A four- or five-year-old girl, dressed in a red brocade cotton-padded jacket, was happily pushing a snowman in the yard with her parents.

The snowman grew taller and fatter. The little girl and her parents happily pushed it along, their faces beaming with joy.

"Daddy, Mommy, look! The snowman is big enough!" the little girl exclaimed excitedly, her voice filled with anticipation and satisfaction.

The father turned to look at his daughter and smiled, "Hmm, that's about right. Now let's dress the snowman."

The mother had already taken out the clothes she had prepared and began to dress the snowman.

The little girl and her father busied themselves putting eyes, a nose, and a mouth on the snowman. Soon, a lifelike snowman stood in the yard.

"Great! Our snowman is finished!" The little girl excitedly circled around the snowman.

The servants had prepared dinner, and the little girl, holding her father's hand with her left and her mother's hand with her right, happily returned to the dining hall.

"Mother, is there any milk and egg custard that Xi'er likes today?" the little girl asked her mother playfully.

"Of course, you little glutton." The woman, five months pregnant, held the little girl's hand, her eyes full of affection.

"Little glutton, what else do you want to eat? Tomorrow is your fifth birthday, is there anything you want?" The man doted on his little darling.

The woman tucked her in, saying, "Alright, Xi'er, it's time for you to go to sleep. Your grandparents said they're going to throw you a big birthday party tomorrow and have invited your friends. You'll have plenty of energy to play if you sleep well."

The little girl, clutching her little rabbit, fell asleep contentedly, thinking about the delicious food and her friends coming to celebrate her birthday the next day.

The little girl was jolted awake. She opened her eyes and saw the butler carrying her as they ran, with flames all around.

"Uncle Butler, what's going on? Where are my parents?" she asked anxiously.

"Oh, miss, let's escape first and then I'll talk to you."

The firelight illuminated her tender little face; her eyes were filled with tears, yet she stubbornly refused to cry out. A few teardrops still clung to her eyelashes, shimmering in the firelight.

Her hands were clenched into fists, her little face turned red, but she didn't cry.

Chaos reigned all around; cries, screams, and the sounds of burning flames mingled together, creating a hellish scene. Xi'er had lost all her loved ones; she stood there alone, feeling as if the world had ended.

Butler Li Da protected her as they broke through the inferno. Behind them, the family mansion was completely engulfed in flames. The fire died down at dawn, but the Li family mansion was now a ruin.

Crying, screaming, and the sound of burning flames kept repeating in Li Xi's dream.

"Father, Mother, Father, Mother!" The little girl's desperate cries were filled with unbearable pain.

Is this her? Her name is also Li Xi, and the butler looks just like her father.

It hurts so much, my heart aches so much, who will save her? Where is her father? Where is her mother? Why doesn't anyone come to hug Xi'er?

Xi'er's body hurts so much!

"Miss, if you want to cry, then cry. Master and Madam are gone. I will take care of you from now on." The butler led her away in a carriage with his wife and children.

The little girl was still clutching the rabbit doll with one ear burned off. Her mother had made it for her, and she would sleep with it every night.

Is this her? How could she have forgotten something so important? Overnight, she's all alone.

How come her beloved parents, kind grandfather, loving grandmother, generous uncles, kind aunts, and loving brothers and sisters are all gone?

How could she forget them? They were clearly a very kind family, how could they have disappeared overnight?

Who will save them? The little girl cries in the darkness, but no one can hear her. Her cries, her helplessness, her sorrow echo in the darkness; she has no one to turn to, nowhere to go!

Li Xi wanted to hug her, to comfort her. But something was holding her back; she couldn't take a step. She desperately tore at the vines beneath her feet.

Each time a strand is torn off, it grows back and tightly wraps around her.

Meng Zhelan saw Li Xi's pained expression and heard him muttering unintelligible words.

Oh no, her pulse is erratic again. Ling'er quickly lit some calming incense.

"Lan'er, what should we do? Xi'er, she..." Ling'er choked with heartache.

A flute melody drifted in from outside the window, like a gentle spring breeze, soothing the soul and bringing endless tranquility and comfort.

Li Xi's body gradually relaxed during the nightmare.

"Xiao Lin, will this work? Have you sent anyone to look for those two scriptures?" Shen Xu muttered to himself in worry, not having time to think about why Qin Xiao Lin was ignoring him.

He truly had no time to pay attention to Shen Xu; he was currently playing a calming melody, using only half of his internal energy. When the piece ended, it seemed to have some effect; the person inside quieted down.

Shen Xu couldn't stay awake any longer and went to sleep, while Qin Xiaolin said he was going to the study, but actually went to the library...

Old Sun woke up hungry at dawn and was fed rice gruel for two consecutive days.

"Is anyone here? Someone come here!" Old Sun looked at the unfamiliar surroundings and felt uneasy.

"Grandpa, you're awake? Come and have a bowl of porridge." Qingyao went to the small kitchen and brought over a bowl of porridge.

"Grandpa, you are weak right now and it's not good for you to eat greasy food." Qingyao helped Grandpa Sun lean against the bedside.

"Where are the two young men who were with me?" Old Sun had fainted after realizing he had been rescued and didn't know whose house he was in.

"It was Young Master Qin who brought you here. Young Master Li... he's not doing well," Qingyao said truthfully.

"Please help me, young lady, to see him." Old Sun was extremely worried. Li Xi had taken a knife for him; she was such a fool.

Li Xi, who was lying down, looked increasingly pale. Ling'er fed her ginseng chicken soup every two hours, and she lost weight in just two or three days.

"Grandpa Sun, you're awake?" Meng Zhelan and Qingyao helped Grandpa Sun to Li Xi's bedside.

Old Master Sun extended two fingers and placed them on Li Xi's forehead, using his internal energy to examine her condition.

"Although her internal energy is temporarily suppressed, it will eventually deplete her internal strength and she will lose all her martial arts skills in the long run."

“Grandpa Sun, you must have a way to save her,” Meng Zhelan looked at Grandpa Sun, hoping he would say the words “save her.”

“There is a way, but not here. I need to take her to the northern frontier, where I have a base of operations…”

"Let's set off now!" Meng Zhelan was preparing to go home with Ling'er to pack their bags and leave together.

“Listen to me, don’t rush. You stay here and manage your business; you won’t be of much help anyway. I have acquaintances over there, so don’t worry.”