Liu Bian at the start, so you're called Dong Zhuo, right?

"What's wrong? Something on your mind?"

Inside the carriage, a lean man leaned back, his tone like he was teasing a child: "You're about to live the life of the elite, aren't you excited?"

Being superior to others? Let's focus on surviving first.

Liu Bian rolled his eyes inwardly, but lowered his eyelashes and said in a slightly trembling voice, "...I'm a little scared."

He doesn't act tough; a seven-year-old should be afraid.

Moreover, he was genuinely afraid—one wrong step forward could mean utter ruin.

The lean man laughed out loud: "This is the first time I've seen someone so afraid of going back to their own home."

Liu Bian suddenly looked up.

He knew?!

The person in the carriage reached out and ruffled his hair again, a casual gesture, but the words contained a shocking message:

"You had no choice before. Now that you are the Empress, it's time for you to return to your true home."

A-mei.

Empress.

A name almost popped into Liu Bian's mind on its own.

He Jin.

He suppressed his racing heart and deliberately spoke in a childlike tone: "My family... the Taoist priest always said that the Shi residence is my family."

"The Shi residence?" He Jin sighed, the condescending coldness he had exuded in the Shi residence instantly dissipating. "That's not your home, it's your...fate."

Liu Bian blinked, his eyes quickly filling with anticipation, as if it were about to overflow:

"Does that mean I'll be able to see my mother and father? The Taoist priest said they're in a very, very far place... and they'll come to pick me up sooner or later."

Of course, it was all an act.

But this acting style is specifically designed for people like He Jin—it feeds on "affection," "status," and "shame."

Sure enough, He Jin's Adam's apple bobbed, as if something was stuck in his throat: "These past seven years... you've suffered."

Liu Bian was secretly delighted.

The first line has been tied.

He immediately looked up, his eyes shining: "Then...am I really a prince?"

"Of course," He Jin said solemnly. "You are a prince, born different from others."

"The prince?!" Liu Bian jumped up, his forehead hitting the roof of the carriage with a thud.

"Ouch—that hurts!"

He clutched his head, his eyes immediately reddening as if he were truly in great pain: "I...I really am a prince? Then who is my mother?"

A little impetuousness makes one seem like a seven-year-old.

He Jin felt both heartbroken and helpless: "Naturally, it is the current Empress Dowager, Empress He."

"The Empress..." Liu Bian murmured, as if the sky had fallen, "It really is her."

He already knew the answer.

But when he actually heard it from someone else, his heart sank.

The Han emperor who was poisoned was indeed him.

"What did you say?" He Jin moved closer.

Liu Bian immediately crushed that heavy feeling, looked up, and timidly uttered two words:

"uncle."

He Jin paused.

"Who taught you to call me that? Did someone tell you something beforehand?"

Liu Bian looked completely innocent: "Nobody's here... I heard that my mother's brother is my maternal uncle."

He lowered his voice even further, as if afraid of causing trouble for the other person:

"May I call you that? Will it... cause you trouble?"

He Jin opened his mouth, but in the end only sighed:

"You can do it in front of me. But once you get out of the car, don't call out."

"Oh." Liu Bian nodded obediently, his next sentence even softer, as if he were tearing his heart out:

"Will you protect me?"

He Jin suddenly looked up.

Liu Bian quickly lowered his head, as if he had made a mistake, and whispered, "If I go back to the palace... and make a mistake, will it be like what others say, that princes are prone to death?"

"Who told you that?" He Jin's face darkened.

"I heard it from the market." Liu Bian casually passed the buck to someone outside. "They said... many princes have died in the palace."

The only sound in the carriage was the creaking of the wheels grinding through the snow.

He Jin was most vulnerable to this question: "Will you protect your nephew or not?"

Liu Bian added fuel to the fire:

"Uncle, I don't want to die..."

This statement is far more incisive than anything like "I want to seize power."

He Jin reached out and pressed down on his shoulder, as if pressing down on a string in his own heart: "You won't die."

Liu Bian looked up, his eyes full of trust: "Really?"

"With me here, no one can touch you," He Jin said in a deep voice.

Hooked.

Liu Bian immediately feigned naiveté and threw out the second thing that needed to be confirmed:

"Then...should I become good friends with someone? Like...the Ten Attendants?"

"Shut up!"

He Jin almost blurted it out.

Liu Bian shrank back in fright, his eyes instantly reddening: "I...I was wrong..."

Seeing him like this, He Jin's heart softened, his anger subsided, and his voice lowered slightly:

"Remember, once you enter the palace, stay as far away from them as possible."

"Then...who should I listen to?" Liu Bian asked timidly.

"Listen to your mother first."

Empress Dowager.

As soon as these words were uttered, Liu Bian felt a chill in his heart—the maternal relatives were still weak, and everything depended on Empress He.

He suppressed his coldness, but a look of joy appeared on his face: "Alright! Then I'll listen to Mother!"

He Jin raised his hand to touch his head, but stopped mid-air, as if suddenly remembering the rules and eyes of the palace:

"After you enter the palace, don't call me uncle. Call me... Attendant-in-Ordinary He."

Liu Bian nodded, but in his heart he was already certain: the swords of the imperial relatives and the eunuchs had been drawn together much earlier than he had imagined.

Suddenly, a short shout came from outside the carriage: "We've arrived at the palace gate!"

He Jin lifted a corner of the carriage curtain, his face slowly tightening, and turned back to utter only four words:

"Remember what I said."

Liu Bian nodded, his palms sweating profusely.

The SSS-level dungeon is now open.

get off.

The palace walls were so imposing that it made it hard to breathe.

He Jin straightened his clothes quickly and carefully, saying, "No matter who you see, don't worry about it, go find your mother first."

"And what about you?" Liu Bian looked up. "Could I... come with you?"

He Jin's throat tightened, and he shook his head: "I have important business to attend to. I'll come find you later."

He added, as if to comfort himself, "With your mother around, you'll be very safe."

The words had barely left his lips when a shrill voice pierced the shadows—

"The Grand Eunuch Zhang Rang has issued an order—"

He Jin and Liu Bian's expressions changed simultaneously.

coming.

"Lord Shi—please accompany the eunuch into the palace to verify your identity and register your name. This is to prevent any mishaps."

He Jin gripped Liu Bian's hand tightly, his grip tightening with each passing moment.

Liu Bian could sense that his uncle was more nervous than he was.

From the shadows, a figure in crimson robes slowly emerged.

His face was fair and clean, he had no beard, and a smile played at the corners of his mouth.

He smiled very kindly.

But behind that smile lies the sharpest blade in the palace.

"Attendant-in-Ordinary He." The eunuch bowed first, but his tone left no room for doubt. "Attendant-in-Ordinary Zhang has given the order to return inside the palace gates first."

He Jin forced a smile, but his eyes were cold: "Lord Shi is acting on the orders of the Empress Dowager—"

"He Shizhong is a newly appointed official, and he should know the rules." The eunuch interrupted gently, his smile thinning. "The Empress Dowager is the Empress Dowager, and the palace gate is the palace gate."

His gaze fell on Liu Bian, pausing for a moment.

That breath felt like weighing something.

"Since Lord Shi is young, we should take him to rest first, so as not to offend any important person."

He Jin's throat bobbed.

He understood: the last four words were addressed to him.

Offending a powerful or influential person.

With the new empress in power, He Jin was merely a court attendant.

In the eyes of the Ten Attendants, he was nothing more than "a newcomer from outside".

After a long silence, He Jin finally uttered, "...Only verbal declarations will be verified, names will be recorded, and no one may linger without cause."

"Of course," the eunuch smiled. "Zhang Changshi knows the rules best."

Do you know the rules?

Liu Bian sneered inwardly: Aren't the rules set by you?

The eunuch stepped forward half a step, gestured for him to proceed, and spoke in a gentle tone, as if coaxing a child:

"Lord Shi, please come inside with me."

Liu Bian immediately wore his shyness on his face, turned to look at He Jin, his eyes trembling with tears:

"uncle……"

He Jin shook his head, leaned close to his ear, and said only one sentence:

"I will only listen to your mother."

Liu Bian nodded, his voice so soft it seemed as if he feared the wind would carry it away: "Then... remember to come find me."

"...Yes, I will." He Jin's voice was hoarse.

The eunuch saw all of this, but his eyes showed no emotion whatsoever.

He raised his hand and waved.

Two eunuchs stepped forward and flanked Liu Bian from the left and right.

What appears to be protection is actually a firm grip on Liu Bian.

Liu Bian turned to look at He Jin.

He Jin didn't chase after him or shout; he just clenched his fists so tightly they trembled.

Liu Bian's heart sank deeper and deeper—

Zhang Rang's insistence on taking him back was definitely not out of adherence to rules.

It's about seeing if he's worth betting on.

Or—should it be scrapped in advance?

-

As they reached the corner of the corridor, the eunuch suddenly stopped, his voice lowering, as if instructing them on etiquette, or perhaps handing them a knife:

"Your Highness, once you enter the palace, you must learn whose words you should listen to and whose words you should not listen to."

Liu Bian pretended not to understand: "I heard it from my mother... my mother-in-law."

The eunuch chuckled lightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

He raised his chin.

The two eunuchs continued to escort him inside.

At the end of the corridor, the curtain was lifted.

A warm, comforting aroma wafted out.

"By order of the Imperial Attendant, Shi Hou shall enter the palace."

The eunuch stood at the door, smiling gently: "Go in. We'll verify your identity and register your name, then you can go back."

Liu Bian felt a chill run down his spine.

He knew it was much more than that.

This is for review.

This is passing the test.

He stepped into the room and saw the person in the main seat.

He had a smile on his lips, a long and narrow philtrum, and kind eyes and eyebrows like an elder in the neighborhood.

But as soon as Liu Bian entered, he felt an invisible aura pressing down on his back—

The oppressive feeling of being in a position of power for a long time.

Zhang Rang leaned on the table and slowly turned the pages of the proclamation.

It took a long time to translate.

Finally, he looked up.

Their gaze fell on Liu Bian.

It's like evaluating whether this chess piece that was just picked up is worth it.

"Zhang Rang greets Your Highness."

He said he would see them, but remained seated.

He only bowed slightly.

The proper etiquette has been observed.

Wei also gave it.

Liu Bian felt a little relieved.

No matter how powerful he is, he is still a dog dependent on imperial power.

Even the fiercest dog needs to recognize its owner.

"rise……"

Liu Bian pretended to be flustered and raised his hand to imitate an adult.

Zhang Rang smiled, his voice gentle:

"After Your Highness enters, who will you see first?"

"Of course, I'll go see my mother first."

"Alright." Zhang Rang nodded, but his tone subtly shifted, like a blade turning over to reveal its back:

"What if someone suggested going elsewhere first, and then going to see the Empress?"

The room fell silent.

trap.

Answering "See the Empress Dowager first" is against the rules and would be a slap in Zhang Rang's face.

Answering "I'll follow your arrangements" means handing yourself over and letting others lead you around.

Liu Bian was silent for a moment, his eyes slowly reddening, his voice so soft it sounded like he was about to cry:

"I...miss my mother so much."

He looked up, his eyes filled with the child's stubbornness and fear:

"I want to see my mother first. Wherever my mother tells me to go... I will go."

Zhang Rang's eyes flickered slightly.

clever.

She wouldn't let anyone take her away, but she also offered a way out—"I will listen to my mother."

A smile flickered at the corner of Zhang Rang's eyes. He turned and gave a casual instruction:

"Lead them to the Empress's Palace."

He paused, then added a sentence that sounded like a reward, but also like a warning:

"Provide him with proper support on the way. His Highness is young and should not be disturbed."

"Here you are."

Two eunuchs stepped forward.

This time, it's not sandwiched between the left and right sides.

Instead, they protected each other from the front and back.

Liu Bian followed them outside, feeling a slight sense of relief.

We've overcome this first hurdle.

But as soon as he stepped out the door, he heard Zhang Rang's barely audible laugh behind him:

"picture."

"So similar."

Liu Bian paused in his steps.

Who does he look like?

Like His Majesty?

Like an empress?

Or... like a prince who should have died young?

He didn't turn around.

He wiped the sweat from his palms into his sleeves and followed the eunuch deeper into the palace.

At the end of that road, he didn't find an answer.

It's another door.

Central Palace.

Queen He.

as well as--

The real game.