Infinite Mask Game.

Chapter 326 Epidemic
Xie Yinyao was the second son of the Xie family. He was proficient in both literary and military arts. In his youth, he traveled to various places and visited Jiangling. He stayed there for a period of time as a staff member and became acquainted with many of Lu Shaoqing's subordinates, including Pei Wenwei.

After Lu Shaoqing became emperor, he disregarded his family's opposition and used his previous connections to enter the court as an official, becoming a censor.

After the establishment of the Secret Service, due to a severe shortage of manpower, and because he was a talented individual, he was transferred to the Secret Service and appointed as a Grand Scholar of the Flying Bird Pavilion, in charge of intelligence.

Because of the Xie family's reputation, rumors often circulated in the court that Xie Yinyao was a Xie family spy, secretly maintaining ties with the Xie family. Pei Wenwei had sent people to investigate him, but they found nothing amiss.

It seems that he is wholeheartedly serving the imperial court.

He appeared refined and gentle, yet possessed remarkable cultivation, his visualization technique being that of the Nine Heavens Exiled Moon Star Lord, a first-rate martial artist.

However, he always reports on his work in the afternoon, so his waiting here early this morning must mean something urgent has come up.

"Your Excellency." Xie Yinyao bowed slightly and handed over the documents in his hand. "Urgent report: A small-scale plague has broken out in the southwest corner of the capital. The Imperial Medical Academy, Huimin Pharmacy, and other departments have intervened. Currently, severely ill patients are being treated at the Leper Quarters, while those with mild symptoms are being isolated at Qin'an Temple, awaiting further arrangements. This is a general overview of the plague and a briefing from the Imperial Medical Academy."

Wei Miao took the document, not in a hurry to read it: "Come in."

Xie Yinyao followed her into the study and stood in front of the desk.

Wei Miao glanced through the documents in her hand. The gist of it was that the southwest corner of the capital had been taken into control by the government, and those who were not infected were to be quarantined at home, with the government providing relief.

This epidemic came on fiercely, breaking out yesterday and this morning. So far, no one has died, but the critically ill are on the verge of death, clinging to life only by being given medicine and practicing martial arts.

Fortunately, due to the spread of the prophetic poem, the Medical Academy and other relevant departments were prepared and reacted quickly; otherwise, these measures could not have been implemented so quickly.

After all, this is not just a simple hygiene issue; it involves a political event. Anyone who dares to interfere at this moment would be courting death.

"Most patients with mild symptoms experience dry cough, fever, fatigue, muscle aches, and decreased sense of smell and taste; patients with severe symptoms experience shortness of breath, splitting headache, pale skin, or cyanosis. The pathology is currently unclear..."

Wei Miao placed the hastily written report on the table and pushed it toward Xie Yinyao: "What does the Grand Secretary think?"

Xie Yinyao paused for a moment, then said, "The first two lines of the prophecy poem have come true. The secret ritual is powerless against the plague, but it can stop the person behind it."

As the head of intelligence, he was no stranger to prophetic poems.

Whether the plague can be contained rests on the shoulders of departments such as the Imperial Medical Academy, and has nothing to do with the Imperial Medical Bureau.

However, the origin of the plague is closely related to the esoteric rituals.

Wei Miao thought he said something completely useless in the insurance industry; the key was finding the person behind it all.

She neither agreed nor disagreed, but nodded and let him leave.

Subsequently, more and more intelligence was gathered and sent to her.

Some classified information was not processed or filed by the Flying Bird Pavilion at all, but was directly reported to her by secret agents.

Besides the official eunuchs, the Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat secretly maintained many spies, and some of their intelligence came from other organizations.

One of them is the Jianghu organization "Zizhuang".

It is the largest intelligence agency in the martial arts world, existing far longer than the new dynasty, with its headquarters located in Lingyu in the south. It has cultivated a group of elite spies and secret agents, and is relatively restrained in its attempts to spy on the imperial court's secrets.

Zizhuang operated secret workshops in various places, including the capital. On the surface, they were disguised as normal workshops, but only those who brought a special bone whistle and knew the coded musical notes could receive their VIP service.

Bone whistles are distributed from person to person. When a customer accumulates trust points through multiple transactions, they will receive a new bone whistle.

The Imperial Observatory and the Astronomical Bureau have plenty of these things, because they often regard Zizhuang as a special source of intelligence, and there have been many exchanges between them over the years.

Zizhuang is one of the very few organizations without a deity statue guarding it, but the strength of its leaders is definitely not to be underestimated. Another one is the Wild Wolf Gang.

It is a gang entrenched in the lower echelons of society, operating in the gray area, and its members are all local thugs and hooligans.

However, it was a product intentionally supported by the imperial court to incorporate and control local chaotic forces.

It even possesses a statue of a deity called "Hun Tian Yuan Jun," whose characteristics are chaos, evil, and bullying the weak while fearing the strong. Some gang members can become martial artists through a worship ceremony if they achieve certain merits.

The leader and founder of the gang was Zhang Yu, who was Pei Wenwei's secret bodyguard in his early years. No more than a handful of people knew about this.

Over the years, the Wild Wolf Gang and the Secret Service have maintained intelligence exchanges.

Both organizations have dedicated personnel who are directly under Pei Wenwei's command, and even Chen Huaiyue, the judge in the capital region, cannot interfere.

Currently, neither of these two channels can confirm the origin of the plague.

But Zizhuang added another piece of information.

"This morning, Daoist Yuanchen was entrusted by someone to cast a divination. Observing the weather in the capital, he saw signs of a major epidemic. Suddenly, he coughed up blood and cried out, 'The prophecy has come true, chaos is about to break out. The celestial phenomena are chaotic, which can be described as an opportunity for a fish to leap over the dragon gate, but there are a thousand different signs.' Then he fainted and died on the ground."

The person giving the report was short and stocky, with sharp and intelligent eyes.

He is Zhang Chan, Zizhuang's contact person.

“I think this Daoist Yuanchen is going to close his doors to guests and never get up again,” Wei Miao sneered. “This divination will soon spread throughout the martial arts world. It seems he thinks the capital is not lively enough.”

However, it's not entirely without its merits.

"A thousand faces and myriad appearances... Appearances arise from the heart, a thousand faces are one person?" Wei Miao recalled the opening remarks when she first entered the dungeon, which often contained hints about the dungeon.

Suddenly, another person hurried in from outside the door, saw Zhang Chan there, and silently waited at the door.

Zhang Chan tactfully withdrew, while the newly arrived scout said, "There's something strange about the Wang family in Shengde Ward in the West District."

He explained the matter in just a few words.

Someone had a secret meeting with Wang Yu, the current head of the Wang family. These celestial secret rituals and procedures not only did not relax their surveillance of the various aristocratic families, but actually intensified it.

"Let Chen Huaiyue handle it." Wei Miao gestured for him to go with the messenger.

Having someone to do things for you is convenient; you don't have to do everything yourself.

Wei Miao then got up and went out.

She was going to the Imperial Observatory to see Gu Fuhui.

Interestingly, the Imperial Observatory and the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs were located on the same street, not far apart, and it was as easy for them to visit each other as neighbors visiting each other.

Unfortunately, aside from necessary cooperation, the two always had a stern face when they met.

Of course, the more power the better, and the struggle for power has never ceased. There is a gray area where the two powers overlap, and it has always been a matter of one advancing while the other retreats.

Moreover, if these two intelligence agencies were to get along well, some people might not be able to sleep soundly at night.

(End of this chapter)