3 – He is Even Worse Than a Dog
Moon Departure Palace——
Shang Guanqi was draped in a white robe over a long gown, lounging carelessly in a chair, his eyes filled with amusement.
Between his fingertips, he held an object.
It was silver-white, resembling a needle but not quite—thin as a strand of hair, yet hollow inside. It was unclear what craftsmanship had produced such a concealed weapon.
Where did the young emperor get such a delicate trinket?
“Lord of a Thousand Years—”
The eunuch Li Fu suddenly rushed over and clung to Shang Guanqi’s leg.
“Lord of a Thousand Years, you must stand up for this servant,” Li Fu wailed loudly. “The young emperor kicked me down from the Golden Luan Hall in front of all the civil and military officials. He’s slapping your face, Lord of a Thousand Years…”
Jiang Lige had just returned from court at the Golden Luan Hall and, upon entering, heard Li Fu’s tearful voice.
Li Fu stood to the side, emboldened by Shang Guanqi’s presence, glaring arrogantly at Jiang Lige.
Jiang Lige walked over to Shang Guanqi and said, “Nine Thousand Years, I don’t want to be emperor anymore. Find someone else to take the throne.”
Shang Guanqi stared at her without blinking. “Why?”
Unfazed, Jiang Lige rubbed her waist and complained, “Li Fu wouldn’t carry my sedan chair. The Golden Luan Hall is too far from here, and walking to and from court every day is exhausting. I don’t want to do it anymore.”
Making accusations—she could do that too. Not only could she make accusations, but she could also threaten.
No matter how powerful Shang Guanqi was, as a eunuch, he couldn’t sit on the throne. Even if she was a puppet, he still needed her for now.
Upon hearing this, Shang Guanqi lifted his foot and kicked Li Fu.
Li Fu rolled on the ground, not daring to cry out in pain. He scrambled up and knelt with a thud, begging for mercy. “Lord of a Thousand Years, spare me!”
“Guards, drag him out and give him twenty strokes with the rod.”
Li Fu was dragged out by the guards, and soon, agonized screams echoed from outside.
Jiang Lige was taken aback. Was this damned eunuch being so agreeable today?
“How did it feel for Your Majesty to attend court alone today and govern the realm?”
Shang Guanqi leaned against a small tea table, looking at Jiang Lige with a half-smile, his eyes filled with mockery and provocation.
This expression was eerily similar to the one he wore this morning when he stabbed the Minister of Rites through with his sword.
Jiang Lige’s alarm bells rang loudly. Did Shang Guanqi want to kill her?
“I’ve sent all the memorials to your quarters, and I don’t understand them anyway. The reason I kicked Li Fu was because I was in a bad mood. Yesterday, I was bitten by a stray dog in the imperial garden,” Jiang Lige said obediently.
Shang Guanqi frowned. “A stray dog?”
Jiang Lige nodded, perfectly composed. “Yes, a stray dog—a big one, with yellow and mottled fur, dirty and ugly.”
A mottled dog? Dirty and ugly?
Shang Guanqi fell silent, a playful smile lingering at the corner of his mouth.
“Since when have there been stray dogs in the palace? Wuhuan, go catch the dog.”
The guard Wuhuan acknowledged the order and left.
Shang Guanqi sat sipping tea slowly, while Jiang Lige’s stomach growled with hunger. Yet, she dared not make any rash moves and stood to the side, awaiting his judgment.
After a long while, Shang Guanqi said, “Did you go to the Palace of Benevolent Tranquility yesterday?”
Jiang Lige explained, “They were performing a ritual at the Palace of Benevolent Tranquility. I thought it looked lively, so I went closer to take a look.”
Shang Guanqi said nothing more, holding his teacup and continuing to savor the tea. His beautiful phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, as if pleased with the fragrance of today’s tea.
Just then, Wuhuan led in a large dog—exactly as Jiang Lige had described, a mottled dog, dirty and ugly.
Jiang Lige looked at Shang Guanqi in confusion. Shang Guanqi’s sensual thin lips moved away from the teacup and lightly parted.
“Beat it to death!”The guards obeyed the order, charging in with clubs and striking toward the mixed-breed dog.
The dog tried to dodge, but it was tethered by a rope and could only endure the blows, whimpering in pain.
“Stop! Stop!!”
Jiang Lige rushed over and hugged the dog.
The guards halted their clubs. Jiang Lige dared not hide the truth any longer.
“Don’t hit it. It didn’t bite me—I lied. Empress Dowager Su wants Su Luo to become empress. Yesterday, she took the opportunity to drug me. After I escaped, I hid until the rain washed away the drug’s effects…”
“Hmph—”
Shang Guanqi sneered, his expression darker than before. The temperature in the palace suddenly plummeted.
How laughable.
Shang Guanqi recalled his past life—also in this Moon Departure Palace, when he was surrounded and slaughtered by the Imperial Guard, Jiang Lige sat calmly behind a screen, allowing his blood to stain it entirely.
He couldn’t even compare to a dog.
Unaware of Shang Guanqi’s thoughts, Jiang Lige only sensed the murderous aura around him, as if his thunderous rage was about to erupt.
Her heart trembled with fear, worried he might run her through with a sword in his fury.
“Nine Thousand Years, I know I was wrong. I shouldn’t have lied to you.”
Jiang Lige wanted to save her life, bending her knees to kneel.
“Who allowed you to kneel!”
Shang Guanqi moved like a swift wind, grabbing her harshly and yanking her up.
Hiss—
Jiang Lige gasped in pain—her arm was dislocated. It hurt terribly.
Shang Guanqi saw it but still dragged her out of the Moon Departure Palace.
She wanted to side with Empress Dowager Su? How bold.
Shang Guanqi dragged Jiang Lige to the entrance of the Palace of Benevolent Tranquility.
Inside, just like the day before, the masked Shamans were still performing their rituals.
Looking at the masks, Jiang Lige suddenly remembered something—she had forgotten to remove the needle yesterday.
In her panic, the needle had pierced the man’s muscle and gotten stuck. Driven to madness by the aphrodisiac, she had forgotten about it entirely.
Panic surged in her heart. Besides the needle, had she left anything else behind? Could that Shaman have uncovered her identity?
Lost in thought, her eyes instinctively scanned the group of Shamans, but each wore identical robes.
“Does Your Majesty enjoy watching the rituals, or the Shamans performing them?” Shang Guanqi said with a sinister tone.
Jiang Lige’s heart leaped into her throat. Did he know something?
“Witchcraft is forbidden within the palace. Empress Dowager Su knowingly breaks the law—her crime is unforgivable!”
Shang Guanqi waved his hand. Wuhuan led a group of guards charging in with blades drawn.
Almost instantly, the Shamans fell one by one into pools of blood, their screams filling the entire Palace of Benevolent Tranquility.
“Shang Guanqi, don’t push your luck!” Empress Dowager Su trembled with rage.
The palace guards encircled her for protection. The Su family still commanded two hundred thousand troops and had their own people within the palace. Though Shang Guanqi could kill the Shamans, he couldn’t touch Empress Dowager Su’s life.
Yet even so, he acted without restraint—because he was Shang Guanqi, a man who reveled in bloodshed and slaughter.
Jiang Lige didn’t know how she returned to the Moon Departure Palace. It was only when Luzhu reset her dislocated arm that the pain jolted her back to awareness.
Knowing her mistress’s temperament, Luzhu comforted her, “This was their choice. Everyone must pay the price for their decisions. For example, I chose to follow Your Majesty. If Your Majesty lives, I live. If Your Majesty orders me to die, I will die.”Luzhu offered words of comfort, but deep down, she felt that the death of those Shamans was actually for the best.
This way, no one else would know the Emperor’s secret.
Under Luzhu’s soothing words, Jiang Lige’s heart finally settled into calm.
Just then, the sound of barking dogs echoed from outside the hall—