Chapter 689 - 356: Preparations
Just as everyone thought the fire would burn everything to the ground before it finally died out, the sky suddenly filled with roiling black clouds, and the first torrential downpour in four months began to fall.
The rain extinguished the rampant flames, washing away the sin and sorrow. From the ruins of broken walls, streams of black, sooty water flowed endlessly. Faint moans could occasionally be heard, but they were drowned out by the drumming of the heavy rain. Even if someone did hear, they pretended not to—after burning for so long, anyone rescued would be beyond saving. It was a mercy just to let them die.
After daybreak, Laixi stood in the crowd, his heart trembling as he gazed at the blackened ruins. He was secretly relieved that his family’s poverty had spared them. Because they lacked silver, their shop was located at the far end of the street. His aunt’s shop was on New Street, so neither had been affected.
The residents who had lost their homes and shops stared at the endless black rubble, weeping ceaselessly. No one had stopped them from fleeing when the fire started, so they had all escaped with their lives. But with their entire livelihoods reduced to ashes, how could they not grieve?
Someone tried to console them. "Try to look on the bright side. Think of how many people died in there. Your whole family is safe, shouldn’t you be thanking the heavens for that? ’Where there’s life, there’s hope.’ The important thing now is to figure out how to carry on."
The people who heard this thought it over and realized it was true. Suppressing their grief, they went off to figure out their next steps.
A few government officials who had survived the fire, still in a daze, boarded a boat to Qinghui to deliver the news. Seeing that such a disaster had occurred, the boatman didn’t dare ignore them, let alone ask for a fare.
Manager Song of the Fang family had already sent someone to Qinghui with a message overnight.
The news traveled up the chain of command, and various political factions seized the opportunity. Memorials flew to the Capital City like snowflakes, impeaching County Magistrate Li on dozens of charges: abusing his authority, imposing arbitrary levies, colluding with vicious characters, driving the people to destitution, and ultimately causing a popular uprising. In a fit of rage, the emperor immediately ordered his dismissal and had him escorted to the Capital City for trial. The Fourth Prince’s faction was heavily implicated and never recovered from the blow.
The rival factions were overjoyed, declaring it a "good fire."
Never mind the shifting tides at the imperial court, nor the governor of Huzhou rushing to send men to Qinghui to manage the affair. Let us turn instead to Qingnan Village, where life went on as peacefully as ever. However, the villagers now had more to discuss, whether in the fields during the day or gathered together chatting in the evenings. They should have been celebrating, but then they would remember how many people had died and quickly fall silent, able only to sigh.
Juhua had been feeling listless and unusually heavy these past few days. She was dizzy and couldn’t summon any energy, so she had little strength to pay much attention to the matter. Besides, in her view, something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. Even if there hadn’t been a fire that killed people, some other form of popular unrest would have erupted.
After breakfast that day, she felt she couldn’t hold on much longer. She was just about to have Huai Zi sent to fetch Yun Ying and Doctor Qin when they arrived, bringing Liu Heizi’s family with them.
The moment Yun Ying and Qin Feng saw Juhua’s exhausted state, they were alarmed. Forgetting all about Liu Heizi’s family, they rushed forward. Qin Feng said to Yun Ying in a low voice, "Calm down. Let’s help her inside first." Then, he turned to Juhua with a chiding tone, "Why didn’t you send Huai Zi to get us?"
Juhua gave a weak laugh. "I was just about to ask Mom to call for Huai Zi when you all showed up. I was fine yesterday. It’s only this morning that I started feeling so heavy."
Yun Ying comforted her, "Don’t worry, we’re back now, so everything will be fine. Here, lean back." She helped Juhua onto the bed and propped a pillow behind her back.
Qin Feng immediately began to take Juhua’s pulse. Yun Ying removed Juhua’s veil and carefully studied her complexion. Seeing her pale lips, Yun Ying’s expression grew solemn.
Just then, He walked in carrying two cups of tea. She was about to say something to Qin Feng and Yun Ying, but seeing their serious expressions, she quickly swallowed her words. She placed the two cups of chrysanthemum tea on the round table, then tiptoed over, holding her breath as she watched Qin Feng’s face.
After a long moment, Qin Feng finally let go.
He quickly asked, "Doctor Qin, is Juhua all right? She hasn’t been herself today, and I was so worried. I was just about to send Huai Zi to get you, but then you arrived."
Qin Feng smiled at her. "She’s fine. Her time is near, so it’s normal for her to be tired and feel weak. My junior sister and I are back now, and we’ll be here to watch over her, so you can rest easy, Auntie. We’ll have to trouble you to get Uncle Liu’s family settled in first. Aunt Liu’s health is still delicate, so we can’t let her get overtired."
He was delighted to hear this and quickly agreed. "Oh, of course! You’ve gone to so much trouble, Doctor Qin. I’ll get the Liu Family settled. The house has been ready for a while. They’re practically our own family now, so it’s the least I can do." After saying this, she went over to offer a few more words of comfort to Juhua before leaving the room.