Chapter 210

Zhang Mama, Deng Mama, and Wu Quan each carried a bundle of blankets on their backs.

At first, the servants didn't dare to actually act.

But once the grannies started fighting, every move drew blood.

Soon the servants couldn't withstand them.

Li Chao Jing suffered several losses!

He hardened his heart, gritted his teeth, and shouted angrily: "Since you refuse a toast and choose a penalty drink, then I'll kill you all!"

Saying this, he was the first to raise his sword and thrust at Zhang Mama.

Zhang Mama's shoulder was pierced, and the sword tip went on to tear the blanket behind her.

Zhang Mama angrily shouted: "Beast!"

If the person behind her were truly the Old Lady, wouldn't he really be committing matricide?!

Li Chao Jing, however, sneered: "You dare to play tricks under this general's nose? You're not even qualified!"

He had long suspected that none of this was real.

After saying that, he drew his sword again and directly stabbed at the bedding behind Zhang Mama.

The cotton blanket was ripped open, fluff flying everywhere.

Li Chao Jing was not surprised at all.

He loudly ordered: "Rip open whatever they're carrying on their backs, general!"

"You bold criminals, dare to conspire to abduct the Old Lady and flee the manor—if even a single hair of the Old Lady is harmed today, all criminals will be executed on the spot by this general!"

The servants shouted in unison: "Yes, general!"

Seeing this, Deng Mama burst out cursing: "Li Chao Jing, you're truly worthless! Today we'll fight you to the death—"

After saying that, the grannies no longer held back, each bringing out their housekeeping skills from years past to meet the attack.

Qu Shi anxiously looked around the crowd.

"Where is Luo'er? Luo'er—Luo'er!!"

Li Kechuan also didn't see Li Qingluo.

"Someone, go seize the eldest daughter!"

The guards beside Li Kechuan immediately rushed into the crowd.

But there was none.

Nowhere was there any sign of Li Qingluo.

Li Kechuan then recalled that, just moments ago in the chaos, he had clearly seen four people with 'grandmother' on their backs!

But now there are only three people here?

Another one?!

Could the other one be Li Qingluo?!

Could it be that what she's carrying on her back is the real grandmother?!

She's a young lady—how could she possibly carry an old person?!

And yet she ran off so nimbly and easily?!

Li Kechuan's breathing grew heavy without him realizing it.

Qu Shi, meanwhile, panicked and tried to push into the crowd.

"Luo'er—Luo'er! Come out quickly, Luo'er—! Mother is here, Luo'er—"

Her eyes were red, her voice tinged with panic.

She didn't want to lose another daughter, even recalling that scene at Qishan Guanshui Cliff last time.

Back then, her mistaken choice only pushed Luo'er further away.

Today she's doing all this merely to give her a better future.

Why can't she understand?

Li Chao Jing heard Qu Shi's shout, then looked into the crowd—where was that rebellious daughter's trace now?!

He then bellowed: "Damn! I've been played by this rebellious girl!"

But by the time he reacted, it was already too late.

Li Qingluo had already carried Pei Lao Furen out of the Jiangjun Fu.

Cui Er was already waiting at the rear gate.

Or perhaps Deng Mama sensed something was off; when she went to notify the second and third households, she kept a mental note to have Cui Er wait at the rear gate.

Tonight, all the servants were summoned by Li Chao Jing to surround Jingci Tang.

Thus, the gatekeeper at the rear gate was knocked down by Cui Er with a single stick.

Otherwise, Li Qingluo wouldn't have been able to break out so quickly.

She still held a sword in her hand.

The grandmother was on her back, tightly bound with a cloth.

"Grandmother, Luo'er won't let anything happen to you."

Li Qingluo glanced back at her grandmother, feeling her still breathing, and only then did her heart settle.

No longer hesitating, she quickened her pace with the help of Que'er and a few others, charging into the pitch‑black night.

There was no time to hitch a carriage; once Li Chao Jing reacted, the stables would naturally be tightly guarded.

Everything was too rushed, with no time to prepare, so Li Qingluo and her group could only sprint desperately through the dark night.

Not long after, Li Chao Jing led men out of the manor and rushed onto the streets to search for Li Qingluo and Pei Lao Furen.

"Over here—over there—"

Quick!

Many people on the street were jostled, inevitably muttering, "What happened?"

"Yeah, they look like servants from the Dongyin Alley Jiangjun Fu."

How come it's them again?

However, while everyone was still suspicious, the leading servant, standing on high ground, shouted loudly: "My Cavalry Great General's Jiangjun Fu has thieves today!"

This thief has kidnapped our Jiangjun Fu's already seriously ill Old Lady as hostage and has now fled from the Jiangjun Fu!

Everyone, if anyone sees a suspicious person and helps our Jiangjun Fu capture the thief and rescue the Old Lady, they will be rewarded a thousand taels of silver!

If anyone accidentally kills the thief while trying to apprehend them, they will be rewarded five hundred taels of silver!

Anyone who provides a clue will be rewarded!

……

Instantly, the crowd below erupted in an uproar.

Many people became excited and their blood boiled.

Just providing a clue can earn money; who wouldn't want to try their luck?

Moreover, there's a chance to gain a large sum of silver—thousands or hundreds of taels—in an instant, making everyone wish they could immediately capture the thief and rescue the Old Lady themselves.

The entire street instantly fell into chaos.

Li Qingluo and the others, hiding in the dark, changed expression.

Que'er: "Master, are you trying to use this trick to force the young lady back to the residence?"

Li Qingluo: "He now probably truly wishes I were dead."

Killing the thief earns a reward of five hundred taels.

Isn't she that very "thief"?

How dare he not announce it to the crowd—his Jiangjun Fu's eldest legitimate daughter is precisely this "thief"!

Li Qingluo coldly snorted: "Trying to force me to reveal himself? He's dreaming."

Cui Er, the most timid of them, said: "Then... where can we go?"

Ying'er: "Miss, I know a residence that is the Old Lady's private villa, but to get there now we must pass through the city."

Li Qingluo: "No. If we go through the city, we will surely be discovered. Grandmother cannot endure any longer; we must go straight to Prince Su's residence!"

Ying'er and Zheng Mama, who had escorted Li Qingluo out, were both startled by the words.

Prince Su's residence?!

How can the young lady speak of going to Prince Su's residence as easily as going to her own gate?

That, that is Prince Su himself!

Li Qingluo: "However, going to Prince Su's residence now still carries many risks… Wait! I know a place—follow me!"

It is Guiyuan.

That is Prince Su's private villa; from here it's the quickest route!

After settling grandmother, she will go to plead with Prince Su, determined to save grandmother's life!

At this moment, Li Qingluo had no doubt that Prince Su would turn her away at the door; this was also her only hope tonight.

Having said that, Li Qingluo hesitated no longer, leading Que'er and the others swiftly deeper into the alley.

Li Qingluo had at least followed Zhui Yu on several midnight walks; those times also required dodging the patrols' eyes, so this route is one that ordinary folk and the Jiangjun Fu's servants would not easily find.

Que'er originally worried that carrying Pei Lao Furen all the way would be strenuous.

But seeing Li Qingluo not even panting, they came to admire her strength.

On this side, the master and servants fled to Guiyuan to escape; on the other side, Duan Rongshi had just left the Dali Temple.

He rode on his horse, seeing the street in chaos, as if everyone were searching for someone, and glanced toward Zhui Yu, who had just begun his duty nearby.

Zhui Yu went to inquire, his face showing a hint of urgency, and hurried back to report: "Your Highness, something has happened at the Jiangjun Fu. Currently, the Jiangjun Fu's servants are scouring the streets for thieves, saying this thief abducted Pei Lao Furen!"

Duan Rongshi: "A thief? They seized Pei Lao Furen?"

Zhui Yu: "Yes. This is so outrageous, there must be something fishy!"

After all, everyone knows Pei Lao Furen is a female general of the inner chambers; how could anyone abduct her even within the Jiangjun Fu?

Only the gullible commoners of this street would believe it.

Duan Rongshi's eyes sank: "Go, inquire about Miss Li's whereabouts."

Zhui Yu immediately turned: "Yes—"

Duan Rongshi looked at the chaos in the street, gave an order: "Return to the residence!"

Li Qingluo, carrying Pei Lao Furen, arrived at Guiyuan's gate after a perilous journey.

She knocked on the gate, and it opened shortly after.

She pulled down her face covering in one motion: "It's me. May I come in?"

The mute servants, seeing her, were naturally delighted.

Without hesitation, they hurriedly ushered her inside.

Que'er and the others were still dazed, but Li Qingluo had already carried her grandmother and placed her in a room.

What place is this, exactly?

How could the gatekeepers let them in so easily?

The mute servants gestured, and Ying'er happened to understand.

"Miss, they ask, may we go fetch a doctor to help?"

Li Qingluo: "Yes!"

"However, I must go to Prince Su's residence myself! Only the famed physicians there can offer a sliver of hope to save grandmother's life!"

Li Qingluo quickly donned a maid's outer garment, removed all the hair ornaments from her head, and hastily braided her loose hair into a single plait, then rushed out the door together with the mute servant she knew best.

Ying'er watched the direction Li Qingluo disappeared, asking Que'er: "Miss, your actions are always so decisive and efficient?"

Even without bringing Que'er and Cui Er, she dares to go out alone in the dead of night—there's hardly such a brave young lady in the world, right?

The whole street is full of people looking for her, and she isn't the slightest bit afraid, is she?

Que'er: "What's the big deal? Our young lady has repeatedly turned the tide in life-and-death situations by her own strength. If we follow her, we sometimes just hold her back."

Ying'er sighed: "Miss, you are so... yet your devotion to the Old Lady is also sincere."

Que'er's eyes reddened involuntarily, and the two of them looked together at the unconscious Old Lady on the bed.

"That's only natural. In Miss's heart, the most important person in this world is the Old Lady."

"Ying'er, let's not stay idle—we don't know how my grandmother and the others are faring over there; we should also hurry and split up to act."

"Ying'er, you stay here to look after the Old Lady; I'll go out to meet my grandmother and the others! I hope they're all safe and sound."

Although Li Qingluo was disguised as a maid of Osmanthus Garden, she still carried her grandmother's sword on her person.

Osmanthus Garden had no horses, so she and the mute servant could only run desperately on foot.

Along the way she did not deliberately avoid detection; she merely wished to walk the streets as an ordinary person, even deliberately daubing some flower patterns on her face with wall ash and dirt.

Unexpectedly, on a small lane not far from Prince Su's mansion, she was still stopped by someone.

As ill luck would have it, the few people before her were precisely servants from the Jiangjun Fu.

"Halt! Have you two ladies seen any suspicious persons?"