Jian Zhaoxing

Chapter 238 The Person Inside the Box
After a long while, the sound of footsteps around suddenly increased, but then quickly stopped and returned to silence.

Lin Zhiqing deduced that these were the guards who had just gone out but had returned.

This suggests that my cousin may have escaped, or at least not been caught.

She breathed a sigh of relief before starting to move outwards.

It wasn't until she left the room where the fabrics were stored that Lin Zhiqing realized the Hua family's storeroom was much larger than she had imagined.

This is a courtyard, about the same size as my own Shuqing Pavilion.

Compared to the dusty little storeroom in the Liu mansion, this place looked as if it were plated with gold.

Although merchants were ranked at the bottom in terms of social status, they actually held the gold and silver in their hands.

Moreover, the Hua family are not ordinary merchants.

The idea of ​​being of the lowest status simply doesn't apply here.

Putting aside these complicated thoughts, Lin Zhiqing began to observe her surroundings.

But before she could take a few more glances, the door clicked open.

Lin Zhiqing had a bad feeling and immediately retreated back to the room where the fabric was stored.

At the same moment, several servants and a steward entered the courtyard.

Lin Zhiqing poked a small hole in the window, peeking out one eye to observe the servants.

If the servant came in looking for someone, then that would be troublesome.

Fortunately, the worst-case scenario did not occur.

The servants, each carrying a different gift, walked in turn in different directions of the courtyard.

After confirming that they weren't coming towards her, Lin Zhiqing quickly glanced around to find out where the congratulatory gift was, and then hid behind the cloth again.

After about half a cup of tea's time, the courtyard returned to silence.

Lin Zhiqing went out again, and this time, she went straight to an inconspicuous little corner on the side of the yard.

As she approached the side courtyard where guests' gifts were displayed, she keenly caught a sound of objects colliding.

Very fine.

Very small.

Lin Jingya?
Thinking that Lin Jingya might be inside, Lin Zhiqing quickened her pace.

When she got to the door, she pressed her ear against it to make sure there were no other unusual sounds inside, and that the door was unlocked.

Strange… Lin Zhiqing frowned slightly.

She had just checked, and only the room where the fabric was stored and the room where the congratulatory gifts were stored were unlocked.

The lock on the door of the room where the fabric was stored was hanging on the door, and there seemed to be no problem.

This room is the same now.

All the other doors were tightly closed; the keys were with the steward who had just come in.

Because her view was obstructed, she only knew the general location of the house, but did not see the housekeeper lock it.

Thinking about all this, her desire to push open the door and enter diminished somewhat.

Why are only these two rooms unlocked?
Could it be that someone deliberately let her through, and this was all a trick to lure her in?

No, what's the reason?

Unable to come up with a reasonable explanation, Lin Zhiqing turned her thoughts to the loose window, and the guesses that had been in her mind before came back.

Could it be that someone else entered or left the courtyard before her using the same route?

Only in this way can we explain everything that is happening before our eyes.

If someone comes in, who would it be? Someone who's there to meet Lin Jingya?
However, Lin Jingya did not know anyone in Bianliang. Apart from Jiang Liuyun, Lin Zhiqing could not think of anyone else.

But how did Jiang Liuyun and Lin Jingya pass on the message?

Lin Zhiqing had been observing the Lin family's residence for a long time but hadn't discovered any way for outside information to get in. If someone hadn't come in, then Lin Jingya must have escaped through the window.

However, this guess is unlikely, mainly because there wasn't enough time.

Lin Zhiqing arrived just in time, saying that Lin Jingya had escaped before her arrival and would definitely have encountered the guards outside.

However, the guards outside remained calm and did not react to the discovery of the thieves.

Moreover, if Lin Jingya went out, then what was the reason for that noise just now?
These various speculations all have inexplicable points and are quite contradictory.

Lin Zhiqing frowned, just as she was considering the third possibility, when there was another familiar "click" sound!

Someone else came in from outside the gate!

The side courtyard was not far from the main gate, and given the urgency of the situation, Lin Zhiqing had no way to avoid it.

She pulled out the flute from her waist, pushed open the door in front of her, and quickly looked for a hiding place.

But the room wasn't very big, perhaps because it was getting dark and the light was dim.

Lin Zhiqing could only make out the outlines of boxes and containers of varying shapes and sizes.

In this situation, Lin Zhiqing basically had nowhere to hide.

She quickly focused her attention on the largest boxes in the middle, and soon, in the dim light of the night, she located the congratulatory gift that her family had sent.

She quickly walked over and gently tapped the box, which made a soft "thump thump thump" sound.

This means there's a lot of stuff inside the box!
Based on this alone, Lin Zhiqing could not tell whether Lin Jingya was inside or not.

Because there was already a lot of tie-dyed fabric put in originally.

If we open the box directly, not to mention whether we can see clearly, if Lin Jingya is really inside, then we might be the two of us exposed now.

She immediately started knocking on the boxes next to her, trying to find a relatively empty one to hide in.

Until one of the slightly larger boxes made a "clanging" sound, she opened it a crack and vaguely glimpsed the moon-white fabric.

The scent wafting towards her nose seemed somewhat familiar, but she didn't have time to think about it further; the footsteps outside the door were getting closer and closer.

She guessed that the box also contained fabric, and with almost no time to react, she opened the box, lay down on her side, and quickly closed the lid.

But it wasn't until she lay down that Lin Zhiqing realized something was wrong.

Putting aside the fact that the fabric at the bottom of the box seems to be only a few layers thick, the feeling coming from my back is... a bit strange, it doesn't feel like the texture of fabric.

She was quite certain that she had not leaned against the side of the box.

Sensing something was wrong, she gripped the flute tightly in her left hand and reached behind her with her right.

Upon feeling a slight warmth and tremor from her fingertips, Lin Zhiqing was deeply shaken.

It's people!

There was someone behind her!

Lin Jingya!?

These thoughts flashed through her mind like a fleeting moment.

Just then, with a creak, the door opened!
Lin Zhiqing immediately held his breath, not daring to make any further rash moves.

Sensing that the person behind her had also concealed their aura, Lin Zhiqing knew that the person did not want to be exposed either. A strange tacit understanding permeated the small box.

As the footsteps stopped at the doorway, a male voice followed:

"Oops, I remember locking it just now."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhiqing realized that the voice seemed to belong to the same manager from before.

After the steward finished speaking, he began to walk around the room, as if searching for something.

Lin Zhiqing gripped the flute tightly, extremely nervous as she had to consider the people outside the box and also be wary of those behind her.

Worse still, she clearly felt the footsteps stop in front of her.