A Time-Traveling Zombie Romance (GL) - Chapter 22

Just as we stepped into the front hall of the county yamen, suddenly someone dashed out from behind.

He was dressed in an official’s robe and knelt trembling before me, lowering his head and shouting, “Your servant, County Magistrate Jin Nuo of Yu County, pays respects to the Heir — Your Highness! Ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand years!”

“Jin County Magistrate certainly has a… unique way of managing his subordinates. So it turns out you need money even to enter a county office.” I didn’t tell Jin Nuo to rise; instead I stood with my hands behind my back and smiled.

But the more he heard, the more startled he looked as he stayed on his knees, hurriedly kowtowing and begging, “I failed to restrain my men, they offended Your Highness—please spare me!”

“Yes, that should be punished. But this time I’ll note it and punish you next time.” I smiled with my hands behind my back. “Actually I came to ask you something. You may rise first.”

Jin Nuo wiped the cold sweat from his brow, hurriedly kowtowed again and said, “Thank you for Your Highness’s mercy. Ask whatever you wish, Your Highness.” Then he stood.

I sat at the high seat while Jin Nuo stood below. “Magistrate Jin, how old are you this year?”

He hadn’t expected that question and paused for a moment, then quickly said, “I dare not — this servant is thirty-two this year.”

“Heh, are you married? Take a wife and concubines?” I asked with a soft laugh.

His expression loosened when he saw me smile; he breathed out and smiled back, “Reporting to Your Highness, I have one official wife and five concubines.”

Hearing that, I cursed that corrupt official in my heart — his men were raised to be like this: greedy and lecherous. But my face remained smiling as I said, “Where is your wife? Why haven’t I seen her? Bring her out to meet me.”

Jin Nuo froze and replied, “Uh… my lady… she… went back to her natal home a few days ago to visit; she won’t return for at least a month.”

I frowned slightly. “Oh? Then why yesterday on the road to this place I saw a floating corpse in the water — and upon my confirmation, it was your wife.”

“What?!! How is that possible?… How could my wife be dead?” Jin Nuo shrank back when he heard it. Impossible— I had tied her with stones so she wouldn’t float. Could the rope have broken? Impossible…

Seeing Jin Nuo’s startled face, a flash of light passed through my eyes; I thought: Jin Nuo must be connected to this murder.

“She is definitely your wife,” I nodded.

“My lord, where is my wife? I want to go see her.” Jin Nuo lifted his head, his eyes full of tears and outrage.

That performance of his was way too good. “We have already buried your wife. We can take you to see her.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.” Jin Nuo clasped his fists in thanks.

“But you must dispatch more men to search the entire county and be sure to find the person who harmed your wife,” I said calmly.

“Yes, I will send every officer in the county to search,” Jin Nuo replied.

After finishing the conversation, we brought Jin Nuo and his officers out of the yamen and headed to the burial place of Lady Jin. At first we walked briskly, but as we neared the grave the magistrate’s steps slowed; he fell behind, his legs trembling slightly without him noticing.

I sneered inwardly—feeling guilty, are we? Hmph.

Near the grave, Jin Nuo seemed to gather his courage — or to hide his fear — and rushed ahead of everyone to the tomb. He knelt and clutched Lady Jin’s tombstone, wailing loudly, “My wife, how could you leave your husband first? Who on earth killed you? Boo-hoo, you were so wronged!” He even forced a few tears.

I stepped up beside him, frowned slightly, and patted his shoulder. “Magistrate Jin, accept my condolences. I will make sure your wife receives justice.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.” Jin Nuo kowtowed a few times.

I left Jin Nuo and his officers there and returned by myself.

Back at the inn I ordered three guards to watch Jin Nuo’s every move at all times and report any situation immediately. After giving those orders I sat cross-legged on the bed, pondering an antidote.

“Right, I remember the ancient Corpse King left behind a book called Treatises on Strange Poisons; it contains many antidotes. Perhaps I can find a cure there.” An idea flashed through me, and I made a strange hand gesture.

I gathered my energy and black light began to swirl from my body. Suddenly a brown old book appeared before me; four large characters on the cover read Treatises on Strange Poisons.

I opened the book and scanned it. I suddenly saw a line that read: “The ‘strange corpse’ (yìshī) is a dead body that has absorbed the essence of moonlight and transformed. Different from jiāngshī (hopping corpses), strange corpses are not controlled by a corpse king; they are scattered and independent. Their strength comes from moonlight: where there is moonlight, their power surpasses that of a corpse general; without moonlight, their power is comparable to ordinary corpse folk. If one is bitten by them, death follows within the time it takes to drink one bowl of tea; if poisoned by their toxin, one becomes a strange corpse within three days. To cure this poison, one must obtain the heart’s essence-bl00d to dispel it.”

Strange corpses? Mutated jiāngshī? How perverse. If moonlight makes them stronger than a corpse general and they have no sovereign, if such beings appeared the world would surely face a “biological crisis.” I couldn’t help but marvel.

But I wasn’t sure whether their poison could be cured using Lady Jin’s heart essence-bl00d, and Lady Jin wasn’t a strange corpse — what then?

I thought for a long time and could not find an answer, so I continued searching through the book.

After about an hour of searching through many antidote entries, I still couldn’t find a solution and grew irritated.

Just then there was a knock at the door: “Dong! Dong! Dong.”

“Who’s there?” I called impatiently toward the door.

“It’s me, Xu Rui. Everyone’s downstairs waiting for you for dinner.” Xu Rui said at the door.

“All right, I’ll be down right away.”

Then I opened the door and went downstairs with Xu Rui.

I entered a large private room and saw it filled with people. Everyone was looking at me. I immediately noticed the table piled with delicacies and meat that made me frown; I suddenly wanted something light.

Nevertheless I sat down unwillingly, picked up a bowl, and began to eat. When I sat, the others began to eat as well. Yun Xi and a few women ate with great elegance and slowly; the guards piled food on their plates and jabbered occasionally.

Suddenly Meng Hui stopped eating and asked everyone, “Have you found any cure yet?”

At once the room grew quiet; everyone fell silent. I lowered my head and said, “Not yet.”

“Hmph. There are only two days left; if there’s no antidote, Chen’er will die. How can you all be so unbothered and still laugh?” Meng Hui snorted.

Hearing Meng Hui’s words, the irritation in me that had been building intensified. Chen’er, Chen’er—everything was Chen’er’s fault. Unknowingly my eyes flashed red for just a second.

I suppressed that annoyance and said, “We’ve been thinking; we just haven’t found it yet.”

“But I see you all so cheerful now.” Meng Hui looked at me coldly.

Finally I looked straight at her and thought, How could I be cheerful?

Seeing her fuss over Qi Yichen, jealousy boiled inside me and I let all my irritation explode. I slammed my fist under the table, stood up with eyes blazing at her, and said, “Fine! I’ll go back and keep trying to find a cure.” Then I apologized to the others, “Sorry, I’m full,” and turned toward the stairwell without looking back.

“Young master—”

“Brother!”

“Young disciple!”

“You stingy one!”

They called after me, but I strode on without responding.

“Miss Meng Hui, I don’t know how my junior met you, but I can see he likes you a lot. This is the first time in ten years he’s lost his temper like that—don’t be so harsh with him.” Yun Xi said coldly to Meng Hui.

“Yes. He’s been worrying himself sick about finding the antidote. Last night he hardly slept, trying to cure Lord Qi and the guards. You don’t understand him; how could you say that to him?” Si Qing pouted in displeasure.

At this, Qing Yang also angrily said, “Meng Jie, you’re really wrong this time. How can you call him stingy? He’s been racking his brains for everyone.”

They all scolded Meng Hui, but she seemed a little dazed watching me walk away.

Qi Yichen, however, was quietly scheming in his heart. Later he stood up, cupped his fists and said, “This matter was Meng’er’s fault. I apologize on her behalf. I will personally go to Brother Zhang’s room to make amends.” After he said that, everyone calmed down though the atmosphere remained tense, except for Qing Yang, Qi Yichen, and Meng Hui.

When everyone else had left, Meng Hui said, “No need for you to go, Chen’er; I’ll go myself.”

Qi Yichen slightly frowned and said, “I’ll accompany you.”

“No need.”

Qi Yichen’s hands behind his back tightened into fists. Since Zhang Xiaoqi appeared, Meng’er had been rejecting her; he couldn’t allow Meng’er to fall for Zhang Xiaoqi — he had to do something, otherwise who knew what might happen later…

Anyway, after returning to my room, everything seemed irritating. I kicked a stool across the floor in anger, then buried myself under the quilt. I fell asleep somehow…and had a dream.

In the dream I arrived at a place of black and red, everything blurred. Not far away stood a person in a black robe with his back to me.

“Who are you? Where is this place?” I slowly asked.

The person slowly turned, and I froze.

He looked exactly like me, except his eyes were red and black smoke curled from his body, an aura of evil radiating from him…

“I am you. This is your dreamland.”

I was stunned. “How did you get into my dream?”

“I’m here to help you.”

“Help me with what?” I asked.

“Don’t you hate Meng Hui? You’ve done so much for her and received nothing in return. She always sides with Qi Yichen. Don’t you hate that?” He came closer step by step.

I fell silent. He continued, “You like her, yet you watch them dote on each other in front of you—can you bear it?”

I slowly stepped back and shook my head. “No, it’s not like that.”

“Do you just want to watch silently from afar and never possess Meng Hui yourself?” he sneered.

“No. I’m a woman and I’m not fit to be with her. Qi Yichen can give her true happiness. Between a woman and a man, she has the right to choose.” I shouted at him.

“Really? Love knows no gender—weren’t you of the same mind before?” he taunted.

…I fell silent.

“If I could control your body I would kill Meng Hui. What I cannot have, no one else shall have, isn’t that right?” he said.

Suddenly I was shocked. “No, love is not possession but blessing. As long as she is happy, I will let go and wish her well. You won’t corrupt me.” I struck at him with my palm.

He vanished, leaving behind only an echo: “You’ll regret this decision sooner or later~~~”

I woke up, sitting on the bed breathing hard, wiping cold sweat from my brow. Thinking about the stranger’s words, I fell into deep thought…

Just then there was a knock on the door: “Dong! Dong! Dong~~~”