Wumei and Zhang Ping crossed Stonybend Village with the soldiers. The houses they saw along the way were virtually all of brick and tile and looked fairly new. House after house had a dried mugwort bundle hanging in front to ward off plague and evil spirits, as well as all kinds of talismans plastered up. The village roads were wide and swept clean.

Wumei couldn’t resist remarking, “This village is quite prosperous. The houses are better than many families have in our town.”

The soldier next to him cleared his throat, and Wumei recalled that he had been instructed in no uncertain terms to refrain from chattering. Fortunately, none of the soldiers reproached him. One said, “After the plague went through the village, the county used tax money to build these houses.”

Wumei, gathering his courage, spoke again. “Oh, no wonder they’re all more or less the same style. I heard that old fellow say there was a plague here before. Was it very bad?”

“All the houses had to be burned down and rebuilt,” said a soldier. “What do you think? Plenty of people died.”

Zhang Ping turned. “Was it rabies?”

“That’s right,” said the soldier. “They burned bodies, houses. You could see the smoke from a hundred li away. No one dared go outdoors in the nearby villages and towns, and they covered their wells so they wouldn’t be contaminated by the ash floating over from here. You could hardly buy a scrap of oilcloth at the fabric shops for any price. Sweltering hot, and everyone went around swaddled from head to toe so they wouldn’t be bitten by a stray mosquito.”

Another soldier said, “Too true. I remember I was wrapped up tight as a drum and broke out in a rash all over. I snuck off to wash in the river, and my father nearly broke my legs over it.”

Wumei was appalled. No wonder the villagers had reacted as they had.

“Was the plague restricted to these two villages?” asked Zhang Ping.

“Yes,” said a soldier. “This is just about the most out of the way part of our county. East of Bridgehead, there’s nothing but empty fields and farmland. Past the edge of the plain is Yangtai County.”

“How miserable for you to have to come all this way on such a hot day,” said Wumei ingratiatingly.

The soldier let out a sigh. “There’s no help for it. The yamen says they’re short-handed, so naturally we have to step up. When we get the order, we have to march, even through fire and fury.”

Wumei went on in a flattering vein. “It’s precisely because of the bravery of military men like yourselves that common people like me can live stable lives.” He took some talismans folded into triangles from his sleeve. “Please accept these. My skills are humble, this is merely the tiniest token of my thanks.”

Some of the soldiers sent furtive looks at Commander Yu up ahead, then quickly took the talismans and hid them away. They became even more pleasant to Wumei and Zhang Ping; one soldier even shared some of his water with them.

Zhang Ping contributed nothing further to the conversation, merely observed everything along the way.

As they moved southeast, an ever stronger smell of burning incense rose up. Many villagers surged up to meet them, and all were dispersed by the shouts of the soldiers. The headman said apologetically to Commander Yu, “The villagers are ignorant. When anything happens, they rush to burn incense and pray for peace. Do not hold it against them, sir.”

Wumei raised himself on tiptoe. A couple dozen yards away, he saw a line of glazed porcelain roof tiles. As they came closer, the huge characters “Medicine King Temple” appeared, wreathed in mist, inscribed above an entryway.

The entrance board of the Medicine King Temple was large, but the temple itself was in fact small, made up of a single hall without attendants.

The soldiers shooed the villagers away, and the headman invited Commander Yu inside. When Medical Official Li caught a glimpse of the statue of the Medicine King on the altar, and of the pan of water set beneath the calabash in the statue’s hand, he looked alarmed. “Who did this? Dump it out at once!”

“The villagers just want protection and security,” the headman said softly.

“What ignorance!” Medical Official Li said sternly. “Can you imagine how much dust has fallen into it while it’s been sitting there? All these people crowd in here on a hot day, breathe in smoke, then drink this water—it would be a wonder if they didn’t make themselves sick!”

“Certainly, certainly,” said the headman.

The soldiers proceeded to pour out all the water on the altar, to unending complaints.

Wumei and Zhang Ping also made their way into the hall. There was a wide space beside the altar, and the rear wall was densely packed with spirit tablets.

The soldiers threw open all the windows. Commander Yu sat down in a chair and had the scrawny man they had taken into custody earlier brought before him.

“Are you a resident of this village?”

Nothing remained of the man’s earlier belligerent attitude. He kept his head bowed, staring at the tips of his own feet.

“My surname is Zhang, given name Ping.¹ Born and raised in Stonybend.”

Wumei couldn’t resist a glance at the Zhang Ping he was acquainted with. Commander Yu, meanwhile, nodded. “Earlier you advised caution. What did you mean? Did you know the two men who died?”

The other Zhang Ping, head hanging, said, “You might say Shuanzi and Sizhao’er and I grew up together, Commander. We’re around the same age. They were big and good-natured and often carried water and firewood for people. This thing that happened in Bridgehead Village was so vile that no one dared go help, but the two of them saw Old Xiao’s family crying like anything, so they helped carry the bodies.”

“There were four bodies in all,” said Commander Yu. “Was it only the two of them, plus the man who died earlier, who carried all of them?”

From beside him, the headman answered, “Xiaozhao, who died earlier, only helped the Xiao family clean up the body. He wasn’t among the carriers. There were six others, all from Stonybend.”

“But those two carried that old man,” said the other Zhang Ping. “Xiaozhao took the chicken from the old man’s mouth. Perhaps he was infected then.”

Commander Yu waved a hand to have this Zhang Ping taken away, then summoned the two dead men’s families.

Shuanzi had been married, with a two-year-old child. His wife had fainted from crying and couldn’t answer the summons now.

Sizhao’er had still been a bachelor, looked after by his older brothers and sisters-in-law. His second brother, Erdeng’er, came in response to the summons and reported that Sizhao’er had shown no signs of abnormality over the past couple of days. He’d been perfectly fine that morning, then all of a sudden had fallen ill.

“Had he been away from home at all before that?” asked Commander Yu. “What had he eaten?”

“He went fishing by the river in the morning and came back midday when it got too hot,” said Erdeng’er hoarsely. “He hadn’t had time to kill the fish, they were still swimming around in the pail. He drank a bit of water, complained of a headache. Thought it was the heat. Then he complained more and more, and then all of a sudden…”

“Had the water he drank been boiled?” asked Medical Official Li.

“It was freshly drawn up from the well in our backyard,” said Erdeng’er.

“Once the attack began,” Medical Official Li pursued, “did he do anything but shout and scratch himself? Did he injure anyone?”

“No,” said Erdeng’er at once, “I’m sure the rest of the family didn’t get hurt! My little brother just couldn’t stand to hear voices, he seemed ready to bite, and he was unbelievably strong. Me and my two other brothers couldn’t hold him.”

Commander Yu’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Was he particularly uncomfortable in the sun?”

Sobbing, Erdeng’er nodded. “Yes, yes. When he was in the sun, it was like he was going to melt.”

Commander Yu asked some more questions, then dismissed Erdeng’er for the moment. To Medical Official Li he said, “Aversion to light, sensitivity to sound, an urge to bite brought on by an attack. These are all symptoms of rabies. Should we impose restrictions on the village’s water intake?”

Medical Official Li’s expression was severe. “As you say, Commander, these are the symptoms of rabies. But it takes time for the disease to be transmitted, and onset is accompanied by high fever or burst blood vessels under the skin. Death usually follows some days after. The case of these two men isn’t quite right. I must continue to investigate. I will ask Medical Official Gao to join me.”

“Medical Official Li,” the headman put in, voice tremulous, “forgive an old man for speaking plainly. First it was Bridgehead Village, and now our Stonybend also has two dead. If we continue to delay and it spreads, what will happen? We can’t go through all that again.”

Solemnly, Medical Official Li said, “I am aware, of course, of the dangers of a plague. But as a physician, I cannot draw rash conclusions. There are many points in which the symptoms and bodies of the dead from Bridgehead and Stonybend do not match rabies. My knowledge is insufficient to allow me to make any determination, much less to barrel ahead and say with certainty that this is an illness.” 

The headman was startled. “Listen, Medical Official Li, if these people’s deaths weren’t caused by illness, what else could it be?”

Wumei, also taken aback, shuddered.

Medical Official Li’s brows drew together and he bowed to Commander Yu and the headman. “I must go examine the bodies. I will take my leave. Commander, please ask Medical Official Gao to check on the others who carried the bodies.” He turned and left.

“What has Medical Official Gao said?” Commander Yu asked the headman.

No answer made it out of the headman’s mouth. 

Commander Yu continued, “It’s true I have a personal friendship with Li Liang, but that should not impede you from speaking openly on an official matter.”

Hesitantly, the headman said, “Medical Official Gao said that, looking purely at the bodies of Old Xiao and the three merchants, there are indeed few similarities with rabies. It is impossible to reach a diagnosis. In this hot weather, with so many mosquitos, it is easy for livestock to become infected. Preventing this from spreading is of utmost urgency.”

“In other words,” said Commander Yu, “Medical Official Gao believes it is an illness, but Medical Official Li doesn’t. Correct?”

“Medical Official Li also recommends precautions,” the headman hastened to say. “He’s told all the families what to eat and drink, what to do. It’s just that over in Bridgehead Village, everyone is on edge, and the families have killed all their livestock. Medical Official Li said that wasn’t necessary.”

Commander Yu nodded slightly, and Zhang Ping interjected, “If many animals are killed in this heat, the carcasses will spoil quickly and may lead to disease. And without their livestock, the villagers will find their lives very difficult.”

Commander Yu’s glance was like a chill blade. Wumei, with a disarming smile, hurriedly made excuses. “He knows nothing of the world, he’s just saying whatever comes into his head. Please pardon him, Commander.”  

Coldly, Commander Yu said, “Out!”