Chapter 509: Chapter 182: Great Fire_3
However, today he left the house without a guard, with just a lad watching downstairs, and he had never disclosed his identity as the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion’s Young Master inside Fengle Building. Thus, no one took him seriously, and even such a lowly rchant dared to speak so boldly in front of him.
Anger fueling his outrage, Qi Yutai slapped the table and stood up. He had just taken his dicine, and his mind was not very clear; he staggered before finally stabilizing himself, then pointed at the other man and said, "What a big mouth you have, do you know who I am?"
"I don’t care who you are," the man said with contempt, shoving the door open and striding in. Without waiting for Qi Yutai to respond, he reached out to grab Qi Yutai, intent on shoving him out.
Qi Yutai had never suffered such humiliation and instantly flew into a rage. Previously, when outside, due to the need to be wary of his father’s disapproval, he always had to restrain his temper sowhat. But today, with no guard and no servant around and having just taken his dicine, the residual effect had not worn off yet. He felt the blood in his body rushing to his head, and in a fit of rage, he grabbed a candlestick and hurled it at the man in front of him.
The rchant, unexpectedly agile, dodged to the side; the candlestick crashed to the ground with a "clang." The man beca angry, grabbed Qi Yutai’s head, and slamd it against the wall.
As Qi Yutai was being grabbed, he noticed the other man was wearing a fragrance sachet. As he got closer, he suddenly sensed a strange fragrance seeping into his fontanel. The scent, like a centipede, made its way into his brain, causing it to tingle and his eyes to redden. His already significant anger abruptly turned into an all-consuming fury, and he desperately wanted to kill the man.
The two struggled together, becoming entwined. The singers, already terrified and pale, competed to be the first to run outside. On the wooden upper floor, the "Qingming" room, closest to the "Startled Hibernation," was still at a distance, and the hall downstairs was in the middle of performing "The Tale of the Pipa"—
"Do not ask how the night fares amidst the joy, for how long can such a lovely evening last? When wine is present, one must drink, and where one can sing, let there be song..."
As they fought, the singers hastened across the room in disarray towards the door. Their white, graceful dance sleeves brushed over the table, knocking a jar of "Biluochun" tea—not yet opened—to the ground, shattering it and splashing its contents all over.
From the tipped-over candlestick, a faint fla that had not gained attention suddenly burst into brightness. The exquisite woolen carpet, already highly flammable, caught fire when moistened by the alcohol, and flas erupted like a snake, quickly spreading. The surrounding wooden beams and bamboo frawork facilitated the fire’s excursion, and the red glow grew increasingly dominant in the room.
The two were still fighting in the inner room, oblivious to the unusual situation outside.
It wasn’t until thick smoke began to waft in from the outside and panicked shouts were faintly heard that the performance of "The Tale of the Pipa" on the stage ceased, and from downstairs soone cried out, "Water’s coming through—"
Qi Yutai suddenly ca to his senses, unaware of when the fire in front of him had beco so bright. The blazing flas surged towards him enveloped in scorching heat.
Instinctively, he stepped back twice, his back hitting the window behind him. He turned to open the wooden window and shout for help. His hand reached for the edge of the window, but it was as if there was an invisible wall outside, and he simply couldn’t push it open.
The window had been locked.
...
"Water’s coming through—"
The entrance to Rouge Lane was packed with onlookers.
One after another, the street’s clientele, startled out of their beds by cries of a fire in the dead of night, so in just their trousers and others hastily wrapped in blankets, crowded under the tarpaulins of tea stands at the alley’s entrance, staring at the firelight that was growing increasingly bright in the distance.
A group of patroln forced their way through the throng, with Shen Fengying leading at the front, his face dark as the bottom of a pot.
He had been out patrolling, and by the ti he reached the city center, he was relieved to think that there had been no fires past midnight and was planning to head ho early to rest. However, before he could finish giving his instructions, news arrived from the Firewatch Tower that Rouge Lane had caught fire.
Just an hour earlier, he had passed by Rouge Lane, where he had dispersed the snack vendors; how could a fire have broken out?
The sweet dream of getting off work early burst imdiately. Cursing under his breath, Shen Fengying led the patroln as they rushed back.
In the darkness of the night, the small wooden building stood against the blackness, turning into a towering mountain of flas. With every gust of wind, billows of smoke and the stench of burning rose continuously from the mountain’s peak, illuminating the alley bright as daylight.
Shen Fengying’s heart sank as he watched the firelight before him.
Patroln dreaded fires in wooden structures the most because once ignited, they could burn endlessly until the entire building turned to ashes. It was dangerous for anyone trapped inside and risky for the patroln who went in to extinguish the flas.
However, it appeared that this building’s fire had started on an upper floor, where the blaze was more intense than below. Shen Fengying signaled to the patroln, "Get the water bags—"
Because throwing the cowhide water bags into the fire would make them explode, the flow of water would extinguish a portion of the flas. All the patroln had already donned their fireproof vests with tal plating, and they started hurling water bags into the flas.
The entrance to Fengle Building was wide open, the courtesans and the guests had already taken the opportunity to flee. Then, in the darkness, at the topmost floor’s latticed windows, sudden shadows swayed as if soone was trying to force open the window from inside.
Shen Fengying’s gaze sharpened, and his expression turned to shock.
"There’s soone!"
There was still soone trapped on the top floor of the building who hadn’t escaped!
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