Chapter 1056

No one expected that the source of the cow was from another herder's family.

Miao He was ecstatic and immediately wanted to buy the cow from the merchant.

The merchant was terrified and immediately wanted to kill the cow, and even slaughter and bury all the tribe's cattle and sheep.

Tao Yan Bai stood in front of the cow and spent great effort explaining to him that the cow had been cured and would no longer infect people.

They could inspect all the remaining cattle and sheep to confirm whether any had developed pustules.

The merchant was unwilling, until Batu Mengku and the tribe's chieftain arrived and told him: "When a person recovers from smallpox, they no longer infect others—it's a good sign. The same applies to cattle and sheep; this cow has healed itself and will no longer infect anyone."

"It won't infect while alive, but what about eating its meat and blood?" the merchant said. "No one has ever eaten cattle or sheep infected with smallpox—what if it still spreads?"

Tao Yan Bai immediately assured him: "We won't kill it, and we won't eat its meat."

The merchant knew full well they weren't planning to eat the meat; in fact, even now he didn't understand why they were searching for this cow.

Neither the tribe's chieftain nor Batu Mengku understood.

Miao He told them: "Batu Mengku's symptoms were mild—his pustule count, fever duration, and temperature were all lower than those of typical smallpox patients. So we must find the reason, find the source."

She said: "Only by finding the source and the reason can we replicate this success, and even build upon it to weaken smallpox's harm and grant people immunity."

Tao Yan Bai looked ahead and said: "Once we succeed, the disease of smallpox will cease to exist."

"You're talking nonsense," the tribe's chieftain said grimly. "Even the Eternal Heaven cannot do this—how could you possibly achieve it?"

But Batu Mengku seemed thoughtful and whispered to the chieftain: "Let them try~~"

The chieftain turned and glared at him, then spoke to the merchant: "I originally refused to return all your cattle and sheep—I only agreed to return those with pustule marks. But now, perhaps your concern is justified. We, the tribe, will bear this loss ourselves."

Miao He panicked and told the chieftain: "This cow truly won't infect anyone anymore."

The chieftain said: "Our tribe cannot become a villain of all ages. If these cattle and sheep carry the disease and spread smallpox, our tribe will become the greatest enemy of the grasslands. Our children are fighting on the frontlines—we cannot let them return with honor only to find their tribe staining their legacy."

The chieftain remained resolute. Miao He fell silent, exchanged a glance with Tao Yan Bai, and had no solution.

The two could only stubbornly rely on Batu Mengku, who was close to them.

Batu Mengku helplessly said: "I must obey the chieftain."

The merchant returned all the tribe's cattle and sheep, then packed his belongings and decided to leave immediately.

The chieftain led his men to inspect every single cattle and sheep, and indeed found two cows with pustule marks—one of them a calf that had never been sold and remained in its original owner's pen, several of its scabs still not fully fallen off.

But it was lively, showing no sign of illness.

This discovery shocked the entire tribe.

The chieftain immediately decided to seal off the tribe and sent people to intercept the merchant—but the merchant had acted faster and already fled with his caravan.

They had not taken Miao He and Tao Yan Bai with them.

The two stood in the cold wind, staring ahead at a vast white expanse, snow-covered ground marked by several cart tracks.

Miao He: "Didn't he promise Uncle Zhao he'd safely bring us back?"

Tao Yan Bai: "Smallpox—they must have been terrified."

The two exchanged a glance and jointly decided to stay here.

Three cows were brought out; the chieftain ordered them burned alive.

Miao He stopped him and said: "I've examined them. The pustule marks on the first two are old. This little yellow one has the faintest, oldest marks—I suspect it's the source. And this white one's pustule marks resemble Batu Mengku's in timing; according to our records, his grazing area overlaps most with this cow's—likely it infected Batu Mengku."

She pointed to the last calf: "This spotted calf contracted smallpox thirty-five to forty days ago. Most of its scabs have fallen off, meaning it has already overcome smallpox—these two remaining scabs are simply delayed in falling."

Miao He said: "I suggest keeping this calf because its scabs carry the weakest toxicity. No one knows if any other cattle or sheep in this herd still harbor latent virus…"

"Then kill them all and burn them!" the chieftain cut in grimly, heart aching but knowing it was unavoidable.

Miao He said: "I support this method—but what about the people?"

The chieftain's heart sank.

Tao Yan Bai took over: "The tribe's people live side by side with these cattle and sheep—no one knows who might be infected, only that the virus is still in incubation. Cattle and sheep can be killed, but what about the people?"

The chieftain: "Our tribe has no one infected with smallpox. Don't spread fear here."

Miao He: "It's because it's winter now. Batu Mengku recovered near autumn, and the spotted calf was infected as the weather turned cold—the virus's activity was minimized. But winter will end, and summer will come."

"When next year's heat activates the smallpox virus, if the latent infection in the tribe erupts, how many of you will survive? How many tribes will remain on this grassland?"

The chieftain turned pale: "Fearmongering, fearmongering—you just said these three cows are no longer dangerous."

Miao He: "They are indeed no longer dangerous. The danger lies in the latent smallpox virus hiding somewhere unknown."

Tao Yan Bai: "Keep these three cows. If you trust us, we are willing to vaccinate your people—to grant them immunity in advance. This is the only way to prevent next year's smallpox outbreak."

The chieftain laughed bitterly: "Vaccinate? Prove it first—vaccinate yourselves."

Miao He and Tao Yan Bai exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming: "We were planning to do exactly that—but we need your support."

The chieftain: … He'd only said it in passing—they actually meant to do it?

But Miao He and Tao Yan Bai's words had eased the tension: they weren't asking the tribe to die—they were asking everyone to die together.

When death includes the proposers themselves, resentment fades.

The chieftain finally calmed down enough to listen.

Tao Yan Bai appealed to emotion and reason: "I know this winter is especially harsh—the snow came earlier than ever. Many tribes have lost countless cattle and sheep. Your livelihood is harder than ever. If you now slaughter so many cattle and sheep, how long will your grain stores last until next spring? And if you kill this batch, do you kill the calves and lambs in the pens too? If you kill them, how will you breed next year? Without calves and lambs, without mother cows and ewes, how will your tribe survive next year?"

The chieftain's face darkened; the herders listening grew anxious and stepped forward to voice their opinions.

They had never agreed to kill these cattle and sheep. Why kill them? They're perfectly healthy—none have smallpox.

Tao Yan Bai said: "Smallpox is stubborn. Water aids its spread, heat activates it, cold suppresses it—but its only weakness is that it never reinfects."

Tao Yan Bai said: "My sister and I have lived in your tribe for two days and have been in contact with these cattle and sheep—we even touched the scabs ourselves…"

The crowd recoiled, putting distance between themselves and the two.

Tao Yan Bai smiled: "We don't know whether we ourselves carry latent smallpox virus. So we will be the first to be vaccinated. If we survive, please trust us and let us vaccinate suitable people, minimizing next year's outbreak."

The chieftain pondered: "Suitable people?"

Tao Yan Bai nodded: "The weak, the elderly, and the sick are unsuitable for vaccination—they must be excluded."

The leader remained silent. Batu Mengku said, "Leader, why not listen to what they plan for variolation and how they intend to treat it?"

The Central Plains have a complete variolation procedure, though they use human variola.

But the remedy for smallpox is public knowledge; not only physicians know it, but many ordinary people do too, and those who don't can ask the authorities.

The authorities keep records of such universal remedies—they dare not withhold them.

Mount Sanqing's remedies for smallpox will only be more numerous, never fewer.

Tao Yan Bai and Miao He carried plenty of herbs, most of which came from the Central Plains, originally brought here to practice medicine and earn a hard-earned living; but now it seems fortunate they brought extra—these herbs can all be used now.

Tao Yan Bai explained the specific procedures to them: isolation, three meals a day with standard rations, and different treatments for different symptoms. What reassured everyone most was the remedy they provided, and: "We brought many herbs with us, and combined with your tribe's local herbs, it will be more than enough."

There's enough herbs~~

Just thinking about it is tempting, but no one dared take the first step.

That's smallpox!

Tao Yan Bai knew this, yet he emphasized: "My disciple and I are willing to be the vanguard."

Batu Mengku urged the leader to agree: "There's no better opportunity than this. If they leave like the caravan did, even if we survive this winter, we won't survive next summer—and we'll drag the entire steppe down with us."

Only then did the tribal leader bow his head and agree.

So the tribe built them a tent at the downstream edge, and each household contributed a little grain, meat, and firewood.

All three cows were sent to a corral beside their tent; Tao Yan Bai and Miao He moved in and were immediately isolated from the outside world.

Batu Mengku had survived smallpox—he was the only one allowed to come near them, to deliver information and supplies.

He was now lighting a fire for them and asked, "Are you truly not regretting this?"

Miao He was unpacking her belongings and laying them on the bed; she turned to look at him.

Batu Mengku said, "You could have slipped away with the caravan quietly."

Miao He replied, "If we ran, what would you do?"

Batu Mengku stood, pounding his chest: "We'll remember your kindness. Whenever you need us in the future, just ask—we'll give our lives to repay you."

Miao He waved at him.

Batu Mengku left eagerly.

Tao Yan Bai lowered and tied the tent flap, blocking the wind, then turned to Miao He: "Should we send a telegram to Uncle Zhao? The caravan's leaving without us—they'll worry."

"There's no snow or wind tonight—we can try. We brought a low-power transmitter; I don't know if we can reach them."

Tao Yan Bai: "Try."

Miao He took out the small transmitter from her space—it was the one Zhao Shizhu and others had practiced with.

Pan Yun had left it for them, mainly to maintain contact with Zhao Shizhu and other Great Ming officials.

Tao Yan Bai turned the hand crank; soon the red light lit up, but he didn't stop. Miao He didn't transmit immediately.

First, she wrote down what she wanted to say, then flipped through the Thousand Character Classic to convert each character into numbers, before beginning transmission.

She not only explained why they were late, but also described the situation of these tribes, focusing on how many young men had been conscripted and when they left.

Zhao Shizhu received the message quickly and replied, urging them to be careful.

Hu Ning translated the intelligence and frowned slightly: "This area lies at the extreme west of the Oirat. These tribes are so far from Great Ming, yet he's conscripted so many men—this war will be hard for Great Ming."

Zhao Shizhu: "This year is too cold, the snow too deep. If he doesn't conscript these youths to fight Great Ming, they'll raid other tribes. The clans and tribes already resent his usurpation. If the steppe stirs, he'll be the first to suffer. This is his only way out."

Hu Ning snapped: "So you think he did the right thing?"

"I didn't say he was right. I only said that, from his position, lacking noble status and sufficient ability to rule the steppe, launching war against Great Ming is his only way to divert the steppe's internal tensions." Zhao Shizhu said: "Of course, Great Ming is not weak—we won't let him do as he pleases."

"Wait and see. The victor is not yet known." Thinking of Pan Yun's methods, and recalling the military upheavals his family had mentioned upon returning home, he added with deep meaning: "Great Ming has waited a long time for this war."

At this moment, Yu Qian was using the telegraph machine in the Grand Secretariat to send telegrams to Datong and all border armies: "If the Oirat moves, Great Ming will strike back with full force! This war is Great Ming's war to wash away its shame—our late emperor's vengeance shall be exacted!"

The telegrams were broadcast nationwide; not only border strongholds, but all prefectures and counties received them.

Instantly, the entire nation erupted. Officials and commoners were united. Those far from the northern frontier wished they could sprout wings and fly north to join the fight.

In a garrison in Jiangxi, a hundred-man commander slammed his table in frustration: "We once sent troops to guard the capital—why aren't we being called now?"

The soldiers also growled: "I want to fight too!"

Among the people, sword-wielding knights set out to support the frontier, shouting their intent—only to be arrested at the city gate with the reason: "Who gave you permission to carry weapons? You deserve a beating!"

But remembering their noble intent, the county magistrate did not beat him—only scolded him and let him go.

The knight returned home dejected, because the magistrate had asked him: "Do you have a travel permit? Do you have funds? Do you even know the way to Datong, over a thousand li away?"

The knight returned home in despair, and finally decided to donate money instead.