Chapter 6: Crisis

The night in the countryside was so dark that one could not see five fingers held before the eyes. Stars in the night sky flickered faintly, appearing and disappearing. Seeing Jun Jun Zijin lay on a broken bed.

Suddenly, she woke from a dream with a start; a rustling sound came from outside the door.

"Go take a look."

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin ordered Xiao He, who was lying by the bed.

Xiao He fumbled to the door, only to find the door was actually locked.

Just then, a great fire suddenly ignited outside the door. The firelight illuminated the night sky, and thick smoke rolled toward the house.

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin's heart turned ice cold; Aunt Liu had failed to drown her, and now wanted to burn her to death.

The fire grew ever larger; outside the door, tongues of flame devoured everything like wild beasts, with crackling sounds interwoven with the burning of wood.

There was no time for further thought; she saw at once that the fire was slightly weaker at the window.

She cared for nothing else, reached out, and clutched the broken clay pot on the windowsill to her chest; it contained the Red Arrow root she had dug up from the back mountain.

She grabbed a stool and smashed it toward the window; the window was already old and dilapidated, and this strike actually broke it open.

A wave of heat rushed toward her face, and the firelight illuminated her

tense features; a trace of determination flashed in her eyes. This might be their last chance.

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin tightly gripped Xiao He's hand, her voice calm:

"Xiao He, stay close to me!"

They jumped down without hesitation.

In her previous life, her father had been a captain in a special military unit.

Influenced by her father since childhood, Seeing Jun Jun Zijin learned taekwondo, archery, and horsemanship at the age of seven.

Although she had followed her ideal to become a physician and possessed no profound mastery in martial arts, she had not neglected them for over twenty years to strengthen her body.

This body was very weak, but using skillful force to jump through a window was no problem.

The moon in the night sky was obscured by thick smoke, leaving only the stars, which appeared especially dim against the glow of the fire.

The firelight illuminated the night sky; the moment they leaped from the window, the heat wave nearly swallowed them.

They paid no heed to the intense burning pain on their skin and ran forward at full speed, using the cover of night.

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin felt that after running only a short while, her lungs were about to explode from exhaustion, but she could not stop.

Aunt Liu would surely not let them go; if caught, she would likely be unable to save herself, let alone protect Xiao He, who could not protect herself.

Only when the firelight grew farther away and no one pursued them from behind did they stop.

Once they released their tension, they felt completely drained; Seeing Jun Jun Zijin pouted her lips; this body was still too weak.

The firelight in the distance burned for half the night before gradually extinguishing. The night was hazy, and even the air was scorching.

After the firelight faded, the trees outside the manor appeared and disappeared in the gloom.

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin and Xiao He crouched in a patch of grass, staring intently at the commotion at the manor.

Xiao He had been frightened, but quickly calmed down; a trace of approval flashed in Seeing Jun Jun Zijin's eyes.

At this moment, Xiao He asked:

"Young Lady, the fire was so great and burned for so long; if we had not escaped, we would likely have been burned to nothing but ash. Aunt Liu is truly ruthless."

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin chuckled lightly and comforted her:

"Do not fear; are we not fine?"

Xiao He grew somewhat anxious:

"Young Lady, what kind of time is this? It is a wonder you can still laugh."

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin lay down on the ground:

"Rest assured; I will not let a single one of those who harmed me go unpunished."

In the distance, the house was a mess after being burned; as dawn broke, Aunt Liu led people searching through the ruins for something.

After searching for a long time, the ruins were turned upside down, yet they seemed to have found nothing.

A Retainer spoke in a low voice:

"Who knows how such a huge fire started last night; it is likely nothing was left behind."

Aunt Liu felt slightly relieved, yet said:

"Perhaps the wind blew over a candle flame."

Xiao He looked at Seeing Jun Jun Zijin's weary face and could not help asking:

"Young Lady, Aunt Liu will surely not let us go; where shall we go now?"

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin gazed toward the direction of Jingcheng, a smile of ambiguous meaning curling her lips:

"We return to Jingcheng, to the Jun Manor."