FBC – Chapter 98 Still Trying to Run!

Lu Laosan shouted angrily, “Light all the torches! I don’t believe that wretched bitch can burrow into the ground!”

They had to capture the dead woman before the Black Armored Guards arrived—otherwise, they might all be wiped out.

Very soon, the courtyard was brightly lit by torches, and a carpet-style search was launched.

“Block all three gates! The rest of you, search room by room. Be thorough—don’t leave a single crack unchecked. If we can’t get her out of here by tomorrow, neither the young master nor the heir will spare us!”

“Yes!”

Everyone was trembling with fear, searching more carefully than ever.

Just now, in her dazed state, Gu Hua vaguely noticed three possible exits. She had tried to sneak toward them while hiding and dodging, but the layout was too confusing inside, and it was pitch-black. Twice she’d wandered into dead ends in the corridors.

Soaking wet, cold, hungry, and utterly weak, she now saw the torches being lit and the areas within view illuminated like daylight.

The three exits were also completely blocked.

Gu Hua curled up in a dark corner like a trapped beast with nowhere to run, her whole body trembling as she watched a group of fierce-looking men search for her everywhere, on the verge of despair.

She had fought so hard to survive—why did Heaven give her a second chance at life but not the chance to live it?

Though her previous life had been bitter, she’d never faced such a life-or-death struggle.

She didn’t know whether Gu Wanru was dead or alive. If she was dead, then that would really be getting off easy.

If she was still alive, the Duke’s estate should have realized they’d kidnapped the wrong person.

Mu Junyan… would he come to rescue her?

But if Gu Wanru had returned safely, then based on that bit of affection from sharing a bed, how could he possibly make a public fuss to find her?

After all, once a noble lady was abducted by criminals, none of them ever lived to tell the tale.

If not humiliated to death, then driven to hang themselves from the shame and rejection of the world and their families.

The more Gu Hua thought, the colder her heart became, and tears couldn’t help but fall.

This was the rear courtyard. In the front courtyard, there was an opera stage where a performance was ongoing, and several tables of guests were drinking and watching the show.

Lu Laosan and more than a dozen of his men were searching the rear courtyard—very soon, they would find her.

Suddenly, a performer in ugly old-woman makeup came hurrying in Gu Hua’s direction and rushed into an outhouse not far from her.

Gu Hua quickly wiped her tears, picked up a wooden stick from the ground, and crouched as she crept toward it step by step.

As soon as the performer finished relieving herself and opened the door, Gu Hua used every ounce of strength she had to smash the stick down on the back of her neck.

With a muffled groan, the woman staggered, turning around in shock and terror as she stared at her attacker.

Realizing it was just a young girl, she opened her mouth to scream. But Gu Hua couldn’t risk it—she leapt forward, one hand clamping over the woman’s mouth, the other choking her neck with the stick.

Although the performer was taller and stronger, the heavy blow to her neck had left her dizzy, and with her throat strangled, she couldn’t breathe. Stars danced before her eyes, and she eventually fainted from lack of oxygen.

Only then did Gu Hua release her grip and realize the woman had bitten the web between her thumb and index finger, leaving bloody marks.

Ignoring the pain, she dragged the woman into the outhouse, quickly stripped off her costume and put it on herself. Then she wiped off the makeup from the performer’s face and applied it to her own. Lastly, she removed the large black mole that marked the ugly old-woman character and stuck it to the corner of her own mouth.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside, and someone said, “Go check the outhouse.”

Startled, Gu Hua squatted down quickly and hid the woman behind the wide skirt.

The outhouse door had no latch, and the person kicked it open.

Inside, someone shrieked and cursed in a hoarse voice, “Which bastard punk dares barge in! I’ll dump your whole family into this outhouse if you’re not careful!”

Startled by the terrifying black mole and the woman squatting over the pit, the man slammed the door shut.

“Sorry! We’re looking for someone!”

“Get lost! Believe it or not, I’ll stuff you headfirst into this latrine!” Gu Hua bellowed in a hoarse, rasping voice.

These vulgar lines were ones she’d overheard when Concubine Pei punished her by sending her to work among the servants.

She never expected she’d have use for them one day.

The cursed man shouted back angrily, “Just squat there, you damn hag! You’re up on stage soon—watch out or your boss will dock your pay!”

Gu Hua didn’t dare say anything else, afraid of giving herself away. But the man lingered nearby, still searching. She couldn’t get out.

“Seen the old hag?” someone shouted from a distance.

“Fell into the latrine!” the man snapped back.

“Call her! She’s up next!”

“I’ll drag her out for you!”

Hearing the approaching footsteps, Gu Hua panicked. She didn’t have time to think—she leapt up, burst out of the door, and slammed it shut behind her.

Head down, she rammed straight into the man outside and screamed hoarsely, “Move it!”

Startled by her ferocity, the man quickly stepped aside and watched her dash off, muttering with a chuckle, “Too much time playing ugly roles—now she’s actually become one.”

He shook his head and continued searching.

Suddenly, he froze, turned abruptly, and stared hard at her fleeing figure.

Something was wrong—her hairstyle was off.

The ugly old-woman character should have an old lady’s hairstyle, but she had twin buns like a young girl, with her hair trailing down the back!

He quickly kicked open the outhouse door—only to find someone sprawled across the latrine, groaning weakly.

“She’s there! She ran to the front courtyard!” he shouted loudly.

Gu Hua’s legs turned to jelly, her feet slipping—but she forced herself to run.

Soon, she slipped into the backstage area.

Lu Laosan and his men also arrived.

“Hey! Hurry up, you’re on—who are you? Where’s the old hag?”

The troupe leader had reached out to grab her collar and scold her, but suddenly realized she wasn’t the right person.

Gu Hua broke free and dove into the piles of messy backstage props without a second thought.

“Hey hey hey! Where do you think you’re going? Where’s my performer?!” the troupe leader shouted, furious.

“Where is she?!” Lu Laosan ran over.

Before the troupe leader could speak, Lu Laosan spotted the corner of a costume vanishing among the wooden crates.

“Still trying to run!”

Lu Laosan and a few others rushed in after her, flipping over crates as they went. The troupe leader was livid.

“You bastard sons! You’ve ruined my play—don’t think you’ll ever be allowed to stay here again!”

Gu Hua, in a panic and on the verge of tears, suddenly looked toward the stage.

Backstage and onstage were separated by wooden frames and only covered with curtains. The gaps between the frames were just wide enough for her small body to squeeze through.

The play was still ongoing on stage, and where she was happened to be behind a prop Eight Immortals table. There was a curtain in front, and no one onstage could see underneath. The backstage side was also hidden by a drape.

The more dangerous a place, the safer it was.

Gu Hua quietly lifted the curtain and crawled under the table.

Opera singing echoed in her ears. She could even see the embroidered shoes of the performers. Curling up under the table, she dared not move a muscle.

Lu Laosan and his men searched backstage, but none of them thought she would have the audacity to hide right on the stage mid-performance.