The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

Shen Yu didn’t speak. He stared blankly, as if frightened.

The temperature in the room was as cold as a winter’s wind, penetrating to the bone. The man kneeling on the floor kept his head down and did his best not to panic on the spot.

Shang JunLin gazed at Shen Yu, and the ink in his eyes grew darker and darker.

The low air pressure pressed on him, silently urging him to walk over. Shen Yu took a few steps forward. He stopped a short distance from the pool of blood.

He could feel the immense weight and force of those eyes as they focused on him. The air pressure in the imperial study was extremely low. If Shen Yu had any less courage, he might have fallen to the ground immediately.

“Your Majesty will stain your clothes. Why don’t you come here?”

The man who was about to fall to pieces choked. The very air around him seemed to freeze, and as he knelt on one side he couldn’t help lifting his head.

Shang JunLin glanced at him carelessly, and the man immediately ducked his head in fright and didn’t dare do something so reckless again.

“Oh.” Shang JunLin suddenly laughed. “You have some nerve.”

As the pressure of that gaze fell on Shen Yu, he met it impassively, and their eyes met. Shen Yu couldn’t tell what Shang JunLin was thinking, but he thought the other man might be in a better mood.

Shang JunLin threw his handkerchief into the pool of blood, and the scrap of white was instantly stained red. Without glancing at it, he strode towards Shen Yu.

Shen Yu stood where he was and watched the emperor in black move closer to him step by step, and with each step, the hostility in the man faded.

Until Shang JunLin stood before him, and the aggressive aura of the emperor in black was completely restrained once again.

Shen Yu raised the food box in his hand. “I brought soup for Your Majesty. Would Your Majesty like to have some?”

Without a single word to ask why such a scene occurred in the imperial study.

“You’re not afraid?” Shang JunLin asked with great interest.

Shen Yu’s face didn’t have a hint of fear. The scarlet blood on the ground might as well not have existed for him, but as far as Shang JunLin knew, Shen Yu had never encountered a scene like this before.

An inquisitive gaze fell on his face. Shen Yu’s expression remained unchanged. Of course he wasn’t afraid. In his previous life he’d caused scenes of blood and death far worse and more cruel than the one before him now.

Shen Yu glanced at the man lying in the pool of blood, then slowly turned his eyes to the man who was kneeling. Finally, his eyes returned to the face of the man in front of him.

The emperor was almost a head taller than Shen Yu. They were standing so close that Shen Yu had to look up to see his face.

“Since he displeased His Majesty, he deserves what he gets.” Shen Yu looked into Shang JunLin’s eyes and distinctly said each word.

Shang JunLin’s pupils shrank almost imperceptibly, and he lifted his hand to grasp Shen Yu’s chin. “This emperor didn’t expect my noble monarch to think so well of me.”

His tone was calm, without the slightest trace of joy. Shen Yu was watching the man’s face and didn’t miss the momentary flicker in his expression.

Shen Yu reached out and grabbed the hand that was pinching his chin. “Your Majesty, I belong to you. Naturally, I side with Your Majesty in all things.”

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“You’d best remember those words at all times.” Shang JunLin released his hand, and his expression became gentle. “Didn’t you say you brought this emperor soup? Let me try the noble monarch’s craftsmanship.”

Shen Yu’s hand lightened as the weight of the food box was taken by Shang JunLin, then warmed as his fingers were held in the man’s powerful grip.

The emperor led him around the pool of blood and sat in front of the imperial desk.

Shang JunLin didn’t order the palace servants to attend them. He opened the food box himself. After a moment, the tempting aroma of the food floated out.

Although…

The aroma mingled with the stench of blood that was too heavy to be ignored, which was indescribably incongruous.

Shen Yu glanced down. No one dared to move without Shang JunLin’s orders. Seeing that Shang JunLin was going to drink his soup immediately, Shen Yu tugged his sleeve.

“What, is the noble monarch finally afraid?”

The man’s eyes were hidden behind a screen of mist and couldn’t be seen clearly.

“No, but doesn’t Your Majesty think…” Shen Yu paused. “Isn’t it unappetizing to eat in such an environment?”

Shen Yu had a somewhat unusual fixation. To be specific, he didn’t like things around him to distract him during meals.

Shen Yu didn’t care about the person who was kneeling on the ground or the man who was lying in a pool of blood, and he didn’t care what they’d done to provoke Shang JunLin. The Shang JunLin of today wasn’t yet the tyrant who would indiscriminately kill innocent people a few years from now. He had his own reasons for doing what he’d done, and Shen Yu didn’t have any intention of getting involved in the affairs of the court.

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Shang JunLin didn’t miss the flash of disgust on Shen Yu’s face. He paused, put the bowl in his hand back on the desk, and said in a light voice, “Meng Chang.”

As the door of the imperial study opened with a creak, warm light filtered in from the door. Meng Gonggong came in with several men in black uniforms.

These men wore masks on their faces which revealed only their eyes. Shen Yu had never seen people dressed like this before, and he looked at them with curiosity.

The uniformed men worked quickly, but they were otherwise unobtrusive. In less than a quarter of an hour, the imperial study returned to its usual state. Even the kneeling man was dragged out with his mouth covered. There wasn’t a single unnecessary sound during the entire process. The staff were obviously familiar with the work, and it seemed these incidents happened often.

“This is the Hidden Dragon Guard.”

The words interrupted Shen Yu’s thoughts. Looking over, he found that the emperor in black was regarding him with an unreadable expression.

The Hidden Dragon Guard. Shen Yu heard of this secret unit in his previous life. It was the sharpest knife in the royal family’s hand and their most loyal force. No one could command them except the current emperor.

Shen Yu had dealt with them in his previous life and knew exactly how terrible they were, an incredibly formidable opponent. Shang JunYue had suffered countless losses at their hands.

In this life, they wouldn’t be his enemies….

“Now that it’s clean, we can eat, right?”

Without waiting for Shen Yu to answer, Shang JunLin returned his gaze to the food and took another sip of soup. When no one was looking at him, a hint of a smile appeared.

Shen Yu accompanied Shang JunLin as he ate and left after showing his face for a while.

All afternoon, Shang JunLin was in a much brighter mood.

Not long after, the emperor bestowed his bounty, and all kinds of treasures streamed into Yuzhang Palace. The news spread outside with the tacit approval of Shang JunLin.

As Shen Yu expected, the news of how he was favored spread once again. Not many people cared about what happened in the imperial study. People died in the imperial palace now and then. The apprehension they once felt about this had faded long ago, and everyone was accustomed to it now.

Power and money were potent motivations. With such a good example as Shen Yu, people with certain thoughts were no longer able to restrain themselves. If they succeeded, they had an open road to the sky.

At the official residence of the Duke of Zhao.

The Duke of Zhao invited his son and his inner circle to discuss business in his study.

“Father, this is an opportunity. Right now the harem contains just one person, a man who can’t give birth. If a woman of our family enters the palace and has a son or a daughter, she might be able to…” The second son of the Duke of Zhao pointed to the sky and left the rest unsaid.

“Yes, the second young master is right. We should act sooner rather than later and seize this opportunity,” one of the confidants agreed.

“It requires detailed planning. We must not anger His Majesty in the process, or the loss will outweigh the gain.”

Similar things were being discussed in the houses of many other dignitaries. Before Shen Yu’s arrival, Shang JunLin never permitted any discussion of his inner courtyard. When people wanted to send their daughters into the palace before, they had no chance, but now things were different. They were certain that after getting a taste, His Majesty wouldn’t refuse to allow other beauties into the palace.

Hoping to acquire His Majesty’s favor as quickly as possible, some families also prepared beautiful men. If His Majesty found Noble Monarch Shen to his liking, he might be interested in other men as well.

The turmoil inside and outside the palace didn’t affect Shen Yu. After a good night’s sleep, he found out what happened in the imperial study that day.

As it turned out, a few people had reached their hands into the palace and tried to profit from the information they got. Shang JunLin was too lazy to deal with these people, so he cut them down directly.

Shang JunLin acted so fast they had no chance to escape. After following the evidence and identifying the men responsible, he sent them to prison.

Aside from a few people who happened to be present, almost no one knew the details. All they knew was that Shang JunLin had suddenly attacked an aristocratic family with a good name, and they couldn’t help feeling chilled.

Some ministers with close ties to the family begged for mercy when they went to morning court. The young emperor looked on coldly and didn’t say a word.

“Your Majesty, Imperial Censor Zhang has always been strict and impartial. Your servant begs Your Majesty to forgive him.”

“Please be lenient, Your Majesty.”

“Since you think Imperial Censor Zhang is right, do you think this emperor is wrong?”

“Your servant wouldn’t dare!”

“This emperor thinks you dare very much. Anyone who pleads for leniency again will join Imperial Censor Zhang in prison. I believe he will be grateful for your devotion.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall fell silent, and some of those who asked for mercy began to retreat. The ministers knew the emperor wasn’t joking. If anyone continued to intercede, they really would be sent directly to jail. It had happened several times before.

A few people looked at each other and took a step forward. Apparently they didn’t intend to back down.

By the time Shen Yu heard about this, it was already a day later. His Majesty was in a bad mood, and there was a jittery feeling in the palace. The attendants were afraid, and the atmosphere in Yuzhang Palace was a bit depressed.

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“Young master…” Mu Xi’s face was worried. She was close to the young master and knew more of the inside story than the other palace servants. Outsiders might talk about how greatly the emperor favored the young master, but she was the only one who knew it wasn’t so.

“Is it true that three gentlemen were imprisoned after asking for mercy?” Shen Yu asked, fiddling with a string of beads.

“Yes, His Majesty had them dragged off before morning court ended.”

Shen Yu was silent. The incident with Imperial Censor Zhang happened in his previous life, but it occurred much later. Although Imperial Censor Zhang appeared clean and upright on the surface, he did a lot of things behind the emperor’s back, like buying and selling official titles and posts, embezzling good land, conspiring to commit murder… It was just that he hid himself deeply and did a good job hiding his tracks, so no one knew.

Shang JunLin arrested the man but didn’t announce his crimes, which caused others to misunderstand him. Or did he really not know…

Shen Yu took a hand warmer, stood up, and said, “I’ll go out for a walk.”

Mu Xi got his cloak and helped Shen Yu put it on. They left Yuzhang Palace with a few servants.

“Do you still think you can leap to a high branch and become a phoenix? Don’t you know what you look like?”

“Hey, hey, who are you trying to seduce by dressing up like this?”

“Your master’s in prison. Why are you so proud of yourself?”

…

They heard the noise from a distance away. One of the servants was about to step forward and scold them, but he was stopped by Shen Yu.

Shen Yu stood at a corner and could just make out a scene that wasn’t too far away. Several palace servants were punching, kicking, and taunting a thinly-dressed woman. The woman’s head was lowered, her face was hidden by her hair, and her hands were tightly clenched at her sides as she endured the malice coming from all around.

Shen Yu deliberately made some noise, and he and his party were soon noticed. The other servants quickly knelt to greet him. When Shen Yu approached, a gust of wind blew, the woman’s face was exposed, and Shen Yu drew to a halt.

—Her face and eyes were three points similar to his.

TL Notes:

imperial censor – 御史 – A formal title of a dynastic official, or a general term for supervising officials in ancient China. In very ancient times it was a title for historians and record-keepers, but in most dynasties it was a type of official responsible for inspecting and supervising the officials of the court and impeaching them for crimes or negligence (Baidu) 

gentleman – 大人 – dàren – A title of respect for superiors. Depending on context it can mean: Your Excellency, lord, Mr., adult, grownup, etc.

three points similar – 三分相似 – somewhat or to some degree similar – In Chinese it’s common to say something is “three points” or “six or seven parts” similar to something else. It’s like saying it’s “3 parts out of 10 similar” or 30% similar or 60-70% similar. A rough estimate

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

Hidden Dragon Guard – 隐龙卫

Duke of Zhao – 赵国公

Imperial Censor Zhang – 张御史