coobybook Chapter 128 Affair Amidst Fire
Chapter 128 Affair Amidst Fire
The two were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice that the area outside the hall had been filled with sesame oil and set on fire by the other two.
Duke Liu sniffed, as if he had smelled a strange fragrance.
“Nair,” he turned to the Imperial Noble Consort and asked, “do you smell a strange odor?”
The Imperial Noble Consort sniffed carefully, "It seems so, but it's probably just the smell of incense."
As soon as he finished speaking, the flames began to spread, instantly engulfing the area around the sleeping quarters.
The fire quickly spread, and the two men's eyes widened in disbelief. "What...what's going on?"
Duke Liu strode forward and reached out to open the door to the bedchamber, but he couldn't open it no matter how hard he tried.
While he was still wondering, he heard a piercing scream from the bedchamber.
"Go away!"
"The temple is on fire!"
The sound immediately attracted the attention of all the worshippers who were offering incense.
The attention of most people at Baima Temple was drawn to the towering flames.
"Quick, put out the fire."
There might be someone inside the hall!
Someone in the crowd started shouting, and they all rushed towards the north courtyard.
The monks of Baima Temple, each carrying a water vessel, hurried towards the more distant hall.
Panting heavily and covered in sweat, there was no time to complain.
Jiang Zhi stood in the crowd, surrounded by worshippers who rushed towards him. His brows relaxed and smiles played on his lips.
“Sigh,” Jiang Zhi said, crossing his arms, “It was all worth it for us to pour so much sesame oil.”
"Now their affair is bound to be exposed, whether they want to or not."
At noon, a smile appeared on her face. "Is Your Highness tired? When we get back, I'll make you some new food."
Jiang Zhi smiled, "A new meal again?"
At noon, he said smugly, "Of course."
Jiang Zhi's eyes flickered, as if she had remembered something.
“Oh right,” Jiang Zhi said, “we still need to come to Baima Temple another day and donate more incense money. After all, if a fire breaks out in the temple, it will be troublesome for those monks to put it out.”
"Yes, princess."
At the foot of the mountain, Lu Nianqiu's carriage stopped at the foot of the mountain. Hearing the noise coming from the mountain, he lifted the curtain and was about to bend down to ask.
“Miss,” Chenxi said as she walked to the carriage, “it seems that Baima Temple is on fire.”
The two looked up at the firelight that had dyed half the sky red.
Lu Nianqiu was puzzled.
"Where's Zhizhi?" Lu Nianqiu got off the carriage with a worried look on her face. "I hope nothing happened to Zhizhi."
Just as I went downstairs, I saw Jiang Zhi coming down with Wu Shi. "Cousin."
Jiang Zhi called out, and Lu Nianqiu ran over and grabbed her wrist, "Zhizhi, there's a fire upstairs, are you alright?"
“Look,” Jiang Zhi turned around, “I’m fine.”
"It's good that you're alright." Lu Nianqiu's tense heart relaxed.
She looked at the towering flames and said, "The fire looks pretty big, but how could it start up for no reason?"
Jiang Zhi approached her and said, "Some people have already gone to put out the fire, cousin, let's go."
"We'll just visit the White Horse Temple less often in the future."
Lu Nianqiu nodded.
At that time, the north courtyard of Baima Temple.
The fire inside the hall grew larger and larger, and thick black smoke billowed out from all directions outside the hall.
The crackling flames leaped wildly throughout the palace. Before the Imperial Noble Consort could even tidy her clothes, she saw the flames filling the doors and windows outside.
"How could this have caught fire!" the Imperial Noble Consort shouted angrily. "What on earth happened?!"
The fire grew larger and larger, and the flames completely surrounded the area in front of the palace gate.
Duke Liu pulled at the clothes on the ground and stuffed a brocade handkerchief into the Imperial Concubine's hand, "Quick, cover it up!"
The Imperial Noble Consort took the handkerchief and quickly covered it, but still couldn't help coughing a few times.
He cried out, "Help! Help!"
Duke Liu didn't care about anything else. He strode to the door and was about to kick it open when he heard the sound outside.
"There are people inside! Put out the fire quickly, don't delay!"
"Hurry up--!"
As the noise outside grew louder and the fire intensified, Duke Liu's expression changed.
The area outside is now surrounded by people; if the two of them were to go out at the same time, they would definitely be exposed.
However, if we don't get out, we'll probably just have to wait to die.
Duke Liu helped the Imperial Concubine up, saying, "Get up, we need to go out."
The Imperial Noble Consort couldn't open her eyes because of the thick smoke. "I don't want to die here."
Both of them were choked and could not stand it. Duke Liu helped the Imperial Concubine to her feet and walked out step by step.
Unfortunately, the fire grew larger and larger, and after taking only one step, a spark from who-knows-where landed on the Imperial Noble Consort.
The Imperial Noble Consort cried out in pain, "It hurts so much—!"
Duke Liu didn't care anymore and kicked the palace door open with a bang.
The fire grew larger and larger. The Imperial Noble Consort tightly covered her mouth and nose, closed her eyes, and dared not look at the crowd.
Duke Liu kept his head down and just kept walking out.
As soon as she left the bedchamber, the Imperial Noble Consort's personal maid rushed out, draped a robe over her shoulders, and quickly left.
The crowd erupted in a cacophony.
One of the busybodies spoke up, "It looks like the current Imperial Noble Consort? What's she doing here?"
Another person spoke up, "Why is Duke Liu here too?"
The crowd whispered among themselves, and judging from the two men's disheveled appearance, they could guess what was going on.
However, given the Imperial Noble Consort's high status, no one dared to say anything more.
Anyone with a modicum of sense would know not to get involved in such matters, so they turned and left.
The fire inside the bedchamber was finally extinguished, leaving the place in a terrible state.
The fact that the Imperial Noble Consort and Duke Liu were trapped in the palace by fire was unknown to the guards stationed in the dense forest to the north. They only went to rescue them after the fire started.
After the fire at Baima Temple was extinguished, a person watched the farce from a distance.
"It's wonderful."
“Your Highness,” Xia Qi said, looking at Pei Shangdao, “you specially changed the Imperial Noble Consort’s guards just for today’s performance?”
He snorted coldly.
“Of course not,” Pei Shangdao said. “Originally, I just wanted to personally expose their affair, but I didn’t expect someone to beat me to it. But it’s fine this way, it saves me the trouble of doing it.”
Xia Qi nodded. "Then does the young master truly intend to marry Miss Lu?"
When asked this question, Pei Shangdao's expression suddenly changed. "You're too talkative."
"Yes," Xia Qi said, taking half a step back.
She knew she had said the wrong thing, so she dared not say it again, nor dared to think about it anymore.
“Marry her,” Pei Shangdao’s eyes were dark and deep at this moment, “not because I love her, but because she just happens to be in my plan.”
His tone was slightly off when he said this, suggesting that he probably never truly loved her.