A plague in Bei Xiang?
The moment the thought surfaced, Yun Shu recalled a confidential memorial she had once glimpsed in Emperor Xuanwu's study—
Troop movements in the western territories of Bei Xiang.
Could it be because of this?
"A plague, a military shift, and my long-planned scheme."
Huyan Mingchuan raised his brows with visible pride.
"The Second Prince's privately raised troops along the border were exposed. In desperation, he raised arms and openly rebelled.
The Third Prince was killed. The Eldest Prince gravely wounded—he's as good as crippled now.
The King of Bei Xiang has grown wary of Princes Four through Eight as well.
The entire royal court is a nest of whispers and blades, like birds startled by the mere rustle of leaves. It could all erupt into something far worse at any moment.
If Tian Sheng has any spies in Bei Xiang, the news should reach the capital in a few days."
"So the assassins who came for you… they belong to the Second Prince?"
"To expose his hidden troops was no easy feat. It's no surprise he suspected me."
Huyan Mingchuan tugged at the corner of his mouth, the look in his eyes steeped in scorn.
"If he couldn't even figure that out, I wouldn't mind sending someone to whisper it in his ear. Let him know exactly who ruined him.
Is it not amusing? To fall at the hands of the very man he always saw as worthless."
"…This is the grand message you brought me?"
Yun Shu had no interest in hearing him gloat.
"You said it yourself—this matter will be public knowledge in a few days. That hardly seems worth twenty thousand taels of silver."
"The Second Prince also intends to spread the plague to Tian Sheng."
Yun Shu's eyes sharpened instantly.
Huyan Mingchuan chuckled, clearly pleased.
"Ah, it seems this piece of news is worth the price."
"Speak clearly."
Yun Shu's brow knit with tension.
"What exactly has he done?"
"Oh, nothing much. He simply sent a team toward your imperial capital."
Huyan Mingchuan drawled, as if discussing the weather.
"But worry not. Their target is you—or rather, the entire royal house of Tian Sheng.
The plague they carry is too easily noticed. If they let it spread along the way, they'd be intercepted before ever reaching the capital. So instead, they're transporting infectious materials in secret.
To ensure the disease remains potent upon arrival, every few days one of their own deliberately becomes infected.
Then, from that body, they extract a fresh sample... and dispose of the host."
"Where are they now?"
Yun Shu's voice dropped, cutting to the heart of the matter.
Huyan Mingchuan was surprisingly cooperative.
"Roughly five days from reaching the capital."
"Is there a cure?"
"There is none."
He smiled faintly.
"The disease has another name. Perhaps Your Highness has heard of it—smallpox."
"…"
Oh, she had heard of it. Loud and clear.
Even in the modern era, there was no cure—only prevention.
Granted, that might be because it had already been eradicated. But regardless, in this world, in this time…
Once infected, there was no salvation.
Yun Shu took a slow, deep breath.
"You know where they're headed."
She did not pose it as a question, but as fact.
"Take my men. Lead us to them."
"Your Highness intends to strike them down?"
Huyan Mingchuan's tone turned idle, almost taunting.
"And what if one of your soldiers gets infected in the process, then brings the disease back to you?"
"How this Princess handles such matters is no concern of yours. Just provide the guide."
Five days to the capital. Time was already slipping away.
Yun Shu assigned a Dragon Shadow Guard to escort Huyan Mingchuan for treatment, and to ensure he caused no further mischief.
As for herself, after exchanging a brief farewell with Tang Xinhua—promising to return and examine the carriage later—she mounted her horse and rode straight back to the palace.
"What?!"
In the imperial study, Emperor Xuanwu's fury shook the room as Yun Shu recounted the events.
"Bei Xiang dares provoke war with Tian Sheng?!"
"Whether there will be war is a matter for later."
Yun Shu quickly stepped in to calm him.
"Father Emperor, the most urgent task is to deal with the threat before us."
"You speak wisely."
Emperor Xuanwu's face remained grim. He raised his hand, ready to summon the Dragon Shadow Guard to eliminate the approaching threat.
But just as the command reached his lips, a memory surfaced—an image he had seen through the Simulation Life Selection System.
It had shown the Sixth Prince serving as a test subject for medicine.
Could it be… even if he deployed the Dragon Shadow Guard, even with utmost caution, something would still slip through? That Sixth Prince would still become infected?
And under that pressure, the Imperial Medical Bureau would, at last, discover a cure for smallpox?
"Father Emperor, Your Daughter once came across an ancient text," Yun Shu said gently, sensing his hesitation.
"It described a remote mountain village that had been stricken with smallpox. There wasn't even a proper physician there. Everyone assumed it would be a death sentence. Yet against all odds… over half the villagers survived."
"And those who did not?"
"Most were already frail and sickly. They might not have survived even without the illness."
"Impossible."
Emperor Xuanwu instinctively rejected the notion.
"Such claims are fantasy. Those who survive smallpox are but a rare few. That all of them happened to live in one remote village? What kind of book is this? Some far-fetched tale like the ones you publish in that newspaper of yours?"
"I thought the same at first," Yun Shu said seriously.
"I scoured many records, searching for similar accounts. Eventually, I found something they all shared."
"What did they share?"
Though still skeptical, Emperor Xuanwu leaned in despite himself, drawn by Yun Shu's gravity.