How To Survive as a Villain

Chapter 43: The Necessary Conditions For An Imperial Bodyguard.

Xiao YuAn then asked Hong Xiu about him, and found out that ever since Xie Chungui was in Jing Yang Palace, he had to rely on himself.

The Xie family was a military family. Generation after generation, they served the Northern Kingdom, and every single one of them were loyal and good. Xie Chungui’s father and brother died fighting in the battlefield, and when it was his turn, the Young Monarch ascended to the throne. The Xie family wanted Xie Chungui to go to the Imperial Palace to meet the Emperor before joining the army.

In the end, the Young Monarch was stupid. He thought that Xie Chungui was a servant from the Xie family and arranged him to be sent to the Jing Yang Palace.

In the original book, when the old General Sun returned to his hometown, he was still very worried about the country and the people. He wanted to promote several juniors, and so, he thought of Xie Chungui from the Xie family.

Then, General Sun ran to the Xie family only to find out, oh, he’s at Jing Yang Palace! The old General spit out blood and almost had a heart attack. In the end, he wrote a letter remonstrating to the Emperor, took him out of the Palace, and sent him to the barracks. That’s what happened later.

But now, General Sun didn’t return to his hometown, and he’s still leading his own troops. Unfortunately, he didn’t thought about this issue. In the end, Xie Chungui had been forgotten in Jing Yang Palace.

Now it was Xiao YuAn’s turn to spit out blood and have a heart attack.

When Xie Chungui raised his head to look again at Xiao YuAn, he saw that his expression was gloomy. Although he thought that Xiao YuAn wouldn’t allow it, he was young and stubborn; “If His Majesty doesn’t allow it, then I don’t want this one hundred taels of gold. When war breaks out, there will be a need to recruit soldiers, and so, I will join the army then!”

Who will not allow it!! Even if you refuse to go, he will still throw you into the barracks because of your military capabilities!!

While he was thinking of making him leave, Xiao YuAn asked with a smile: “What if it remains peaceful, and there’s no need for wars?”

Xie Chungui thought for a while and said: “Then we will march towards the South, recapture the Southern Yan Kingdom and then we will go to the Eastern Wu. Now, with a million soldiers in the North, surely we can expand our territory and stand superior from the rest of the world!”

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Xiao YuAn found himself speechless. After a while he said: “In a few days, I’ll take you to see General Sun, so you must prepare at once.”

Xie Chungui’s eyes were shining and he knelt down on the ground: “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Xiao YuAn came out of the courtyard and went straight to Yan HeQing’s wing room.

Yan HeQing was packing up his things; because Xiao YuAn had announced he’ll take filial piety, Jing Yang Palace may have to become a Daoist Temple or perhaps a Shrine.

Actually, Yan HeQing didn’t have much luggage: just a few thin clothes, a long sword and a jade hairpin. It could be said that more than packing up, he was just killing time, looking to do something out of boredom.

When Xiao YuAn came, Yan HeQing was sitting at the table wiping the blade of the sword. Xiao YuAn walked in without asking for permission: “Ah, young boy, he’s so hot blooded. Really, he has such a backbone to lead a million armored people. Like moths, they will follow his bright righteous ardour to train. His bones and meat will feed the belly of the corrupt officials.”

Yan HeQing has long been accustomed to Xiao YuAn’s self-talk in the early morning, and Xiao YuAn also knows that he can speak without fear in front of Yan HeQing.

Xiao YuAn sat down at the table slightly decadent. He rested his head on his arms and while resting on his stomach, he looked up at Yan HeQing: ”After the demobilization is over, you may be arranged to go back to the House of Internal Affairs.”

Yan HeQing nodded and put the sword back to its sheath.

Xiao YuAn asked him with a smile: “Eunuch Zhao of the House of Internal Affairs wants to harm you, aren’t you afraid?”

Yan HeQing replied indiffentenly: “Is it useful to be afraid of him?”

“I mean it. What if one day I don’t look out for you or don’t pay attention to you anymore, what would you do if he breaks your hands and feet?” Xiao YuAn raised his head pretending to be intimidating.

“Why do you care so much for me?” Yan HeQing suddenly asked him instead.

Because I want to give you a favorable impression! To avoid being killed by you in the future!!!

Xiao YuAn didn’t answer him. Instead, he held his head thinking that if it wasn’t for him, Yan HeQing and Princess Yonging would’ve fallen in love with each other by now, which caused that Yan HeQing had never seen his first wife yet. Xiao YuAn must take responsibility for this.

Even more in these recent couple of days, Yan HeQing was no longer just a few lines of a text inside Xiao YuAn’s heart. Instead, he saw him as a man with flesh and blood, someone that could feel joy and sorrow. Little by little, he wrote himself, minimally but also with heavy pressure inside Xiao YuAn’s heart, finding a place and occupying a seat.

Xiao YuAn raised his head and said with a smiling face: “Yan HeQing, why don’t you become my Imperial Bodyguard? I’ll be able to protect you, and I’ll never let anyone hurt you.”

Yan HeQing looked at him. The smooth and soft skin of his face was extremely beautiful, but what he actually saw in him wasn’t his appearance. He saw his pure eyes of black jade, they were always crystal clear, smiling, warm and soft.

Yan HeQing then remembered that right before the complete destruction of the Southern Yan Kingdom, when the Imperial Palace’s building was about to collapse. At that moment, his mother held his hand with a tight grip. Her nails embedded into his flesh and blood started to flow, as if weeping, her voice was so full of hate that she could almost spit out blood: “After this, all the roads must be walked on by yourself. No one can protect you, but you have to keep on living. You must live!” After saying this, Yan HeQing’s mother jumped into the deep well of the Palace without hesitation.

To keep on living was so tiring and so hard. Even his mother couldn’t bear it, but he had to keep himself alive, it was truly strange.

But also because of that sentence, when the prisoners from the Southern Yan Kingdom came to the Northern Kingdom, and they had to walk with heavy shackles, even when the soldiers threw dirt at him and laughed loudly after saying something disrespectful, even though the prisons in the Northern Kingdom were like hell full of spirits, even if he was kicked to the ground and his head was pressed in the dirty water, and the iron whip fell mercilessly on his naked body, he never actually thought of committing suicide.

It’s hard to live on with these three simple words.

“Yan HeQing! Yan HeQing!”

When Yan HeQing returned to reality, he saw that Xiao YuAn was shouting at him while grabbing on his wrist.

“What are you doing? Isn’t that painful!!” Xiao YuAn was anxious and helpless. He gently opened the fingers of Yan HeQing, only then did Yan HeQing realize that he had clenched his hand into a tight fist and that his palm was scratched and bleeding.

Xiao YuAn found a clean silk cloth to bandage Yan HeQing’s hand and to stop the bleeding. Xiao YuAn knew that it was probably because of his words that Yan HeQing thought of his mother. But before he killed himself, he was used to taking care of others, so he blurted out those words without thinking too much. In the end, those words triggered Yan HeQing’s traumatic past.

Yan HeQing looked at the blood-stained silk cloth around his hand, held it tight and then opened it: “I……”

Xiao YuAn said without hesitation: “You are what you are. Pack up your things and move to the second room in the Imperial Palace.”

The second room was on the west side of Xiao Yuan’s Imperial bedchamber. It was also the residence of the Imperial Bodyguards.

Yan HeQing held the silk cloth with both hands, and then he looked at Xiao YuAn, his cold eyes blended into those warm eyes. He imperceptibly raised the corners of his mouth, and the tone of his voice increased: “Okay.”