The fire shot into the sky, extremely fierce.
Gu Boyu and Gu Chengyan talked for a full hour. After saying almost everything they needed to say, he had nothing more to say and quietly waited for the end of his life.
Gu Chengyan didn't want to die, so he climbed up and down, trying to get out.
But no matter how familiar a room is, once a fire breaks out, the door you remember can't be found, and you lose all sense of direction.
The smoke from above choked him so much that he couldn't breathe, so he had to lie on the ground.
The raging fire scorched him so badly that he felt his skin was about to burst, causing him unbearable pain.
He grabbed Gu Boyu and shook him violently, both afraid and angry, and roared, "Open the door for me, you irresponsible scoundrel! I am where I am today because of you!"
Do you know how difficult it is to get by in Kyoto, a city teeming with powerful and wealthy people? I'm looked down upon by everyone, and everything I do is made difficult for me! *cough cough*
You're useless, so my mother pressures me, wanting me to make something of myself. I'm almost driven crazy!
All you do is eat, drink, and be merry all day long. The Marquis's mansion has been declining day by day under your watch. If it falls, you are the real culprit! Why drag me down with you when you're going to die?"
Gu Boyu let him scold him, not even bothering to argue.
Gu Boyu was pulled down by Gu Chengyan and fell over, his hair and beard on fire. He didn't care and chuckled as he watched Gu Chengyan yelling and crawling around looking for an exit.
"Cough cough cough, Gu Chengyan, don't, don't look anymore, just wait quietly, wait to die... You can't get out, I, I've locked everything up, cough cough cough."
"Shut up! You should have died long ago, cough cough cough..." Gu Chengyan continued to struggle for survival, shouting, "Help... me, cough cough cough..."
The fire in the study started suddenly and was huge. Gu Boyu's courtyard gate was locked, and no one could get in for the time being.
Butler Zhang's eyelids were constantly drooping. When he heard Ping An shout "Fire!", his first thought was of Gu Boyu's room full of tung oil.
Sure enough, when I turned around, I saw a huge fire raging in the Earl's courtyard.
He immediately shouted, "Fire! Put out the fire!"
He ran desperately to Gu Boyu's courtyard. The servant was terrified when he saw the fire. He only managed to unlock the door when he heard Steward Zhang kicking it down.
As the door was kicked open with a bang, the tung oil jar in the study also exploded with a bang, sending fragments of the jar mixed with bricks and tiles flying far away.
Amid the explosion, Gu Chengyan's sharp screams could be faintly heard before being engulfed by the flames.
Steward Zhang led the entire household to fight the fire, carrying buckets of water from the lotus pond, but it was all in vain, a drop in the ocean.
Gu Boyu used too much tung oil. He was prepared to die. Not only could the tung oil not be extinguished, but it also caused a series of huge explosions.
"Boom!"
The entire study, along with the Earl's courtyard, was reduced to rubble.
When tung oil came into contact with water, the fire not only didn't go out, but it spread with the water, and Gu Boyu's entire courtyard, including the trees and objects, caught fire.
Fortunately, it was quite far from the other courtyards, otherwise the entire mansion would have been burned down.
Butler Zhang burst into tears, desperately urging everyone to dig and put out the fire.
The explosion was so severe that it alerted other residences in the western part of the city.
Gu Zheng delivered the letter to his second and third uncles and was on his way back to the Earl's Mansion when he was told, "Gu Zheng, hurry back to the mansion, the Earl's Mansion is on fire."
Gu Zheng rushed to the Earl's mansion, which was already in complete chaos.
Some were fighting the fire, some were fainting, and many firefighters were injured by the explosion.
When Gu Zheng heard that his father and elder brother had died in the fire, he cried out in distress.
Gu Shaoyu had not yet left court when Xie Zhaozhao received the letter, which was addressed to "Third Brother". She did not feel comfortable opening it.
But when he heard that Gu Boyu had sent a letter to Gu Zhongyu and Gu Shaoyu, he felt uneasy and immediately sent Bei Chen to the Earl's mansion to see if something had happened.
Bei Chen left quickly, but returned even faster.
"Madam, something terrible has happened! The Earl and Young Master Gu were discussing matters in the study when the fire started. The fire is huge, and the study has even exploded."
After Gu Shaoyu and Xie Zhaozhao moved, Nanxing, who often accompanied Gu Shaoyu and was quite familiar with the various households, was appointed as the steward.
Yuanyuan was capable and feisty, so she was appointed as the deputy housekeeper.
Some of the garrison soldiers also came to Qingpu Garden and were stationed in the courtyard near the martial arts training ground.
Upon hearing that the Earl's mansion was on fire, Xie Zhaozhao immediately told Nanxing to lead people to the mansion to put out the fire.
The Kyoto street patrol also organized people to fight the fire.
If the fire were to spread and burn down the other noble residences in the western part of the city, it would be disastrous.
Gu Boyu's courtyard has been reduced to a smoking ruin.
Gu Boyu and Gu Chengyan have completely disappeared; even their ashes cannot be found.
The wind howled, and ash filled the sky, drifting to the Marquis's mansion and even to every corner of the western city. No one knew which grain of ash was the final resting place of Lord Gu's soul.
The old lady fainted and woke up, then fainted again.
Upon receiving the news, Gu Shaoyu and his brother Gu Zhongyu rushed to the Marquis's mansion. Looking at the ruins of the courtyard and thinking of their elder brother who had been working tirelessly for the mansion just yesterday, both brothers' eyes reddened.
Gu Zhongyu burst into tears: "Brother, what are you doing?"
This older brother has been indulging in all sorts of vices since childhood: drinking, gambling, whoring, and prostitution. He's always either in gambling dens or brothels, and he'll spend every penny he has, never saving any for the New Year...
Despite his disastrous life and numerous flaws, neither Gu Shaoyu nor Gu Zhongyu could bring themselves to hate him now, and they both remembered his good qualities.
Gu Zhongyu remembered that when he was a child, he would steal money from his family to buy delicious food and fun toys to share with him.
Gu Shaoyu recalled his suddenly white hair, his generosity when the family divided the property, and how he went to the two brothers' homes to inquire about the An family's situation after the division.
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