[Quick Transmigration] Black Lotus Upgrade System - Chapter 6

The signal flare rolled all the way to Xiaotao’s feet. Xiaotao looked at Yu Xingliang in utter astonishment, then bent down and picked it up.

Yu Xingliang’s mind was completely blank. He wanted to make sense of the situation, but came up empty-handed.

“Everyone in Langya Village has had their family members taken away by Fanshenggang, either directly or indirectly.” Xiaotao’s eyelashes fluttered down, and tears welled up in her eyes once again. “Aunt Tao told me my parents were killed by Fanshenggang, but I have vague memories that my parents are still alive.”

Yu Xingliang opened his mouth, completely at a loss for words.

He didn’t want to believe Muxing would lie to him, but neither did he think a fourteen-year-old girl standing before him was making things up.

“When I was sold here by Uncle Dong, I felt a familiar sensation. I suspect my parents are Fanshenggang’s subordinates.”

“Xia… Xiaotao, but that’s just your guess, isn’t it? What if there’s a misunderstanding…”

“I’m not mistaken,” Xiaotao said. “Even if my parents aren’t people from the general’s estate, I must have lived here for a period of time in the past. Did you pass by the garden fountain when you came in?”

Yu Xingliang recalled his journey to the side room. He had indeed passed by a massive garden, but entering the garden wasn’t necessary to reach the side room, so he hadn’t seen the fountain. However, he had indeed heard the sound of spraying water.

A terrifying thought flashed across Yu Xingliang’s mind.

“Lele! Where are you? You bastard, open the door right now!”

Goosebumps erupted across Yu Xingliang’s skin. The voice outside belonged to Fanshenggang!

Xiaotao’s face also paled with fear. She rushed toward the door, trying to use her back to block whoever was about to enter.

Yet how could her fragile strength possibly stop the robust Fanshenggang?

With just a forceful push from Fanshenggang, Xiaotao was instantly flung aside like a marble. Fortunately, Yu Xingliang stepped forward quickly and caught her.

Otherwise, Xiaotao surely would have been slammed hard against the wall like the signal flare she failed to hold onto, then dropped pitifully to the ground.

“You really don’t know how to cherish a delicate flower!” Yu Xingliang glared with contempt at Fanshenggang, whose appearance differed vastly from the pot-bellied image Zheng Lele had imagined.

Fanshenggang stood nearly two meters tall, with a muscular build that wasn’t fat at all.

Presumably, Zheng Lele had been too cowardly to ever lift his head and look at Fanshenggang.

“Lele!” The moment Fanshenggang caught sight of Yu Xingliang, he looked just like Gray Wolf spotting Red Wolf, his eyes practically turning into hearts.

Yu Xingliang’s mouth twitched. At least Zheng Lele’s memory that Fanshenggang was a dirty old pervert was completely accurate.

“Where on earth did you run off to for so long?” Fanshenggang pouted coquettishly, whining like someone coaxing a kindergarten child: “You worried me to death!”

Good thing Yu Xingliang hadn’t eaten much for his last meal, or he would have thrown up right then and there!

The attendant who entered alongside Fanshenggang wore a beaming smile, looking precisely like a favored head eunuch serving an emperor.

Covering his mouth with a chuckle, he said, “General, this is wonderful! The seventh concubine has returned, which means she can share the bridal chamber right along with the eighth concubine.”

Yu Xingliang’s eyes widened in disbelief. What kind of wild, lawless remark was that?

“Have some human decency, you dead eunuch!” Yu Xingliang seriously wanted to take off his shoe and smash it into the attendant’s face.

Fanshenggang, however, laughed heartily: “I’ve never seen Lele like this before. So you’re not a little lamb at all, you’re a spicy little pepper! Hahaha, I love it!”

“Hahaha!” The insulted attendant joined in on Fanshenggang’s laughter: “As long as the seventh concubine and the general are happy, even if I castrate myself right now, it’s worth it!”

With that, the attendant gave Yu Xingliang a lingering look before exiting the room with remarkable tact, pulling the door shut behind him.

Alarm bells blared in Yu Xingliang’s mind. That left only him, Xiaotao, and Fanshenggang alone in the room.

“Lele, and little eighth, don’t worry. As your husband, I’ll be very gentle…”

Just as Yu Xingliang was wondering what to do, Fanshenggang suddenly halted in his tracks. The smile vanished from his face, and whether out of extreme anger or something else, his voice cracked as he roared: “Who are you!”

Unsure what bug Fanshenggang had caught, Yu Xingliang glanced out of the corner of his eye at the signal flare, quickly calculating the time it would take to grab it, climb onto the table and chairs stacked beneath the ventilation opening, and deploy it.

“Speak!” Fanshenggang suddenly screamed: “Who the hell are you!!”

Yu Xingliang stepped back to shield Xiaotao, marveling inwardly: This general really isn’t a fake! He figured out I wasn’t Zheng Lele in just a few glances?

“If you want to know who I am, unless…” Yu Xingliang hoped Fanshenggang possessed an unwavering belief in pursuing the truth, and ideally a curiosity about his identity strong enough to dig to the bottom of it.

“Let us go, and I’ll tell you who I am.” Yu Xingliang stated his conditions with a pounding heart.

Fanshenggang’s gaze no longer held any trace of its previous tenderness as he charged forward aggressively…

Panicking, Yu Xingliang shielded Xiaotao as they retreated into the corner: “If you really must know, I can tell you! Actually, I’m from… ah!”

Without a shred of mercy, Fanshenggang shoved Yu Xingliang aside. His eyes locked onto Xiaotao in her wedding attire, a flash of realization crossing his gaze: “Who on earth are you!”

Struggling back to his feet in pain, Yu Xingliang knew that with Fanshenggang’s towering frame, even without having to protect Xiaotao, Zheng Lele’s fragile body stood no chance in a fight.

Time to call for reinforcements! Taking advantage of Fanshenggang’s turned back, Yu Xingliang scrambled to grab the signal flare. He tumbled up onto the table and chairs, activated it, and it failed to emit any signal!

“Could it be broken from the fall?” Despair welled up in Yu Xingliang’s eyes.

“What are you up to?” Fanshenggang noticed Yu Xingliang climbing up high, his brow furrowing deeply.

Actually, Fanshenggang had spotted the furniture stacked beneath the vent when he first walked in. Knowing full well that two living people could never squeeze through a vent of that size, he hadn’t paid it any mind.

Startled, Yu Xingliang slipped. The hand holding the signal flare collided hard against the wall beneath the ventilation opening. As he dropped down, the flare suddenly sparked and fired its signal, shooting straight out through the vent.

“That hurts like hell.” Yu Xingliang couldn’t stop hissing in pain.

Fanshenggang stared at Yu Xingliang, narrowing his eyes.

“General! General!” The attendant whom Yu Xingliang had just cursed as a dead eunuch pounded frantically on the door.

“Enter.”

The attendant flung the door open in a rush. Perhaps in his extreme haste, he tripped right over the threshold and kissed the ground face-first.

“The main hall! The main hall is on fire!” Disregarding his injuries, the attendant scrambled back up in a flash: “General, you need to go look right now! The front hall is in absolute chaos…”

The attendant abruptly cut himself off. Staring at Xiaotao in her wedding attire, an expression of utter shock washed over his face: “Eldest Miss…”

A terrifying suspicion in Yu Xingliang’s mind was practically confirmed: Could Xiaotao be Fanshenggang’s biological daughter?

Furious, Fanshenggang demanded, “Where did you buy this girl?!”

The attendant dropped to his knees with a thud: “General, please spare me! General, please spare me! I didn’t know she was the eldest young miss!”

Xiaotao stood frozen in a daze, unable to believe what she was hearing.

“Where is that human trafficker?!”

“This… I…” The attendant trembled from head to toe.

Fanshenggang strode forward and delivered a kick straight to the attendant, flipping him over onto the floor: “I’m asking you where that trafficker is!”

“This subordinate doesn’t know!” Tears streamed down the attendant’s face in terror: “I only know the trafficker’s surname is Dong, a regular at Red Moon House. I only got acquainted with him through Red Moon House!”

“Heh.” Veins bulged in Fanshenggang’s eyes, practically breathing fire: “You went to a brothel to buy me a concubine?”

“No, no…” The attendant stammered in a frantic panic: “General, I know your preferences, I would never dare pass off shoddy goods! This eighth concubine… oh, no, wait, the eldest young miss is a genuine, pure maiden!”

The more he heard, the angrier Fanshenggang grew. He grabbed the attendant and began beating him mercilessly.

The remaining servants didn’t dare intervene, nor did they dare stand idly by, throwing the scene into total chaos.

Seizing the moment, Yu Xingliang grabbed the stunned Xiaotao by the hand and bolted toward the exit.

No sooner had they stepped out of the room than they ran straight into Juan Gu, who was rushing over in a panic.

Upon spotting Yu Xingliang and Xiaotao, Juan Gu shrieked at the top of her lungs: “The seventh concubine and eighth concubine are escaping!”

Cursing Juan Gu under his breath, Yu Xingliang dragged Xiaotao and ran in the opposite direction.

Hearing the commotion, Fanshenggang chased after them: “Where are they?”

Seeing Fanshenggang asking, Juan Gu hurried over and eagerly reported: “General, the seventh concubine and eighth concubine ran toward the back courtyard… ouch!”

Clutching her left cheek innocently, Juan Gu had no clue why the general had just slapped her.

“In this estate, there is no eighth concubine! If you ever dare talk nonsense again, I’ll cut out your tongue!”

At that warning, Juan Gu immediately switched from holding her cheek to covering her mouth with both hands.

With a cold snort, Fanshenggang pointed a large finger: “Go drag the seventh concubine and the eldest young miss back here.”

“Yes!” All the armed guards holstered their firearms and sprinted off in the direction Juan Gu had indicated.

Under the hazy moonlight, the sounds of pursuit closed in rapidly from behind.

Struggling to push the shell-shocked Xiaotao along, Yu Xingliang plunged into the darkness and darted into a building near the pond.

The moment they stepped inside, a refreshing lotus fragrance enveloped them. By the moonlight, the room appeared remarkably neat and clean.

“Who’s there?” A sweet female voice carried a trace of fear: “Who is in here?”

Hearing a girl’s voice, Yu Xingliang immediately sounded a pitiful plea for help: “Miss, please save us.”

The woman switched on a flashlight. Catching sight of Xiaotao in wedding attire and hearing the pursuit outside, she instantly understood the situation.

“Come inside a bit, don’t let the guards catch you,” the woman said gently.

“Thank you, miss.” Yu Xingliang supported Xiaotao as they hid deeper inside the room.

Only upon moving closer did Yu Xingliang get a clear look at the owner of the room: a woman with waist-length dark hair draped loose, slender-figured and delicate as a willow.

Only, her face lacked any trace of color, making her look like a terminally ill Lin Daiyu.

“Miss, you are…” Yu Xingliang muttered doubts to himself. In Fanshenggang’s back courtyard, the occupants were bound to be his female dependents. This young woman, who looked roughly around his own age… could she possibly be…

“My name is Chu Muyao, the second concubine snatched away by Fanshenggang.” The woman spoke with remarkable calmness, as though recounting someone else’s story.

Yu Xingliang puffed out his cheeks and blurted out: “Well, what a coincidence. I’m Fanshenggang’s runaway seventh concubine, and this young girl in wedding attire is Fanshenggang’s biological daughter, who almost became his eighth concubine.”

Chu Muyao’s eyes lit up: “Xiaotao?”