The Ming Dynasty took an unconventional approach

No one expected that the cattle at the source belonged to another herder.

Miao was overjoyed and immediately wanted to buy the cow from the merchant.

The merchant was terrified and immediately wanted to kill the cow and bury all the cattle and sheep in the tribe.

Tao Yanbai stood in front of the cow and spent a lot of time explaining to it that the cow had been cured and would no longer infect humans.

They can check all the remaining cattle and sheep to see if they have pox.

The merchant was unhappy, but Batu Mengku and the tribal chief came and said to the merchant, "A person who has recovered from smallpox will not infect others and is a good person. The same goes for cows and sheep. They have recovered on their own and will not infect others anymore."

"If it won't get infected while it's alive, won't it get infected by eating its flesh and blood?" the merchant said. "It has had smallpox. Nobody has ever eaten cattle or sheep infected with smallpox. What if it gets infected?"

Tao Yanbai immediately assured him, "We will not kill it, much less eat its flesh."

The merchant knew, of course, that they weren't looking for meat; in fact, he still didn't understand why they were looking for this cow.

Neither the tribal chief nor Batu Mengku understood.

Miaohe then told them, "Batu Mengku's symptoms are not severe. The amount of pox, the duration of fever, and the temperature are all lower than those of ordinary smallpox patients. Therefore, we need to find out the cause and the source."

She said, "Only by finding the source and cause can we replicate this success, and even reduce the damage of smallpox and enable people to acquire immunity to smallpox."

Tao Yanbo envisioned, "Once we succeed, that disease will cease to exist."

“You’re simply delusional,” the tribal chief said in a deep voice. “Even the Eternal Heaven couldn’t do this, how could you possibly do it?”

Batu Mengku seemed thoughtful, and whispered to the tribal chief, "Let them give it a try."

The tribal chief turned and glared at him, then said to the merchant, "Originally, I was unwilling to accept your request to return all the cattle and sheep. I would only accept the return of the cattle and sheep with smallpox scars. But now, your concerns may be valid. Our tribe will bear this loss ourselves."

Upon hearing this, Miaohe became anxious and said to the tribal chief, "This cow really won't infect people anymore."

The tribal chief said, “Our tribe cannot become sinners for all time. If these cattle and sheep have a problem and spread smallpox, then our tribe will become the greatest enemy on the grassland. Our children are fighting on the front lines. We cannot let them return with glory while our tribe is tarnishing their reputation.”

The tribal chief remained steadfast, Miao He remained silent, and he and Tao Yanbai exchanged a glance, both at a loss for what to do.

The two could only fight to the death against Batu Mengku, with whom they had a good relationship.

Batu Mengku said helplessly, "I will also listen to the chief."

The merchant returned all the cattle and sheep from the tribe, then packed his bags and decided to leave immediately.

The tribal chief led his men to examine every single cow and sheep, and surprisingly found two cows with smallpox scars. One of the calves had not been sold, but was still in its original owner's cattle pen, with some of the scabs still looking like they hadn't completely fallen off.

But it was very lively and didn't seem sick at all.

This discovery shocked everyone.

The tribal chief immediately decided to blockade the tribe and sent men to stop the merchants, but the merchants were one step ahead of them and had already escaped with their caravan.

Neither Miao He nor Tao Yanbai brought them.

The two stood in the cold wind, gazing at the white expanse ahead, with several tire tracks on the snow.

Miaohe: "Didn't he say he promised Uncle Zhao that he would bring us back safely?"

Tao Yanbai: "They must have been terrified by the smallpox."

The two exchanged a glance and decided to stay there together.

Three cows were pulled out, and the tribal chief wanted to burn them alive.

Miaohe stopped them and said, "I've checked them. The pockmarks on two of them have been there for a long time. The pockmarks on this little yellow one are the lightest and the oldest. I estimate that it is the source. The pockmarks on this little white one are from around the same time as those on Batu Mengku. According to our statistics, the area where it grazes overlaps the most with the area on the little white one. It is very likely that it is the cow that infected Batu Mengku."

He then pointed to the last calf and said, "This little spotted calf must have contracted smallpox thirty-five to forty days ago. Most of the scabs have fallen off, which means it has already overcome smallpox. The remaining two scabs just haven't fallen off yet."

Miaohe said, "I suggested you keep this calf because the scabs on its body are the least toxic. Nobody knows which other cattle or sheep in this herd might have a potential virus..."

"Then kill them all and burn them!" The tribal chief interrupted her in a deep voice, though it pained him, he had no choice but to do so.

Miaohe said, "I fully support this method, but where are the people?"

The tribal chief's heart sank.

Tao Yanbai continued, "The people of the tribe live with these cattle and sheep day and night. No one knows if anyone has been infected. The virus is still in its incubation period. We can kill the cattle and sheep, but what about the people?"

Tribal chief: "No one in our tribe has contracted smallpox yet, so you two should stop spreading alarmist rumors."

Miaohe: "That's because it's winter now, and when Batu Mengku recovered and returned, it was already close to autumn. When Xiaoshao was infected, the weather had already started to get cold, and the activity of the virus was reduced to the lowest level. But winter will always pass, and summer will definitely come."

"When the weather gets hot next year, the smallpox virus will be activated. Once the smallpox virus lurking in the tribe breaks out, how many of you will survive? How many of these tribes on the grassland will still exist?"

The tribal chief was pale: "You're exaggerating, you're exaggerating! You just said these three cows are safe."

Miaohe: "They are indeed no longer dangerous. The danger lies in the smallpox virus, which is lurking somewhere unknown."

Tao Yanbai: "Keep these three cows. If you trust us, we are willing to vaccinate you to give you immunity to smallpox in advance. This is the only way to prevent smallpox from spreading next year."

The tribal chief laughed in anger: "Vaccination? If you're so capable, why don't you get vaccinated yourselves first?"

Tao Yanbai and Miaohe exchanged a glance, their eyes shining: "That's exactly what we're thinking, but we need your support."

Tribal chief: ...He just said it in a moment of anger, do you really think they're so savage?

But Tao Yanbai and Miaohe's words did ease the tension. It turned out that they didn't want them to go to their deaths, but rather that they wanted everyone to go to their deaths together.

When it comes to sending someone to their death, as long as the person who made the suggestion is involved, people's resentment is not so great.

The tribal chief finally calmed down and listened to what they had to say.

Tao Yanbo appealed to their emotions and reasoned with them: "I know that this year is particularly cold, and the snow came earlier than usual. Many cattle and sheep in various tribes have frozen to death, making life more difficult than in previous years. If you continue to burn and kill so many cattle and sheep at this time, will the tribe's food reserves last until the following spring? Also, if you kill this batch of cattle and sheep, will you kill the calves and lambs in the cattle and sheep pens? If you kill them, what will you do about your seedlings next year? Without calves and lambs, without cows and ewes, how will the tribe survive next year?"

The tribal chief's face was somber, and the herders listening nearby grew anxious and stepped forward to offer their opinions.

They never agreed to kill all the cattle and sheep. Why kill them? They were perfectly healthy and didn't have smallpox.

Tao Yanbai said, "Smallpox is very tenacious. Flooding can help it spread, it is active when the temperature is high, and it lies dormant when the temperature is low. Its only weakness is that it cannot cause secondary infection."

Tao Yanbai said, "My junior sister and I stayed in your tribe for two days and had contact with these cattle and sheep. Just now, we even touched the bean scabs with our own hands..."

The crowd was so frightened that they backed away, keeping a great distance from them.

Tao Yanbai smiled and said, "We don't know if we two have smallpox virus lurking in our bodies, so we are willing to be the first to be vaccinated. If we can survive safely, please trust us, Chief, and let us vaccinate suitable people to reduce the smallpox outbreak next year as much as possible."

The leader pondered: "The right person?"

Tao Yanbai nodded and said, "Those who are weak, elderly, or sick are not suitable for smallpox vaccination, and these people should be excluded."

The chief remained silent, so Batu Mengku said, "Chief, why don't we listen to their plans for smallpox inoculation and treatment?"

The Central Plains had a complete smallpox vaccination process, except that they used human smallpox.

However, the prescriptions for treating smallpox were public knowledge. Not only doctors, but many ordinary people also knew about them. If they didn't know, they could ask the government.

The government has records of such universally beneficial prescriptions, and the government dares not fail to inform the public about them.

The remedies available in Sanqingshan will only be more numerous, not fewer.

Tao Yanbai and Miaohe both carried a lot of medicinal herbs, most of which came from the Central Plains. They originally brought them here to practice medicine and earn some hard-earned money, but now it seems that they were fortunate to have brought more, as these medicinal herbs can now be used.

Tao Yanbo explained the specific procedures to them, including isolation, the standard three meals a day, and different methods to deal with different symptoms. What reassured everyone the most was the prescription they provided, and: "We brought a lot of medicinal herbs with us, plus the local herbs from your tribe, which is enough to cope with the situation."

There are enough medicinal herbs.
It's tempting to think about, but no one dares to take a step.

That was smallpox!
Tao Yanbai also knew this, but only emphasized: "My junior sister and I are willing to be pioneers."

Batu Mengku urged the chieftain to agree: "There is no better opportunity than this. Otherwise, if they leave like the caravan, even if we survive this winter, we won't survive next summer, and it will also affect the entire grassland."

The tribal chief then lowered his head and agreed.

So the tribe set up a tent for them on the edge of the downstream area, and each household contributed some food, meat and firewood to them.

All three cows were moved to the cowshed next to their tent, where Tao Yanbai and Miaohe moved in, immediately isolating them from the outside world.

Batu Mengku had contracted smallpox, and he was the only person who could come to take care of them and deliver information and supplies.

He was starting a fire for the two of them when he asked, "Are you really not going to regret this?"

Miao He was taking out her luggage and placing it on the bed when she heard this and turned to look at him.

Batu Mengku said, "You could have easily run away with the caravan."

Miaohe asked, "What will you do if we run away?"

Batu Mengku stood up, patted his chest, and said, "We will remember your kindness. In the future, if you ever need anything, just ask. We will do whatever it takes to repay you."

Miao waved to him.

Batu Mengku left excitedly.

Tao Yanbai lowered the curtain and tied it tightly to block out the wind. He turned to look at Miaohe and said, "Should we send a telegram to Uncle Zhao? The caravan isn't taking us back. They'll be worried, won't they?"

"There's no snow or wind tonight, so we can give it a try. We only have a low-powered transmitter; I don't know if we can make contact."

Tao Yanbai: "Give it a try."

Miaohe took out the small telegraph machine from her spatial storage; it was the one Zhao Shizhu and the others had used for practice.

What Pan Yun left them before he left was mainly for them to contact Zhao Shizhu and other Ming Dynasty officials.

Tao Yanbai turned the hand crank, and soon the red light came on, but he didn't stop, and Miaohe didn't send a telegram immediately either.

She first wrote down what she wanted to say, then flipped through the Thousand Character Classic and converted it into numbers one by one before she began sending the message.

She not only explained why they were returning late, but also described the situation of these tribes, focusing on the number of young men from each tribe who had been taken away and the time they left.

Zhao Shizhu quickly received the message and replied, warning them to be careful.

Hu Ning translated the intelligence and frowned slightly: "This place is in the far west of the Oirat. These tribes are so far away from the Ming Dynasty, and they have already mobilized so many people. This war will be difficult for the Ming Dynasty."

Zhao Shizhu: "This year is too cold and the snow is too thick. If he doesn't take the youths away to fight against my Great Ming, then these youths will go and plunder other tribes. The various families and tribes are already dissatisfied with his usurpation of power. Once the grasslands are in turmoil, he will be the first to suffer. This is the only way out."

Hu Ning said irritably, "You mean he did the right thing?"

“I didn’t say he was right. I just said that, from his position, he didn’t have the noble status or the ability to rule the grasslands. Launching a war against the Ming Dynasty was his only way to divert the grasslands’ conflicts.” Zhao Shizhu said, “Of course, the Ming Dynasty is not incompetent and will not let him do whatever he wants.”

"Just you wait and see, the outcome is still uncertain." Thinking of Pan Yun's methods and the great changes in the army that his family mentioned when he returned home, he said meaningfully, "Our Great Ming has been waiting for this battle for a long time."

At this moment, Yu Qian was sending a telegram from the cabinet to Datong and the border armies: "As long as the Oirat make a move, our Great Ming will surely strike them hard! This battle is a battle for our Great Ming to wash away the shame, and the revenge for the late emperor will surely be avenged!"

The telegram was sent throughout the country, reaching not only key border towns but also other prefectures.

In an instant, the whole country was in an uproar, and the people were of one mind. Officials and commoners far from the northern pass wished they could sprout wings and fly north to join the war.

In a garrison in Jiangxi, a centurion slammed his fist on the table and said in distress, "Back then, they would transfer troops from here to guard the capital, why aren't they doing that now?"

The soldier said resentfully, "I want to fight too!"

Some chivalrous individuals even set off with their swords, claiming they were going to the border to provide support, only to be caught and brought back as soon as they reached the city gate. The reason given was: "Who gave you permission to walk around with weapons? You deserve to be beaten!"

But remembering his original intention, the magistrate did not punish him with a beating, but only gave him a scolding and sent him back.

The knight-errant returned home dejectedly, for the magistrate asked him, "Do you have a travel permit? Do you have travel expenses? Do you know that it's over a thousand li to Datong? Do you know the way?"

The swordsman returned home troubled, but ultimately decided to donate money to support the cause. (End of Chapter)