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December 22, 2022

From Shadow Guard To Empress [Book Transmigration]

Chapter 2

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Xiao Weixin didn’t intend to succeed in the assassination last night. His major goal had been to determine the actual state of the palace’s fortifications. But who could have predicted that idiot would notify the Imperial Army? Judging by Xiao Weishen’s personality, he would definitely investigate this matter even though no evidence had been left behind.

After having breakfast in the dining room, Xiao Weixin looked up and saw another maid, Luo Yao, bringing a bowl of medicine.

“My lord.” Luo Yao was not afraid like the others, and said bluntly, “Will you still drink this medicine?”

Xiao Weixin sneered, “Of course I have to drink. How could I waste the prescription that my Imperial Brother had found especially for this king?”

After saying this, he picked up the bowl and drank it without hesitation.

You Shu, who was diligently performing his duty while perched on a ceiling beam, sighed softly in his heart. The protagonist really doesn’t have it easy.

Although the medicine is not really a poison, it is still somewhat poisonous. Apart from wanting to portray himself as a good brother in front of the world, the dog emperor’s diligence in delivering the medicine every day is also, in part, to test if he is actually sick. After all, drinking too much medicine would definitely be harmful to his health.

Naturally, Xiao Weixin is also aware of this, but he was unable to refuse. Because the eunuch that Xiao Weishen sent every day to deliver the medicine would always wait outside the dining room. He would sneak over from time to time, and would not return to report until he saw him drink it with his own eyes.

However, today, the eunuch didn’t leave in a hurry after watching him drink the medicine. Instead, he bowed with a flattering smile and said, “After drinking the medicine, will Your Highness return to the palace with this servant? The emperor arose early this morning and said that that he hadn’t seen the princes in a while. He specifically directed us to go and extend an invitation to them. And Qin Wang1 and Yong Wang2 have already left for the palace.”

As Xiao Weixin turned around to face the old eunuch, his expression changed to one filled with frailty and innocence. He coughed twice then said softly: “Is it the Imperial Brother’s summons? Then this one will go together with gonggong3.” After speaking, he coughed a few more times and staggered slightly, seemingly lacking the strength to even stand stably. He really looked like a patient suffering from terminal illness.

The protagonist’s acting skills are truly worthy of winning the Oscar. The staggering was so realistic that even a person with profound internal skills like him can’t find anything strange.

In reality, Xiao Weixin is not at all powerless. On the contrary, his martial arts is likely to be on the same level as You Shu’s. But he deliberately restrained himself in order to act as a sick patient. Even after so many years, other than You Shu and a few personal guards, no one was aware of this. Being able to freely withdraw and release his internal energy to this degree is clear evidence of Xiao Weixin’s skill.

Seeing Xiao Weixin get into the carriage, You Shu and Ying Wu snuck into the crevice at the bottom of the carriage to hide. Carriages entering the palace are always searched when passing through the city gate. However, Xiao Weixin has already modified his carriage to have a mechanism at the bottom which, when opened, can accommodate two adult men. He specially made it as a precautionary measure. After all, survival is of the utmost importance.

Ying Wu and You Shu lay in the crevice together, holding their breaths and not daring to make any movement. Ying Wu was taller than the average person, and You Shu was pressed uncomfortably against the wall. Ying Wu was also aware of this and gave him an apologetic smile.

You Shu has an easy-going temperament and rarely loses his temper with other people. Additionally, Ying Wu is one of the brothers he gets along well with, so he moved a little to the side and began to mentally recall the plot. This is something he has done every day for over ten years, in case he forgets.

If he remembers correctly, this seems to be where the plot begins. The opening scene of the book was that Xiao Weishen was assassinated in the middle of the night and became enraged. Early the next morning, he summoned all his brothers and possible suspects into the palace to test them one by one, because he felt that everyone had a motive for committing the crime. But with his intelligence, he couldn’t figure out who it might be. So this trip can be regarded as a grand Hongmen banquet4. But the protagonist was vigilant and kept a low profile, avoided the trap perfectly and escaped safely.

You Shu had been breaking into a cold sweat while reading this scene because the dog emperor repeatedly made things difficult for his brothers. Even if the assassin hadn’t been sent by them, as long as one of them said the wrong thing, he could end up being killed.

The carriage smoothly arrived at the palace. The palace was not as unrestricted as the outside. Several guards were patrolling everywhere inside the palace. There are also countless hidden guards, observing from secret places. Causing the slightest disturbance could result in instant execution Although this wasn’t the first time that You Shu entered the palace, he still didn’t dare to be even slightly careless.

The imperial garden where the dog emperor entertained his brothers was quite far from the main entrance. The sun had already risen high in the sky by the time they arrived, more than an hour later.

As a prince, Xiao Weixin has the privilege of driving straight inside, which has always been the rule of the imperial palace. After arriving at the garden, Xiao Weixin got down from the carriage with the support of the palace servants, deliberately staggered and nearly fell, but fortunately Qi Han quickly supported him. Meanwhile, the carriage was driven by several other palace servants into an especially dedicated parking stall.

After confirming that the stable was empty, You Shu and Ying Wu carefully got out from under the carriage. On the way to the garden, they had already memorized the route.  Although they couldn’t see anything outside, distinguishing the wind direction by sensing is the basic professional quality of a top shadow guard.

The two of them quickly knocked out the two attendants guarding outside the stable and quickly wore their clothes. Then, after ensuring that they wouldn’t wake up for a shichen5, they hid them at the bottom of the carriage and then went out once again.

The clothes of the imperial guards serving in front of the palace were easily recognizable so they purposely found those two people. Although they might not be able to get close, they could still observe their prince.

“The gold thread on this dress is also worth a lot of money, right?” Ying Wu muttered softly, continuously stroking the pattern embroidered on the hem of the clothes.

While vigilantly observing the surrounding area, You Shu spoke seriously, “Don’t touch it so casually.”

Ying Wu always feels more at ease when performing missions with You Shu, because You Shu is really reliable and rarely makes mistakes. With him around, it seems that there is nothing to worry about. “I went out gambling a while ago and lost everything again.”

“Then don’t gamble.” You Shu replied coldly, “With your little fortune, why don’t you save your money to marry a wife?”

Ying Wu curled his lips: “Where would people like us find a wife? It is uncertain to even live till the next day and we don’t even have a serious identity. Which girl would like to be with you? You are naive, always thinking that you can survive until then.”

“What if?” You Shu confirmed that everything around was safe, and then led Ying Wu to the garden, pretending to be patrolling, “Dreams are always necessary.”

Although Ying Wu disagreed, he couldn’t bear to pierce his beautiful vision6: “Ying San, sometimes I really wonder why you are still like this… How did Master Yingshou and Ying Er train you?”

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You Shu didn’t answer and kept looking straight ahead calmly. In fact, Master Yingshou has told him countless times not to have such unrealistic ideas, because they can’t wait for the day of freedom.

They are people who have signed a death contract. They have been branded in body, mind and soul and they can only be slaves for the rest of their lives. Even if they want to escape, they will be killed from the inside7 just by taking the first step. It is nothing but delusion to think that they would be able to escape.

Even if there is a chance to be released from their contracts, they may not be able to live until that time, because being a shadow guard can be regarded as one of the occupations with the highest death rate in all novels and TV dramas.  It can be seen from watching the TV how wave after wave of shadow guards die while performing missions for their masters.  Regardless of whether their opponent is the protagonist or villain, they are doomed to die.

Why else would they be called sacrificial warriors8? Just like the colleague who committed suicide last night. In order not to betray the master after failing the mission, he didn’t even hesitate to take his own life.

You Shu pursed his lips. Even if the reality was like this, he didn’t want to resign himself to fate.

They soon arrived at the Imperial Garden. The guards standing outside gave them a glance and let them pass. They recognized their clothes more than their faces because there were too many guards and they couldn’t remember every single person’s face. After all, everyone had a similar and ordinary appearance and no one stood out

After entering the imperial garden, they stood in a relatively secluded corner, with their left hands pressed on the handle of their blades9 in the same manner as the other palace guards. It was completely impossible to tell that they were intruders who had snuck in.

From this angle, they could clearly see their prince.

You Shu glanced at the handsome and elegant Xiao Weixin.

En10.

My prince is still so beautiful. In contrast, the dog emperor inferior appearance is as if he had been picked up from the streets.

As expected of the protagonist.

Xiao Weishen was in a terrible mood after experiencing the assassination the previous night. Anyone would be frightened to the point of fainting if they woke up to find a masked person in black leaning over their bed. The poisoned dagger had been just a few centimeters away from him and if not for his usual habit of having guards stay behind the screen to keep watch, he might have died.

However, because the assassin committed suicide, he failed to get any clues. Furious, he had the corpse whipped and hung the head at a high place in the imperial garden. As if he wanted to make a demonstration to someone.

You Shu raised his head and looked at the hanging head. Dark waves surged in his eyes but they quickly disappeared. His hand merely tightened on the handle of the blade as he was incapable of doing anything else.

Ying Wu also saw the tragic death of the partner who once trained with them. It is impossible to say that he is unaffected, but he doesn’t have a strong reaction like You Shu. After all, he knows that one day in the future, the one who was hung up might be himself or some other brother. It was better to get used to it and accept it.

With a hypocritical smile on his face, Xiao Weishen looked around at his three brothers, imperial uncle, and his cousin who were sitting with him. Then he asked condescendingly, “How has the imperial uncle been recently? And the younger brothers?”

“Thanking the emperor for his concern, this minister has been very well.” Liu Wang11 Xiao Chenggu is the oldest among them, and as the younger brother of the late emperor, he naturally answered first. Although he is already thirty-six years old, the years have not left any mark on his face. His face has not changed from when he was young. His appearance is as beautiful as jade and one can’t tell that he is an uncle whose son is already fifteen years old.

Once Imperial Uncle Liu had spoken, the other three princes also expressed that they were fine.

Xiao Weishen cast a meaningful glance at his three younger brothers; Sixteenth Brother Xiao Weiming, Fourth Brother Xiao Weijing, and Seventh Brother Xiao Weixin.

You Shu once again started complaining in his heart. This dog emperor has no talent in fighting battles, possesses no literary skills, and his political talent is practically nonexistent. But when it comes to infighting and killing his father and brothers, he practically overflows with talent. The late emperor had been an amazing dragon breeder who had slept all over the harem and had left several younger brothers for him. Yet out of all of them, only three had been spared by him and remained alive.

As for these three remaining brothers, this dog emperor still wanted to send them all away. If the old emperor knew that the seeds he had planted had been taken care of like this by this spare son12, it was likely that he would be angry enough to return from the grave just to take him away with him.

You Shu once again scorned him.

1

Title of the Sixteenth Prince Xiao Weiming

2

Title of the Fourth Prince Xiao Weijing

3

Address for palace eunuchs

4

A feast or meeting set up as a trap for the invited

5

Shichen (時辰) means two hours. In ancient times the day was divided into 12 periods of time each lasting 2 hours thus equating to the current 24-hour day.

6

burst his bubble

7

I am not very sure what this part exactly means. It could be that they would be killed by someone from the prince’s side or that they would be killed by the poison inside their bodies (this will be mentioned in a later chapter)

8

The raws used 死士 [dead man] which is a Chinese term and refers to a warrior who dares to die. Most of the dead men are knights in the rivers and lakes. They work for the princes and nobles for the sake of glory and wealth or to repay their kindness. They are mainly engaged in assault and assassination missions.

9

Dao (刀): knife or single-edged sword, similar to a cutlass.

10

interjection indicating approval, appreciation or agreement

11

As with Xiao Weixin, Liu Wang (留王: King Liu) is the title and his actual name is Xiao Chenggu.

12

This was the best translation I could come up with. The raws were basically (超生办出身的大儿子: elder son from an unplanned birth). 超生 means unplanned birth. Xiao Weishen is actually the second son and according to the one-child policy in China, a second child would be an extra or a spare. You Shu is basically mocking Xiao Weishen as useless and unwanted (big oof XD). No offense to any second children tho. FYI, You Shu is a second child too lol.

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