Infinite Mask Game.

Chapter 342 Reward
After discussing with Gu Fuhui for a while, Wei Miao got up to take her leave.

The most urgent task is to deal with the aftermath of last night and resolve the epidemic as soon as possible.

Information about the mysterious figure needs to be shared with all departments so that the court's military personnel are aware of the situation and avoid needlessly losing their lives.

As agreed, Lin Ming's safety would be taken over by the Imperial Secretaries. Pan Junyang communicated with the city guards, and with their tight military formation, protecting one person was not a problem.

The military commander readily agreed. After all, resolving the plague was a major achievement.

In the evening, Wei Miao and Gu Fuhui entered the palace one after the other to meet the emperor.

Lu Shaoqing had no intention of interfering; after offering his condolences, he told them to go ahead and do it, giving them a great deal of authority.

In theory, they could request cooperation from all departments.

Four days later, Lin Ming came to see Wei Miao.

"Master, the plague is mutating, and its toxicity has changed." Lin Ming said, cupping his hands in a solemn manner. "I suspect it's a combined mutation. Miss Raven must have spread new toxins; they are specially formulated catalysts that are causing the plague to evolve. You can think of it as patients being infected with a new wave of the virus, and their symptoms have changed. This means that previous research may have to be overturned and started all over again."

"Master, this move of theirs must have been premeditated for a long time to trigger this mutation in such a short time. Moreover, I suspect that this is far from the end of the mutation."

"Miss Raven probably left an evolutionary chain on the Sphinx, just waiting for us to study it, and she triggered the transformation according to the progress."

Wei Miao only asked one question: "Can you solve this?"

"My relationship with her is like a segmented race. Winning at each stage cannot overwhelm the other. Only when one side is completely defeated can we reach the finish line—I can develop antidotes and antitoxins for each stage to nip the infectivity in the bud, or she can come up with a plague virus that I cannot deal with."

"But to be honest, I think this will be a protracted tug-of-war. At best, we can control the scale of the plague, but we cannot completely solve it."

Lin Ming reluctantly told the truth. He always felt that the supervisor in front of him knew everything, and he couldn't easily fool her.

Regardless, one's own value remains important.

Wei Miao: "Can the Sphinx evolve endlessly? Doesn't that mean Miss Raven has the power to control the fate of the world?"

Lin Ming said decisively, "Impossible. The toxicity of the plague will gradually weaken as it spreads. Its evolution lies in maintaining and changing its toxicity. For us, it's just an ordinary toy. At the current rate, five evolutions are its limit, which will take about a month."

Wei Miao nodded and said, "You can ask the medical staff to cooperate. If there's anything, go to Secretary Pan, and he will help you coordinate."

"Yes," Lin Ming replied, somewhat surprised.

Surprisingly, the supervisor did not intend to punish him, after all, he had confidently claimed that he could cure him.

It seems the supervisor is quite reasonable.

Lin Ming took the document signed by Wei Miao and left, while Wei Miao stared intently at a dark letter on the desk, her gaze deep and unfathomable.

It's alright if the plague can't be solved in a short time; if it were so easy to solve, it wouldn't be called a plague, and the outside world can understand that.

The goal is to control the scale of the epidemic and stabilize public morale.

The intelligence report is proving to be somewhat fatal at this juncture.

The four white characters above are written with strokes as sharp as swords.

"Prince Chu is suspected of rebellion!"

King Chu, Lu Maoshen, was of the same generation as Lu Shaoqing and ranked fourth. He was stationed in Muyi and guarded the western border of Suoluo, commanding 40,000 to 50,000 troops.

He was quite capable among the princes, and his military skills were second only to Lu Shaoqing. He was skilled in warfare, cunning and shrewd, and possessed the strength of seven clans.

When Lu Kaiyi was still in office, he was also regarded as a major threat.

He harbored rebellious thoughts but was unwilling to be the first to act, so he sent an envoy to subtly inquire about Lu Shaoqing's intentions.

When Lu Shaoqing raised the flag of rebellion, he did not participate, preferring to sit back and watch the tigers fight.

Who could have predicted that a local army could defeat a central army with the support of the entire nation's reserves?
Unexpectedly, Lu Shaoqing swept through the enemy lines and directly defeated Lu Kaiyi.

For the past few years, he has remained obediently in his fiefdom, but the Imperial Secretary has been keeping a close eye on him.

The letter was written by Lu Ci; the handwriting and the hidden patterns match perfectly. The hidden patterns are an anti-counterfeiting technique developed by imitating the internal etching process of inscriptions. With special ink, it is possible to create subtle patterns that only appear when the letter is soaked in water.

"These are turbulent times, I'm afraid I'll have to make this trip myself."

The matter was of great importance, and as the head of the secret rituals, she had no choice but to go.

This means she has to temporarily withdraw from the situation in the capital.

"Why at this time of all?"

After pondering for a moment, Wei Miao went to the palace to see Lu Shaoqing.

In the Imperial Garden, the autumn wind rustled, and the flowers swayed in the breeze. Palace maids bowed their heads and swept fallen leaves along the paths, a scene of quiet solitude.

As you approach the stage, you can hear melodious singing and lively music.

Under a gray-blue sky, Lu Shaoqing sat idly under the stage, eating fruit and listening to music.

Although Wei Miao was used to it, she couldn't help but marvel at it.

His Majesty is probably the most carefree person in the capital. Despite the ever-changing and unpredictable political landscape, he remains indifferent, preferring only to listen to music.

Did he seize the throne simply to protect himself, without any real ambition?
Wei Miao didn't believe it at all.

Lu Shaoqing smiled and invited her to sit down beside him.

After careful consideration, Wei Miao briefly reported on the matter of King Chu.

As for whether palace servants will spread rumors...

Do you really think Lu Shaoqing only knows opera? With the royal family's resources, wouldn't there be several members of the Seven Sects secretly keeping an eye on him?

Anyone who dares to get involved will be buried next year.

"The fourth brother? He is cunning and cautious. He won't make a move until the situation is clear."

Lu Shaoqing appeared relaxed and calm.

“But you can’t not go. Just take a few days off from the capital to relax.”

"Sometimes, it's wise to retreat in order to advance. You can return to the capital in about ten days."

Wei Miao responded thoughtfully.

She had already anticipated the outcome of this trip.

She gave Lu Shaoqing a deep look and was about to take her leave when she heard him say, "Before you leave, go to the Ministry of Personnel to find Lu Heng. You can ask him for something."

Wei Miao was taken aback. After realizing what this meant from her memory, she smiled and cupped her hands, saying, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your kindness."

The Institute of Mechanical Engineering primarily researches military equipment and is adept at forging various inscribed artifacts.

Some people, if they were favored by the emperor, could have the Imperial Household Agency commission them to make inscribed utensils.

Most of them are custom-inscribed weapons.

The inscribed weapons of this world have developed to the point that a single shot can blast down an entire wall of black iron, and some inscribed divine crossbows can take a person's head from thousands of miles away, with formidable power.

Most importantly, some inscribed weapons can be activated without any effort.

With proper planning, even mortals can fight the Seven Sovereigns.

The veteran Gu Fuhui had a pair of mechanical gauntlets that Pei Wenwei had seen before. They had spikes on the surface that could generate electricity, and they could also perfectly support his mental strength.

With all his might, he could easily destroy an inn with a single punch.

It seems she has done a good job in her work recently; at least Lu Shaoqing is very satisfied.