Free Web NovelChapter 17: Chapter
Inside the Northern Courtyard, the night was unusually quiet.
The wind brushed softly against the windows, causing the paper screens to rustle every now and then.
Seated beside the table, Xi Wenzhe held a report in his hand.
The candlelight flickered across his sharp features.
However, his eyes had not moved from the same line for quite some time.
The report before him was important.
Normally, he would have finished reading it long ago.
Yet tonight, his thoughts refused to cooperate.
Again and again, his mind drifted toward the same person.
Su Yueqing.
Ever since that woman entered the Xi Manor this morning, peace had completely disappeared.
Nothing about her made sense.
The things she knew.
The things she said inside her mind.
The secrets she casually thought about as if they were common knowledge.
The Crown Princess.
His mother.
His younger sister.
Every single thing should have been impossible.
And yet...
Every single thing had proven true.
Xi Wenzhe frowned.
His fingers unconsciously tightened around the report.
Just as he was about to continue reading—
Bang!
The door burst open so violently that it slammed against the wall.
A guard rushed inside.
His face was pale.
His breathing was uneven.
Without hesitation, he immediately dropped to one knee.
"Youth Master!"
Xi Wenzhe’s brows furrowed.
His cold gaze landed on the guard.
"What happened?"
The guard lowered his head.
"Youth Master, Young Madam’s residence is on fire!"
Silence.
For a brief second, Xi Wenzhe thought he had misheard.
The room became deathly still.
Then his expression darkened.
"What did you say?"
"The fire started from the kitchen, Youth Master. It spread very quickly."
The guard’s voice trembled slightly.
"The servants are already trying to put it out." ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com
Before he could finish speaking—
Xi Wenzhe abruptly stood up.
The chair behind him scraped loudly across the floor.
The guard immediately felt the temperature inside the room drop.
Without another word, Xi Wenzhe grabbed the robe hanging nearby and threw it over his shoulders while striding toward the door.
His face looked colder than ice.
Under his breath, he muttered darkly,
"I knew she would cause trouble sooner or later."
The guard silently lowered his head.
Pretending he had heard absolutely nothing.
⸻
At the same time, the news spread throughout the Xi Manor.
Servants rushed from courtyard to courtyard.
Lanterns lit up one after another.
People who had already fallen asleep were suddenly awakened by the commotion.
Old Madam Zhao Rui was helped out of bed.
Xi Jianyu was informed immediately.
Lin Meiyun hurriedly put on a cloak before rushing outside.
Xi Lanyin and Xi Qianqian were startled awake.
Xi Yunhao and Xi Yunchen quickly left their rooms.
Even Xi Ronghua, Gu Zhen, Gu Xing, Gu Yue, and little Xi Anran were alarmed by the chaos.
Within minutes, nearly the entire Xi family was rushing toward Su Yueqing’s courtyard.
The moment they arrived—
Everyone froze.
The fire was enormous.
Bright orange flames devoured the night sky.
The kitchen was already completely engulfed.
Fire climbed along wooden beams like hungry beasts.
Several nearby rooms had already caught fire as well.
Thick black smoke billowed upward.
The heat was so intense that even people standing far away could feel it on their faces.
Servants ran back and forth carrying buckets of water.
Guards shouted instructions.
The courtyard was in complete chaos.
"Hurry!"
"Bring more water!"
"The eastern side is catching fire!"
"Move those boxes!"
"The roof is collapsing!"
The frantic cries echoed everywhere.
Xi Jianyu’s face darkened instantly.
"What happened here?"
The nearby servants immediately knelt.
"This servant does not know, Duke!"
Xi Jianyu’s expression became even uglier.
He stared at the burning buildings before him.
The flames reflected in his eyes.
Then Lin Meiyun suddenly frowned.
Something felt wrong.
Her gaze swept across the crowd.
Then her heart sank.
"Where is Yueqing?"
The moment those words left her mouth—
The entire courtyard became strangely quiet.
Several servants exchanged nervous looks.
No one answered.
Xi Jianyu slowly turned around.
His voice became cold.
"I asked a question."
A guard hurried forward and knelt.
"Duke... we are still searching for Young Madam."
The atmosphere instantly changed.
Lin Meiyun’s face paled.
Xi Lanyin’s eyes widened.
Xi Qianqian stared toward the fire.
"You still haven’t found her?"
The guard lowered his head even further.
"No, Miss."
Xi Jianyu’s voice exploded.
"What do you mean you haven’t found her?"
The guards immediately trembled.
"Duke!"
Before anyone could explain—
Several maids suddenly came running from the side.
Their faces were deathly pale.
One of them stumbled and nearly fell before collapsing to her knees.
"Duke!"
Xi Jianyu’s expression darkened.
"Speak."
The maid was shaking so badly that her voice nearly failed.
"We searched everywhere nearby..."
Her eyes filled with fear.
"We could not find Young Madam."
Lin Meiyun’s heart dropped.
"Then where is she?"
The maid swallowed hard.
"It seems... it seems Young Madam is still inside the kitchen."
The world seemed to freeze.
Everyone stared at her.
"What?!"
Xi Qianqian cried out in shock.
Lin Meiyun’s face instantly lost all color.
Xi Yunhao’s calm expression finally cracked.
"The kitchen?"
Xi Ronghua’s eyes widened.
"That’s where the fire started!"
The maid nodded frantically.
"We searched every room nearby. We couldn’t find Young Madam anywhere else."
Silence.
For the first time that night—
Real panic appeared on the faces of the Xi family.
Even Zhao Rui tightened her grip on her cane.
Her knuckles turned white.
Everyone knew exactly what that meant.
The kitchen was the center of the fire.
If Su Yueqing was truly inside—
Then she might already be trapped.
Or worse.
At that exact moment—
A figure suddenly moved.
Without hesitation.
Without permission. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Without thinking.
Xi Wenzhe rushed forward.
His dark figure shot through the crowd before anyone could react.
Straight toward the sea of flames.
"Wenzhe!"
Lin Meiyun cried out in shock.
But Xi Wenzhe never slowed down.
Nor did he turn around.
The fire reflected in his eyes.
His expression was terrifyingly dark.
In the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the smoke.
Xi Yunchen froze.
Xi Qianqian froze.
Even Xi Jianyu looked surprised.
Because they had all seen it clearly.
The moment he heard Su Yueqing was trapped—
Xi Wenzhe had moved immediately.
Almost as though his body had reacted before his mind could.
⸻
Meanwhile—
Inside the burning kitchen.
The situation was far worse.
Smoke filled every corner of the room.
The heat was unbearable.
Wood crackled overhead.
Flames crawled along the walls.
The entire structure looked as though it could collapse at any second.
Su Yueqing was crouched behind a fallen cabinet.
One sleeve covered her mouth.
She coughed violently.
Her eyes watered from the smoke.
Every breath felt like inhaling fire.
Yet despite being trapped in a burning building—
The loudest thing in her head was still her own complaints.
[I hate this system.]
A loud creak sounded overhead.
Su Yueqing immediately looked up.
A burning beam swayed dangerously.
[I seriously hate this system.]
Crack!
Another piece of wood snapped.
Smoke poured down around her.
She coughed again.
[Villain mission my foot.]
[Who came up with this nonsense?]
[Normal people sleep at night.]
[Normal people do not get roasted alive for character development.]
The fire outside roared louder.
The system remained shamelessly calm.
[Host has successfully completed villain scene.]
Su Yueqing almost exploded.
[Completed?]
[COMPLETED?!]
[I am currently being smoked like a piece of dried meat!]
[Do I look completed to you?!]
The system remained unmoved.
[Host has gained ten villain points.]
Su Yueqing nearly fainted from anger.
[Take the points back.]
[Give me my kitchen.]
[Give me my house.]
[Give me emotional compensation.]
A burning piece of wood suddenly crashed beside her.
"Ah!"
She immediately scrambled away.
Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest.
[The heroine burns down my kitchen.]
[The family blames me.]
[My house is gone.]
[I lose property.]
[I gain trauma.]
[And somehow YOU think I won?]
The system answered calmly.
[Host should focus on survival.]
[Host’s current survival rate is sixty-two percent.]
Su Yueqing nearly choked.
[Sixty-two percent?!]
[What happened to the other thirty-eight?!]
Before the system could answer..l
Boom!
A loud crash suddenly echoed from the entrance.
The kitchen doors burst open.
Flames surged wildly.
Smoke rolled through the room.
Through the burning haze—
A tall figure stepped inside.
Su Yueqing blinked.
Then blinked again.
For a moment, she thought the smoke was affecting her vision.
Inside her mind—
[...Why is he here?]
[Did he come to collect my corpse?]
[No, wait.]
Xi Wenzhe stepped through the flames.
His dark robe was stained with soot.
His face was colder than the winter frost.
The fire illuminated his sharp features.
His eyes swept across the room before immediately landing on her.
And for the first time since Su Yueqing entered the Xi Manor—
Xi Wenzhe looked genuinely angry.
Not annoyed or indifferent.
He looked furious.
As if seeing her trapped inside this burning kitchen had ignited a fire inside him that was even more dangerous than the one surrounding them.
