The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

 

The Zhenbei Marquis did what he said. From that day on, Madam Ru's privileges were withdrawn one by one. The other concubines vaguely heard rumors and didn't dare to bother Shen Yu.

In his last few days at the marquis' residence, Shen Yu had no complaints.

The only surprise came three days before he was supposed to enter the harem. The palace issued a decree to seal Shen Yu as a noble monarch, something which had no parallel in his previous life.

Shen Yu calmly accepted the decree along with various stares filled with delight, envy, jealousy, and resentment. The eunuch who came to announce it deliberately flattered him and said a lot of complimentary things.

"The lord marquis has raised such a good son. More blessings are still to come."

Male-male love was common in Da Huan, and there was an existing system of titles for men who entered the imperial harem. Below the empress, the highest rank was noble monarch. In the eyes of the public, the eldest di son of the Zhenbei Marquis' family had ascended to the heavens in a single step.

The Zhenbei Marquis' face wore a proud smile, but there wasn't a trace of laughter in his heart. If only he'd known before the incident with Madam Ru that his eldest son would receive such an honor. He didn't know how joyful he would have been—but now he was mostly anxious.

Shen Yu's attitude was simply too hard to predict.

Along with the imperial edict, the palace sent all kinds of rewards. As there was no proper wife in charge of the Zhenbei Marquis' residence, everything was directed to Shen Yu's courtyard.

When Shen Yu returned after receiving the decree, he looked at the pile of large and small boxes in the courtyard and fell speechless.

A young eunuch came over with the list. "His Majesty said everything here should be handed over to Young Master Shen."

Shen Yu opened a box and saw an enormous pearl nestled inside. He paused, then opened several other boxes. Without exception they were filled with exotic treasures. As he scanned the list provided by the eunuch, Shen Yu didn't have the slightest trace of a smile in his eyes.

Who would have thought that the young emperor who would be reviled and scorned by his people for □□ in the future was such a wealthy lord.

Shen Yu didn't look at the rest of the boxes. He ordered his servants to move everything to the small warehouse and tried to remember. Had Shen QingRan received the same rewards in his previous life?

Whether it was in his previous life or the book he read after his death, Shen Yu had no memories of such a thing happening. Shen QingRan entered the palace without the title of noble monarch or additional gifts. But Shen Yu didn't think the man sitting on the throne was moved just because Shen Yu was the eldest di son of the Zhenbei Marquis.

"Young master, it seems His Majesty is very fond of you." Mu Xi felt a little satisfied as she helped her frail and sickly master out of his cloak.

Around them, Shen Yu's attendants came and went. Mu Xi was one of the few remaining original servants. She knew the many wrongs her young master had suffered in the marquis' residence just because he occupied the post of eldest di son. This time, the Zhenbei Marquis' selfishness drove him to send his own heir to serve the emperor in the harem as a man.

The current king of Da Huan was famous for his violent temper and vicious methods. Among the aristocratic families he had a black reputation. Mu Xi worried what would happen to Shen Yu after he entered the palace. When she saw the emperor place so much importance on her young master, she felt relieved. Now that the matter had been settled, she just hoped the young master would have a smoother path.

Shen Yu replied absentmindedly. His thoughts were heavy and far from as simple as Mu Xi's, but the emperor's actions had indeed helped him quite a bit.

Instead of guessing what the emperor was thinking, Shen Yu asked, "What of the matters at the estate?"

"Everything has been arranged as you said," a servant boy standing to one side replied in a low voice.

Shen Yu nodded. He'd always taken care of his people. He wiped his hands with a handkerchief and said to Mu Xi, "I arranged a place for you at the manor. When I enter the palace, take my token with you and go there—"

Before Shen Yu could finish speaking, Mu Xi knelt down. "Young master, this slave refuses to go! This slave is all alone. The young master is my only family, and this slave doesn't want to leave!"

Mu Xi's voice wasn't loud, but her attitude was determined. She knew the young master made arrangements for her future, but she didn't agree. "Young master, how can you enter the palace without a familiar person beside you?"

Shen Yu looked at the person kneeling with her forehead pressed to the floor and knew she'd made up her mind. He stopped trying to persuade her. "I understand. Get up."

In Mu Xi's opinion, Shen Yu wasn't properly thinking about his future. Over the years Shen Yu had trained many useful people, but the palace wasn't like other places. He'd never be able to bring those people in to serve him. In Shen Yu's opinion, this wasn't a big deal. His people would naturally be more useful to him outside.

After making the necessary arrangements, Shen Yu waved his hand to dismiss the other servants. Mu Xi waited on him, helping him change into his clothes for bed. Then she looked up at Shen Yu again, wanting to say something else but hesitating.

Shen Yu was lying comfortably in bed. "Ask whatever you want."

Mu Xi struggled for a moment, then asked anyway. "Why did the young master cancel his plan?"

She wasn't the only one who wanted to know the answer to this question. The others assigned to the manor were also confused. Shen Yu knew they must have wanted to ask this for a long time. After all, when the decree came from the palace, his resistance didn't seem fake.

The people around Shen Yu knew his goal was to inherit the Zhenbei Marquis' residence. He was the rightful heir, and there was no reason to let others take advantage of him.

But Shen Yu  suddenly fainted and didn't give them any hints. His people didn't dare to act rashly. They could only wait for their master to wake up.

Unexpectedly, when Shen Yu awakened, he suddenly dropped his resistance to entering the palace. Without orders from their master, the people below him could only stand still. Later, when their master acted, it wasn't to escape from the palace, but to change the plan entirely. He settled his people outside and prepared to enter the palace alone.

They were all bewildered by this development. Mu Xi hinted to him, explicitly or implicitly, countless times.

"They wanted you to ask?" Shen Yu turned through his thoughts and made a guess.

Mu Xi didn't deny it. "This slave is also very curious."

"I'm tired of living in the Zhenbei Marquis' residence. It's better to live elsewhere." Shen Yu's voice was unchanged, as if his career hadn't been ended forever, as if he weren't being forced to stay in a harem for the rest of his life.

Mu Xi felt anxious. "But you don't have to enter the palace just because they want you to!"

Shen Yu faintly curved his lips. "Do you think that what just happened is something they wanted?"

 

Thinking of Madam Ru's downfall, Mu Xi fell silent.

"Well, don't worry so much. I have my own reasons for doing this."

After reassuring the maid who was worried about him, Shen Yu's eyes darkened. In his previous life he found hints related to his mother in the imperial palace. That was why he decided to go there now.

Shen QingRu, the late wife of the Zhenbei Marquis, was a short-lived woman. Aside from the son she'd left behind, there seemed to be no ties to connect her to the world. Shen Yu didn't have many feelings for a mother he'd never met, but he wanted to find some answers to this mystery.

Closing his eyes, he felt like he'd returned to that stormy night in his previous life, hearing a faint voice through a curtain of rain.

"... Can you be sure of this news?"

"... Destined... Predestined to return... The imperial palace..."

Shen Yu rubbed his forehead and suddenly a burst of sweet, fishy-tasty blood rushed up in his throat.

Racking coughs burst from his mouth.

"Young master! Young master..."

Something was knocked over and made a loud bang as it fell. Shen Yu collapsed against the head of the bed. His vision went dark.

"Someone, get the doctor!"

Before he could say anything, Shen Yu fell into darkness.

When he woke up, it was already noon the next day. The moment he moved, the servant girl who was standing by saw it and stood up in a hurry. Soon the doctor of the marquis' family came in.

The doctor was followed by the Zhenbei Marquis and an unfamiliar man.

Shen Yu was unable to lift himself up. He lay on the bed without moving. The doctor took his pulse, then was led out by a servant. Shen Yu glanced weakly at the Zhenbei Marquis and the strange man, but didn't speak.

It was the first time the Zhenbei Marquis had seen his eldest son so weak. His delicate face was bloodless, and his eyelashes were slightly lowered, giving an impression of frailty, a person in urgent need of protection.

The marquis turned to the man behind him and cupped his fist. "Thank you for your trouble, Imperial Physician Gu."

Imperial Physician Gu returned the salute. "It is this lowly official's duty."

Imperial Physician Gu came forward to feel Shen Yu's pulse. Shen Yu gazed at him for a while, then looked away. Gu Chong was the youngest and most promising court physician since the founding of Da Huan. He would reach the highest rank in the imperial hospital at the age of twenty-seven, but in the same year, he lost his life in a man-made calamity.

Shen Yu remembered him because of a man he met later. Half of this man's face had been destroyed, like a demon who'd crawled out of hell. The only time he showed emotion was when he spoke about Imperial Physician Gu. At the time, Shen Yu was in a desperate situation, and the people he needed to eliminate were the same group of forces that man was targeting for his revenge. They reached a short-term agreement. The conditions at the time weren't good, but they had no choice but to take a risk. They achieved their goal, but the man met a tragic end.

This was Shen Yu's first time encountering a person with such strong feelings, and it led him to doubt whether he was actually in love with the King of Yue. Afterwards, he found the bones of the two men and buried them together in a beautiful place in the mountains. He didn't expect that after being reborn he would meet the man he'd heard so much about, Imperial Physician Gu, so soon.

 

After taking his pulse, Imperial Physician Gu asked someone to bring in the prescription originally drawn up by the other doctor. After pondering for a while, he redrafted the prescription. "Young Master Shen's body is too weak. These medicines need to be adjusted slightly."

"Will Imperial Physician Gu be responsible for my health in the future?" Shen Yu suddenly spoke up.

Imperial Physician Gu was startled and quickly replied, "It depends on His Majesty's arrangement."

Shen Yu nodded and stopped talking.

After two days of recuperation, Shen Yu was a little better. It was time for him to enter the palace.

In light of the fact Shen Yu had just recovered from a serious illness, the emperor was considerate and all the ceremonies were simplified. The Zhenbei Marquis wasn't happy about it, but Shen Yu found it welcome.

On that day, for the first time, Shen Yu met the man he would be bound to for the rest of his life.

The man was dressed in black regnal imperial robes. He was tall and noble in appearance, and on him the heavy robes didn't appear bloated, but gave him an even more imposing aura. He was indeed a bit similar in looks to the King of Yue, but far more handsome. How blind was he to look at the King of Yue in his previous life....1

"What are you thinking about?" Shang JunLin saw the beautiful young man staring at him in a daze and walked slowly towards him.

The man's voice was deep and pleasant, and his words when deliberately lightened had a caressing sound. Shen Yu's ears twitched. He felt a little bewitched.

Live life to the fullest, right? Such a great beauty was really pleasing to the eyes ah.

"I was thinking that Your Majesty is even better-looking than I realized." The ending sound rose slightly, as if he saw something he liked very much.

No one noticed that the young emperor, who was always steady and calm, missed a step.

"You like this emperor?" Shang JunLin strode forward to the edge of the bed and paused, looking down at the young man sitting there. A sense of oppression suddenly poured down.

This was the pressure that belonged to a superior, the killing aura of a man who'd cut down thousands of foes. By now the palace servants to the side had fallen to their knees, trembling in fear. Only Shen Yu's face remained unchanged.

"Your Majesty, who wouldn't like such an outstanding man?" Amid the silence, Shen Yu looked up and smiled. "I naturally like Your Majesty very much."

 

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TL Notes:

(ﾉ◕ ₒ ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ ♥  Hello! I hope you're enjoying the story so far! I have a busy day tomorrow and likely won't be able to post a chapter. Going forward, you can expect updates 4 days in a row, then 1 day off

I started working on this novel while waiting for my translation group to review the two projects I actually intended to pick up... So this one is a bit of an accident lol... Anyway, I'm having fun so far and thankful for your comments and stars ♥ 

 

Regarding pronouns: The specifics depend on the dynasty, but in historical times it was considered impolite to use the pronoun "I" when speaking to someone of higher status. Some, but not all, of the dialogue in the raw reflects this. English isn't really designed for that, which is why you'll see workarounds like "this lowly official" and "this concubine"

In my opinion, that can sound stilted when it's repeated over and over, so I'm going to do my best to convey the flavor of this polite speech, but I'll sometimes switch to normal pronouns when it gets repetitive. Also, please note the raw sometimes has people using "I" and "me" and "you" when etiquette says they shouldn't, like when Shen Yu says "I was thinking that Your Majesty is super hot (or whatever)", he really does say "I" (我) there and nobody seems to mind.

This is my first time tling something in this kind of setting, so if you have suggestions lmk. (Just don't ask to have people call themselves "zhen" or "nubi" or whatever because to me that looks weird...) ty~~ (っ◔◡◔)っ ♥

 

scorned by his people for □□ in the future - 在将来会因为□□被万民唾骂的年轻帝王 - We don't know the reason the emperor was scorned because that word was censored. At any rate, we've already been told the emperor is considered to be a bloodthirsty tyrant2

cupped his fist - 拱手 - make an obeisance by cupping one hand in the other before one's chest

this lowly official - 下官 - this lowly official; subordinate official

this emperor - 朕 - zhèn - The emperor is using an imperial first person pronoun, sort of like the royal "we" in English. It's a version of "I" no one else is allowed to use

ah - 啊 - modal particle ending sentence, showing affirmation, approval, or consent

 

Transliterated names, places, and titles—new in this chapter:

noble monarch - 贵君 - guì jūn - Alternatively: noble/precious lord/gentleman/ruler+

Mu Xi - 慕汐

Shen QingRu - 沈卿如 - MC's mom - This name is suspiciously similar to that of Shen Yu's transmigrator half-brother, Shen QingRan (沈清然). However it's never used again in 200+ chapters so it could be a mistake

Imperial Physician Gu - 顾太医 - Gù tàiyī - Alternatively: Court Physician Gu

Gu Chong - 顾崇