Chapter Summaries

Rumors in Great Chu weakened Crown Prince Chu Xuanzhen as Fourth Prince Chu Tianyin secretly exploited Consort Xue, while Ruthis learned that rival princes were joining forces against the Crown Prince. At the frontier, Ruthis cared for the feverish Nan Jiaxi, who loved him and had tried to disappear rather than hold back his journey.

• Rumors portrayed the Crown Prince as unfilial and suggested Consort Xue might be seeking chances to harm him or leak information.
• Chu Tianyin revealed that Consort Xue was unknowingly his puppet and began writing a secret letter.
• Ruthis arrived at the Northern States frontier with the unconscious Nan Jiaxi and ordered a military doctor to examine him.
• Ruthis read that the Fourth Prince and Second Prince's factions had united against the Crown Prince, while an unnamed court official was secretly encouraging other princes to join them.
• When Nan Jiaxi coughed in a soldier's rough hold, Ruthis carried him to bed and demanded care; Nan Jiaxi recalled fleeing while ill because he feared delaying Ruthis, then breaking down when Ruthis brought him back.

Ruthis stayed beside the tearful Nan Jiaxi and assigned an army physician to oversee his treatment. Su Shang met the disguise expert Liang Wenjin, while Chu Xuanzhen insisted on treating Shen Yangge’s bruised waist himself.

• Ruthis wiped Nan Jiaxi’s tears, ordered an army physician to oversee his treatment, and stayed when Nan Jiaxi begged him not to leave.
• Su Shang met Liang Wenjin, whose disguise closely resembled Su Shang, and said he would investigate Liang Wenjin before assigning him a job.
• Su Shang reported his meeting with Liang Wenjin to Chu Xuanzhen, while Shen Yangge distractedly struck his waist against a table.
• Chu Xuanzhen noticed Shen Yangge’s pain and insisted on lifting his clothes to examine the bruised waist.
• Chu Xuanzhen told Shen Yangge to stay seated while he fetched medicine from his bedchamber to apply to the injury.

Shen Yangge discovered that the giant rat was System 615, which had been forced offline and trapped in the rat’s body after encountering a virus. 615 began explaining Shen Yangge’s connection to the world and hinted at a revelation about it.

• Shen Yangge noticed the familiar giant rat watching him while Chu Xuanzhen treated his waist injury.
• Shen Yangge searched the side hall for anything suspicious but found only a rat hole.
• The giant rat startled Shen Yangge in the bath and revealed itself as System 615.
• System 615 explained that it had been forced offline and ended up in a rat’s body while dealing with a virus from the Main God Hall.
• System 615 said Shen Yangge had a slight connection to this world and began to explain further.

Shen Yangge learned from System 615 that he had transmigrated into a real world, not a novel, and that a virus had altered the information he received. As he reconsidered his mission and his feelings for Chu Xuanzhen, Chu Xuanzhen caught him hiding something, leaving Shen Yangge to wonder if he was the one Chu Xuanzhen loved.

• Shen Yangge took System 615 aside, and it revealed that he had entered a real world rather than the original novel and that a virus had tampered with the story information.
• System 615 explained that the virus could not fully control its functions, and Shen Yangge learned that failing his death mission might not destroy his soul.
• Shen Yangge considered eliminating the virus as a way to choose between returning home and staying with Chu Xuanzhen, and planned to find a new body for System 615.
• Chu Xuanzhen appeared and asked what Shen Yangge had been communicating with, but Shen Yangge denied talking to anyone.
• Shen Yangge realized his ideas about the novel's idealized romance might have been invented, then wondered if he was actually Chu Xuanzhen's unforgettable beloved.

Shen Yangge helped System 615 attempt to transfer from the giant rat into a Little Orange Cat while Chu Xuanzhen secretly investigated the romantic phrases Shen Yangge had mentioned. The chapter ended as System 615 began its transfer in Shen Yangge’s bedchamber.

• System 615 hid in a mouse hole, frightened by Chu Xuanzhen’s murderous gaze.
• Chu Xuanzhen wiped Shen Yangge’s face and fingers, then asked what books he read as he led him out of the Side Hall.
• Chu Xuanzhen wrote down “White moonlight, cinnabar mole, palm lines” and gave the note to Su Shang to investigate.
• Two days later, Su Shang reported his findings, and Chu Xuanzhen eagerly headed to his bedchamber to see Shen Yangge.
• Shen Yangge brought System 615 a Little Orange Cat body and watched as it began trying to transfer into it.

Shen Yangge tried to hide System 615’s identity after it switched from a huge rat into a Little Orange Cat, but Chu Xuanzhen caught them in the act. The system remained disguised as an injured kitten, terrified that Chu Xuanzhen would recognize and eliminate it.

• Shen Yangge watched System 615 switch forms, and the huge rat and Little Orange Cat both leaped toward him as Chu Xuanzhen entered and pulled him back.
• The huge rat ran toward Chu Xuanzhen, who kicked it away, while the Little Orange Cat hid by Shen Yangge’s feet.
• Chu Xuanzhen questioned where the Little Orange Cat came from and why Shen Yangge was holding it, so Shen Yangge claimed he had rescued it because it resembled his childhood cat.
• System 615 pretended its front legs were broken, and Shen Yangge backed up the lie by claiming the kitten was only temporarily injured.
• Chu Xuanzhen challenged Shen Yangge’s ability to treat animals, while System 615 stayed curled in his arms and cried from fear.

Shen Yangge watched Liang Jinwen impersonate Chu Xuanzhen while the real Chu Xuanzhen struggled with jealousy. On the final day, the ministers urged Chu Xuanzhen to ascend the throne, leaving Shen Yangge wondering whether he would have to choose a side.

• Chu Xuanzhen took System 615, disguised as a ginger cat, from Shen Yangge and made him hand it to a palace maid before Shen Yangge bathed.
• Shen Yangge mistook Liang Jinwen, who was impersonating Chu Xuanzhen, for a possible stand-in and reached to test his identity.
• The real Chu Xuanzhen interrupted them, objected that Liang Jinwen had stood too close to Shen Yangge, and assigned Liang Jinwen to impersonate him for ten days.
• Liang Jinwen met with Great Chu's officials over the following days without arousing suspicion, while Consort Xue remained ill in her palace chambers.
• On the final day, the ministers petitioned Chu Xuanzhen to ascend the throne, and Shen Yangge wondered whether it was time to choose.

Shen Yangge resolved to hunt down the other bugs in the world, keeping his dangerous plan from Chu Xuanzhen as he sought leave to return to the Shen Residence. After Chu Xuanzhen agreed to let him go for four days and regained his adult form, Shen Yangge embraced him and vowed to return.

• Shen Yangge realized he could not bear to leave Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Mother, but remembered that killing the other bug might give him another way to survive.
• Shen Yangge used System 615 to identify targets and planned to assassinate the prince from the Western Regions before going after Chu Xuanzhi.
• System 615 warned Shen Yangge that Chu Xuanzhen might confine him if he learned the truth, so Shen Yangge decided to conceal his plan and slip away from the Shen Residence.
• Shen Yangge persuaded Chu Xuanzhen to let him take leave, and Chu Xuanzhen agreed to four days despite suspecting his reason for going.
• Chu Xuanzhen returned to his adult form, and Shen Yangge embraced and kissed him, resolving that he had to come back.

Chu Xuanzhen kept Shen Yangge with him through a long, exhausting night, then arranged for him to return to the Shen Residence. Shen Yangge left the palace in a palanquin and continued home in a carriage, while officials speculated about his closeness to Chu Xuanzhen.

• Chu Xuanzhen kissed Shen Yangge and ignored his attempts to slow things down, telling him to behave.
• After another round of intimacy that night, Shen Yangge woke sore and exhausted, then prepared to leave for the Shen Residence.
• A servant told Shen Yangge that Chu Xuanzhen had ordered a palanquin for him, and Shen Yangge agreed to ride in it.
• Shen Yangge warned System 615 not to climb on him because he was in pain, then boarded the palanquin.
• Officials saw Shen Yangge's palanquin and speculated that Chu Xuanzhen favored him because they were close.
• Shen Yangge boarded a cushioned carriage arranged by Chu Xuanzhen and grew drowsy on the way to the Shen Residence.

Shen Yangge returned to the Shen Residence, hid the truth about his relationship with Chu Xuanzhen from Shen Mother, and prepared to leave for Ruthis. When Chu Xuanzhen’s watchers blocked his way, Shen Yangge tried to disguise himself by asking a servant to take off his clothes.

• Shen Yangge arrived at the Shen Residence and let Shen Mother believe that His Highness had caned him.
• Shen Yangge told his Younger Sister that he and His Highness were in a relationship, and she agreed to keep it from Shen Mother.
• Shen Yangge greeted He Yimo and He Nuan, then went to bed exhausted.
• At dawn, Shen Yangge discovered Chu Xuanzhen’s people watching his door and decided to trick them so he could leave for Ruthis.
• Shen Yangge ordered a servant to take off his clothes, but the frightened servant misunderstood his request.

Shen Yangge disguised himself as a servant and escaped the Shen Residence with System 615’s help. He slipped out of Capital City with a merchant caravan, while the system’s promised contact awaited beyond the gates.

• Shen Yangge ordered a servant to lie in his bed with his back to the door, then had him change the bedding and leave a letter explaining his absence.
• Shen Yangge put on the servant’s robe and used System 615’s temporary ability to disguise his face as he left the room.
• System 615 escaped separately through a window, and it and Shen Yangge reunited outside the Shen Residence.
• Shen Yangge carried System 615 toward the city gates and joined a merchant caravan as the gates opened.

Shen Yangge used System 615’s ability to escape Capital City and traveled toward a designated destination while evading Chu Xuanzhen’s search. At the docks, soldiers recognized him from a portrait, and he was trapped as they closed in.

• Shen Yangge left Capital City with a merchant caravan and used System 615’s ability to make his departure seem natural.
• After reaching the boundary of Capital City, Shen Yangge paid off the driver, changed to a horse, and rode toward the destination System 615 had chosen.
• Shen Yangge avoided the main roads and hurried out of a Northern States town before patrolling soldiers sealed its gates.
• At the docks, Shen Yangge disguised himself as a beggar and joined the inspection line, but he recognized the search leader’s reaction to seeing him.
• Shen Yangge left the line with an excuse about his spouse, but the soldiers identified him from the portrait and rushed after him, trapping him.

Shen Yangge escaped his pursuers by jumping into the river and used System 615’s special privilege to reach a departing ship, where the passengers mistook him for a runaway bride before discovering the orange cat hidden in his clothes. System 615 said they were close to the target character, and the story then shifted to Shen Mother in Capital City holding a letter.

• Shen Yangge caught a baby in the panicked crowd, then jumped into the river to escape the official and the death soldiers.
• The official stopped the soldiers from pursuing Shen Yangge and sent a report by carrier pigeon.
• Shen Yangge swam toward a departing ship and used System 615’s special privilege to appear on its deck.
• Two soldiers and the passengers mistook Shen Yangge for a young woman fleeing an arranged marriage before System 615 emerged as an orange cat.
• Shen Yangge changed into dry clothes, and System 615 told him they were close to the target character.
• The story shifted to a few days earlier, when Shen Mother held a letter in Capital City, Great Chu.

Shen Mother learned that Shen Yangge had left for the Northern States alone, while Zhou Dashi survived questioning by Chu Xuanzhen. After receiving a message that Shen Zhuanxie had jumped into the sea, Chu Xuanzhen ordered his men to stop pursuing him and erupted in anger.

• Shen Mother worried over Shen Yangge’s departure, forgave Zhou Dashi for impersonating him, and sent him away.
• Chu Xuanzhen summoned Zhou Dashi, questioned him about the impersonation, and let him return to the Shen Residence.
• Chu Xuanzhen read a message about Shen Zhuanxie and ordered his Death Soldiers to stop pursuing him.
• Chu Xuanzhen smashed objects in his study and raged that Shen Zhuanxie had been forced to jump into the sea.

Chu Xuanzhen’s illness worsened, and he destroyed the memorials urging him to take the throne while struggling to control himself. That evening, he tested the eunuch’s loyalty and left him fearing the Crown Prince’s true nature.

• Chu Xuanzhen’s eyes turned pitch-black as his illness flared, and he tore apart and soaked the ministers’ memorials in ink.
• A eunuch glimpsed Chu Xuanzhen’s terrifying expression and later supervised servants cleaning the ruined memorials.
• Chu Xuanzhen appeared from the darkness and asked the eunuch whether he would remain at his side in exchange for wealth and glory.
• The eunuch vowed never to betray or leave Chu Xuanzhen, and Chu Xuanzhen told him to remember his promise.

The senior eunuch punished Little Table for expressing regret at leaving his former master and reaffirmed his loyalty to His Highness. Aboard a ship, Shen Yangge fought off thugs who harassed him, then worried that inspectors waiting at the shore had come to arrest him.

• The senior eunuch slapped Little Table, disowned him as a godson, and ordered him to receive fifty strokes for speaking as though he still served his former master.
• The senior eunuch warned the other eunuchs not to visit Little Table and vowed to clear obstacles from His Highness’s path.
• Several thugs surrounded Shen Yangge and threatened him and System 615, but Shen Yangge punched one of them and System 615 clawed another.
• Shen Yangge used his system-enhanced strength to beat the thugs into submission and warned them not to harass anyone again.
• As the ship neared shore, Shen Yangge saw inspectors among the waiting crowd and wondered whether Chu Xuanzhen had sent them to arrest him.

Shen Yangge escaped a search in Qiliang City, only to be attacked by two masked men at his inn. He subdued and tied them up, determined to find out who had sent them.

• Shen Yangge disguised himself as a sickly commoner and passed the soldiers searching for a runaway.
• The soldiers arrested the injured thugs who accused Shen Yangge of escaping their custody.
• Shen Yangge rented a room at an inn and was ambushed by two masked men after the waiter delivered his meal.
• The attackers said the second young master had drawn Shen Yangge's face, and Shen Yangge wondered who that person was.
• Shen Yangge defeated the masked men, got rope from the frightened waiter, and bound them.

Shen Yangge captured two assassins and pursued a target connected to his plan to kill Ruthis. In Great Chu’s Capital City, the old emperor died after Chu Xuanzhen visited him, and Chu Xuanzhen was asked whether the emperor’s open eyes should be closed.

• Shen Yangge tied up two assassins, questioned them about their master, and left them bound and unmasked outside the government office.
• Following System 615’s directions, Shen Yangge entered a walled compound, fell into a pond, hid from a patrol, and waited for his target to approach.
• Chu Xuanzhen visited the dying old emperor and whispered that she would soon join him.
• After the old emperor died, the eunuch cleaned his face and asked Chu Xuanzhen whether he should close the emperor’s eyes.

After the old emperor died, Chu Xuanzhen took control of the funeral arrangements and summoned the Eighth Prince, now Prince Guo Qing. He sent Prince Guo Qing and the other princes away from the capital, dispatching him to the Northern States despite his protests.

• The Empress arrived in mourning, accused Chu Xuanzhen of killing the old emperor, and fainted after the eunuch covered her mouth; the eunuch assigned the Noble Consort to oversee the funeral.
• Prince Guo Qing arrived to see the old emperor, then went to meet Chu Xuanzhen in the side hall.
• Prince Guo Qing questioned Chu Xuanzhen for wearing bright yellow robes without mourning clothes and asked where Shen Yangge was.
• Chu Xuanzhen told Prince Guo Qing he would be sent to the Northern States, and Prince Guo Qing protested that the journey might kill him.
• Chu Xuanzhen forced an imperial decree on Prince Guo Qing and sent him and the other princes away on the day of the old emperor's burial.

Chu Xuanzhen continued postponing his enthronement despite the ministers’ pleas, while Shen Yangge watched Ruthis fight masked attackers. After Shen Yangge and System 615 tried to manipulate the fight to complete their mission, the system punished Shen Yangge by turning him into a mermaid for fifteen days, forcing him to flee.

• Chu Xuanzhen secured the old emperor in his coffin, then rejected the Grand Tutor’s proposed enthronement date and ordered another postponement.
• The Grand Tutor told the ministers to recalculate an auspicious date, and several elderly officials fainted at the news.
• Shen Yangge watched Ruthis defeat the men in black who had attacked him and learned they had orders from their Master to kill him.
• Shen Yangge and System 615 tried to use their privileges against the attackers, but the system retaliated for violating their contract.
• The system announced that Shen Yangge would become a mermaid for fifteen days, and Shen Yangge decided he had to leave before the punishment began.