Chapter 41 Will the son-in-law come to save us?

The Censor's wife gasped, "They dare! This is the capital!"

The place with the strictest public security in the entire Li Kingdom!

Qingling smiled bitterly, looked into the rain, and murmured, "I have no home, I'm just a worthless life, what am I afraid of?"

Since death is inevitable anyway, taking a gamble might allow you to live a little longer.

The censor's wife fell silent.

Amidst the wind and rain, the sounds of fighting could be heard from the front yard. Although Qingling and the others hadn't witnessed it firsthand, the more they listened to the sounds, the stronger the chilling atmosphere became.

Before anyone knew it, more and more women came out and gathered on either side of the Censor's wife and Qingling, looking anxiously at the locked arched door.

Every dull thud was terrifying.

"...Fortunately, Yongning Temple has martial monks." Someone said.

Some ladies clasped their hands together, praying for Buddha's blessing.

Someone else said, "I wonder if the people sent down the mountain have reached the government office yet."

As long as the authorities are notified, someone will come to rescue them and arrest all the refugees.

The ladies still held onto a glimmer of optimism and hope.

“They dare to act so presumptuously even in the sacred Buddhist land! Once the authorities arrest them, they’ll all be beheaded!” said a young lady from an official family, filled with righteous indignation.

Yao Qingling glanced at the young lady, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she didn't speak.

What she was thinking was: the mountains are lush with green trees, and those refugees can hide there and not be discovered. They rushed into the temple and looted it under the cover of heavy rain. Even if someone went down the mountain to notify the nearby county government for rescue, it would be difficult to go down or up the mountain in such bad weather, and it was uncertain when rescue would arrive.

Perhaps by the time the soldiers arrive, they will all have already perished under the blade.

They could only pray that the monks could buy them time until reinforcements arrived.

Yao Qingling didn't dare to say anything, for fear of causing panic.

These women are used to being pampered, and when they are extremely afraid, they may do crazy things, which would make them unsafe.

The Imperial Censor's wife and Qingling had the same idea. They looked at each other, shook their heads slightly, and remained silent in tacit agreement.

Suddenly, Qingling's sleeve was gently tugged. Qingling turned her head and saw that it was Taoye.

Tao Ye leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Miss, the young master just came down the mountain. I wonder if he will encounter these refugees on the way. Will he come to rescue us?"

Yao Qingling had already thought about it.

Although Zhan Xingzhuo was a civil official, he was skilled in martial arts; Minglu had followed him since childhood and had also learned a few moves; as the second young master of the Duke's mansion, Zhan Xingzhuo also had secret guards by his side.

Therefore, there is no problem for him to survive.

But to say he came to rescue her?

It would be a lie to say that there were no expectations in one's heart.

However, Zhan Xingzhuo is going down the mountain in such heavy rain, something must have happened to Zhou Zhining.

Compared to this, Yao Qingling had almost no expectations left for Zhan Xingzhuo.

She clenched her cold fingers and slowly shook her head: "I don't know."

Tao Ye had previously disliked her son-in-law, but now, a glimmer of hope remained. She thought that if he could return to save them now, her young mistress might forgive him.

...

The mountain path was difficult to traverse, and Zhan Xingzhuo and his group ran down the mountain in the rain. The steps were extremely slippery, and they would slide down two steps for every one they took. Zhan Xingzhuo mustered his strength and leaped down. Although Minglu was not as good as him, running and jumping were no problem for him.

The servant who came to deliver the message suffered terribly; he practically tumbled down the mountain and nearly lost his life.

He finally managed to grab onto a tree and stop, then cried out, "Grandpa, wait for me..."

However, Zhan Xingzhuo, who was ahead, couldn't hear him at all, or perhaps he was only concerned about Zhou Zhining's safety, and he rushed downhill.

Seeing that no one stopped, the servant wiped away his snot and tears, endured the excruciating pain, struggled to his feet, and, ignoring the mud all over his body, limped and carefully made his way down the street.

Without torches or lanterns, and with torrential rain pouring down, they couldn't even open their eyes, and their whole bodies ached as if their bones were falling apart. The servants felt they had never suffered so much in their lives.

He glanced back at the mountain gate, paused, and rubbed his eyes hard. Why was Yongning Temple so bright?

That's not right. Even if you set up a fire, it's impossible for it to burn so brightly in the rain.

Could it be—

Just as he was getting a better look, he suddenly saw several figures running downhill, seemingly fighting as they ran.

A flash of silver light, and a jet of liquid, like a water column, floated into the sky, drawing an arc. Then, the person in front of him fell down.

Blood--

Murder!

The servant's eyes widened as if they were about to burst out of their sockets, his legs trembled and he lost his balance, slipped and tumbled down again.

Ahead, Minglu also noticed that something seemed amiss in the mountains.

He caught up with Zhan Xingzhuo: "Master, it seems something has happened at the temple. Look up there."

Zhan Xingzhuo looked towards the mountain gate and saw flames shooting into the sky.

He frowned, then thought for a moment and said, "The temple should be holding a ritual to appease the hungry ghosts."

—There is a practice in temples where burning materials can be extinguished even in heavy rain if oil is poured on them.

"Never mind that, hurry down the mountain, Zhi Ning is waiting for me."

After resting enough, Zhan Xingzhuo shook off the raindrops from his eyes and continued on his way.

A carriage was parked at the foot of the mountain, and the coachman was resting inside. Hearing the noise, he rushed out to see what was happening and hurriedly prepared to drive the carriage.

Minglu snatched the whip from the driver and told him to stand aside. He drove the carriage himself, speeding along.

Upon reaching the city gate, as the heavy doors were about to close, Minglu gathered all the energy in his chest and roared, "Giddy up—"

They managed to get in just before the city gates closed.

The carriage sped along when it was stopped halfway by men from the Five Cities Garrison.

Zhan Xingzhu got off the carriage and asked about the situation. After exchanging a few words, Zhan Xingzhu felt relieved and his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

"Thank you," he said, bowing with his hands clasped in thanks.

The deputy commander waved his hand, looking dejected: "Don't thank me yet, we still have a lot to do after this happened."

Running around in the pouring rain, only managing to catch a few petty thieves—how am I going to explain this? Just thinking about it is frustrating.

The deputy commander led his team to intensify the arrest and then left with his men.

Zhan Xingzhuo was still very worried about Zhou Zhining and urged Minglu to hurry up.

Soon we arrived at Mao'er Lane.

Mao'er Lane is mostly inhabited by merchants. The entire lane was affected by the disaster, but thanks to timely rescue efforts and heavy rain, the fire was not too severe.

Some families were tidying up their houses at that moment. Zhan Xingzhuo walked in and heard the cries of women and children.

The messenger said that around dusk, someone threw torches into the yard, committing robbery!

Zhan Xingzhuo's heart trembled as he reached the door, and Minglu stepped forward and pushed the door open.

The courtyard was a complete mess.

The man's heart clenched.

Although the deputy commander said nothing serious had happened, he was referring to the entire alley. He didn't know if Zhou Zhining was injured, but she was definitely frightened!

Zhan Xingzhuo quickened his pace, calling out, "Zhi Ning! Zhi Ning!"

"Sir, over here!"

Zhan Xingzhuo paused, looked back, and saw the gatekeeper trembling as he stood up from behind a water vat.

"Sir, you're finally back." The gatekeeper wiped away his tears.

"What about Miss Zhou? How is she?"

The doorman hurriedly said, "Sir, don't worry, she's at the Yunlai Inn. She told you to go there to find her."

Zhan Xingzhuo nodded, then called Minglu and hurried to Yunlai Inn.

The Yunlai Inn was brightly lit tonight, housing several merchants who had come to escape the disaster. Zhou Zhining, still shaken, lay listlessly on the bed, attended to by two maids, Zhiyun and Zhiyue, who were tending to her and giving her calming medicine.

Hearing the knock, everyone inside flinched, and then a familiar male voice came from outside: "Zhi Ning, are you in there?"

"Miss, it's the Second Master!" the maids exclaimed excitedly.

"Go open the door quickly." Zhou Zhining struggled to her feet and stumbled towards the door.

Before he even reached the door, Zhan Xingzhuo had already pushed it open. Seeing Zhou Zhining inside, safe and sound, his tense heart relaxed in that instant. Zhou Zhining rushed into his arms, crying, "Brother Xingzhuo, I almost didn't see you again, sob sob..."