Chapter 1: Laozi's Rooster
ood that had frozen into ice blocks. Only the warhorses unwilling to leave whined in the cold wind, calling out for their masters lying on the ground."Sir!"Covered in bloodstains, Yuan Li arrived besi...The Dagan Dynasty, the Imperial Palace's Surveillance Courtyard.
In a room that resembled
... , a figure sat motionless on the bed, with a dazed expression.
Although the room was rather dim, one could still see the figure's handsome face. If this were somewhere else, someone would surely exclaim at how good-looking this young man is. However, the blue-gray robe he wore made people shake their heads in pity.
"What a pity, he's a eunuch!"
Yes, eunuch!
Zhang Liyang still can't accept the reality!
As a salaryman, his 996 schedule made him work until the early morning yesterday. He went home without even taking a shower and just dove straight into bed.
To his surprise, he woke up to find himself in a completely unfamiliar place.
In his mind, a memory entirely foreign to Zhang Liyang surfaced, causing his face to pale and his head to pound with pain.
There was another person named Zhang Liyang, only six or seven years old. He was dragged into a dark little room amidst heart-wrenching cries.
A sudden and intense pain followed, making Zhang Liyang tremble with fear even in memory, his whole body drenched in cold sweat.
And then there are fragments of memories.
Newly inducted eunuchs, after being castrated and taught the rules, would be brought before each of the concubines in the harem for them to choose.
Because young eunuchs at this time were the cleanest, they could be cultivated as people around you.
And Zhang Liyang was also chosen by one of the concubines because of his appearance, becoming a small eunuch in that concubine's palace.
What followed was a monotonous life day after day. Even in memory, Zhang Liyang felt a pang of sympathy for the person he had once been.
A tiny figure, forlorn and alone, bustled about the vast palace from dawn till dusk. He had no friends, only strict rules and people who vanished from time to time.
Until one day, he met a girl about his age, and his world was finally illuminated.
Princess Huacheng!
The twelfth princess of the Great Qin Dynasty, and the only daughter of Zhang Liyang's concubine.
Because they were around the same age, the two young people found common ground to talk about. Though master and servant, their relationship was much closer than others because they had grown up together since childhood.
It seemed that fortune favored Huaqing's family. His mother suddenly gained the favor of Emperor Dagan, her status naturally rising to prominence. Consequently, Zhang Liyang also enjoyed a taste of the high life during those years within the palace.
Alas, good times did not last. The power struggles in the palace were always ruthless and vicious. Therefore, Hua Qing's mother suddenly fell ill and was bedridden. Within just two days, she was on the brink of death.
Last night, Zhang Liyang served in Yuanqing Palace all night until dawn was about to break before returning to sleep. But after just one night's sleep, Zhang Liyang was no longer the same Zhang Liyang he used to be.
Beep, beep~.
"The Martial Arts System fusion is estimated to take another two hours, please wait..."
A voice, audible only to Zhang Liyang, echoed in his mind, pulling him back to the present.
In the void, visible only to Zhang Liyang, a blue progress bar is slowly moving.
This appeared as soon as Zhang Liyang woke up, but Zhang Liyang was so deeply affected by the realization that he was a eunuch that he didn't pay much attention.
Just as Zhang Liyang came back to his senses, he couldn't help but reach down and touch himself.
That emptiness, that feeling of never being able to experience the wind rustling through your hair again, made Zhang Liyang unable to hold back his wail.
"Ahhh~ My cock!!"
What on earth are you shouting about so early in the morning!
Bang!
The wooden door of the room was flung open with force, and a young eunuch in a blue-gray robe walked in from outside.
"Zhang Liyang, what are you doing crazy early in the morning"
"Your master isn't dead yet, is he"
"Well, I guess that's about it..."
This man, with a gleeful expression of schadenfreude, lived in the same room as Zhang Liyang. However, Zhang Liyang was assigned to Yuanyunchung Palace while he was sent to a miscellaneous room.
Different paths for different people, one follows their master to reach great heights, while the other toils away in a back room from morning till night.
Therefore, this person has always been fawning over Zhang Liyang, hoping that Zhang Liyang would transfer him out of the miscellaneous room. So every time they met, this person would smile and call Zhang Liyang "Brother".
Looking at the drastic difference in the other party's attitude, Zhang Liyang found it quite amusing. After all, in his previous life, people like this were commonplace and he was already accustomed to them.
Ignoring the other person, Zhang Liyang got straight out of bed, tidied his robe, and then left the room without looking at the other person once.
"Bah, what airs!" He spat on the ground after Zhang Liyang left the room. "When your master is dead, you'll be living in the common quarters just like me."
Outside the room, Zhang Lixiang looked at the golden and brilliant palace complex bathed in the rising sun, and couldn't help but take a deep breath.
The frigid air swirling in his lungs brought a slight sense of clarity to Zhang Lixiang's muddled mind.
"Palace rules are strict, everything comes after survival."
As for Lao Tzu's...
Thinking of this, Zhang Liyang looked at the blue progress bar in the void that had moved a little further and murmured, "You brought me here, you can't treat me badly, can you"
He reached out and grabbed a handful of snow from the railing beside him, smearing it on his face. The icy feeling forced Zhang Liyang to calm down, and then he stepped out.
The palace avenue was incredibly wide, stretching all the way to the horizon. However, Zhang Liyang could only walk along it by leaning against the towering palace walls. Sunlight couldn't penetrate, and under the shade, the chill intensified.
Zhang Liyang had to go to Yuanyuan Palace, even though the owner of Yuanyuan Palace was almost at her limit. Zhang Liyang still needed to wait there.
If he had been free to come and go as he pleased in the past, no one would have cared. But things are different now. Without the protection of the big tree, Zhang Liyang has to be very careful.
After all, within this deep palace, the struggles are not limited to the court or the harem. The battles between eunuchs are even more sinister, more ruthless, and more terrifying!
From Zhang Liyang's last memory, the inhumane punishment methods were so horrifying that they haunted him for months.
Following the path in his memory, Zhang Liyang quickly arrived at a magnificent palace.
The exquisite carvings and rare exotic flowers found throughout the palace are testament to the favor enjoyed by its former owner.
This is the Palace of Meiyuan, Zhang Liyang's place of soaring ambition, but also his place of decline.
Entering the palace, a wave of warmth hit Zhang Liyang. He lightly patted the snowflakes on his shoulder and then lowered his head slightly as he walked in.
"Sobbing..."
"Mother…"
As soon as Zhang Liyang entered the palace, he heard a sound of crying.yang smiled and shook his head. "Although Yuan Li is not as strong as Your Highness, three hundred Pan Stone elites are enough to hold off a Second Ring cultivator."But no one is around you…I will tak...