0p0 Chapter 635 Scorching Summer
Chapter 635 Scorching Summer
When Shen Ruyi left this place, it was the height of summer.
The weather was so hot and humid that it was hard to breathe. After a few days of walking, some members of the group began to suffer from heatstroke, vomiting and having diarrhea.
Moreover, the local mosquitoes are diverse, large, and highly venomous, biting with deadly accuracy, and even wearing a sachet won't help.
The problem is that there are too many of them, making it impossible to prevent.
Let alone others, even Shen Ruyi, who was surrounded by insects, didn't want to get out of the carriage.
Especially in those lush and damp places, where you might even get flying insects in your mouth when you open it to speak.
It was absolutely awful. I didn't dare wear anything too bright, otherwise I'd be covered in tiny flying insects, which triggered my trypophobia.
That's not the worst part. The worst part is that there are so many snakes here. You can run into one out of nowhere, and another one will suddenly appear.
Shen Ruyi was terrified, but she dared not show it, fearing that it would become a weakness that others would use against her. She could only pretend to be nonchalant.
She had never known that snakes could come in so many colors. Yi Ren chuckled and comforted her, "Don't be afraid, some of them aren't poisonous."
He thought to himself, "Ruyi is so bold she could pierce the sky, yet she's only afraid of snakes."
Only at this moment could she remember that Ruyi was still a child, not a prince.
Shen Ruyi took a sip of her herbal tea and said, "You don't understand. It's not about whether it's poisonous or not. I feel so uncomfortable just looking at it. I can't help feeling uncomfortable, and I don't know why."
It seems to be a mark from the soul.
This godforsaken place is unbearable. "Shall we head north when we reach the next county?"
Work is important, but her personal feelings are even more important; there's no need for her to force herself to endure hardship.
Besides, it wouldn't be appropriate for her to actually inspect every place; if she went there, it would inevitably lead to another round of bloodshed.
She has to leave something for the officials to do.
If she were to deal with all these corrupt officials one by one, leaving the officials with nothing to do and causing other trouble, that wouldn't be good.
After all, humans are fickle, and they are the most adaptable of higher animals to their environment.
Just like some generals who, when fighting a battle, are worried about not being able to defeat the enemy, but also afraid of winning too decisively and having no more battles to fight.
Because once there are no more battles to fight, being a general becomes dangerous.
When there are external enemies, they are the emperor's greatest concern.
When there are no external enemies, generals whose achievements overshadow the emperor become a major threat in the emperor's eyes.
She still understands this truth.
The enemy cannot be killed all; some must be left for oneself to "sharpen the knife" and save one's own life.
Therefore, she did not pursue Chen Sheng to Prince Qing's fiefdom to find out what was going on.
It's because what happened at the Prince Li's residence had such a huge impact that Prince Qing and his son probably received the news long ago and took corresponding defensive measures.
They might even be waiting for her to walk right into their trap.
She would be at a disadvantage and in a passive position if she rashly led her people there, after all, it was Prince Qing's territory, and he had the home advantage.
Besides, how simple can the Prince Qing and his son be, who could fool the Prince of Li so easily? It's best to be careful.
Her previous success was due to her surprise attack, which gave her an absolute advantage and the advantage of having the enemy in the open while she was in the dark.
Even if she wanted to go, she would have to wait until the other party was not paying attention or on guard; the timing was not right now.
The success rate of finding useful information is also much higher; she never fights a battle unprepared.
"Sure, you decide. I'm fine with whatever you say." Yi Ren had no objection; she didn't care.
The bugs here are indeed annoying, but she's been used to them since she was a child and thinks they're still within her tolerance range.
"Okay, let's do it this way. Let's come back here when the season changes."
Yi Ren: "Hmm, I think that's a good idea. How about we start tomorrow, resting during the day and traveling at night? It's too sunny and hot outside."
Shen Ruyi moved closer to the ice basin. "Alright, you can decide how to arrange it. It's really not suitable to travel during the day. The horses can't handle it either."
Those of them traveling by horse-drawn carriage are better off, as they can make ice to cool down; those outside are not so lucky.
The scorching sun baked everyone until they were practically roasted pigs; their lips were cracked, they were sweating profusely, and you could wring water out of their clothes.
It's really uncomfortable to need to drink salt water or sugar water from time to time to replenish energy.
The heat here is the kind of heat that you can't escape, unlike in the north where you can feel cool just by standing in the shade or in a room.
Especially for those rich kids who haven't experienced much hardship, they even felt like they were going to die.
I feel like I can't take it anymore; this winter feels even harder than last year.
What a terrible place this is! It's awful.
However, they only dared to complain in their hearts, not say it out loud, because they were too afraid of the King of the East Sea.
They used to be able to take turns riding in the carriage, but after they were allowed to do as they pleased, they were deprived of that right.
Even if they paid for their own carriages, it was not allowed; the King of the East Sea forbade it.
Of course, this wasn't without its benefits; at least these young masters were much healthier than before.
Even if you get heatstroke, you recover quickly.
Now I can walk 30 or 40 miles a day without feeling anything, and I don't have to worry about falling behind.
Their faces and hands had changed; they were now dark, with a hint of light in the darkness.
He's long lost that delicate, pampered young master who knew nothing of human suffering and lived a life of luxury; he's become incredibly rough around the edges.
Everyone thought that winters in the south were unbearable enough, but they found that the sweltering summers here were just as bad.
Fortunately, we had Physician Chen with us, and the medicinal resources along the way were extremely abundant and readily available, so we could use the local resources.
Almost all commonly used medicinal herbs can be found in the ditches and ravines along the roadside, and you can easily collect half a basketful.
There's plenty of herbal tea, but even so, life is hard to get through.
It is much better than the north in this respect, with more greenery.
In the following days, they began to travel at night and rest during the day.
We set off at three in the morning, and when the sun was high in the sky, we found a place to set up camp, cook, and rest.
Of course, there are some advantages to this place in the summer, namely the abundance of wild fruits all over the mountains and fields, which you can easily pick a lot of.
Moreover, many of the fruits tasted quite good, and with Granny Yang around, they weren't afraid of eating anything poisonous.
You can pick them freely, which is another form of fruit freedom.
Of course, there are even more wild vegetables, game, and fish on the mountain, which can basically be prepared and eaten on the spot.
Of course, Shen Ruyi secretly moved many small fruit seedlings and vines into her space.
When she comes across wild vegetables and herbs that are not found in the north, she will also bring some into her space while digging, trying to enrich the variety of items in her space.
After Shen Ruyi and her party traveled north over countless mountains, they finally arrived at Shuanglu City.
The stuffy feeling was finally much better, and many people walked away listlessly.
Shen Ruyi suggested that they stay here a little longer so that everyone could rest and recuperate.
So they found an inn to stay in, fearing that it would attract the attention of the local government. People from all over the country entered the city in batches and stayed in different places.
We can contact each other based on the signal at that time.
Furthermore, officials in other places have been terrified recently.
Because the East Sea King and his group have recently disappeared again, no one knows where they went.
I haven't heard any news about these people for a long time. I'm afraid they'll suddenly disappear and then suddenly reappear, so I'll raid their homes.
This caused everyone to be extremely tense and take it very seriously.
Especially the Prince Qing's mansion, after learning of Prince Li's fate, Prince Qing issued countless orders.
They tightened the controls at every checkpoint in the Prince Qing's fiefdom.
It was specifically instructed that any unfamiliar faces from out of town must be reported immediately.
At the same time, we also need to figure out where these things came from, where they are going, and what they are planning to do here.
We must not let anyone escape; we are on high alert, waiting for the arrival of the King of the East Sea.
Of course, it's also possible that he felt guilty, thinking that the King of the East Sea would come directly to his fiefdom next.
After all, there were rumors that the King of Donghai had pinned the blame for the deaths of the Li family on him, forcing him to submit a memorial to the Emperor to express his sympathy.
After all, this person is no pushover and is extremely unpredictable, making him difficult to guard against and deal with.
It was just bad luck that the King of the East Sea arrived at such an inopportune time. If he had arrived a few months later, the King of Li could have died quietly.
Of course, he was still very satisfied that the Prince Li's mansion had been completely uprooted. If he hadn't been involved in this matter, he might have been even happier.
While Shen Ruyi was busy shopping and investigating local officials, the Emperor received another memorial impeaching the Prince of Donghai after a long time.
The impeachment against the King of Donghai is utterly inhumane, disregarding the lives of the people in his fiefdom, and even administering a drug that would kill off his offspring; it is simply vicious beyond measure.
It is said that the King of the East Sea has occupied Penglai Island for so long, yet not a single baby has been born there.
They even claimed that the King of the East Sea was the real Poison King, saying that no one in thousands of years had ever seen such a vicious and inhumane person.
They petitioned the Emperor to punish the Prince of Donghai with death, lest he tarnish the reputation of the officials of the Dali Dynasty and make it difficult to convince the people.
Moreover, this person thoughtfully brought along several Japanese witnesses and attached several nominal diagnostic results.
If you still don't believe it, you can ask the imperial physician to examine the matter again on the spot.
This incident once again shocked the entire court, revealing that there was nothing the King of Donghai wouldn't dare to do in the Dali Dynasty.
Is this something a normal person can do?
Some people, drawn by the smell of blood, were once again stirred, feeling that this might be the best time to move to the East Sea King.
So they decided to get involved and help impeach the King of the East Sea.
Of course, most of them were smart and didn't blindly jump in; they just stood aside and watched the show.
However, it must be said that the actions of the King of the East Sea have repeatedly refreshed everyone's understanding.
They had heard of massacring entire cities after defeating an enemy, or treating the enemy as slaves, but they had never seen anyone administer a drug that would kill off their offspring.
Some people even wondered how much effort it must have taken to drug so many people.
The one who reacted the most was the Duke of Zheng, who secretly wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead while hiding behind others.
He thought to himself, "Good heavens, good heavens, thank goodness he hasn't been speaking well of the King of the East Sea lately, otherwise..."
Is this something a normal person would do?
Not to mention others, even the emperor was shocked when he heard about this, and it took him a few seconds to come to his senses.
Did Xiao Heitan report this to him before? Why can't he remember?
No wonder this little thing kept trying to lure people from the mainland to the island; now I know why.
It's not impossible that this place will belong entirely to the Dali Dynasty in a few decades.
After all, those who are not of our kind will surely have different hearts.
At first, I was really shocked, but then I thought about how this little thing was, and it seemed like it wasn't incapable of doing such a thing.
So they sat on a high place and watched the show while eating melon seeds (gossiping), as the imperial court had been too quiet lately.
It was as quiet as a stagnant pool, utterly uninteresting.
Let alone others, even he, an official, felt as lonely as snow, and his life was so bland and boring that he even lost his appetite.
As for Xiao Heitan giving these people infertility drugs, he figured she must have her own reasons.
Besides, this place was originally reclaimed by this little thing herself after she fought off bandits, so she can do whatever she wants with it.
So the emperor didn't say anything and just watched as several ministers jumped out and started making a ruckus again.
I feel like I'm about to witness another great show.
He then turned his gaze to the Japanese men standing in the hall; their hairstyles were truly ugly, almost unbearable to look at.
It's exactly as Xiao Heitan described it, incredibly accurate and true.
I initially thought Xiao Heitan was exaggerating, but today I realize he was absolutely right.
These people are truly ugly, and their walking posture is even uglier. They lack any sense of grandeur and are worthy of being from barbarian lands.
Suddenly, he remembered the bad habits that Xiao Heitan had told him about, which were unique to the Japanese.
This time I finally met the real person involved, and I must say, this experience was quite interesting.
These bastards have been harassing the border for over a century, and they're not all that great.
No matter what the officials below said, the emperor simply ignored them and watched the spectacle.
There were those who opposed the King of the East Sea, and naturally there were those who supported his actions.
Most of those in favor were military officers, because these officers had almost all fought against foreign tribes on the front lines.
Let alone administering a drug that would prevent people from having children, slaughtering the entire enemy city wouldn't be a big problem.
Although massacring an entire city is generally discouraged, as it is somewhat against the natural order, there are still some special circumstances.
If we capture the enemy, are we supposed to just kill them and worship them like ancestors?
They felt it was nothing serious; the method was already very mild.
They didn't beat or scold these Japanese people, nor did they deliberately target or torture them; they let them continue living their lives as before.
They did not discriminate against these Japanese people, which is already a great act of magnanimity.
This method is already quite mild; after all, those who are not of our kind are bound to have different intentions.
If we don't kill them, what if they rise to power in the future? What if they turn against us again?
If you don't cut the weeds at the root, you'll surely cause trouble later.
The people in the court once again started arguing heatedly about whether the King of Donghai was guilty.
Moreover, as they debated, they started hurling insults at each other again, and there was even a suspicion that they were starting to insult each other's ancestors.
People like the young prince and the Minister of Revenue stood aside and watched the show, just like officials.
The argument between the two sides escalated, and they even showed signs of coming to blows.
She thought to herself, "The King of the East Sea is a real talent. He's rarely in court, yet there are constant arguments in the court because of her presence."
interesting!
A quick glance at the official's expression told me that all this work was going to be for nothing again.