Considering the things she had scribbled in her notebook before, like goldfish growing wings and flying, big bad wolves being afraid of little white rabbits, and grass turning green out of the blue - all these things that defied common sense had actually happened.
Lin Qiao couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear deep in her heart. What if Luo Nanchen really lost his memory?
...Moreover, if he did lose his memory, there was no telling how long it would last. She had only written the words "Luo Nanchen loses his memory" under Meng Erliu's coercion. She didn't specify when he would lose his memory or which part of his memory he would lose.
Wouldn't she have to start all over again and win Luo Nanchen's heart from scratch?
Right now, the only, most reliable, safest, most convenient, and fool - proof way was to find Zou Lvrui's mysterious notebook that was left in Endian Giant Forest and cross out that sentence.
But Lin Qiao was worried that since Luo Nanchen's subordinates always did things carefully, when they were cleaning up Meng Erliu's cave... would they set the Endian Giant Forest on fire?
Lin Qiao propped her head up and fell into deep thought.
"Knock, knock, knock—"
"Come in."
The door opened, and it was Mo Xiujie. "Madam, the young master asked this subordinate to tell you that if you're sleepy, you can go to bed first. You don't need to wait for him."
Lin Qiao nodded. "Got it... By the way, do you know what the matter was that called Luo Nanchen out today?"
Mo Xiujie looked a bit embarrassed. "This..."
"If it's inconvenient to say, forget it," Lin Qiao didn't press further. "You can go and get back to your work."
Mo Xiujie was relieved. "Yes, Madam."
After Mo Xiujie closed the door, Lin Qiao's uneasiness grew. What on earth had happened that made Luo Nanchen and Mo Xiujie look so on edge and even keep it from her?
Early the next morning, Zou Lvrui came to knock on her door. "Madam, come on! There's an event in the market today. Do you want to go and take a look?"
Without Luo Nanchen, Lin Qiao had slept soundly yet felt a bit empty. Soundly because it was quiet, empty because there was no more custom - made neck pillow.
Lin Qiao yawned and struggled to get up. "Coming, coming—"
After getting dressed, the two of them went out.
Luo Nanchen, Mo Xiujie, Dong Peirong, and Li Gusong were all gone. They hadn't come back since they left yesterday.
Lin Qiao casually asked, "Who's the boss of the black market? Why does he let us stay here and eat for free?"
Actually, she thought there was something fishy about the black - market boss's identity. It wasn't really that they were allowed to stay for free. Maybe the rule was to settle the bill when they left.
Moreover, Luo Nanchen didn't come back all night, but he seemed to be very at ease leaving her here...
Lin Qiao was so used to being doted on by Luo Nanchen that this thought popped into her head first...
Zou Lvrui was surprised. "Don't you know? The behind - the - scenes boss of the black market is Luo Nanchen. That's why the government doesn't dare to interfere. He has a powerful backer."
Lin Qiao: "..."
So that's how it was. Luo Nanchen's intelligence network was really vast and mysterious.
No wonder he was the protagonist of a cool - guy novel. He could thrive wherever he went.
"Here's a little secret you don't know," Zou Lvrui said gossipily. "Do you know why the legend says the boss of the black market has the surname Qiao?"
Lin Qiao shook her head honestly.
"Take a guess."
When it came to gossip, Zou Lvrui would act like this. She always made people guess and loved to keep others in suspense.
In the past two days, she had spent a lot of time with Dong Peirong and Mo Xiujie. These two were always the ones who would take the bait when she was being mysterious. Dong Peirong was a bit better, but Mo Xiujie especially wouldn't stop until he got an answer, which made Zou Lvrui very cocky.
But Lin Qiao never indulged her in this. She turned around and walked away.
Zou Lvrui instantly lost the fun of being questioned. "Hey, don't go. I'll tell you. I'll tell you, okay?"
Lin Qiao: "Speak."
Zou Lvrui: "..."
How could she be enthusiastic about sharing the gossip with Lin Qiao looking like this?
Actually, Zou Lvrui didn't know very clearly why Luo Nanchen disguised as the black - market boss with the surname Qiao. It was just a guess based on her author's imagination.
After all, Luo Nanchen was a character she created, although his personality had deviated from her expectations later.
...He had become a love - struck fool.
He had no ambition to conquer the whole continent, nor any ambition to conquer all the beautiful goddesses.
So, based on Luo Nanchen's lack - luster performance, Zou Lvrui guessed that the reason Luo Nanchen used the surname Qiao for the black - market boss was...
To take your surname as mine.
...Although this reason was really cheesy.
But given Luo Nanchen's love - struck nature, this was the only possible reason.
And since Lin Qiao was so cold, Zou Lvrui felt it was meaningless to tell her... Moreover, Lin Qiao had already walked far away.
Zou Lvrui: "..."
There was indeed an event in the market today. All the shops had signs advertising discounts. However, the market was empty. Apart from a few hawkers sighing on their stalls, only Lin Qiao and Zou Lvrui were strolling around.
Lin Qiao casually approached a hawker and asked, "Shopkeeper, isn't there an event? Why is the market so deserted?"
The hawker sighed and shook his head. "Miss, I advise you two not to go out. Except for the black market, the whole Yangzhou City has fallen. No place has been spared."
Lin Qiao's heart tightened. "What do you mean by 'fallen'?"
As the hawker spoke, his mood became even more solemn. "Some strange people suddenly appeared out of nowhere. They have no eyeballs in their eyes, large red marks on their bodies, and their hands are stiffly stretched forward. They're unconscious and will bite anyone they see. Those who are bitten will gradually turn into the same kind of people. In the whole Yangzhou City, except for the black market which has a barrier, everywhere else is full of such strange people."
The more Lin Qiao listened, the more something seemed off.
Zou Lvrui leaned over. "Hey, don't you think this setting is a bit like..."
Lin Qiao nodded. "Zombies."
The atmosphere gradually grew heavy.
So, was this the big thing that Luo Nanchen had kept from her?
Where were Luo Nanchen and the others now? Were they in danger? Was there a solution?
They hadn't come back all night. They must have been extremely busy...
This Meng Erliu was so crazy that she even created zombies!
The whole Yangzhou City had fallen to the zombies...
How many people must have lost their lives...