Chapter 44 Setting Fire to the Front Door
Pei Zhi reached out to block Ye Wanning, shoving her aside and slashing the arrowhead with his sword. Sparks flew, illuminating his profile, which appeared as hard as stone.
"Black Wind, take Miss Ye away!" Pei Zhi shouted, brandishing his sword as he charged toward the guards.
Hei Feng grabbed Ye Wanning and said, "Miss, this way!"
The two slipped into a side path. Ye Wanning turned around and saw Pei Zhi surrounded by guards, swords flashing, but he couldn't break through the encirclement for the time being.
“We can’t abandon him!” Ye Wanning struggled to go back.
"Don't worry, Miss, the master has a way to escape!" Black Wind pulled her forward. "This path leads to the river outside the manor; we'll take the waterway!"
The side passage was narrower than the main passage, allowing only one person to pass at a time. As Ye Wanning ran, she pulled out the silver needles her mother had left her from her sleeve—her last weapon for self-defense.
After running for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, light finally appeared ahead. Hei Feng pushed open a wooden door, and sure enough, there was a small river outside, with a small boat moored on the bank.
"Get on the boat quickly!" Black Wind urged.
Just as Ye Wanning stepped onto the boat, footsteps sounded behind her again. A man dressed in black chased after her, holding a knife; it was the same man she had seen in the stone chamber earlier.
"Where do you think you're going!" the man roared as he lunged at him.
Black Wind drew his sword to meet the attack, and the two began fighting on the shore. Just as Ye Wanning was about to help, she saw the man suddenly pull out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket and throw it at Black Wind's face.
"Watch out! It's a sleeping potion!" Ye Wanning shouted.
Black Wind quickly held his breath, but he was still a step too slow. He staggered back a few steps and collapsed to the ground.
The man grinned maliciously as he turned to Ye Wanning: "Second Miss Ye, come back with me to see the Duke."
Ye Wanning gripped the small knife in her hand and took three steps back. The small boat rocked slightly with the water, and her heart pounded wildly. Just as the man was about to pounce, Ye Wanning suddenly turned around and jumped into the river.
The icy river water quickly submerged her. She held her breath and floated downstream with the current. The man on the bank chased after her, cursing, but he stopped following after a short while.
Ye Wanning surfaced, panting heavily, shivering from the cold. She didn't know how long she had been drifting until a branch caught on her clothes. She struggled free and climbed ashore, only to find that she had unknowingly drifted into the small ditch behind Ci'an Hall.
Hearing the noise, the old shopkeeper came out with a lantern and was surprised to see Ye Wanning, who was soaking wet. "Second Miss? What are you doing here?"
Ye Wanning was so cold she couldn't speak, so the old shopkeeper quickly helped her into the house, found her clean clothes to change into, and brought her a bowl of hot ginger soup.
After drinking the ginger soup, Ye Wanning felt a little warmer. She told the old manager about her sneaking into the Li residence, and the old manager sighed, "The Li family is becoming more and more arrogant."
"Lord Pei is still inside," Ye Wanning said, her voice almost choked with sobs. "I must rescue him."
"Second Miss, don't worry." The old shopkeeper pondered for a while. "I know someone who works as a cook in the Duke of Li's mansion; perhaps he can help."
He ordered someone to immediately summon the cook, while Ye Wanning sat by the stove, drying her soaking wet hair, her heart filled with anxiety. Would Pei Zhi be alright? Was the rubbing still on him?
Half an hour later, the cook returned in a panic. He was a short, stout middle-aged man, his face flushed and panting, saying, "Old manager, what do you need me for? It's so late..."
"Chef Wang, tell me, did something happen at the Duke Li's mansion tonight?" the old shopkeeper asked bluntly.
Cook Wang looked around and lowered his voice, saying, "That's right! I heard that something very important was lost, and the Duke was furious. He sent all the guards out to search, and even locked up a high-ranking official surnamed Pei, saying he'd hand him over to the authorities at dawn."
Ye Wanning's heart sank. Pei Zhi! He really had been arrested!
"Do you know where he's being held?" Ye Wanning asked anxiously.
Cook Wang shook his head: "I don't know, it seems to be in the manor's water dungeon. That place is extremely eerie; no one who goes in has ever come out alive..."
Ye Wanning's heart went numb. A water dungeon? If Pei Zhi were imprisoned in a water dungeon, that would be a real problem.
"Don't worry, Miss," the old shopkeeper advised.
"Chef Wang, could you possibly find a way to send a message inside?"
Chef Wang looked troubled: "This...this is too risky. If we're discovered, my whole family will be in trouble."
Ye Wanning took a gold bracelet from her bosom and stuffed it into Chef Wang's hand: "Take this. If you can rescue Lord Pei, I'll give you another hundred taels of silver so you can leave the capital with your family."
Chef Wang looked at the gold bracelet, hesitated for a long time, and then nodded: "Alright, I'll give it a try. But you have to promise me you'll send us away after it's done."
“It’s a deal,” Ye Wanning said.
Cook Wang ran off with the gold bracelet. Ye Wanning sat by the stove, sleepless all night. As dawn broke, her heart grew even colder. Just then, the old manager rushed in, flustered: "Second Miss, it's done! Cook Wang said he'll release Lord Pei through the back door at midnight tonight, and we'll be there to meet him."
Ye Wanning jumped up excitedly: "That's great!"
She quickly sent someone to inform Yingge to prepare to receive Pei Zhi. At the same time, she was also thinking about how to make Duke Li pay the price.
Night fell again. Inside the Ci'an Hall, Ye Wanning, dressed in men's clothing and holding a knife, gave orders to the Shadow Pavilion members: "Remember, our mission is to rescue people, not to linger in battle. Black Wind, you take a team to the back gate to meet Lord Pei. Once you've succeeded, immediately retreat east; there are carriages there."
"Yes!" Black Wind obeyed and left.
"The rest of you, come with me to the front gate and set it on fire to draw their attention." Ye Wanning looked at everyone. "Does everyone understand?"
"Understood!" everyone answered in unison.
At midnight, a thick fire suddenly erupted from the front gate of the Duke of Li's mansion. The guards cried out and rushed back to put out the fire, throwing the entire mansion into chaos. Taking advantage of the situation, Ye Wanning led her people in through the back gate, where Chef Wang was already waiting with a key in his hand.
"Quick, this way." Chef Wang lowered his voice and led them through several corridors to a secluded courtyard.
There was a large courtyard with a well in the middle, and a stone slab was placed over the well opening. When Chef Wang lifted the stone slab, a gust of cold air blew out.
"Lord Pei is down here." Cook Wang handed Ye Wanning a rope. "This is all I can do. You'd better hurry."
“I know.” Ye Wanning took the rope and tied one end to a large tree nearby. “You wait here, I’ll go down.”
“Miss, let me down,” said a guard from the Shadow Pavilion.
"No, I have to go down." Ye Wanning insisted on going down herself. She grabbed the rope and slid down.
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