In times of chaos and famine, I traded one pound of rice for two royal flushes.

Qin Shaolang frowned.

His gaze instantly sharpened, and the slight warmth he had felt because of Su Jin vanished without a trace.

"Don't panic."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was like a bucket of cold water poured over Zhao Wu's head.

Zhao Wu shuddered violently, the panic on his face subsided slightly, but his voice still trembled.

"Sir... something's happened at the Gathering Hall!"

"Explain clearly, what is it?" Qin Shaolang's tone was completely calm, as if nothing could move him even if the sky were to fall.

This extreme calmness brought a sense of peace to Zhao Wu's heart.

He was panting heavily, pointing towards the front hall, and said urgently, "As you instructed, we went to clean up the Juyi Hall, preparing to turn it into a temporary dining hall. But... but that kid Wang Tiezhu accidentally cracked a floor tile while moving tables..."

"And then?" Qin Shaolang pressed.

"There's a hollow space under those floor tiles!" Zhao Wu's voice rose another eight octaves. "We pried them open and found... underneath was a dungeon! And people were imprisoned inside!"

dungeon?

Qin Shaolang's mind raced.

It's not surprising that bandits' dens have dungeons where people are imprisoned.

Strangely, Zhao Wu had a look of utter disbelief on his face.

"What happened to him?"

"People...people are still alive! There are a few! But..." Zhao Wu swallowed hard, his face filled with fear, "but it stinks inside, like a morgue! And, someone...someone seems to be possessed! Their body is stiff, and they're still convulsing; it's terrifying!"

Possessed by an evil spirit?

As a top-notch military doctor, Qin Shao was the least likely to believe in such things.

Body stiff, convulsing...

Several words flashed through his mind in an instant.

Tetanus? Epilepsy? Or some kind of neurotoxin?

"Take me there." Qin Shaolang made a decisive decision.

"Sir, that place is eerie..."

"Take me there." Qin Shaolang repeated, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Zhao Wu dared not say anything more and quickly led the way.

Qin Shaolang quickly followed, giving instructions as he went: "Have Wang Tiezhu guard the entrance. No one is allowed to approach except for you and me. The rest of you, keep working, burning the corpses, washing clothes, don't stop."

"Yes!" Zhao Wu replied immediately.

He understood what Qin Shaolang meant.

With public sentiment still unsettled, any slight disturbance could trigger unrest.

The impact must be kept to a minimum.

Soon, the two arrived at the Hall of Righteousness of Black Wind Stronghold.

This place, once a haven for bandits to feast on meat and drink wine, is now a scene of utter devastation.

Tables and chairs were overturned, bones and vomit were scattered on the ground, and the air was filled with a nauseating smell of alcohol and rancidity.

Wang Tiezhu, along with two burly men with courage, stood nervously guarding a piece of floor tile that had been lifted up, holding wooden sticks.

It was a dark, narrow opening, about the width of a person, with simple stone steps leading down.

A stench, a mixture of blood, rotting, and excrement, was continuously emanating from the cave entrance.

"Sir!" Wang Tiezhu looked at Qin Shaolang as if he had found his pillar of support.

"How is the situation?" Qin Shaolang walked to the cave entrance and glanced down.

It was pitch black inside, and you couldn't see anything.

"Sir, there seem to be four people down there... three are chained up, and the other one... the one Brother Zhao mentioned, is lying in the corner, motionless, occasionally twitching." Wang Tiezhu's voice was also somewhat unsettling.

Qin Shaolang nodded.

"Give me a torch."

A strong man quickly handed him a lit torch.

Qin Shaolang took the torch and then pulled out the dagger he had seized from the bandit leader from his waist.

"You stay up there."

After saying that, he didn't hesitate at all, and with the torch in hand, he walked down the stone steps.

Zhao Wu and Wang Tiezhu exchanged a glance, both seeing awe on each other's faces.

This Mr. Qin is incredibly audacious!

That place is like the entrance to the underworld, and he went down there all by himself?

The stone steps were narrow, damp, and covered with moss.

The further down you go, the stronger the stench becomes, almost suffocating you.

Qin Shaolang held his breath, his eyes flashing like lightning as he warily scanned his surroundings.

The dungeon wasn't large, about the size of a room.

The walls were damp and covered in black mold.

By the light of the fire, he could see what was inside.

Just as Wang Tiezhu said, three people were chained together with thick iron chains in a corner of the dungeon.

They were ragged, disheveled, and emaciated, huddled like three skeletons in a dirty haystack, seemingly unconscious.

In the other corner, a fourth person was lying.

This person was not chained.

Although the fabric of his clothes was filthy, it was still possible to tell that it was made of fine silk, and the style was certainly not something that ordinary people could afford.

He was also thin, his face was as pale as paper, and his lips were purple.

The strangest thing was his posture.

His body was unnaturally stiff and arched, his neck was rigid, his jaw was clenched, and his facial muscles were twitching into a strange, bitter smile.

His body was still twitching slightly and rhythmically.

Qin Shaolang's pupils suddenly contracted.

The bow is in a backward tension!

A wry smile!

These...these are typical symptoms of tetanus!

And judging from the situation, it's already very serious.

In the previous life, this would have required an immediate injection of tetanus antitoxin and a large amount of antibiotics, as well as a series of complex emergency measures such as sedation, intravenous fluids, and maintaining an open airway, and the mortality rate would still be high.

In this day and age, getting this disease is basically like being invited to the underworld by the King of Hell.

He stepped forward, squatted down, and carefully examined the person's condition.

The firelight illuminated the man's face.

He was around forty years old, with a thin face, and even in this state, his brows still carried an air of authority befitting someone who had long held a high position.

Qin Shaolang noticed a deep wound on his right calf that exposed the bone.

The skin and flesh around the wound had turned black and rotten, emitting a foul odor, which was clearly the source of the disease.

Just as Qin Shaolang was examining the man, the man's tightly closed eyes slowly opened a crack.

His eyes were cloudy, as if he could no longer see clearly, but he could sense someone approaching.

"water……"

A faint, hoarse, almost inaudible voice squeezed out from between his tightly clenched teeth.

Qin Shaolang did not move.

He knew that forcing water on such patients would only lead to suffocation.

His gaze fell on the man's clenched fist.

Even while unconscious and convulsing, his right hand was still tightly gripping something.

Qin Shaolang reached out and carefully pried open his stiff fingers one by one.

It was a small thing wrapped in oilcloth.

Uncover the oilcloth, and inside is a jade pendant carved with intricate patterns.