I'll Keep You Alive for the Rest of Your Life

A longsword pierced the assassin's right shoulder.

As the sword was pulled free, blood sprayed out with it.

Shen Yangge heard only a soft scoff before someone hauled him up by the back of his collar. He was about to resist when the person holding him said, "Don't move."

He froze for a moment, then stopped struggling.

"Although I don't know why you're immune to the sleeping drug, Lord Shen, I must admit I admire your luck."

"Hey, couldn't you have woken me sooner? What if I hadn't woken up?!"

The man behind him chuckled and set him down. "If you hadn't woken up, Lord Shen, he wouldn't have lived this long."

What did that mean?

Wait.

The Crown Prince's words flashed through Shen Yangge's mind, and his face darkened. "Was it... His Highness?"

The man in black fell silent, tacitly confirming it.

I knew it. There had to be a catch when he let me leave so generously!

Is this his way of openly telling me I need to learn my lesson?

Shen Yangge felt a dull ache in his forehead.

Seeing the two utterly disregard him, the assassin could no longer contain his fury. He raised his sword and charged again, but he had underestimated his opponent's strength...

And overestimated his own abilities. His shoulder was already wounded, severely limiting him in a fight.

Before long, the assassin was overwhelmed. The man in black sent him flying out the window. A muffled grunt sounded, then the assassin outside went still.

Clearly, he was dead.

Despite all the commotion, no one had come. If the Crown Prince hadn't deliberately arranged this, there was definitely more to it than met the eye.

Shen Yangge was lost in thought when the man in black spoke. "Lord Shen, my name is Su Shang, not 'hey.'"

"Su Shang, is he not the only one here to assassinate me?"

"Correct."

"There'll be more... later tonight?"

Su Shang nodded.

"Lord Shen, I suggest you go to His Highness's bedchamber. At least riffraff like that fellow can't get inside. They're usually killed outside. Anyone who makes it into the bedchamber is no small fry."

Shen Yangge remembered the first time he had stayed overnight in the Eastern Palace. Those two assassins had been exceptionally agile.

If they hadn't fallen into the Crown Prince's trap, they might have found a way to turn things around.

Unfortunately, they had underestimated the mad Crown Prince far too much.

What should he do next? Keep waiting for more assassination attempts, or swallow his pride and beg the Crown Prince to take him in?

Neither choice was easy.

System 615: [Host, to foster a friendly relationship between superior and subordinate, I suggest you go to the male lead's bedchamber (^-^)]

System, other hosts cling to the male lead because they want to live. I cling to him because I want to die. Has it ever occurred to you that our whole approach is a little skewed?

System 615: [(⊙o⊙) Host, you have a point, but this is one of the few options currently available!]

The system's meaning was obvious: if he could come up with a solution himself, he wouldn't have to worry about fostering a friendly relationship with his superior.

After much deliberation, Shen Yangge still didn't want to go. At worst, he simply wouldn't sleep.

Su Shang said, "Lord Shen, are you actually a peerless martial arts master?"

Shen Yangge gave him a look that plainly said, "Are you a certified idiot?" and shook his head.

Su Shang raised an eyebrow. "Then are you a wandering swordsman concealing extraordinary agility?"

Speechless, Shen Yangge shook his head again.

Su Shang fell silent.

"Then why won't you go to the Crown Prince's bedchamber, Lord Shen? Have you... had enough of living?"

I don't know about having had enough of living, but I'd really like the Crown Prince to execute me. He just keeps putting it off.

Of course, he couldn't voice those complaints aloud, or he would break character.

Against his true feelings, he said, "What kind of joke is that? If I'd had enough of living, why would I be dodging assassins? Why wouldn't I let one take my life with a single thrust?"

Su Shang was speechless.

Judging by your face, you don't seem to be telling the truth.

"Then wait here, Lord Shen..."

Shen Yangge cut him off before he could continue.

"Su Shang, if you've been ordered to protect me, then I don't have to go to the Crown Prince's bedchamber. I know you're very capable."

He hadn't really wanted to say that, but he simply couldn't swallow his pride. Staying in the Crown Prince's bedchamber before, when he hadn't refused, was one thing. But going back after turning him down...

For some inexplicable reason, he recalled the Crown Prince applying ointment to him again.

Su Shang said, "Lord Shen, if there are too many of them, I may not be able to protect you."

"Then life and death are fated, and wealth and rank are in heaven's hands."

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, Su Shang pressed his lips together and finally fell silent, tightening his grip on the sword at his waist.

Deep in the night, two groups of assassins approached the Eastern Palace from different directions, converging on the silent, eerie residence.

Shen Yangge hid in the only place in the room that could conceal a person-under the bed.

With a click, the window was gently opened. He immediately quieted his breathing, waiting for Su Shang to deal with the intruder before coming out.

Click.

Just then, another sound came from the door opening. Shen Yangge tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible.

Suddenly!

A dark figure darted around the bed, then swiftly squeezed underneath it.

Faced with the assassin's sudden arrival, Shen Yangge thrust out the dagger in his hand without hesitation.

Caught completely off guard, the assassin took a stab to the shoulder. Furious, he stared at the man who should have been lying on the bed but was instead hiding beneath it with him-and had even stabbed him.

Rage seethed inside him.

"You little..."

"Out you go!"

Before he could finish, a fierce kick sent him flying out from under the bed. He lay stunned for several seconds, until his eyes met those of the assassin who had entered.

"Prepare to die!"

The assassin who had come through the door clearly didn't belong to the same group as the one who had entered through the window.

Shen Yangge had noticed that immediately. What he hadn't expected was for the assassin from the window to hide beneath the bed. If the system hadn't reacted quickly, and he hadn't been just as quick to strike...

There was no telling what might have happened to him.

That had been far too close.

Inside the room, the two assassins fought fiercely.

Neither gave the other an inch.

Eventually, however, the assassin with the wounded shoulder lost, and the one who had entered through the door killed him with a single thrust.

Shen Yangge screamed inwardly, Su Shang!

The assassin drew closer and closer to the bed.

"Come out."

The voice was slightly hoarse, but it was recognizably Su Shang's.

Hearing it, Shen Yangge breathed a sigh of relief. He was just about to crawl out when the system began beeping in alarm.

System 615: [Don't come out, Host. The person outside is impersonating that hidden guard named Su Shang.]

Shen Yangge's expression stiffened, but he immediately grumbled inwardly, Even if I don't come out, he'll find me eventually.

Despite that thought, Shen Yangge didn't dare make any rash moves.

Why was the assassin pretending to be Su Shang to lure him out?

"Lord Shen, come out. I won't hurt you."

The man reverted to an unfamiliar voice, deliberately emphasizing the last sentence.

Shen Yangge asked, "Who are you, and what do you want?"

After a brief hesitation, the man said, "Several more groups of assassins are coming in from outside. Come with me, and I'll keep you alive for the rest of your life."