Defeat the system! Kiss my little monster!

Shen Yu had never imagined these things. Xuan Lin and Zhao Xian's only child was actually hidden in Cheng Yuan Mountain.

Shen Yu found it somewhat amusing: "You're telling me all this, what do you want me to help you with?"

Wen Yu's years in Yue were filled with devastation. Now, Shen Yu has gone to great lengths to send him away, but secretly he still doesn't want him to get involved in the power struggles between royal families again.

“Lanyu, that child… it’s good that he survived.” Zhaoxian’s voice was barely audible. “You don’t need to look for him. Let him live his life as an ordinary person. It’s better than knowing that his father and mother are in such a shameful state.”

Shen Yu didn't speak. He squatted in front of the wooden door, as if he were separated from Zhao Xian by tens of thousands of mountains.

"There's only one thing...only one thing!" Zhao Xian coughed violently, pounding her fist on the wooden door, her voice trembling with grief, "Lan Yu, this is the last thing I'm begging you for...you can't let him keep occupying Xuan Lin's body like this! That bastard, so shameless! Kill him..."

Shen Yu gleaned some clues from Zhao Xian's fragmented words. The things he had been completely baffled by, yet vaguely suspicious of, were slowly beginning to reveal a corner of the truth with the appearance of the coal ball.

Shen Yu lowered his voice: "Who...is the 'him' you're talking about?"

Zhao Xian was by Xuan Lin's side every day, and she probably knew more than Shen Yu imagined.

“I don’t know who he is either,” Zhao Xian said. “At first I just thought Xuan Lin had changed, but upon closer examination, it turns out he’s not like that at all.”

“I can understand if he were blinded by greed and his temper changed drastically. But his hobbies, habits, and even his taste in food are completely different from before. How can I not be suspicious?”

Zhao Xian was Xuan Lin's first wife. Xuan Lin married her when he was still a prince, and for many years afterward, he did not take any concubines. Later, even after Xuan Lin ascended the throne, he never had the idea of ​​taking more concubines.

But after he fell seriously ill, everything suddenly took a completely opposite turn, plunging them all into the abyss.

"He doesn't recognize the Yue script, so he can't understand those memorials," Zhao Xian mocked. "He can't even write characters, and he doesn't even know how to grind ink. As for riding horses, shooting arrows, and reciting poetry while drinking wine, he knows absolutely nothing about any of those."

"He's a completely different person."

Shen Yu lowered his eyes, his fingertips trembling involuntarily, quietly revealing the tremors in his heart.

“I didn’t believe in ghosts before, but now I have no choice but to believe.” Zhao Xian’s voice was dazed. “I was by Xuan Lin’s side the night he died. He stopped breathing for more than half an hour, and then suddenly recovered. Since then, everything has changed.”

“If it weren’t for being possessed by a ghost, I really can’t think of any other reason.” Zhao Xian was stunned. She stood there, clutching her hair tightly. “He often says things I can’t understand, and he’ll carve things on his bedside table with a knife in the middle of the night. I’m afraid to go near him. He often goes crazy…”

Upon hearing this, Shen Yu understood the whole story. He looked up, but suddenly couldn't remember what Xuan Lin looked like before his ascension to the throne. Although his face was similar to what it was now, it had become blurry.

“He is indeed not Xuan Lin.” Shen Yu’s voice was hoarse. He stood up and addressed Zhao Xian through the door, “His Majesty died young, Empress… what will become of you?”

Zhao Xian remained silent. She coughed twice and said, "You don't need to worry about me. My body won't last much longer. If you get the chance in the future, you must kill this tyrant and take back Xuan Lin's body."

"Now...we can rest in peace."

Hearing the footsteps outside, Shen Yu composed himself, whispered a few words to Zhao Xian, and then quickly left the woodshed in front of the Cold Palace.

The guards who had searched the palace earlier returned to the Cold Palace. Mu Yuyuan did not find any trace of the suspect and conducted a second search.

Shen Yu had already changed his clothes and left the Cold Palace. He put on his bodyguard mask and walked straight towards Xuan Lin's bedroom.

Seeing this, Gouqietousheng sensed something was wrong and tentatively asked, "...You're not going to kill Xuanlin, are you? It's not that I'm being nosy, but with our abilities, we'd probably be doomed as soon as we went in."

“Of course not.” Shen Yu hadn’t let his emotions cloud his judgment. He said, “I just want to get to the bottom of things, and also... take a look at the coal briquettes.”

"The coal briquette has an extraordinary ability to sense things; we may not be able to get close to it..."

Shen Yu suddenly stopped in his tracks. Seeing this, the cowardly survivor lowered his body and asked, "What's wrong?"

Shen Yu turned his eyes slightly and said, "Let's go back to Kunning Palace first. I haven't retrieved the three books left there yet."

The golden book that Coalball had given him still had residual energy. If they could use that remaining energy, they might be able to temporarily conceal their presence.

With a flash of light, the cowardly survivor flew to Shen Yu's side and exclaimed, "Oh my, you're such a clever idiot! How come I didn't think of that! Let's go, let's go!"

Shen Yu: "..."

Most of the guards in Kunning Palace withdrew, and all the palace maids and eunuchs who were previously in charge of surveillance fled, leaving only a few guards at the entrance of Kunning Palace.

Taking advantage of the darkness, Shen Yu climbed over the corner of the inner wall. The guards outside were lax, and he easily entered the inner hall, taking out the three books he had hidden under his bed.

Fortunately, the guards did not conduct a thorough search of the entire Kunning Palace, and the three books remained in their original positions without being damaged.

The top gold book cover was cracked, and the wound spread like a spider web. The entire cover flickered between light and shadow, and when Shen Yu touched it, all he could feel was a rough, fleshy texture.

Shen Yu didn't linger on the golden book. He turned to the bottom red book with a clear purpose, wanting to see what had happened after Wen Yu left.

His yang energy level increased so much for no reason; he must have encountered something.

Shen Yu frowned inwardly. He was not by Wen Yu's side, and he was always worried that Wen Yu would be alone and vulnerable to being bullied.

After all, Wen Yu is the real innocent flower.

They're all lying to me.

They're all abandoning me.

It's all a lie, all a lie...

[…Fake! Fake! Get out of here, all of you! You always try to take everything from me, you always try to fight me for everything! Bring him back…bring him back!]

I want harmony! Harmony, harmony, harmony, harmony... harmony, harmony, harmony!

[A great deal of censorship is omitted here.]

[...fight back.]

Shen Yu: "..."

Shen Yu paused for a moment, looking at Gouqie Tusheng with a hesitant expression, then said, "Gouqie Tusheng, if you have time, go back and see Wen Yu. He doesn't seem to be in good spirits."

He didn't care about the prospect of survival: "He's fine. I haven't detected any dangerous factors around him. But you're in a much worse situation than him. I need to prioritize protecting you."