Chapter 7: Faking Death to Leave the Capital

“Chu Chenyu…” Lin Luoluo’s voice, faint as a mosquito’s buzz, broke the silence.

The physician had just finished treating her wounds, and Chu Chenyu carefully tucked her under the blankets when he heard her weak voice. Overcome with emotion, he pressed a kiss to her hand.

“I’m here. How do you feel?”

“Not… good. I… I might not… make it. After I die, can you… let me drift… down the river? I want to… see the vast… beauty of Nanxian one last time.”

“You won’t! Without my permission, you’re not allowed to leave,” Chu Chenyu commanded sternly, but his eyes betrayed a deep and unprecedented fear.

“Take… care…”

The medicine’s effect had taken hold, and those two words drained the last of Lin Luoluo’s strength. Her eyes slowly closed as her hand slipped from his grasp.

As her hand fell limp, Chu Chenyu’s heart plummeted into an abyss.

“Lin Luoluo, you are not allowed to sleep! I command you to open your eyes—do you hear me?” Chu Chenyu shook her shoulders violently, his anguished cries echoing through the room.

But no matter how much he shook her, shouted, or ordered, there was no response.

She was gone. The girl with a spirit as vibrant as magic had left him forever.

Chu Chenyu clutched his chest, a hollow ache spreading through him. He muttered to himself, “What is this feeling? Is it love? Whatever it is, it’s too late. Thinking back on the moments we spent together, I realize I wasn’t kind to her. Is that why she left so easily, without a second thought?”

“You are mine—only mine. Alive, you’re my woman; dead, you’re my ghost. You want freedom? I won’t let you have it!”

“Out! Everyone, out of my sight!” he roared, driving everyone out of the room.

Chu Chenyu personally tended to her, washing and dressing her with utmost care. When the royal physician arrived, he exchanged a glance with the manor doctor waiting outside. The latter shook his head slightly, and the royal physician sighed before heading back to the palace to report.

It wasn’t until midnight that Chu Chenyu finally stepped out of the bedchamber.

“Liuyun, what did you find?”

“Your Highness, it was the Jinlou organization. However, the employer’s identity remains unknown—they are exceptionally cunning and haven’t revealed themselves.”

“Inform Yingyi that I want every branch of Jinlou within Nanxian obliterated.”

“Yes!” Liuyun bowed and left to carry out the order.

“Steward Wang, prepare the mourning hall.”

“Understood,” Steward Wang replied, immediately gathering people to arrange it.

After issuing his commands, Chu Chenyu returned to the bedchamber to stay with Lin Luoluo.

The next day, news spread, and officials came to pay their respects.

Three days later, Lin Luoluo was buried in the imperial mausoleum with full honors befitting a princess consort.

“You cruel girl, don’t you dare look at other male ghosts on the other side. You’re mine—if you must, wait until I join you to look… Don’t worry, I’ve avenged you. Jinlou is no more.”

As he spoke, Chu Chenyu rested his hand on the coffin lid, his voice cold yet filled with sorrow. He reminisced about their time together, his words carrying both bitterness and affection.

He spent half a day in the mausoleum before leaving, his departing figure heavy with desolation.

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On the seventh day, Lin Luoluo woke up, her stomach growling.

“Grumble~ Grumble~”

She opened her eyes. “Where is this? It’s so dark!” Then, as memories rushed back, she froze.

“I’ve been buried alive… I don’t have any strength left. I should enter my space first!”

With that thought, she vanished into her magical space.

“Phew~ I’m alive!”

Inside the space, Lin Luoluo drank some spiritual spring water, bathed, and changed into fresh clothes before picking some ripe fruits to eat. The trees in her space were laden with fruit now.

After satisfying her hunger and regaining some strength, she began contemplating her escape. She tried every weapon and tool stored in her space, but nothing worked. Even pouring all her internal energy into the task couldn’t budge the coffin lid. Frustrated, she retreated back into the space.

“Ugh! Why did they nail it down so tightly? The craftsmanship is ridiculous!”

With no other choice, she flipped open Phantom Step’s second chapter and began practicing. When hungry, she ate wild fruits; when thirsty, she drank spiritual spring water. As crops matured, she harvested and replanted them.

Time passed in this manner until Lin Luoluo’s lightness skill advanced to the fifth level, her internal energy increased, and her strength reached astonishing levels—she could now uproot a tree as thick as a barrel with ease.

Even Lin Luoluo was startled by the change. “Is it because I’ve been drinking spiritual spring water every day? Whatever the reason, ha! I can finally get out of here!”

She emerged from her space and, with a mighty push, sent the coffin lid flying. Leaping out of the coffin, she replaced the lid and dusted off her hands before surveying her surroundings.

Apart from a few burial artifacts, the tomb was empty. “Well, since these are meant for me, I won’t hold back!”

With a wave of her hand, she stored everything in her space. After carefully examining the stone door, she found the mechanism to open it.

The door groaned as it shut behind her, sending a chill down her spine. She shivered and rubbed her arms. “Brr~ So cold!”

The long corridor ahead was lined with luminous pearls every few meters, a testament to the royal family’s extravagance. “I wonder if I can pry these off?”

Before she finished the thought, her hands were already at work, successfully prying one free. “Hehe~ Let’s take a few more.”

As she continued down the corridor, removing pearls along the way, she accidentally triggered a mechanism.

Click!

Glancing down, Lin Luoluo realized she’d stepped on a trap. In an instant, rows of tiny holes appeared in the walls, and arrows shot out. She didn’t hesitate to blink into her space.

Moments later, she emerged to find the corridor littered with arrows. Patting her chest, she sighed in relief. “Good thing I dodged that, or I’d be a pincushion.”

Proceeding with caution, Lin Luoluo finally exited the imperial mausoleum. Taking a deep breath of fresh air, she laughed. “Haha~ Freedom at last!”

She pondered aloud, “I wonder how long it’s been. Is Uncle Zhong still waiting in Yancheng?”

With that, she used her lightness skill to descend the mountain, only stopping to rest in her space after reaching a safe distance from the mausoleum.

The next day, while walking along a road, she spotted an ox cart parked at a crossroads and quickened her pace in delight.

“Hello, sir! Does your ox cart take passengers?” she asked the elderly driver.

“Sure do. We’ll set off in half an hour. Lots of villagers are heading to the market today.”

“And will there be carriages in town? I need to hire one to Yancheng.”

“There are carriages, but Yancheng is far. I can’t say for sure if they’ll go.”

“Thank you, sir!” Lin Luoluo found a spot to sit and wait.

Before long, four or five women approached, boarded the ox cart, and the old man set off. An hour later, they arrived in town. Lin Luoluo handed the driver a piece of silver.

“This… Young lady, this is too much! I don’t have enough change,” the old man said, flustered.

“Keep it. Consider it a tip for helping me find a reliable carriage,” Lin Luoluo said with a smile, pressing the silver back into his hands.

True to his word, the old man soon returned with a middle-aged man. “Miss, this is Mr. Li. He’ll take you to Yancheng.”

“Fifty taels to Yancheng—deal?” Lin Luoluo asked.

“Deal! I just need to inform my wife first,” Mr. Li agreed eagerly, his son’s tuition now secured.

After he left, Lin Luoluo wandered around town, buying several sets of men’s clothing and a silver fox mask. She stocked up on food and supplies before returning to the meeting spot. Together, they set off for Yancheng.