Warning
A bit of gore at the start
A sharp and piercing cry shattered the silence, alarming everyone present. As they raised their heads and caught a clear view of the scene inside the hall, one person couldn’t help but run to the corner and vomit.
Inside the hall, amid a sea of blood, Jiang Jingyue was pressing down on a figure, now barely recognizable as human, savagely devouring its flesh. Nearby, the ground was littered with blood, disembodied limbs, and internal organs, creating a grotesque and nauseating tableau.
The monster of Qinfeng Hall had eaten Physician Li, who had been sent to take his pulse!
This rumor spread quickly throughout the palace. The emperor, bedridden, was so shocked and angered by the news that he fainted. By the time he regained consciousness, two days had passed. The insides of Qinfeng Hall were swarmed with flies due to the lack of food and water.
Facing his nephew, the heir of the God of War who had been driven to madness, the emperor couldn’t bear to imprison him. However, for the safety of the palace, he reluctantly ordered the sealing off of the area around Qinfeng Hall. To ensure the basic needs were met, he decreed that cooked food and water be delivered to a designated spot daily.
When the public learned of this, there was an outpouring of gratitude toward the emperor. They praised his wisdom and magnanimity in treating the orphaned prince so well. For the first time, the emperor’s popularity surged everywhere.
Spring had quietly passed, and the fierce summer rains came pouring down. Amidst the thunder and lightning, Jiang Jingyue sat in the rain like a soulless puppet, allowing the cold rain to cleanse the mess that covered him.
The rain washed away the grime from his face. His eyes, once lively and pure, now lacked any semblance of luster.
“If you wish to die, keep sitting there.”
A clear, cold voice sounded not far away, causing Jiang Jingyue’s eyelashes to flutter. Lifting his rain-soaked face, he looked in the direction of the voice.
In the torrential rain, a man in white, with slender fingers gripping a wooden umbrella handle, stood silently not far away, looking at him with indifferent eyes.
Though the man was only a few steps away, Jiang Jingyue felt an insurmountable distance between them, as if no matter how much he stretched out his hands, he couldn’t reach him.
Seeing no movement, Gu Weizhou walked towards a nearby eave, closed his umbrella, and said, “…I’ll only stay for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.”
With that, he entered the dark hall.
Just after sitting down, Gu Weizhou saw the person, who moments ago had seemed to desire death, hesitantly entering. Following him, a disheveled young boy looked at him and abruptly knelt down with a thud.
“…Teach me.”
These two trembling words carried an immeasurable weight of hatred and vengeance.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Faced with this scene, Gu Weizhou let out a particularly refined and cold laugh, staring intently at the person before him, and said, “Why should I…?” You’re not some handsome boy with an eight-pack abs, after all.
Jiang Jingyue, disheveled and kneeling on the ground, was taken aback for a few seconds. Why indeed?
Hadn’t the man in front of him saved him? If not for him, he would have certainly become a crazy beast. If he didn’t want to help him further, why save him in the first place?
Why did I save you? Gu Weizhou’s thought was clear. He wanted Jiang Jingyue to meet an even more miserable end but not before helping him kill the emperor of Da Ao and, in doing so, set him free from this forsaken place. Otherwise, he would spend his entire life confined to such a desolate location.
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After saying this, Gu Weizhou estimated the time and added, “You have the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea. After today, I won’t come again.” So, beg me.
Jiang Jingyue looked up abruptly. He wanted to reach out and grab the only person who might be able to help him. But, looking at the man’s pristine white clothes, he held back his dirty hands.
“I… I… I can do it. Whatever my father could achieve, I can too…”
Gu Weizhou cast a cold glance at the kneeling man and sneered, “You…? Ha… You think I’d believe you?”
Hearing this, Jiang Jingyue felt as if what little dignity he had left was being trampled upon. He wanted to retort, but as he opened his mouth, he became acutely aware of his disheveled appearance.
Where was his dignity now? At the moment, he was nothing more than a pathetic madman, lingering on his last breath.
With this realization, he tremblingly sealed his lips shut.
Ignoring the turmoil in the man on the ground, Gu Weizhou said, “Get up. Let me check your injuries.”
“…Teach me.”
His face darkened, “I never repeat the same words twice.”
Jiang Jingyue, who initially wanted to insist, stopped himself when he felt the icy aura emanating from the person beside him. After a tense silence of nearly ten breaths, he finally rose to his feet, using a dusty stool for support.
The process of examining the injury was swift. Due to the need to avoid bandaging and to prevent the lingering scent of medicine, Gu Weizhou could only reduce the dosage of the salve and apply it sparingly. Afterward, he placed a bottle of wound medicine on the table, instructing, “Apply it once every night, and you’ll heal in half a month.”
As Gu Weizhou stood up, picking up his umbrella with the intent to leave, Jiang Jingyue clutched the cool medicine bottle on the table. He turned abruptly, his gaze intense and impossible to ignore, as he asked, “…What do you desire?”
Pausing after each word, he continued, “Whatever your wish, I’ll fulfill it. I only ask that you teach me everything you know—all your skills!”
In the rain, the corner of Gu Weizhou’s lips curled slightly. He turned slowly to look at the young boy inside the room and pronounced, word by word, “My desire is Da Ao.” And to flaunt it for the world to see.
Boom!
A crash of thunder resounded in the night sky, with thick lightning piercing the deep blue sky. The momentary brilliance illuminated the pitch-black night, and in that flash, the figure of the young man standing not far away in the rain, holding an umbrella, was lit up in Jiang Jingyue’s vision.
He was strikingly beautiful. As he held his umbrella, his hands appeared as slender and as radiant as jade. His once cold and deep gaze seemed to suddenly be ignited with a brilliance that outshone even the brightest moon on a summer night.
At that moment, his black hair flowed behind him, and his features were undeniably regal and prideful. He appeared as if he were a piece of jade, polished to perfection, radiating a mesmerizing beauty with every frown and smile.
Jiang Jingyue, rendered speechless by this sight, stood rooted to the spot, watching the young man’s figure disappear back into the darkness. Although he could no longer make out the details of the man’s appearance, for some reason, a strange illusion welled up from the depths of his heart.
In this world, as long as that person wished for something, he believed it would undoubtedly come true.
Thinking of the other’s flamboyant words and his unrestrained gaze, Jiang Jingyue suppressed his own emotions, responding, “…Alright!”
As long as you teach me and as long as I don’t die midway, what’s the harm in handing over the vast territories of Da Ao to you in the future!
Watching him return to his room to change, N0. 001 couldn’t help but comment, [For that show just now, I give you a 99.]
[I want a 100.]
[One more point and I’m afraid you’d get arrogant.]
[You can give me 101 next time.]
[…] In the eyes of my host, showing off seemingly had no end.
…
Crash!
The sound of a porcelain cup shattering echoed throughout the luxurious hall, quickly followed by Jiang Huaijin’s furious voice, “Why was the entire palace’s side hall sealed, and why am I only hearing about it now?”
A young eunuch not far away was so frightened that he immediately knelt down, repeatedly knocking his head and apologizing, “I didn’t dare disturb Your Highness during your rest; I didn’t wish to interrupt…”
Due to Jiang Huaijin’s health condition, a renowned monk from Da Ao would come to perform a purification ritual for him at regular intervals, involving the chanting of Buddhist scriptures.
The Emperor had once decreed that nothing should disturb the Fourth Prince during these periods. Even if Jiang Huaijin had previously ordered someone to monitor Su Qingli’s movements, and even if Su Qingli did indeed move, the servants dared not act without explicit orders.
However, clearly, Jiang Huaijin cared little for such edicts. All he knew was that the person he had set his sights on was now isolated in a perilously dangerous place.
After all, wasn’t Jiang Jingyue, that madman, rumored to have devoured someone alive? What if he did the same to Su Qingli?
Su Qingli hadn’t even been under his control yet, and if anything were to happen to this new ‘toy’, it would certainly break his heart.
Thinking of Su Qingli’s delicate and frail appearance, Jiang Huaijin made a resolute decision to personally bring him into his own palace.
After all, Su Qingli was merely a hostage from a defeated nation. Even if he accidentally harmed him, the Emperor would probably only reprimand him. It was surely better than leaving him to be devoured by that monster.
With this thought, Jiang Huaijin ordered the outer chamber, “Bring more people. Today, accompany this prince to the side hall to fetch someone.”
…
Although Gu Weizhou had begun teaching Jiang Jingyue over the past few days, due to their prominence, the two only met at night. Instead of tactics and strategies, the first thing Gu Weizhou taught Jiang Jingyue was martial arts.
Though Gu Weizhou himself wasn’t particularly skilled, he never intended to train Jiang Jingyue into a peerless master. He simply felt that Jiang Jingyue was currently too feeble. So feeble, that he doubted even a strong gust of wind might blow him away, let alone him developing a robust eight-pack abs.
Truth be told, after enduring a series of setbacks, Jiang Jingyue had lost his previous delicate airs. Whenever he found free time now, he would train exhaustively. His fervor was such that one might think he wished to chop the bedridden emperor of Da Ao in half.
During the day, the two went about their separate routines. Gu Weizhou would read or play the zither, while Jiang Jingyue would contemplate his future path, often listening to the zither music from next door.
Amid the chirping of cicadas on a summer day, Jiang Jingyue, with his hair disheveled, sat in front of the palace. He rested his head on his knees, quietly listening to the zither music from beyond the wall. At that moment, he recalled the first time he had secretly climbed the wall to witness someone playing the zither.
Those indifferent eyes, cold gaze, cascading black hair, and gentle eyebrows—it was like beholding a beautiful painting.
But in this world, only Jiang Jingyue knew that beyond this overly pretty picture, it was the man’s inner depth that truly captivated him.
He was versed in astronomy, understood geography, could predict celestial events, and discerned good from ill omens.
Through their brief time together, Jiang Jingyue felt he understood the elegant Gu Weizhou even less. It seemed there was nothing in the world that could trouble him, nothing he didn’t know.
Gu Weizhou: With the system in hand, the world is mine!
Just as Jiang Jingyue’s mind was tumultuously turning over these thoughts, the melodious zither music that lingered in the air suddenly halted.
Subconsciously, he raised his eyes towards the other side of the palace wall.
What had happened?
Uh… That dumb prince that also happens to be surnamed Jiang, can he stop trying to get Weizhou? Like, Jiang Jingyue bites him and he gets an edict that forbids his going there… And I don’t think he has an eight pack, otherwise Gu Weizhou might actually go along with that prince guy.
Thank you for the chapter.
I really like how that dumb 4th prince is seeking death. Its interesting to guess whether he’ll fall for Gu Weizhou, this “toy” oh his, and also participate in the mc’s vulgar love. It’s really more entertaining that way.
thank you for the update
…man this 4th prince ..tsk tsk ….