Feng Shuying stood at the entrance of the courtyard, shouting at the top of her lungs, "Help! Someone come quickly, there’s a fire! Help put out the fire!"
A fire of this magnitude immediately caught everyone’s attention.
The servants of Lin Fu came running to extinguish the flames. They had no choice; if the fire grew too large, it would spread to the other buildings.
While the servants were busy fighting the fire, Feng Shuying stood to the side, faking her grief. "Oh, Mother, Father, your daughter’s life is so bitter!"
"Everything you left for me is inside! If I miss you in the future, I won't even have a single memento left!"
Initially, the servants were only putting out the fire to complete their duty. But as soon as they heard her words, they became as energized as if they’d been injected with chicken blood.
They were hoping the items hadn't been completely destroyed so they could loot them later.
Because they worked so hard, some were even burned.
Watching them fight the fire, Feng Shuying cried even louder, "The bracelet my mother left me! The jade pendant from my father! Those were my last connections to them!"
She had checked carefully earlier; there was nothing of value in this dilapidated room.
When the original owner of this body had eloped, she had already taken everything valuable with her. To save her own life today, the current Feng Shuying had given everything she had left to the Abbot of the Buddhist temple.
Aside from the two pearls she had pried loose and the hundred taels of silver she had just extracted from Lin Shuzheng, she had nothing of value on her person.
Lin Shuzheng rushed over. "How did it suddenly catch fire?"
Feng Shuying sniffled and said, "I don't know. I went back to my room to rest, and suddenly, it was on fire!"
After saying this, she looked at Lin Shuzheng and asked, "Uncle, could it be that someone wants to kill me, so they set the fire to burn me to death?"
Lin Shuzheng: "…"
His gaze darkened. It truly was a possibility.
However, he said, "Don't talk nonsense. No such thing happened!"
Feng Shuying whispered, "Cousin has always been one to hold a grudge. I injured her today; could it be that she wanted to burn me to death?"
Lin Shuzheng immediately denied it. "Impossible. Your cousin is kind-hearted; she would never do such a thing."
Feng Shuying gave an "oh" and added, "Uncle, they say Chu Wang has cursed his seven previous fiancées to death. I won't be cursed to death by him too, will I?"
There were too many people who wanted her dead right now. Her primary strategy was to spout nonsense and let Lin Shuzheng do the guessing!
In any case, no one would suspect that she was the one who started the fire.
Lin Shuzheng’s expression shifted several times before he said sternly, "That’s not true. Stop speaking such nonsense!"
Feng Shuying gave another "oh," acting extremely unsettled.
By this time, the fire had been brought under control. Lin Shuzheng summoned a steward to arrange new lodgings for Feng Shuying.
He had just claimed to be a "good uncle" in front of her today; he couldn't lose face too quickly, so he ordered the steward to find her a new room.
Lin Fu was a large three-courtyard residence. The place Feng Shuying currently lived in was a remote woodshed in a corner.
Now that it was burned down, there were only two spare rooms: one was right next to Lin Wanting’s room, and the other was a dark, damp greenhouse.
Lin Shuzheng instinctively wanted to send Feng Shuying to the greenhouse, but he heard her say, "There’s still a room next to Cousin’s. Why don't I stay there for now?"
"Uncle always says he treats me like his own daughter. I assume those aren't just empty words."
Lin Shuzheng: "…Of course not."
The matter was settled, though Lin Shuzheng felt a bit uncomfortable.
A master had once told him that he must not let Feng Shuying live too comfortably. If she was comfortable, it would negatively affect their family’s Qiyun.
However, he figured that since Feng Shuying wouldn't live much longer anyway, she couldn't possibly have much of a comfortable life. It shouldn't matter if she lived slightly better before she died.
When Madam Hua found out about this, she complained bitterly to Lin Shuzheng, saying that Feng Shuying didn't deserve such a nice room.
But since Lin Shuzheng had already agreed, he couldn't go back on his word. He could only let her move in for now. Regardless, she would be dead soon; she wouldn't be staying long.
Since all of Feng Shuying's things had been burned, all her daily necessities had to be replenished.
Madam Hua instructed the steward to send a set of the same items used by the servants to Feng Shuying.
Feng Shuying wasn't surprised to see the low-quality items delivered by the steward. No matter how poor these things were, they were still better than what the original owner had used.
She had already accomplished a lot today and pushed Lin Shuzheng to his limit. She felt it was time to quit while she was ahead.
As she was tidying up and preparing to make her bed, a woman dressed as a maid entered.
Feng Shuying narrowed her eyes slightly at the sight of her.
As soon as the maid entered, she snapped, "My dear Eldest Miss, why can't you just stay out of trouble?"
"Do you really think you’re still the Eldest Miss of the Feng family? You need to realize that you are living under someone else's roof now!"
"The Master and Madam were kind enough to give you a place to stay out of sentiment for the past. Where do you get the nerve to demand a room next to Miss Wanting?"
When the original owner first came to Lin Fu, she had brought two maids with her.
One had been sold off by Madam Hua using a flimsy excuse, while the other had directly defected to Madam Hua.
In recent years, far from protecting the original owner, this maid had often helped Madam Hua bully her.
Feng Shuying looked at the maid and said, "I've recently learned physiognomy. I think you have a Xueguang Zhizai coming today."
The maid glared at her. "I have a Xueguang Zhizai? I think you’re the one with a Xueguang Zhizai!"
"I kindly advised you to leave Lin Fu and live a good life with Chen Yansheng, yet you came back anyway."
"Coming back is one thing, but your room caught fire the moment you returned. This is Heaven punishing you!"
Hearing this, Feng Shuying remembered that the original owner's elopement with Chen Yansheng was partly due to this maid’s "contribution."
If this maid hadn't spent every day manipulating and encouraging the original owner, she wouldn't have done something so scandalous.
Feng Shuying naturally had no intention of tolerating such a vicious, treacherous servant.
While the maid was still blathering, Feng Shuying walked over, grabbed her by the hair, and slammed her head hard against a nearby pillar.
The maid was completely dazed, looking at Feng Shuying with utter disbelief.
Feng Shuying smiled at her faintly. "I said you have a Xueguang Zhizai, so you must have one!"
She dipped her finger in the blood on the maid's head and drew a talisman on the woman's chest. The maid stood there, staring blankly.
Feng Shuying said calmly, "I feel that even though you betrayed your master, you should still contribute your final spark of usefulness at the very end."
"Go. Find Madam Hua, have a nice chat with her, and then give her a massive surprise."
She whispered a few words into the maid’s ear and then handed her a kitchen knife.
Everything was ready; it was time for the show to begin!