TGCFNM -Chapter 558 Xiao Hua Arrives

Flames leapt into the air, and everyone’s faces changed drastically.

The Empress Dowager’s eyes were filled with rage as she shouted loudly for people to come put out the fire!

The air in the hall grew unbearably hot. Chu Ling grabbed a clean piece of cloth, poured some tea over it, pressed it to her mouth and nose, and lay flat on the ground.

Bai Su and the other ghosts anxiously searched for an exit—they hadn’t expected that Chu Yue would really dare to take action!

The Ghost Scholar’s dark, sallow face turned even more unpleasant. “The only way out is through the main door, but the fire is spreading fast. Chu Yue had too much fire oil poured—it’s getting out of control.”

Bai Su rushed to the doorway and saw more and more people outside trying to put out the fire, but it was like a drop in the ocean; completely powerless against the towering flames.

“What should we do?” Bai Su gritted her teeth and returned. “Xiao Ling, we have no choice but to break through.”

The Ghost Scholar looked at the bedding on the floor and hurriedly said, “Soak the quilts in water, wrap yourselves, and find the right moment to dash outside. If you break through, you’ll survive.”

“Xiao Ling! Did you hear that?” Bai Su crouched down and tapped Chu Ling.

Chu Ling, covering her mouth and nose, pointed to a certain spot.

No wonder she couldn’t move the bed—this bed was really connected to the floor. It was a mechanism!

“You’re not planning to find the mechanism now, are you?” Bai Su asked anxiously.

Chu Ling gave a muffled “hm” and, lying on the floor, began crawling around the bed, her hands constantly probing for something.

Wangcai also lay down to help Chu Ling, scratching around randomly with his paws.

At that moment, Chu Ling froze for a moment, then looked toward her position right behind the Empress Dowager’s bed. She tentatively tried to twist the bed’s legs, and when she realized they could turn, she began to speed up.

Outside the Empress Dowager’s palace, a commotion suddenly arose.

The Emperor had finally arrived with the Imperial Guards, holding his treasured sword and pointing it directly at the Empress Dowager, ready to give the order.

The Empress Dowager’s expression was slightly cold. “Your Majesty, don’t blame me for not warning you—tonight the wind is strong. If the fire here isn’t put out quickly, it may burn down the entire palace!”

The Emperor’s expression darkened. He ordered Eunuch Zhang, “Call everyone you can—have them fetch water to put out the fire.”

The Empress Dowager snorted. “Besides, that Lord Chu is inside as well.”

The Emperor’s expression remained unchanged. “Is that so? Perhaps he came looking for evidence against the Empress Dowager and accidentally got trapped inside.”

The Empress Dowager glanced suspiciously at the Emperor’s face and decided to temporarily pause the confrontation.

This bedroom—absolutely cannot be burned!

Meanwhile, Xiao Yusheng also ordered people to notify Wan Sanjin and the others to come, while leading others to fetch water to fight the fire.

With more people, the effect was slightly more noticeable, but the flames still raged on.

The Empress Dowager clenched her fists, her gaze icy as she looked again at Chu Yue and the commander Ban beside her… once tonight was over, these two wouldn’t need to be kept alive.

Disobedient dogs are best dealt with early.

Chu Yue’s mind tensed, but she did not regret it. After all, as long as Chu Ling, this unpredictable variable, was not eliminated, she would be a disaster in the future.

Nangong Jing barely steadied herself. After a light cough, she took advantage of covering her mouth to swallow the antidote, then glanced at Gui Wushuang, who was standing guard beside the Emperor, giving a slight nod.

Gui Wushuang seemed unfazed, quietly watching the towering flames.

At this moment, Wan Sanjin and the others finally arrived. Seeing the towering flames, they were startled and tried to rush in immediately—but the fire blocked their way.

Fu Qingyu’s face darkened. After questioning someone briefly, he headed straight for Chu Yue.

Chu Yue looked at him, deliberately showing the side of her face reddened from the beating. “You think I did something wrong?”

Fu Qingyu took a deep breath. “Why go to such extremes?”

“Right now, one wrong step would throw us into an abyss,” Chu Yue said coldly, staring at the raging fire. “So I advise you to put away your ridiculous sympathy—no one needs it.” In her heart, she felt a surge of satisfaction; not only had she done nothing wrong, she had done exactly the right thing.

Over by Wan Sanjin, the group was panicking, but the fire was too fierce. The people inside couldn’t get out, and they couldn’t get in.

Zhang Dong looked at the roof, then at Xiao Hua. “Can you get in from the top?”

Xiao Hua’s eyes were red as she nodded. “I’ll try.”

With that, Xiao Hua took a running start and leapt into the air. At the moment the flames almost licked her, she passed through them smoothly and climbed onto the roof.

“Put on the gloves and give it a try,” Wan Sanjin called out tensely. “If it doesn’t work, get down immediately.”

Xiao Hua nodded. After putting on the metal gloves, she gathered her strength and slammed down with a powerful strike!

Boom! The loud crash startled everyone. They all looked up in panic, then their expressions turned to amazement: the delicate-looking little girl seemed about to smash through the roof!

After testing the force, Xiao Hua slammed another punch.

The Empress Dowager waved her hand irritably, signaling those watching to hurry up and help extinguish the fire.

Xiao Hua found a spot, hammered several times, and once she noticed some looseness, she began tossing the surrounding tiles down. She then followed the wooden beams, breaking them section by section. After quite a while, she finally made a circular hole.

The opening wasn’t large, but it was big enough for Xiao Hua to get through on her own.

Everyone watched as Xiao Hua crawled into the hole and disappeared.

Inside, Xiao Hua quickly found Chu Ling lying on the floor and anxiously pulled her up.

Chu Ling was a bit stunned, one hand covering her mouth and nose, the other holding a circular wooden piece.

“Xiao Hua?” Chu Ling blinked, hastily removing the cloth. “How did you get in here?”

“I came from above,” Xiao Hua said urgently. “Sir, let’s escape from the top.”

Chu Ling looked at the round wooden piece in her hand. “Wait, I’ve unscrewed all these parts.”

Before Xiao Hua could react, Chu Ling quickly soaked a new cloth with water and handed it to her. Then she pulled Xiao Hua down, pointing to the corner. “Xiao Hua, look. I thought the bed and the floor were connected, but they’re not. There’s a joint in the middle connecting the bed to the floor. The base is fixed to the ground, but the top part of the bed can be moved.”

Xiao Hua understood. She pulled Chu Ling up again, casually draped the cloth over her shoulder, and began moving the bed out.

Chu Ling imitated her, draping a cloth over her shoulder to help lift the bed.

Once the bed was moved aside, Chu Ling noticed a gap in the floor and guessed that the coffin was underneath.

Meanwhile, Xiao Hua pushed all obstructing tables, chairs, and screens aside, dragging the Empress Dowager’s phoenix bed outside—directly into the spreading flames.

After a moment’s thought, Xiao Hua held one corner of the bed, lifted it slowly, and shouted, “Everyone outside, move away, or bear the consequences!”

The people outside froze, then instinctively stepped back.

Then they saw the massive bed smash through the main door of the Empress Dowager’s chamber with a loud crash. It fell outside, extinguishing several flames along the way, and tore a large hole in the chamber.