Loyal Heart Roaming the Skies
Chapter 108: How should I die

Li Jin is over fifty years old and has reached the age of understanding the ways of the world.

Today, as usual, he wanted to go out for a walk, but the town's constable stopped him at the street corner.

"What do you mean?" Li, with his beard blowing, glared at the constable.

The Li family is the second most populous surname in Qingyang Town, second only to the Hu family.

As a senior member of the Li clan, he is highly respected throughout Qingyang Town.

He knew this constable, a young man from the Wang family, but now he dared to stop his way, it's outrageous!

"Old Li," the constable said with a smile, "there's an order from the town hall. There's a ban on going out for a while, and everyone has to stay at home!"

"Why is there a ban?"

"Didn't two people die of illness a few days ago? The mayor thinks it's very dangerous, so everyone has to lay low for a while. Once it's safe, you can go out for a walk again!"

"What does Mayor Hu know? I don't care about that old fool!" Li pushed the constable aside and said, "Do you think I can't read? Have you seen the public order notice from the city? This illness is nothing, get out of my way!"

The constable looked embarrassed. "Sir, it's always good to be safe. You never know what might happen."

"Exactly, at the age of fifty, I know what it means to understand the ways of the world. Do you know what that means? I'm this old, what do I have to fear?" Li glared, "If I get sick and die, I won't blame you, got it?"

With that, he pushed aside the barrier at the street corner and walked out.

As he walked, he muttered to himself, "It's a peaceful world, and I can't even go out! It's really strange! Am I breaking the law? Why are they treating me like a criminal?"

The constable and his colleagues exchanged a helpless look and pretended not to hear.

This kind of thing is not an isolated case. When public order notices were issued from the city, the common people were not afraid at all. Even those who advised caution were mostly seen as rumors.

Even in places like Qingyang Town, where they took it seriously, it was difficult to enforce the restrictions. At least in name, Qingyang Town was still under the jurisdiction of the city.

The so-called ban was virtually non-existent.

In the town hall.

Jiang Wang crumpled the notice into a ball and threw it on the ground.

Boom!

With a strong infusion of Dao Yuan, the crumpled paper made a dent in the ground.

Mayor Hu was shocked and sat down on his chair.

Jiang Wang looked at him coldly. "I gave you the power, I took the blame, you don't have to do anything, just enforce my orders. But you can't even do that. You are responsible for every person who died in the town. Mayor Hu, you are deeply guilty and cannot be redeemed even in death!"

Mayor Hu's face turned pale.

"I am also responsible for giving the position to a useless person like you!"

Jiang Wang left the town hall and gave orders as he walked. "Xiao Xiao, stay in the town hall, temporarily take over all the duties of the mayor, and coordinate the supplies. Zhang Hai, take charge. All the village heads and constables, if anyone disobeys, they can be killed! All the constables and warriors, take action. From today, no one is allowed to go out, everyone must stay at home. With the town hall as the center, move forward, Zhu Biqiong, patrol the east and west districts separately."

After traveling tens of thousands of miles from Zhuangguo to Qiguo, he had gained a deep understanding of the world.

Faced with this crisis, he became more decisive and resolute. "I will go to the villages below myself. First, enforce the ban, then check the illness door to door. This time, with so many people getting sick... I suspect it's a plague!"

"What if the people refuse to be isolated?" Xiang Qian asked, "Do we kill them too?"

Jiang Wang stopped and looked at him. "We isolate ourselves from the inside and outside to save the people. If you kill them, what's the point of what we're doing? For those who refuse, persuasion is the main approach. If persuasion doesn't work, then we can enforce it. We can fine them, cut their rations, and punish them as appropriate!"

"Understood!"

Jiang Wang went to the villages in the town area alone to investigate, and everyone else got busy.

Mayor Hu, who had been stripped of his power, slumped in his position, looking lifeless.

Xiao Xiao began to arrange the affairs, and he seemed to come to his senses, standing up and walking out unsteadily.

Like a walking corpse.

Xiao Xiao glanced at him indifferently and continued with her work.

She had only helped Mayor Hu explain things before to show her own value to Jiang Wang.

She had no good feelings for Mayor Hu himself.

It was Mayor Hu who hired her to work at the mine in the first place, and it was because of him that she later suffered abuse from Ge Heng. Although Mayor Hu himself may not have known about Ge Heng's cruelty, the fact that he caused it could not be erased.

The reason she didn't retaliate was simply because Jiang Wang didn't allow it.

Fortunately, after this incident, the little bit of "favor" between him and Jiang Wang had been exhausted.

This was the price she paid for her incompetence and arrogance.

Having been with Jiang Wang for so long, Xiao Xiao had long understood that Jiang Wang was not someone who would shift blame or shirk responsibility. As long as he executed his orders, if there was a mistake in his decision, he would never let others bear it.

In this incident, Mayor Hu's poor performance as the mayor... Jiang Wang's not killing him on the spot was already a sign of restraint.

Mayor Hu dragged his feet out of the town hall.

It was already June, and the sunlight was no longer gentle.

Especially at noon, it shone naked on him, like needles piercing his skin.Hu Lao Gen squinted his eyes, yet he couldn't stop the murky tears from flowing.

He was actually a simple man, not saddened by the loss of his fleeting authority.

While managing the Hu family mines, he never lined his own pockets. As the head of Qingyang Town, he never sought wealth for himself.

Childless, with only a fierce wife, the couple had little desire for material possessions.

Even after becoming the head, he still lived in his previous home.

What truly saddened him was the realization that he had become a "murderer."

Had he strictly followed Jiang Wang's previous orders to isolate the town, perhaps many townsfolk wouldn't have had to die today.

Just as Jiang Wang had said, every person who died of the disease in the town bore Hu Lao Gen's responsibility!

How could his frail shoulders bear such a burden?

Jiang Wang acted swiftly, heading to the villages himself as soon as the order was given. Those places lacked regulation even more, and he had to handle it personally with his Transcendent cultivation.

But in Qingyang Town, it wasn't so simple to implement these measures.

Before this, the townspeople hadn't taken the situation seriously enough.

Under Dugu Xiao's command, posting new public notices, declaring the severity of the disease, dispersing crowds... all these tasks required time.

And the manpower of Qingyang Town's hall was pitifully scarce.

Hu Lao Gen stumbled outside, feeling a chill in his heart at the sight of each gathering of people.

If it was the plague...

If it was truly an outbreak of human plague...

He dared not imagine the consequences.

"Fellow villagers! This old man has something to tell you!"

Hu Lao Gen approached the crowd and suddenly shouted, "A serious illness has struck Qingyang Town, dozens have died!"

"It's likely the human plague!"

"Quickly return to your homes, do not gather together, do not go outside!"

He shouted this each time he passed a place.

Many people recognized him.

He was born in Qingyang Town, grew up, married, and aged here.

Many trusted him.

Seeing this pitiful old man, some felt it strange, others puzzled, but most chose to believe.

Finally, at Qingyang Town's largest market, on the west side of the town.

People saw their current head, Hu Lao Gen, shakily climbing a ladder to the roof.

Old and frail, he didn't appear tall on the rooftop, but rather hunched.

He loudly repeated the words he had been saying all along.

But his hoarse voice wasn't clear enough for people to hear well.

Only at the end did he shout with all his might, "So many deaths, it's all this old man's fault!"

"I apologize to you all!"

He fell headlong from the roof, crashing to the ground.

Thud!

Like a watermelon bursting open.

That image stayed in many people's memories.

...

...

PS: These past few days, I've received concern and affection from readers for this book. Private messages on Zhihu, reader groups, private messages on Weibo, Weibo groups, and the book review section... I've seen every bit of your concern.

Writing this book has been so hard, enduring so much mockery, surviving so many torturous nights, if it were to suddenly end, the blow to me could be devastating.

So why do I still write these things?

I've explained once in the reader group, but given the current doubts and the sincere love for this book, I must explain again.

[The plague storyline was predetermined.

But without the current experiences, it would be hard to write it so vividly. Nor would I have the emotions that are surging in my heart now.

I indeed want to record something. Literature carries the Way, and words express emotions. Both my emotions and Way compel me to do this. If a writer doesn't speak out with words, what else can they do for this world?

I hope that years or decades from now, if someone picks up this book and reads this part, they will remember that we have lived through such times, encountered these vile and dark moments, and also seen those who pierced through to the light.

I just hope everyone takes this to heart and tries not to discuss the world outside the book. After all, behind prosperity, democracy, and civilization, there is harmony.]

That is my explanation.

A reader's comment touched me, asking, isn't it good to discuss the Way while sitting down?

But, this is my Way.

I've discussed it openly and covertly on Weibo, Zhihu, and official accounts, making my voice heard.

I really don't know what else I can do besides speaking out! Donating a little money is just a drop in the bucket.

The feedback I've received has made me realize that this book now carries the expectations of some people.

I indeed need to be more careful, to protect our shared world.

The most obvious sentence from the last chapter has already been deleted. I will be more cautious in the future.

Thank you again for your care.

—With utmost emotion, at 9 a.m.

Joy of Literature

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