Chapter 422: Back to Life

The two maids closed the doors of the courtyard, trying to suppress the blooming smile on their faces as they went back to the gazebo.

After that hit with her palm, Lu Yurong’s mood improved a little. Some of the gloom she was feeling dissipated.

She kept thinking about Tian Shi and San Niang.

People could laugh and say that they were fools, but she discovered that her views had been shaken by them. She thought that in this world, profits trumped over everything else. Something such as ‘love’ was nothing compared to profits. Love was foolish and hypocritical. It was something one should not even be bothered about.

However, now that she had witnessed ‘love’ with her own eyes… She was the one who had personally dealt with those two infatuated fools, and it had left a strong impact on her.

She tried her best to maintain her composure, but she found that her thoughts kept wandering back to those two people. San Niang’s sweet smile, as well as Tian Shi’s tear-streaked face, kept appearing in her mind.

She could not sleep well the entire night, tossing and turning on her bed. Her spirits this morning remained as gloomy as yesterday.

She did not regret her harsh actions. If she had not been ruthless in her decision to kill them then, it would be the people of the imperial residence who would have to pay the price. She had killed those two assassins, and yet she could not shake away the irritable fretfulness in her heart.

Leng Feng had run straight onto the tip of her knife when he came charging over just now while she was feeling down. The fact that she did not give him a brutal lesson proved that she had excellent self-restraint.

She stood up to leave the gazebo. The two maids followed her out after she pushed open the gates.

“My Lady, where are we going?” a pretty young maid asked in a small voice.

“Has the mourning hall finished setting up?”

“Yes, they had already finished setting up last night.”

“Let’s go and have a look.”

“What’s there to see about two assassins?”

“Stop nagging!”

“Yes.” The two maids did not dare to anger her any further and followed her obediently to the mourning hall.

As Lu Yurong’s confidants, they knew about what happened with Leng Feng.

The mourning hall was large and grand, with white drapes hanging from the ceiling and paper money fluttering everywhere.

Sitting above the mourning hall was Leng Feng’s memorial tablet.

This was something the imperial residence did as a show to the public. No wonder Leng Feng was so furious, a memorial tablet was made for him when he was still very much alive. That was an incredibly inauspicious move.

If he were to show up here, his parents would be caught in an extremely bad position. It would have made no difference to say that they had lied to the public.

Lu Yurong went straight towards a small mourning hall at the side.

There were two coffins displayed in this small mourning hall. The dark purple wood of the coffin seemed to emit a chilling sense of gloom. The inside of the mourning hall felt abnormally cold.

There was no one inside the small mourning hall. It was a desolate place. She saw only an incense burner, and faint traces of the fragrance seemed to be wafting from it.

The two maids stepped into the mourning hall hesitantly. They were a little bit afraid.

Lu Yurong took a stick of incense and bowed in front of the two coffins. When she straightened back up, she stared intently at the coffins without moving so much as a muscle. Her mind was filled with images of San Niang’s sweet smile again, and she heaved yet another sigh.

“My Lady, are these the two assassins?”

“Yes,” Lu Yurong said.

The two maids lowered their voice and said, “Why are you lighting incense for them?”

Lu Yurong made a noise of disbelief.

The two girls shut their mouths and hurriedly stood to the side.

Lu Yurong let out a sigh after a long while and said quietly, “Since you two are walking on the path to the Netherworld together, you can truly be together forever now. Don’t resent me.”

She reached out to pat the coffin and turned around to leave.

Just as she was about to leave the mourning hall, her steps came to an abrupt halt. She frowned, not saying a word.

The two girls were about to follow her out when they noticed her frozen state. They called to her, “My Lady?”

Lu Yurong remained silent and stood very still by the entrance of the mourning hall.

The two maids knew that she was deep in thought and did not bother her. They only stared at her quietly.

After a moment, Lu Yurong drew her eyebrows closer than ever before and exclaimed, “Something’s not right!”

“What’s not right?” the two girls asked at once.

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Lu Yurong went back to the coffin and demanded, “You two, open this up!”

“Ah?” Alarmed expressions were etched onto the two maids’ faces, and they said hesitantly, “My Lady, a covered coffin must not be reopened. It’ll disrupt their peace, and it’s extremely disrespectful to them.”

“Hmph, the coffins are empty! Stop whining and open it up!” Lu Yurong said.

“Empty?” the two maids repeated the word in surprise.

Their hands each went to a corner of the coffin and lifted up the lid slowly and carefully. They shut their eyes and held their breaths, turning their heads to the side and away from the coffin. “My Lady, is it really empty inside?”

“It’s empty!” Lu Yurong said coldly.

The two girls opened their eyes to look and found that there was really nothing inside. It was an empty coffin.

Their fear dissipated. They put down the coffin lid and looked inside, asking curiously, “Why would they display two empty coffins?”

“Where did they go?”

“Could it be that they didn’t die and managed to escape?”

The two maids discussed amongst each other.

“Not dead?” Lu Yurong’s expression changed, and she turned around to leave.

The two maids hurried after her. “My Lady?”

“Put back the lid on the coffin. There’s no need me to follow me.” Lu Yurong waved her hand dismissively.

She left the Imperial Residence of King Jing directly and arrived at the Imperial Residence of King An.

Chief Zhu approached hastily to welcome her. His face was all smiles and full of warmth.

“Chief Zhu, where’s Chu Li?” Lu Yurong curtsied and asked calmly.

“The Head Chief has instructed me to bring you to his courtyard whenever you come to visit,” Chief Zhu replied immediately with a smile.

“Thank you, Chief Zhu,” Lu Yurong said.

“No need, no need.” Chief Zhu waved a dismissive hand as he led the way happily.

When they arrived at Chu Li’s courtyard, Chief Zhu bid his farewell and left.

Lu Yurong pushed open the door and entered. She saw Chu Li wearing a white robe and sitting alone in the gazebo enjoying a cup of tea. A chilly atmosphere lingered around him.

The aromatic smell of tea permeated the air. It was definitely some type of high-quality tea.

She entered the gazebo with light steps and sat across Chu Li, bringing along her cool fragrance. She peered at him with eyes as clear as the rivers in autumn.

Chu Li smiled and pushed a teacup towards her. “Try it.”

“Is this your doing?” Lu Yurong asked.

Chu Li raised his head to look at her. “What?”

“Tian Shi and San Niang!” Lu Yurong chuckled darkly. “You gave them the Spirit Blessing Pill, didn’t you?”

Chu Li’s eyebrows twitched, and he laughed. “As expected of Lu Yurong.”

“So it’s you. You’re despicable!” Lu Yurong gritted her teeth and said viciously.

Chu Li shook his head and smiled. “How should I put this? You killed whoever you killed, I saved whoever I saved. We didn’t interfere with each other’s affairs. Isn’t this the best outcome?”

Lu Yurong’s eyes flashed, and she gave him an icy glare. Her lips twitched in a dark smile. “You’re taking advantage of this issue!”

She thought it through on the way here. Chu Li had benefited greatly from this matter. He had successfully persuaded her to help him get rid of the assassins while also managing to get back Tian Shi and San Niang at the end.

The two people she killed were saved by him. He had become their saviors.

If he really went out of his way to save them, that meant he definitely wished to use them in some ways.

One of them was an advisor from the Imperial Residence of King Jing who was wiser than most of his peers and had a deep understanding of the imperial residence. The other was a disciple of the Holy Church of Light, proficient in the martial arts of the Holy Church of Light. To the Imperial Residence of King Jing, those two were menaces who had to be removed, but to Chu Li, they were infinitely priceless!

Chu Li said, “Lady Lu, you’ve such a utilitarianism way of thinking. I didn’t save them just to exploit them. I just couldn’t bear to let them die like that. If the star-crossed lovers were to die, this world would be too dull to live in.”

“What a joke!” Lu Yurong said. “You obviously just want to use them. You’re only feigning sympathy!”

Chu Li shook his head and said, “I’m not the kind of person who uses just anyone.”

“You dare to exploit them more than you already did?” Lu Yurong scoffed. “What plans have you arranged for them?”

Chu Li said, “They’ll enter the Public House. The eldest master just so happens to be looking for an advisor. Tian Shi will fit into the job perfectly.”

Lu Yurong raised her teacup and took a light sip. “If he dares to do anything against the Imperial Residence of King Jing, don’t blame me for killing him a second time!”