Chapter 38 The Lively Scene (2)
Meng Guanqi was stunned; he hadn't expected her to come up with such a way to help him vent his anger.
Seeing that he didn't answer, Li Xiaoxiao said, "Do you dare? If you don't, I'll take you out first." Then she came back to light the fire.
In that case, even if he doesn't agree, she'll still make a big fuss about it.
Looking at this audacious girl in front of him, Meng Guanqi was at a loss for words to describe her.
Despite her exceptional skills, she willingly sold herself into slavery; even as a servant, her attitude remained consistently humble and dignified, devoid of any trace of the timidity or cowardice expected of a servant; moreover, she was bold yet meticulous, quickly seeking him out after he encountered danger, and fiercely vengeful, even replacing him with Bao He, setting a trap for Lu Weifu.
What is Lu Weifu's identity? What is her identity? Knowing that he was being bullied, she couldn't wait and immediately took the opportunity to retaliate. Wasn't she afraid that the news would leak out and Lu Weifu would retaliate?
Is she really from the countryside? How can she be so fearless?
But if she, a mere maid, isn't afraid, how could he possibly lose to her? After all, Lu Weifu was the one who wanted to harm him; Li Xiaoxiao was just helping him vent his anger.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, his gaze was firm: "Just do it. If anything goes wrong, it's all on my orders."
To deal with this kind of person, you have to beat him down badly. If you scare him, he might come out and bite you again at any time. Moreover, Lu Weifu even dared to scheme against and bully people with family background and official titles, which shows that he has bullied the powerless and weak in his daily life.
Li smiled and said, "Don't worry, nothing will happen. You wait here, I'll take care of those two guards first." After saying that, she gently opened the door and slipped out.
Meng Guanqi was startled. She hadn't even told him what the plan was, so why was she leaving?
But she ran too fast; Meng Guanqi couldn't even catch a glimpse of her clothes before she slipped out the door. He didn't dare follow her or call out to her, so he could only stay in the house and wait for news.
Fortunately, Li Xiaoxiao returned quickly: "It's all settled, come with me."
She took Meng Guanqi's hand and left the room. She walked quietly to the door of Mingyue Hall, intending to listen closely. However, the intimate sounds inside were too loud, and she could hear them clearly without even putting her ear to her ear.
Meng Guanqi's face quickly turned bright red. She was so embarrassed that she didn't know what to do. She subconsciously wanted to cover Li Xiaoxiao's ears.
Li Xiaoxiao slapped his hand away and whispered, "What are you doing?"
Meng Guanqi said awkwardly, "You, you don't want to listen, let's go quickly!"
This kid is quite innocent! Li Xiaoxiao chuckled, took out a door bolt, and blocked the door from the outside: "That way they can't get out..."
Ignoring her embarrassment, Meng Guanqi whispered, "What are you planning to do next? Call for help directly? Won't that expose us?"
Call someone? Is she that stupid?
She took a flint from her bosom and tossed it in front of him.
Meng Guanqi suddenly had a flash of inspiration: "You want to set a fire?"
Li Xiaoxiao said, "We won't burn this one, we'll burn the one next door. Once the smoke comes out, everyone in the Zheng residence will be alerted, and then everyone will come in this direction. Then everyone will know what good deeds this young master Lu has done."
A fire seemed to be burning in Meng Guanqi's eyes. He couldn't wait a moment longer. He took the lead, opened the door of the side room, and dragged all the quilts, curtains, calligraphy, paintings and books out and put them in the center of the room, with a "what's the use" attitude: "Burn them!"
Li Xiaoxiao pulled out the quilt and let Meng Guanqi hold it: "This can't be burned, you keep it!"
Meng Guanqi asked, puzzled, "Why are you taking the blanket?"
Li smiled and said, "You'll find out soon enough." She lit the oil lamp on the table with a flint, poured the oil around the room, and then threw it into the clutter in the middle.
Flames quickly shot up and gradually engulfed the pile of flammable materials.
Moreover, it was the height of summer, the weather was dry and the temperature was extremely high. With oil poured on the ground, the fire quickly spread throughout the house.
Li Xiaoxiao and Meng Guanqi quickly retreated from the house and closed the door. Li Xiaoxiao took the quilt from Meng Guanqi's hand, unfolded it, and suddenly covered their heads. While pulling him out, she shouted, "Fire! Fire! Mingyue Hall is on fire! Help!"
So that was her plan: once the quilt was draped over her, no one would know who was under it.
That's pretty smart!
Meng Guanqi thought to himself.
Mingyue Hall was very close to the front courtyard, and Li Xiaoxiao had a very loud voice, which immediately alerted the servants of the Zheng family.
Seeing the two people running out wrapped in quilts, the servants didn't notice who they were. Instead, they reflexively looked towards Mingyue Hall, where thick smoke was billowing into the sky. The servants panicked, shouting, "Fire! Come and put out the fire!"
The news spread like wildfire, and the entire front yard was thrown into chaos. The guests who were still drinking in the front yard all put down their chopsticks and ran out in surprise.
Master Zheng said urgently, "Steward, steward! Where is the fire?"
Butler Zheng ran over, panting, and said, "Reporting to Master, it's in the direction of Mingyue Hall."
Master Zheng was furious: "What happened? How could Mingyue Hall be on fire? Quickly, send people to put out the fire!"
Although the fire was put out by servants, as the master of the house, he had no choice but to hurry toward Mingyue Hall, followed by a large group of people.
Today is his mother's birthday, and he has invited hundreds of guests. How could he let the fire go wrong?
Magistrate Meng had been given a few cups of wine and was feeling a bit dizzy. When he heard the fire, he was instantly half-sober and instinctively followed Master Zheng toward Mingyue Hall.
Li Xiaoxiao and Meng Guanqi hid to the side. Seeing people hurrying past, she gave Meng Guanqi a push: "Take this opportunity to blend into the crowd. Don't let anyone find out you're missing. We'll separate here."
She whispered, "The Zheng family may not know that Lu Weifu drugged you and brought you to Mingyue Hall. Now that you're in the crowd, no one will know that you were drugged and that this fire has nothing to do with you. I'm leaving. You can decide what to do next."
Meng Guanqi tried to pull her back, but she had already pushed him away and disappeared into the crowd.
"Young master, young master! Where are you, young master?" Ah Sheng's anxious voice came from behind.
Meng Guanqi stopped and said, "Asheng, I'm here."
Ah Sheng and Zhao Jian rushed over together, breathing a huge sigh of relief: "You're here, that's great! Where's the master?"
Meng Guanqi remained calm: "My father is ahead. The Zheng residence is on fire, and as the county magistrate, he must be very anxious. Let's go over and see if we can help in any way."
Ah Sheng and Zhao Jian responded in unison, and together they escorted Meng Guanqi forward.
Meng Guanqi took a few steps forward and couldn't help but look back at the spot where they had just hidden. It was now empty; Li Xiaoxiao was nowhere to be seen.
Zhao Jian followed his gaze and turned around to look: "Young master, what are you looking at?"
Meng Guanqi remained expressionless: "Oh, it's nothing, let's go quickly."
The servants of the Zheng residence rushed into the courtyard of Mingyue Hall in single file, carrying buckets of water. They poured water onto the fire, which was in a side room. The fire spread rapidly and was almost reaching the main house.
Master Zheng arrived, drenched in sweat: "Is anyone inside?"
Butler Zheng, who arrived before him, wiped his sweat: "There shouldn't be any—" There were too many guests coming to celebrate the old lady's birthday, so he arranged to receive them in other places yesterday, and Mingyue Hall just happened to be empty.
Just then, they suddenly heard a terrified banging on the door from the next room: "Help! Someone help me! Is anyone home? Please help me!"
Master Zheng's expression changed drastically, and he roared angrily, "Didn't you say there was no one here? Quick! Save them!"
Magistrate Meng approached and asked, "Master Zheng, how many people are trapped inside? Should I call the yamen runners?"
Master Zheng said anxiously, "The steward said that no guests have been arranged to stay here, and we don't know who is inside yet. Please wait a moment, sir. There is a pond of koi outside this courtyard, so it is very convenient to get water. This fire should not be able to start."
Sure enough, as bucket after bucket of water was poured on, the fire was quickly brought under control, leaving only a little smoke drifting in the yard.
Seeing that the fire had been extinguished, a servant mustered up his courage and rushed over to pull off the bolt on the door of Mingyue Hall. He then forcefully pulled the door open, and two shirtless people tumbled out from inside.
Both men had disheveled hair and were shirtless, wearing only thin underpants. Fresh scratches covered their genitals, and their underpants were soaked with sweat and clung tightly to their bodies. Both were barefoot and appeared almost naked in public, clutching their chests and coughing incessantly, probably quite choked by the smoke.
Meng Guanqi was overjoyed and couldn't help but clench his fists as he stood at the back of the crowd.
Lu Weifu, you didn't expect this, did you? Those who harm others will ultimately harm themselves. Your current situation is entirely your own doing.
The crowd gasped in surprise, staring in astonishment at the two disheveled individuals.
One of them coughed and turned around to look at the fire, only to find a pool of blood behind his buttocks.
The men watching from the scene were all stunned, completely bewildered by what had happened.
In broad daylight, they dared to hide in the Zheng residence and commit such illicit acts, and with someone of the same sex no less! It's utterly immoral and utterly disgusting!
More footsteps came from the courtyard gate. It turned out that the fire had also alarmed the ladies who had finished eating and were watching the opera. The ladies were worried about their husbands and sons who were eating in the front yard, so they couldn't sit still and hurriedly came with their maids to check.
"Oh dear! What are those two doing?" A scream came from the woman walking at the front. "How could this happen? It's so embarrassing!"
Lu Weifu, who had already caught his breath, felt his legs go weak. How could so many people have come? Why was the house next door on fire? And why was the Mingyue Hall's house locked from the outside?
He no longer had time to investigate who had framed him; all he wanted to do was cover his face and leave this place of trouble, lest someone see him—
Suddenly, the beautiful woman beside him cried out, "Young Master Lu, where are you going?"
Upon hearing that hoarse voice, Lu Weifu froze on the spot as if he had been doused with a bucket of cold water. Ignoring the risk of revealing his face, he turned around abruptly, grabbed the thin man covered in scratches, and brushed aside his disheveled hair.
A plain, even somewhat ugly face appeared before him, with buck teeth, a flat nose, and acne scars, and was looking at him with affection.
Lu Weifu screamed in fright and shoved him away violently: "Who, who are you?"
Baohe immediately rushed over and hugged him: "Lu Lang, it's me, it's Baohe."
What Baohe? Who is Baohe? Isn't Meng Guanqi with him?
Lu Weifu was shocked and hurriedly looked around for Meng Guanqi.
There are so many people standing in front of Mingyue Hall, and people keep squeezing in at the door, men, women, old and young. Meng Guanqi, where is Meng Guanqi?
His terrified gaze searched for his figure in the crowd. Finally, a handsome young man, as elegant as an orchid or a jade tree, stood behind Magistrate Meng, his eyes meeting his. He could clearly see the deep contempt and mockery in his eyes.
"Heavens! Isn't this Young Master Lu?" A lady who arrived a little later exclaimed, then immediately covered her mouth as if she had realized something.
Zheng Yang's mind was completely blank. Could someone tell him what was going on?
Lu Weifu was someone he met not long ago when he went to Lin'an Prefecture. Knowing that his grandmother was having a birthday banquet today, he specially asked him for an invitation to come and offer his congratulations. He was just the son of a wealthy family, and he was very excited to be able to invite the son of an experienced man to be his guest. But how could he—how could he do such a thing on the day of his grandmother's birthday banquet?
In an instant, hundreds of eyes in the courtyard were fixed on Lu Weifu.
Lu Weifu then realized that in his search for Meng Guanqi, he had actually raised his head and been recognized. He frantically covered his face and hissed, "No, it's not me, you've mistaken me for someone else." He turned around and ran towards the back door in a panic.
Baohe rushed forward and hugged his legs: "Lu Lang, don't abandon me!"
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