Full House Spring

Chapter 50 Jedi Counterattack
The warm yellow candlelight flickered, illuminating every corner of the warehouse.

Xia Li stared at the Tongcao peony intently. She carefully removed the damaged petals, fearing that she would cause more damage by using too much force.

Then he would pick out petals of appropriate size from the small box he carried with him and stick them back on.

There wasn't even a chair in the warehouse, so she could only pick a camphorwood box that looked cleaner to sit on and continue repairing it.

Just as she replaced all the damaged petals and prepared to paint them, she suddenly heard a heavy gasp.

Xia Li's pores stood up, her alarm bells rang, and she shouted sternly: "Whoever is playing tricks in there, get out now!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she heard the rustling of clothes behind the closet shelf on the south wall, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps.

Zhu Da came out wearing a gray-brown coarse cloth short jacket. His face was greasy, with a lewd smile on his face, and his eyes were chilling.

Xia Li picked up the scissors and put them behind his back, and said in a cold voice: "Who are you? Aren't you afraid of being punished for trespassing into the warehouse?"

Zhu Da rubbed his palms excitedly and said to Xia Li with drooling mouth:
"I am not afraid of being punished. It is worth it to have a daughter-in-law like you, who is as beautiful as a fairy. You must remember that I am Zhu Da, the groom, and also your future husband~"

After he said that, he rushed towards Xia Li. Xia Li quickly hid to the door. She wanted to open the door, but couldn't.

Zhu Da's breathing became heavier. He stared at Xia Li's newly developed bulge with ill intent, and said complacently:
"The doors and windows have been locked from the outside. You can't get out tonight."

Xia Li's heartbeat quickened, her palms sweated, she gripped the scissors tightly, veins popped out, and she said calmly, "You know I'm the most favored maid in front of the old lady, if you bully me, the old lady will not let you off easily."

Zhu Da said nonchalantly: "When it's done, I'll ask the old lady to marry you to me. Our Zhu family has been loyal for generations, and I don't believe that we won't have a daughter-in-law."

Xia Li's body trembled violently, and an indescribable sense of fear spread in the air. Zhu Dasu had been holding back for a long time and could no longer hold back. He stretched out his evil hand towards Xia Li again as if he was playing with a chicken.

Xia Li dodged in panic, her hands trembling unconsciously, even her lips trembled. She dodged randomly, and if she touched anything, she would throw it at Zhu Da, but the scissors were always hidden under her sleeve.

Zhu Da usually takes care of horses and does all the dirty and heavy work. He has no place to vent his brute force. After a few rounds, Xia Li was exhausted and panting. He didn't even breathe. His voice was a little hoarse.
"What are you running for, little girl? This warehouse is so small, you will get tired sooner or later. It would be better for you to save your energy and have fun with me. How great is that~"

A rough man like him would never have the chance to come into contact with the delicate and tender maids raised in the inner courtyard. He was so greedy that he was almost drooling. Xia Li's breathing was disordered and he looked at him vigilantly.

She had just made such a big noise but no one came to ask about her. She was afraid that no one would come to rescue her. Xia Li didn't have time to find out who had harmed her. The most urgent thing was to find a way to escape.

The difference in their physical strength was too great. It was not worthwhile for her to exhaust herself like this. It would only put herself in a more passive situation. She suppressed the fear and disgust from the bottom of her heart, sighed softly, and said in a trembling voice: "After tonight, will you really be responsible for me and marry me?"

Zhu Da was overjoyed when he heard this, thinking that she had accepted her fate, and said impatiently:

"I will take responsibility. My previous wife only gave me a money-losing child. When I marry you, we will have a bunch of sons and I will let you be the boss."

Xia Li pretended to hesitate and said, "You are so tall and strong, you won't hit me in the future, right?"

Zhu Da laughed complacently, "Don't worry, as long as you serve me well, I will not only not touch you, but also be willing to work hard and be at your disposal."

Xia Li was constantly preparing herself mentally. She tightly grasped the scissors hidden in her sleeve, bit her lip, and made a gesture of giving up resistance. She said softly, "Remember what you said. Don't hurt me..."

Zhu Da rushed towards Xia Li like a cat smelling blood. The smell of horse manure and sweat from not having a bath for who knows how many days made Xia Li almost vomit.

He bit Xia Li's neck without any reason. Xia Li suppressed his murderous intent and said in a low voice: "Tell me first, who ordered you to do this?"

Zhu Da paused and said in a bad tone, "Why are you asking so many questions? I promised that person to keep it a secret for her."

Xia Li pretended to be angry and pushed him away, saying angrily:
"I am willing to live with you, but you still want to hide it from me. If that person knew that you didn't harm me and wanted to marry me and treat me like a treasure, she would definitely be angry. What if she finds someone else to harm me?"

Zhu Da's eyes turned red, and he growled, "She dares! If she does that, I will break that bitch's neck. It doesn't matter if I tell you that it was Zhao Xiaohui who was beside the fourth lady who instructed me to do this."

Xia Li's eyes flashed coldly, and he asked in a cold voice: "Is she the only one? No other accomplices?"

Zhu Da said irritably, "There is no one else. She brought me here. Come on, stop talking nonsense. I am almost suffocating."

He was about to pull Xia Li's collar after he finished speaking, not noticing the murderous intent that was about to overflow from Xia Li's eyes. Just as Zhu Dagou was so bold as to look at Xia Li's exposed skin and couldn't help himself, Xia Li raised the scissors and stabbed him hard in the carotid artery. She didn't hesitate at all, and warm blood immediately gushed out...

Zhu Da covered his wound with his hands, his pupils widened, and looked at Xia Li in disbelief, "You...you..."

He couldn't utter a complete sentence and fell to the ground. The scissors had pierced into his flesh and had not fallen out. Blood was gushing out and the ground was dyed red. Xia Li's legs and feet were weak and she kept moving backwards with her hands on the ground.

She had never even killed a chicken. Looking at Zhu Da dying with his eyes open, she turned pale and breathed rapidly.

Xia Li tried to calm down, then stood up tremblingly. She straightened her clothes first, then kept banging on the doors and windows, calling for help...

But no matter how she screamed, no one came to help her. Xia Li couldn't imagine how horrible it would be for her to spend a night with a corpse. She had already used up all her strength dealing with Zhu Da, and now her hands and feet were weak and she couldn't do anything. Since no one came to rescue her, she could only find a way to save herself.

Xia Li looked around, but she couldn't find any suitable tools. Her eyes fell sharply on the candle flame. If the warehouse was on fire, she would be able to attract people to put out the fire. Even if no one came, at least she could burn the doors and windows and escape.

Xia Li didn't care about anything else. She picked up the candle without hesitation and burned it towards the door. Soon the fire was getting bigger and bigger...

Lu Lingchuan took his official business back to the mansion tonight. He was used to working in the outer study, so he did not return to his own courtyard. Shi Hu accompanied him. Seeing that the pot of water on the stove was almost empty, he hurried out to get some water. After walking a few steps, he saw a fire in the direction of the storehouse. He was horrified and raised his voice to shout, "My Lord, something bad has happened. There is a fire in the storehouse."

Hearing this, Lu Lingchuan dropped his brush, stood up, and said in a deep voice, "Hurry up and call for help to put out the fire."

At this time, he didn't know that Xia Li was trapped in the storehouse. When he led the servants and guards in the mansion to put out the fire, he saw Xia Li kicking down the burned door frame and coming out of the flames...

Lu Lingchuan's eyes were about to burst, his heart was in his throat, and he didn't care about anything else. He rushed forward, caught the exhausted Xia Li, wrapped her with his cloak, and asked anxiously: "Xia Li, how are you?"

When Xia Li saw the prince, she knew she was safe. The long period of mental tension and severe exhaustion made Xia Li unable to even stand up. She let Lu Lingchuan hold her waist and said in a hoarse voice: "I'm fine, Zhu Da's body is still inside..."

Lu Lingchuan's eyes flashed with shock, and his expression froze instantly. After a moment, he said, "I'm glad you're okay. I'll take care of the rest."

Xia Li nodded in agreement after surviving a disaster. She returned to Leshou Hall under the escort of Shihu. Aunt Xie was the first to get the news. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Xia Li's miserable state. She asked in a trembling voice, "What happened to you? What happened?"

Xia Li, who pretended to be strong in front of outsiders, couldn't help but have tears in her eyes when she saw her grandma. She threw herself into her grandma's arms and cried silently. Grandma Xie hugged her and felt so distressed that she kept stroking her back to comfort her.

After Xia Li vented her emotions, she finally calmed down. She said in a low voice, "Grandma, let's go back to the house and talk. I need to take a shower and change clothes first."

Nanny Xie knew that she must have encountered a big accident. Without bothering to ask any other questions, she hurried back to the house with her and helped her get hot water for a bath. There was a charcoal basin burning in the house, so it was not very cold. Soaking in the warm water, Xia Li seemed to come back to life.

She vigorously scrubbed the place that Zhu Da had bitten, tears streaming down her face. Aunt Xie felt so distressed that she couldn't help asking, "What happened? What happened to you?"

In this mansion, she only trusted Grandma and Qiaohe. Zhu Da had been killed by her. This matter could not be concealed and would have to be explained sooner or later. It would be better to tell Grandma first so that they could discuss a countermeasure.

Xia Li lowered his eyes and told the whole story in a calm tone. Aunt Xie was furious after hearing this. She said with a sinister look in her eyes:
"You killed him well. That beast deserved to die. He actually dared to touch you. He must be tired of living. Don't worry. I will definitely support you in this matter. We will not suffer this injustice in vain."

Xia Li felt warm in her heart. Grandma's undisguised protection of her shortcomings gave her great comfort and made her more confident. She said in a low voice:

"Did I kill Zhu Da? Will the old lady punish me?"

Madam Xie picked up the towel and wiped her back, saying softly, "
"No, I'm here. The culprit is that damn Zhao Xiaohui, and I will not let her off easily."

Xia Li calmed down and her mind became clearer. She said calmly, "This was done by Zhao Xiaohui, but not just her. I always feel that there are other people behind this."

Aunt Xie looked deep in her eyes and said, "You said that Xiangru asked you to go to the storehouse at night. Could it be that the other person was her?"

Xia Li recalled the past with a serious expression, "I have no grudges against her in the past, no hatred in the present, and we have never had any conflicts. Why would she want to harm me?"

Madam Xie sighed and said, "I'm afraid she's the only one who knows this. It's not difficult to investigate. We can just send someone to ask the eldest lady. If there is an accomplice, Zhao Xiaohui will definitely not hide it."

Xia Li nodded slightly. The sooner the matter was resolved, the better. She didn't care about anything else. After taking a quick shower, Xia Li changed into clean and warm clothes and went to the old lady immediately.

At this time, the front hall was brightly lit with candles, and the old lady was sitting at the head of the table. The two ladies and the prince had all arrived. As soon as Xia Li showed up, Xiangru rushed over and hugged her, crying bitterly, "It's all my fault. I shouldn't have let you go to the warehouse to work alone. I knew it was not safe there..."

She cried with tears in her eyes, as if she was really heartbroken for Xia Li, which shook Xia Li's previous suspicion of her. The eldest wife also blamed herself, "I didn't think it through. You have a lot of things to do. What's the harm of delaying for a day? Fortunately, nothing serious happened.

The eldest lady's words just served as evidence for Xiangru. It seemed that she was not making up an excuse to deceive Xia Li. Xia Li patted Xiangru on the back of his hand, took a step forward and respectfully saluted the old lady and several masters.

The old lady said with compassion, "Poor girl, you must be scared. I have sent people to arrest Zhao Xiaohui, and I will not let her off easily."

Luo Madam quickly followed suit and said, "Yes, how can such a vicious-hearted maid stay with the Fourth Young Lady? It's really terrible."

It seemed that no one doubted the truth of Xia Li's words. Xiangru held the handkerchief tightly. She grasped it with so much force that even her knuckles turned white. She lowered her head and wiped her tears with the handkerchief from time to time, making it impossible to see her expression clearly.

The old lady asked Xia Li what happened. Although Xia Li was still frightened, he still told her clearly. Although Lu Lingchuan did not ask, the worry and fear in his eyes did not seem fake.

During the conversation, the whole story was explained clearly. The servant who went to arrest Zhao Xiaohui also came back. The strong servant woman knelt down and said, "Madam, when I went to Zhao Xiaohui's room, she was already dead. She hanged herself on the beam and died."

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room fell silent until Madam Lu rushed in crying. She knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, saying in tears:

"Please, old lady, make the decision. My little Hui has some thoughts, but she will never commit suicide. The person behind the scenes must have used her and was afraid that she would tell the truth, so they killed her directly to silence her so that she can take the blame alone."

Originally, it would have been fine if Zhu Da had died in this incident, but unexpectedly, Zhao Xiaohui also died. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that there was something fishy going on.

But the end of the year is approaching, and it is extremely unlucky for someone to die in the mansion. The old lady looked solemn, rubbing her temples and said:

"Don't shout or scream. This is disgraceful. Zhu Da personally pointed out that it was Zhao Xiaohui who did it. Xia Li, the victim, heard it clearly. Your sister-in-law is not innocent."

Madam Lu was heartbroken. She choked up and said, "Old lady, even if Xiao Hui deserved to die, then the person behind this deserved to die even more."

Chan Yi, who had been standing in the corner, couldn't help but speak:

"Mrs. Lu probably doesn't know the inside story. Xiao Hui instigated me to quarrel with Xia Li a few days ago. It's not surprising that she did what she did today. Maybe she didn't expect Xia Li to kill Zhu Da and escape. She must be afraid of Xia Li's revenge, so she evaded responsibility."

(End of this chapter)