The Cannon Fodder Also Has a Will to Survive [Rebirth] - Chapter 9

Lin Jingyuan breathed a silent sigh of relief. He pulled the boy up and inspected the wound on his neck. The youth’s neck was excessively slender; had Lin Jingyuan not felt a lack of threat and held back his strength, that beautiful, long neck would have been snapped.

Even so, a terrifying bruise had blossomed on An Jiu’s skin. Lin Jingyuan spoke calmly, “I’ll apply medicine for you.”

An Jiu touched his neck, feeling a sharp sting. “No need. Lin Jingyuan will be back soon.”

“…” Lin Jingyuan was stunned. This little thing actually called him by his name in private. He didn’t know whether to call the boy brave or foolish.

“The Emperor is out but should return shortly. Wait here,” Lin Jingyuan said before exiting. He returned a moment later, having changed his attire and “reverted” to his raspy voice.

An Jiu was not sensitive enough to human physiology to realize that the “shadow guard” and the Emperor shared the exact same build and stature. To him, the clothes defined the person. Seeing the familiar black-clad, silver-haired man enter, An Jiu enthusiastically greeted him, “Your Majesty, you’re back!”

He tried to soften his voice to sound gentle and clear, but his throat recently throttled betrayed him. His voice cracked mid-sentence, emitting a sound like a honking goose.

“Honk—” An Jiu clamped both hands over his mouth, looking at Lin Jingyuan with panicked eyes. Would the mercurial Demon Emperor poison him mute because his voice was too ugly?

“What happened to your neck?” Lin Jingyuan asked in his raspy voice, feigning ignorance. “Did someone bully you? Tell me who it was, and I shall punish them, hmm?”

He waited for An Jiu to complain. He knew the Demon Palace was full of opportunists who trampled on the weak. If An Jiu had any brains, he’d realize this was the perfect chance to make an example out of someone. After all, the “shadow guard” had actually hurt him.

Lin Jingyuan planned to lead An Jiu into hating his other identity, then hand An Jiu the chance for revenge only to reveal the truth at the last second. It would be fascinating to see this spineless coward collapse in tears, begging for mercy once he realized his “friend” and “enemy” were the same person.

“If others see that bruise, they will bully you” Lin Jingyuan enticed him.

An Jiu stared at him blankly. “Why would they bully me?”

“…” Lin Jingyuan wanted to crack open the boy’s head to see what kind of “waste material” was inside. He took a deep breath and snapped, “This is the Demon Palace! Do you not understand? It’s filled with demons! Without my protection, they would have devoured you whole by now!”

An Jiu was stunned by the outburst. He looked at Lin Jingyuan with a trace of grievance. “Then can you please not stop protecting me?”

He had thought this was a heavenly place where he could finally eat his fill, but after just one meal, he was told he was on everyone’s menu. The blow was heavy, and he couldn’t help but feel sad.

Lin Jingyuan, however, interpreted this as An Jiu acting spoiled. Strangely, he didn’t find the feeling repulsive. He steadied himself and asked again, “I will protect you. So, tell me: how did your neck get that way?”

Complain to me already.

An Jiu covered the marks and muttered, “No one choked me. I. I felt a bit of discomfort in my throat and choked myself. I just used too much force.”

“…” Lin Jingyuan was left speechless by the sheer absurdity, yet a strange sensation flickered in his heart.

“Fine. Come here and apply the medicine for me.” Lin Jingyuan thought wickedly: I gave you a chance and you didn’t take it. Don’t blame me when others bully you later.

An Jiu breathed a silent sigh of relief and dawdled over to Lin Jingyuan’s side.

“Closer,” Lin Jingyuan commanded. At this distance, could the boy even reach him? An Jiu shuffled a tiny step forward. Lin Jingyuan lost patience, grabbed An Jiu’s arm, and pulled.

He forgot the boy was a mortal with a fragile body. Even a tiny bit of force sent An Jiu stumbling, eventually faceplanting right into his chest. A faint, warm fragrance like sun-drenched flowers hit Lin Jingyuan’s senses.

An Jiu was terrified, frozen like a wooden post in the Emperor’s arms. He feared this man’s whims; feared he would laugh while breaking his limbs and scarring his face again.

Feeling the boy go stiff, Lin Jingyuan grew annoyed. He reached out and pushed An Jiu’s head down… forcing him to press his face against the Emperor’s chest in an embrace. Lin Jingyuan regretted it the second he did it, wondering if he’d lost his mind.

They remained in that silent, awkward embrace for a moment before Lin Jingyuan let go and told him to “get lost.”

This dog-man is truly mercurial. An Jiu grumbled internally as he scurried away.

An Jiu returned to the courtyard intending to pet the dog, but A-Hua was acting up again, looking at him with terror. To make matters worse, the caretaker of the kennel began giving him trouble, claiming the Demon Palace didn’t keep “freeloaders.”

“Am I not a pet?” An Jiu asked. What else do pets do but “freeload”?

The caretaker sneered. “Pets have to know how to please their master. Do you?”

An Jiu thought about his interaction with Lin Jingyuan that morning. Okay, I’m an unqualified pet. He resigned himself to dragging A-Hua to another room to give the uncooperative dog a bath.

The room contained a spring-fed pool of warm water A-Hua’s private bath. An Jiu panted as he struggled with the stubborn dog. By the time he finally kicked A-Hua into the water, he was exhausted.

A-Hua bounded out and shook itself, soaking An Jiu until he looked as bedraggled as the dog. “A-Hua!” An Jiu shouted angrily.

The dog froze and suddenly lay down, looking at An Jiu with submissive eyes. An Jiu realized the dog’s intelligence seemed to fluctuate wildly. “Into the pool!” He pointed, and A-Hua obediently jumped in, resting its paws on the edge and looking at him eagerly.

Animals really are better than people. An Jiu’s anger vanished, and he patted the dog’s head.

After the bath, a demon took A-Hua away to dry its fur with magic. An Jiu, dripping wet, asked the caretaker if he could bathe as well.

“Pets must stay clean. Go, stop bothering me.”

An Jiu got some clean clothes and returned to the pool. He hadn’t washed properly since leaving Si Xuanye’s bed. The water was fresh and flowing, so he soaked comfortably.

When he emerged, he saw the “shadow guard” from that morning standing at the door. An Jiu’s eyes lit up with delight. “Why are you here?”

Lin Jingyuan turned, his gaze arrested by the youth’s appearance. The boy’s frame was well-proportioned, his half-damp hair draped over his back. His thin, coarse hemp clothing clung to his skin, revealing the faint color of his flesh beneath. The warm fragrance on him was now mixed with water vapor, he looked like an elegant white flower that had just been watered.

As expected of a Heavenly Spiritual Root both the skin and bones are top-tier.

Lin Jingyuan’s eyes darkened with hidden thoughts, though his face remained cold. “I came to bring you medicine. Your neck looks worse.”

An Jiu waved him off. “It just looks bad, You’re just in time, can you do me a favor?”

Lin Jingyuan assumed An Jiu was being bullied and wanted him to pass a message to the “Emperor.” He nodded, and An Jiu reached out to grab him.

“Can you help me dry my hair? I can’t get it dry by just wiping.” An Jiu complained softly, lifting a handful of wet hair and placing it in Lin Jingyuan’s hand.

“…” Lin Jingyuan let out a puff of air that sounded like a cold snort. It was absurd. He couldn’t keep up with the boy’s logic. Dry hair for a ‘pet’? Who does he think I am?

He wanted to refuse, but looking into An Jiu’s wet, pleading eyes, he remembered: in this boy’s eyes, he wasn’t “Demon Emperor Lin Jingyuan,” but someone else.

I can be someone else.

He would become his friend, help him in times of trouble, and once An Jiu trusted him completely, he would reveal the truth to show him how wicked the world truly was.

Lin Jingyuan gripped the dark silk strands, letting his spiritual energy flow to dry the boy’s hair. It felt warm and soothing. An Jiu looked at him with admiration. “So fast! You’re amazing.”

An Jiu meant he was impressed by the depth of the “guard’s” cultivation, but to Lin Jingyuan, it sounded like a sweet, coaxing compliment.

The little idiot is quite easy to please, Lin Jingyuan thought dizzily.