T/N: Okay, I’m posting the last six “alternate reality” extras today, because these are waaaay too angsty for any gap between them, and I want you to reach the sweetness at the end as soon as possible. Enjoy!

---

When Zhao Yelan opened his eyes, he found that he was in a carriage, wearing women’s clothing with his face covered by a scarf.

He opened the curtain and asked the coachman: “Where are we now?”

“Almost to the Western Regions.”

He sat back again. His accompanying luggage he had prepared earlier was also there, none of it left behind. It had been handed over to Gu Niaoniao in advance.

He had taken the false death medicine the third day after Yan Mingting left. For the first two days, he wore the sweetgrass sachet to create the illusion that his old disease had relapsed, and then he took the medicine. There was a little pain during the process, but he soon fell into a deep sleep.

In fact, it was most appropriate to implement the plan when Yan Mingting left. No one would open the coffin for an autopsy. Only Yan Mingting had the courage. As long as the people in the house confirmed his “corpse” with their own eyes, they would not dare to move it without authorization.

And Yan Mingting, who was far away in Jiangnan, would receive the letter from the capital. Adding in the journey back, it was likely that “he” would have been buried in the ground for half a month, and Housekeeper Qin may not allow Yan Mingting to dig up the coffin and open it.

With the servants saying the same thing, Yan Mingting could only believe that he had really passed away.

When he thought of what kind of expression Yan Mingting would wear upon hearing of his death, he didn’t dare think about it further, and closed his eyes, letting himself fall asleep.

It wasn’t until he heard more voices outside that he lifted the corner of the window and found himself in a frontier town. Most of the people here had dark skin, and their voices were quite loud.

At this time, he noticed a familiar figure in front of him. It was Zhong Yuehong passing by with her men. He immediately put down the carriage curtain, and heard someone ask Zhong Yuehong: “Tell us more about the General and Zhao Yelan.”

“What Zhao Yelan, that’s disrespectful! He’s the one the General married, you must call him Zhao-daren, otherwise be careful of military law if the General finds out!”

“The General is biased toward him so soon?”

“That’s not called bias, it’s called preference.” Zhong Yuehong said with emotion, “I’ve seen what it’s like when the General likes someone. When we went hunting before, wasn’t he always the most prominent? As a result, during the last autumn hunt, he actually captured a rabbit alive without killing any prey.”

“Why?”

“To make Zhao-daren happy!”

As the voices faded away, Zhao Yelan slowly closed his eyes and suddenly noticed a line of wetness on his cheek. He wiped his cheek in surprise and looked at his wet fingertips, biting his lower lip hard.

He couldn’t regret it.

Time would erase everything, and soon, he and Yan Mingting would forget about each other.

He was so certain, but didn’t expect that when he heard news of Yan Mingting again, he would knock over the teacup in his hand in a panic.

At that time, he had been in the Western Regions for over a month.

The Western Regions and the Xuan Dynasty had been friends for hundreds of years. After the exchange of commerce and trade, merchants from the Xuan Dynasty often came to buy spices and cloth from the Western Regions to sell back home.

Several merchants were chatting while waiting for the boss to prepare the goods in a spice shop.

Zhao Yelan was sitting on the other side. He was dressed like a Westerner, and didn’t attract their attention. Listening to them discuss how to sell their goods after returning home, he felt bored, and was about to leave when he suddenly heard them mention Yan Mingting’s name.

After more than a month, hearing Yan Mingting’s name from someone else felt like it had last happened a lifetime ago.

Two days ago, Gu Niaoniao had sent a letter, which mentioned how she sent him out of the city, along with some trivial matters. But she never mentioned Yan Mingting, perhaps to avoid stirring up second thoughts within him.

“We won’t sell in Jiangnan this time. There’s a drought, and I don’t know if we can survive there,” One person said.

“That’s right, ah, but it’s admirable that General Yan is still taking the time to lead his army to Jiangnan for disaster relief.”

“Ai, he’s really miserable. He went to Jiangnan a while ago to suppress bandits, but Zhao Yelan passed away. It only took him three or four days to rush back, and I heard he ran several horses to death. Those of us who often travel know that it takes more than three or four days of travel day and night. I reckon he never closed his eyes.”

“I heard about it from a friend in the capital. When he returned, even the housekeeper in the mansion couldn’t recognize him right away. His eyes were bloodshot, and he didn’t look like a human being anymore. As soon as he returned, he said that he would open the coffin to see Zhao Yelan one more time. The housekeeper and servants all knelt down and begged him not to do it. He was buried in the ground, so let Zhao Yelan be buried in peace. Everyone watched Zhao Yelan die with their own eyes, and it was impossible for him to have been poisoned, because Zhao Yelan’s personal servant was always there to serve him.”

“Ai, it’s really pitiful. When I first heard about their marriage, I wasn’t optimistic at all. I just wanted to see if the General would kill Zhao Yelan. Who knew that this person would already be dead, and I would regret it.”

“You can say that again. General Yan is very kind to the common people. I was ridiculed before by someone saying that the status of a merchant is low, and it was him who helped me vent my anger when he passed by. I heard a while ago that he won’t eat or drink anything, and stays in the ancestral hall all night. After a few days, he lost more than ten catties. If he continues like this, he probably won’t live long.”

With a crash, the two heard the sound of a teacup smashing to the ground opposite them. They looked up and only saw a man from the Western Regions lowering his head to pick up the pieces in a flustered manner, and continued chatting.

“So I figure that when he took the initiative to go to Jiangnan for disaster relief this time, he actually didn’t intend to live on at all.”

“Many people think this way. I heard that when he went south, he brought Zhao Yelan’s memorial tablet with him.”

Zhao Yelan didn’t know how he got back to his residence. The newly-hired servant brought his meal to his room.

He stared at the food silently for a long time. The food here was far inferior to that in the capital. There were so many delicacies in the capital, good wine and good food. Why wouldn’t that idiot Yan Mingting eat it?

With complicated feelings, he wrote two letters. One was to Gu Niaoniao, and the other he asked her to send to Yan Mingting far away in Jiangnan. In the letter, he wrote as if they were his last words on his deathbed, saying that he had a premonition that his end was approaching. He thanked him for his company during those days, and hoped that he would live well in the future.

A few days later, he was still tossing and turning. He didn’t know what the situation was like with the drought in Jiangnan, and feared that Yan Mingting would be dragged down by depression before the letter reached his hands.

Thinking of this, he packed his luggage, left the Western Regions, and headed all the way south.

He wasn’t looking for the man, only traveling. Going to Jiangnan was the same as going to the Western Regions, Zhao Yelan thought.

It was only that the journey from the Western Regions to Jiangnan was extremely long, and the terrain was remote. When passing through the highlands, his body reacted uncomfortably. He was dizzy, short of breath, and nauseous for several days, and took some time to seek medical treatment from a doctor.

The journey initially would have lasted a month, but it took two months for him to reach the border of Quzhou. He heard that it had finally rained in Zhihuai and Huaizhou. Yan Mingting was also about to leave for the capital with his army, and was staying at an inn in the city. Many people went to visit him, but unfortunately, General Yan was so drunk that he didn’t recognize anyone.

Zhao Yelan entered the city at night, near curfew. He wore plain clothes and smeared dark color over his face. Pretending to be an attendant, he came to Yan Mingting’s room. He waited for a long time until he heard the subordinate inside come out. Seeing him with his head bowed, the subordinate thought he was an attendant and said: “You go and clean up the General.”

Zhao Yelan walked in with his head down and saw from a distance the person lying down on the bed. He couldn’t help but slow his pace, and when he saw the person’s face clearly, he couldn’t react.

How had Yan Mingting become like this? He reeked of alcohol, and had an unshaven beard, sunken cheeks, and dark skin. It was as if he had aged ten years.

Zhao Yelan felt a slight pain in his heart. Seeing that he was drunk and unconscious, he went forward with a handkerchief to wipe his face.

The other party moved after a moment. He reached out to the side and hugged the pillow, whispering: “Mengting, Mengting, I’m back.”

Zhao Yelan was startled. His eyes grew slightly wet, and he blinked vigorously to squeeze away the moisture.

“I’m back. Can you please not leave me?” Yan Mingting hugged the pillow in his arms, tears leaking from the corners of his eyes.

Zhao Yelan’s hands trembled at the sight. Just as he was about to wipe away the lines of tears, he saw Yan Mingting slowly open his eyes. He took a hasty step back, turned around, and ran out.

“Mengting, Mengting!” Yan Mingting opened his eyes and saw the running figure from the back. It looked very much like Zhao Yelan. He got out of bed quickly, but lost strength in his legs and feet, and fell to the floor.

His subordinate hurried in and helped him up.

Yan Mingting pointed at the door and said: “Quick, I saw Mengting, stop him quickly!”

“General, you’re mistaken, it was only an attendant just now. You drank too much and you’re talking nonsense.”

“But I think I really saw him!”

“This is the 127th time you’ve talked drunk, General.” The subordinate couldn’t bear it, and said: “Zhao-daren is dead, ah. His servant and Housekeeper Qin watched him die with their own eyes.”

Yan Mingting said dejectedly: “Why did he die? I haven’t explained my feelings to him yet. Why did he die?”

Zhao Yelan remained in the city for two days, and when Yan Mingting led the army to leave, he mixed in with the crowd and watched him go.

He had seen his own letter on Yan Mingting’s body that night, and believed that Yan Mingting would obediently live a good life.

So he continued to travel south. He said it was for leisure, but in order to avoid being discovered by others, he hid the entire way. He couldn’t relax at all, especially as the weather in the south grew hotter. The mosquitos were huge, and the land was deserted, so he went west and came to southern Xinjiang.

In the blink of an eye, it was winter. He stayed in southern Xinjiang for more than a month, and bought a secluded house, intending to live there for a year before making any plans.

On New Year’s Eve, he sat alone in the house, listening to the sounds of firecrackers and fireworks outside, which made the place seem even more deserted.

There was a charcoal brazier in front of him. He repeatedly looked at the letter Gu Niaoniao had sent a few days ago, ignoring the questions about his health and focusing on the things related to Yan Mingting.

This was the first time Gu Niaoniao had mentioned Yan Mingting in a letter in half a year, and it was about him remarrying.

Seeing that Yan Mingting was growing depressed and lifeless, the ministers in the court and central government began to introduce new people to Yan Mingting, but few were willing to marry their daughters to him.

Because of Zhao Yelan’s death, Yan Mingting’s fate as an evil star was confirmed.

As for Yan Mingting’s feelings about all this, the letter did not mention them. 

He instinctively thought that Yan Mingting would not intend to remarry, at least not so quickly, but he couldn’t help thinking — what if? What if Yan Mingting met a suitable woman and married her to soothe his soul?

On New Year’s Eve, a time of family and happiness, Zhao Yelan was depressed and alone until dawn.

Spring in southern Xinjiang was the season for all kinds of flowers. These flowers were not only for beauty, but also had other functions. Many kinds of poisonous vegetation grew here.

When he went out once, his face accidentally brushed a poisonous weed. As a result, his entire face became swollen and red, looking extremely irritated. How could he allow people to see him with such a face?

A witch doctor applied medicinal herbs to his face, and said it would take seven days for the swelling to subside. He looked into the mirror and almost went blind. Then he went to the street to buy a mask.

He sniffed his body again and found that the scent of the herbs covered up the scent of his sachet. He was about to go home, but heard someone mention Yan Mingting, saying that the General of the Xuan Dynasty had killed the former crown prince more than half a month ago.

Astonished, he went over to inquire about it, and discovered that Yan Mingting had found out that the person who had killed his father was the former crown prince.

He let out a sigh. While inwardly cursing the former crown prince, he couldn’t help but think that Yan Mingting would be happy after finally slaying his enemy.

He was thinking too hard as he walked forward with his head down, and unexpectedly bumped into someone. He had no time to deal with passers-by, so he raised his foot and was about to walk around them, but the other person also moved to block his way.

Frowning, he raised his head in dissatisfaction, but upon seeing the other’s face clearly, he froze on the spot.

Yan Mingting!

Why was he here?

“Who are you?” Yan Mingting asked, lowering his eyes to stare carefully into the eyes exposed by the mask.

---

Consider donating via Kofi here!

Extra 7 <<Table of Contents >> Extra 9: Faking Death (2)