Though the warehouse was large, its layout was simple. The tunnel connecting to the tea roasting workshop was just a few dozen meters away, not far at all.
Currently, it was a blind spot under the lamp—no one was paying attention.
Lin Yuchan didn’t hesitate and followed Su Minguan as they ran.
However, after running just a few steps, she felt the light was blinding, hot air assaulted her, and a thick cloud of smoke nearly choked her to the ground.
A large patch of burning fire was blocking the essential path leading to the tunnel.
The fire seemed to have started from nowhere, neither spreading nor extending, just burning steadily with the help of some combustible materials, marking its territory like a bandit king blocking the road for robbery.
“Which blind fool dumped ash here?” Su Minguan said angrily, “Really knows how to pick a spot.”
Lin Yuchan coughed once: “…”
It seems like I was the one who put it there.
Su Minguan pondered for a moment, tucked his pistol back into his waist, and quickly removed his outer garment: “A’Mei, don’t struggle.”
Before Lin Yuchan could ask, “What are you doing?”, he tightly embraced her from behind. The outer garment swirled around, covering both their upper bodies.
Then he rolled sideways, holding Lin Yuchan as they rolled directly into the tongues of flame.
Su Minguan had just been soaked through outside, his damp outer garment pressed against her face, his ice-cold hands clasped around her waist, water drops from his chin seeping into her hair. He held her very tightly, curling and protecting most of her small, dry body.
After several rolls, flames spun before her eyes. Lin Yuchan got up dizzy and disoriented, completely unharmed, even shivering from the cold.
Behind them, the fierce fire still blazed.
Su Minguan tied the burned outer coat around his waist, a hint of pride in his eyes, waiting for her to worship him again.
Who knew the little girl didn’t say a single word of thanks, but instead timidly pointed behind him.
“You… your braid is on fire.”
At the same time, Helmsman Su felt his bottom getting hot, quickly turned around to see a small, lively flame at the tip of his braid, steadily climbing higher.
The Qing dynasty hairstyle was just that bizarre. The entire thick braid served as a fuse. The flame happily climbed up the pole, and in a few more seconds, his head would be in grave danger.
Su Minguan was anxious and frantic, quickly untying the outer coat from his waist, swatting left and right, but unfortunately, eyes don’t grow on the back, and that braid was bouncing around wildly. After being fanned a few times, it burned even more enthusiastically, and he was literally about to have his head burned to a crisp.
He became so desperate that he grew polite with her: “Miss Lin, don’t just watch, help me!”
Lin Yuchan couldn’t help but find it amusing, saying softly, “This braid can’t be saved. Get a new one.”
Then she stood on her tiptoes, calmly reached up and yanked, pulling the entire braid off and tossing it into the fire.
Su Minguan: “…”
He stared in shock, slowly reaching up to touch the back of his head—it felt cold and drafty, covered with disheveled, messy hair.
“You… you…”
“Stop pretending,” Lin Yuchan stretched her limbs and dragged him toward the tunnel. “Real hair can’t burn that fast, right? Mixed with wool thread, I bet?”
Last time at the teahouse, when she was pretending to be a troublesome child, she had pulled on Young Master Xiao Bai’s little braid and felt something odd about the texture. She had deliberately wedged his hair tip into a chair crack, and he was completely oblivious, showing no signs of pain.
Even if his genes were unique, they couldn’t be that unique.
But later, when her biological father Lin Guangfu caused that big scene, she pushed this harmless doubt to the back of her mind.
Today, she was completely certain—if the “bandit leader” fighting to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming was still sporting a real braid, his revolutionary will would be far too weak.
No wonder he always liked wearing hats, changing styles constantly. She had initially thought he was just vain.
She asked: “When did you cut it?”
Su Minguan was dragged several steps by her before slightly coming to his senses, saying softly: “It was glued on. Yanking it off like that hurt.”
Lin Yuchan: “Sorry, I’ll be more careful next time.”
Su Minguan: “…”
Will there be a next time?
Emerging from the tunnel covered in dust, the wooden board blocking the entrance was still in place. Inside the workshop, tea leaves were fragrant, the winnowing baskets still placed at an angle, various tools arranged in their original positions—a scene of peaceful tranquility.
Lin Yuchan’s heart finally began to settle; she curled her fingers and let out a long breath.
“Thank… thank you.”
Su Minguan pointed to the main door, indicating they should leave quickly.
She asked softly: “What about you?”
He didn’t answer, just cupped his hands toward her in salute.
Lin Yuchan had no choice but to obey, feeling as if she had just experienced a nightmare in fast-forward.
The current situation didn’t seem to allow for sentimental farewells. She hastily bowed to Su Minguan and walked quickly toward the main door.
As soon as she showed her head, she heard dense hoof beats echoing from the street outside. Su Minguan shouted: “Come back!”
He tackled her to the ground. At the same time, there was a thunderous explosion as something detonated in the nearby tea winnowing basket, filling the air with thick gunpowder smoke that made her cough.
“Catch the rebels! Catch the rebels!” Someone was banging gongs and shouting along the street, “Listen, all citizens, harboring remnants of secret societies is the same crime as being rebels…”
Su Minguan whispered in her ear: “The soldiers have come. The foreign rifle corps.”