After faking my death, the male lead’s cousin went crazy - Chapter 1

The wedding procession had been traveling for over half a day before finally stumbling upon a place to rest. Though it was merely a temporary tea stall under a thatched roof, it offered a cup of hot water—a welcome relief from choking down dry steamed buns.

The waiter only learned this was a “wedding procession” by eavesdropping on the two carriage drivers.

There was no festive music, let alone a bridal sedan. They had simply used a cargo carriage that leaked air from every side, its interior barely hidden by a few strips of red cloth. Only upon close inspection could one see a palm-sized red “Double Happiness” character pasted onto the side of the carriage.

As for the drivers, they looked exactly like common farmers. The leader had a Capital accent, yet they had traveled this far without a single accompanying maid.

The waiter clicked his tongue at the sight. She’s a girl from the foot of the Imperial City; how could she be treated so poorly? This young lady’s life is far too bitter.

“Waiter, more tea!”

Wang Wu, the leader, called out, and the waiter hurried over with a kettle of hot water. While waiting for the water to cool, the two drivers sat at the adjacent table and began to gossip.

“The General’s Manor is supposed to be a wealthy household, so why is this so pathetic? Did you see the Li family’s fabric shop at the city gate? They were having a wedding too, and it was ten times more extravagant than this!”

“How can you compare them to the Li family? The Lis used their daughter’s dowry to fund their son’s wedding. Besides, if you’re marrying an old rogue, do you really want to blow trumpets and beat drums? That old man Zheng from Furong City is no saint. Word is, at least six or seven concubines have died at his hands. I wonder what the old General Shang owes to marry his daughter off to someone like that!”

“Might not even be his daughter. Probably just a servant girl sent to settle a debt!”

“I caught a glimpse when she got on the carriage. That bride is a real beauty, looks just like a fairy from a New Year’s painting. It’s a crying shame with a face like that.”

The two went back and forth, completely forgetting the leader sitting nearby.

Wang Wu rapped the table three times, his eyes full of warning. “You dare gossip about the General’s Manor? Do you value your lives?”

The two drivers were just farmers taking a temporary job for the coin. Seeing his intimidating aura, they looked at each other and shut their mouths, stuffing pieces of steamed bun into their faces.

To them, it didn’t matter who was marrying whom.

Inside the carriage, the person’s body gave a violent jolt. Her eyelashes fluttered open.

Pain. A sharp, searing pain accompanied by a persistent ringing in her head. Her head, wrists, shoulders, ankles—there wasn’t a single part of her body that felt comfortable.

As her vision slowly focused, Shang Rongyue saw nothing but a sea of red.

She clearly remembered holding a novel she hadn’t finished yet before falling asleep… but now, her hands and feet were bound. The coarse hemp rope chafed her wrists painfully, rendering her immobile. Her mouth wasn’t spared either; a cotton cloth was stuffed inside, making her jaw ache.

She curled her arms and managed to pull the cloth from her mouth first.

With the red fabric in front of her eyes removed, she saw the golden “Double Happiness” character. She was in a cramped space—a carriage, by the looks of it—hastily draped in red silk that let light through the gaps.

Red veil… General Shang’s Manor… the Zheng family…

Wasn’t this the novel The Stolen Phoenix, the one she hadn’t finished?

In the original story, the gentle male lead turned dark after the death of his “White Moonlight,” eventually becoming the all-powerful Regent. Cold and calculating, he manipulated the court and became so unhinged that he eventually “married” the White Moonlight’s memorial tablet.

One moment he was devoted unto death, and the next, after meeting the female lead who looked slightly like the White Moonlight, he staged a “Stand-In” drama. He treated her as a substitute and, once the truth was revealed, used every means possible to trap her by his side.

Shang Rongyue hadn’t seen the ending, but the author had teased a “Happy Ending,” promising a “Husband-Chasing Crematorium” arc later on.

It wasn’t that she liked the melodramatic plot; she was only there for the comment section. Who doesn’t love watching readers tear a scumbag male lead apart?

While she didn’t know the exact details of the later chapters, she remembered clearly: the “White Moonlight” had the same name as her—Shang Rongyue.

In the book, the original character was plotted against by her half-brother and used to pay off a debt to a local tyrant. Fortunately, she woke up mid-journey and fled, eventually being cornered at a cliff. Facing a brutish man in front and a bottomless abyss behind, how could a delicate girl raised in a sheltered boudoir fight back? To preserve her dignity, she jumped, dying at the bottom of the cliff.

And right now, Shang Rongyue was at the very beginning of that tragedy: the road to her wedding.

Of all the ways to get involved in gossip, this takes the cake. I really shouldn’t have been so nosey, she thought.

Before she could finish her thought, the carriage curtain was lifted. A middle-aged man stood outside.

“Oho, the Fourth Miss is awake!” He noticed she was quiet even after removing the gag.

The dose of knockout drug he gave her this morning was heavy; she was likely still dazed.

“Don’t you worry, Miss. We’re almost at the meeting point. Once we hand you over to the Zheng family’s sedan, we won’t miss the wedding night.” The man smirked, his lewd thoughts written clearly on his face.

This man was the confidant of Shang Rongyue’s brother and the leader of this “escort” mission. As he spoke, he grabbed her arm and untied the ropes around her wrists. It wouldn’t look good to hand a bound bride to the groom’s family. The young master had instructed him to untie her near the destination to ensure the Zheng family received a “fresh-looking” bride.

Her freedom restored, Shang Rongyue’s body ached, but she forced herself to lean back and whispered, “Water… I want water…”

She leaned weakly against the side, her misty eyes visible beneath her lowered lashes. Who could be cold to such a pitiful sight?

Wang Wu signaled for a bowl of water and handed it to her. Her arms trembling, she took it and sipped slowly. In truth, the drug had mostly worn off. Ninety percent of her weakness was an act; the remaining ten percent was just from the ropes.

Seeing this, Wang Wu handed her a steamed bun. “Fourth Miss, water and food are no problem. As long as you enter the Zheng family’s doors peacefully… they are a massive family. You’re smart; why worry about not having a good life? Old Man Zheng is a bit older, sure, but look at the bright side—older men know how to dote on people. If you behave, the Eldest Young Master will remember your contribution once he earns his official rank.”

The “Eldest Young Master” was her brother, who had been framed for murder in a tavern. To save his life, the family had to either pay with a life or send her over. Under the guise of maintaining the General Manor’s face, she was “promoted” to be the old man’s legal second wife.

Between a legitimate son and a concubine-born daughter, the First Madam (the brother’s mother) found the decision easy. She drugged the girl and sent her out of the city while General Shang was away. Getting rid of an eyesore was just a bonus.

As Wang Wu lectured her on “filial piety” and “the mother’s authority,” Shang Rongyue ignored him. If the marriage was so great, why didn’t he send his own daughter?

Seeing her color return slightly, Wang Wu went to pay the tea stall owner and dismiss the drivers to prepare for the final leg of the journey. He had the chance to deliver her perfectly, but like every villain, he made the mistake of lingering too long.

In this world, a “White Moonlight” had to remain pure until death to keep her status. Shang Rongyue had no intention of entering the Zheng household.

The original girl managed to escape, so she could too. But the real challenge would be what came after the escape.

Inside the carriage was a chest labeled with “Double Happiness”—her “dowry.” She opened it to find a few hairpins and ornaments. The only things of value were a pair of Dragon and Phoenix bangles and a few gold pins. How stingy, she thought.

As the wheels began to turn again, she hid the valuables on her person, lifted the red cloth in the corner, and quietly slipped out.

When Wang Wu finally spotted the Zheng family servants waiting by the sedan in the distance, he called out, “Miss, I’ve brought you this far—”

He pulled the curtain. The carriage was empty.

“Shang Rongyue ran away!”

Before the Zheng family could see them, he hissed to the drivers, “After her!”

On the other side, Gu Wan had been leading her subordinates on a hilltop for an entire day, her eyes fixed on the road below.

The north was in chaos. The neighboring country of Gaoji was provoking them constantly, and the war was fierce. As the final line of defense for the Great Zhou, Gu Wan stayed hidden in the forests around the Capital, guarding it in secret.

Recently, the Great Zhou army had been repeatedly ambushed, as if the enemy knew their every move. Clearly, there was a traitor.

Gu Wan had tracked this lead for a long time. She had received word from the black market that a map of Great Zhou would be exchanged near here today. She had waited all day, but hardly anyone had passed.

“General,” her subordinate Lan Xi reported. “There hasn’t been much traffic. Aside from a wedding sedan waiting near Furong City, there was only one carriage.”

“A carriage?”

“Draped in red. Likely part of the wedding.”

Gu Wan nodded.

Lan Xi stepped forward. “Do you think the intel was fake? It’s been all day and nothing seems wrong.”

The source was reliable, but plans change in war. Either the enemy changed their mind, or they were disguised too well to be noticed.

“The sun hasn’t set. We wait,” Gu Wan said, raising her looking glass.

At that moment, a flock of sparrows took flight. Then, a splash of brilliant red burst into Gu Wan’s vision through the lush green trees.

It was a girl in a bright red wedding dress, running desperately into the deep forest. The tassels on her dress swayed wildly with her uneven steps; she looked nothing like a dignified bride.

“You said there was only one wedding procession?” Gu Wan looked at the suspicious figure. On the girl’s simple hairstyle, a magnificent gold hairpin looked completely out of place.

A thought suddenly struck her: A wedding… now that would be an excellent disguise.