Who Cares About Being the Matriarch? My Rebellious Husband Secured Me a Noble Rank! - Chapter 61

“Put out the fire! What are you all standing around for?” The madam of the house barked orders at her dazed servants. Someone finally rushed off with a bucket, but after two frantic trips, his voice trembled in panic.

“Madam, the flames are spreading too quickly—we won’t be able to save it!”

Seeing her life’s blood and sweat about to go up in smoke, the madam collapsed onto the ground, sobbing bitterly. “Heavens above, why torment me so? What evil did I, Flower Madam, ever commit to deserve this?”

The commotion drew the attention of the nearby townsfolk. Doors and windows creaked open, curious neighbors spilling onto the street to gawk at the blaze.

“Clear the way! Make room!”

From down the long street, a squad of men came charging over.

The madam froze, staring blankly for a beat.

One of the pages cried out in delight, “It’s the men from the Prefectural Office, Madam!”

Hope sparked where there had been none. The madam blinked rapidly, then hurried forward with desperate relief. “Sirs, sirs, save us!”

The officer in charge swung down from his horse. His eyes flicked over the flames. “Have all the people been evacuated?”

The madam shook her head frantically. “No, there are still many inside! The deputy minister from the Court of Judicial Review—Lord Liu—he hasn’t come out either!”

The officer’s face darkened. “You, put out the fire! The rest of you, with me—inside, now!”

If something happened to Lord Liu, none of them would escape punishment.

…

The fire had broken out in one of the second-floor rooms and spread at a terrifying speed.

Thick, choking smoke billowed. Guests and courtesans alike stumbled and coughed, clothes hastily thrown on as they scrambled for the stairs.

The stairwell was jammed with bodies. At the front, Yuan Zhao cut a path with a grim face. “This way, my lady!”

Shen Tangning and Liu Yifu followed close behind.

A shattered beam crashed down with a deafening boom. A few unlucky souls were pinned beneath, screaming for help, but in a place where everyone was fighting to live, who had the luxury to save another?

Liu Yifu’s jaw tightened. In the end, he couldn’t look away. “You two go on ahead!”

Without waiting for a reply, he turned back to the fallen beam.

Shen Tangning’s vision swam black with disbelief. At a time like this, he still had the heart to play savior?

She had barely run a few steps before her feet stopped on their own. When she looked back, she saw Liu Yifu bracing himself against the burning timber, sleeves wrapped around his hands to shield them, blue veins bulging at his neck as he strained—but his strength alone was not enough.

The flames roared higher, blurring his outline in the smoke. Shen Tangning’s eyes flickered with a storm of emotions. A phrase flashed across her mind.

A mantis trying to shake a tree.

And then—she ran back into the fire.

Killing ten corrupt officials could not compare to saving one upright man like Liu Yifu. That, she thought, was reason enough for her to return.

Yuan Zhao, helpless, could only follow.

The beam suddenly lifted. Liu Yifu’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw Shen Tangning and Yuan Zhao shoulder the weight with him. His brows knit in anger. “Didn’t I tell you to go? Why did you come back?!”

Shen Tangning gritted her teeth, copying his movements. “Save the lecture, Lord Liu—help me lift!”

Together, the three raised the beam. The trapped men crawled out, sobbing their gratitude.

They rushed back toward the exit just as more officers from the Prefectural Office stormed inside.

“Lord Liu!”

Liu Yifu was surprised at how quickly they had arrived, but there was no time to dwell on it. He waved them over. “I’m fine! Take these injured out first!”

Finally, outside, Shen Tangning inhaled and choked violently on the smoke, clutching at her chest as she coughed.

“You’re hurt?” Liu Yifu’s eyes sharpened at the redness streaking her eyes.

She shook her head, voice hoarse. “I’m fine. Your hands…”

She had noticed the blistering burns on his palms. He quietly hid them away. “It’s nothing. Listen to me—go home, immediately. No one knows you were here tonight, and you must not breathe a word of this to anyone. Understand?”

His grave tone caught her off guard. After a pause, she nodded. “Be careful, my lord.”

Turning, she slipped into the night with Yuan Zhao close behind. Their figures vanished swiftly.

Liu Yifu’s gaze lingered for a long moment before he lowered his eyes to the black lacquered box tucked against his chest. His expression was grim.

All this over one woman… It seems the waters run deep indeed.

…

Inside the carriage, Shen Tangning had already changed back into her own clothes.

Xueqing dabbed at her soot-stained face with a wet handkerchief, sighing in distress. “Miss, how did you end up in such a state?”

“An accident,” Shen Tangning murmured, then knocked lightly on the carriage wall.

Up front, Yuan Zhao turned his head. “What are your orders, my lady?”

Her gaze flickered. “Was it you who brought the Prefectural Office here?”

She had suspected the Third Prince’s men might make a move, so she had ordered Yuan Zhao to keep watch outside. She hadn’t expected arson.

Yuan Zhao’s brows furrowed, voice cooling. “You told me to wait nearby. I saw two suspicious men sneaking out. When I approached, they bolted. I gave chase, but something felt wrong, so I paid a passerby to run to the Prefectural Office and report a fire.”

That delay had cost them precious time.

Shen Tangning exhaled softly. “You did well. If not for them arriving so quickly, the casualties tonight would’ve been countless.”

Yes—her enemies had prepared two contingencies. One man to search for the box, another to set the blaze, causing chaos while destroying evidence.

“What could that courtesan possibly have had,” Yuan Zhao muttered, “that made them go to such lengths?”

Her lips curved faintly, eyes like deep pools. “Wait and see. Someone is about to lose both wife and soldiers.”

If the black box was so valuable, then it was proof enough—it contained something that could endanger the Third Prince himself.

One wrong step, and now he would stumble deeper still.

…

Back in the cell, Chi Yan tilted his head toward the narrow skylight, boredly counting stars. He had been here so long; he’d lost all sense of time.

By day, the officials repeated the same questions over and over, so often he thought his ears might sprout calluses.

Heavy footsteps echoed down the corridor.

He looked up and saw Liu Yifu, dishevelled and smoke-stained, stopping in front of his cell, eyes shadowed and complicated.

Chi Yan blinked, then smirked. “Lord Liu, did you go out to rob a house tonight? You look the part.”

Liu Yifu drew in a steadying breath, his voice calm but heavy with meaning.

“Second Young Master Chi… you can go home now.”

Chi Yan froze, dumbstruck. His eyes widened.

“…Huh?”