The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 1)

Chapter 119 - The Real Culprit

The night was deep, and the fire that had burned for nearly an entire watch was finally extinguished. Songtao Courtyard had been scorched beyond recognition, with the trees inside charred, and some small pets that had been raised there had not escaped, leaving a scene that was horrifying to behold.

The nearby Zhao Hanlin family, the Chen Shangshu family not far away, and the Ping'an Marquis family all sent people to inquire about the situation and offered assistance.

Song Jue dealt with each inquiry one by one.

Before long, the Five Cities Military Division also arrived, saying that the fire was so big that it alarmed the soldiers on duty, and now they came to ask if anyone needed help.

Old Lady Song was exasperated by these various matters, and her hatred for the fire deepened. She couldn't help but ask the First Lady to investigate it thoroughly.

Having been frightened by the incident, she felt overwhelmed and thought about having Song Chuyi and Song Yan stay at Ningde Courtyard for the night to cope with everything.

Song Yan had already woken up, staring with dark eyes at the ashes of his courtyard. Gradually, he was supported by his sister to stand up. He turned his head and glanced at the crowd before suddenly pointing toward the direction of the second house's main courtyard and clearly stating, "Uncle, I saw Nanny Yu. Before the fire, she came to my room to bring some items and specifically came to check on me."

Song Ren exchanged glances with his wife, both recalling who Nanny Yu was, and they were immediately startled.

If their speculation was true, then Nanny Yu was indeed incredibly bold!

"Someone!" Song Ren immediately turned to Lin Hai and ordered, "Take a few people and arrest Nanny Yu... No, arrest everyone in the second house's main courtyard and bring them all to Taoran Residence!"

Song Chuyi followed Song Yan's finger to look in the direction of the second house but did not immediately get angry.

She just found it strange; in her previous life, Nanny Yu had not seemed particularly loyal to the Li family. At first, she had appeared loyal, but later for some unknown reason, she had fallen out with Li Shi, who had sent her far away to a manor in Jiangnan.

Could someone who was willing to offend Li Shi for other reasons really take the risk of getting involved in Li Shi's death, putting their life and children in jeopardy?

Moreover, Nanny Yu was just a servant. Where did she get the courage to sneak into her master's courtyard at night to set fire?

Even if, hypothetically, she had that courage and truly felt loyal to Li Shi, what opportunity did she have? The second house was no longer the same as before; everyone knew that Li Shi had made a mistake, and the second house had lost its power. How could she have slipped past the patrolling servants and made her way into the garden, reaching Song Yan's residence?

Unless... there was someone else behind this.

But Li Shi was already dead, and the Li family wouldn't have the guts to take action so quickly. Who was so eager to use Nanny Yu and the remnants of her loyalty to harm Song Yan?

She dug her nails into her flesh, forcing herself to think and think again, yet she ultimately found no clues.

If there were any possibilities, it could be the Li family or Song Chuning. However, Song Chuning was still just a six-year-old girl... Suddenly, her eyes widened in disbelief. Although a six-year-old could not be so ruthless, what if she was also reborn? What if the soul residing in her six-year-old body was actually decades old?!

She was momentarily stunned by her own thoughts until Song Yan shook her hand, prompting her to regain her composure.

Old Lady Song looked at the siblings with some worry: "Let's talk about this tomorrow. Yan'er was quite frightened and should see a physician in the morning. For tonight, let's go to my Bisha Kitchen and deal with it there."

While Old Lady Song was anxious, she also felt a deep sense of dread. The Cui family was still in the capital, and it was said that First Lady Cui had already gone to the palace to meet the Emperor and Empress... If something were to happen to Song Yan at such a crucial moment, she could hardly imagine the consequences. Today's fire was suspiciously timed, almost as if it had been planned knowing that Song Chengru was on night duty at Xiyuan, while Song Ren and Song Jue had returned home due to a social event at the Ping'an Marquis family... The more she thought about it, the more her skin crawled, her face revealing an undeniable anger.

However, Song Chuyi instinctively knew they couldn't wait until tomorrow. Since Nanny Yu was willing to risk her life to do something so nearly impossible, she must have been determined to die. If the night watch servants were careless, they might lose their lives.

"Grandmother..." She glanced down at her brother, unsure of what to decide. Perhaps it was due to the recent fire that Song Yan held her hand tightly; at this moment, she truly couldn't abandon him.

The First Lady also advised them to return to their rooms to rest, especially Li Qingzi, who was still in her first trimester and had some issues with her pregnancy. If something were to happen to her now, there would be no place to cry.

"Qingtao, you've worked hard tonight." Song Chuyi steadied her thoughts and turned to look at Qingtao: "Go with Hongyu to Taoran Residence and keep an eye on things. Be sure not to let Nanny Yu harm herself. As for the rest, we can discuss it tomorrow."

The moon hid behind the clouds, and the two bright cowhide lanterns outside Ningde Courtyard cast a dim light. Looking at Song Yan, who was still shaken, Song Chuyi felt a surge of words she wanted to say, yet she couldn't utter a single one.

Since her rebirth, she had been exhaustively planning for his future, but she had overlooked the present. If something were to happen to Song Yan this time...

Guilt and self-blame left her utterly speechless. After a long while, her tears fell onto her hands as she looked at Song Yan and softly apologized, "I'm sorry... Yan'er, I'm sorry."

Instead, Song Yan smiled. As he had done countless times before, he reached out and took Song Chuyi's hand: "Sister, I know you don't dislike me."

When they were younger and played together, due to Li Shi's instigation, Song Chuyi was always reluctant to have this clingy little brother around, often pushing him away and considering him a burden.

But after returning from the Cui family, Song Yan gradually noticed the difference—every time they visited Old Lady Song to pay respects, Song Chuyi would always sit beside him. When he and Third Brother played snowball fights by the lake, they would return to find warm chicken soup and ginger tea brought by Nanny Xu... His maternal grandmother and uncle had both told him that he and his sister were the only siblings left in the world from the Cui family, and they should love and support each other.

He is not very talkative. Apart from being close to his Third Brother, he doesn't have any other brothers or sisters that he is close to. He only has the closest feelings towards his sixth sister, his biological sister.

"You can't predict the future, so how can you be blamed for this?" Song Yan smiled brightly on his still pale face.