, leaving the good part.
Song Qingchao suddenly understood. She swiftly connected the "heavenly punishment" with the city's defense.
In a month, it would be the winter solstice, not far from the first snowfall.
Soon, the guard provided the answer. "If the illness cannot be cured, no one will walk out of here alive!"
As Song Qingchao was about to speak, she was interrupted by another voice.
The moment she heard the voice, the newly erected wall of the bridal chamber instantly collapsed.
Bai You'an pushed through the soulless crowd.
He shielded Song Qingchao, his usually gentle voice now as cold as ice. "What are you doing?"
He quickly learned the full story.
Song Qingchao looked at his retreating back, unsure of what to do.
Would Bai You'an also believe them?
"Chaochao."
"Yes?" Song Qingchao responded with a trembling voice, dreading the answer.
"Let's go into the city."
As he spoke, he turned around with a cold expression, but upon seeing Song Qingchao, his usual indolence returned.
Song Qingchao was stunned. "Enter the city? Didn't you just go looking for herbs to save them? Once you go in, you won't be able to come out."
Bai You'an scoffed. "I have three principles for not saving: I do not save those who betray trust."
As he said this,
The guard, as if injected with chicken blood, eagerly stepped forward. "You're a physician."
Bai You'an's expression, which had been displeased, turned into a nod.
The guard immediately rubbed his hands together. "That's excellent! You must save us, we don't want to die!"
Saying this, he shoved all the silver he had collected into Bai You'an's hand. He also dug out copper coins and scattered silver from various small corners. "You must save us, we don't want to die."
Bai You'an did not take it.
The guard, however, became agitated and knelt down, repeatedly kowtowing.
"My wife is pregnant and now sick. I cannot afford a doctor, nor do I have a place to live. We can only stay by the city wall. The blanket I cover her with was given by a neighbor who took pity on us. You must save her! I beg you, I can give up everything, truly!"
Song Qingchao had not expected the guard to behave this way.
She wanted to agree, but she couldn't make a decision for Bai You'an.
"Get up. I will do my best."
He bent down to help the guard up, but was suddenly struck in the face by a stone.
Everyone instantly fell silent.
Bai You'an tilted his head, used his finger to wipe his mouth, and then smiled faintly.
"Let's go. We're entering the city."
He straightened up, took Song Qingchao's hand, and walked towards the city.
"Let these people fend for themselves."