Surviving in the General's Mansion - Chapter 105

The instant Xia Heng left the courtyard, she broke into a sprint.

She had noticed on the way in that there was a wall behind the buildings of Ruyi Courtyard.

Once she climbed over it, she would reach the window she had just unlatched.

Reaching the foot of the wall, Xia Heng checked that no one was around, then hurriedly pulled out her phone to confirm her position.

Yes, this was the place.

She was just preparing to scale the wall herself when a figure flashed past nearby.

“Mo Qing! Mo Qing, over here!”

Mo Qing’s nerves were stretched taut, terrified that he had arrived too late. Only when he heard Xia Heng calling did he change direction and run toward her.

“You’re pretty fast. Where’s Mo Bai? Did he go to find Yaqing?” Xia Heng could not resist asking about her sworn sister first.

“He did. He went with Chuqing. The Wang residence has a side-room wing, so Miss Xiao is probably over there. How is the general?”

Xia Heng pointed at the wall behind her.

“He’s in there.”

Mo Qing saw that she appeared to be preparing to climb over it.

“Aren’t we going in through the main entrance?”

“Two burly men are guarding the door. It’ll be hard to get in that way. I left the window open.

“Besides, I have a feeling the Wang Family would love nothing more than for us to make a scene. Hurry, take me over the wall!”

At the same time, the two servants at the door moved beneath the corridor and began chatting.

“Do you think that maid will bring people back after we let her leave?”

“Madam said the more people she brings, the better. Ideally, everyone will see it when the time comes. We only need to delay them until Miss Chen arrives!”

Mo Qing took hold of Xia Heng by the back of her collar with one hand and her belt with the other. With a burst of strength, he hoisted her up, and a moment later she was hanging over the top of the wall. Then he leaped up after her.

“Thanks a lot! I asked you to take me over the wall, not throw me on top of it!” Xia Heng muttered as she adjusted her position.

“Miss Ah Heng, my lightness skill isn’t good enough to carry you…”

Xia Heng glared at him, exasperated by his failure to live up to expectations. She told him to go down first and keep watch, then quietly slid down the wall herself.

They reached the window and carefully pushed open the lattice.

Cang Chuli had opened his eyes as soon as the two servants left the room.

He truly had been drugged. Fortunately, he had sealed his meridians with internal force and could hold out for a little while.

He had also heard the Wang Family’s servants drive Xia Heng away.

He needed to find some way out of here.

The drug continued eating away at his consciousness. Cang Chuli bit down on the tip of his tongue, rapidly considering how to break free of the trap.

A faint noise came from the window. The next moment, a little padded jacket embroidered with flowers was tossed into the room.

Xia Heng could not help it. The window was too narrow. If she did not remove her jacket, she was afraid she would get stuck or make enough noise to draw those two men over.

After squeezing through the window with considerable effort, Xia Heng glanced at the two shadows beyond the door. She picked up her jacket, crept to Cang Chuli’s side, and crouched down.

She nudged him twice and called in a whisper, “General! General!”

Cang Chuli looked at Xia Heng. He wanted to tell her to leave first, but he could not speak. Sweat had already beaded across his forehead.

Xia Heng pulled a small bottle from her pouch and held it to his lips. As though afraid he might misunderstand, she whispered an explanation.

“It is an antidote I always keep with me. I’ve carried it ever since we returned from the hunting grounds.”

A cool liquid flowed into his mouth.

Xia Heng felt both guilty and distressed.

But with only her and Mo Qing, quickly moving an incapacitated grown man out through such a narrow window would have been difficult.

She had decisively chosen to give him an antidote. They still did not know what had happened to Xiao Yaqing. Their strongest fighter needed to get back on his feet!

Products from the system shop came with guaranteed quality!

She was also afraid Cang Chuli would ask where it had come from, so she had simply made up an explanation before he could.

The instant the liquid traveled down his throat and entered his stomach, Cang Chuli felt it begin to work. Before long, his body started to cool. His mind gradually cleared, and the dizziness disappeared.

When Xia Heng saw him sit up on his own after only a short while, the abnormal flush already fading from his face, she hurried back to the window and beckoned to him.

She passed her flowered padded jacket out to Mo Qing, then climbed through herself.

At the same time, voices sounded at the front door.

Before following Xia Heng out the window, Cang Chuli took one last look at the place where his mother had once lived.

He used the oil lamp on the table to set fire to the curtains, then threw the lamp onto the bed and slipped sideways through the window.

If they dared plot against him in his mother’s room, then he would make sure the Wang Family lost that pretext forever.

From this day forward, he had nothing more to do with the Wang Family.

“Is he inside?” Madam Wang asked the servants standing guard beneath the corridor.

“Yes, Madam. We drove his maid away as you instructed. She has not returned yet.”

Madam Wang nodded.

“Go on, Tingting. I heard everything from your mother. Don’t be afraid!”

“Mm… Aunt Xu, General Cang…” Chen Tingting bit her lower lip, somewhat hesitant.

She had regretted her decision after returning home last time.

She truly did like Cang Chuli’s face, and the inner quarters of the General’s Mansion were free of women. Even now, there had been no word that he had taken anyone into his chambers.

She had finally managed to persuade herself and her mother to let her try once more, but now that she had reached the door, she remembered Cang Chuli killing people right in front of her that day.

For a moment, she did not know whether she should go in.

Madam Wang had already heard about that incident from Madam Chen. Seeing Chen Tingting hesitate, she knew the girl had recalled the frightening scene and hurried to persuade her.

“Oh, my dear Miss Chen! Think about it. The people Mingxu killed that day were all trying to assassinate him.

“Wasn’t the honest one still at Mingxu’s side? You saw her today, didn’t you?”

Chen Tingting nodded.

“Exactly! Our Mingxu isn’t bloodthirsty! Those people were trying to assassinate him. Was he supposed to refrain from fighting back and simply let them kill him?”

“But Aunt Xu, do you think he will like me?”

Madam Wang smiled and patted her hand. Without hesitation, she said, “I have never seen a prettier girl than Tingting!

“You and our Mingxu are a match made in heaven!

“Don’t worry. Mingxu only looks cold. In truth, his heart is as soft as can be!”

Chen Tingting blushed.

“What if he doesn’t want to talk to me?”

“Then Mingxu must be shy.

“As the saying goes, when a woman pursues a man, only a veil stands between them.

“Be a little more forward. What man could possibly refuse?

“Sit with him in the room for a while and talk to him. Once you’ve spent some time together, won’t the happy match naturally follow?”

By now, Chen Tingting was too shy even to lift her head.

But in her heart, she also believed that the position of wife to the General of the Northern Pacification suited her perfectly.

Her father was the Minister of War, after all.

Cang Chuli was a general. He would inevitably have dealings with her father in the future. How could he possibly dare mistreat her?

If things worked out tonight, wouldn’t all those young ladies she knew die of envy?

She had seen Xia Heng at the general’s side today. They had entered the General’s Mansion at the same time, yet even now Xia Heng had only managed to become a maid!

But she, Chen Tingting, was the future general’s wife!

Having finished bolstering her courage, Chen Tingting raised her head and smiled at Madam Wang, then stepped forward to push open the door.

She had only just reached it when she smelled something burning.

She opened the door and saw flames everywhere inside.

“Fire! Aunt Xu, there’s a fire!”