After Swapping Identities With My Archenemy - Chapter 42

Chapter 42: The Escape Plan

Jiang Huaiyi kept a stoic face, saying nothing. Her mind was a whirlpool of irritation as she replayed Shen Wensi’s earlier stunt. If things had gone slightly sideways, those guards’ blades could have easily cleaved through her—a living, breathing person might have died on the spot.

Shen Wensi sat down on the straw, looking quite proud of herself. “I insulted that dog official to get us in,” she announced.

A look of delighted surprise washed over Chu Lianxue’s face as she shuffled forward excitedly. “Junior Sister! You’ve finally seen the light!”

Jiang Huaiyi’s lip twitched. She could already visualize their Martial Uncle’s face turning from red to a bruised purple. Usually, her Senior Sister was a bit unconventional, but in front of Martial Uncle, she knew how to keep a handle on things. Plus, as the elder, she always felt she had to set an example for the younger disciple.

But once out of sight, Chu Lianxue was like a horse off its tether. She was vastly different from their Martial Uncle, who appeared wild and unconstrained but was actually a stickler for tradition.

Jiang Huaiyi, meanwhile, had always been the cautious, law-abiding type though mostly out of cowardice. She lacked the curiosity to explore anything outside the established rules. Seeing the two of them now, bonded by their mutual “unprofessionalism,” she felt utterly speechless.

Shen Wensi nodded, her expression as calm as usual. Jiang Huaiyi noticed she didn’t seem as icy as she did on their first meeting. She seemed to be someone who simply lacked extreme emotional highs and lows—a truly “emotionally stable” person. Despite the chaos, she hadn’t lost her temper; instead, she looked for solutions.

The word stable drifted through Jiang Huaiyi’s mind. She stole a glance at Shen Wensi. In that moment, she felt that the other woman was like a very secure support structure.

This was a sensation she had never experienced in her twenty years of life. Her Master hadn’t been around much during her childhood, and while her Martial Uncle and Senior Sister visited often, she had spent most of her time living alone.

Yet these past few days, she had been tethered to Shen Wensi every waking moment. It was forced, yes, but Shen Wensi’s presence brought a sense of peace.

Jiang Huaiyi sighed inwardly, hoping she wouldn’t grow too accustomed to this companionship.

Before she could dwell on it, the group began recounting how they had ended up here. They had all left the house at roughly the same time but were immediately separated.

Chu Lianxue explained that after they stepped out, they wanted to check if the other captives had been released. They returned to the storage room only to find it empty. The servants had vanished as well. Panicked, they rushed back to the street, assuming Jiang Huaiyi and Shen Wensi would be waiting.

But they were greeted by a bustling street and no sign of their friends. When they turned around, the massive mansion was gone. Realizing they were separated, they figured the most prominent building—the City God Yamen—would be the best place to wait or look for clues.

They used the same logic as Jiang Huaiyi, but their competitive natures led to an argument over who should “play” the prisoner. Eventually, Chu Lianxue had simply drawn her sword and held it to Mu Ze’s throat until the ghost cultivator “willingly” agreed to be the captive.

Jiang Huaiyi looked at her Senior Sister, feeling a wave of doubt regarding the woman’s earlier lecture about ghost cultivators being “evil.” Looking at the current situation, it seemed Chu Lianxue was the bully while Mu Ze was the long-suffering victim. Sure enough, Mu Ze was sitting there with puffed-out cheeks, glaring resentfully at a talkative Chu Lianxue.

Jiang Huaiyi silently lit a candle for the poor ghost cultivator in her heart.

The two had also encountered the notice board and started arguing. Mu Ze had stumbled through the recitation before Chu Lianxue could stop her. By the time they finished, the Fake City God was standing behind them. After Chu Lianxue gave him a piece of her mind, they were hauled away. They didn’t even need the guards to beat them; they fought each other all the way to the cell. Even as the shackles were being put on, they were still trading blows.

Chu Lianxue shifted her position, and the rhythmic clink-clink of leg irons echoed.

Jiang Huaiyi was truly speechless. She had been on missions with her Senior Sister many times before, though Martial Uncle never let her join when Mu Ze was around. This was the first time she’d seen the usually dignified, lecturing Senior Sister act so recklessly. She began to wonder if Mu Ze was really the problem, or if the two together just caused a chemical reaction of stupidity.

She moved a little further away, genuinely worried that her Senior Sister might suddenly lunge at Mu Ze again.

Seeing the two lost in a spiral of mutual boasting, Jiang Huaiyi interrupted. “Listen. We saw at the gate how to get out. We need to get a Travel Permit and find a way through the mist outside.”

Her tone was light, but the content was heavy. The group went silent and sighed in unison. They were in a dungeon; barring a miracle, they weren’t getting a permit. They had already offended the City God twice. He wouldn’t give them the time of day, let alone a legal document.

Jiang Huaiyi pondered for a moment, crossing off various schemes in her head. She looked at Chu Lianxue’s shackles, and a spark of inspiration hit her.

She gestured for the others to lean in. “Playing fair isn’t going to work. Let’s just steal it.”

Shen Wensi gave her a strange look. Mu Ze, however, looked enlightened, as if she had expected this all along.

Jiang Huaiyi rubbed her nose guiltily. The “old” her would never have considered theft. But ever since her Senior Sister “forgot” her, something had shifted in her core. It turned out she was just as unconventional; she had just been too timid to show it before.

She asked for everyone’s opinion. Mu Ze was the first to agree. “I knew you weren’t actually that boring. Let’s do it.”

Shen Wensi nodded. Only Chu Lianxue remained silent. She looked hesitant, staring down at the iron chains on her feet.

“What do you think, Daoist Chu?” Jiang Huaiyi asked.

The Senior Sister looked up, her gaze solemn. “What’s the plan?”

Jiang Huaiyi shrugged. “I don’t have one yet. We’ll play it by ear.”

Chu Lianxue looked back at her chains. The dim firelight only illuminated a small patch of floor. Mu Ze lit another small lamp; the yellow wick burned steadily, casting an unmoving light. The scent of burning wax wasn’t unpleasant.

Jiang Huaiyi’s heart hammered against her ribs. She was terrified her Senior Sister would refuse and lecture her. She even instinctively moved to cover her ears to block out the rejection.

“Daoist Chu, I really think this is the only way… please consider it…”

Chu Lianxue said, “If we have to run, what am I going to do about these leg irons?”

Jiang Huaiyi: “Huh?”

The expected rejection never came. She looked up, dazed.

Chu Lianxue repeated herself. “My chains. I’ve already tried, and I can’t open them.” She took two steps to demonstrate. The chain was very short, allowing only twenty centimeters of movement. Her gait was incredibly unnatural, like a healthy person being forced to walk with bound feet. If she tried to move fast, she looked like a frantic black penguin.

After a circuit around the room, Mu Ze burst out laughing. “Chu the ‘Ox-Nose’! Look at those steps! You’re going to kill me! If you don’t know how to walk, don’t try! Hahahahahaha!”

Chu Lianxue’s face darkened instantly. She drew her sword and, holding it with both hands, waddled toward Mu Ze with murderous intent. Mu Ze’s laughter stopped, and she scrambled up, mimicking Chu Lianxue’s waddling gait to stay out of reach.

The two circled the cell—one chasing with a sword, the other fleeing—both waddling like ducks.

Jiang Huaiyi held the lamp and shook her head. No wonder they were together. They were two of a kind, and neither deserved sympathy.

However, there was an easy solution. The same rule applied.

“Money makes the ghost turn the millstone.” She just needed to bribe the guard. In fact, the only way this “fake” underworld was like the real one was the universal willingness of the staff to take bribes. If the price was right, anything was possible.

Jiang Huaiyi even wondered if, with enough gold, the runners would just appoint her as the new City God. Betraying their current master probably wasn’t out of the question.

She put her theory to the test by tossing a gold ingot out of the cell. A pale hand reached out from the shadows and snatched it up.

With Shen Wensi’s help, she caught the runner’s arm. After a brief, hushed negotiation, the runner happily unlocked the door.

The leg irons were a bit more difficult, but after Jiang Huaiyi produced another ingot, that problem vanished as well. As she stepped out of the cell, she felt a nagging sense that she was forgetting something.

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