Not to mention that after Huo Jun finished explaining the deployment of the army, he went west to Tushan alone to visit Liu Bei.
Huaibei, Wei army camp.
In the big tent, the officials reported to Cao Cao the number of people who were sick due to the plague.
"Your Majesty, the plague is raging in the army today. There are no less than three or four thousand people suffering from the disease. Although doctors have come to the camp to treat them, many are helpless. Some people say that they have typhoid fever or malaria. There are many prescriptions prescribed, but they are effective. But there is no way to do it.”
Sun Quan looked sad and said: "Even if we put the sick soldiers in the camp, there are still soldiers in the camp who keep getting sick. Now not only Chen Men's lower body is infected with the disease, Xu Jijiu is also seriously ill, with chills and fever, and the doctors are helpless."
Cao Cao leaned on his chair and asked, "Has there been any change in Kong Zhang's condition?"
"Chen's condition has worsened, with alternating cold and heat, and he has been comatose for days. According to the doctor, if there is no good medicine to cure him, he will die soon!" Sima Yi said.
Cao Cao looked melancholy and sighed slightly: "Kong Zhang and Wei Chang are outstanding literary men. Now they are infected with the epidemic. How unfair is God!"
Although Chen Lin wrote an article insulting him, Cao Cao did not take it seriously and instead cherished Chen Lin's talent. Now that he heard the news that Chen Lin would die soon, Cao Cao felt very heartbroken.
Listening to Cao Cao sighing like this, everyone felt sad in their hearts, or they were afraid and worried about the plague virus around them.
Cao Cao looked at the people in the tent, tapped his fingers on the armrest of the table, and thought to himself: "Malaria is very scary nowadays. From the civil and military ministers to the ordinary soldiers, they are worried, and they need to order people into the camp to treat the disease. Even if Malaria cannot be cured, but we must appease the morale of the troops to prevent them from losing their morale.”
After pondering for a while, Cao Cao asked, "Is the governor of Yanzhou here?"
The men with simple clothes and elegant temperament marched out in front of the troops, cupping their hands and saying, "Your Majesty, Sima Lang is here!"
"Boda carried doctors and a large amount of medicinal herbs to the camp. It must be very tiring!" Cao Cao said.
"Serving the country, I dare to say that I am tired." Sima Lang said: "Only I feel ashamed, the epidemic is raging, and most of the medicinal materials I brought are useless."
There was an epidemic in the military camp before, and Cao Cao, who was hastily marching south, lacked medicinal herbs in the army, so he ordered Sima Lang, the governor of Yanzhou, to collect medicinal herbs and go south.
Cao Cao said: "Today, the morale of the army is in turmoil due to epidemics. It is necessary to calm the morale of the army, and the best way is to treat the epidemic together. However, the army has not yet been in charge of the officials responsible for the treatment of the epidemic. Since you have brought Yanzhou doctors and medicinal materials to the camp, I wonder if you are willing to take charge of it. About epidemic control?”
"I am willing to take on this important task!"
Hearing this, Sima Lang responded without hesitation.
In the crowd, Sima Yi saw Sima Lang taking orders, and couldn't help frowning and sighing, it was not a good thing to preside over the epidemic control.
Seeing this, Cao Cao couldn't help but give a few words of warning and said: "The epidemic is raging in the army. As the supreme minister of the country, you should be more careful and don't enter the disaster camp lightly."
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty!"
"Liu Bei is stationed in Huainan. I dare to ask your Majesty, there are many epidemics in the army today. I don't know how to deal with it?" Jia Xu asked.
With his eyebrows tightened, Cao Cao said: "There is an epidemic in the army today. We temporarily order all the troops to stand firm and not to go out to fight easily. Our army will not fight if we hold on. Liu Bei will lead his troops and retreat in a short time."
"promise!"
Not only was Liu Bei unwilling to accept this battle, but Cao Cao was also dissatisfied. First he was dealt a blow by Huo Jun, and now the soldiers were tortured by the disease, which completely ruined his plan to take advantage of the situation and counterattack.
In order not to be taken advantage of by Liu and Huo, Cao Cao had no choice but to adopt the strategy of holding on and not fighting, so as not to repeat the mistakes of the Battle of Chrysostom.
Then, Cao Cao chatted with everyone about other topics before letting everyone in the tent retreat.
After Sima Yi came out of his tent, he went to his brother Sima Lang and said worriedly: "The epidemic is raging in the army, and the doctors have nothing to do and there is no medicine to cure it. Could it be that my brother does not know how to take charge of the treatment of the epidemic, which is far more dangerous than fighting on the battlefield?"
"How can I, my brother, not know the harm of the epidemic?"
Sima Lang stroked his beard and sighed slightly, and said: "Only because the king has asked me to do something, how can I refuse and not do it? And if I refuse and refuse to do it, the king will be displeased."
"A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. Since my brother knows the harm of the epidemic, he should look for an opportunity to resign due to illness and let the king choose someone else to take charge of the epidemic control." Sima Yi suggested.
Sima Lang waved his hand and said: "As a gentleman, how can I accept the king's order and refuse to do it for fear of the epidemic? Now that the lord is responsible for controlling the epidemic, I should try my best to live up to the king's respect!"
Sima Lang's character is different from Sima Yi. Sima Yi is very scheming and knows how to gain advantages and avoid disadvantages. Then Sima Lang was loyal, diligent in public affairs, thrifty, and highly praised by scholars in the Central Plains. Even Cui Yan had many friendships with Sima Lang, which shows that his character and ability are truly outstanding.
"Brother, think deeply!"
Sima Yi looked worried and said: "If there is a medicine that can be cured, and with my brother's ability to take charge of the epidemic, there should be no worries. However, there is no medicine now, and all those who contract the epidemic will die. Such a malady is probably not a good thing." Human power can cure it.”
Sima Lang disagreed and said: "Although malaria is a terrible disease, everything in the world has both yin and yang. How can there be no medicine to cure this malaria?"
Saying that, Sima Lang added: "Even if there is no cure in the short term, if you can care for the soldiers properly and prevent the soldiers from being shaken, you can still do good things."
Seeing that he could not persuade Sima Lang, Sima Yi could only sigh and said: "That said, the plague of the epidemic is not a trivial matter. Brother, you should be very careful and don't dare to be negligent."
"good!"
With Cao Cao's edict, Sima Lang took matters into his own hands and vigorously rectified the chaotic isolation camp. According to the conditions, camps are divided into three levels: light, medium and severe. The internal and external sanitation is cleaned to improve the appearance of the isolation camp.
At the same time, Sima Lang wanted to prevent the soldiers from panic and shake their morale. Then he spread the news to everyone that a soldier had recovered, saying that the disease was not incurable, so that everyone should not worry too much. Then, Sima Lang ordered people to cook medicine and let the sick soldiers take it to try to stabilize the morale of the soldiers.
After Sima Lang's repeated operations, even though the number of sick people was increasing in the short term, Wei Jun's morale was temporarily stabilized.
When Sima Lang was treating the epidemic, after several days of running around, Huo Jun finally arrived at Tushan Camp to see Liu Bei. Liu Bei was very surprised that Huo Jun came alone, and personally came out of his tent to greet Huo Jun.
"Chen Jun pays homage to the king!"
"Zhong Miao doesn't need to be polite!"
Liu Bei saw Huo Jun at the tent, stepped forward to help him up, and said with a smile: "When I heard that Zhongmiao was cut off from his return, he was very anxious and wanted to send troops to help him. Unexpectedly, you made three crossings of the Surabaya River, which were so exquisite that they made him I am amazed."
After saying that, Liu Bei patted Huo Jun on the shoulder and sighed: "I see you are well today, and my heart is at peace."
Huo Jun looked calm and said: "Thanks to the king leading his army to move eastward, Cao Cao was deceived, and Jun was able to withdraw and turn back."
"Ha ha!"
Liu Bei held Huo Jun's arm and said with a smile: "You crossed the Surabaya River three times, killed Sun Guan, and moved thousands of households south. When Cao Cao learned that Zhong Miao crossed the river three times, he was probably very angry."
"This is what an old thief should be like!" Huo Jun said with a smile.
The two walked into the tent, and Liu Bei stretched out his hand to signal Huo Jun to take a seat. The attendant looked for an opportunity to enter the tent and served tea to the two of them.
Sitting on the couch, Liu Bei asked: "Zhong Miao came from the Sishui camp. I don't know why?"
Huo Jun put the tea cup on the table and said, "Jun De heard that the king was unable to advance or retreat, so he went west to see His Highness."
"Um?"
Liu Bei looked delighted and said, "Does Zhongmiao think that the Northern Expedition can still be carried out now?"
Huo Jun shook his head and said, "That's not the case. Jun went to the west to see the king, but he actually wanted to persuade the king to withdraw his troops!"
"Withdrawal?"
Liu Bei's face straightened slightly and he asked: "Zhong Miao thinks we can't fight now?"
"It's not that you can't fight, it's that you can't fight!" Huo Jun corrected Liu Bei's mistake and emphasized.
"Please Zhongmiao speak carefully!"
Huo Jun pondered for a while and said: "Your Majesty, judging from the situation of the confrontation with Cao Cao, it may not be necessary to withdraw our troops now. We are still capable of fighting Cao Cao. However, due to external factors, Jun believes that our troops should withdraw!"
"External cause?"
Liu Bei frowned and asked, "Does Zhongmiao refer to malaria?"
"Exactly!"
Huo Jun nodded and said worriedly: "Malaria is really a plague. If we don't withdraw now, malaria will spread wildly among the army. Not only will there be many casualties among the soldiers, but Cao Cao will also take the opportunity to defeat him. So now Looking at the situation, Your Majesty, why not lead your troops to withdraw."
After a pause, Huo Jun emphasized: "Your Majesty, as far as I know, there are few medicines and stones that can cure malaria, and many people suffering from the disease have no hope of recovery. The reason why malaria spreads is that mosquitoes hurt people and spread the evil spirit." Inject it into the human body. During this spring and summer, the weather is hot and mosquitoes are in abundance. This is the root cause of the raging malaria!"
"Do mosquitoes hurt people?"
Hearing this, Liu Bei's expression changed and he said: "Zhong Miao said that the reason why malaria is rampant in the army is that mosquitoes hurt people and can invade evil spirits into the human body. If mosquitoes are not available, malaria will spread, and the officers and soldiers in the army will No peace?"
"Exactly!"
Huo Jun looked serious and said: "Mosquitoes feed on the blood of humans and animals. The blood of humans and animals cannot be mixed with each other. Over time, evil aura will breed in the mosquito's body. After the evil aura is generated, the mosquito will bite people and suck blood. When evil spirits invade the human body, malaria arises and spreads."
"The mosquitoes are incessantly killing people. If your Majesty does not withdraw his troops, there will be no need for Cao Cao to cross the river to attack. One hundred thousand soldiers will be killed or injured by malaria. If you don't attack, you will be defeated!"
"The harm of malaria is far greater than that of Cao Cao's soldiers. Today, malaria is spreading everywhere. Not only Lu Zijing, Xi Wenxiang and other civil and military personnel are infected with the disease, but thousands of soldiers in the army are also infected with the disease. In midsummer, mosquitoes are more common, and malaria will definitely It is a serious danger to the army."
"When evil qi enters the body, malaria has a latent period of time. It can be as short as ten days, or as long as more than a month. There may be thousands of people in the army who are sick, but in fact the number of people who are sick is far greater than the current number."
The incubation period of the malaria virus is as long as half a month, and symptoms appear only half a month later. Regardless of the fact that there are only a few thousand people suffering from malaria now, it may actually be much higher than this number.
With that said, Huo Jun raised his hand to Liu Bei and said: "The world only knows the harm of malaria, but does not know the origin of malaria. Jun was taught by my teacher and has a rough understanding of the harm of malaria. Now he boldly advises the king. Malaria We must be prepared for the harm of disease.”
After receiving such popular science from Huo Jun, Liu Bei no longer had any thoughts of the Northern Expedition. He first carefully thought about whether he had been bitten by mosquitoes, and then worried about the sick Lu Su and thousands of soldiers.
Seeing Liu Bei's bad expression, Huo Jun said: "Your Majesty, not all mosquitoes that hurt people have evil energy injected into them. Although mosquitoes with evil energy are no different from ordinary mosquitoes, mosquitoes with malaria evil energy are rare. few."
"However, if a soldier is suffering from malaria, and mosquitoes suck his blood, he will become a mosquito harboring malaria... Therefore, I think the king should lead his troops to retreat and stay away from malaria, so that you can be safe!"
Liu Bei looked solemn and said: "Zijing and thousands of soldiers are suffering from malaria. I wonder if Zhong Miao can cure it?"
Words spoken by people with different identities have different gold content and credibility. Huo Jun's ancient and modern words lack evidence and evidence. If ordinary people said this, Liu Bei would probably believe it with suspicion.
However, Huo Jun's identity is unique and his status is high, so he rarely speaks out loud. Now he is marching westward alone, and his words are logical and self-consistent, which is enough for Liu Bei to believe what he said.
Huo Jun shook his head and sighed, and said: "There is currently no accurate treatment for malaria. It is not easy to prevent malaria from raging now."
Liu Bei looked sad and said: "I only hope that Zi Jing will be blessed by the gods and survive this disaster."
Then, Liu Bei sighed and said: "If Zhongmiao hadn't marched westward and told the truth about the harm of malaria, it would have been a big mistake. The current situation is such that we can no longer fight. We should order all ministries to withdraw their troops and wait for opportunities for the northern expedition next year."
"Your Majesty is wise!" Huo Jun praised.
"Since Zhongmiao knows about malaria, I wonder if there is any way to arrange the situation after the troops withdraw?" Liu Bei asked.
"The 30,000 soldiers in Huaidong are free from malaria. They can now be kept on the border."
Huo Jun thought for a while and said: "Your Majesty, you can lead your soldiers to Hefei and isolate them for forty-five days. After observing the condition of the disease, you can allow the healthy soldiers to return home. If you allow the soldiers to return south to Wu and Chu, malaria will definitely It will be scattered in all directions, and the people will not be spared at that time, and they will be slaughtered by the plague!"
Although agricultural societies lacked modern medical technology, plagues were not easily spread due to backward transportation, especially blood-borne malaria viruses.
Therefore, it is not easy to cure malaria, but there are ways to prevent malaria from spreading. Measures such as isolation, culling mosquitoes, optimizing hygiene, and close contact separation, which were often used in later generations, will help Huo Jun eliminate the disease.
"Zhong Miao can speak like this, but does he have a way to deal with it?" Liu Bei asked.
Huo Jun straightened his back, cupped his hands and said: "Jun is not talented. Although there is no cure for malaria today, there are strategies to deal with it. If the king does not give up, Jun is willing to take charge of the treatment of malaria and put an end to malaria." In the north of the Yangtze River, try not to injure the bones and muscles of the army."
Liu Bei got off the bed and helped Huo Jun up, and said: "Zhongmiao has a strategy to deal with it, so he personally led the army to Hefei and left the troops in Huaidong to guard the border. I will arrange the arrangements in isolation, and I will trouble Zhongmiao to arrange the arrangements." "
"promise!"
Liu Bei held Huo Jun's hand and said worriedly: "The harm of malaria is terrible. Since you are well aware of it, you should pay strict attention to it now!"
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, Jun has a way to deal with it." Huo Jun said: "From now on, Your Majesty and the generals should wear long clothes, and ordered the officers and soldiers in each department not to expose their skin easily to avoid being injured by mosquitoes and contracting malaria. ."
"good!"
(End of chapter)
