NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 26
Upon hearing Li Xia's voice, Li Hui stepped forward to examine Li Xia carefully, checking if she was hurt. He then looked behind her.
"Brother, Mother and I got separated after leaving the tea house. Have you seen Mother? Is Sister safe?" Li Xia said, looking around for Lu and Li Xin.
"Little Sister is fine."
Since Li Xin was fine, it meant Lu had encountered some trouble. Li Xia's expression darkened. Based on the distance, they should have already come out. If they hadn't appeared, it likely meant something had happened. No, she had to go back and check.
Li Xia pushed Wang Lan, whom she had been holding, towards Li Hui. "Brother, this is the lady I rescued on the way. Please make arrangements for her. I'm going to find Mother and the others." Without waiting for Li Hui's response, Li Xia turned and went against the flow of the crowd to search for Lu and the rest.
"Come back," Li Hui called out, but Li Xia's figure had already disappeared into the crowd. Wang Lan was still gazing at Li Hui. Li Hui sighed and first brought Wang Lan to Li Xin.
This was a noodle shop where several ladies who had come out and some injured people were present. During the explosion, the crowd was startled, and Li Xin was pushed down. Fortunately, Li Hui noticed and pulled her back, preventing her from falling. However, her foot was sprained. Li Hui carried Li Xin out of the crowd and brought her to the noodle shop to rest.
Li Hui himself couldn't rest. He brought people to maintain order at the intersection, preventing the crowd from panicking.
Liu Mian asked Dan Mo and others to block outsiders, then knelt down to check Li Xin's foot. Li Xin's foot was severely swollen. "Miss, your foot is too swollen. We need to find a doctor to examine it."
"Auntie Liu Mian, I'm fine. Please arrange for someone to check if Mother, Second Sister, and Second and Third Brothers have come out," Li Xin said, more concerned about Lu, Li Xia, Li Chou, and Li Guang.
"The lady has Chunlu Granny attending to her. She should be safe," Liu Mian reassured, carefully putting socks on Li Xin's swollen foot, which was too swollen for shoes.
Li Hui brought Wang Lan over. Li Xin tried to stand up but cried out in pain from her swollen foot and sat back down.
"Miss, your foot is too swollen. You can't move around," Liu Mian and Dan Mo quickly supported her.
Li Hui hurried over. Seeing Li Xin's foot swollen like a steamed bun, he said, "I'll find someone to send you both back to the mansion." He then left to find people.
Wang Lan stood awkwardly on the side, unsure of what to say. Li Xin noticed her and recalled seeing her a few times at Lu's gatherings, knowing she was the legitimate daughter of the Wang family. "Lady Wang, you came to see the lantern festival too?"
"Yes, I got separated from my family. Fortunately, Second Miss helped me out of the crowd," Wang Lan said, recalling Li Xia's gratitude and smiling slightly.
"Lady Wang met my Second Sister. Where is she? Is she alright?" Li Xin asked with genuine concern, making Wang Lan admire how well the legitimate and illegitimate daughters got along in the governor's family, unlike her own.
Noticing Wang Lan's sad expression, Li Xin grew anxious. "Lady Wang, did something happen to my Second Sister?"
"Second Miss is fine. But she said she wanted to go find Madam Lu and rushed back into the crowd," Wang Lan quickly explained. Upon hearing this, Li Xin looked at her injured foot and hit her leg. "This injury couldn't have come at a worse time."
"Miss Li, Second Miss is very capable. She'll be fine," Wang Lan said, recalling how Li Xia deftly pushed through the crowd, kicking away those with ill intentions, and her feisty demeanor at the gathering. This Second Miss was quite an extraordinary lady.
Li Hui soon brought people to escort Li Xin and Wang Lan back to their respective residences. Li Xin didn't want to leave but had no choice due to her injured foot.
Utilizing her wind abilities, Li Xia swiftly moved through the crowd, almost floating, searching for Lu and her group. As she searched, her keen ears picked up the sounds of a battle happening in a nearby alley. Someone mentioned using oil to start a fire to force someone's hand.
Li Xia paused and entered the alley. Lu XuanNing leaned against the wall, wondering if he would truly die in this nameless alley today. He didn't want to die without reporting the treacherous officials to the court. He didn't want to die without seeing his beloved grandparents. And he didn't want to die in this nameless alley after surviving battles. He gripped his sword, trying to stand, but his severe injuries and blood loss made him dizzy. His blurred vision saw a young lady entering the alley. He wanted to warn her of the danger but could only muster a weak voice inaudible to others.
"Were you the ones who started the fire?" Li Xia asked the black-clothed men, word by word, as she approached them.
The men looked at each other, not taking Li Xia seriously. One of them swung his sword at her, intending to kill her.
Li Xia sidestepped the attack, snatched the sword, and kicked the man away. As she did so, she threw the sword at another man, killing him instantly. Mid-air, she spun, using the wall for leverage, and unleashed a wind blade at the remaining men, killing them.
Li Xia's fluid movements caught the men off guard. The man she had kicked tried to flee but was pulled back by Li Xia's wind suction and fell. Recalling the panicked fleeing citizens and the fallen Wang Lan, and worrying about Lu, Qiu Shui, and the others' whereabouts, Li Xia's anger grew. She kicked the man viciously. "Let you start a fire, let you start a fire!"
After venting her anger, Li Xia heard footsteps and an uncertain voice call out, "Is that Second Daughter?"
Lu had led her group out of the tea house but was pushed around by the crowd, separated from her servants. Fortunately, Chunlu Granny held onto her hand, preventing them from being separated.
The two forced their way to a corner and looked around. "Granny, where is Second Daughter?"
"Madam, we got separated in the crowd," Chunlu Granny said, sweating profusely from the pushing and shoving. She wiped Lu's sweat with a handkerchief. "Madam, let's go out first."
"No, I need to find Hui and Xin," Lu said, unwilling to leave without her children.
"The young master and young miss may have already gone out," Chunlu Granny said, concerned for Lu's safety and wanting her to leave quickly.
But they might also be waiting for her somewhere. Lu didn't want to take the risk. She stood up to search for Li Hui and Li Xin, with Chunlu Granny following. The two struggled against the crowd but couldn't find Li Xin or Li Hui. Instead, they found separated servants like Qiu Ju, Qiu Shui, and Liu Xiao.
Qiu Ju and Qiu Shui, who hadn't seen Li Xia, were extremely worried. They followed Lu, searching. The observant Qiu Shui spotted a figure resembling Li Xia in the alley and couldn't help but call out, "Miss!"