The Potato Mine Exploded

"Young Master, where are you?!"

Selina's voice came through the terminal, urgent and loud, as if she had finally found an outlet after holding it in for several days.

Kexi held the terminal to her ear, listening to the noisy background sounds on the other end. It sounded like someone was moving things, and there was also the sound of Carlotta cursing in the distance.

"Me? I'm in a place you'd never guess." Kexi leaned against a rock on the hilltop, crossed her legs, and twirled the iris flower between her fingers.

"Young Master, the Order is searching for you all over the streets." Selina spoke rapidly, like a machine gun. "Where are you right now?"

"Isle of Lament."

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the terminal.

"... Isle of Lament?" Selina's voice became somewhat subtle. "Isn't that the pilgrimage site the Order spoke of?"

"Pretty much. The Fool's Troupe rescued me, and I'm hiding on the island now." Kexi brought the iris to her nose and smelled it. "Let's not talk about that now. How's things on your end? Has Jinhsi woken up yet?"

Selina paused again, this time with a hint of hesitation.

"The Magistrate Jin is still unconscious. Baizhi said she was seriously injured and lost too much blood. Although her life has been saved, it's uncertain when she will wake up."

Kexi's smile faded.

He's not awake.

No one can prove his innocence yet.

Sanhua and Changli both consider him the murderer, Order still searching for him all over the world.

He's comfortable hiding on this island, but he can't keep ignoring the mess outside.

"Young Master," Selina's voice suddenly lowered, "Were you framed?"

"Nonsense."

"I knew it." Selina's tone held a newfound certainty. "You may be unreliable, but you're not stupid. What good would killing the Prefect of Jinzhou do you? Nothing. You wouldn't do something so foolish."

"Thanks, although that doesn't quite sound like a compliment."

"So what are you planning to do now? Should I come over to you?"

Kexi thought for a moment.

Selina is more useful staying on Ragunna Island now.

She can keep an eye on Jinhsi's situation and also help him with tasks.

"Don't come yet," Kexi said. "Stay in Ragunna and keep an eye on Jinhsi for me. Let me know as soon as she wakes up. Also, find out where the Rover is. I heard she's going to perform with the Fool's Troupe at the Carnival."

"Rover?" Selina's tone held a hint of wariness. "What does the young master want with her?"

"The Fractsidus burrow everywhere like rats, I can't find them. But the Rover can, I'll follow her, and sooner or later I'll find that bastard Christopher framed me."

Selina hummed in agreement.

She paused, then lowered her voice further. "Young Master, there's something else."

"Explain."

"The Montelli are calling a family meeting, and it's aimed at you; it could be detrimental to you."

"A family meeting? Targeting me?" His voice rose involuntarily. "I wasn't even here, what kind of meeting are they having?"

Selina lowered her voice and said, "The Second Miss has been under too much pressure. The Order is putting pressure on her, Jinzhou is also urging her to give up her. Several elders in the family can't sit still anymore. They say that the Second Miss is protecting the murderer and harming the family's interests, and they want to hold a new vote on the position of family head."

Kexi's fingers gripped the terminal tightly.

Carlotta was more furious than the Order wanting him because he was forced to resign by the elders of his family.

His second sister, though sharp-tongued and overly meddlesome, was the reason Montelli didn't fall.

These old fogies are all incredibly eager to distribute dividends, but when something goes wrong, they're quick to kick people while they're down.

Who started it?

"It's Luca, the old patriarch's cousin," Selina said with disdain. "He said you've damaged the Montelli's interests and the Order must give an explanation. The second young lady threw tea in his face on the spot."

Kexi laughed. This was indeed something Carlotta would do.

"Selina, could you please pass on a message to my second sister? Tell her I'll try to resolve this. I'm sorry for causing her such a huge mess, and now she has to clean up the mess."

"Young Master..."

"Yes, is there anything else? Please tell me."

"The second young lady has already heard it."

Kexi paused for a second, holding the terminal.

"She heard you? You had it on speakerphone?"

"The second young lady has been standing next to me the whole time," Selina said, her voice tinged with innocence.

A rustling sound came from the other end of the terminal, followed by Carlotta's cold and harsh voice.

"Kexi."

"Oh, Second Sister, what is it?"

"Kexi." Carlotta spoke slowly, but each word seemed to be squeezed out from between her teeth, carrying a pent-up anger that had been building up for who knows how long. Her voice grew louder and louder as she spoke, "You're something else! You really are something else! You messed up, ran away, and left me sitting at home taking the blame for you. Sorry? Now you know how to apologize?"

Kexi moved the terminal further away, and only brought it back to her ear after the initial barrage of fire subsided. "Second Sister, I know I was wrong."

"You know you're wrong? What do you know? Do you know what that old man Luca just said to me? He said he'd kick me out of my position as head of the family, that I'd protected the murderer, harmed the family's interests, and that he'd expel you from the family."

"That old bastard Luca— " Kexi started to curse but swallowed the rest, "Sis, don't argue with him. He'd love for you to argue with him, because if you do, you'll be at a disadvantage."

"You think you can teach me how to argue?" Carlotta's anger hadn't subsided at all. "Listen to me now. Three days. The Order only gives you three days. If you can't produce evidence within three days, not only will Montelli lose your protection, but I'll be dragged down with you."

"I understand. I'm already trying to figure something out. Jinhsi she does, I can prove my innocence. I also have a plan—at the carnival—"

"I don't care about your plans," Carlotta interrupted him. "Just remember one thing. You're Montelli, and what you do is what the Montelli do. I'll be the one cleaning up your messes. You'd better come back alive, settle this matter cleanly, and then get into the study, kneel down, and explain to me what those damn letters of yours are all about."

Kexi opened her mouth, then closed it again; saying anything now would only add fuel to the fire.

He responded softly, "Understood."

Carlotta returned the terminal to Selina, and the sound of her turning and walking away could be heard in the background, followed by another lecture.

"Luna." Carlotta's voice rose again, this time aimed at the Pleiades.

"Second Miss." Luna's voice came from afar, clearly tinged with guilt.

"How did you protect the young master? Do you know that people outside are now calling me 'the patriarch who harbors a murderer'? Do you know that old bastard Luca just slammed his fist on the table at me? Do you know—"

"Second Miss, I was wrong." Luna's speed in admitting her mistake was astonishing.

"You're wrong? What did you do wrong? Your Pleiades, seven people, couldn't even stop a dozen women, and you couldn't even keep an eye on your young master, giving him a chance to frame him?"

"Second Miss, the situation was indeed quite complicated at the time—"

"Complex? What's complicated? If he runs to the left, you chase him to the left; if he runs to the right, you chase him to the right. What's so complicated about that? Are you all blind or have no legs?"

"Second Miss, actually we stopped most of them, only a few—"

"How many? You're telling me there are only a few? Augusta, Juno, Lupa, Jinhsi, Changli, Cantarella, Suisui, Lynae, Sigrika, Mornye, Phoebe, Sanhua, Yangyang —you call that a few? You can't even handle this simple thing, where's your Montelli spirit?"

Luna didn't dare to say a word.

"Have you Pleiades had their salaries deducted for this month?"

"All deducted."

"Then last month's amount was deducted as well."

"Second Miss, we already—"

"I said deduct it, and I mean it! Who told you to be unable to keep an eye on anyone! Your year-end bonus is all gone too. If you do it again, you'll all be relegated to feeding the chickens in the backyard."

Carlotta's voice softened slightly, but her tone remained as stern as ever. "Now, all of you, go to the auditorium and clean up this mess. Sweep up all the broken glass, wine stains, and broken flowerpots. If I see even a scrap of paper in the auditorium tomorrow morning, you'll all be living with the chickens."

"Yes, Second Miss." Luna and several maids answered in unison, running faster than rabbits.

"And you, Selina!" Carlotta, still furious, turned her anger towards Selina.

Selina responded weakly, "Second Miss."

"Repeat exactly what I told you back then."

"Protect the young master's safety closely." Selina's voice was barely audible.

"Protect the young master's safety at close range," Carlotta repeated, her tone completely flat. "And look at what you've been protecting?"

Selina didn't dare to say anything.

"What did you protect?!" Carlotta asked again, this time raising her voice. "I told you to protect him, and you took him to the Isle of Lament? I told you to keep an eye on him and prevent him from causing trouble, and he caused an assassination attempt on the Prefect of Jinzhou. I told you to stay by his side at all times, and what did you do? You watched him being chased all over the streets by a group of women. Selina, tell me, what exactly did you protect?"

"Second Miss, the situation at that time..." Selina tried to explain.

"What's going on? Tell me, I'm listening."

"There were too many people, and the young master ran too fast; I couldn't stop him..."

"You can't stop such a small group? You can't catch him because he's fast? You're a top-tier all-rounder in the Montelli rating, and he's just a young master who lies in bed eating snacks all day, how can you not catch him?"

Carlotta's voice rose another notch, "Where are your usual skills? Huh?!"

Selina remained silent.

"Speak up! Are you mute?"

"I really misjudged you, you're really something else."

The terminal suddenly went silent.

It was quiet for a very, very long time.

A faint sobbing sound could be heard.

After a long silence, Selina's voice rang out again, though it was much hoarse. "Young Master, the Second Miss has gone to the conference room."

"Selina..." Kexi didn't know what words of comfort to say.

"It's alright, young master." Selina gave a bitter smile. "Perhaps I was too hasty. I'm so sorry I didn't protect you well."

"Don't say that, okay? It's all my fault, I've dragged you into this."

"No, young master, it's Selina's fault. As your secretary, I failed to protect you. It's all my fault."

"It's my fault, I caused the trouble, and you got scolded."

"Many sirs, it's Selina's fault."

"It was my fault."

"Selina's fault."

"It was my fault."

"Selina's fault."

Both tried to pin the blame on themselves, but Kexi finally blushed and angrily shouted, "I told you I was wrong! Don't try to take it from me!"

"Young Master..."

Kexi decided not to delve deeper into the issue and changed the subject, saying, "Go to the conference room and keep an eye on things for me. If Second Sister gets bullied, help her out. Let those old geezers know she's not alone."

Selina responded with a "Yes."

"Also," Kexi paused, "Tell your second sister not to worry too much. I promise her I'll handle this mess."