The Legend of Chu Qiao - V1C10
Prologue 1- Major Chu Qiao
Prologue 2- Time's up!
Prologue 3- The red dot on the GPS vanished
1- Royal Hunting
2- Zhuge, Wei, Mu, Jue, Che, Yan.
3- Fifth Brother
4- Without a Tinge of Regret
5- Bloody Heart
6- Bastards
7- Snakes
8- We Should All Know Our Place
9- Do You Know Who I Am?
10- Thank You, Sisters!
11- My name is 'None'
12- The Lantern Festival
13- Liar!
14- Everything Happens for a Reason
15- To escape, or not to escape?
Chapter 10
Thank You, Sisters!
The sun's rays pierced the room through the cracks in the window, and the refreshing scent of the plum flowers slowly drifted in.
Ultimately, Zhu Shun had served at the Zhuge residence for over ten years and never wasted his time. Although he genuinely believed that the conflict between Jin Cai and Jin Zhu was the reason he was accused, he worried that Zhuge Yue wouldn't believe him and might think he was trying to clear his own name by framing Jin Cai. So, Zhu Shun didn't let the court execute Jin Cai; instead, he planned to wait until the next day to report to his Third Young Master, who would be available then.
At night, the court was dead silent. In the pitch-black woodshed, Jin Cai's flesh seemed to have been torn apart, with marks whipping all over. She appeared to have received a heavy sentence. Chu Qiao stood before Jin Cai, scooped up a spoon of water, and dumped it all over Jin Cai's face. Jin Cai groaned a little and slowly woke up. Upon seeing Chu Qiao, she raged and fiercely shouted, "You bitch! You still dare to come see me?!"
Chu Qiao calmly stood before her and quietly listened to her cursing and swearing. After a moment, she gently smiled and said, "If you want to die, feel free to continue shouting."
Jin Cai's clothes were stained red, her face ghostly white as she gasped heavily with hatred in her eyes.
Chu Qiao shook her head and said slowly, "Even if I didn't mean to harm a snake, the snake still wanted to bite me. I warned you before. It would be best if you hadn't kept going against me. You wouldn't have faced these consequences if you hadn’t stalked me. Ultimately, it was your fault. How can you blame others?"
"You wicked b*tch, even if I were dead, I would haunt you as a ghost!"
Chu Qiao let out a sigh. "So, you want to die?"
Jin Cai was surprised as Chu Qiao continued, "I didn't mean to hurt you, and everything that happened today was just to teach you a lesson. Too bad Fourth Master refused to save you. You will soon be with Jin Zhu at Ting Lake."
Jin Cai's face grew paler after she heard this. She looked at Chu Qiao, and her eyes showed a hint of pleading for her life. She quickly said, "Xing’er, we weren't ruthless enemies in the past, nor did we hold much hatred for each other. Lin Xi's death was Jin Zhu's idea, and I just went along with it. If you can come here unnoticed, I'm sure you can save me. Please save me. I don't want to die!" Then she trembled and broke down crying.
Chu Qiao sighed, placed her bag down, and said, "Don't cry already. Do you think I'm here tonight to chat with you? You do not deserve to die, and since I caused you to be in this situation, I won’t leave you to be. Put on these clothes, and I will take you out immediately." She came forward and undid the ropes tied to Jin Cai's body.
Jin Cai was delighted and asked, "Can I escape? The security here is very tight."
Don't worry, I've bribed the guards at the back door. The Master is coming home. You're just an insignificant maid; no one will bother to investigate. As long as you can escape, you won't die.
Jin Cai followed closely behind Chu Qiao. Both slipped out the window and passed the rockery at Red Hill court. Suddenly, they heard footsteps in the distance—guard patrols. Both girls immediately crouched down, afraid to take another step forward.
Chu Qiao turned back and handed her bag to Jin Cai. She whispered, "I will distract those people. You make your way to the western gate. I've already arranged with the gatekeeper. Once you are there, mention my name, and you can go. Here is some money and clothing. It belonged to sister Zhi Xiang. They're small, and I don't know if you can fit them. I don't have much money, and that's all I can give you. Please take care of yourself after you leave and make good choices." She turned and moved to the other side, making some noise as she left to alert the guards on duty so they would notice and chase her in that direction.
Jin Cai opened the bag and found so little money that she couldn't buy a roasted goose. She raised her eyebrows. The clothes were either torn or dirty, ugly, and smelled strange. She was even more upset. She thought she had become a fugitive instead of a proper servant. If she were caught, she would die. All of this was because of Xing’er, who pretended to be a good person. So shameless of her.
Jin Cai grabbed the money and tossed the bag onto the floor. She didn't worry about the consequences Chu Qiao would face if anyone discovered the bag and what's inside after she had escaped successfully.
The cold wind blew and tugged at the edges of her clothes. The moon shone brightly on the earth.
Ultimately, Zhu Shun had served at the Zhuge residence for over ten years and never wasted his time. Although he genuinely believed that the conflict between Jin Cai and Jin Zhu was the reason he was accused, he worried that Zhuge Yue wouldn't believe him and might think he was trying to clear his own name by framing Jin Cai. So, Zhu Shun didn't let the court execute Jin Cai; instead, he planned to wait until the next day to report to his Third Young Master, who would be available then.
At night, the court was dead silent. In the pitch-black woodshed, Jin Cai's flesh seemed to have been torn apart, with marks whipping all over. She appeared to have received a heavy sentence. Chu Qiao stood before Jin Cai, scooped up a spoon of water, and dumped it all over Jin Cai's face. Jin Cai groaned a little and slowly woke up. Upon seeing Chu Qiao, she raged and fiercely shouted, "You bitch! You still dare to come see me?!"
Chu Qiao calmly stood before her and quietly listened to her cursing and swearing. After a moment, she gently smiled and said, "If you want to die, feel free to continue shouting."
Jin Cai's clothes were stained red, her face ghostly white as she gasped heavily with hatred in her eyes.
Chu Qiao shook her head and said slowly, "Even if I didn't mean to harm a snake, the snake still wanted to bite me. I warned you before. It would be best if you hadn't kept going against me. You wouldn't have faced these consequences if you hadn’t stalked me. Ultimately, it was your fault. How can you blame others?"
"You wicked b*tch, even if I were dead, I would haunt you as a ghost!"
Chu Qiao let out a sigh. "So, you want to die?"
Jin Cai was surprised as Chu Qiao continued, "I didn't mean to hurt you, and everything that happened today was just to teach you a lesson. Too bad Fourth Master refused to save you. You will soon be with Jin Zhu at Ting Lake."
Jin Cai's face grew paler after she heard this. She looked at Chu Qiao, and her eyes showed a hint of pleading for her life. She quickly said, "Xing’er, we weren't ruthless enemies in the past, nor did we hold much hatred for each other. Lin Xi's death was Jin Zhu's idea, and I just went along with it. If you can come here unnoticed, I'm sure you can save me. Please save me. I don't want to die!" Then she trembled and broke down crying.
Chu Qiao sighed, placed her bag down, and said, "Don't cry already. Do you think I'm here tonight to chat with you? You do not deserve to die, and since I caused you to be in this situation, I won’t leave you to be. Put on these clothes, and I will take you out immediately." She came forward and undid the ropes tied to Jin Cai's body.
Jin Cai was delighted and asked, "Can I escape? The security here is very tight."
Don't worry, I've bribed the guards at the back door. The Master is coming home. You're just an insignificant maid; no one will bother to investigate. As long as you can escape, you won't die.
Jin Cai followed closely behind Chu Qiao. Both slipped out the window and passed the rockery at Red Hill court. Suddenly, they heard footsteps in the distance—guard patrols. Both girls immediately crouched down, afraid to take another step forward.
Chu Qiao turned back and handed her bag to Jin Cai. She whispered, "I will distract those people. You make your way to the western gate. I've already arranged with the gatekeeper. Once you are there, mention my name, and you can go. Here is some money and clothing. It belonged to sister Zhi Xiang. They're small, and I don't know if you can fit them. I don't have much money, and that's all I can give you. Please take care of yourself after you leave and make good choices." She turned and moved to the other side, making some noise as she left to alert the guards on duty so they would notice and chase her in that direction.
Jin Cai opened the bag and found so little money that she couldn't buy a roasted goose. She raised her eyebrows. The clothes were either torn or dirty, ugly, and smelled strange. She was even more upset. She thought she had become a fugitive instead of a proper servant. If she were caught, she would die. All of this was because of Xing’er, who pretended to be a good person. So shameless of her.
Jin Cai grabbed the money and tossed the bag onto the floor. She didn't worry about the consequences Chu Qiao would face if anyone discovered the bag and what's inside after she had escaped successfully.
The cold wind blew and tugged at the edges of her clothes. The moon shone brightly on the earth.
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At that moment, in Zhu Shun's room, the sound of a man's heavy breathing and a woman's tender moaning with dirty talk could be heard. The winter night was freezing, and the guards had long since found warm places to nap. The small child tiptoed her way to Zhu Shun's door, making not a single visible action or audible sound.
Chu Qiao knelt outside Zhu Shun's door. Her eyes shone like diamonds in the pitch-black night, showing her determined and calm demeanor. The man inside groaned, followed by the rustling sound of him putting on his clothes. Chu Qiao picked up a stone and threw it at the door. The rock hit with a soft thud, but it was loud enough to be heard inside. Zhu Shun raised his voice, "Who's out there?"
Chu Qiao did not reply but picked up another stone and threw it at his door again.
"I'm coming!" the man said, frustrated. "In the middle of the night, who's that?"
The door swung open, but no one was visible; Zhu Shun raised his eyebrows in surprise, stuck his head out, and began to walk forward. As he lifted his leg, he was caught by a rope he hadn't noticed before and fell to the ground.
"Ouch!" he screamed in pain and was about to curse. A black sack was placed over his head, obscuring his vision. He was shocked and realized that something was wrong. He started shouting and flailing his arms.
The night was dark and freezing. Chu Qiao held her sharp dagger. Her eyes and lips showed a cold expression. She aimed her dagger at his chubby hand and slashed it. A loud shriek, sounding like a pig being slaughtered, erupted. Zhu Shun gripped his wrist in pain and rolled on the ground. Chu Qiao immediately ran westward, toward the flowerbeds.
Behind her, the guards' footsteps followed, and a sharp scream from a woman could be heard. "What happened? Ah! Who did this to you, Housekeeper Zhu?"
The woman's clothing needed to be on correctly. Shocked, she said, "I did not see who it was. I could only tell the person was short and seemed like a child."
"Where did the person head towards?"
"West!"
"Chase!"
Over ten people's footsteps approached and quickly moved past her. She tried her best to crouch down and hide among the bushes. The voices gradually faded away, and the surroundings became quiet. The child brushed the soil and dirt off her body before leaving at a relaxed pace. Her movement was unusually casual and confident.
As she passed the rockwork of Red Hill court, she saw her bag with its contents messily sprawled out, as she had expected. She sneered, picked up her bag, and walked toward Qing Shan court. She carefully climbed through the back window and changed into white pajamas. Voices outside grew louder, and the torch's glare lit up the sky.
Chu Qiao ran her hand through her hair and rubbed her eyes before opening the door with a sleepy look. She happened to meet a few of the other young maids who had just opened their doors.
"What is happening?"
These few servants were already around thirteen or fourteen years old, but their status was lower than Chu Qiao's. They blankly shook their heads. Then, a door opening was heard from Xuan Hall, and they hurriedly ran over there.
Zhuge Yue looked gloomy and saw the disheveled Chu Qiao and the other servants. He asked his bodyguard, "What is going on? Why is there so much noise?"
Young Master, there appeared to be an assassin. Housekeeper Zhu's hand was cut off. Guards at the western door captured Jin Cai trying to escape. She was brought back to the court.
Zhuge Yue was surprised, but then he chuckled. "Who would've thought Jin Cai had such a temperament?"
The guard examined Chu Qiao carefully. "When Jin Cai was caught, she screamed that Chu Qiao set her up and that she had done nothing."
Once this was said, all attention shifted to Chu Qiao. She scrunched her tiny face, her big, innocent eyes watering as she blinked, feeling wronged. She turned and looked pitifully at Zhuge Yue, then sadfully declared, "Fourth Master, I've… I've been in my room sleeping the whole time. I-I didn't…"
"Fourth Master, Xing’er was in her room the entire time," a third-class maid stepped forward and spoke.
Then, other servants started standing up for Chu Qiao.
Zhuge Yue nodded and told his messenger, "Tell the court, if that woman keeps spouting nonsense, don't even bother giving her a trial. Just throw her into the lake. How old is Xing’er? How could Jin Cai's talk become more and more ridiculous?"
The servant immediately nodded his head and left.
Zhuge Yue looked at his young maids and said, "Go back to sleep," and returned to Xuan Hall.
Chu Qiao stood her ground, her face showing her displeasure at being wronged. A few other servants tugged at her and said, "Xing’er, don't be afraid. We are your witnesses. She can't accuse you."
Chu Qiao nodded and, with a weeping voice, said, "Thank you, sisters."
✦•······················•✦•······················•✦
It was already late at night, and the cold wind kept blowing. Today marked the seventh day since the children from the Jing family had passed away. The ones responsible for their deaths had finally paid with their blood.
The minimal retaliation that occurred was far from adequate; it needed to be greatly escalated.
The "assassin" incident was a hot topic and caused chaos until the next day. Zhu Shun was left with one hand and took his rage out by ordering his men to kill Jin Cai. She was already injured earlier and died within two hours. She was thrown into the lake with a straw mat to feed the crocodiles.
Zhuge Yue was a loner and quite unsociable. Xuan Hall originally only had Jin Zhu and Jin Cai, but within a few days, they died one after the other. Now, only Chu Qiao remained. She was still young, not even eight. She had a baby-like face and spoke with a childish voice. No matter how capable she was, outsiders still found it strange that she was now in charge. In less than half a day, rumors spread throughout the residence, claiming that the Fourth Young Master was following in the Old Master's footsteps and had developed an abnormal liking for young girls.
As a result, Chu Qiao was treated with even more respect by the others.
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