Chapter 496: Strange Weather
Lu Wushuang is dead?
This news reached Ye Zhen when she was about to reach Huaijiang. She found it hard to believe. Although Lu Wushuang was stupid, from her(YZ) point of view, she shouldn't have died this easily. Moreover, she had been burned to death at Nian Tzu Temple apparently by a little nun's carelessness.
This was the person she had always wanted to take revenge on. Now, there was no need for her to do anything. Lu Wushuang was stupid till death. Even though Mo Rongzhan gave her the title of Gui Ren in the end, it was a humiliating reward for someone who was once Gui Fei.
Wonder how Lu Lingzhi would take this? Ye Zhen was a little curious. What would Lu Lingzhi do next?
"What are you thinking?" Huangfu Chen, sitting across her, asked in a low voice.
"It's nothing. I was surprised to hear that Lu Wushuang died." Ye Zhen smiled faintly. “Doesn’t feel real."
Huangfu Chen already knew the reason the little girl did not like her cousin. “Then consider it as the past already."
Ye Zhen smiled. “Master, do you not know how to detoxify Lu Lingzhi?"
"It's not like I don't know." He was silent for a while before saying, “It's just that I can’t hold it. The fire lotus is not easy to obtain. If I waste it this time, I'm afraid the poison in his body cannot be purged."
"Master, take your time. There's no rush." Ye Zhen smiled.
Huangfu Chen was aware of what she was thinking. He sighed helplessly. “Yaoyao, I will have to treat your eldest brother in the future."
Ye Zhen nodded and said solemnly, I know. Master, you are a doctor. There is no reason doctors don't save one from death. I don't want Lu Lingzhi to die. I just want him to suffer more, so just treat it as… as an atonement!"
"We still two days before we reach Huaijiang. This is clearly the south, why is the weather so hot?” Looking at his little disciple’s attitude, the master deftly changed the topic with a smile.
"I think the weather is a little strange. Look at the clouds over there, it looks like it's going to be raining heavily." Ye Zhen still remembered that Huaijiang's natural disaster was caused by heavy rain. However, she did not remember exactly where in Huaijiang it was.
“It's almost June now. There will be more showers in the south. Don't worry," he said.
She whispered, “I don't think it's as simple as a shower. Master, can you tell when the rain will stop?"
"There's an inn ahead. Let's stay there first, then I'll read the divination,” Huangfu Chen said.
They rode for another period of time. In no time, the sky had changed drastically. It was still afternoon but looked like night. Huangfu Chen ordered Quan Fu to hurry up and rush to the inn before the rainstorm.
Just as they stopped at the inn, it started raining cats and dogs.
Ye Zhen stood under the eaves, looking at the black sky, feeling uneasy.
"I'm afraid there will be a disaster." Huangfu Chen had come to Ye Zhen's side at some point. He was still holding a yarrow in his hand. It was obvious that he had been divinating.
"Master." Ye Zhen looked at the yarrow in his hand. “What disaster do you think will happen?"
Huangfu Chen whispered, “Natural and man-made."
Ye Zhen was slightly startled. She knew what natural disasters it would be, but where did man-made disasters come from?
"If the rain stops tomorrow, we'll go and find my aunt first. She's in the Huaijiang Medical Bureau, so she should know more about the situation here than we do," Huangfu Chen said.
"Yes." Ye Zhen nodded.
It rained all night. The next morning, Ye Zhen opened the window and found that the sky still hadn't cleared up. Although the shower was lesser than yesterday, if it continued like this, the road would probably be flooded.
"Miss, it's raining, do we still have to hurry?" Dai Mei asked.
Ye Zhen said, “We still have to find Imperial Physician Qi. We can't stay here forever to avoid the rain. It's not worth waiting for it to stop."
"Mister Chen has already left early in the morning, I don't know why." She’d woken up before dawn just in time to see the man going out.
"Master left?" Ye Zhen was taken aback. “In which direction?"
She pointed to the south. “This servant saw him go over there."
Ye Zhen turned around and went into the room to grab the oil umbrella. She reminded Dai Mei, “Wait here, I'll go and take a look."
"Miss…." Dai Mei hastily called out. She wanted to turn around to look for an umbrella but saw Xue Lin walk out from the corner instead. He wore a conical hat and a straw cape. He had already silently followed Ye Zhen out.
With Xue Lin following her, Miss should be fine.
Ye Zhen found Huangfu Chen near the inn. He was standing inside a bamboo pavilion by the roadside, facing the south.
"Master." Ye Zhen walked over. “It looks like it's raining harder over there than here. Are we… Should we hurry?"
Huangfu Chen nodded solemnly. “It's in the middle and lower reaches of Huaijiang River. I have been in seclusion for several years and I don't know the situation, but a few years ago… It's the place that's most prone to flooding. I just hope that this year, the dams are all built and reinforced to avoid this disaster."
Xue Lin, who had been silent, suddenly said, “Last year there was no flood in the Huaijiang River. There was a drought and many people died."
“Drought?" Ye Zhen was astonished. Not long after the deposed emperor ascended the throne about this time last year, the entire country was controlled by the imperial uncle*, and Mo Rongzhan was also preparing to usurp the position at the border at that time. She had not paid attention to the things going on in Huaijiang.
[*MRZ’s father’s eldest brother]
However, in Xue Lin’s opinion, it was a last-year thing, but in Ye Zhen's memory, it was three years ago.
"In the end, there was a plague, and many died…," said Xue Lin in a low voice. “The riots began at that time.”
Huangfu Chen and Ye Zhen looked at each other. “Let's go to the Medical Bureau to find my aunt."
They returned to the inn and hurried back to find Qi Jin. As they headed to Huaijiang City, it continued to rain. The rice fields on both sides of the road had already been filled with water. If the rain did not stop, there could be a real flood.
"If it just rains, it would have been fine. But I'm afraid it would burst the embankment…,." Ye Zhen frowned as she looked ahead. Because of the rain, their speed was much slower. It would take them over two days to finish the journey. Up ahead was Huaijiang City. At this moment, there was not a single person outside the city gate. It seemed that everyone was home taking refuge from the rain.
Their carriage stopped outside the city gate. Xue Lin went forward to show them the road pass, only then did the guards let them enter the city.
"Your Highness, His Majesty has already ordered people to prepare a residence. This subordinate will lead the way for you," Xue Lin whispered outside the carriage.
Ye Zhen did not expect Mo Rongzhan to even arrange a residence for her. She looked at Huangfu Chen wondering what his opinion would be.
"Then let's rest here for a while before we go and find my aunt," Huangfu Chen said.
Mo Rongzhan had arranged for Ye Zhen a grand residence spanning three courtyards*. Although there were not many servants, they seemed to have been carefully selected. Not long after she arrived with the others, she noticed that everything had been prepared well.
After lunch, the master and disciple went to the Medical Bureau to find Qi Jin.
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