Romance Novels Are All Deceiving

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Lin Zhiqing noticed the man's gaze and saw him break into a simple, honest smile before he turned to Lin Congli. "Liuyun pays his respects to Lin Bo. There have been many matters recently at the military camp on the outskirts of the capital, and I haven't had the time to visit. I truly apologize."

Lin Congli showed more warmth on his face when he faced Jiang Liuyun. "How is your father doing recently?"

Jiang Liuyun scratched his head. "Father is eating and drinking well, and far less busy than I am. However, recently, he has encountered a troubling matter."

"Oh? Why is Lord Zhenyuan troubled?" Lin Congli picked up the conversation.

Jiang Liuyun sighed heavily and shook his head. "Sigh, father has heard of Qing'er's situation and has been quite worried, repeatedly saying how well-behaved Qing'er is and how she couldn't possibly commit such a terrible act."

"And so, he insisted that I come see Qing'er early this morning." Jiang Liuyun smiled as he looked at Lin Congli, as though they were just chatting casually.

Lin Zhiqing curved her lips into a faint smile, glancing at Lin Congli. She noticed that his smile was beginning to falter.

Jiang Liuyun's words were quite blunt, clearly offering Lin Zhiqing support.

Lin Zhiqing had expected Lin Congli to delay for a while, but he merely nodded in agreement.

When Jiang Liuyun suggested that he, along with the Lu family siblings, look after her, Lin Congli hesitated for a moment before nodding in consent.

Lin Zhiqing furrowed her brows, noting that Lin Congli seemed more eager to be friendly with Jiang Liuyun, while he barely exchanged a few words with the Lu siblings.

Furthermore, Lin Zhiqing had not forgotten how Jiang Liuyun kept calling her "Qing'er," as if he were quite familiar with her.

Before she could think more about it, Lu Nanyue spoke up again, "Lin Da Laoye, it's getting late. Why don't you let Qing'er rest so that she can focus on investigating tomorrow?"

Lin Congli glanced at Lin Zhiqing and nodded.

Upon seeing this, Lu Nanyue stepped forward to support Lin Zhiqing, whispering, "Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

Lin Zhiqing shook her head. Was being thirsty considered an illness?

After they had walked a little distance, Lu Nanyue's expression quickly soured. "Lin Zhiqing, what have you gotten yourself into? If Aunt Mu hadn't come to find us, you'd have lost half your life today."

"Although your cousin usually acts recklessly, she takes good care of you. Tell me honestly, did you harm her?"

Lin Zhiqing's eyes narrowed, her sense of wariness growing, but she shook her head. "No."

Lu Nanyue seemed to relax. "That's good. But from what I saw of your uncle's attitude today, he still doesn't trust me and Xiao Huai much."

"If your fiancé hadn't come with us today, this matter might not have been so easy to resolve…"

Fiancé?

Lin Zhiqing recalled the actions and words of everyone in the hall earlier. The face of a man with a sincere smile flashed in her mind.

Jiang Liuyun was actually her fiancé?

Lin Zhiqing was surprised, but at this moment, the crisis hadn't passed, and she had no time to think about her fiancé.

Once she got through this crisis, she would find an opportunity to cancel the engagement.

"Miss, you've finally returned. I've been worried sick!" At this moment, an old woman's voice came from behind, "Bilu, that wicked girl, seems quiet, but she's full of malice! She actually dared to frame you!"

"If those damn people hadn't kept me from going to the training grounds, I would have given her a good lesson!" The old woman scolded Bilu, then, looking frightened, patted her chest. "Luckily, I realized something was off and quickly went to find Miss Nanyue and them. Thank the heavens! Thank the heavens!"

The old woman clasped her hands together and prayed to the sky, then hurriedly stepped forward.

But her actions froze when she met Lin Zhiqing's eyes. The hands she had clasped together dropped to her sides.

Lin Zhiqing noticed the old woman's right eyebrow twitch upward.

Based on psychological research, this gesture strongly indicated a sense of doubt in her, about 80%.

What was she doubting?

The only thing worth doubting about Lin Zhiqing was her identity!

Wait, wasn't it said that time travelers are automatically invisible to others' detection?

As expected, romance novels are all deceptive!

Now that she thought about it, for familiar people, any changes in someone's behavior or appearance would be very obvious, especially during such sensitive times.

The old woman in front of her had only glanced at her eyes and had already noticed the difference between her and the original Lin Zhiqing.

The eyes are the window to the soul and are the most reflective of a person's character and emotions.

She and the original Lin Zhiqing were undoubtedly very different, and it seemed that the old woman was particularly familiar with Lin Zhiqing and could detect that this person was not the same as her young miss.

How to deal with this…

Though Lin Zhiqing appeared still, her mind raced with various solutions.

Lu Nanyue, seeing the two women exchanging a look without speaking, assumed they were emotional after surviving the ordeal.

She gently patted Lin Zhiqing's shoulder. "Aunt Mu has gone to great lengths today. You should talk to her about everything that happened."

Then, Lu Nanyue gestured toward the door. "Don't worry. I've already informed my father. Xiao Huai and I will stay in the side courtyard tonight. If you need anything, have Aunt Mu come find us."

"Mm." Lin Zhiqing nodded slightly.

"Ah, good, good." Aunt Mu, realizing what was going on, sent them off a little ways.

While Aunt Mu was escorting the others, Lin Zhiqing walked into the original owner's room and scanned it.

The room wasn't very large, and there weren't many special decorations.

Perhaps because of the lack of furnishings, the room seemed a bit cold.

It wasn't a shabby room, but it was clear that the original owner hadn't been treated well in the Lin family.

It made sense, considering that the original owner's parents were both dead, and she had no one to rely on. Her father had been accused of treason, and the Lin family despised the original owner, so how could they have treated her like a legitimate young miss?

After scanning the room, she closed the door and checked her "own" body.

Moments later, she heard hurried footsteps.

Aunt Mu entered the room and immediately shut the door tight. She stared at Lin Zhiqing's unfamiliar eyes, clutching her clothes tightly. "Who… are you really?!"

Upon noticing her movement, Lin Zhiqing lowered her head and frowned.

She knew very well that Aunt Mu's failure to expose anything in front of Lu Nanyue meant she didn't want to make a scene.

This made things much easier.

"I'm really Lin Zhiqing," Lin Zhiqing said, trying to make her voice sound a bit confused. "But… I've lost my memory!"

Memory loss was the excuse Lin Zhiqing had prepared in case she couldn't handle the situation.

After all, without the original owner's memories, any careless move could expose her.

And Aunt Mu's suspicion was a big threat, but also an opportunity.

An opportunity to learn about the original owner, the Lin family, and this unfamiliar world.

Besides Lin Zhiqing's thoughts, this body was undoubtedly the original owner's, and amnesia was the best excuse.

"Amnesia?" Aunt Mu couldn't control her voice for a moment. "How is that possible?"

Then, realizing her mistake, her face grew flustered, and she lowered her voice.

"It's only been a few hours. I heard those people didn't torture you severely. How could you have lost your memory?"

"Maybe it's…" Lin Zhiqing was about to speak when a knock on the door interrupted them. Jiang Liuyun's voice came from outside.

"Qing'er, I heard some noises. Is something going on?"

Lin Zhiqing pursed her lips and looked at Aunt Mu.

Aunt Mu met her gaze and lifted the left corner of her mouth in a fake smile, her voice filled with forced cheer.

"Lord Jiang, our young miss is fine."

"Good, good. I'm glad to hear that. I'm with the Lu family siblings, so let Qing'er rest assured," Jiang Liuyun's hearty voice came through.

"Thank you, Lord Jiang," Aunt Mu whispered her thanks.

After Jiang Liuyun's footsteps faded away, Lin Zhiqing stood up and waved to Aunt Mu.

Earlier, Aunt Mu's behavior clearly showed she was protecting her.

It seemed she was half-skeptical of the amnesia story.

As expected, after hearing Lin Zhiqing's words, Aunt Mu hesitated a little but still slowly followed her footsteps.

Lin Zhiqing entered the inner room and lifted the side of her clothing.

On her pale, tender shoulder was a conspicuous red birthmark.

Aunt Mu glanced at it and immediately her eyes welled with tears.

"Miss, you… you really…"

She couldn't finish her sentence, but Lin Zhiqing understood what she meant.

After all, a person's appearance and figure were identical, even down to the birthmark, but the eyes and aura were completely different. If she hadn't lost her memory, it would have been impossible to explain.

"Yes, I really have lost my memory," Lin Zhiqing put her clothes back on and said.

"I suspect it's related to my cousin's matter, but when I opened my eyes, I was already being interrogated. I couldn't think too much."

"Miss, I'm useless!" Aunt Mu trembled, her voice breaking as she whispered, "I allowed you to suffer such great injustice and even lose your memory. I'm so sorry to the master and mistress!"

Lin Zhiqing opened her mouth to say something comforting but couldn't find the right words.

Because only she knew that the original Lin Zhiqing had already "died."

She would never come back.

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