Twentieth Chapter

"Get up. Stop pretending to be dead."

"It hurts... It hurts so much. The beam hit me on the head. Am I going to become an idiot? Xiaojiu, I'm going to lose my memory!"

"...You can still remember who I am even if you lose your memory. I'm so touched, dear sister. I've already warned you to sleep more like a proper young lady. How many more times are you going to roll out of bed before you stop?"

"Yay!"

Lying sprawled on the floor, Zhu Bafu glanced at the perfectly intact ceiling beam and blinked.

Was she dreaming?

She had actually dreamed that she had lost her memory after being buried under silver. Was the pressure of life really too much for her? Crawling up from the cold floor, she rubbed her throbbing head. She opened the door and was just about to go into the courtyard to wash up when the crack between the doors revealed a figure kneeling on one knee—

"This subordinate, Wei Chenmu, requests an audience with Young Master Zhu!"

"Bang!" The wooden door slammed shut again. Zhu Bafu sucked in a breath and pressed her back against it. That had been close! She had nearly exposed her extremely Mother-like pink pajamas!

Why had the head of the Ministry of Punishments come all the way to her house in such a Father-damned manner? Good heavens, was he even kneeling in her courtyard?

"Xiaojiu! He—when did he arrive?"

"Hm? Oh? I think he's been kneeling there since before dawn." Zhu Xiaojiu busied himself preparing breakfast and answered lazily.

"What? Since before dawn... and you just let him kneel there? Do you know who he is!?"

"The head of the Ministry of Punishments from Dongxu Mansion. I know."

"And you still..."

"He told me not to wake you and said he could wait outside." Zhu Xiaojiu filled a bowl with thin porridge. "If you feel bad, invite him to eat breakfast with us. You only have one bite left anyway."

"You..." This wasn't the time to discuss breakfast, all right? Zhu Bafu opened the door a crack and peered outside through narrowed eyes.

Wei Chenmu had not changed his posture. He raised his head slightly, his keen black eyes shining through his bangs. Apparently noticing her peeking from behind the door, he cupped his fists and said in a deep voice,

"Young Master Zhu, if you have already risen, may I ask you to come with me to the Prime Minister's Residence for a brief discussion?"

"I'm not going!" That vicious man! Was he trying to trick her again so he could let the dogs bite her another time? She had already returned the Young Master to them, so why were they still refusing to let the matter go?

"If Young Master Zhu refuses to come, I can only 'invite' you there."

Wei Chenmu released his fists and stood. He blurred like a black shadow. Before she could even see him move, he was already right beside the door. His black robes rose and fell with his steady breathing just inches before her eyes.

Terrified, she was about to drop the wooden latch when a sliver of light flashed through the corner of his eye. With a flick of his fingertip against the door, it flew open. Zhu Bafu was blasted several steps away and landed sitting stupidly on the ground with her legs spread apart. Her pink pajamas had floral cuffs, and two fat ducks—neither mandarin nor wild—were embroidered at the trouser hems. A trace of discomposure flashed across Wei Chenmu's face. Seeing that she was wearing only pajamas, he hurriedly looked away, moving his gaze from the Young Master's beloved out of harm's way. "Please forgive me for offending you, Young Master. Please come with me to the Prime Minister's Residence."

"You... you, you, you!" Afraid that he would discover she was a woman, Zhu Bafu hurriedly covered her pajamas. "I already told you I'm not going. Can't you understand?"

"It isn't up to Young Master to say whether you're going or not!"

"Why not!"

"Because the Young Master has lost his memory."

"Wh... what?!" Wasn't she the one who was supposed to lose her memory? Why was Li Chenjing getting involved?!

"He fell into the water and fainted last night. After waking this morning, he no longer recognized anyone."

B-but even if he had lost his memory, "I'm not a doctor! You should be looking for a physician right now, shouldn't you? Why did you come to drag me there?!"

"Because the Young Master remembers no one, yet he remembers you alone."

"..."

Hey, hey! Was this some kind of ridiculous Father trap? Was he actually serious?

The author has something to say:

Aaaah, something came up unexpectedly today, so the update was late. I'm reflecting on my mistake. I still don't know how to use the awesome scheduled-posting function. I'll probably have to try it another day~~ Today I received notice from the editor that I could consider applying to go premium~~ =.= Since Part 2 contains exclusive anti-piracy content, I'll probably go premium~~~ Kisses~~~

Twentieth Chapter

"Who are you?"

"...Lord Wei, is this what you meant by him remembering me alone?" Zhu Bafu's lips twitched. Which Father-damned fellow had just coaxed her sympathy step by step, saying that his Young Master thought of her constantly and was devoted to her? Devoted my foot, remembered her sister! His Young Master had truly lost his memory thoroughly enough. He didn't even remember which nobody his benefactor was!

"Cough, cough, cough!" A weak, wheezing cough came from behind the obscuring bed curtains. He was clearly suffering from a cold and had not yet recovered, but—who cared about him?!

Since his brain had already been flooded and he couldn't remember anything, it was none of her business. She could naturally keep herself out of it. If she didn't escape now, when would she?

"Looks like the Young Master's health is poor. Alas! Losing one's memory is the greatest pain in the world. How tragic. Please rest well and take care of yourself. This humble one won't disturb your rest any longer... Contact me if anything comes up. Farewell, see you again."

Turning around, Zhu Bafu greased her feet and hurried away.

The bed curtains stirred. A half-upright black silhouette appeared behind them. Long fingers pressed against his forehead, as though trying to excavate thoughts from the deepest recesses of his memory. Seeing that someone was about to slip out of the room, he finally weakly raised a hand and pulled open the bed curtains, intending to get out of bed and stop her. "Don't go! I don't want you to leave!"

"Yes, Young Master!"

With a flash of movement, the room door closed with a bang.

"Lord Wei, locking me up won't help. He doesn't recognize me at all!"

"Who says I don't remember? I recognize you!"

A sickly, cold voice drifted over from behind her. Zhu Bafu turned around and saw Li Chenjing sweep aside the bed curtains, apparently intending to get out of bed and catch her. He had hastily thrown on an outer robe, his ink-black hair spilling down like satin and winding around him. He had no time to tidy his disheveled hair. His fever-flushed cheeks were covered with a thin sheen of sweat, and he staggered barefoot toward her.

Ranking List

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Historical Romance

Woman Dressed as a Man