Chapter 486: then translation of chapter title

As soon as Gu Jiu Ling finished speaking, Ling Feng hadn't yet had time to bring people away, when again two guards appeared outside the inn's door to report.

Reporting to the Prince and Princess Consort, the common folk have found these things at the wellhead; please, Prince and Princess Consort, examine them.

Soon after, two guards entered the room carrying a bag full of a foul stench.

Gu Jiu Ling sprayed it all over with a bag of disinfectant medicine.

Then Ling Feng used a stick to pry open the bag's mouth, and inside were some water-soaked dead rats.

Reporting to the Princess Consort, these are what the townsfolk fished up from the well water.

When the townsfolk went to draw water from the well, these dead rats were floating on the surface.

Gu Jiu Ling slowly rose to her feet, the expression on her face darkening to the extreme.

These dead rats only confirmed her suspicion; a sudden epidemic began to spread across this closed-off town.

It is obvious these rats were deliberately placed by someone; thus the intention is to make the whole town's populace die alongside the Imperial Envoy.

Before, Gu Jiu Ling had thought those Imperial Envoys were rather weak, after all they were people who wielded the Imperial Sword.

It was merely to go to Jiangnan to investigate a small salt merchant, yet some died, some went mad; now it seems these people of the Cao Clan are simply reckless and lawless.

They virtually disregard law and human life, and have utterly lost all conscience!

"Ling Feng, Yun Duo, you two spread what I just said as quickly as possible; the entire town is now under closed quarantine."

As soon as Gu Jiu Ling finished speaking, Ling Feng hurriedly led those people out; they had already taken Gu Jiu Ling's medicine, patrolling everywhere in town and posting notices.

At this time, more and more people in the town collapsed from illness; by the third day, the whole town had sunk into a panic.

Every household wailed across the fields, weeping until they lost their voices.

By the fourth day, death cases began to appear; in every household, those who had died of the illness were carried out.

Gu Jiu Ling took out the antibiotics from her space and first gave them to Xiao Yin to take, afterward bringing the virus in his body under control.

Moreover, Xiao Yin is a martial practitioner, and three days later he showed improvement.

He personally led those improved subordinates to various places to maintain order, and also revealed his identity as Prince Rui.

The townsfolk's panic gradually subsided; the initially chaotic order became well-organized, and even the reputation of Prince Rui as a wise prince spread.

Gu Kang's injuries had greatly improved; wielding his own Imperial Sword, he personally beheaded the ringleaders who spread rumors and even incited riots, finally stabilizing the situation.

The medicine in Gu Jiu Ling's space was only enough for Xiao Yin and the guards and attendants he had brought.

She could only use the medicine on the severe cases among the townspeople; to fully control the epidemic, this little medicine she had on hand was far from enough.

After several days of exertion, Gu Jiu Ling was nearly exhausted; she herself had contracted the epidemic and was thus a patient as well.

Finally unable to endure, she collapsed; Xiao Yin hurriedly scooped her up in a horizontal hold and carried her back to the inn.

At this time, no one in the inn dared to drink the well water; instead they sent people to fetch water directly from the river.

The river's water is flowing; even if someone tried to poison it, the difficulty would be great.

Xiao Yin held Gu Jiu Ling tightly in his embrace, took the prepared hot tea, to which some mint leaves had been added.

He supported Gu Jiu Ling's neck and brought the warm tea to her lips.

Gu Jiu Ling had been busy to the point of exhaustion; at this moment she finally managed to rest, gulped down the tea, and leaned weary against Xiao Yin's embrace.

Xiao Yin furrowed his brows harshly, his face grim: "So many people, and only you trying to save them—how could you possibly succeed?"

"If others can't be saved, that's fine enough; just don't drag yourself down with them."

"From now on, I, the Prince, absolutely forbid you from going out again; whether they live or die is none of my concern."

"If you die, I will slaughter everyone in this town—believe it or not."

Xiao Yin's overbearing, cold-blooded words reached Gu Jiu Ling's ears; she tightly gripped his arm and gave a faint smile: "In this world, the Prince always utters the harshest words while doing the kindest deeds—why bother?"

Xiao Yin's hand gripping her slender waist tightened; he could not refute.

Everything this woman said was right; he is arrogant and domineering, he deviates from the orthodox path, yet his hands bear no blood of innocent civilians.

He is far better than those male thieves and female prostitutes, those hypocritical beasts—by who knows how many times.

Xiao Yin enveloped her body, feeling utterly stifled: "Anyway, if you keep exhausting yourself like this, our child will end up without a mother."

Gu Jiu Ling sighed, lifted her head to look at Xiao Yin and said: "Prince, did the people I sent out find the herbs I need on the mountain? I ought to go check…"

Xiao Yin clenched his grip on her: "You've already sent them the illustration of those herbs; if those people can't even manage this much, they might as well not live—why should you go see for yourself?"

Gu Jiu Ling struggled but could not break free of Xiao Yin's hold, and she wryly smiled: "These few herbs would be greatly beneficial for alleviating this epidemic; I don't even know whether they remembered the names."

"Scutellaria, Isatis root, Red peony root…"

Xiao Yin laughed in exasperation, and involuntarily turned his back.

His voice deep and resonant, he forced out the names of those herbs with a sense of vicissitude.

"Are these the ones? You've been muttering them over and over—do you think I can't hear?"

"Alright, rest now."

"There are also some physicians in this town; they naturally know these herbs."

"After finding them according to your diagram, boil them in a big pot into soup and give it to those infected townsfolk to drink; you can rest assured, I will remember."

"You worry about others, but who worries about you? Be obedient and go to sleep!"

Xiao Yin, with a strong posture, encircled Gu Jiu Ling in his arms; she could not twist free of him.

These days, day and night, she has been worn out; she truly is exhausted to the extreme.

At this moment, leaning against Xiao Yin's broad embrace, a cool, refreshing fragrance gradually came over her, and Gu Jiu Ling felt an unprecedented sense of ease.

Gu Jiu Ling, exhausted to the utmost, leaned in Xiao Yin's arms and fell into a deep sleep.

This sleep made her feel as if her whole self had fainted away.

"Prince," Ling Feng pushed the door open and entered, only to see the Princess Consort lying in the Prince's arms like a child.

The Prince actually, as if holding a fragile baby, just placed the Princess Consort on his lap, holding her in his arms, gently rocking back and forth.

After seeing this scene, Ling Feng stood there stunned, unable to say a word.

Although the posture of the two adults seemed somewhat funny, at this moment Ling Feng couldn't laugh at all.

He stared fixedly at the man leaning against the bed, carefully protecting the woman in his arms.

He raised a hand to stop him from speaking, making him silent, turned his face away, lowered his brows and eyes slightly, and carefully looked at the woman already asleep in his arms.

That expression was filled with utmost tender affection.

In that instant, Ling Feng realized that the Prince was probably bound to this woman for life.