Chapter 109: Demise

Chapter 109: Demise

"Is Yunwan inside?"

Lu Zhengliu looked at Ge Baor, asking with a glimmer of hope.

How he wished she would say 'no'!

Ge Baor just smiled, the oil bucket already spilled on the ground, leaving a spreading dark stain.

Lu Zhengliu's gaze gradually turned colder, then reddened.

"Help... help... help..."

There was actually someone pounding on the door from inside the house!

Lu Zhengliu dashed over. The wooden door was scorching hot, and he felt his skin burn as he approached.

"It's locked!"

The main door was locked from the outside, no wonder the person inside couldn't get out!

Lu Zhengliu couldn't break the brass lock with brute force, so he kicked the door open. Flames leapt out, nearly burning him.

"Father, father..."

Lu Changgong crawled out, lying on the ground, his back already ablaze!

"Changgong! Changgong!"

"Water! Where is the water!"

Gritting his teeth, Lu Zhengliu first pulled the boy out. The old nun came with a bucket of water, pouring it over Lu Changgong, extinguishing the flames.

Lu Changgong lay on the ground, his hands burnt and shaking with pain.

"Save mother... save mother..."

He clutched at Lu Zhengliu's clothes, pleading.

"Yunwan... is Yunwan inside?"

Just having opened the temple door, the flames inside were even more intense, making it impossible to enter!

The old nun and the young nuns hastily threw water, urging, "Young master, step back! The fire is spreading!"

Fearing for Lu Zhengliu's safety, they pushed him back.

Lu Zhengliu stumbled backward, staring at the burning temple, stunned and motionless.

Ge Baor was also in shock.

With such a huge fire, Lin Yunwan... couldn't possibly survive!

She looked at Lu Changgong on the ground, her lips pursed in confusion. He wasn't there when she left; when did he enter?

"Why didn’t he burn to death too!"

Ge Baor was secretly spiteful.

If she and her son had died together, it would have been perfect. Then no one could ever threaten her Qing Ge'er again.

"She... she's finally dead..."

Ge Baor exhaled in relief and thus smiled.

Lu Zhengliu, watching her with cold eyes, grabbed her neck without realizing what he was doing. His eyes looked as if they were about to burst from their sockets, bloodshot and furious.

"Wretch! You killed Yunwan!"

"Ah..."

Ge Baor let out a faint cry and then couldn't speak. Her delicate face turned purple-red, almost choked to death!

"I... I... I am... the legitimate daughter of... the Xingguo Marquis Mansion..."

"Ah Zheng... you... you... are you really going to... strangle me..."

Xingguo Marquis Mansion?

Lu Zhengliu regained his senses, slowly loosening his grip, looking at her in disbelief.

When did Ge Baor find out about her true identity?

Was she relying on her yet unconfirmed identity to harm the mistress?

"Wretch!"

"You vile woman! Setting fire to the mistress—"

Lu Zhengliu harshly slapped her.

"Cough, cough, cough, cough."

Ge Baor, dizzy and disoriented, fell to the ground, coughing up blood. Whether it was from biting her tongue or bleeding from her throat, her mouth was filled with the taste of blood.

"Stop!"

Old Lady Lu and Mrs. Yan hurried over. Hearing the sound of the cloud gong and seeing smoke from the temple, they rushed to the scene without asking what had happened.

A real disaster had occurred!

"What plot against the mistress! Zhengliu, calm down!"

Old Lady Lu pointed to the oil bucket nearby, "Can’t you see? The oil hasn’t even been poured in! The fire started from inside!"

She said this while gasping for breath.

The Lu family members were almost there. Being branded as a plotter against the mistress...

Just the thought made her heart race.

How could this happen! Ge Baor was audaciously bold!

Old Lady Lu glared furiously at Ge Baor on the ground.

But Ge Baor, as if nothing had happened, got up from the ground, wiped the blood from her mouth, and sneered, "My lord, instead of venting your anger on me, you'd better go look for the jade pendant."

"With so many people around now, if someone secretly picks up and hides the jade pendant..."

The Lu family would end up losing more than they bargained for, unable to retain a single one.

Old Lady Lu’s heart tightened. Without questioning further, she urgently said to Lu Zhengliu, "Go help put out the fire, find people, find the jade pendant. We must see the living or... the dead."

Lu Zhengliu, upon hearing that word "corpse", turned and left.

Old Lady Lu whispered to Mrs. Yan, "Bind her and take her back!"

Then, looking at Lu Changgong on the ground, she said, "Help the young master back to see a doctor."

Hearing Lu Changgong still mumbling "save mother," her heart grew colder.

The temple had been burning for so long, could her daughter-in-law have survived...

"Finally, the fire is extinguished."

With the combined efforts of neighbors and the Lu family members, the fire at the temple was put out. Everyone on the street woke up, and the patrol commander with his soldiers also surrounded the area.

Only when daylight broke did the bystanders leave.

Lin Yunwan sat in a carriage leaving the capital, her face showing exhaustion.

She hadn't expected Changgong to suddenly appear, nor did she anticipate his actions.

The coachman stopped the carriage on the official road for a rest. Soon, Afu arrived with his men and spoke a few words to Qi Linghen in another carriage.

Hearing this, Qi Linghen nodded, got off his carriage, and reassured Lin Yunwan, "Madam, don't worry. Your foster son is safe now."

Afu's men, mingled among the people extinguishing the fire, saw firsthand the Lu family taking away Lu Changgong.

They also observed Lu Changgong’s injuries, which were non-fatal, and saw him become the living proof of "Lin Yunwan's" death.

This fire indeed added a crucial element to their plan.

With him as a witness, no one would doubt that the deceased was Lin Yunwan.

After all, no son would misidentify his own mother, and no one would question the words of a ten-year-old child.

Lin Yunwan closed her eyes, silently chanting "Amitabha Buddha."

Thankfully, Changgong is safe!

Opening her eyes, she couldn't help but speak to Qi Linghen, "That child is incredibly brave!"

Qi Linghen smiled, "He is brave and resourceful, a rare kind of child."

Lin Yunwan's smile was forced.

If it were someone else's child who was brave and resourceful, she would surely praise them. But it's different when it's her own child; it's not a pleasant feeling.

"Alright. The child is safe, and you, madam, can now go to Jiang Qian in peace."

Lin Yunwan said, "Thank you, Your Highness."

Qi Linghen nodded, pausing before saying, "Due to the urgency of time, we couldn’t find a more suitable identity for you. The legitimate daughter of the Lin family—it’s a temporary inconvenience for you, madam."

Lin Yunwan hurriedly replied, "Inconvenience? Without your help, how could I still be living openly? I can't thank you enough."

Qi Linghen kindly said, "Madam, if you need anything in Jiang Qian, you can first seek help from my uncle."

"I have yet to bid farewell to the Emperor and the Empress, so I cannot accompany you on your journey."

Lin Yunwan insisted she could manage on her own and asked him not to worry.

Yet, there was still one thing on her mind.

"May I know what assistance you wish me to offer, Your Highness?"

As a woman confined to the inner house, now stripped of her identity as the Lin family's legitimate daughter, what could she possibly offer to Prince Huan?

Qi Linghen smiled without answering.

Lin Yunwan immediately understood that the prince had no real intention of seeking her help. He had probably said so initially just to ensure she felt obliged.

"Miss Lin, we shall meet again."

Qi Linghen smiled slightly, acknowledging Lin Yunwan's new identity as an unmarried woman of age, Lin Yunwan.

Lin Yunwan bowed deeply in gratitude and bid him farewell.

The maid Xi Ruo lowered the carriage curtain and instructed the coachman to continue along the official road.

Lin Yunwan, leaning back in the carriage, clutched the purse at her waist. Fleeing the Lu family and leaving the capital, she had brought nothing with her, except for the jade pendant shaped like a leopard's tail.

Even in "death," she couldn't let the Lu family rise again using the Xingguo Marquis Mansion’s influence!