Shen Qingwan wasted no time and handed the prescription directly to Hai Chengrui. “Sir Hai, this is the prescription to treat the plague. You can have someone test it first.”

She got straight to the point, and Hai Chengrui didn’t bother with pleasantries either.

He immediately took the prescription to consult with the doctors.

Although he couldn’t understand the prescription himself, the doctors certainly could.

As soon as an elderly doctor, who appeared to be over sixty, saw it, he slammed the table in excitement. “Brilliant! This is the Great Qinglong Decoction!”

“Ephedra, cinnamon twig, licorice, apricot kernel, fresh ginger, jujube, gypsum… These are all common herbs. If this truly works against the plague, then the people are saved!”

“Sir, this formula is worth trying!”

After the doctors confirmed its potential, Hai Chengrui immediately ordered the decoction to be brewed and tested on patients.

Once the medicine was ready, Hai Chengrui personally followed the group delivering it to the quarantined patients.

However, since the area was full of confirmed plague victims, he stopped at the entrance and didn’t go inside.

Shen Qingwan and Shopkeeper Wu followed along as well, eager to see if the medicine would be effective.

Just as Shen Qingwan was observing the surrounding refugees to check if anyone from Dahe Village was present, a familiar scream suddenly rang out.

“Help! Help!”

Her body tensed up. That voice—was it… Jiaojiao?

Shen Qingwan turned to the courtyard gate.

The cries came from inside!

Without a second thought, she dashed inside.

“Young Master, don’t go in!” Shopkeeper Wu cried out in alarm, but before he could stop her, she was already inside.

Wearing a mask, Shen Qingwan quickly scanned the area, noting the sick and weak refugees collapsed all around.

The desperate cries from within the house were growing fainter, filling her with urgency.

She sprinted toward the house and kicked the door open. With a loud bang, the wooden door crashed to the ground, startling the group of men inside.

Inside, several rough-looking refugees had a girl pinned down, her clothes in disarray.

Rage surged through Shen Qingwan at the sight of Lu Jiaojiao’s helpless form.

“Hahaha! Another little lady has come to us! Dying isn’t so bad if we get to have two of them before we go!”

“Since we’re all going to die anyway, we might as well enjoy ourselves first!”

Before the man could finish speaking, Shen Qingwan swiftly pulled out a wrist-mounted crossbow.

Before they could even react, the sharp arrows had already pierced their bodies.

She had wanted to deal with them personally, but they were plague victims. Touching them would risk infection.

“B-big sister-in-law…?”

Lu Jiaojiao had been staring in a daze, but when she recognized Shen Qingwan, tears streamed down her cheeks. “You’re back! You’re really back!”

Shen Qingwan removed her outer robe and draped it over Jiaojiao’s shoulders, then reached out to help her up.

But Jiaojiao trembled and weakly muttered, “Don’t… don’t touch me. I’m dirty.”

Even though those men hadn’t succeeded, their disgusting hands had already touched her.

She felt filthy.

Not only that—she had been locked up with plague victims.

She was likely infected.

If her sister-in-law touched her, she might get sick too.

Shen Qingwan’s heart ached as she looked at the stubborn yet fragile girl.

Without hesitation, she pulled her up. “Our Jiaojiao isn’t dirty at all. Come, let’s get you cleaned up.”

At those gentle words, Lu Jiaojiao could no longer hold back her emotions.

She broke down into sobs, as if finally letting out all the grievances and fear she had endured.

Shen Qingwan let her cry in her arms, gently patting her back.

After a while, Jiaojiao’s sobbing subsided, and she suddenly remembered something. “Big sister-in-law, Xiao Chen is still over there! They knocked him out!”

She had been hiding with Xiao Chen behind the door, hoping to stay close to the guards outside.

But they were forcibly driven into the courtyard.

While she was distracted, those men had knocked Xiao Chen unconscious and dragged her inside.

If Shen Qingwan had arrived any later, she didn’t dare imagine what would have happened to her.

“Xiao Chen is here?!” Shen Qingwan’s heart clenched.

She followed Jiaojiao’s trembling finger and spotted a small boy lying in the corner, his face turned away.

“Xiao Chen!”

She hurried over and picked him up, relieved to find that he was only unconscious.

Even though Xiao Chen carried hidden weapons for self-defense, he was still just a six-year-old child.

He had been caught off guard and knocked out before he could react.

Outside, Shopkeeper Wu, worried that Shen Qingwan hadn’t come out yet, was about to send someone in when he saw her emerging, carrying a little boy in her arms.

Behind her was a disheveled young girl.

As an adult, Shopkeeper Wu immediately understood what had happened to the girl.

His expression darkened.

Shen Qingwan turned to Hai Chengrui, her gaze cold. “Sir Hai, your management needs serious improvement.”

The guards stationed at the gate were only a dozen meters away.

There was no way they hadn’t heard the screams for help.

But they had chosen to ignore them.

Perhaps, in their eyes, everyone in this courtyard was already as good as dead.

Or maybe they were afraid of getting infected and didn’t dare to intervene.

Either way, this was a complete dereliction of duty.

Being reprimanded by a young noble, Hai Chengrui was both embarrassed and furious.

These incompetent fools! How dare they be so negligent in his absence?

“Mercy, my lord! We won’t do it again!”

The two guards responsible for watching over the courtyard immediately dropped to their knees, begging for forgiveness.

Hai Chengrui coldly snorted. “Go receive thirty lashes as punishment! If you dare neglect human lives again, I will not be so lenient!”

Shen Qingwan didn’t linger any longer.

She took Xiao Chen and Lu Jiaojiao back to Wan Tong Money House.

Now that the prescription had been delivered, Shopkeeper Wu’s duty was fulfilled, so he accompanied them back.

If Hai Chengrui had any further concerns, he would inform them later.

At the money house, Shen Qingwan asked Shopkeeper Wu to prepare a room for Lu Jiaojiao to clean up.

Then, she had preventive medicine brewed, making sure everyone drank a bowl.

Perhaps due to the trauma, Lu Jiaojiao fell ill soon after.

At first, Shopkeeper Wu worried it might be the plague, but the doctor confirmed it was just shock and exhaustion.

Meanwhile, Xiao Chen woke up and immediately burst into tears.

Shen Qingwan comforted him for a long time before he finally stopped crying, but he clung to her tightly, unwilling to let go—afraid she would disappear if he did.

Shen Qingwan had no choice but to keep him by her side at all times.

After this ordeal, Xiao Chen had become even more sensitive, growing deeply attached to her.

Having never raised a child before, Shen Qingwan found herself at a loss on how to care for his fragile emotions and wounded heart.

But she knew one thing—she had to protect them. No matter what.