Song Yun Chu naturally had no idea what they were thinking at that moment, but she clearly noticed that as soon as she appeared, the assassins withdrew their offensive, seemingly afraid to approach.
She guessed they were probably intimidated by her, after all, she had just demonstrated her skills, enough to let them know how formidable her martial arts were.
Just as she was about to capture the nearest assassin to interrogate him about who was behind the plot, she saw the man pull something out from his chest and forcefully throw it to the ground. With a “bang,” a cloud of grayish-white smoke billowed before her eyes.
The smoke instantly obscured Song Yun Chu’s vision. She held her breath warily and raised her sleeve to wave it away.
By the time the smoke cleared, the assassins had all vanished without a trace.
Jiang Rumin and her two servants were coughing uncontrollably from the smoke.
Song Yun Chu looked down at the three of them. Jiang Rumin was still clutching her injured arm in shock, blood seeping through her fingers, her lips trembling slightly, clearly in extreme pain.
Although Jiang Rumin was a physician, her arm hurt so much she couldn’t even lift it, making it inconvenient for her to apply medicine and bandage the wound herself.
“Thank you, young master, for your assistance. I will never forget your great kindness,” Jiang Rumin said, having somewhat calmed down, as she immediately expressed her gratitude to Song Yun Chu.
Just as Song Yun Chu was about to exchange a few polite words with her, she heard an exasperated voice from behind, “Brother Song! How could you leave Young Master Luo by the roadside?”
Song Yun Chu turned around and met Shen Yue’s livid expression.
Shen Yue was carrying the unconscious Jun Li Luo on his back, his brows furrowed tightly, his eyes brimming with icy anger.
Song Yun Chu’s heart sank.
That’s right—in the urgency of the moment, she had been too focused on saving the female lead to pay any attention to the unconscious dog emperor.
As the dog emperor’s ‘right-hand man,’ abandoning the unconscious emperor by the street was indeed a grave act of disrespect.
“Brother Shen, don’t be angry. In an emergency, one must act according to the circumstances. These ladies were in dire straits, and I had to save them first. Brother Luo has always been kind-hearted and would surely not blame me for leaving him behind.”
Shen Yue knew that his rank was lower than Song Yun Chu’s and that he had no authority to reprimand him, so he could only curse Song Yun Chu silently in his heart.
Once His Majesty gains enough power in the future, the first to be dealt with will be disloyal officials like Song Yun Chu!
“Brother Luo suddenly fell unconscious—could it be that his heart ailment has flared up again? Let’s find a nearby clinic for him to rest. These ladies also need their injuries treated, so we might as well escort them along the way.”
Worried about Jun Li Luo’s safety, Shen Yue had no choice but to agree.
A short while later, the group arrived at the nearest clinic and settled into two separate rooms to rest.
After examining Jun Li Luo’s pulse, the physician said to Song Yun Chu and the others, “This young master has suffered from a heart ailment for many years, and it’s not easy to cure completely. Today’s relapse might have been triggered by some kind of shock. For someone with his condition, extreme emotions—whether joy or sorrow—are the most dangerous. You must remind him to avoid emotional agitation in his daily life.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Yue turned to Song Yun Chu and asked, “Brother Song, I was away for a while. Did Young Master Luo experience any shock?”
Although he asked this, Shen Yue had actually stepped away to arrange the assassins’ actions, and he had been secretly monitoring Jun Li Luo’s movements the entire time. It didn’t seem like Jun Li Luo’s heart ailment had been triggered by a shock.
Song Yun Chu fell into thought.
She recalled the moment when Jiang Rumin was in danger—her breathing had become labored, her expression dazed, and it seemed that was also the exact moment Jun Li Luo had collapsed.
In a daze, she received this world’s warning to her—if the protagonist dies, all things perish.
In the original story, Jiang Rumin suffered physical and emotional torment, enduring countless hardships and repeated schemes by the vicious female antagonist. Yet, as the protagonist, her plot armor was remarkably strong. Whether she fell off a cliff, drowned, went blind, or miscarried, she always pulled through. In short—she was incredibly hard to kill, an unyielding cockroach.
Take the assassination attempt on the street earlier, for example. She couldn’t just stand by and watch. If she hadn’t intervened, the female lead might have died, and the entire world could have vanished.
Would she die in this world as well? Or was there a chance she could return to her original world?
She didn’t dare gamble, afraid of being obliterated along with this world.
“Brother Song, why are you spacing out?”
Shen Yue’s voice rang in her ears, snapping Song Yun Chu back to reality. She turned and said, “Brother Luo… he fainted so suddenly, I don’t know the reason.”
“Regardless, this illness requires gradual recuperation. This old man will first prepare a prescription for this young master.”
“Thank you, doctor.”
After the doctor left to prepare the medicine, Song Yun Chu explained to Shen Yue, “Minister Shen, please don’t misunderstand—it’s not that I don’t care about His Majesty. You didn’t witness how perilous the Phoenix Woman’s situation was earlier. If I hadn’t intervened, she might have become a corpse under the assassins’ blades. This Phoenix Woman is the lady His Majesty favors, and she possesses remarkable medical skills. Perhaps she has a way to cure His Majesty’s heart ailment?”
In the original story, the female lead did indeed, out of momentary kindness, attempt to treat the dog emperor. However, just as the illness showed slight improvement, conflicts between the dog emperor and the male lead erupted. By the end, when the dog emperor met his demise, the heart ailment had never truly healed.
Shen Yue didn’t believe Song Yun Chu’s explanation. He scoffed inwardly but could only reply outwardly, “This official naturally wouldn’t dare misinterpret the Prime Minister’s intentions.”
“Good. Keep an eye on His Majesty. I need to step out for a moment.”
With that, Song Yun Chu walked out of the room.
She had to check on Jiang Rumin’s injuries.
Meeting Jiang Rumin in this manner wasn’t entirely bad. If she couldn’t avoid forming a connection with Jiang Rumin, she should strive to ensure Jiang Rumin viewed her favorably.
Unbeknownst to Song Yun Chu, after she left, Jun Li Luo lying on the bed opened his eyes, a cold gleam swirling within them.
He had woken up the moment the doctor mentioned preparing the medicine but had kept his eyes closed.
The first thing he heard upon waking was Song Yun Chu’s inner thoughts—that in the future, Jiang Rumin would treat his illness, but by the time he passed away, his heart ailment would have only shown slight improvement.
His illness was incurable, and he held no illusions about regaining robust health. The urgent tasks at hand were to eliminate the Phoenix Woman first, then his imperial uncle, Jun Tianyi!
“Your Majesty, you’re awake!” Shen Yue at the bedside exclaimed with joy, then asked with concern, “How are you feeling now?”
Supported by Shen Yue, Jun Li Luo slowly sat up. “Earlier on the street, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my chest, but I feel fine now. There’s no need to worry.”
Shen Yue felt somewhat relieved, but his expression then darkened. “Your Majesty, Prime Minister Song has gone too far! He abandoned you while you were unconscious to save the Phoenix Woman. My subordinates were no match for him, so we had to retreat temporarily.”
“His martial arts are exceptionally high. I originally brought him along for protection. After the assassination attempt, I’ve realized there are many villains in the shadows attempting to harm me. Although Song Yun Chu isn’t loyal, his position was granted by me, so he won’t harm me for now. I just never expected him to be so meddlesome, protecting the Phoenix Woman so fiercely.”
“So, Your Majesty, what are your plans next?”
“Is Jiang Rumin also in this medical clinic?” Jun Li Luo said indifferently, “I will keep Song Yun Chu occupied. You go eliminate Jiang Rumin. Don’t fail again.”