Upon hearing Sun's words, Old Lady Zhu hurriedly came to Tao's side, touched her forehead, and said happily.
"Second son's wife, have you been having trouble eating lately, and feeling nauseous?"
"Mother, how did you know?" Tao Shi thought her mother-in-law was secretly watching to see if she was slacking off, and she pouted aggrievedly.
"Mother, I didn't mean to."
Grandma Zhu was overjoyed, not at all. "Silly child, this is a good thing. You don't have to do anything anymore. Just rest and recover."
"Mother, you are truly my own mother." Tao Shi grasped his hand excitedly, her heart overflowing with emotion.
Zhu Zinan, who was hiding not far from the big tree, overheard their conversation and thought of her mother being bullied.
He quietly hid behind a big tree, planning to push Tao towards the wooden stick when she came over, so that she would slip and fall on her own.
Xi Xi noticed Zhu Zinan hiding behind a big tree and angrily waved her fist.
[You scoundrel, you're up to no good again! Don't even think about harming your aunt's unborn son!]
Get out of here! Get out of here now!
Xi Xi's voice made Grandma Zhu turn around and see Zhu Zinan sneaking around behind a big tree.
With a fierce expression, she picked up a wooden stick and smashed it at Zhu Zinan.
The wooden stick struck Zhu Zinan precisely, causing him to clutch his head and let out a painful cry.
"You scoundrel, stay away from us, get lost."
Old Mrs. Zhu grew angrier the more she thought about it, and turned to Mrs. Sun with a serious expression, asking, "Third son's wife, do you know anything about the plague?"
The plague must not be exploited by Zhu Borong, and his second wife must not be infected, otherwise the baby in her womb will be lost.
Pei Sining, who was sitting to the side observing Zhu Xixi with curiosity, was surprised to hear what Old Madam Zhu said and frowned in confusion.
"Grandma Zhu, what plague?"
Knowing that Pei Sining was learned and talented, Madam Sun sighed and explained, "We just found a corpse in the woods. The corpse was badly decomposed, and the crows that ate it all mutated."
"According to you, if it really is a plague, it must have already spread to the vicinity."
Upon hearing this, Pei Sining's expression gradually became serious, with a hint of worry in her brows. Contracting the plague on the road could result in either death or serious injury.
Zhu Xixi raised her little head at the sound and looked curiously at her family members who were all looking worried.
She also furrowed her brows slightly and pouted sadly.
What happened to Grandma and Aunt? Did something sad happen to them?
Did they know that the group was going to pass through the terrifying Lu Family Village? Although Lu Family Village was indeed horrible, the villagers were also quite pitiful.
The villagers remaining in Lujia Village are all infected with the plague and are being held captive by officials. Lujia Village has no food or medicine; everyone is in despair.
Xixi thought of the plot about Lujia Village described in the book, and felt very sad. Most of the villagers trapped inside were children and the elderly.
Although they were sick, they were not aggressive and even worried that their illness would infect others, so they voluntarily isolated themselves at home.
However, the incompetent magistrate treated them like monsters and imprisoned them in Lujia Village without authorization.
Zhu Yanyan led her team through Lujia Village, but instead of treating the villagers, she stole the cotton that the villagers had worked so hard to grow.
Lujia Village is famous for its cotton cultivation. Every household is an expert cotton grower, and the cotton they produce is both warm and soft.
When Zhu Yanyan's team unexpectedly stumbled into Lujia Village, the villagers thought they had met their saviors, but little did they know they had fallen into hell.
Thinking about what Zhu Yanyan did afterwards, Xixi felt extremely indignant and angrily waved her little fists.
We must not allow this villain, Zhu Yanyan, to harm the villagers in order to obtain the village's cotton.
The villagers are all good people, and the plague isn't an incurable disease; my aunt should be able to find a treatment for it in her medical books.
[XiXi will also find a vaccine that can save everyone in the villain's space.]
Grandma Zhu listened quietly to her granddaughter's chatter, her tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxing. She picked up her granddaughter with satisfaction and rubbed her cheek against her granddaughter's little face.
Xi Xi is right, we can't give up. We'll face many more unknowns in the future, so instead of worrying about the future, we should take action.
After composing herself, Old Mrs. Zhu got up and went to Pei Sining, handing Zhu Xixi to him. "Sining, please take care of Xixi for me. We have other things to do."
"Me?" Pei Sining stared in surprise, her eyes widening, and reluctantly stretched out her stiff arms.
After settling her granddaughter in, Grandma Zhu dusted herself off and went to her son and daughter-in-law.
"Third son's wife, eldest son's wife, please help second son's wife find prescriptions for preventing and treating the plague in her medical books."
"Second brother, third brother, and Da Bao and Xiao Bao, go and pick some mugwort by the roadside. Use it to fumigate your feet tonight to prevent dampness and toxins from invading your body."
"I will go and tell Lord Chen what happened today, and see if he has any thoughts on it."
The crowd, who had been dejected, suddenly perked up upon hearing Old Lady Zhu's arrangements. They excitedly stood up and nodded in unison.
"receive!"
Grandma Zhu looked at her spirited children with satisfaction, then quickly turned and walked towards Chen Xiang.
At this moment, Chen Xiang also had a solemn expression, quietly listening to his subordinates' report.
Upon seeing Old Lady Zhu approaching, he gestured for his subordinates to step back and immediately stepped forward with a smile.
"Grandma Zhu, what is it?"
"Lord Chen, there is something I feel I need to tell you."
Old Mrs. Zhu's already weathered face grew even more somber, a cloud of sorrow shrouding her brows, and she spoke hesitantly.
“Just now, my daughter-in-law went into the forest and saw several rotting corpses in the distance. Judging from their state of decay, she roughly guessed that they were the corpses that had been infected with the plague.”
"You discovered it too?" Chen Xiang didn't expect that Grandma Zhu and the others had also noticed the anomaly in the forest. He was still hesitating whether to share the latest discovery with Grandma Zhu and the others.
Now that things have been exposed, he has no reason to hide it anymore. With that in mind, he led Old Lady Zhu to a secluded corner.
From Chen Xiang's grave expression, Old Lady Zhu sensed something was wrong and quickly followed him.
After looking around, Chen Xiang said in a low voice, "Grandma Zhu, I'm willing to share this news with you since you saved my life."
"Our people have discovered that Lujia Village is just ahead. Lujia Village was hit by an epidemic some time ago, and the county magistrate of Lujia Town sealed off Lujia Village to prevent the epidemic from spreading."
"But if we want to get to the border, we have to pass through Lujia Village. Now that this has happened, we have no choice but to cross the mountains and take the risk to get to Hengyang County."
After hearing Chen Xiang's next arrangements, Old Lady Zhu's originally bright eyes were filled with worry, and she slowly bit her lip.
When they returned, Old Mrs. Zhu didn't say a word. Her face was pale, her eyes were fixed on the ground, her lips were tightly closed, and her hands were trembling slightly.
She knew better than anyone that crossing the mountains meant abandoning the family's cart and not being able to bring even some heavy items.
The mountainous terrain is extremely dangerous; one wrong step could lead to an abyss. Yet, their only possessions are two cartloads of supplies.
If we throw them all away, what will become of us? Beyond the mountains lies a wasteland, barren of everything. How will we find herbs to exchange for money in the city?
It seems that the only option now is to take a risk and see if we can fight our way out of Lujia Village.
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