Chapter 4: A Heavy Burden

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Deep down, Wang Zhenling mocked Chen Bushi for fleeing in the face of danger. A man without courage or a sense of responsibility could never accomplish great things.

Now that the crisis had fallen upon him, Wang Zhenling naturally could not shrink away.

He immediately knelt and said with fearless resolve, “This subordinate is willing!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, every official in the county office, high and low alike, breathed a sigh of relief. Amid the buzzing voices, nothing could be heard but praise for Wang Zhenling.

At a time when plague was raging, they had ordered people to leave the city, yet not a single person had been willing to go. Now that Wang Zhenling had volunteered, they were all eager to heap him with flattering words, raising him so high that he would be too embarrassed to change his mind.

But Wang Zhenling had his own convictions. How could he be the sort of man to go back on his word?

He temporarily accepted the county commandant’s seal and credentials, then immediately led his men out of the city, without even returning to Jiaode Hamlet.

This was what it meant to accept a commission in a time of crisis and set aside one’s own household.

Barely half an hour after Wang Zhenling had left the city, the gates were closed.

Even in such an age, everyone knew that the best way to deal with a plague was isolation.

Overcome by fear, the entire county of Danling was sealed off. People were allowed to leave, but no one was permitted to enter.

County Magistrate Wang Guang had not acted entirely without conscience. He had not only given Wang Zhenling the nominal seal and credentials; he had even assigned him fifty men.

Wang Zhenling turned them down outright.

At a time like this, the city was completely sealed and isolated, making it relatively safe.

If those men followed him out of the city, they might instead contract the plague.

The county soldiers certainly would not have been willing to go. For all he knew, they might even curse his ancestors in private.

Taking such people along would bring no benefit and might only provoke resentment.

Thus, Wang Zhenling did not use them at all. Carrying the seal and credentials, he was the first to arrive in Guangyang Township.

This place had been his base of operations for more than a year. Though a new village steward and patrol officer had already been appointed, Wang Zhenling had now arrived bearing the county commandant’s seal, along with the support of the local people.

He went straight to the township office and began issuing orders: all markets were to be suspended, and no one was permitted to leave home in groups of three or five.

Anyone in Guangyang Township who fell ill was to report immediately to the township office. No one was allowed to conceal an illness.

When Wang Zhenling had been a patrol officer, he had nearly reduced the village steward to a figurehead.

Now he himself was the county commandant—even if only a provisional one—and wielded considerable authority. At the very least, within Guangyang Township, no one could hinder him.

Power, in the end, amounted to little more than control over money and control over personnel.

The township office possessed little financial authority, though it could submit requests to the county administration.

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What mattered most now was manpower.

There were more than a dozen wards under Guangyang Township, and Wang Zhenling ordered every one of them to establish patrols and maintain vigilance.

All roads throughout Guangyang Township were to be sealed. Apart from messengers carrying his own orders, no outsiders were permitted to enter or pass through.

He then requisitioned the township militia and sent messengers to every neighboring township, conveying his orders in full.

Besides ordering the dispersal of the population and forbidding gatherings and unnecessary movement, he instructed certain villages to prepare lime, medicinal herbs, and other supplies.

Though most of Danling County consisted of flat land, the area near Guanjiu Township was mountainous and contained deposits of limestone.

He also ordered every hamlet to clean its surroundings, disinfect with lime, drink boiled water, and follow other such measures.

As news of the plague spread, the ward officials throughout the township saw that Wang Zhenling’s arrangements were orderly and thorough.

Although they did not understand the purpose of many of his measures, they recognized the benefits of isolation.

Every hamlet sent its able-bodied men out on patrol, forbidding outsiders to pass through.

They also obeyed Wang Zhenling’s orders with considerable discipline.

Although Wang Zhenling was a newly appointed official, he had the support of the local spirits and deities, as well as the immense influence of the Wang clan.

This gave him enough prestige to ensure that his orders were carried out rather than reduced to empty words.

That was the advantage of serving as an official in one’s own native land.

The plague had not yet broken out in Danling, but the entire Guangyang Township was already on a war footing.

As for Chen Bushi, on the very day after news of the plague arrived, he had taken his people and left Danling County.

In fact, Guangyang Township was not the only place to take precautions. Once the county town received the news, it had already closed its gates, allowing people to leave but forbidding entry.

The other townships, however, were not necessarily so well managed.

If they encountered responsible local officials, some measures would still be taken.

If they encountered irresponsible ones, like the village steward and elders of Guangyang Township had once been, then the common people could only pray for good fortune.

Wang Zhenling knew that the plague was not truly as terrifying as people imagined. As long as isolation was properly maintained, there was no need to fear contagion.

In an age like this, the movement of the population was extremely limited. Controlling outsiders was not difficult.

Thus, Wang Zhenling patrolled the townships one by one, negotiating with the elders and great clans of every village and hamlet.

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In such an age, clan power was extraordinarily strong.

When the officials of the townships and wards were unable to act, the clans often took the lead in saving themselves.

A clan of high prestige might influence an entire township. One of lesser prestige could still protect the hamlets and communities under its control.

In short, because clan organizations existed in such an age, the people possessed considerable capacity for both collective action and organization.

In later generations, society would become increasingly fragmented and flattened, while ordinary people would lack such organizations.

Once the government’s grassroots administration collapsed and ceased to function, the common people in the countryside would be left without any organizing force at all, becoming nothing more than scattered grains of sand.

But now, as long as Wang Zhenling could persuade the great clans of the countryside, they could put on a magnificent display of mobilization and organization before his very eyes.

Wang Zhenling now carried the seal and credentials of a county commandant, and he was also a son of the Danling Wang clan.

At this moment, he showed nothing but sincerity. When the plague arrived, he did not hide in the city for safety. Instead, he inspected the townships one after another, sparing no effort and showing no fear of death.

The various clans of the countryside were deeply moved. None failed to obey Wang Zhenling’s orders.

At his command, they mobilized their formidable力量.

“No wonder governments throughout the ages have suppressed the power of clans and sought to flatten society. It is precisely because overly powerful clans can encroach upon the authority of the government.”

Wang Zhenling reflected on this with emotion, but he was no spokesman for the government. There was no need for him to concern himself with its affairs.

He only needed to do his own work well. A man should not meddle in the business of an office he does not hold.

Fortunately, transportation was difficult in this age, and the flow of people was small. More than a month passed before the plague finally spread to the areas surrounding Danling County.

Because the commandery of Xiamì had received the news early, most places acted in time, and the plague did not erupt on a large scale.

Some places suffered smaller outbreaks, and a number of people died.

Instead, there were reports from elsewhere that certain areas in neighboring commanderies and counties had become regions of severe devastation. In some places, the entire population of a county town had allegedly perished.

The plague persisted until autumn arrived. Only when the weather gradually turned cooler did its momentum slowly weaken and finally disappear.

The various townships of Danling County suffered relatively little. In particular, in those places that had followed Wang Zhenling’s orders and responded most carefully, not a single person died.

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