Chapter 168

Chapter 168

Thanks to the collective efforts and cooperation of everyone involved, it wasn't long before the epidemic in Yunzhou and its subordinate areas was largely brought under control.

Jiang Cihe promptly drafted a memorial detailing the epidemic situation and dispatched it to the capital. As it was addressed directly to Emperor Qianyou, his report arrived earlier than those submitted by other local officials.

When Emperor Qianyou received Jiang Cihe’s memorial, he was presiding over the morning court. Taking the document from Eunuch Yang, he opened it and was immediately startled. "What? An epidemic has indeed broken out in Yunzhou? And it's quite severe?"

However, after reading a few more lines, he let out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the situation was mostly resolved, meaning his Seventh Son should be safe.

The officials below, observing Emperor Qianyou’s fluctuating expressions—from shock to relief—grew curious about the memorial's contents.

The Minister of Revenue, puzzled, inquired, "Your Majesty, has something untoward occurred?"

Emperor Qianyou closed the memorial. "It's nothing too serious. Merely an unprecedented and rather severe epidemic that has emerged in Yunzhou."

"Is that so?" the Minister of Revenue began, before a sudden realization struck him. "What? An epidemic?"

He continued anxiously, "Your Majesty, why do you not seem concerned? We must swiftly gather medical supplies and provisions to send there, and dispatch more physicians. Otherwise, this epidemic could worsen considerably."

They had prepared medical supplies during times of disaster precisely to anticipate such scenarios. Now that it had actually happened, their existing resources would prove insufficient. After all, an epidemic in a region could claim many lives, sometimes even wiping out an entire populace.

By the time this memorial reached them, some time had passed since the outbreak. Who knew how far the contagion might have spread?

Seeing Emperor Qianyou still composed, the Minister of Revenue grew even more agitated. "Your Majesty, why are you not worried? Human lives are at stake, and Prince Zhao is still there!"

Other ministers below chimed in anxiously, "Precisely, Your Majesty! We must dispatch troops immediately. If the afflicted spread to other areas, the situation would become far more dire!"

"Why is this news only reaching us now? Could it be extremely urgent?"

"It’s over, it’s over! We are doomed!"

Yet, Emperor Qianyou remained smiling and unhurried. He instructed Eunuch Yang to pass the memorial to the others. "My esteemed ministers, calm yourselves. It is not too late to read the memorial first."

Soon, the memorial reached the hands of the Minister of Revenue and others. The Minister of Revenue quickly took it and began to read. Upon doing so, he was astonished. "The epidemic has already been resolved?"

When he saw the crucial role Meng Shuping had played in managing the epidemic, he was even more incredulous. "Does Vice Director Meng even possess knowledge of epidemic management?"

What else does this young man know?

However, others who read the memorial found it preposterous. "Impossible, isn't it? How could such a severe epidemic be resolved so swiftly? I suspect they've exaggerated its severity."

"That makes sense. Epidemics have always been notoriously difficult to handle. Even if Minister Zheng has more experience in governance, how could Prince Zhao and Vice Director Meng, being so young, be proficient in such matters?"

"Perhaps this is Prince Zhao’s first time dealing with such a situation, and he was misled by local officials. Alas, youth—such obvious deception went unnoticed."

The Minister of Revenue disagreed. "Minister Zhou, you are mistaken. Although Prince Zhao and Vice Director Meng are young, their capabilities are evident to all. Perhaps the epidemic truly unfolded as described in the memorial?"

The Minister of Works snorted. "I concede they possess some ability, but the capital and the provinces are vastly different. Those two still have much to learn!"

Seeing them engaged in a heated argument, Emperor Qianyou waved his hand. "Enough. The memorial's details are too brief. We shall gain a clearer understanding once they return and we can question them."

He believed Jiang Cihe would not falsify such matters. But if it were true, then similar situations in the future would be much easier to resolve.

Hearing this, the officials below had no choice but to fall silent, though many still harbored doubts or excitement in their hearts.

Two days later, memorials from other local officials also arrived. Finding their contents largely consistent with Jiang Cihe’s report, Emperor Qianyou and the officials were both surprised and curious. How had they managed it?

Meng Shuping was completely unaware that the epidemic incident had left Emperor Qianyou and the court officials consumed by curiosity. At that moment, he was preparing to pack his belongings and leave the epidemic area.

The situation in the epidemic area is now largely under control. As long as no further issues arise, its complete resolution is only a matter of time. Besides, staying in the epidemic area all this time meant he couldn't do anything comfortably, and he felt like he was starting to reek. He really needed a good bath.

Seeing him pack his things, Dr. Li pretended to casually approach him and remarked nonchalantly, "I didn’t expect you to actually possess such capabilities."

Meng Shuping was taken aback and said sheepishly, "You’re quite impressive too."

[Well, well, I never thought I’d hear such words from him. So he finally admits he underestimated me? I feel so proud!]

[But to be fair, his medical skills are indeed not bad. Good thing he doesn’t know I once doubted him, or I’d be as embarrassed as he is.]

Dr. Li choked back a retort. Wasn’t he just giving the kid a compliment? Look how full of himself he is! And who said he didn’t know the kid had once questioned his medical abilities? He knew very well!

He said sternly, "Aren’t you going to ask me why I was reluctant to come when the authorities first summoned me?"

After being here for so long, he had come to realize that this young man was nothing like the usual officials—he didn’t even seem like an official at all. He was neither pompous nor easy to deal with, but admittedly, he was a decent official.

Meng Shuping replied indifferently, "I don’t want to know!"

[Anyway, it’s probably one of those reasons—getting screwed over by the authorities, disliking the darkness of officialdom, or being persecuted after offending some official. What's the point in asking?]

Dr. Li choked again. Why was this kid so infuriating?

After returning by carriage to where he was staying, Meng Shuping had just finished enjoying a nice, hot bath when he heard that Yunzhou Prefect had come to see him. He was puzzled—he wasn’t familiar with this prefect, so what could he want?

Even if there was something, shouldn’t he be going to Jiang Cihe instead?

Although he didn’t want to meet Yunzhou Prefect, Meng Shuping worried that there might be something important, so he had no choice but to invite him in.

A moment later, Yunzhou Prefect entered Meng Shuping’s room. As soon as he stepped inside, he said with great enthusiasm, "Vice Director Meng, you were so busy in the epidemic area before that we didn’t have a chance to chat. Now you finally have some free time."

Meng Shuping laughed awkwardly, "Haha, yes."

[What does he mean by 'busy'? Even if I weren’t busy, I wouldn’t want to socialize with him. Work is exhausting enough—who wants to deal with annoying coworkers on top of that?]

Yunzhou Prefect’s smile froze briefly before quickly returning to normal. He continued warmly, "Lord Meng is truly young and accomplished. I initially wondered why the court would send such a young official, but now I see that Lord Meng is remarkably capable. Despite being so much older, I’m far inferior to Lord Meng."

Meng Shuping let out a hollow laugh, "Haha, is that so?"

[Although he’s quite annoying, he’s not wrong. I also think I’m much better than him, hahaha.]

Yunzhou Prefect felt a surge of irritation. He had offered a compliment, but this Meng Shuping didn’t even know how to be modest?

Remembering his purpose for coming, he suppressed his annoyance and continued, "Of course! If not for Lord Meng, the epidemic wouldn’t have been resolved so quickly. I must thank Lord Meng on behalf of the thousands of common people here!"

Meng Shuping cringed at the praise. "Haha, alright."

[Seriously, what is he here for? Did he come just to spout nonsense? I finally have some time to rest—I don’t want to waste it here with him. If he has something to say, why can’t he just say it directly instead of beating around the bush?]

Yunzhou Prefect felt like he was about to have a heart attack. At this point, he wished he couldn’t hear Meng Shuping’s inner thoughts—it wouldn’t be so hard to keep a straight face otherwise.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "Lord Meng, you’ve been here for a while but probably haven’t tried Yunzhou’s local specialties yet. To express my gratitude, I’ve prepared some unique local snacks for you. Why not give them a try?"

Meng Shuping was totally baffled. [Why is he giving me snacks out of the blue? Are we that close? Besides, beware of Greeks bearing gifts—is he setting me up for something?]

Still, he was curious about what specialties Yunzhou Prefect had brought. He accepted the box handed to him and opened it, only to find not just snacks but also a stack of banknotes inside.

After being insulted so thoroughly by Meng Shuping, Yunzhou Prefect could barely maintain his smile. He rubbed his face and forced his enthusiastic expression back. "Lord Meng, actually, aside from thanking you on behalf of the people, I also came to apologize for what happened earlier. If I'd kept a tighter rein on my subordinates, that misunderstanding wouldn’t have occurred. I hope Lord Meng won’t hold it against me."

He had finally figured it out—this Meng Shuping was not only capable and favored by Jiang Cihe but also petty. If not for that, he wouldn’t have been relegated to the epidemic zone. So, after leaving the epidemic area, his first priority was to figure out how to mend fences with Meng Shuping. Otherwise, if Meng Shuping decided to nitpick, his troubles would never end.

Even if Meng Shuping did nothing here, who knew if he might file a false report about him once back in the capital?

Meng Shuping was stunned. [Holy cow! So he came to give gifts! If he’s giving gifts, why all the roundabout talk? Was it fun making me guess?]