Chapter 211 - 166, mask
The sun had sunk below the horizon, the fire-clouds at the edge of the sky blazed like flames in the firmament, eventually dying down bit by bit.
Chen Ji, wearing a conical bamboo hat, stood beside a snack shop just outside Cuiyun Lane, pretending to pick out pastries while surreptitiously scanning the alley from the corner of his eye.
The housekeeper of Chen Mansion was standing at the entrance, shouting loudly, "Hurry, hurry, hurry, get that chest onto the carriage! There’s no telling when the Liu Family’s troops might arrive—we absolutely can’t let them have it!"
Two servants carried out a large chest, and as they crossed the threshold, one of them tripped by accident, causing the chest to fall and spill gold and silver across the ground, among which a ’Phoenix Crown Blue Flower Head’ was particularly eye-catching.
The housekeeper’s complexion changed as he cursed and rushed forward to pick up the valuables and return them to the chest, "Are you trying to get yourselves killed? Even with your lives, you couldn’t afford to pay for any damage!"
Chen Ji counted out twelve Copper Coins from his sleeve and handed them to the shopkeeper, all the while chewing on a paper bag filled with deep-fried golden twisted dough sticks and looking expressionlessly at the alley.
At that moment, a heavy sound of hooves approached from the distance.
Chen Ji turned his head to look and shockingly, it was Zhang Xia riding Zaozao at a gallop, thunderously turning into Cuiyun Lane. He slightly lowered his head to avoid being recognized.
Zhang Xia reined in her horse in front of Chen Mansion and curiously looked at the housekeeper and others, "What are you all doing?"
The housekeeper replied awkwardly, "There’s been trouble with soldiers in the city, and we’re hastily packing up our valuables to move them elsewhere to prevent any harm from the soldiers."
Sitting atop Zaozao, Zhang Xia raised an eyebrow, "Now that Mr. Chen and my father are under house arrest at the government office, you aren’t trying to rescue them but instead are busy packing up your valuables?!"