Ashes to Crown

Chapter 94: Chapter 53: The Human Heart (2)

This time, it was Chu Lan’s turn to be displeased. "How can we let our daughter do something like this? Ah Zhao will surely resent her for it afterward."

His daughter was incredibly precious.

This was a job for servants and maids.

Mrs. Jiang nodded repeatedly. "I was being foolish. Ah Tang, you don’t need to involve yourself in any of this. Just pretend you don’t know anything about it."

But Chu Tang seemed to be lost in thought and only looked over when she heard her name.

She had no opinion on her parents’ arrangements. She only asked, "When Ah Zhao falls into the water, will the Heir of Zhongshan King be there?"

Chu Lan nodded. "Of course." His expression held a hint of pride. "I need the Princely Heir to witness my sincerity with his own eyes."

After hearing this, Chu Tang took her leave. She didn’t want to disturb her parents’ important business any longer. Instead of returning to Chu Garden, she went back to her own courtyard.

Linglong shooed away the maids who had gathered around, personally brought over a bowl of tea, and, seeing Chu Tang’s thoughtful expression, asked in a low voice, "Miss, do you feel like something isn’t right?"

Chu Tang nodded. "Of course it’s not right. My parents are thinking too simply. This matter is definitely not that straightforward. I don’t believe anyone would be nice to our family for no reason. He must be after something."

Linglong grew a little nervous. "After what?"

Chu Tang said faintly, "Chu Zhao?"

Linglong jumped in surprise, blinking. "What? Miss, what do you mean?"

"I don’t know what I mean either," Chu Tang said. "But one thing is certain: the Princely Heir is doing this for Chu Zhao, not for our family, and certainly not to help my parents out of their predicament."

Linglong was worried. "What on earth does this Princely Heir want? The Master and Madam can’t explain it either, and we don’t know anything."

But Chu Tang just smiled. "We can still act even if we don’t know anything. We just need to know who’s involved."

Linglong asked nervously, "Then what should we do?"

But Chu Tang said no more, resting her chin on her hand. "I need to think this through carefully."

...

...

The lamps cast a dim glow. As the day’s hustle and bustle in Chu Garden came to a close, Chu Zhao, having finished her meal and washed up, sat before her desk while a young maid dried her hair with fragrant smoke.

Ah Le came in from outside. "Xiao Butterfly, let me take over."

The young maid answered in acknowledgment. Chu Zhao picked up a plate of pastries from the table. "Take this and share it with your friends."

The young maid happily agreed and left with the pastries.

"Miss." Ah Le’s brow was furrowed with worry. "I was useless. I couldn’t find out what the Princely Heir was plotting with the Master and Madam."

Chu Zhao patted her hand. "How could you be useless? Don’t worry."

"How can I not worry?" Ah Le said, frustrated. "It’s definitely something bad for you, Miss. How are we supposed to deal with it if we don’t know what it is?"

Chu Zhao smiled and blinked. "Believe it or not, someone else will deal with it for me."

Ah Le naturally believed her Miss’s words.

"Who?" she asked, curious. "When did you arrange this, Miss? Is there really someone else in this family besides me who’s good to you?"

Chu Zhao laughed. "Sometimes, people who wish you ill can be helpful too."

Ah Le understood. "You mean, Miss, that some people don’t want to see you do well, so they’ll do certain things, and those things will turn out to be exactly what you wanted."

Chu Zhao smiled and nodded. "Ah Le, you’re so smart."

Ah Le sighed. "This has nothing to do with being smart. It’s just that people’s hearts are treacherous. Don’t forget, Miss, I’ve been stealing and swindling since I was four or five. I’m no saint either."

If the General and you, Miss, hadn’t kept me in check all these years, who knows what I would have become.

Chu Zhao reached out and cupped Ah Le’s face. "Ah Le has a kind heart. You can play the part of a villain, but you could never do a villain’s deeds."

Ah Le smiled and pulled Chu Zhao’s hands down. "Miss, stop flattering me with such nice words. Just tell me what else you need me to do."

"You’re the most crucial part," Chu Zhao said. "Whether this whole thing succeeds or fails depends on you."

Ah Le leaned in close. The two girls began whispering under the lamplight, plotting how to navigate this crisis and use the malice of their enemies to their own advantage, their faces veiled in the room’s dim, yellow glow.

「Far from the Capital City, in the dead of night, soaring flames lit up the foot of a mountain, turning it as bright as day.」

A cacophony of panicked cries and screams pierced the sky.

Countless figures danced and ran in the night—more than half within the firelight, the rest outside of it.

The inferno devoured everything. Water was thrown on it to no effect; it only seemed to anger the blaze. The flames surged higher, viciously licking at a person who had rushed in.

The man did not retreat. Draped in a wet quilt, he ran through the flames, trying to pull people out. But there were too many. Cries were everywhere.

He grabbed one person and pulled—the arm came off. The armless person, burned and stuck to the ground, continued to wave their remaining arm and scream—

They were already trapped.

The wet quilt on the man’s body gradually dried, smoldering and writhing menacingly. It was no longer protecting him. Like the fire, it wanted to keep him there, to turn him into ash and charred flesh.

He looked at the dancing figures all around him, his ears filled with screams. Finally, he threw his head back and let out a wretched cry of his own. Enduring the licking tongues of flame, he reached into the blaze, grabbed an unconscious child, and charged back out with the child in his arms.

Far beyond the blaze, a human wall of people stood watching. The rising heat was so intense it felt as though they too might catch fire, but there was no real danger. The grass, trees, and buildings on this side had all been cleared, the very topsoil practically scraped away. Without fuel, any stray sparks that flew over couldn’t ignite.

Hearing that wretched cry from within the fire, the faces of the people who had been watching quietly changed.

"Go get the Young Master out of there!" a steward in dark, patterned silk roared, his face contorted. "If anything happens to the Young Master, none of you will live to see tomorrow!"

Rushing in meant death, but staying here also meant death. If they died rushing in, at least their families would receive compensation. Gritting their teeth, a group of men charged into the fire, ready to extinguish the flames with their own bodies if it meant saving the Young Master.

Before they could charge in, a figure burst out of the inferno. He threw himself to the ground, rolling over and over as sparks flew from his burning clothes.

"Young Master!"

Overjoyed, the men rushed forward, beating at him with the brooms in their hands. Water was thrown over him, and the flames were quickly extinguished.

The Young Master on the ground had his clothes burned away, revealing a fair-skinned back and shoulders dotted with blisters.

His face was unharmed, but his eyes were squeezed shut. He curled up on the ground, coughing violently, his voice hoarse.

"Young Master Yanlai!" the steward shouted, rushing over. "Doctor, quickly!"

A doctor, who had been waiting, ran over and turned the curled-up young master onto his back. Only then did they see that he was hiding a seven or eight-year-old child in his arms.

"Save him... save him," the Young Master rasped, coughing.

A moment ago, a group of men had been willing to risk their lives to save the Young Master, but now, none of them listened to his words. They stood motionless. The doctor didn’t move either. Everyone turned to look at the steward.

The steward’s expression was dark. He glanced at the unconscious boy, who was about seven or eight, then finally nodded and pointed to a young man beside him.

"You, take care of him," he said.

The young man reached out and took the child from the Young Master’s arms. With that single act, the child was now *his* rescue.

The Young Master showed no reluctance, letting his hands fall away as he kept his eyes closed.

The young man held the child, yelling loudly for a doctor as he hurried away—the Xie family’s trade caravan did not travel with only one physician.

Only then did the doctor on this side continue to treat the Young Master. Fortunately, aside from some burns, he was not seriously injured.

The perpetually worried steward let out a breath of relief, but his voice was heavy with anger. "Young Master Yanlai, your drunken antics have caused a huge disaster this time."

Xie Yanlai lay on the ground. After the child was taken away, he seemed completely hollowed out. He let the doctor cut away the remnants of his clothing, wash his wounds, and apply medicine, not making a sound no matter how much it hurt.

Hearing the steward’s reprimand, he pressed his face to the ground, slightly opening his eyes to glance over. A hoarse laugh escaped him. "Do you need my life to atone for this disaster? Go on, take it."

The steward’s gaze softened with pity in the firelight, and his voice took on an affectionate tone. "For disasters and sins, we have the Third Young Master. How could we ever bear to sacrifice the life of our Young Master Jiu?"

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