Chapter 733: One Thing Overcomes Another

"If nothing major happens tomorrow, please do not leave your residences. Marquis Chen and Inspector Mi have some matters that require a visit. Please prepare yourselves accordingly," Li You advised the remaining family heads as he left with the detained noble family leaders.

After Li You departed, those who remained finally understood the meaning of his last words. The fact that Chen Xi and Mi Zhu would visit meant only one thing: the authorities did not intend to pursue last night's events too harshly. They were planning to swiftly resolve and bury the matter.

With this understanding, the remaining family heads no longer felt the initial despair. Instead, they began to feel that the recent events had brought them closer together.

Li You placed the captured individuals into different prisons, with one prison per family. Although a few families had reacted too violently and lost many of their members, most families had not suffered much. Li You was no longer the ruthlessly brutal Li Ru he once was, and he did not intend to execute these thousands of people wholesale.

"You've captured quite a few people, Wenruo," Chen Xi said as he tiptoed to peek into the prison.

"I still think we haven't captured enough. These are just the members of each family within Fenggao. If it were up to me, I'd have rounded up all the members of these families from the entire Qing and Xu regions," Man Chong remarked coldly, supporting Li You.

"There's no need for that. It's enough to discipline them and make them understand. Some families do indeed need to be cleaned up, but it’s not necessary to be overly harsh. We should balance punishment with kindness; that’s the best approach," Li You replied calmly. "As for tracking them down in the Qing and Xu regions, it’s unnecessary. Punish the leaders and set a stern example to maintain order. Being overly strict can be counterproductive."

"What are they doing?" Jia Xu asked, noticing soldiers spreading white powder on the streets and others cleaning by sprinkling water.

"Preventing an epidemic," Qu Qi said as he suddenly appeared. "By the way, could you please move Hua Yuanhua to a different location? Since Fenggao is being replanned, this would be a good time to give him a new place. He keeps picking herbs in my garden. I’ve told him that I’m growing them, but he just scoffs at me."

"Will this method prevent an epidemic?" Jia Xu asked, looking at Qu Qi.

"Even though I’m not fond of that old man, I have to admit he's unmatched in medicine. If he says this method will work, then it will. But seriously, that old man keeps picking herbs from my yard!" Qu Qi, who was the kind of person who wouldn't criticize someone’s ability just because he disliked them, explained honestly.

"Why don’t you plant them somewhere else? Why insist on growing them in your garden?" Chen Xi said, feeling helpless. Hua Tuo picking herbs in Qu Qi's yard was partly Qu Qi's own fault.

Qu Qi was a bit of an obsessive; once he decided to plant something somewhere, no amount of persuasion could change his mind. Meanwhile, Hua Tuo kept picking herbs, and the more he picked, the more Qu Qi planted. Now Qu Qi's entire yard was filled with herbs.

There was also the fact that Hua Tuo only picked mature herbs, never depleting Qu Qi's supply entirely. This was the main reason why Qu Qi’s garden became more abundant with herbs, and also why Hua Tuo increasingly enjoyed gathering herbs there.

"Why should I be the one to move? Why should I avoid him!" Qu Qi complained, though without much conviction.

"Then plant the herbs in his yard. You have so many students; take them and plant Hua Yishi’s yard full of herbs. He’ll be shocked!" Chen Xi suggested after staring at Qu Qi for a while.

"The last time I fainted, he used such a long needle to wake me up. How can I not be afraid of him?" Qu Qi shuddered at the memory. "That wasn't acupuncture; that was just stabbing me awake to give me medicine."

"But it worked, didn’t it?" Chen Xi retorted. Hua Tuo's approach to medicine was all about being quick and effective. "And who told you to wander off and get heatstroke, needing to be carried back?"

"The problem is, when I woke up, I was still weak, and I watched him cut open a man's belly, stitch it back up, and then I saw that guy alive and kicking a few weeks later!" Qu Qi exclaimed, visibly disturbed. "I can’t handle it. Every time I see him, I start trembling. He cuts people open and sews them back up, and they live!"

"I can't deal with it... I just have to avoid him..." Qu Qi was clearly distressed, and understandably so. In this era, anyone witnessing Hua Tuo's procedures would be hard-pressed to accept them.

"That’s why he’s considered a divine physician, capable of things other doctors can’t do," Chen Xi said, patting Qu Qi on the shoulder. "I’ll find you some burly students, each over nine feet tall and eight feet wide, to give you some courage. Then you can start planting herbs in Hua Yishi's yard. He’ll be quite surprised."

After dealing with Qu Qi, Hua Tuo suddenly appeared, which made sense. Qu Qi had retreated so quickly because Hua Tuo was nearby.

"Hua Yishi, what brings you here?" Chen Xi asked gently. He knew that the medical compendium still needed Hua Tuo’s expertise, and he himself was only familiar with basic epidemic prevention. Everything else would depend on Hua Tuo's research since Chen Xi had run out of ideas.

Hua Tuo seemed hesitant, but finally spoke up. "I need some corpses to conduct research. Some of the methods I intend to use may be hard to understand, but I can't pass up this opportunity."

"That’s fine. I’ve already arranged for several intact bodies to be stored in the underground icehouse for preservation. If you need them, you can retrieve them yourself. Just return them to the guards afterward, and they’ll handle the rest," Chen Xi replied, keeping his expression neutral. He had anticipated that Hua Tuo’s research would eventually require corpses.

"Thank you for understanding, Marquis Chen," Hua Tuo said, bowing deeply. He was used to people not understanding his work, and Chen Xi’s calm acceptance meant a lot to him.

"No need to thank me. Living people are more important than the dead, and good people are more important than bad ones. Just follow your conscience," Chen Xi said with a sigh.

Most people of this era couldn’t comprehend such matters. Even someone as cold as Man Chong, who dealt death to living people, held a certain reverence for the dead. Hua Tuo’s willingness to use the dead for research was a completely different mindset.

"Thank you, Marquis Chen, for your understanding," Hua Tuo repeated, bowing again before retreating. However, before Chen Xi could head off to inquire about the progress of a certain project, Hua Tuo returned.

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