Upon hearing the Chief’s words, the Junior Officer glanced at the couple with a knowing look.

The meaning behind the Chief’s words was clear—he did not want this family to stay in the village. It was impossible to snatch Heizhuang back. But even if they succeeded, they would not be able to return to the village.

This family was so troublesome. They would only cause a ruckus if they continued staying in the village.

The couple did not think much about what the Chief said. They left happily and quickly.

“Chief, how can you let them leave?” one of the men asked, not understanding why.

Everyone knew how serious the epidemic was. It was dangerous to allow Old An’s family to roam around outside.

They were not worried that Old An’s family would be at risk. This family disgusted them, and they did not care about their lives.

They were only worried that other people in the village would be at risk. They might contract the disease if they lived with those dangerous people every day.

“Since they want to leave, let them leave. Tighten the security, you lot. Then, gather a few young people and build a straw shed some distance from our village,” the Chief instructed as he watched the couple leave.

“Since they want to leave the village so badly, we’ll let them stay outside. They also have two sons, right? Chase them out to stay in the straw shed too.”

The men were delighted and agreed. “Yes, Chief. I’ll get them now.”

They should send rowdy people like them to the straw shed so the villagers would not have to live in fear every day.

A few men walked into Old An’s house and carried An Da, along with his bed, out of the courtyard. They also grabbed An Er by his collar and dragged him out. An Er did not understand what was going on.

“I didn’t leave the village. How is this my problem?”

He was anxious.

Why must I stay in a straw shed? Isn’t it better to stay at home, where there are food and drinks?

However, he had no choice but to go. He had to stay in the straw shed no matter how much he resisted. His belongings were also packed and sent to the straw shed.

An Da woke up in pain and stared at the ceiling in the straw shed.

He should not have been so greedy. What was wrong with drinking some fish soup and eating wild vegetables? It was fine as long as they could survive.

But now, the villagers chased them to live in this straw shed. Their future was uncertain.

When Old An and Aunt Wang, beaten black and blue by the servants in Ministry Councilor He’s residence, returned, they realized they could not even enter the village. They sat on the ground and cried after they were told to stay in the straw shed outside.

They wondered why they were so unlucky. Their grandson was snatched away, their daughter-in-law ran away, and they did not even have a home now. They could only stay in the straw shed.

…

On the mountain…

An Jiuyue and Qian Jiyun went into the forest to gather more medicinal herbs.

However, for some reason, An Jiuyue felt disinterested even when she found a high-quality herb. She even felt a little on edge.

She held a herb she had just dug out in one hand and patted her chest with the other. She took a deep breath.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Qian Jiyun had been digging up a few medicinal herbs that could be used to treat injuries. He did not know much about other types of herbs, so he could only dig for these.