They clearly didn’t have that many moments of intersection. Why were all of her memories about him when she was reminiscing? 

  Ji Man was a bit frightened by her thoughts. 

  The only sounds in the jail were the groaning and wailing of prisoners. There was nothing else. She leaned against the quilt that she had gotten because of connections and gradually fell asleep. Anyways, this wasn’t a Mary Sue romance fiction novel. The male lead wasn’t going to break in here through the window and take her away in the moonlight. She didn’t have any expectations. 

  — 

  This jail had winding corridors. A few steps from her prison cell, there was a corner. Ning Yuxuan was standing in that space right now. Through the spaces between the railings, he was able to see her. 

  After Qian Yingchen had stood here with Marquis Moyu for a long time, he heavily coughed a few times. Startled by the noise, Ning Yuxuan turned around and harshly glared at him. Soon after, he hastily turned back to see if there was any movement in Ji Man’s prison cell. 

  Fortunately, Ji Man was already asleep and didn’t hear anything. She only turned over. 

  Sighing in relief, but also feel disappointed, Ning Yuxuan waved his hand and lightly said, “Let’s go.” 

  Not having another choice, Qian Yingchen quirked his mouth and voiced his assented. Was this it? Had he just called him over here to keep him company and act out the role of a stone for a while? 

  The preliminary judgment of the murder case in Marquis Moyu’s estate was that Nie Sangyu had a motive for killing Wen Wan. Thus, she was the most likely suspect. However, on the second day, the coroner figured out what Wen Wan was poisoned with. It was a poison that could only be found in the palace called “Beauty Intoxication”. It was specifically given to imperial consorts that had been sentenced to death. 

  Marquis Moyu carried Wen Wan’s memorial tablet to the front of the palace and knelt down. This caused a group of important officials to gather around him to watch. The emperor could only come out and personally help him stand up. The emperor said he wasn’t clear about the situation, but the matter would be seriously handled. 

  And how would this matter be seriously handled? Every day, Ning Yuxuan went to the palace’s entrance to keep watch. He didn’t go inside. He just stayed outside holding the memorial tablet to pressure the emperor. 

  As a last resort, Zhao Zhe dragged out a newly promoted imperial concubine to take the fall for Wen Wan’s death. Moreover, he ordered for that imperial concubine to commit suicide so that one life was repaid with another life. This way, Marquis Moyu could set his mind at rest and leave for the military campaign. 

  Of course, a problem arose from Zhao Zhe’s action. That imperial concubine was the first woman that entered Zhao Zhe’s harem after he ascended the throne, so she naturally had a strong background. Her father, Sir Luo, was the Chancellor of Exchequer in the Three Departments. She was also Luo Qianqian’s younger sister. 

  Because Zhao Zhe had to deal with the problematic fallout of his actions, he didn’t have the energy to deal with Ji Man and Ning Yuxuan for the time being. 

  Ji Man was let out of jail, but she didn’t go looking for Ning Yuxuan. Instead, she continued her efforts in looking for Haohao. The emperor would only be temporarily troubled. Once he was no longer busy, he would naturally go back to making life difficult for Ji Man. But, she wasn’t scared. She had already figured out a plan. If she couldn’t find Haohao within the ten-day deadline, then on the day that Ning Yuxuan left for the military campaign, she would go send him off, put that cedar tree cloak on him, and leave this place. 

  She would just leave this terrible mess for these storybook characters to deal with. This old lady no longer wanted to play along! 

  After searching the capital for five days, there was still no inkling of Haohao’s whereabouts. Ji Man was almost ready to give up. Haohao was probably in the palace. It was all up to the emperor then. 

  Haohao had been taken away at such a young age to be a bargaining chip. In the future, would he even recognize her as his mom? If not, then she would ruin Ning Yuxuan’s face, that way Haohao wouldn’t recognize him either. This way, it would be fair for both sides! 

  Ning Yuxuan had been especially honest during the past few days. She hadn’t seen much of him. He seemed to be busy with something. When she bumped into him, he would keep his distance and only nod at her before rushing away. 

  He was probably busy with preparations for the military campaign? Ji Man chuckled as she took out a cloak from the wardrobe. 

  This was the cedar tree cloak that Nie Sangyu had embroidered. It would probably look good when it was worn with Ning Yuxuan’s white armor. 

  Three days later, it was time for Ning Yuxuan to set off. For some unknown reason, there was something special about this departure. The emperor would be personally sending off the army, and the troops would be taking off on military training ground that was outside the capital. All of the military and civil officials were also in attendance. However, it seemed as if there was something missing. 

  Ji Man had pleaded with Ning Yuxuan for a long time until he agreed to let her come to send him off. At that time, she would perform a gesture of conjugal love. For example, putting a cloak on him. 

  In the end, she had chosen to not leave the capital with him, and he didn’t try to change her mind. Ji Man thought there was a saying that was quite correct. She definitely had to tell Ning Yuxuan about it. 

  On the way to military training ground, they shared a carriage. Ning Yuxuan said, “If possible, you should go back to Heaven. Once everything has calmed down, come back to look for me.” 

  Ji Man chuckled. “Sure.” 

  Unfortunately for him, once she went back, she wouldn’t be coming back here again. 

  However, Ji Man has thought things through. This wasn’t her world. Marquis Moyu wasn’t her husband. Wanting Ning Yuxuan to only love her was like requiring a horse to stand up on its two hind legs and walk like a human. They were from different worlds. She couldn’t selfishly ask so much from him. 

  She would just treat everything that happened her as a dream. She had already changed Nie Sangyu’s fate. Instead of Nie Sangyu dying, it was Wen Wan that died. Since Wen Wan was dead, it was time for this novel to end. 

  There wouldn’t be anything here that she was reluctant to part with. 

  She tightened her grip on the cloak. Ji Man took a deep breath. The person next to her stayed silent. 

  Once they arrived at the military training ground, and after the formalities were concluded, Zhao Zhe ordered for the troops to depart. 

  Ji Man grabbed this opportunity to rush forward and shouted, “Yuxuan……” 

  The man turned his head back. Seeing that his eyes were full of gentleness and warmth, she froze slightly. 

  “I…… embroidered this cloak for you. Please put it on before leaving.”


  Chapter 440 – I dare not love for I fear this is only a dream (1) 

  The cloak was unfolded. The embroidered cedar trees still looked lifelike. This warm cloak contained a woman’s cherished desire. 

  Ning Yuxuan softly assented. He let go of the reins and walked to her side. 

  The civil and military officials were all here. The emperor was also standing at the top. Ji Man thought that her hands were trembling because there were too many people watching. 

  As she draped the cloak over him, Ning Yuxuan whispered into her ear, “You told me that Sangyu’s wish was to hear me say, “I love you. If I say that now, will you be able to leave here? 

  “En.” Ji Man lowered her eyes. She slowly moved her hands around his neck and pulled the cloak’s strings to the front of his lapel. 

  “Will Nie Sangyu become an empty corpse?” 

  “Maybe yes, or perhaps not.”Ji Man slowly tied the strings into a bow. “Sangyu’s spirit seems very weak. She might not be able to hold onto this body.” 

  Ning Yuxuan’s eyes suddenly sharpened a bit. He reached out and brought her into his arms. His voice sounded somewhat anxious, “That’s not important. You’ll still be able to leave here, right?” 

  Original translation is from fuyuneko dot org. If you’re reading this elsewhere, this chapter has been stolen. Please stop supporting theft. 

  “Of course.” Ji Man didn’t know why he was acting this way. He was holding her so tightly by the waist that she felt as if her waist was going to snap. He kept a tight grip on her head, so she wasn’t able to turn around and see his expression. 

  “That’s good then.” Ning Yuxuan’s voice sounded as if he was relieved from a heavy burden. “I love you.” 

  Shocked, Ji Man suddenly felt an indescribable feeling in her heart. 

  A gust of wind blew by, and the cloak slightly turned over. It looked as if the embroidered trees had come alive. They seem to glow. He doggedly held onto her and wouldn’t let her turn her head, but he continued to softly say, “I love you, Ji Man.” 

  She could hear the sound of her heart beating. Thump. Thump. Thump. It sounded as if something had broken. It was beating very quickly. The light in front of her seemed to be increasingly bright. Her consciousness became blurry. It felt as if her spirit had floated into the sky, and she suddenly saw the scene behind her body. 

  The departing troops had taken out their hooked spears. Step by step, they approached Marquis Moyu, who was still tenaciously hugging Nie Sangyu’s body. He was murmuring something into her ear, but his eyes were looking at the group of soldiers. 

  Startled, Ji Man finally realized what was wrong about this scene. 

  Ning Mingjie and Nie Qingyun were missing from the crowd of civil and military officials that were assembled today. There were no familiar faces from the Six Ministries. Xiao Tianyi was standing by the emperor’s side, and they were surround by Xiao Clan’s members. 

  It was only Ning Yuxuan that was hemmed in by the numerous soldiers. 

  “No……” Ji Man really wanted to say something, but no one could hear her voice. The woman in Marquis Moyu’s arms slumped over as if she was dead. 

  “Thank you,” a tired voice lightly said these last two words before finally disappearing from her mind completely. 

  Ji Man widened her eyes. She called out in panic, “No!” 

  She didn’t want to leave. At the very least, she shouldn’t leave at this time. What would happen to Ning Yuxuan? How could he have stepped into such a horrifying trap?! 

  There was a clap of thunder, but Ji Man seemed to be floating farther and farther away. She tried to grab onto something. She wanted to stay here, but her attempt was futile. 

  A sense of weightlessness came over her. Ji Man abruptly opened her eyes. To her surprise, she saw the ceiling of her apartment. Her alarm was going off next to her. Next to it, the calendar showed that today was August 27, 2014. There was also a large stack of reports that she had brought home to work on yesterday and was going to bring back to work today. 

  No complicated embroidery patterns, no bloody scenes of mutual attempts at deception, no Errong, no Yurun, no Wen Wan, or Ning Yuxuan. 

  At a loss, she stood up and looked around. Several years had passed in that world, but now, it was just one night’s dream? 

  She blankly sat there, then pinched her thigh. Ji Man couldn’t help laughing. 

  Ah, so it was just a dream. There wasn’t a female lead or a secondary female character. There wasn’t a Marquis Moyu. All those years of struggling and cautiously living, it was all in vain. It had all just been a dream. 

  She opened her eyes again. She was still in the peaceful modern era where there was gender equality and monogamy. 

  Wasn’t this wonderful? Ji Man wryly laughed. Her face felt a bit itchy. It was only when she touched her face that she realized she had been crying. Not only that, enough time had passed for the tears to dry. 

  Why did she cry? She tilted her head but couldn’t figure it out. It was only a dream, and the people in the dream were just imaginary characters. Why would she cry over them? 

  She dazedly washed up, picked up the reports, put on her heels, and headed out for work. As always, the air in the city was irritating, and the crowded subway was enough to make a person feel nauseous. The air in the subway was filled with the smell of breakfast steamed buns, but taking the subway was much smoother than riding inside a bumpy carriage. It only took a short time before the subway had traveled halfway through the city. 

  When Ji Man left the subway, she was thinking that if Ning Yuxuan was here and took a trip on the subway, his face would end up ghastly pale after being smushed by the crowding people, even if his expression was usually calm. 

  “Morning.” After greeting her cubicle neighbors, Ji Man sat down as usual and swiftly prepared to start her work. Her nearby coworker was scrolling threw a webpage and suddenly exclaimed, “What a well-written poem.” 

  Ji Man didn’t listen to her. She had always cared about efficiency at work. Although she was already holding a report in her hand, she was only blankly looking at it. She needed to quickly adapt to the present.

  Chapter 441 – I dare not love for I fear this is only a dream (2) 

  Engrossed in her reading, the nearby coworker read aloud, “I dare not calculate my fate for I fear the fickleness of heavenly law. I dare not love for I fear this is only a dream. Hey, Ji Man, don’t you think these words are quite interesting?” 

  The hand that was going to start the computer paused. Ji Man turned her head and blankly stared at her. 

  I dare not calculate my fate for I fear the fickleness of heavenly law. I dare not love for I fear this is only a dream.

  Hadn’t she just had a long dream? Fortunately, she hadn’t fallen in love. 

  “What’s wrong?” The coworker was startled by Ji Man’s behavior. She quickly pulled out tissues and offered them to her. “Ah, don’t cry. What’s wrong? You were perfectly fine yesterday. Did you have a bad breakup?” 

  “How could I have a bad breakup? I’m not even in a relationship.” Ji Man was also stunned by her own behavior. She took the offered tissues and dried her tears. Smiling, she said, “It’s probably because my eyes are feeling too tired since I stayed up late reading a light novel.” 

  With a face ready for gossip, the coworker looked at her and said, “Stop pretending. I’ve dated a lot. How could I not know what a bad breakup looks like? You’re too competitive and tough. You have no idea how many people call you Abbess Miejue behind your back. You should occasionally be a bit more gentle, dress up, and go out on a date. There are so many good men out there. You shouldn’t care too much about the few that upset you.” 

  (T/N: Abbess Miejue is a character from the The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber by Jin Yong. She is dogmatic about her views and ruthless when it comes to obtaining her goals. She stubbornly chooses to die rather than accept help from her enemy.) 

  “You’re right.” Ji Man smiled. “It’s okay. I don’t care.” 

  Why should she care about him? He was such a playboy. She reached out to pick up her phone and realized that she had forgotten to bring it. She suddenly remembered that it was opened up to the novel that she was reading. She hadn’t read the ending yet. 

  What would the ending look like? When she left, the soldiers had already surrounded Ning Yuxuan. 

  After thinking about this for a while, Ji Man opened up a browser, searched for the light novel that she had read, and skipped to the latest chapter. 

  “Marquis Moyu was trapped by the army. Zhao Zhe had meticulously designed this trap. He was determined to get rid of Marquis Moyu once and for all. Just as a hooked spear was going to stab through Ning Yuxuan’s chest, a sound came from outside the military training field…… 

  There was a link for the next chapter after the ellipsis. Ji Man held her breath as she clicked on the link. To her surprise, the page does not exist error was displayed! 

  When she clicked to the ’s cover page, she saw that the novel’s last update was half a year ago! 

  The author gave up? Ji Man was furious. She looked for the author’s name, but it was anonymous. She opened the website’s customer service page and couldn’t resist letting loose a stream of outraged curses. The customer service very apologetically told her that they had lost contact with the author after that update, so the novel remained unfinished. 

  There was no ending? There was actually no ending? Ji Man was so angry that she started to laugh. She flipped back and looked at the chapters that she hadn’t read yet. As soon as she saw the words, she froze in surprise. 

  The novel had changed from the last time she read it. It was revealed that the secondary female character had faked her death. After that, her behavior was exactly the same as hers. Slowly, little by little, she had taken back the male lead’s heart and pushed the female protagonist off her altar. 

  The author probably had no idea how to continue this novel. The female protagonist had already been replaced, so how could the author continue writing? If the author had switch the male lead, there would still be readers. But, if the female protagonist was replaced, why would the readers still read this novel? 

  Ji Man had blankly stared at the screen for a while when someone suddenly patted her shoulder from the back. When she turned her head to look, her manager was looking at her screen with an unhappy expression. 

  “Sorry.” Ji Man closed her eyes. Just as she was going to close that page, she heard someone calling her, “Ji Man.” 

  “When you’re at work, don’t do things that are unrelated to work.” Her manager was still standing behind her and nagging her. “The company is in a slump. At any moment, they’re going to lay off employees. If you don’t want to work here, there are plenty of people waiting to take your spot……” 

  “I’m not willing to accept this……” This time, it wasn’t Nie Sangyu’s voice. When she listened to it carefully, she realized it was Ning Yuxuan’s. 

  “Why haven’t you closed that rubbish yet?” 

  “You do love me. Why do you always lie to yourself and say that you don’t feel anything?” 

  “Ji Man?” The manager was somewhat angry. 

  Ji Man was dumbstruck and stared at the webpage. Suddenly remembering something, she got up and rushed out of the office. 

  Behind her, the manager angrily shouted, “Ji Man! You’re fired!” 

  Fine, fire her. It was only after she returned to modern-day that she realized she liked that old feudalistic world more. Although there were many areas where it was inferior to modern-day, and equality between men and women wasn’t as good, she still ended up liking it. 

  If it was only a dream, then let her keep dreaming. She wasn’t happy with the ending either. She had worked so hard to change the secondary female character to the female protagonist, but she wasn’t even added to the list of actors and actresses. As Ah Sang once sang, “There’s clearly three people in this movie, and yet my name will never be on the credits.” 

  (T/N: This song is called 一直很安静 (Always in Silence). Here’s a link for the translated lyrics, and a link if you want to listen to the song. It’s one of my favorite songs ^^.) 

  “Ji Man……” 

  “Stop calling me.” Ji Man was running very quickly on her eight-centimeter high heels. “This old lady will definitely come back!” 

  Suddenly, her heel caught on something, and Ji Man fell over. She fell into boundless darkness and abruptly woke up. 

  When she opened her eyes, she was greeted with an appealing antique canopy curtain. 

  “Miss, what’s wrong?” A servant girl from the marquis’s estate pushed open the door. Looking at her, she said, “It’s time for you to get up. The marquis is almost about ready to leave for the military training field.” 

  Leaving for the militarily training field? Ji Man was dumbfounded. She stared at the servant girl and asked, “Is the marquis leaving for the military campaign today?” 

  “Yes. Miss, please get up first.” The servant girl looked at her strangely. 

  Translator Ramblings: Even though the word “Dreamer” is in the title of the novel, I want to believe that Ji Man’s return to the modern era is just a nightmare. And that, because she dies in her nightmare, she wakes up as Nie Sangyu again.