Following a small path trodden out in the wild grass, Yun Xi walked for a while and spotted a severely burned wooden cabin. Half of the cabin had collapsed, and charred black logs were strewn haphazardly on the ground. It seemed no one had bothered to clean up.
Yun Xi scanned the surroundings. Apart from this cabin, there was no other place to take shelter in the entire yard.
The cabin was hardly habitable. A sinking feeling welled up in Yun Xi's heart. She stepped over the slanting door panel and tiptoed inside.
"Is anyone there?"
Yun Xi asked in a low voice. In the dim space filled with the smell of char, her eyes searched hard.
There was no response. It was so quiet all around that Yun Xi began to wonder if she had come to the wrong place.
Just as she was thinking this and looking at the cabin that seemed on the verge of collapsing at any moment, Yun Xi turned around and was about to leave. Suddenly, a dark figure rushed into her sight, followed by a horribly hideous face that loomed larger and larger in front of her.
"Ah!"
Yun Xi was startled by this unexpected situation. She twisted her ankle and fell to the ground. The dark figure pounced on her, and then a growl like that of a wild beast rang in her ears.
Fearing another injury, Yun Xi summoned her wits. She propped herself up with both hands and pushed the attacker away with all her might. She arched her back and rolled to one side, accidentally hitting a wooden pillar and making a loud noise!
The moment Yun Xi felt the pain in her body, it seemed as if the whole cabin swayed, and some charred wood chips fell down, hitting the dark figure and making it stop its attacking motion instantly.
After a long while, seeing that the figure didn't move, Yun Xi quickly walked over, not letting her guard down.
Seeing the person with bound hands lying motionless on the ground, Yun Xi quickly felt for their nose. She let out a sigh of relief only when she felt the faint breath. She quickly removed the log pressing on the person's waist.
The log was actually very light after being completely burned. Yun Xi lifted it easily and threw it to one side.
So it could be concluded that this person had been seriously injured before she came!
Thinking of the wooden stick in the maid's hand earlier, Yun Xi carefully looked for wounds on the person's body. Sure enough, she saw injuries on the person's head, back, and limbs.
New wounds were piled on old ones, and many places were still bleeding. Yun Xi was shocked and frowned tightly.
For some unknown reason, that strange sense of familiarity made her eyes moisten.
She felt a pair of eyes staring fixedly at her under the messy and dirty hair. The eyes were weak yet fierce, as if the previous collision had exhausted all the person's strength.
"Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you. Your wounds are bleeding. I'm just going to bandage them for you."
Yun Xi explained patiently. She took out a bottle of ointment from her bosom. Due to the limited conditions, after a simple cleaning, she dug out a large piece of ointment and applied it to the person's wounds. Then, she tore a piece of the lining of her skirt with her hands, divided it into strips, and bandaged the wounds.
The person was on the verge of death, glaring angrily at Yun Xi. But because of Yun Xi's help at this moment, there was a hint of confusion in their eyes.
She stared silently at Yun Xi with her slightly knitted eyebrows, carefully bandaging. She kept making grunting sounds, as if trying hard to express something.
"Are you hungry? I have some food here. Just make do with it for now."
Seeing the food that had been knocked over not far away, Yun Xi quickly took out a packet of snacks from her sleeve and held it to the person's mouth. Unexpectedly, the person waved it away with one hand.
Looking at the food in Yun Xi's hand warily and fiercely, as if it was poisoned.
Understanding the person's intention, Yun Xi wasn't angry. Thinking that time was limited, she immediately put the food into her own mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it.
"See, it's okay."
The woman grabbed the food from Yun Xi's hand and gobbled it up. She coughed violently while eating. Even though Yun Xi patted the woman's back and told her to eat slowly, the woman ignored her, as if she had been hungry for a long time.
Seeing the woman's chapped lips, Yun Xi sighed. She scanned the surroundings again and saw a large water tank full of water in the corner of the room.
It seemed that even though the attacker had tortured this maid cruelly, they didn't want her to die.
You know, a person may not die after fasting for seven days, but they will surely die if they are deprived of water for seven days!
And leaving this water tank wasn't out of kindness. It was deliberately to torture the woman and make her live in agony!
Thinking of this, Yun Xi felt a chill in her heart. She wondered what serious crime this woman had committed that the Empress Dowager would go to such great lengths to treat her so cruelly!
Yun Xi found a water container, skimmed off a layer of dust on the water surface, scooped up some water, and brought it to the woman.
The woman looked at Yun Xi's series of actions, and her expression was once again filled with confusion.
Thinking that a long time had passed and she would arouse suspicion if she didn't leave soon, Yun Xi just got up and was about to leave when the woman grabbed her sleeve.
Yun Xi had no choice but to say that she would come to see her again next time. Only then did the woman use her finger to quickly write a sentence on the ground with water and finally let go.
Yun Xi curiously looked at the ground. When she saw clearly what was written, she was struck like by lightning. Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at the woman.
At this moment, a sudden gust of wind blew away the hair curtain on the woman's forehead. On her face criss - crossed with knife marks were features that were so familiar to Yun Xi that she couldn't ignore them.
She? How could it be? That person should have died ten years ago!!
Looking at the water stain on the ground that was almost dried up and about to disappear, Yun Xi was extremely shocked.
She opened her mouth, just about to speak, when she faintly heard Yu Zhu's voice:
"Miss! Where are you, Miss?"
Yun Xi's heart skipped a beat. She quickly held the woman's hand tightly. Her eyes were slightly red, and she said seriously:
"Yun Xi won't let you wait for long. I will surely try my best to rescue you!"
The woman's expression was slightly stunned. On her hideous face, she suddenly pursed her lips and shook her head at Yun Xi.
Her life was already like a candle in the wind, with little time left. She didn't want to let her only blood - related kin get into danger because of her.
The woman pointed to the words that had disappeared on the ground, her eyes pleading.
Yun Xi bit her lip, feeling conflicted in her heart. But she couldn't resist the woman's pleading eyes. Finally, she nodded.
Yu Zhu's voice outside the yard was getting closer. The woman pushed Yun Xi hard. Yun Xi staggered out of the yard. Fortunately, no one saw her coming out of the yard.
"Yu Zhu, I'm here!"
Yun Xi limped out of the nearby garden and waved to Yu Zhu.
Seeing a nervous - looking maid following Yu Zhu, Yun Xi explained embarrassedly:
"On my way back just now, I was attracted by a rare and beautiful butterfly, so I chased after it all the way. I didn't expect to get lost and twist my foot!"
Hearing Yun Xi's explanation, Yu Zhu quickly stepped forward to support her. Sure enough, she saw a bruise on Yun Xi's ankle and a wound on the back of her hand.
Noticing Yu Zhu's gaze, Yun Xi stuck out her tongue and said, "I got scratched when I fell just now. It really hurts!"
As she said this, Yun Xi's eyes turned red, and tears immediately flowed down uncontrollably.