The only thing in the Liu family's garden that separated the front yard and the back yard was that had no buildings. There were only a few rockery, flowers, and trees. As long as one stayed away from the big trees on the rockery, there was no need to worry about being hit. So Liu Shichu carried Wang on his back to the garden.
Many people had gathered in the garden. Liu Shichu found several nieces and nephews who were also in a panic and said to the eldest niece, "My sister-in-law's leg was injured. You should take care of her. By the way, is there anyone in the family who didn't escape?"
The embarrassed niece-in-law heaved a sigh of relief when she saw her and Wang, wiped the tears from her face, and said, "Everyone escaped, but my second brother's wife and several nephews and nieces were injured. As for the servants, some were injured, but I don't know if anyone is buried underground... Fortunately, you and mother came out..."
"After the earthquake stops, don't rush back to the house, because there may be aftershocks. So in the next few days, it's best to set up a few tents and live on flat ground. The injured should also be properly settled..." Liu Shichu explained some things that needed to be paid attention to to his niece one by one, and then said,
"You take care of your family. I'm going to go to Cui's house. I don't know if Wen and Jinrong have escaped." Liu Shichu said with a frown.
Wang, who was calming down after escaping death, heard this and said hurriedly, "What if you run into danger on the way? Besides, it's a mess outside now, and the carriages can't move. It will take a long time for you to walk to Cui's house. If anything happens to the mother and son, it will be too late. Of course, they will be safe. You should wait until the earthquake stops before going."
Liu Shichu smiled bitterly and said, "Sister-in-law, I'm still worried about them. Cui Ying is still on duty and not at home. Only Wen is left, a weak woman, and Jinrong is so young that he can't even walk. I'm really worried... I practiced martial arts when I was at Cui's house before, and the shock is not that strong now. I'm sure I won't be in danger."
Wang and the eldest niece's wife wanted to persuade her again, but Liu Shichu knew that in this critical situation, time was life and she could not delay any longer, so she ignored their attempts to persuade her to stay and ran out alone.
When I got to the street, I saw it was in a mess. Many houses had collapsed, and the street vendors' goods were thrown everywhere. The injured or frightened people were in a panic, like headless flies, desperate and flustered.
The scene was in a mess and full of misery, but Liu Shichu had no time to sympathize with others. She just ran towards Cui's house, not daring to waste any time.
Fortunately, after Liu Shichu came to this world, he practiced his martial arts and internal strength again, so he was able to hold on and run to Cui's house.
I don’t know how long it took, but when Liu Shichu’s lungs felt like they were on fire, he finally arrived at the Cui family.
The Cui family was in even more chaos than the Liu family. Some servants had already abandoned their masters and ran to the street. Liu Shichu walked in through the Cui family gate without any obstruction. When she passed by the former courtyard, she heard a sharp female voice crying miserably: "My child! Go and find my child..."
Liu Shichu paused for a moment, then ran towards his son's yard without hesitation, as if he hadn't heard anything.
Cui Ying's yard was on the east side of the Cui family. Since he had only one wife and did not have many servants when the family was divided, the houses in his yard were not densely packed, which was convenient for Liu Shichu at this time.
She easily found the courtyard where Wen Rumin was. The panicked servants were in a mess. Liu Shichu pushed them apart and looked at them one by one. Finally, she saw Wen Rumin surrounded by several maids and servants in a corner.
There was blood on Wen Rumin's forehead and half of her face. A maid was wiping it for her with a handkerchief, while she was holding the child tightly in her arms, curled up on the ground, at a loss.
When Liu Shichu saw them, he was immediately relieved. Fortunately, they were lucky enough.
"Rumin!" Liu Shichu called out to her. Wen Rumin was stunned for a moment, and then she reacted after a while. She looked up at Liu Shichu, and when she saw that it was indeed her, her eyes suddenly became hot and tears fell like rain, just like a young bird that had left the nest and saw its mother returning, and shouted in surprise and joy: "Mom!"
Liu Shichu looked at the wound on her forehead and asked, "How did you get hurt? Is it serious?"
Wen Rumin shook her head, and pulled the wound. She groaned and replied, "I was hit by a bottle. I just bled a little. It's not serious."
"How can it not be serious when so much blood has been lost?" Liu Shichu sighed. After the maid wiped the blood off her face, he took out a clean handkerchief from his pocket and bandaged her.
"How is Jinrong? Is he hurt?" Liu Shichu asked. Wen Rumin hugged him too tightly, so she couldn't see little Jinrong's condition clearly.
Wen Rumin then loosened her arms, revealed her son's face in her arms, and said, "Jinrong is not injured, he is just frightened and is crying."
As expected, little Jinrong was sobbing, his eyes were red and swollen, his two chubby little hands were tightly grasping his mother's clothes, and he was nestled tightly in his mother's arms, relying on her.
Seeing this, Liu Shichu was finally relieved and finally had the mood to think about Cui Ying: "I wonder if Cui Ying was injured in the government office?"
Wen Rumin was also worried: "I hope he is okay and can come home soon."
Liu Shichu saw that the earthquake had stopped and the aftershocks would not be too strong, so he said to Wen Rumin, "The earthquake is not that strong now. You are the master and you need to give your servants a backbone, so you need to stay calm.
First, gather all the servants together to see who has not escaped, and then divide them into several teams. One team of strong and healthy people will look for the missing servants; one team of old and weak people will take care of the injured; the remaining team will set up tents, and one team will find rice and grain from the ruins...
The capital is in chaos right now, and there will definitely be a shortage of food. Also, some hooligans and thugs will take advantage of the situation to fish in troubled waters and rob people. They may come to the rich and powerful to steal and rob, so you must also arrange for guards to patrol and ensure the safety of your family."
Wen Rumin had just experienced a major earthquake and was already in shock. Liu Shichu also spoke a long paragraph, which she could not remember, so she tentatively said, "Why don't you just arrange it, mother? I don't understand anything."
Liu Shichu refused: "No, you are the mistress of this family, you have to take on the responsibilities you should bear. I will help you take care of Jinrong, you go and deal with things quickly, don't waste time."
Wen Rumin had no choice but to bite the bullet and force the issue, and she did not forget to beg Liu Shichu: "Mom, if I have handled anything inappropriately, you must remind me."
"Okay." This time Liu Shichu agreed readily.
Little Jinrong has stopped crying now. Liu Shichu hugged his soft and warm little body, and his heart softened. Fortunately, the little guy was okay.
With Liu Shichu watching by her side, Wen Rumin finally managed to arrange things in an orderly manner. Seeing that both Liu Shichu and she were calm, like two stabilizing forces, the servants also settled down to work with peace of mind, each doing their own job and stabilizing the chaotic situation after the earthquake in the first place.