“The Lu family has a fire starter?”
“It doesn’t look like a fire starter!”

A fire starter couldn’t possibly shine that bright.

“Fire gives off a yellowish light, but this… this is pure white, like daylight…”

The prisoners began murmuring, with someone immediately connecting this to the rumored manifestation of the Lu family’s guardian deity. “It’s divine magic…”

“No wonder the Lu family doesn’t feel the cold! It’s definitely divine magic!”

“That’s right! It’s divine magic, no doubt about it!”

Suddenly, someone shouted, “Let’s go! Let the deity bless us too!”

“Yeah! If there really is a deity, why should they only protect the Lu family? Aren’t we humans too?”

The emotions of the prisoners flared up, and they began clamoring to approach the Lu family and beg for protection.

Standing by, Li Si coldly watched the scene unfold.

The small officer next to him seemed nervous. “Shouldn’t we stop them? If things get out of hand…”

Li Si sneered. “The more chaos, the better.”

He figured that if the two sides clashed, he wouldn’t even need to draw his blade—good things would naturally fall into his hands.

“But what about the chief…”

“What’s there to worry about? Du Hangwu is too much of a coward to do anything to us. Don’t forget, we’re all from the same village.”

Li Si felt invincible, confident that Du Hangwu wouldn’t dare punish him. After all, how would Du explain such actions to their mutual acquaintances back home?

Meanwhile, the prisoners, noticing that the guards weren’t intervening, rushed toward the Lu family, blocking their path. “Master Lu! Please help us! It’s freezing, and we’re all about to freeze to death!”

An old man began crying out, “You’re a former Grand Councellor! How can you bear to see us common folk suffer like this?”

Mrs Song and the others were startled, and Mrs Xu hugged her daughter tightly, bewildered by the situation.

The Lu family’s men, led by Lu Xingyao, immediately stepped forward to protect the group, trying to drive the crowd back. “My grandfather is no longer a Grand Councellor! Addressing him as such, we Lu’s can’t bear that title anymore!”

Lu Zhou, his face dark, added, “If you’re cold, you should be asking the guards for help. We’re just as cold—do you expect us to give you our clothes?”

He glanced at the guards not far away, who were holding their blades, deliberately ignoring the situation.

A woman holding a child pushed her way to the front, trembling from the cold. “I can endure it, but my child can’t! Please, for the sake of my child, help us… I’ll even kowtow to you!”

With that, she fell to her knees, banging her head on the ground in front of the Lu family, her forehead quickly turning red and swollen, even bleeding. The Lu family members tried to help her up, but she shivered and cried, refusing to stand.

Lu Qing wanted to step forward and take a closer look, but Gu Xingzhao stopped him. “Don’t go.”

Lu Qing was puzzled: Why?

Gu Xingzhao coldly observed the crowd, “Those guards have been watching you for a while. They’re not stopping these people because they want to see you embroiled in this mess so they can benefit.”

“The child in that woman’s arms is already dead, and has been for at least two days. They’re using her to target you.”

The fact that the woman and child were kneeling in front of them was meant to exploit Lu Qing’s sense of pity. If he stepped forward, he’d be caught in a trap with no way out.

Lu Qing gripped his cane tightly, his face darkening with anger. How could these people stoop so low as to use a child and a woman like this?

Gu Xingzhao sighed. Women in ancient times had it hard, especially those who were now prisoners. If they had family to protect them, like the women of the Lu family, they were lucky. But those without protectors often had no choice but to rely on guards for survival. Unfortunately, not all guards had honorable intentions. Those without such options often faced starvation, or worse, and their lives became unbearable.

The saddest thing was when some women had family members who used them as bargaining chips, like this woman now. While pleading for help, she was secretly glancing at a few men standing nearby.

Gu Xingzhao pitied these people, but she couldn’t save everyone—nor was everyone worth saving.

Lu Qing’s expression was sorrowful as he watched the scene unfold, feeling helpless and torn.

Sensing his inner turmoil, Gu Xingzhao reassured him, “Du Hangwu will hear the commotion and come over soon. Hold on for a bit.”

Lu Qing: I understand, Ancestor.

They were barely able to protect themselves right now, let alone others. They could only extend help to individuals like the Princess Shunyu and the Liu family, who had shown goodwill and helped them in return. But these unruly prisoners? Helping them would only bring endless trouble.

With Li Si and the guards encouraging the chaos, the crowd of prisoners grew bolder, surrounding the Lu family and preventing them from moving forward.

The cries and demands grew louder, implying that they would refuse to leave unless the Lu family helped them.

Soon, hearing the commotion, Du Hangwu came striding over with his large blade in hand. Seeing the group of prisoners surrounding the Lu family and causing trouble, his face darkened. “What’s going on here?”

Lu Xingyao was the first to speak, “Sir, we’re not the ones causing trouble. These people suddenly surrounded us, demanding we give them our clothes!”

Du Hangwu’s expression turned grim. It was Li Si and his men who were supposed to be watching this group.

It seemed his earlier warning hadn’t gotten through to them.

Without hesitation, Du Hangwu grabbed one of the rioters by the collar and threw him to the ground, kicking him hard. Every kick landed with force, and the man curled up on the ground, begging for mercy, his face bruised and swollen. The other troublemakers shrank back, no longer daring to cry out.

But a few bold voices still shouted from the back, “Sir, the Lu family doesn’t seem to feel the cold! They must have something magical from a deity!”

“Why do they get to have it while we freeze?”

Their words stirred discontent among the other prisoners. “Yeah! We’re all walking the same path, how’s that fair?”

“They must have stolen it!”

“Exactly! They should share with us!”

The Lu family members flushed with anger. Why should they give up what the ancestor had bestowed upon them? They had shared with the Liu family because of their past loyalty, and with Princess Shunyu because she had risked herself to deliver medicine to the old man in prison. But these people? They had no shame, demanding charity with no merit to their names!

The Lu family members could only fume inwardly, their upbringing and manners preventing them from unleashing their true frustration.

The tension among the prisoners reached a boiling point, and they began stirring up even more chaos. Gu Xingzhao glanced at Du Hangwu, curious to see how he would handle the situation.

Before Du Hangwu could respond, Li Si ran over with his blade, pretending to be out of breath. “Sir! Let me handle them!”

Du Hangwu glared coldly at Li Si’s theatrics.

Drawing his blade, Li Si shouted at the prisoners, “What are you whining about!? You really think you can just ask for whatever the Lu family has?”

“You’ve got arms and legs! And you’re standing here like beggars, expecting them to give you handouts? Are you all crippled!?”