Category: Let Me Shoulder this Blame!

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Chapter 159 (49.1)

Song Zhilan raised his head and his vision abruptly contracted.

The figure that stood before him still had his usual unyielding and domineering posture. Without a word, he blocked all the weapons aiming for Song Zhilan.

[T/N: From Song Zhilan’s POV it looks like the assassins are targeting him in this instance, but they’re actually attacking Su Shi – who is in front of the emperor – because of his [Come, Come and Hit Me] skill.]

At first, Su Shi wanted to furtively protect the young emperor, but under the increasingly fierce siege of the assassins, Su Shi’s actions became too eye-catching to ignore.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Emotions suddenly surged violently. Song Zhilan gritted his teeth. His tense body was trembling slightly. His gaze was becoming increasingly darker and fiercer.

Who needed this man to save him…?

With the shackles still on him, naturally the prime minister’s movements would be restricted. The tall and straight figure in white suddenly staggered back a few paces as he parried the blade that was coming for his head, but the blade had already managed to penetrate into the man’s shoulder.

Blood seeped through the fabric in an instant, filling the young emperor’s eyes with a screen of red. “Prime Minister–!”

The emperor blurted out the familiar title, but he bit his lower lip hastily and resolutely pushed down the instinctive nervousness.

Su Shi was so exhausted by the siege that he had no time to pay attention to the young emperor behind him. With the iron chain between his wrists, he caught the incoming blade and kept it stuck in his shoulder. He roundhouse kicked the man far away, but in the blink of an eye another assassin came to take his place. They attacked him as if they did not fear death.

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The imperial bodyguards had taken down a wave of assassins easily as if they were chopping up melons or vegetables, but the remaining assassins continued to relentlessly attack Su Shi, and Su Shi finally realized what a terrible skill he had acquired.

The shackles restricted most of his movements. Su Shi frowned. He grabbed the blade of the sword with his bare hands, pulled it down with great strength and threw it on the ground.

Song Rong cleaved the assassin in front of him with one strike. Then his gaze turned to Lu Li who was still in the middle of the siege.

The figure in white was soaked through with blood and almost unable to stay standing, but those frosty eyes were filled with sharp murderous intent, still exuding a cold arrogance that could not be disgraced.

Unfamiliar emotions stirred quietly. The image of the figure in white was seared into his brain, making his heart heat up. He clenched the long blade in his hand and threw himself into the thick of battle.

With Su Shi firmly holding the enemies’ attention, the imperial bodyguards soon gained the upper hand, and not long after they took care of all the assassins.

Su Shi might have analgesics to withstand the pain with, but the toll of physical exertion could not be ignored. When the last assassin fell, Su Shi finally felt like he could extirpate himself from the tension. He staggered back a step and nearly collapsed to the ground.

Two pairs of hands reached out to support him.

Song Zhilan’s pupils contracted and he abruptly withdrew his hands. His expression instantly turned cold. He flicked his sleeves and took two steps back.

The young emperor folded his unoccupied hands into his voluminous sleeves. The warm blood on the palms of his hands felt hot like scalding magma. He clenched his fists tightly. The sight of flesh and blood flying everywhere did not disturb him in the least, but seeing the blood spreading across that man’s body made him feel inexplicable alarm and fear.

Translations by Vanilla Muse. Read on vmnovels [dot] com

Clearly the young emperor wanted that man dead.

Every night, he would force himself to chew and swallow down the humiliation caused by that man. In his dreams he would hack that man into pieces so that he would not be able to reincarnate whole.

But in this moment, all his negative feelings towards that man turned into a thorn stuck in his chest. He felt confused and lost.

Things did not look encouraging.

Su Shi saw that the protagonist’s misunderstanding value was fluctuating up and down nonstop. He took a deep breath, pushed Song Rong away, and turned to look at the young emperor who wore an expression of uncertainty on his face.

His expression turned cold once again. He was just about to say a few harsh words to the young emperor when his body suddenly shook terribly.

Song Rong’s vision narrowed. He saw the glint of something sharp flying towards them, but in the end he was a step too late.

The sharp arrow that was originally aimed at Song Zhilan plunged deeply into Lu Li’s back.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment.

Song Rong saw red. He ferociously flung the sword in his hand and killed the assassin archer hiding in the shadows.

Song Zhilan’s eyes trembled as he stared at the scene before him in a trance. He looked at the man who blocked the final arrow for him. A chill suddenly wracked his body causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

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Chapter 158

Armored imperial bodyguards ran in and encircled Su Shi in the small study. The shaoqing of the Imperial Court of Judicial Review* walked in with his hands behind his back. He gave Su Shi a mocking once over.

[*T/N: 大理寺少卿 – This is an official title. There is no direct equivalent in English, so I translated it to the best of my ability. 大理寺 (da li si) means “Imperial Court of Judicial Review,” 少 (shao) can mean young or less, and 卿 (qing) is an honorific for a high-ranking official. I decided to keep 少卿 (shaoqing) in pinyin for his title, and translate 大理寺 (da li si) into English, so that it would be easy to tell which department he works in. In modern day, this person would be similar to someone in the Supreme Court who handles prison cases.]

“The emperor said: Since the Prime Minister of the Right has nothing to say and the prime minister’s mansion is no longer a place suitable for living in, why not go sleep in the Heavenly Prison* where it will be nice and quiet? What does the Prime Minister of the Right think about this?”

[*T/N: Heavenly Prison 天牢 – refers to the prison in the capital and directly under the control of the imperial court. It is different from the Earthly Prison 地牢, which is below ground. The Heavenly Prison is above ground and it is a place where prisoners with severe crimes are held.]

Su Shi raised his eyebrows slightly. He more or less understood the situation.

The correct procedure was to wait for the imperial court to discuss and judge his crimes before they send him to prison to await his execution. But the young emperor has decided to humiliate him, so he would naturally drag this process out as long as possible, long enough to thoroughly break down the prime minister. The most desirable outcome would be to get the prime minister to cry bitter tears and beg for a swift death. Only then would the emperor’s anger be assuaged.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

But yesterday, the acting regent suddenly came to look for him for no reason, and his attitude was unexpectedly gentle, which probably caused a lot of pressure for the emperor who has only just managed to warm the throne [with his butt].

It looked like that Song Rong wasn’t completely unhelpful [for his mission to carry the pot].

Su Shi lightly raised the corners of his lips and fluttered his sleeves to shake away the imperial bodyguard that wanted to shackle him.

“I can sleep in my mansion, then naturally I can also sleep in the Heavenly Prison. Lu Li thanks the emperor for his care.”

His martial arts abilities were the real deal. Otherwise, there was no need to send along so many imperial bodyguards just to bring him to the Heavenly Prison. Seeing that Lu Li merely disdained being put in shackles and wasn’t going to resist arrest, the shaoqing of the Imperial Court of Judicial Review was relieved. He gave a meaningful glance to the imperial bodyguards, and then he stepped back to make way: “Prime Minister of the Right, this way please.”

Su Shi glanced at the shaoqing lightly and stepped forward calmly, but he suddenly shook his arms towards the back.

Two imperial bodyguards with halberds were about to strike Su Shi to force him to kneel, but a sweep of Su Shi’s sleeves caused them to stumble back a few steps. With ashen faces, the bodyguards fell to the floor.

“You want me to kneel? Even the current emperor in power does not have much confidence. So small fries like you should mind your place.”

Not once did Su Shi look backwards. Su Shi paused and turned his body slightly to look at the shaoqing of the Imperial Court of Judicial Review, whose complexion had changed abruptly. Su Shi smirked slightly: “I’ve been sentenced to execution. A person who is about to die can do just about anything, don’t you agree?”

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“P- Prime Minister of the Right, please forgive me. This little one does not dare anymore!”

The shaoqing of the Imperial Court of Judicial Review hurriedly took a few steps back, but he was so overwhelmed by the vastness of Su Shi’s power that he instinctively bowed to his knees. He did not even dare to look Su Shi in the face, and he subconsciously kept begging for forgiveness, but a flicker of better resentment flashed across his eyes.

After pulling enough agro, Su Shi sneered, flicked his sleeves, and left in large strides.

It looked like his [Come, Come and Hit Me] ability was really useful.

He no longer resisted. He let the imperial bodyguards escort him out of the prime minister’s mansion and towards the Heavenly Prison.

But when they came across the street corner, Su Shi suddenly stopped.

The young emperor was traveling without a big escort and he was currently standing at the doorway. Beside him was a big prisoner vehicle*. The emperor looked at Su Shi. His gaze was gloomy, but his eyes were not as fierce as the ruthless sharpness cultivated by long years.

[*T/N: prisoner vehicle – according to Chinese dramas, it looks like a narrow cage on wheels. The narrow size forces the prisoner to be in a standing position, while the vehicle is dragged through the streets so that the masses may ridicule the prisoner.]

Song Rong stood behind the emperor. When he saw Su Shi approaching, he lifted his head and looked like he wanted to say something but was hesitating. He obviously realized that sticking up for the wrongdoer would only make Lu Li’s situation even worse.

Su Shi ignored Song Rong. His eyes fell on the heavy shackles prepared for him and he raised his eyebrows slightly. Then he slowly straightened up his body.

The young emperor’s name was Song Zhilan. The meaning of his name was for him to wield the power to bring peace and tranquility to the world. It was a name that Lu Li had come up with in the past. This was already over ten years ago. If the young emperor knew this, he would probably refuse to use his name ever again.

Translations by Vanilla Muse. Read on vmnovels [dot] com

Su Shi wasn’t too willing to be paraded through the streets, but he just sighed lightly and did not resist. He silently let them put the heavy shackles on him.

Suddenly he caught a glimpse of light reflecting off of something sharp.

A shrill alarm sounded in Su Shi’s ears. It was a warning that the protagonist’s life was in danger. Su Shi’s brows furrowed. As if he was running out of patience for the clumsy imperial bodyguard trying to shackle him, Su Shi flicked his sleeved and turned around.

Because of his suddenly action, the sharp object ended up colliding with the iron fetters between his wrists in a loud clang.

“Assassins! Protect the emperor!”

The imperial bodyguards responded very quickly. After barking out a sharp order, he wanted to protect the emperor and quickly get him onto the carriage to flee.

The person that ended up striking his fetters was quite strong, locking his hands in place and restricting his movements. Su Shi had to retreat a few steps before being able to unleash his power. The light in his eyes dimmed.

The masked men in black had jumped out from nowhere. With just a rough estimated, Su Shi saw more than twenty of them. All of them looked capable and strong.

Song Rong was used to battle after being in the army for so many years. He pulled the young emperor behind him and led the imperial bodyguards in a fight against the assassins. But because they were so greatly outnumbered, the situation was not looking too good.

The assassins were not afraid of death. They were all targeting the young emperor who had no martial prowess.

Whether it was for his character set up or his mission, Su Shi could not ignore this situation and not care.

Holding the manacles, Su Shi knocked down a few of the assassins. He seized an opportunity to get in front of Song Zhilan. Just as he was about to surreptitiously protect the emperor, he suddenly narrowed his eyes.

More than half of the assassins were lured towards him. They were ruthlessly aiming for him.

The assassins were hell bent on beating him up while he brazenly shielded the young emperor.

Song Rong knocked aside an assassin and said in a stern voice: “What are you guys stunned for? Quickly assist the prime minister in protecting the emperor!”

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---

The author has something to say:

Assassins: For some reason I get angry just looking at him! Beat him! (*/≧□≦)/ ┴┴

#Save the emperor or save the pot?

#Your special ability [Come, Come and Hit Me] will expire in twenty hours.

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Chapter 157

The study room was full of smashed china and books were thrown all over the floor. The Prime Minister’s Mansion had already been searched and raided by the government. Right now it was not fit for living in. That’s why when Su Shi woke up as Lu Li, he was sitting out in the main hall.

Su Shi was in a hurry to shake off that acting regent who seemed to carry bad intentions towards Su Shi’s pot. He made a majestic exit from the main hall only to realize that there was nowhere for him to stay inside.

He stood at the door in silence for a moment, still carrying the imperial edict in his hands. Then he rolled up his sleeves and started tidying up the study without complaint.

With some difficulty, Su Shi managed to gather the shattered porcelain into one corner. Then he bent down to pick up all the books on the floor one by one. He gathered all the books in the crook of his arm, preparing to put them back on the unbroken bookshelf all at once.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Carrying a food box in hand, Song Rong walked to the door of the study, but his footsteps suddenly came to a stop. He stared at the prime minster’s back.

Lu Li had taken off his heavy and luxurious prime minister court outfit. Beneath it, he only wore an ivory white changshan*. Delicate patterns were embroidered on the collar and cuffs with golden thread. This appearance gave him a clear and melodious aura.

[*T/N: 长衫 changshan – translates to long gown. It is a traditional Asian dress for men.]

Such a person was born to stand above the clouds, but now he had no choice but to do servant’s work with his own hands and he couldn’t even eat a bite of food.

Song Rong wanted to go in and help, but he worried that Lu Li would think he was humiliating him. He could only stand there, feeling great pity for the other man.

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While Song Rong was hesitating by the door, the person in the room stood up with a stack of books in his arms. Out of the corner of his eye, Lu Li saw a figure at the door and he turned around cautiously. His eyes flashed with fierce murderous intent: “Who [is it]?!”

Song Rong met his gaze and walked over. He put the food box down on the table and took the stack of books in Lu Li’s arms. “These things shouldn’t be done by the Prime Minister of the Right himself.”

“I’m already no longer the Prime Minister of the Right.”

Su Shi did not expect this person to chase him into the study. He couldn’t help but frown. When he saw the food box that the other person had brought with him, his heart could not help but waver.

The body that he was in has been starved for two days. He could smell the aroma of the food coming from within the food box. His stomach, which has been numbed by hunger, started to ache again.

He was already a criminal in the eyes of everyone else. It shouldn’t hurt anything if he sat down and ate something.

Maybe Song Rong had come to poison him to death. Su Shi comforted himself by thinking like so and decided not to refuse anymore. He arranged his clothes and sat down at the table. Then he lifted the lid of the food box.

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The food was already cold. Song Rong had most likely gathered the food from elsewhere [and not from the prime minister’s mansion] and brought it here. The food was not the slightest bit refined.

Su Shi was already beyond hungry, so he didn’t pay attention to whether the food was refined or not. He simply picked up the chopsticks and ate calmly.

Song Rong helped him put the books on the bookshelf, and deliberately turned sideways to pretend to organize the bookshelf, but his eyes couldn’t help but fall on the other man.

Lu Li must have been really hungry. His eating speed was on the fast side, but his movements were still as meticulous as always, not losing a bit of his usual elegance.

Song Rong’s imperial father was hale and hearty despite his many years of age, so there was a difference of twenty years between Song Rong and the late emperor. When the late emperor seized the throne, he feared Song Rong for his outstanding military achievements. When the late emperor got on in years, he feared Song Rong for his youth and strength. So he assigned Song Rong to lead the soldiers on a military campaign before the boy even reached adulthood.

Song Rong spent over ten years living at the barracks and hardly ever returned to the capital. He was used to seeing the sight of burly big men at the barracks, so it was even harder for him to take his eyes off of that elegant like bamboo figure.

Song Rong’s peeping was way too obvious. Su Shi placed a piece of cabbage in his mouth and then finally put down the chopsticks. He lifted his head and looked over at the acting regent.

“If you’re still hoping for me to confess something, then just ask. For the sake of this meal, I can provide a few more minions of the “Lu Party.””

Song Rong hurriedly looked away. He wanted to ask if the other man had anything he wanted to justify, but he instinctively knew that he would not be able to get anything out of this man.

Seeing Song Rong bowing his head silently, Su Shi lost his patience. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the corner of his mouth. Then he pushed away the food box and got up.

“Wangye is a man who fights on the battlefield. Since you don’t understand court politics, then there’s no need to force yourself to get involved. Since I dare to do something, why would I not dare to admit it? I have nothing to explain. It’s getting late. Wangye, if there is nothing else then please go back.”

The words of rejection were so obvious that there was no arguing it. Song Rong’s gaze dimmed. He picked up the food box, turned, and left without a word.

Seeing that the acting regent has finally left, Su Shi was relieved. He touched the imperial edict again. Then he picked up a book at random, sat down at the table, and leisurely flipped through it.

Translations by Vanilla Muse. Read on vmnovels [dot] com

In order to humiliate Lu Li, the new emperor even ordered people to destroy all the bedrooms in the prime minister’s mansion. The original Lu Li lived like a prince since childhood and has a noble temperament. Moreover, he’s been occupying a high position all these years. So he actually sat in the main hall for two days without eating or sleeping, and he never let out a word of apology.

He came in from the main hall, so it would be weird to go back out just to sit there. After eating a full meal, the body could not extricate itself from heavy sleepiness. After flipping through a few pages in the book, Su Shi felt his eyelids sinking. He brushed the book aside, pillowed his head on his arms, and fell asleep.

After two whole days, this body was really exhausted. Upon falling asleep, he did not wake up until the sky was bright the next day.

A burst of hurried footsteps woke him. Su Shi straightened up his clothes, stood up calmly, and greeted the black-robed official who walked in arrogantly.

“Did the Prime Minister of the Right sleep well last night?”

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Chapter 156

“Impudence! How dare you talk to the regent like-”

The imperial guard off to the side burst out with anger and couldn’t help scolding the prime minister, but Song Rong raised a hand to stop the guard.

“I read the reply you gave to the emperor. If you go on like this, you won’t have any wiggle room left.”

Song Rong was still standing just outside the door. He watched Lu Li’s departing back. His tone was sincere. “You did not try to dispute at all. I know you have resentment and indignation in your heart-”

“History is written by the victors. That is all. You are over thinking it, regent.”

As soon as he heard the other person’s tone, Su Shi suddenly had a familiar feeling that things were going to be bad, and he quickly interrupted him without hesitation.

The protagonist of this world was the new emperor, and Lu Li’s story was merely the beginning of it all.

All those criminal charges against him were indeed misunderstandings, but none of them were groundless accusations. Lu Li did indeed do those things, he formed a clique, created a dictatorship, acted as the regent, and forced the emperor to abdicate – he did everything that a chaotic courtier could do. In the end, he turned an imperial court that was about to collapse into a strong structure that would not topple over.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Five years ago, the di daughter of the Prime Minister of the Left entered the imperial harem. From then on, she was the only one favored within the harem, and the rewarding and punishing of courtiers were given out based on just one word from Noble Consort Liu.

[*T/N: di daughter – daughter born from the main wife as opposed to born from a concubine]

The Prime Minister of the Left, Liu Shan, looked modest and upright on the outside, but he took advantage of the momentum in the palace to make a lot of money. He even reached his hands all the way into the funds and provisions for the troops on the front line.

Lu Li knelt outside the palace gate for three days in protest of the emperor’s actions. In the end he vomited blood and lost consciousness. When he woke from his coma, he abruptly threw away his noble, virtuous, and unyielding character. He threw away the hot-blooded passion with which he served the imperial court. He learned how to flatter his superiors and to take unfair advantage of those below him. He bulldozed his way into bureaucracy. From then on, everything went smoothly for him, and in three years time he became the Prime Minister of the Right.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Everyone tried to curry favor with the Prime Minister of the Right. Just to get through the door to see him cost two ingots of gold. Of the money that he got through these underhanded means, half of it went to procuring military supplies for the front line, and the other half were secretly given to those faithful officials who resisted mingling with the underworld gangster societies despite their dire straits.

He expelled all the loyal scholars and capable ministers from the capital with excuses, and then sent them to some out-of-the-way towns and counties to lay low. His purpose was to help them avoid the precarious state of the imperial court, which could get them killed.

The Prime Minister of the Left gradually started to feel threatened, so he had Noble Consort Liu urge the old emperor to change the crown prince to her young son.

Making use of the emperor’s imperial decree to change the crown prince, Lu Li led the private soldiers from his mansion into the imperial palace. He seized Noble Consort Liu at sword point, and ordered the late emperor to change his imperial decree.

As soon as the jade seal stamped upon the new decree, Lu Li slit Noble Consort Liu’s throat. The old emperor was scared to death.

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It was only after Lu Li’s death that the new emperor gradually found out about the things that he had done. As a result, the emperor pardoned the Lu family’s felony and recalled all the officials that Lu Li had banished from court. The new emperor strived to make the empire strong and prosperous and he did away with redundant officials. From then on the Xuan Dynasty began to recover.

Lu Li’s memorial tablet was brought back into the ancestral shrine and worshiped for many generations.

……

Su Shi looked through the plot from beginning to end three times, and did not find any mention of the regent.

Seeing that Lu Li was not speaking, Song Rong’s tone became more and more gentle: “I’ve been fighting on the borders for years on end. I don’t know anything about imperial court politics. I came to visit you today to ask for guidance about the happenings of court.”

After hearing him say this, Su Shi unconsciously raised his eyebrows slightly. Only then did he realize who this acting regent was.

Song Rong, the imperial uncle, has been leading troops to fight on the battlefield ever since he was of a young age, and he rarely returned to the capital. He was the regent, but he has never rashly intervened in politics. After the crown prince succeeded the throne and established a firm foothold, he politely refused the imperial power and returned to the borders. In the end, he died on the battlefield. When his coffin was sent back to the capital, the emperor personally left the city walls to go welcome him into the ancestral shrine. His offspring enjoyed the title of aristocracy for many generations after.

Song Rong was not a person with a scheming heart. The fact that he became the regent was merely coincidental.

At that time, the old emperor wanted to establish Noble Consort Liu’s young son as the next ruler and abolish the current crown prince, but because Noble Consort Liu’s son was too young, there needed to be an acting regent, so the old emperor chose his younger brother, Song Rong, for the job in order to make the court officials shut up about the topic. Song Rong was young and energetic, but also easy to deceive, making him a good puppet regent.

Translations by Vanilla Muse. Read on vmnovels [dot] com

What ended up happening was that as soon as Lu Li heard about the edict, he took up a sword and forced the emperor to change the edict. Afterwards, he stabbed Noble Consort Liu on the spot.

Lu Li got the emperor to give the crown prince title back to the protagonist, but there wasn’t enough time to get rid of the acting regent title. According to the late emperor’s original posthumous edict, Song Rong was rapidly summoned back to the capital from the front lines.

Su Shi suddenly felt his stomach starting to hurt.

This regent was no doubt the very same general that Lu Li has been secretly and anonymously funding.

Lu Li didn’t want to let anyone know about this at all, so naturally he has already been very careful to conceal his deeds. But as long as an action has been taken, it would definitely leave some traces. Su Shi’s heart started beating rapidly. He’s been traumatized from being whitewashed so many times in the past. But he managed to make his tone even colder.

“I’m not explaining myself, because there is nothing to explain. I love being a powerful and unrestrained courtier. I’m not even afraid of retribution in the next life, so do you think I would be afraid of the executioner’s sword in this life?”

After saying that, Su Shi picked up his foot and got ready to leave, but he suddenly turned back around to grab the imperial decree on the table. Then he walked around the furniture screen and into the back garden.

Song Rong’s eyes followed him from start to finish.

The other person’s actions and demeanor were the same as when he was a teenager, but he was even more decisive than before. On his hurried journey back to the capital, Song Rong has heard countless people tell him how ruthless and domineering the Prime Minister of the Right was, but he just couldn’t connect the man of rumors with the teenager of his memories.

He finally saw Lu Li with his own eyes, but it only cemented his thoughts.

“What did the Prime Minister of the Right eat today?”

He suddenly turned to the side and asked in a low voice. The imperial guard standing by the door was startled and stumped for words. Then he knelt down and answered: “Replying to the regent, the emperor has decreed: The Prime Minister of the Right has been arrogant and extravagant all these years. He has eaten all the delicacies of the mountains and the seas. It’s no big deal even if he doesn’t eat for a day or two…”

The light in Song Rong’s eyes dimmed. He turned and left without saying a word.

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Chapter 155 (48.1)

After Su Shi scared away the eunuch who came to deliver an imperial order, he closed the front door and sat back down at the table. He unrolled the imperial decree lying on the table and leisurely read through the contents.

Do not admit. Do not deny. Adopt an unyielding attitude and a domineering style. Su Shi nodded to himself. His performance this time was not bad. Like this, he should be able to hold on to the pot.

His identity this time was Lu Li, the Prime Minister of the Right of the Xuan Dynasty. When he was seventeen years old, he passed the provincial level imperial examination and became a government official. At age twenty-three, he was promoted to the Prime Minister of the Right with power over all levels of society, which included the imperial court and the ordinary people. He just passed thirty years of age this year and has been dominating the imperial court of the Xuan Dynasty for five years already.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

Over the past five years, Lu Li has been an unyielding and tough minister. He suppressed all dissidents, banished an uncountable number of capable officials and ambitious scholars from court, and slowly took over the court as if it was his own.

Since then, Lu Li became more and more arrogant and domineering with each passing day. He even refused to show respect to the late emperor.

Three months ago, he even led troops and broke into the harem. He killed the late emperor’s imperial consort, and hounded the Prime Minister of the Left’s whole family – which consisted of a total of eighty people – to death.

The late emperor was so angry that he rained all sorts of verbal curses on Lu Li. The emperor then vomited blood on the scene and fainted. He lay in his sickbed for three days, before finally passing away despite receiving medical treatment.

For a scoundrel like Lu Li to even do something like this… Naturally he became the butt of public criticism.

After the late emperor passed away, the crown prince ascended to the throne. The crown prince took advantage of the turmoil in court and went on the offensive before the crowning ceremony even took place. He joined hands with his imperial uncle, Song Rong, and targeted Lu Li in a pincer attack from both the inside and outside. They placed Lu Li under house arrest in the prime minister’s mansion. Once the imperial court made a judgment and convicted him of a crime, he would be put to death.

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This was the first time that Su Shi has seen a character with so many pots on his person: monopolizing political power, overturning the heavens, devastating loyal officials, storming the imperial harem, along with an arrogant attitude, domineering personality, and disloyal heart.

Su Shi took a deep breath. He closed the imperial edict, feeling greatly gratified. He was so moved that he almost cried.

“Prime Minister of the Right, the Regent is here.”

Lu Li had already sent away all the servants in the mansion. The people that were now in his mansion were imperial guards sent from the palace.  Although they still addressed him by his old title, their tone was not very respectful.

Su Shi withdrew the excited glimmer in his eyes, and casually set aside the imperial edict. Then he said indifferently, “Not welcomed.”

He had only just finished speaking when the door opened up from the outside.

The sky was already dark. Standing at the door, the regent was but a tall and lofty silhouette. The regent stared at Su Shi silently. His face was covered in shadows so Su Shi could not see his expression clearly.

Su Shi arched an eyebrow and simply leaned backwards: “If the regent is going to break in anyway, then why bother announcing his arrival?”

Song Rong did not enter the room. He stood at the door with one hand against the doorframe. His eyes fell upon Lu Li’s delicate and handsome face.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

From the day the young princes started competing for the throne, Song Rong received the late emperor’s order to lead the army on a military campaign. The late emperor was in power for ten years, and Song Rong has also been away on a military campaign for ten whole years.

Song Rong’s impression of the person in front of him was but a fuzzy memory linked to the magnificent landscape of the capital.

He had just come out of the barracks that day, and he was covered in rough sand. It just so happened that on that day the new top scorer in the palace examination was parading through the capital on a horse. There were thunderous cheers everywhere. The extremely young top scorer was dressed in a brilliant red government official outfit. He was resplendent from head to toe and brimming with elegance.

Song Rong looked upon the bright eyes of the youth, and he unconsciously loosened his grip on the reins of the horse beneath him. A firecracker startled the warhorse, and he nearly collided with the ceremonial parade.

The horse reared up. Cries of alarm rang out through the crowd. Instead of being scared, the scholarly and refined top-scoring youth’s eyes actually lit up with extraordinary splendor. His body remained motionless. He sat firm and steady on the saddle. He clamped down tightly on the horse’s belly and pulled back the reins in his hands. He gently and skillfully led the huge horse off to the side and then seamlessly rejoined the parade line again.

Deafening cheers overwhelmed the lingering sounds of panic. The top scorer turned to Song Rong, still with a bright smile in his eyes, and offered him a cupped-hand salute. Then he turned back and continued to ride down the street.

Shortly after that, Song Rong left the capital for the first time to lead the army on a military campaign. His world was filled with weapons and blood. The youth’s figure and the prosperous streets of the capital were sealed together in his memory. Then, thirteen years passed in the blink of an eye.

In those thirteen years, Song Rong changed from a prince with no power and influence to an outstanding imperial uncle and an acting regent with impressive military service, whereas the other party has changed from a young top scorer to the Prime Minister of the Right with great might over the court.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

However, that face did not seem to be polluted by any vicissitudes of life. It overlapped with the young face in his memories, causing Song Rong to unconsciously stutter. He cupped his hands and saluted towards the interior of the room.

“Prime Minister of the Right, I, Song Rong, requests an audience.”

Song Rong spoke in a respectful tone. When the person in the room heard his still deferential tone, his body stiffened all of a sudden. That cold and arrogant figure seemed to droop in an instant. His gaze swept towards him like lightning.

Song Rong held his breath as his eyes met the Prime Minster of the Right’s. His heart suddenly pounded.

Amidst the dim lighting, their eyes met. It was almost like there was a sound of jangling metal in the background.

After a moment, Lu Li flicked his sleeves, got up and walked towards the inner chamber. His tone was clear and light: “Not welcomed.”

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Chapter 154

To think that such an ability exists. Su Shi felt that the [Come, Come and Hit Me] ability was simply tailor-made for him.

Su Shi remembered how he was forced to form a team with the protagonist as soon as he entered the last world, and he shook with trepidation from the lingering trauma. Without hesitation, he selected the [Come, Come and Hit Me] ability, and then he specifically bought a few more analgesic from the storehouse. Only then did he feel somewhat more at ease.

“Host, actually the early stage of this game will be somewhat perilous. The Dark God said that he would never partner up with us again. So we should go over our experiences. We can’t just depend on his help.”

After finally coming down from its high, the system conscientiously displayed numerous cheat secrets for carrying the pot on the screen: “I got these from the hosts of other systems, do you want to study them?”

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

“A ferocious expression and cold aura is a must. You must toss aside your own inherent image, quickly build a cold core, and regard yourself as a villain from the bottom of your heart.”

Su Shi nodded. With his chin in his hand he recited the advice again. He couldn’t help but look up at the system: “Am I not vicious enough?”

The system kept silent, Su Shi was silent for a moment, then nodded in compromise, and continued to read through the words very rapidly.

Seeing that Su Shi accepted the opinion humbly, the system also felt relieved, and continued to diligently come up with ideas: “The world automatically synthesizes the face, so it generally cannot be changed, but as long as the eye expressions are good, there will be no problem!”

Su Shi has gone through several worlds. It seemed that as long as a character developed some sort of relationship with him, their favorability of him would only rise and not fall.

Su Shi was aware of that to some extent. But when he first started playing this at high intensity, he always went the route of a gentle character that was good at shifting the blame away from himself. So even though he had to play the part of a devilish villain, he did not understand the core concepts of such a role.

Afer looking through the system’s shopping center, he happened to find an upgradeable skill called [Explosive Acting]. After pondering it for a while, he bought it and immediately equipped the skill.

Staying in this space for too long was useless and not advantageous, so after he finished resting up and reorganizing things, Su Shi chose to go to the next world.

His body plummeted.

When he opened his eyes again, the scenery had changed into the olden times.

Su Shi was currently sitting on a bamboo chair. In front of him was a sheet of white paper.

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The eunuch who came to transmit the emperor’s edict was speaking in a shrill and indifferent voice: “The emperor has ordered that if Prime Minister Lu wants to explain anything then he should write it down on this piece of paper. After the emperor finishes dealing with the official business of the imperial court, he will naturally find time to read it…”

Ahh, he has returned to a familiar choice again.

When a brush was rudely stuffed into his hand, Su Shi’s expression remained unchanged. But he suddenly felt a vague tension that seemed like predestination.

According to experience, if he straight up confessed his sin, people would think that he was deliberately hiding some secret trouble. But if he opened his mouth to defend himself, the other person was likely to really wait for him to explain himself.

Unable to advance or retreat, Su Shi’s expression was slightly stern. He suddenly shook out his sleeves and stood up. He flicked both the brush in his hand and the piece of paper on the table to the floor.

He sneered, “Why should I explain?”

His face this time was clear and elegant. Even if he was just sitting upright and did not speak, he would exude a somewhat gentle and relaxing aura for no reason whatsoever. But at the moment, his eyes were suddenly as cold as frost and snow. He looked at the couple of eunuchs who had come to transmit the emperor’s orders. The expression in his eyes was fierce and killing intent spread out from him.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Su Shi frightened the eunuch so much that he did not dare to say another word. The eunuch picked up the piece of paper on the floor and scrambled out of the room with his head bowed, not daring to look back.

But before the eunuch could make his way back to the imperial study, he bumped into the regent Song Rong, and the piece of paper in his hand was taken away.

There was not a single word written on it. There were only splatters of ink left on it from when the brush and paper were flicked onto the floor.

“Wangye*, this is what the emperor told Prime Minister Lu to-”

[*T/N: 王爷 wang ye – a prince, marquis, or nobleman]

The eunuch spoke hurriedly, but Song Rong’s expression had already sunk slightly. His dark eyes were faintly cold: “The emperor only told you people to come and question him [as a suspect]. Who allowed you to humiliate him like this?”

The ink splatters were disorderly. It was evident that such marks were caused by carelessly flinging the brush and paper on the floor.

The eunuch’s expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly wanted to explain, but Song Rong had already instructed in a low voice: “Acting like a fox that exploits the tiger’s might*. Just because you have something to rely on, you’re riding roughshod over people. Such people should not be serving the emperor. Take him away.”

[*T/N: “the fox exploits the tiger’s might” is an idiom meaning to use powerful connections to intimidate other people, even though you might not have any power yourself]

Before the eunuch could speak, the imperial guards on both sides had already come up and dragged him away without any explanations. Not too long after, there were faint screams in the distance.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

The advisor behind him hesitated for a moment, but still stepped forward to speak.

“Wangye, Prime Minister Lu is on the verge of life and death because of a serious crime, and he will be thrown into prison soon. Even if a castrated man humiliates him, he does not say a word [in retaliation]…”

Song Rong folded up the piece of paper and tucked it away. He sighed softly, “The fact that he did not say anything speaks volumes of his unhappiness. Let’s reply back to the emperor first. Say that Prime Minister Lu is not feeling well. I’m going to visit him [Prime Minister Lu] now.”

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The author has something to say:

Su Shi: Is there a way for me to survive??? ∑(O□O；)

#No, no, I wasn’t humiliated.

#I’m not gentle or relaxing!

#I want to squat in prison!!!

……

Dark Eunuch: Is there a way for me to survive?!?! (つДQ)

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Chapter 153

A year later, the zombies gradually disappeared, and the mutated plants gradually became silent. The people received a sudden pleasant surprise when they found out that the earth could just barely grow plants again, and the sunlight has regained its temperature.

Five years later, the barriers around the bases completely came down, and humanity made concerted efforts to build a new home in the resurrected world.

Twenty years later, the sky became blue again, and the water turned clear. The air was fresh and clean. Human society gradually improved. New laws and regulations were formulated and improved upon. The newest generation has even completely moved away from that hopeless post-apocalyptical memory.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

It seemed as if none of the dark times had every occurred, and the Bloodthirsty Forest has changed back into an ordinary forest. In the center of the woods grew a lush, verdant plant whose species no one could name, but as long as you approached it without nefarious intentions, you would feel the refreshing purifying energy.

A middle-aged man dressed as a general returned to the tree and stood there for a long time. He finally let out a chuckle and raised his hand in a salute.

Su Shi opened his eyes again. The pain in his body still seemed to remain in his soul, causing him to suck in a deep breath.

The system opened the back door a little too brazenly. Without consulting the Main World, it told the protagonist who chased after him to directly bundle him up and bring him back to the previous world. As a result, he still has some trouble walking.

After all, the protagonist’s code base has not been strengthened to the extent that he could completely escape from the world. This time, he used the power fluctuations between life and death to send the source code through, and it has already caught the attention of the Lord God.

Even if they met again in the next world, the other party’s memory would be completely sealed away. And he might not even be able to retain the identity of the protagonist.

When he first heard the punishment from the Lord God, Su Shi couldn’t hold back his spontaneous joyful expression, thus his waist suffered for another two hours.

“Host! Host! Host! Host!”

Su Shi rubbed his lower back and moved to the sofa to sit down. The display screen suddenly turned on, and the system let out a mechanical sounding thrill of surprise.

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“What is it? Did the Dark God give money to someone?” Su Shi asked.

He knew what the system was happy about. Annoyed by the excessive noise, Su Shi rubbed his brows. But he also could not help but be excited for what he got from the mission this time.

Explosive fireworks went off on the screen. Then a 3D projection was turned on with a bang. With Su Shi at the center, a realistic rain of banknotes suddenly rained down.

After enduring through several worlds, it was evident that he was not the only one mad from destitution.

Su Shi laughed involuntarily. He let the system run out of control and throw money all over the place, while he called up the main panel to check the gains of this task.

“Host has successfully carried the name of “extreme evil” till the end, saved the world, and successfully completed the mission in this world. You got an S grade. Congratulations to the host for the achievement of [truly scaring a staff member to the point of tears]. You gained a total of 150,000 experience points in this world. Deduct from that the 4,797 experience points owed to the system-”

“All right already. I’ll give you the rest as well. Think of it as interest.”

After obtaining so much money, Su Shi was suddenly a lot more generous. He interrupted the mechanical sound of the system with a smile, called up his own panel, and happily turned over the reward for this mission.

He was never able to carry the pot when he was with the protagonist’s group, but with the protagonist’s cooperation, until the end, most people in the post-apocalyptical world still thought of him as a very evil being.

This was the first time that he has not been whitewashed in front of all human beings by various unexpected methods. Although the population of the post-apocalyptical world has dropped significantly, the harvest was still very rich. In addition, the entire mission was completed very successfully. Even though at the very end, he and the protagonist were able to be candid with each other, he still received an S-rank rating.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Most of the abilities in this world that he could choose from were all supernatural abilities, so even if he picked one, the usefulness was extremely limited [depending on the type of world he ended up in].

Su Shi went through the list of abilities several times and suddenly realized that the character of Dr. Dark was also on the list. He clicked into it out of curiosity and his eyes suddenly landed on the ability of [Come, Come and Hit Me].

“This is specially for the staff members who have to play the villain role, such as the Dark God. They use it to draw hatred. It is an active skill. After activating it, the effect will last for 24 hours. During these 24 hours, it can quickly pull the hatred of the people around you to yourself.”

Unexpectedly, the host would turn to such a lower page. The system quickly tacked on an explanation. The system’s mechanical voice was still in high spirits. Apparently it has not recovered from the ecstasy of getting rich overnight.

“Does the host want this?”

“Yes, I want this one.”

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[T/N: The author wasn’t being super obvious in text (likely due to China’s censorship), but the reason that Su Shi could not walk properly and that his waist hurt was because he rolled around in bed with the protagonist. Hue hue hue~

Also, it sounds like the system didn’t expect Su Shi to look in Dr. Dark’s file, which was near the bottom of the list, so it didn’t prepare descriptions for Dr. Dark’s abilities ahead of time. I’m pretty sure the system flubbed the explanation for that [Come, Come and Hit Me] ability and it’s gonna come back and bite Su Shi in the ass. Lol.]

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Chapter 152

Yuan Zheng looked at Su Shi with such a focused gaze, as he if wanted to engrave his image deeply into his mind.

Su Shi took his hand and looked at him earnestly, “If you miss me, then cook some vegetables for yourself.”

Just as Yuan Zheng was about to speak, he found his words choked back by Su Shi’s sentence. He opened his mouth, agape and tongue-tied. Finally he couldn’t help but let out a laugh and lowered his head helplessly against Su Shi’s neck.

Yuan Zheng’s short hair was a little stiff. It poked Su Shi and made him feel itchy. Unable to hold back, Su Shi raised his hand to press down the hair, but it looked like he was patting Yuan Zheng’s head.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

The arms around him tightened abruptly, and something warm spread silently around his neck.

Su Shi’s eyes darkened, and he slowly hugged the body in front of him.

He tried hard to dispel the haze for the other party, but he couldn’t dispel the sadness of every parting.

“Don’t tell others about this…”

Su Shi took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and finally calmed down: “Don’t tell anyone, okay?”

Suddenly realizing what the other party was doing, Yuan Zheng tightened his arms and said hoarsely, “Why?”

“I don’t need them to accept me, I am saving the world, not the people in the world. Just let them think I am the Son of Hell. Even if I no longer exist, I am happy to have shadows and fears still linger in their hearts.”

Su Shi slumped within Yuan Zheng’s arms. His voice gradually lowered: “Everyone in the patrol team, and the people in the Unbounded City, I don’t want them to know that I have left…”

“Okay.”

Yuan Zheng spoke softly. He straightened up again, lifted Su Shi’s face, and pressed a light kiss onto him. A gentle smile suddenly appeared in his eyes.

“As it turns out my thoughts are the same as yours.”

He took out a letter from his pocket and placed it on the table. Then he picked Su Shi up, held him firmly, and jumped out of the window.

Su Shi was slightly startled by the sudden feeling of rapidly falling. He broke free from his drowsiness and grabbed on to the other person’s clothes.

“What are you planning to do?”

Yuan Zheng just held on to him firmly. He lowered his head and gave Su Shi a deep kiss. Then he activated his S-grade mental abilities and left Base B with a few high jumps. They landed in the center of the Bloodthirsty Forest.

There was already a weak little seedling planted there.

A pale green light surrounded every tiny bud on the seedling. Its tender leaves were stretching out silently. But because of the dim sunlight during these post-apocalyptic times, the light of the seedling could hardly penetrate through the Bloodthirsty Forest, and the growth of the plant was extremely slow.

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Carrying Su Shi in his arms, Yuan Zheng took a few steps forward, and then crouched down beside the seedling. He reached out his hand and lightly stroked the plant.

The leaf seemed to be tickled by Yuan Zheng and it shifted away in avoidance, but it also seemed reluctant to leave the warmth emitting from Yuan Zheng’s palm, so it cautiously moved back and bumped against the man’s hand.

Yuan Zheng met Su Shi’s gaze and smiled lightly. He held Su Shi’s hand. The crystal nucleus left the body and brilliant light was suddenly spreading everywhere.

The seedling seemed to have suddenly found the source of its strength and it could not wait to absorb the precious light. It quickly sprouted and grew. In the blink of an eye it was already blooming with verdant leaves.

“You’ll turn into the plants and trees, and I will be your light.”

He released his powers without reservation. The power of the fire element was stripped away, and the pure crystal nucleus representing the light merged into the pale green light of the seedling.

Yuan Zheng’s figure suddenly trembled slightly.

On the line between life and death, it seemed like something that was imprisoned was suddenly released.

Vivid memories inundated him like a flood. Yuan Zheng’s complexion turned pale. He lowered his eyes and saw Su Shi’s pure black eyes. Only then did he look relieved.

“I’ve found you. Come back with me, okay?”

Su Shi was startled and looked up at him.

Yuan Zheng’s image was completely overlapped with the one from his memories. His breathing abruptly quickened. Although his vision quickly dimmed uncontrollably, warmth suddenly couldn’t stop welling up.

“What a coincidence, came to save a world, and yet you were able to find me.”

His consciousness became blurred. Intense tiredness completely enveloped his entire body. He closed his eyes, leaned into the familiar warm embrace, and finally relaxed into the silent darkness.

Yuan Zheng hugged him tightly. His fingertips stroked Su Shi’s delicate sleeping face, and then a brilliant golden flame suddenly ignited.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

Holding the man who was soundly asleep in his arms, he strode into the flames, and his figure disappeared quietly.

“Yes, what a coincidence, came to find a person, yet [I] managed to save a world…”

The sun rose again.

Yuan Zheng and Mu Shi disappeared from this world at the same time, leaving behind only a letter and a vigorous seedling.

In the letter, it only said that the two of them were going out to find some hope of restoring the world back to its previous state. Their return date was uncertain. He specifically instructed that there was no need to explain everything and to properly arrange all the follow-up matters.

The patrol team members didn’t know what to think. They could only more or less complain about the captain and Little Log leaving too abruptly. Only the deputy team leader was stunned and shocked by the news for a long time. Then he suddenly left the base alone and took a trip to the Bloodthirsty Forest.

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Chapter 151

Having never thought of the idea proposed by the deputy team leader, Yuan Zheng turned around in surprise. He pondered for a while, and suddenly poured the chocolate from the pot into a cup.

“I’ll go look for him.” Yuan Zheng said he was going out to look for Mu Shi, but halfway there he turned around and went back to the office first. Only after he was fully prepared did he go to Mu Shi’s bedroom.

Mu Shi had returned to his room at some unknown point in time. Inside the room, it was quiet and peaceful. There was warm light seeping out from the edges of the door.

After calming down a bit, Yuan Zheng knocked on the door twice, and then he gently tried to turn the doorknob.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

The light was still on. At first glance, there was no one in the room, but there was something bundled up in a ball shape under the blanket. The shape gently raised and fell with the frequency of someone breathing.

Yuan Zheng’s eyes crinkled with a warm smile. With light steps, he carefully walked over to the bed.

The blanket suddenly moved and a head stuck out. Mu Shi stared at him with hazy eyes. His gaze was unguarded and there was clear trust in his black pupils.

Yuan Zheng’s breathing turned shallow, but there was still a soft and gentle smile in his eyes. He rubbed Mu Shi’s slightly messed up hair and said, “Why did you go to sleep so early today, are you tired?”

Su Shi was still terribly sleepy. After confirming the identity of the person who came into his room, Su Shi nodded absent-mindedly. He was about to carelessly go back to sleep.

Under the light, his lips seemed particularly pale, and there was not much blood color on his cheeks.

Yuan Zheng’s heart tightened. He put down the cup and hugged Su Shi, only to realize that his body was actually terrifyingly ice-cold.

“What happened? Are you injured?”

An ominous premonition suddenly rose up in his heart. Yuan Zheng told him to come into his embrace. Even nestled up against Yuan Zheng’s chest and shoulder, he still felt cold to the touch.

Held in that warm embrace, Su Shi’s spirits lifted a little. He leaned into Yuan Zheng’s chest and raised his head to meet the other person’s dark eyes. There was a complex look in the other man’s gaze.

“You saw it, didn’t you?”

Yuan Zheng caressed Su Shi’s back. His chest felt so painful. It was as if his heart was being torn apart, but his tone became even calmer and softer. He gathered Su Shi up and had the young man lean against his shoulder. His cheek lightly brushed against the soft ends of Su Shi’s hair.

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Yuan Zheng didn’t make it clear, but Su Shi still understood what he meant.

Yuan Zheng was being very careful with the strength he was exerting to hug Su Shi, as if afraid that he might hurt Su Shi by accident. His warm breath washed over Su Shi, and Su Shi’s extremely weak body gradually regained some strength.

Su Shi looked into Yuan Zheng’s eyes. There was so much pain in Yuan Zheng’s gaze. It was as if the other man was about to shatter into a million pieces. Su Shi shook his head. He wrapped his arms around the other man’s neck and shoulders, and leaned his head against the crook of Yuan Zheng’s neck.

“I didn’t see it. I knew it from the start.”

When the story reached its next plot point, he would naturally receive an order to carry out the next task. The reason he went into the office at that time was to provide a reasonable opportunity for him to know about this matter.

But when Su Shi saw the pain Yuan Zheng’s eyes, he was not willing to use that excuse in the end.

Yuan Zheng looked at him quietly. There was doubt and also understanding in his eyes. In the end, he put on a gentle and tranquil face. He rubbed Su Shi’s head lightly.

“Let’s not talk about this. Try this first. We really don’t have any milk, so I can only use non-dairy creamer as substitute. I don’t know if it’ll suit your taste.”

The slightly cold hot chocolate turned hot again in his palm, and the familiar aroma spread out.

Su Shi held the cup and took two sips. The frankincense of the non-dairy creamer was not pure, and the traces of industrial products could still be tasted through the mellow aroma of cocoa, but he still drank the hot chocolate with utmost seriousness, one mouthful at a time. Then he met Yuan Zheng’s expectant gaze.

“It’s very good, it’s the best drink I’ve ever had.”

“Really?”

Yuan Zheng raised his eyebrows slightly, overwhelmed by the praise. With a smile on his lips, he hugged Su Shi. He spoke in a soft and hoarse voice: “I have tried dozen of recipes, and I finally managed to make this. I don’t know if I can-”

Before he could finish speaking, Su Shi had already wrapped his arms around Yuan Zheng’s neck and raised his head to kiss him.

The slightly cool lips were warmed by the hot cocoa. The sudden kiss caused Yuan Zheng’s mind to go blank.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

The bottom of his heart gave birth to infinite bright joy, but in the next second it was entangled with agony and grief. The feeling burned so hot that his breathing turned rapid. Tears almost broke through the confinement of his eyes.

A hand was placed on his cheek, wiping the cold and embarrassing tears for him.

“Maybe I was originally a tree. Bury one of me in the spring, and in the autumn, there will be many of me…”

Su Shi didn’t have much strength left in his body. Soon, he was unable to keep upright and had to lean back into Yuan Zheng’s embrace. He leaned against the other man’s shoulder and tried to comfort him with this unique notion.

Thinking of the picture described by the other party, Yuan Zheng couldn’t help raising the corners of his mouth. He smiled with tears in his eyes, and pressed a kiss on Su Shi’s forehead: “What happens after you bear fruit to so many of you? I’ll make noodles for all of you?”

……

Su Shi couldn’t bear it anymore. He slammed his head against Yuan Zheng’s chest. He sniffled. “Honestly, let’s change our secret signal next time. I think your instant noodles are pretty good too.”

Yuan Zheng didn’t really understand what Su Shi was saying, but at least he knew that his cooking skills were being praised. Yuan Zheng rubbed Su Shi’s head with a slight smiled and asked the young man to lean on him. He carefully traced his eyebrows in silence.

“Don’t be sad, I will accompany you in the form of grass and trees.”

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Chapter 150 (47.1)

“Did you make this for me?” Su Shi asked Yuan Zheng.

Su Shi’s eyes swept across the notebook, and landed on the cup that Yuan Zheng was still holding. He picked it up and took a sip.

The chocolate had just melted, and the cup was filled with slightly hot pure chocolate syrup. Su Shi just took a sip and couldn’t stop coughing. He looked up at Yuan Zheng and said, “Too sweet…”

His pure black eyes were still clear and bright, and there was a faint smear of chocolate on his lips. Yuan Zheng chuckled softly, got up, and wiped Su Shi’s lips for him. Then he handed Su Shi a cup of plain water.

Translations are by vmnovels [dot] com, if you’re reading this anywhere else, then it was stolen.

“I haven’t added anything else into the chocolate yet. Why are you so anxious?”

Su Shi blinked. He turned around, wanting to study how the protagonist made this substitute hot cocoa, but Yuan Zheng blocked him and smoothly led him outside of the office.

“This method didn’t work out too well. I’ll try it again and let you taste it if I succeed. Are you hungry? Let’s go get something to eat first…”

Their voices and figures disappeared together out the door. The deputy team leader stay rooted to the same stop. He was stunned for a long time. Finally he took a deep breath, and his eyes fell on the spread out notes.

His eyes suddenly showed a flash of determination. He picked up the notes, walked quickly to the stove, and threw them in.

The paper quickly burst into sparks and was swallowed by the burning flames in the blink of an eye.

As if he just realized what he had done, the deputy team leader’s face gradually turned pale. His body swayed and he fell to his knees weakly.

They could let Mu Shi know about the contents of the notes. After all, Mu Shi should be the one to make a decision on this matter. But whether it was true or false, they could not have these notes lying around.

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Human beings were selfish. If anyone outside the patrol team saw the contents of these notes, they would not hesitate to drive the young man into a corner, dig out the source of power from his brain, and then bury that faint glimmer of hope in the earth.

Hope that has been stained with blood and sin would not be the salvation for the apocalypse.

The last bit of paper burned brightly and then quickly died down into cold ashes.

The deputy team leader stood up and quickly left the office.

Yuan Zheng did not tell Mu Shi about this.

The two had lunch together, and Su Shi said that he wanted to go back to Unbounded City to have a look, but he didn’t see anyone else all afternoon.

Yuan Zheng absent-mindedly tried to do work for a while, but in the end he couldn’t calm down, so he simply put all his energy into researching hot cocoa substitutes.

Yuan Zheng smashed the chocolate into tiny pieces, stirred in hot water, and then added a small spoon of creamer. He meticulously completed every step of the procedure, and when the aroma overflowed, he poured out a small cup and handed it to the deputy team leader, who was lying down.

“Captain, I really can’t do it anymore. How about you ask someone else…”

The deputy team leader had been forced to drink hot chocolate in the office all afternoon, and his voice was hoarse. He protested feebly, but he had to take the cup and take a sip under the coercion of his captain.

“You burned the notes?”

Yuan Zheng turned around and suddenly asked a question that was completely irrelevant to the present.

His thoughts were slowed down by the hot chocolate. The deputy team leader was stunned for a moment. His eyes gradually dimmed. He pursed his lips and lowered his head: “Captain, if others see them, they will hurt Xiao Shi…”

“I know. I was planning to burn them too.”

Seeing that the deputy team leader’s expression did not scrunch up this time, Yuan Zheng tasted the substitute hot cocoa himself. Finally, a glimmer of satisfaction showed in his eyes. He patiently continued to stir the remaining hot chocolate in the pot.

Translations by Vanilla Muse.

He was never going to leave those notes lying around, but he never thought that the always rational deputy team leader would actually do such an impulsive thing.

The deputy team leader looked at Yuan Zheng’s expression, and finally couldn’t help but speak in a low voice.

“Captain, Xiao Shi still doesn’t know about this, right?”

Yuan Zheng’s movements stalled for an imperceptible second. Then he lowered his gaze and said calmly, “I didn’t tell him.”

“I keep thinking that he is the hope that the world has given us, which makes sense. Or maybe the hope is placed on him, maybe… he is hope itself…”

His eyes fell on his captain’s unmoving back. The look in the deputy team leader’s eyes was complicated for a moment, but he mustered up his courage and continued to speak all in one breath.

“If it is the latter, then he came to this world for this purpose, no matter what we do, there is no way to stop him. If it is the former, Captain… no matter what kind of plant his core power is, do we really have to dig it out by the roots? Couldn’t a branch or a cutting be good enough?”

……

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