"..." The eavesdropping bear cub.
"Xiao Feng, what are you doing here?" Mo Lingxi asked with a stern face.
Xiao Feng stood there with his head bowed and said weakly, "Mother Zhu Zi said that Father and Mother are having a younger brother or sister for me, and told me not to disturb them, so I wanted to come and see."
Mo Lingxi pinched his brow and softened his tone, "It's not like Mother Zhu Zi said."
"Also, eavesdropping is a very bad behavior. Go to the corner and squat for an hour."
Xiao Feng said "oh" listlessly and obediently went to the corner of the main hall to squat.
Mo Lingxi didn't watch him. He closed the door and saw Tao Lengshuang's constipated face. "What's wrong?"
Tao Lengshuang was mentally exhausted. "I'm afraid I'll never be able to wash this off."
As expected, human imagination is very powerful.
Mo Lingxi didn't understand. "Did something happen to you?"
Seeing the hidden guards leave, Tao Lengshuang collapsed on the bed like a flattened pancake, indicating with her actions that she didn't want to talk.
Mo Lingxi walked to her side and stood, looking at her in confusion. "Are you feeling unwell?"
Tao Lengshuang turned over like a roasted pancake. "No, I'm just a little tired."
Mo Lingxi sat beside her and touched her forehead. "Why are you tired for no reason? Have you been too busy lately?"
Tao Lengshuang rolled her eyes at him, not wanting to bother with him anymore.
Mo Lingxi was not annoyed. He guessed that Tao Lengshuang was throwing a tantrum for some unknown reason, so he sat quietly beside her.
He sat there until after dinner.
Tao Lengshuang, who was hungry, realized that no one had called her and Mo Lingxi for dinner. She guessed that Aunt Shen Er and the others had overthought things again.
Instantly, she lost the desire to go out for dinner.
People really shouldn't think too much.
However, Mo Lingxi went out to get the food.
He met Aunt Shen Er and the others, who had teasing smiles on their faces, and their gazes at him were particularly strange.
"The food is all kept warm on the stove," Aunt Shen Er said with a smile. "Mo Lingxi, take it easy."
Mo Lingxi, who understood, stumbled and realized why Tao Lengshuang was like this, no wonder she didn't want to come out for dinner.
Unable to explain too much, he expressionlessly took the food and prepared to return to the room. Suddenly, he heard some faint sounds.
He handed the food to Aunt Shen Er and signaled them to be quiet, then quietly approached the foot of the wall.
As expected, he heard faint conversations.
"This is the place. I heard from the villagers that this family has not only a lot of rice and flour, but also a lot of meat."
"But I heard this family is not easy to deal with. Should we change to another one?"
"No matter how difficult they are to deal with, can they be opponents to so many of us? If we come earlier and bring more people, we'll definitely be able to grab rice, flour, and meat."
"We must grab it. I've been hungry for many days. If I'm still hungry, I'll starve to death."
"What about those who resist...?"
"The women can do whatever they want. The men will be killed. We haven't enjoyed women for a long time."
Hearing this, a hint of killing intent appeared in Mo Lingxi's dark, deep eyes.
He made a gesture, and hidden guards went to deal with these people.
But Mo Lingxi knew that it was not enough to just deal with these people. Now, both inside and outside the village, everyone knew that the family had rice, flour, and meat.
He told Aunt Shen Er and the others to be vigilant at night, then took the food back to the room.
He also explained to Tao Lengshuang in detail what had just happened. "They should be from another village. Be careful in the future."
Tao Lengshuang frowned. "It's a little worse than I expected."
"Is the situation in other villages very serious?"
Mo Lingxi said it depended on which village. Some villages were more serious, while others were not.
Those who were usually lazy and ate without working, in the current situation, with no food or drink, stole and robbed everywhere to survive.
Tao Lengshuang understood and pressed her throbbing brow. "The situation will only get worse."
Mo Lingxi knew this best. He touched her head. "I will make proper arrangements."
Tao Lengshuang just hummed, not placing all her hopes on Mo Lingxi.
More and more outsiders would come to the village, and she had to be fully prepared to deal with what might happen next.
As Tao Lengshuang said, more and more outsiders were indeed coming to the village.
Some came to visit relatives, while others came to seek refuge.
As a result, many homeless outsiders slept in abandoned houses or under the eaves of others' homes.
Aunt Shen Er and Aunt Wang San, who were gathering information in the village, saw this situation and clenched the sticks in their hands.
Most of the outsiders were dressed in rags, some with children, and most without children, likely sold.
When these outsiders saw Aunt Wang San and Aunt Shen Er, many showed greedy eyes, as if looking at a fat sheep.
Aunt Wang San pulled Aunt Shen Er and prepared to inquire about the situation from passing villagers.
The villagers snorted heavily with displeased expressions and did not pay attention to the two of them, walking away quickly.
Aunt Wang San and Aunt Shen Er were bewildered. They continued to inquire about the situation from the villagers, but no one told them anything, and they were all avoided from afar.
At this point, the two of them understood and quickly returned to the Mo family, telling Tao Lengshuang everything in detail.
Tao Lengshuang was not surprised to be isolated by the villagers and said calmly, "We have food and drink, and we have ways to deal with outsiders. What does it matter if we are isolated?"
"Besides, isolation is a good thing. If the villagers come to help and ask us for rice and flour, what should we do?"
Aunt Wang San and Aunt Shen Er thought this made sense.
"When these villagers beg us, there are so many outsiders. It can be seen that the situation outside is getting worse and worse."
"We go out less. I'm afraid we'll be robbed by outsiders if we go out. To survive, those outsiders will do anything."
Tao Lengshuang meant the same thing. "It's snowing heavily almost every day now, so we won't go out for the time being."
"If anything really happens, the village chief will notify us. Be vigilant recently, as villagers or outsiders may come to rob at any time."
Aunt Wang San and Aunt Shen Er said they would.
Tao Lengshuang saw Mo Lingxi walk in and said goodbye to the two of them, leading him to her room. "What is it?"
"The matter of outsiders can be handled properly today," Mo Lingxi said.
Tao Lengshuang did not ask how he handled it. Her hanging heart relaxed a lot. "After all, it's only a temporary solution, not a permanent one."
"By the way, why are so many people running to the villages instead of Dongdu or Hehua Town?"
Logically, these people should have gone to Dongdu or Hehua Town, where their chances of survival would be higher.
Mo Lingxi said coldly, "Dongdu and Hehua Town do not allow outsiders to enter. Not even to visit relatives."
Tao Lengshuang was so angry her teeth itched. "This is to disregard the lives of us villagers. It's truly detestable."
She was about to say more when she heard Aunt Shen Er's words.
"Mo family, my husband is back. He said the people sold by the Tao family have returned."