Chapter Summaries

Shen Yangge disguised himself and fled the parade, evading the Eighth Prince and Chu Xuanzhen’s search. He hid in Capital City’s largest beggars’ den to wait out the night, unaware that someone had arrived beside him.

• Little Dragon disappeared from the carriage, and the Eighth Prince sent guards to search while reassuring the crowd that the dragon child had returned to his dragon palace.
• Chu Xuanzhen heard Shen Yangge was missing and raced toward the palace gates, leaving his death sworn guards struggling to keep up.
• Shen Yangge concealed his golden eyes and Dragon Horns, dirtied his face and clothes, and avoided the guards searching the alley.
• System 615 warned Shen Yangge that Chu Xuanzhen might be watching the city gates, so Shen Yangge decided to hide until morning.
• Shen Yangge followed System 615’s directions to the largest beggars’ den, covered his head, and closed his eyes without noticing someone arrive.

Shen Yangge disguised himself as a beggar named Wang Gousheng to evade the search for him, then encountered Su Huaihuan while waiting near the city gate. He recognized her as the woman connected to a dying man’s hairpin, but had left the hairpin behind and expected to leave the Capital City without returning it.

• Shen Yangge told the investigators he was a beggar named Wang Gousheng and denied seeing any children his age, convincing them to leave.
• Shen Yangge stayed in the beggars’ den overnight, traded malt sugar candy for a small knife, and cut his clothes to make them look ragged.
• Shen Yangge avoided search parties and spotted the Eighth Prince guarding the city gate, then waited in an alley for his punishment to end.
• Su Huaihuan offered Shen Yangge a steamed bun and invited him to come live at the Su residence.
• Shen Yangge recognized Su Huaihuan but realized he had left her hairpin in the Eastern Palace; he declined the bun, and she urged him to take it anyway.

Shen Yangge tried to avoid being recognized while his punishment turned him into a child, but a fleeing thug took him hostage and carried him beyond the city. As the punishment neared its end, Shen Yangge escaped the thug and hid in bushes while his pursuers approached.

• Shen Yangge noticed the Eighth Prince's soldiers investigating a street disturbance and worried they would expose his identity.
• A fleeing thug grabbed Shen Yangge as a hostage, and Su Huaihuan stopped the soldiers from attacking by claiming he belonged to the Su household.
• The thug escaped through the city gate with Shen Yangge, despite the Eighth Prince threatening him with a bow and arrow.
• The thug fled on horseback, but Shen Yangge clung to him and convinced him to carry him along until the pursuers were farther away.
• The thug eventually threw Shen Yangge onto the grass, and Shen Yangge hid in bushes as the approaching hoofbeats drew near.

Shen Yangge escaped Capital City and reached a small town, while Chu Xuanzhen realized the Dragon Child had fled and pursued the trail of a little beggar. After questioning Su Huaihuan about the beggar, Chu Xuanzhen learned what had happened before Shen Yangge left.

• Shen Yangge changed back to his adult body, left Capital City, and reached a small town after a day of travel.
• Shen Yangge tried to find work, then considered begging but lacked even a bowl; a local beggar showed him how to beg.
• Chu Xuanzhen found Shen Yangge’s discarded robe, recognized that the little figure he had seen was his little liar, and ordered his death soldiers to gather the beggars in Capital City.
• Chu Xuanzhen found Shen Yangge among none of the beggars and concluded that he had left Capital City.
• Chu Xuanzhen learned that a criminal and a little beggar had left the city, then ordered Su Huaihuan brought to him.
• Su Huaihuan explained that she had found the little beggar, offered to take him into her household, and later saw him taken hostage by a criminal.

Chu Xuanzhen learned the emperor had killed Prince Anping and that he himself was not the emperor’s son, then left Capital City to search for Shen Yangge. Shen Yangge sensed he was being watched and fled Hibiscus Mountain under cover of night.

• Chu Xuanzhen found a scrap of cloth on the country path and concluded that the missing boy had already left the outskirts of Capital City.
• Chu Xuanzhen gave the Eighth Prince portraits of Shen Yangge and ordered him to capture Shen Yangge without injuring him.
• The emperor revealed that Chu Xuanzhen was Prince Anping’s son, not his own, and admitted responsibility for Prince Anping’s death and the South Seas Curse-Head Sorcery.
• Chu Xuanzhen left the emperor’s bedside, while the emperor later lost consciousness and Chu Xuanzhen rejected the ministers’ pleas to ascend the throne.
• After a Death Soldier reported that Shen Yangge had stayed in Hibiscus Mountain, Chu Xuanzhen left Capital City and rode toward the town.
• Shen Yangge suspected his identity had been exposed and fled Hibiscus Mountain at night.

Shen Yangge fled far from Capital City and built a new life as a bookkeeper, hoping to complete his mission and escape the world before Chu Xuanzhen found him. After a month, he was sent to welcome an honored visitor and discovered that Chu Xuanzhen had tracked him down.

• Shen Yangge traveled through the night, passed a village, and rested in a tree before continuing his journey.
• After several days, Shen Yangge reached a border city, entered with help from a young lady, and decided to abandon his disguise.
• Shen Yangge found work as a bookkeeper in a wealthy household and gradually gained the trust of two stewards while planning to provoke his own death.
• A month later, Shen Yangge was assigned to attend the household master as he welcomed an honored visitor from out of town.
• At the city gate, Shen Yangge recognized the honored visitor as Chu Xuanzhen, who had tracked him there.

Shen Yangge tried to escape the estate after spotting Chu Xuanzhen, but he was caught sneaking out through the back gate. Zhang Xiaoshi ordered him to go see Steward Zuo, leaving Shen Yangge's escape in jeopardy.

• Shen Yangge spotted Chu Xuanzhen arriving and fled into the crowd before the man could confront him.
• Shen Yangge returned to his quarters, packed his belongings, and stayed inside when he heard Chu Xuanzhen approaching the estate.
• Shen Yangge spent the afternoon hiding and learned from another servant that Chu Xuanzhen was an important guest from Capital City.
• Shen Yangge tried to sneak out through the back gate during the banquet, but Zhang Xiaoshi caught him with his bundle and told him to see Steward Zuo.

Shen Yangge escaped the estate and hid overnight, but Chu Xuanzhen’s men ambushed him outside the city gates the next morning. Chu Xuanzhen caught up with him and declared that he had nowhere left to run.

• Shen Yangge tricked Zhang Xiaoshi and fled the estate, prompting Steward Zuo to report his escape to the master.
• Chu Xuanzhen ordered his guards to pursue Shen Yangge, frightening the master and his guests.
• Shen Yangge found the city gates closed and hid beneath an offering table in a ruined shrine for the night.
• At dawn, Shen Yangge blended into the crowd leaving through the city gate, but Chu Xuanzhen’s men emerged from hiding and surrounded him.
• Chu Xuanzhen stepped on Shen Yangge’s bundle, gripped his cheeks, and told him he had nowhere left to run.

Chu Xuanzhen brought Shen Yangge back from Ji Guangchun’s estate after finding him disguised as a servant named Wang Gousheng. Back in their room, Chu Xuanzhen kissed him insistently, while Shen Yangge tried to stop things from going further.

• Chu Xuanzhen carried Shen Yangge back into Ji Guangchun’s estate after finding him there.
• The Eighth Prince told Ji Guangchun that the servant Wang Gousheng was Shen Yangge, the court official favored by Chu Xuanzhen, and warned everyone not to disturb them.
• Chu Xuanzhen carried Shen Yangge to a room and kissed him repeatedly.
• Shen Yangge bit Chu Xuanzhen’s lip, clutched his clothes, and begged him not to continue.
• Chu Xuanzhen said he did not mind Shen Yangge’s lack of interest, leaving Shen Yangge inwardly furious.

Chu Xuanzhen cornered Shen Yangge and tried to make him promise not to run away again, while Shen Yangge resisted his possessive advances. A flashback revealed how Chu Xuanzhen had tracked him down and how anxiously he had prepared for their reunion.

• Shen Yangge tried to reason with Chu Xuanzhen, but Chu Xuanzhen pulled him back when he tried to flee and called him a little liar.
• Chu Xuanzhen wiped away Shen Yangge’s disguise and demanded to know whether he meant his promise not to run away again.
• Shen Yangge cursed and kicked Chu Xuanzhen as he refused to stop kissing him, while the Eighth Prince waited outside the room and left.
• Half a month earlier, Chu Xuanzhen had sealed escape routes around the small city and enlisted the Ji Mansion’s informants to find Shen Yangge.
• Chu Xuanzhen had arrived at the city gate, spotted Shen Yangge in the crowd, and restrained himself from confronting him too harshly.

Chu Xuanzhen kissed and restrained Shen Yangge through the night, leaving him exhausted and chained to the bed. The next morning, Shen Yangge confronted Chu Xuanzhen over his treatment of him, but Chu Xuanzhen laid him back down before he could get away.

• Chu Xuanzhen kissed Shen Yangge, while the Eighth Prince approached the room but decided to postpone his urgent report.
• Chu Xuanzhen restrained Shen Yangge, and the rainy night passed without the Eighth Prince arriving.
• Shen Yangge woke exhausted, found a chain fastened to his wrist, and struggled to get out of bed.
• Chu Xuanzhen entered with porridge, checked on Shen Yangge, and did not remove the chain when Shen demanded it.
• Shen Yangge asked whether Chu Xuanzhen's treatment was what he meant by liking him, and Chu Xuanzhen carried him back onto the bed.

Shen Yangge remained confined by Chu Xuanzhen after their encounter while the two princes faced a rebellion surrounding the town. When Chu Xuanzhen left to deal with the crisis, the Eighth Prince told Shen Yangge they were trapped and learned that his brother had locked Shen Yangge in golden handcuffs.

• Chu Xuanzhen fed Shen Yangge porridge and promised to unlock his golden handcuffs once they returned to the Capital City, but Shen Yangge stayed cold toward him.
• Ji Guangchun learned that nearby towns had been occupied and that rebel forces were preparing to attack the town and seize both princes.
• Shen Yangge recovered over the next two days while Chu Xuanzhen brought him food, and the two remained at an impasse.
• On the third day, Chu Xuanzhen stayed away, and the Eighth Prince came to look after Shen Yangge.
• The Eighth Prince told Shen Yangge that enemies surrounded the town, and he realized Chu Xuanzhen had locked Shen Yangge up.

Shen Yangge remained tethered in Chu Xuanzhen’s quarters while recovering, and Chu Xuanzhen approached him with an intense confession about sharing life and death. Their conversation was interrupted by Zhang Xiaoshi, who entered and found Chu Xuanzhen beside the bed.

• Shen Yangge failed to break the tether on his wrist and remained unable to contact System 615.
• Chu Xuanzhen asked whether Shen Yangge felt better, but refused to release him and leaned against his shoulder.
• Chu Xuanzhen asked Shen Yangge whether he would share his bed in life and his grave in death if he lost the war.
• Shen Yangge recognized that Chu Xuanzhen was having another episode and asked whether he was confessing his feelings.
• Zhang Xiaoshi came to see Shen Yangge, entered the room, and bowed nervously to Chu Xuanzhen.

Shen Yangge refused Zhang Xiaoshi’s plea for help, while Chu Xuanzhen threatened him until Shen Yangge stopped him. As the bandit siege arrived ahead of schedule, Shen Yangge learned that Chu Xuanzhen had left a key that unlocked the restraint on his wrist.

• Zhang Xiaoshi begged Shen Yangge to buy back his indenture contract, but Shen Yangge refused to help him leave.
• Chu Xuanzhen drew his sword against Zhang Xiaoshi for addressing Shen Yangge as an equal, then put it away when Shen Yangge asked him not to kill anyone in the room.
• Five days later, Shen Yangge realized the siege was happening two years earlier than in the original novel and suspected Chu Tianyin had orchestrated it.
• Shen Yangge considered whether Jiang Qinghuan, the novel’s heroine, had met Chu Xuanzhen and whether she could cure his madness.
• A servant warned Shen Yangge that the bandits had broken into the city and said Chu Xuanzhen had gone toward the city gate.
• Shen Yangge asked for a way to remove the restraint on his wrist, and the servant used a key left by Chu Xuanzhen to unlock it.

Shen Yangge escaped Ji Guangchun’s estate during the Japanese pirate attack and headed for the breached city gate to find Chu Xuanzhen. After spotting Chu outside the city, he followed the Jiang Family’s carriage, where Jiang Qinghuan recognized him and allowed him to keep up.

• Shen Yangge slipped out of the estate disguised as a servant, evading Japanese pirates who were watching for Chu Xuanzhen’s weakness.
• Shen Yangge headed toward the city gate to warn Chu Xuanzhen that the Fourth Prince’s men were scattered throughout the city, and his servant followed him despite the danger.
• Shen Yangge and his servant encountered looters and reached a lane overlooking the breached gate, where they could not find Chu among the defenders.
• Shen Yangge spotted Chu Xuanzhen outside the gate and decided to follow the Jiang Family’s carriage to reach him.
• Jiang Qinghuan saw Shen Yangge following the carriage and told her maid to let him come along.

Shen Yangge spotted Chu Xuanzhen fighting outside the city and abandoned the Jiang family's carriage to rush to him. Chu Xuanzhen rescued him, shackled their wrists together again, and carried him with the troops as they fought to break through the raiders' encirclement.

• Jiang Qinghuan watched Shen Yangge run behind her carriage as it escaped the city, while Shen Yangge spotted Chu Xuanzhen fighting among the raiders.
• Shen Yangge suddenly charged toward Chu Xuanzhen, who leaped from his horse, killed a raider, and pulled Shen Yangge into his arms.
• Shen Yangge warned Chu Xuanzhen about the trouble inside the city and told him the Jiang family's people might be nearby as Chu Xuanzhen fought off more raiders.
• Chu Xuanzhen shackled Shen Yangge's wrist to his own, ordered his subordinate to begin the breakout, and carried Shen Yangge while fighting.
• The Eighth Prince joined the group protecting Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge as they retreated toward the woods with the raiders in pursuit.

Shen Yangge and Chu Xuanzhen escaped their pursuers through a hidden passage, where Shen Yangge discovered Chu Xuanzhen was badly wounded. A system punishment then transformed Shen Yangge into a little bird, leaving Chu Xuanzhen to figure out how to explain it.

• Chu Xuanzhen carried Shen Yangge through an ambush and plunged with him into a river to escape the Japanese raiders, then followed the Eighth Prince into a concealed passage.
• After waking in the dark, Shen Yangge accidentally stepped on a resting black-clad man and realized Chu Xuanzhen had been nearby all along.
• Shen Yangge noticed blood seeping through Chu Xuanzhen's armor and confronted him for hiding his injury.
• The system announced that Shen Yangge had broken character and revealed new functions, including a transformation option that could not be used during a punishment.
• Shen Yangge asked for the lamp to be extinguished before his punishment began, then transformed into a little bird for ten days.

Shen Yangge, transformed into a little bird, fought to protect Chu Xuanzhen during the escape from the cave and then passed out from exhaustion. After Chu Xuanzhen feared the bird was dead, Shen Yangge woke, and Chu Xuanzhen kissed his beak, leaving him mortified.

• Shen Yangge discovered he had become a bird for ten days and perched on Chu Xuanzhen's shoulder as the Eighth Prince found him in the cave.
• The Eighth Prince's forces opened the stone door and fought the raiders while Chu Xuanzhen joined the battle with Shen Yangge tucked inside his collar.
• Shen Yangge flew out to attack a raider threatening Chu Xuanzhen, giving Chu Xuanzhen an opening to kill the man.
• Chu Xuanzhen collapsed from his waist wound, and the Eighth Prince treated him while Shen Yangge watched before passing out from exhaustion.
• Chu Xuanzhen feared Shen Yangge was dead until the bird woke, then kissed his beak and carefully cleaned the blood from his feathers.
• Shen Yangge blushed with embarrassment and pretended to faint again as Chu Xuanzhen stroked him.

Shen Yangge remained a bird as Chu Xuanzhen’s group struggled to escape the Fourth Prince’s blockade and repeated pirate attacks. After the group reached the mountains and prepared to fight back, the fleeing pirates faced a merciless interrogation.

• The Eighth Prince reported that the Fourth Prince’s troops had sealed the roads and intercepted their letters, while Chu Xuanzhen considered offering Jiang Heming a tempting benefit to secure an alliance.
• The Eighth Prince brought Shen Yangge a jar of insects, but Chu Xuanzhen threw it out after realizing Shen Yangge did not want to eat them.
• When pirates attacked during the group’s attempt to move into the mountains, Shen Yangge flew from Chu Xuanzhen’s sleeve, struck a pirate in the eye, and was sent flying.
• Chu Xuanzhen turned back for Shen Yangge despite his injuries, reunited with him, and fought through another pirate encirclement with the Eighth Prince’s help.
• The group escaped up the mountain, where the Eighth Prince triggered traps and rolling rocks that killed many pursuing pirates.
• At the mountaintop, Chu Xuanzhen and the Eighth Prince prepared their weapons as the terrified pirates tried to retreat, only to face interrogation.

The Eighth Prince suggested using Shen Yangge to carry a secret message because the messenger pigeons were being shot down. After Shen Yangge insisted on going, Chu Xuanzhen agreed and taught him the route, leaving the blue bird ready to undertake the mission.

• The Eighth Prince proposed sending Shen Yangge to deliver a message, but Chu Xuanzhen refused, worried about his safety.
• Shen Yangge decided to take the task and flew onto the Eighth Prince’s shoulder to show his resolve.
• Chu Xuanzhen called Shen Yangge back and, after he persisted, asked the Eighth Prince to fetch a map.
• Chu Xuanzhen showed Shen Yangge the route and carefully explained how to reach the destination.
• Shen Yangge nodded to show he understood, astonishing the Eighth Prince with his apparent ability to follow a map.