Xiao Changyi had no objections, "Hmm."
Neither Isatis root nor Songlan was familiar to him, though one was the root part of the other, he had never heard of them.
However, Gong Juechen currently had no effective treatment for the plague, so it wouldn’t hurt to try using Isatis root to address the epidemic.
"Then let’s go now!" An Jing grabbed Xiao Changyi and headed outside.
But Xiao Changyi refused to move, "You should rest a bit. I’ll go alone."
During the journey to Nanshen City, she had barely rested, and it pained his heart.
An Jing knew he was concerned for her, but she still shook her head with a smile, "Let’s go together. I’m more familiar with Songlan."
He understood her insistence; she wanted to be with him every moment, for if the plague couldn’t be cured, their time together would be limited. Moreover, the pressing issue of the epidemic needed to be addressed as quickly as possible.
Thus, Xiao Changyi relented, squeezing An Jing’s hand firmly and nodded, "Hmm."
Because of the plague, all business activities in Nanshen City had halted.
People dared not conduct business for fear of contracting the disease, and nearly all who were not yet infected stayed at home, avoiding the streets and contact with others.
There were three dye workshops in Nanshen City, all of which had closed down. An Jing and Xiao Changyi asked a soldier, who was particularly familiar with Nanshen City, to take them to these workshops.
The soldier first brought An Jing and Xiao Changyi to the dye workshop closest to the residence.
This workshop was tightly shut, no one inside. Then, the soldier suggested they go to the owner’s home, where there should be people.
He mentioned that the owner’s home wasn’t far, just down the street behind them.
An Jing and Xiao Changyi had no objections, and followed the soldier to the owner’s house.
The owner was at home and responded but refused to open the door, expressing fear of contagion.
Upon hearing that the owner wouldn’t open the door, the soldier shouted sternly, "Prince Yi and Princess Yi have personally come to your doorstep, and you shut them out. Do you believe you could be punished for disrespect?"
Hearing the soldier’s words, the owner broke down crying, knelt on the ground, and pleaded, "Prince, Princess, this commoner is really terrified of death. Please forgive me! If the Prince and Princess wish to ask me anything, we can talk without entering. Please don’t scare this commoner; I’m truly timid and fear death."
An Jing and Xiao Changyi stood outside the yard, listening to the owner who seemed genuinely terrified, so they decided not to insist.
After exchanging a glance, An Jing spoke up, "Then we shall ask from outside, but you must answer truthfully, understand?"
"Yes, yes, the commoner will answer truthfully, thank you, Prince and Princess, thank you, Prince and Princess. The commoner will surely answer truthfully," the owner was indeed trembling with fear.
"Then the Princess will ask you," An Jing went straight to the point, "the blue dye used in your workshop, from what sources is it extracted?"
The owner didn’t dare to question why An Jing was asking this and honestly replied, "There are many plants from which blue dye can be extracted, like Persicaria tinctoria, Malva sylvestris, Baphicacanthus cusia, and Celosia argentea among many others. The commoner can’t name them all at once."
An Jing also felt this made sense, so she asked a more specific question, "There is a plant that is used to extract blue dye, its leaves to its flowers resemble rape, but there are significant differences from rape. The differences are—"