Chapter 187 Chu Mingheng

In her dream, Lan Wu saw the coffin, which was placed in the main hall, surrounded by solemn white.

She seemed to be nailed to the spot, staring blankly at everything before her, as if in disbelief, and stiffly shook her head slightly.

At that moment, someone entered the hall.

The man walked slowly behind Lan Wu, and a familiar voice rang out: "Your Majesty, it's time to go."

Lan Wu turned her head sharply and saw Master Hui Fan standing behind her.

Tears streamed down my face at that moment.

Her earlier feeling was indeed correct; Master Huifan could indeed see her.

But what about Chu Mingheng?

Chu Mingheng never saw her again until his death...

“Go…” Lan Wu reached out her hand, trembling, as if wanting to touch the coffin, and asked hesitantly, “Where are we going…?”

Master Huifan gently shook his head and said, "No matter where it is, it shouldn't be here. His Majesty is not here."

His words were so strange that it took Lan Wu a long time to understand what they meant.

Not here?

Where is he?

"Your Majesty should go now," Huifan said again.

After he said those words, white mist rose up again around them.

"No—" Lan Wu regained consciousness for a moment, then suddenly reached out to struggle, unwilling to break free from the dream.

However, as the white mist dissipated, the surroundings suddenly darkened. In the instant that light and darkness switched, Lan Wu could not see anything, as if there was only a deep blackness.

However, when you can't see, your sense of smell becomes even more sensitive.

Lan Wu smelled a faint stench of decay.

"Cough cough—"

A cough suddenly rang out around them. The sound was so familiar, as if it were etched into their minds, impossible to forget.

It was Chu Mingheng's voice.

As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, Lan Wu gradually began to see her surroundings more clearly.

This was a huge, dark room with walls all around, decorated with carvings and murals, all depicting her. Upon closer inspection, some parts of the walls shimmered with light, as if embedded with gemstones.

On the very center of the steps, there was a coffin.

The coughing sound just now came from the coffin on the steps.

Lan Wu moved with lightning speed, rushing up the steps.

The coffin was open, and the scene inside was completely visible.

Her lips trembled, and she could barely stand. She could only reach out and support herself on the coffin beside her, her gaze blank yet determined and bewildered as she stared at the scene inside.

It was indeed Chu Mingheng inside.

Chu Mingheng and... a woman's skeleton.

Chu Mingheng is not dead yet, but Lan Wu did see the funeral just now. Master Huifan said that Chu Mingheng was not there, but it turns out he really wasn't there, but here.

The skeleton appeared to have been dead for many years, consisting only of empty bones. The coffin was large, seemingly a double coffin originally intended for two people. Besides the coffin, the surrounding area was piled high with jewelry and ornaments. And Chu Mingheng…

Chu Mingheng was only holding a few paintings in his arms.

He turned to face the skeleton as if it were Lan Wu, who was alive and well. His lips slightly curved upwards, a smile on his face, and he murmured softly, "A-Wu, I have come to see you."

He didn't look like someone who was about to die at all. Apart from a few coughs just now, he could speak clearly and sounded very strong.

"I seem to have aged a lot, please don't dislike me..."

As he spoke, he reached out to gently touch Lan Wu's skull, then stopped, pursed his lips, and continued, "Beauty fades and bones wither, it's all just appearance, you can't despise me."

“Look, we’ve only known each other for less than a year, but I still remember what you look like, so beautiful… I still remember when you danced for me.”

Speaking of which, Chu Mingheng laughed again: "Awu, you don't like dancing at all, do you?"

"In the past, the only thing you could do to please me was dance. I'm no saint either. I know you don't like it, but I still make you dance."

"I will reflect on my actions, okay? If it happens again, you can scold me, or even slap me a few times."

He spoke too hastily and began to cough lightly again, but this time he didn't vomit blood.

His face was flushed with a faint red, which was less a sign of good health and more a sign of a final burst of energy before death.

His gaze was distant, as if he were reminiscing about something. He said these few words, then repeated them over and over: "Awu, we've only known each other for less than a year..."

"It's too short, how can it be so short?"

"Have I done something wrong? Why are you treating me like this..."

As he finished speaking, tears welled up in his eyes, and he covered his face with his hand, falling silent.

Lan Wu took a deep breath and smelled the faint stench of decay in the surroundings once again.

"Chu Mingheng... are you an idiot?" His lips trembled repeatedly before he finally uttered those words with a sigh that sounded almost comical.

As she spoke, Lan Wu's eyes welled up with tears, blurring her vision.

She reached out and used her sleeve to wipe away her tears, but the tears seemed unstoppable, flowing down her face without ceasing.

Even in death, he couldn't find peace. He went to all this trouble to come to her tomb and cry before her bones.

I doubt even the most insane madman would be as persistent as Chu Mingheng.

Lan Wu climbed along the edge of the coffin, step by step, getting closer to Chu Mingheng.

"Your Majesty—Your Majesty, look at me, look at me again—!" Her voice choked with sobs, every word tinged with tears. She knew Chu Mingheng couldn't hear her, yet she still insisted on speaking.

"I'm here...I'm here..." Lan Wu moved to the top of the coffin, right above Chu Mingheng's head. Her arm was stuck on the edge of the coffin, and she could only reach inside.

"Your Majesty... Chu Mingheng, didn't you want to see me... didn't you miss me!"

Lan Wu choked back tears, and in the instant she reached out, her hand passed right through Chu Mingheng's body.

She couldn't touch him, and he couldn't hear him—

Lan Wu suddenly burst into tears, tears streaming down her face. Hot, glistening droplets landed on Chu Mingheng's forehead and slid down his forehead.

At that moment, Chu Mingheng lowered his hand, his crimson eyes staring straight up at the sky above him, as if he were convinced that there was someone in that empty space watching him and crying at him.

He reached up to touch her, and at the same time asked, "Awu, have you come to see me?"

Lan Wu nodded, leaning her face forward, and her tears dripped onto his palm, which was indeed hot.

"Awu, don't cry." Chu Mingheng smiled, cupping his hand as if to wipe away her tears, his voice very soft, "I'm most afraid of you crying..."

"I'm most afraid of you crying..."

His eyes slowly closed, seemingly unwilling yet powerless. His outstretched hand lingered in the air before finally falling back down.

"Chu Mingheng... Chu Mingheng... Chu Mingheng!" Lan Wu called his name again and again, her voice echoing through the desolate surroundings, heart-wrenching and each word filled with blood.

"Chu Mingheng—!!!"