The Tokai Governor's Office has been moved from Senji Island to Kyushu Island, and now the Ryukyu Governor's Office is located on Jilong Island, and the layout of one south and one north completely controls the waters of the East China Sea.

Since the fleet of the Ryukyu Governor's Office could rush to the aid of the East China Sea at any time, Xu Shiying had no worries, but he was not worried at all about the rabble of Japanese anti-Ming allied forces coming to die.

Just when the East China Sea was ravaged by the artillery fire of the Ming fleet, the situation of the countries in the South Seas was not optimistic, and even more severe.

In this era of low productivity, labor was the greatest asset, otherwise there would not have been a very active slave trade in the Age of Sail.

The smallpox plague is like an invisible undercurrent.

Since the second half of this year, the epidemic has raged in every inch of Nanyang, destroying people's lives regardless of whether they are rich or poor, rich or poor.

It is precisely because of this characteristic that the aristocracy of Kalimantan chose to flee in the face of smallpox from the Indian Ocean, and even did not hesitate to give up their official positions and leave.

"In Sumatra, the death toll from smallpox in July exceeded 20,000!"

"Sulawesi, more than 30,000 people died of smallpox in August!"

"In Mindanao, more than 50,000 people died of smallpox or smallpox in September!"

……

Unlike any previous disease, the smallpox outbreak was unprecedented in its spread and deaths, with more than half of the regional deaths occurring, with the highest mortality rate of 97%.

Of course, the information of this era is very closed, and no one will make statistics, so when the people of Sumatra talk about the change of color, Sulu still does not know what smallpox is.

Wen Xiangming was a merchant in the Sulu Kingdom who had been adrift overseas for many years, but had slowly accumulated a certain amount of wealth and fame, and had just returned from the Indian Ocean trade.

Although the Viceroyalty of the Indian Ocean could no longer trade in spices after the Viceroyalty of the Indian Ocean was under military control in Malacca, the pearls of Sulu were very popular with the Tianzhu Kingdom.

The trade was very smooth, and he accidentally collected a herd of cattle on the Indian Ocean, returned to the South Seas and sold them to the Ming merchants, and made a lot of money from the Ming merchants.

Ploughing cattle have little value in Sulu, but they are regarded as treasures in the Ming Dynasty, and even the laws of the Ming Dynasty do not allow the killing of ploughing cattle, and even princes have to punish crimes.

When he first returned home, he didn't notice anything unusual at first, but soon after, he began to feel unwell. First he had a headache and fever, followed by a dense red rash on his body.

Wen Xiangming thought that he was infected with the wind cold, but he thought that his body was still strong, and he could get through it as long as he gritted his teeth. It's just that the red rash quickly turned into pustules, and the pain was unbearable.

At this moment, he is also aware of his own vulnerability, but he would rather exchange a large amount of money for health.

The family hurriedly invited the most famous local wizard, and after the wizard seriously checked Wen Xiangming's condition, he also confidently prescribed medicine for Wen Xiangming to take.

Wen Xiangming's physical condition was getting worse and worse, and the wizard's treatment did not work, but when his family wanted to invite the wizard again, they found that the wizard had contracted the same disease and died.

"The wizard is dead?"

"What's so bad?"

"It's over, I'm afraid I'll die if I contract this disease!"

……

When they saw that the most powerful wizard in the country could not heal themselves, many people began to pay attention to this strange disease that had recently become popular, and a panic spread rapidly.

Some wealthy nobles gritted their teeth and left the country by boat with their families and treasures.

Wen Xiangming's condition deteriorated rapidly, pustules burst, pus flowed out, and his body became weaker and weaker. Fortunately, the pustules began to shrink and dry up, and the surrounding redness disappeared, gradually drying and forming a thick yellow-green crust.

The fatality rate of the smallpox virus is 30%, and Wen Xiangming is undoubtedly a lucky person in front of the virus.

"What do you do?" An armed team suddenly broke into Wen's house, which immediately caused panic among Wen's family and domestic servants.

Led by the captain of the East King's Guard, one of the three kings of Sulu, pointed to Wen Xiangming, who was lying on the bed, and said: "The national teacher divination has learned that he is an evil heretic who brought back the disaster to Sulu, and he must be burned to death today in exchange for the protection of the gods!" ”

"No!" When the wife heard that she wanted to burn her husband to death, she stepped forward in shock and stopped her.

Wen Xiangming noticed that the captain's eyes were wrong, and he was immediately shocked.

Burst!

The captain of the guard stabbed Wen Xiangming's wife fiercely with a sharp blade, and then coldly ordered: "This is the evil family, kill them all, and leave no one behind!" ”

Wen Xiangming naturally wanted to be burned alive, but none of Wen Xiangming's family members would be left, but they would all be killed.

With an order, the massacre began.

No......

Wen Xiangming, who was lying on the hospital bed, saw his youngest son being killed, and immediately shouted in tears.

"Search!"

After killing all the Wen family, the captain of the guard ordered a search for Wen Xiangming's wealth.

Now it is rumored that Wen Xiangming is the most business-minded businessman in Sulu, and he has made a lot of money from maritime trade over the years, and there is so much money that the house can't fit it.

Although Wen Xiangming is not rich enough to rival the country, he must be very wealthy. In fact, the national teacher's divination this time is not only to find the root cause of the new epidemic and explain to the people, but also to swallow Wen Xiangming's personal wealth.

"My dear, it's all silver dollars!"

"Look, there's a lot of gold in there!"

"Huh...... This is indeed a fat sheep! ”

……

As the money hidden by the Wen family was found out one after another, the people present seemed very excited, as if the fat pig raised by the family had finally reached the moment of slaughter.

The participants were very excited because they didn't have to get a piece of meat, but they could get a little soup from it.

Burst!

Wen Xiangming has felt that his body has gradually improved these days, but at this moment, his qi and blood are surging, and then the whole person faints.

He finally overcame the illness and walked back from the ghost gate, only to see his family die tragically in front of his eyes, everything seemed so cruel.

Although Wen Xiangming's wealth has been searched, and this wealth seems to be very considerable, the "crime" against him in Sulu will not stop.

East Royal Palace, square in front of the door.

Because the national teacher has found the culprit of the epidemic, especially the other party turned out to be an evil infidel, it attracted a large number of people to watch.

"Burn him!"

"He brought disaster to us Sulu!"

"Burn him and burn all his iniquities!"

……

When they saw Wen Xiangming being brought up, many people took the initiative to denounce it, as if they wanted to end Wen Xiangming, an evil heretic.

Wen Xiangming is now like ashes, and in the face of the condemnation of a large number of people, his mouth is more of a self-deprecation. It is not only to ridicule the ignorance of these people, but also to ridicule their own stupidity.

As a shrewd businessman, how can he not know that his illness is not the main cause, but that he has earned too much money through maritime trade over the years, but he has no umbrella at home.

Even if he didn't return from illness this time, these greedy people would have already killed donkeys. I also laughed at the fact that Yan Tu, a maritime merchant in the country of Marani, was wronged by spending so much money to buy a Ming nationality, but it turned out that people were sober in the world, and the clown turned out to be myself.

"Tie him up and prepare for execution!" The captain of the escort waved his hand, looking cold.

Originally, he also planned to squeeze more wealth from Wen Xiangming, after all, the other party could not guarantee that he would hide money elsewhere, especially Wen Xiangming's eldest son did not know where to go, but it was the order of the national teacher to burn Wen Xiangming to death.

Wen Xiangming was tied to a log stake, and under his feet were bundles of firewood, which was to burn him alive. It's just that at this moment, his heart is also like ashes.

Born in this kind of country, even if he escaped this time, I don't know what kind of crime he will be pushed here for the next time. What's more, his family was killed, and his heart was broken.

"Set fire!"

With a thud, a torch was thrown at the pyre.

The firewood at this time of year is very dry, and the pyre quickly burns, and these dry firewood burns so crackling that people's hearts can't help but tremble.

"Scourge removed!"

"We're safe!"

"Thank you to the national teacher for helping us resolve the disaster!!"

……

Seeing that the fire had been burned, the surrounding people were also happy, and many people thanked the national teacher they trusted.

Woo......

The horn of the conch sounded, and when the fire completely surrounded Wen Xiangming, the national teacher dressed very strangely led a group of people to sing and dance to drive away the disaster.

Wen Xiangming saw that the fire was about to engulf him, and at this moment he hated this country in his heart: "Take my family wealth and destroy my family!" Even if he dies today, Sulu will be plagued by disease for three years! ”

"Huh? Is he cursing us? ”

"Damn, this is an evil infidel!"

"It's over, I seem to feel sick too!"

……

The onlookers heard Wen Xiangming's final curse, and although most of them condemned Wen Xiangming, some people suddenly found that something was wrong with their bodies.

Wen Xiangming is not the only maritime merchant in Sulu, and the smallpox virus transmitted back to Sulu is not just one channel, and the smallpox virus has actually been transmitted back to China from multiple channels recently.

The current maritime trade is not between the Ming Dynasty and the countries, in fact, there are also exchanges between the countries, and some maritime merchants from Kalimantan are also carriers of the smallpox virus.

Wen Xiangming is more like an amplifier of the epidemic, and more and more people began to find themselves unwell, and the first symptoms of smallpox fever and rash gradually appeared.

Smallpox, a virulent infectious disease with a high transmissibility and high mortality rate.

Although the official figure given is a mortality rate of 30 per cent, the medical conditions were worse during this period, so the mortality rate was actually higher, and the highest record reached 97 per cent.

In fact, what is even more terrifying is that even if your body produces antibodies and successfully survives, it will leave marks on your body, and even your eyes will be blind from this.

What's more, once infected, some external factors cannot be ignored, and the practice of burning Wen Xiangming to death in Sulu is not an isolated case, and it is even a very common practice among the ruling class of Nanyang countries.

In fact, the Nanyang merchants also lived at the bottom of society, and their wealth was coveted in the first place, and now it is the best time for those in power to loot it without much effort.

"Leave me alone!"

"I really don't want to die!"

"Master, please help me!"

……

The number of unnatural deaths in Nanyang is rising, and the Nanyang in this era has limited understanding of infectious diseases, and they seem to be in a slave society, so many people are even killed directly by their own masters.

Although this method seems to be very bloody, it is actually the most effective solution to the current medical backwardness by directly killing all the infected people.

If every infected person is killed, the spread of the smallpox virus can be completely stopped.

Of course, the terrible thing about smallpox is that it is highly resistant to the virus, which can survive in dry and cold environments for months to a year and a half, which is one of the reasons for the recurrence in many areas.

With the arrival of October, this cold weather has instead provided a breeding ground for the smallpox virus.

Naturally, the epidemic in Sulu will not end because they killed Wen Xiangming, nor will it be stopped because they killed a group of infected people, in fact, the situation is getting worse and worse.

More and more people contracted smallpox, and they were labeled evil heretics.

It is very ironic that some people applaud Wen Xiangming when he was burned to death, but within a few days, he was approached by the royal guards, and he became the new protagonist from a spectator.

Originally, this smallpox epidemic was terrible enough, but now with the human factor, the population of Sulu is gradually withering like a sea of blooming flowers.

In October, a smallpox outbreak in Sulu led to a 30% drop in the population, and the epidemic is far from over.

There was a relatively rare scene in the Sulu Kingdom, when the king of the east and the king died of smallpox, the king of the east and the west chose to take their families to the north, and they went to the capital of the Ming Dynasty in the name of tribute.

Although this is the place where they rule, it seems so insignificant in front of life, not to mention that the main purpose of this trip is to avoid disaster. If the Sulu Kingdom really became a hell on earth, then they wouldn't mind settling down in the Ming Dynasty like the Eastern King's branch.

As the smallpox virus spread to the country of Marani on the island of Luzon, the entire South Seas were under the clutches of a smallpox epidemic, with a large number of people dying every day.

Even if there were no treatment for smallpox in future generations, the global vaccination program is doomed to be unsuccessful, and the current epidemic in Nanyang is likely to last for several years.

It's just that in a few years, how many young workers will die and what their national power will be cut into is so unoptimistic.

In the face of this smallpox epidemic, not only the ordinary people are very worried, but their rulers are also worried, and this year they are more willing to pay tribute than ever.

The Indian Ocean and the South China Sea were hit by such a serious smallpox epidemic, and a large number of people died from the smallpox virus, so important things have naturally been reported to the Son of Heaven. (End of chapter)