Just then, footsteps echoed in the temple. A villager entered, looking wary. “I heard voices. Is everything alright?”
Yan Xiao Han quickly composed herself, gesturing toward the fire. “Yes, we were just keeping warm. Come closer.”
The villager hesitated but moved closer to the fire, his eyes darting to the unconscious woman. “Who is she?”
“Our friend,” Fu Shen replied curtly. “She needs help.”
Yan Xiao Han exchanged glances with Fu Shen, feeling the gravity of their situation. “We need to figure out what happened here, and fast.”
If the reduction was due to the Autumn Night White outbreak, then Autumn Night White must have appeared here before the autumn of the 25th year of Yuan Tai.”
Fu Shen said: “What does grain tax have to do with Autumn Night White? The second point seems somewhat arbitrary.”
Yan Xiao Han explained: “Although Jingchu is not as financially important as the Two Rivers region, it is still a fertile area. Last year had no drought, flood, or war, yet the grain tax inexplicably reduced by two-tenths, which is unreasonable. You saw in Kang Feng County that Autumn Night White is highly addictive and expensive, with users often becoming bankrupt and diseased. Could this not potentially cause some farmers to go bankrupt?”
“Moreover, Autumn Night White itself is highly profitable. If people profit from it, and every household imitates and stops growing grain to cultivate Autumn Night White instead, it could lead to the current situation. Verifying this is simple – we’ll take a trip outside Jingzhou city someday and see what’s actually growing in the fields.”
Fu Shen nodded slightly, indicating he understood, and motioned to continue.
“Third, according to Yi Siming’s account, White Dew was first appearing in the capital around last autumn and winter. This was precisely after you were injured at Qingsha Pass and His Majesty granted our marriage.”
The Pure Yang Taoist had been hiding in the capital for years without making a move, and in order to avenge you, he brought the drug into the capital after its efficacy was verified in the south.”
He paused for a moment and summarized: “Based on the clues we’ve discovered so far, White Dew first spread in the south and was then brought to the capital by the Pure Yang Taoist – this point should be beyond dispute.”
