Qi Yue knocked twice on the door. "Chang Yuncheng?

Chang Yuncheng?" she called out. "Qi Yueniang!

Are you ever going to finish?" came the man's voice from behind the toilet door. Qi Yue chuckled, relieved, and gently patted the door twice.

Perfect, he hadn't vanished... "Oh, oh, okay, okay, take your time in there." She softened her voice and said, turning away happily.

She hadn't taken two steps when the toilet door burst open, and the man emerged with a dark expression, **bare-chested, wrapped only in a bedsheet. "You are so annoying, woman." He stated.

Qi Yue instantly spun around and lunged forward, throwing her arms around his waist. Her fuzzy hair tickled against him, and Chang Yuncheng could barely suppress a laugh.

"Hey, what are you doing?" he said, reaching out to grip her shoulders. "You're filthy..." Qi Yue just held on tight.

"How am I filthy? I just washed my hair!" she protested, pressing against his solid chest.

Her hands slowly traced the scars she could feel even with her eyes closed—they were real. The strong heartbeat she heard was real too.

The scent of the man's distinct aroma she inhaled was real as well. Everything was real, even the feeling of him grabbing her hair...

"Ow!" she cried out in protest. She released her grip, clutching the top of her head.

"Why are you pulling my hair?" she exclaimed. Chang Yuncheng reached out and rubbed her head.

"This strange color you've done to it—change it back." He said, tugging and flicking her curly strands as he spoke. Qi Yue snorted.

"No taste at all," she retorted, tossing her hair. "Isn't it beautiful!" Chang Yuncheng laughed, lifting her chin to examine her closely.

Qi Yue suddenly felt nervous. Though the ancient bronze mirrors didn't show things too clearly, still...

Qi Yueniang was a beauty; at least, she was more beautiful than Qi Yue, and younger... Moreover, having been sick for so long without proper upkeep, Qi Yue must look even worse...

She'd only just bathed and hadn't even put on makeup... "What are you looking at?" She felt her face flush, a strange sensation she couldn't quite name, ending in a nasal whine.

"Indeed, you're old! And ugly!" Chang Yuncheng declared, pinching her chin.

"I didn't lie to A'Ru about that!" Qi Yue recalled what she'd told A'Ru previously. "I'm at least older than you all..." She reached out and wrapped her arms around Chang Yuncheng's waist again, pressing into his embrace.

"Knowing it now is too late!" she declared with a huff. She rubbed her head against his body.

"You're mine anyway; it's too late for regrets, and you can't run away!" Chang Yuncheng chuckled at her fidgeting, feeling a stir of heat early in the morning. "Looks like you still have energy." He murmured.

He reached out and lifted her up. Qi Yue laughed, patting him to put her down.

"I have to go to work. I'm not the young mistress of the Marquis of Dingxi anymore; I have to earn every bite I eat and every drop I drink." She laughed.

That sentence reminded Chang Yuncheng. He loosened his hold and hurried to grab clothes from the bedside table.

"What work? Let's go," he said.

He urged the woman to get dressed as well. "Go where?" Qi Yue asked, confused.

"You are no longer the former young mistress of the Marquis of Dingxi Manor," Chang Yuncheng turned back to say, "Now, you are going to be Chang Yuncheng's wife." Qi Yue looked at him, her expression a mix of sorrow and joy. Chang Yuncheng frowned.

Here she came again... "Stop daydreaming.

It's all real now; it won't disappear again. Hurry up and get dressed; we're going to see your parents and get married." Chang Yuncheng said.

He stretched out his long arm and ruffled the woman's hair again. The fuzzy, messy, curly hair was quite fun to mess with...

Qi Yue dodged his hand. A thought struck her, and she looked out the window.

Hedu Ridge was as quiet as ever. She reached out and took Chang Yuncheng's hand, looking up at him.

What exactly was he? Reincarnated?

Reborn? Resurrected?

Was the person there him? Is the person here him too?

Seeing the woman's dazed expression shifting between sudden sadness and joy, Chang Yuncheng sighed. He pushed her head back slightly with the back of his hand.

"Stop overthinking! We'll eat now, and then we'll leave," he ordered.

Qi Yue snapped back to attention and hugged him again. That feeling of constant fear of loss...

Chang Yuncheng hugged her tightly in return and kissed the top of her hair. As soon as they sat at the dining table, Qi Yue remembered something and jumped up.

"Aunt Liu needs her dressing changed again today; I'll pop over quickly." she said. "Eat first, then go," Chang Yuncheng replied.

Qi Yue had already grabbed a steamed bun from the table, speaking indistinctly through her mouthful. "If I finish her treatment early, we can leave sooner," she said.

"It saves worrying about it. You start packing things up in my room, okay?" This impudent woman was ordering him around like a servant.

Chang Yuncheng raised his hand. Qi Yue had already bolted out the door.

He lowered his hand, a slight smile appearing, and took a heavy bite of the bun. "Tastes awful...

What kind of meat is this? Why does pork taste like this now..." he grumbled, about to spit it out when he saw the old gatekeeper walking in, looking quite cheerful.

The food at Cao Lao's place wasn't exactly delicious, but it wasn't this bad either... "Little Chang, how is it?

Are the buns okay?" Grandfather Zhang asked happily. "This is a big black pig raised locally...

Not one of those artificially fattened ones... That meat has no flavor.

This kind is fragrant. I specifically went out early this morning to buy it..." Chang Yuncheng forced a smile and nodded, painfully swallowing the mouthful of bun.

"It's good," he managed. Grandfather Zhang was delighted.

"Eat more, eat more. You city folk need to eat more of our green food." He advised.

Chang Yuncheng nodded, slowly chewing the bun in his hand. "Did Doctor Qi go to the Bone Tomb again?" Grandfather Zhang suddenly asked.

"That child, why is she so fond of the Bone Tomb? Is it because a surgical knife was unearthed there?" Chang Yuncheng's chewing paused.

"Bone Tomb? Surgical knife?" he looked up and asked.

What, then, was he? The scenic area staff were making pre-opening preparations when some people let out soft whistles.

It was their secret signal, indicating the arrival of the woman who cried at the tomb. "So early today?

Doesn't she usually only come for her evening stroll?" "Eh, it seems like she hasn't been here for a few days." "What are you talking about? It's only been two days." "Two days?

It feels like a lifetime to me..." They chatted as they watched the woman approach from outside. Since Boss Dong and the village elders had made prior arrangements, the woman didn't need to pay an entrance fee, so no one spoke, merely watching her slowly walk toward the tomb passage.

But this time, the woman stopped right at the entrance of the passage. When everyone looked back after being busy for a moment, they saw the woman still standing there, not having entered.

What new trick was she planning this time? Everyone stared blankly, then watched the woman suddenly turn and walk back out.

Well, how rare... Never mind what she's doing; she already possesses him.

That was the greatest surprise. Qi Yue clasped her hands, realizing that the longer she thought about it, the more she wanted to quicken her pace.

She couldn't bear to be apart from him for even this short time. She broke into a jog towards the exit, only to hear voices just as she reached the gate.

She instinctively looked over and was so startled that she stumbled, nearly falling. Chang Yuncheng stood at the entrance of the scenic area, frowning.

"Tickets?" Chang Yuncheng frowned. "Why do we need tickets to look at a tomb?" The administrator frowned too.

Looking at the man's distinguished appearance and extraordinary demeanor, why were his words so odd? "Sir, which tomb scenic area doesn't require tickets these days?" they asked.

Again. A strange rule?

"Well, the funds are needed for the maintenance and guarding of the tombs," an administrator patiently explained. I see!

The tomb guardians need that money to live. Chang Yuncheng understood.

He took out his wallet. Moreover, if this was likely the tomb of their Chang family, it certainly warranted careful treatment and protection.

"How much?" he asked. "Fifty," the administrator replied, gesturing toward the ticket booth.

Before he could say more, Chang Yuncheng interrupted. "Only fifty?" Chang Yuncheng frowned.

"How can it be so cheap? A pound of beef is fifty!

Is our Chang family tomb worth less than a piece of...." Qi Yue rushed over and shouted, but Chang Yuncheng cut her off. "This is my friend, my boyfriend," she quickly added before anyone else could speak.

She grabbed Chang Yuncheng's arm and pulled him away. "We're leaving, we're going back." Chang Yuncheng remained stationary; Qi Yue couldn't budge him.

"Qi Yueniang," he said. Qi Yue immediately clasped her hands together, looking at him pleadingly.

"I was wrong, I was wrong not to trick you, I was wrong. You can hit me or scold me however you want when we get back, but please, come back with me..." she begged.

"I was just looking for this," Chang Yuncheng said, taking her hand. He pulled a bank card from his wallet and tossed it to the staff member.

"There's about ten thousand in there, no password. Take it, as a tip for you all." All the staff present froze.

A tip... for us...?

Should they be bowing in gratitude? Truly, when one is with this woman, nothing normal ever happens...

It's just a shame such a fine man, so handsome, found a mentally unstable girlfriend, causing him to become abnormal too... Chang Yuncheng left the stunned staff behind and dragged Qi Yue towards the entrance.

"Chang Yuncheng, Chang Yuncheng, don't look, don't go see..." Qi Yue struggled, but her strength was nothing against Chang Yuncheng's. She was easily pulled along.

"What are you throwing such a tantrum for?" Chang Yuncheng brought the woman in front of him, wrapping an arm around her as they walked forward. "I don't want you to see it!

I don't want you to see!" Qi Yue cried, clutching his clothes. "I don't want you to see your grave being dug up, I don't want to think about it, and I don't want to know how you...

how you managed all these years... I'm scared.

If you see your skeletal remains... will you...

disappear? Will those things about space and time, about not being able to exist simultaneously...

Chang Yuncheng, can we just not look? Can we just be happy seeing each other here, right now, alive and real?

Let's leave quickly, let's go back, go back and get married, okay?" Chang Yuncheng found her weeping both slightly amusing and deeply heart-wrenching. He looked up at the tomb passage that was now right before them.

How did this woman endure it, guarding this place day after day, guarding what she thought was her own grave? "Silly woman," he murmured, reaching out to stroke her head, once, twice.

"Silly woman, silly woman...." Qi Yue burst into loud sobs and threw her arms around Chang Yuncheng. "There, there, stop crying," Chang Yuncheng patted her back comfortingly.

"This... is not me." Qi Yue's crying stopped abruptly.

What? "Foolish girl, stop crying.

The one inside here is not me. The one holding the surgical knife is not me." Chang Yuncheng lifted her face and looked at her as he spoke.

*********The pink chapter double begins now. The ending of this story, give it to me.

The ending of this book, I give to you all. May we all draw a perfect period mark.

Thank you all! RT