Chapter 33: Finally Daring to Act

Doctors gathered around to listen carefully to Miss Jun speak.

"I think it's because the wound came into contact with the smallpox virus," Miss Jun said. "It takes effect faster than nasal transmission."

Is that so?

The doctors looked at the children nearby.

"If that's the case, we'll adopt this method in the future," Miss Jun said. "As for the fewer pox sores on his body, it indicates that this time the virus is better. I used the smallpox vaccine taken from Doctor Qu and his team for him."

The doctors nodded.

"I see," they said. "This is what you meant when you said the virus can be gradually drawn out from someone, so it becomes safer over time."

Miss Jun nodded.

"Don't worry, there's no problem," she said. "You just need to arrange for someone to look after them."

The doctors nodded, left someone to watch over the children, and continued to discuss the child's symptoms as they left with Miss Jun.

The children standing by the window glanced at each other, realizing that Miss Jun had spoken in their presence to explain the situation to them.

"They said my brother will be fine," a girl whispered.

The expressions of the children eased considerably.

"My grandfather said the Princely Heir always keeps his promises; we will be fine," a boy whispered, clenching his small hands tightly.

"The Princely Heir also said that this Miss is very capable," another girl whispered, looking at the departing figure. "The Princely Heir trusts her, and so do we."

"Can I have some preserves now?"

Early in the morning, a child's milky voice echoed in the courtyard.

A doctor, looking at a boy at his feet, smiled and squatted down.

"Maomao, have you finished your meal?" he asked.

Zhou Maomao had a fever just for one day, and indeed, as Miss Jun had said, he was better the next day.

Zhou Maomao nodded, and the doctor then turned towards the servant at the back.

This was the person Seventh Chen had sent to look after Zhou Maomao, now that he was better.

The servant smiled and nodded.

"Alright then," the doctor smiled. "You help me deliver food to your brothers and sisters, and then I can give you a piece of preserve."

Zhou Maomao nodded repeatedly and ran ahead toward the room where his siblings were.

The other children of the Zhou Family also developed a fever in one or two days after him, but their symptoms were milder than Zhou Maomao's.

Despite the fever, they were all in good spirits and were sitting up, not lying down.

When they saw the doctor coming in, they even tried to stand up to greet him.

Zhou Maomao had already run over.

"Sister, eat your meal. If you eat well, you'll recover quickly," he seriously said.

The girl nodded, deliberately staying to one side without touching her brother's head.

She knew the symptoms on her body were pox sores, which could be contagious.

Initially, the doctors also disagreed with Zhou Maomao staying there, but Miss Jun assured it was okay, so they listened to her.

Three days later, all the Zhou Family children had recovered from their fevers, so quickly that the doctors were somewhat incredulous.

"Could it be unsuccessful?" the doctors wondered. "There were only a few pox sores."

"It's because we used a better vaccine," Miss Jun smiled, then paused. "Whether it's successful or not, we'll know after testing."

Another test?

The term 'test' now made the doctors nervous, making them look around apprehensively.

"How else can we verify it?" one doctor asked in a hushed tone.

Miss Jun smiled.

"What place is this?" she said. "We do have many children here with pox sores."

So…

The doctors' hearts skipped a beat.

"So, by having them stay around children with pox sores, we can verify whether they will be infected again," Miss Jun said.

That was terrifying.

Yet this time neither Jinyiwei nor the Duke of Chengguo's heir stepped forward to take the children away.

The doctors, unlike the previous times, were silent, not agitated.

"Is this really safe?" Doctor Feng asked.

That was the pox sore; adults might not shy away, but any household with a child who developed pox sores would see other children avoiding it by miles, yet these children were not only not avoiding but being sent among them.

It sounded very frightening.

"There's no problem," Miss Jun said.

She had said this many times ever since she claimed to have a method to prevent smallpox.

Each previous instance had proven she wasn't lying.

Doctor Feng looked at her and nodded.

"Alright, let's try it then."

Everyone at Guanghua Temple was paying attention to the progress here ever since they learned that Miss Jun and the doctors had found a way to prevent smallpox.

"A few children were also inoculated with the virus."

"Goodness, where did they find such unlucky children?"

"Did you hear? Those children are actually fine!"

"Could it be that the virus really isn't harmful?"

"Maybe it isn't even a virus; who knows what it does when they do this?"

The discussion among the people here was rampant, but it soon stopped as everyone turned their attention toward the entrance of the compound.

This time, in addition to Miss Jun and the other doctors who came to deliver medicine on time, there were five children with them.

These were the children who had been tested with the virus.

What were they doing here?

This place was not for children.

The compound fell silent.

But though the people in the compound were silent, the compound itself was not; the air was filled with the strong smell of medicine and alcohol and the stink of decay, and the ears caught the groans and cries coming from one row of huts.

A servant carrying a door-board came out of the hut, covered by a white sheet which obviously concealed the shape of a child who had passed away, followed by a family looking distraught and tearless from crying.

The children unconsciously clenched hands with each other as the servants passed by, the doctors stepped aside as usual and bowed their heads in silent mourning.

The brisk wind of early spring blew as the servants walked past the entrance with the door-board, lifting the white sheet. The children, too scared to look yet unable to resist glancing from the corner of their eyes, caught sight of the deceased's face, black and distorted with sores. After all, they were just children, and they screamed in fright.

Except for the small Zhou Maomao.

Being short, he couldn't see and didn't know what fear was, curiously watching around with a giggly face.

The doctors reached out to touch the children in an attempt to soothe them, their faces showing unbearable sympathy.

Having the children here was just too terrifying and too cruel.

"Alright, clean out a room for them," Miss Jun instructed the servants. "From today, they'll help with the work here."

Help with the work here? What could these children possibly do?

The people in the compound were even more astonished.

This place was full of children with pox sores; other children would avoid it if they could, yet there were some who moved closer?

This was murderous.

It must be a joke.