Chapter 187

This was her choice, made based on her judgment of Jiang Sishui's character.

The purpose was to reduce Jiang Sishui's hostility toward Zhu Wushi.

But at the same time, Zhu Wushi gave Shangguan Haitang another mission—

Stay by Jiang Sishui's side and build a good relationship with him.

As the "Number One Xuan-Rank Agent," Shangguan Haitang naturally understood what Zhu Wushi meant.

This was an attempt to ease relations and turn an enemy into a friend, while also planting a spy by Jiang Sishui's side....

And to achieve this goal, Shangguan Haitang could pay any price.

Zhu Wushi had not said these things outright, but she understood.

When she received this mission, Shangguan Haitang stood there in a daze for a long time.

Thinking of the great kindness her godfather had once shown her, she felt utterly weary at heart.

Setting aside these distracting thoughts, Shangguan Haitang murmured, "Next, it should be my turn, right?"

【Although I don't know why Zhu Wushi changed his ways, the benefits have already landed in my lap, so why bother with the rest?】

【Let's talk about Shangguan Haitang】

【In "Number One Under Heaven," she should have been a tragic character from beginning to end】

【Like Cheng Ying, her background was pitiful】

【When Shangguan Haitang was little, a band of horse bandits took a fancy to the nonexistent treasure of her family, slaughtered the entire household, and only six- or seven-year-old her survived by lying in a pool of blood and playing dead】

【However, after the killing, the horse bandits did not leave; instead, they searched everywhere for that rumored batch of treasure】

【This search lasted five whole days】

【During this period, the very young Shangguan Haitang, in order to survive, neither ate nor drank, and did not move at all】

【Even though the corpses around her rotted and stank, smelling so foul it made her want to vomit】

【Even though flies buzzed in her ears and crawled all over her face】

【Even though those bandits hooked her body with hooks, searing pain coursing through her entire frame】

【3.7 She gritted her teeth and endured, not moving a muscle】

【Finally, on the fifth day, the passing Zhu Wushi saved her and pulled her out of the abyss】

As word after word appeared on the page, Shangguan Haitang's memories were involuntarily pulled back to her childhood.

It was an experience too painful to recall, like a nightmare, still vivid to this day, impossible for her to forget.

And precisely because of this, she held Zhu Wushi in such respect and gratitude.

At the same time, the women were also shocked and sympathetic toward Shangguan Haitang's past.

Playing dead for five days in a pile of rotting, stinking corpses?

The vast majority of adults in the world could not do this, let alone one so young at the time.

A child of six or seven, yet possessing a willpower that even adults could not match.

Her plight evokes sympathy, and her strength moves one to ache for her even more.

207 Shangguan Haitang: I treated you as a brother, and you actually want to sleep with me?

Cheng Ying was silent for a long while, then gently let out a breath.

She had lost her parents young and lived a life dependent on others; precisely because of this, she was so mature and precocious.

Later, when Li Mochou destroyed the Lu Family Shanzhuang, she once again circled the gates of the King of Hell.

Jiang Sishui said her background was pitiful, and she did not coyly deny it.

But now, compared with Shangguan Haitang, she felt she was far too lucky!

At least while staying at the Lu Family Shanzhuang, Lu Liding's family had never bullied her.

At the same time, she also had a younger female cousin who had always been by her side.

But Shangguan Haitang truly had nothing at all, and even endured five days of inhuman suffering.

Not to mention, the her in the story at least met a good end, whereas the other met with a tragic, violent fate.

【After Zhu Wushi rescued Shangguan Haitang, he took her in as a goddaughter and had her apprentice under Young Master Wu Hen, learning medicine, divination, astrology, hidden weapons, and the like—she could truly be called well-versed and talented in many fields】

At the same time, Zhu Wushi also instilled in her the ideology of loyalty to the monarch and love for the country, so Shangguan Haitang had worshipped this godfather of hers since childhood, even regarding him as a god.

Omniscient and omnipotent, powerful enough to make one tremble.

【Later, when the Divine Marquis formed the Dragon-Protecting Shanzhuang, Shangguan Haitang, having completed her training, took the post of "Xuan-Rank Number One Agent" among the "Heaven, Earth, Xuan, Huang"】

What she did not know, however, was that Zhu Wushi had never regarded the agents as his own from the very start; they were merely pawns to be discarded at any time, used to adorn the facade of the Dragon-Protecting Shanzhuang.

【The true foundation of the Dragon-Protecting Shanzhuang lay in the secretly cultivated "Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits" and "Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends"】

【These one hundred and eight people did not bow to imperial authority, obeying only Zhu Wushi's commands, entirely under his control】

【And in the end, the "disobedient" agents were indeed discarded by Zhu Wushi】

In the room, Shangguan Haitang was silent.

If this had been a month ago, seeing someone "slander" Zhu Wushi like this, she certainly would not have believed a single word, and would have been very angry as well.

But after such a long period of cooling down, she had learned to view problems more dialectically and objectively.

Especially Zhu Wushi's order for her to stay by Jiang Sishui's side made Shangguan Haitang realize that a goddaughter is, after all, a goddaughter, not a blood relative.

A normal father would not send his daughter to stay by the side of someone he had only just offended.

From that point on, although she still respected and felt grateful toward Zhu Wushi, it was no longer blind trust.

However, whether she was a pawn or not, from the moment she obtained the diary copy, she had already broken free.

As long as she did not wish it, Zhu Wushi could no longer control her fate.

"But what about Big Brother and Guihai Yi Dao? If godfather really... then won't Big Brother and Guihai Yi Dao be in great danger?"

Thinking of this, Shangguan Haitang could not help but feel deeply worried.

【In matters of the heart, Shangguan Haitang had also weathered many hardships.】

【She harbored a secret love for Duan Tianya, yet Duan Tianya could never forget his deceased former love, Liu Sheng Xueji.】

【Later, under Zhu Wushi's arrangement, Duan Tianya took Liu Sheng Piaoxu, Liu Sheng Xueji's younger sister, as his wife.】

【And Shangguan Haitang could only watch helplessly as the man she loved married another, then force a smile and offer her blessings.】

"So in the end, there really was no result?" Shangguan Haitang gave a bitter smile.

Unlike in the story, the real Duan Tianya had no one he loved, yet he still gently declined her past hints.

Judging by this, she truly was not Duan Tianya's type.

This left Shangguan Haitang dejected, yet at the same time, oddly at peace.

Perhaps she, too, should let go of this unrequited love that was destined to bear no fruit.

……

After drifting at sea for a month, the Liu Sheng sisters finally set foot on the soil of the Central Domain.

At this moment, the two sisters looked at each other, and the atmosphere grew somewhat strange.

After a moment, Liu Sheng Piaoxu said softly, "Sister, it seems we misunderstood. The man the diary spoke of was never Juetian, but this Duan Tianya."

Liu Sheng Xueji's eyelid twitched, and a wave of awkwardness washed over her heart.

Back then, Jiang Sishui had said that the sisters had died because of the same man, so she had mistakenly assumed he meant Juetian.

Who would have thought, it turned out to be a complete blunder.

Taking a deep breath, Liu Sheng Xueji said calmly, "Even so, when we killed Juetian, he didn't die unjustly."

Liu Sheng Piaoxu gave a slight nod of her pretty head.

Indeed, if they had not resisted back then, their fate would certainly have been no better.

"Sister, should we go kill this Duan Tianya?" A cold glint flashed in Liu Sheng Piaoxu's eyes.

Just thinking that the two of them had died because of the same man—no matter the reason—she simply felt uneasy about it.

Liu Sheng Xueji said helplessly, "This Duan Tianya is probably far away in Jingzhou, ten thousand li from Suzhou, and bears us no grudge. Just because of one sentence, you'd make a special trip to kill him?"

"But…" Liu Sheng Piaoxu had no words to retort.

"Right now we've only just arrived; it's not wise to draw too much attention. Let's get familiar with Suzhou first."

"Mm, I'll listen to Sister."

【But just because Duan Tianya didn't love Shangguan Haitang doesn't mean no one wanted Shangguan Haitang.】

【In the drama, three people harbored feelings for Shangguan Haitang, each with a more impressive background than the last.】

【The first was Guihai Yi Dao, one of the secret agents Zhu Wushi had trained. He had stumbled upon the fact that Shangguan Haitang was a woman, and from then on, fell for her.】

【The second was Wan Sanqian, the richest man in the drama—the nation's top tycoon. Even Zhu Wushi's rebellion had to rely on his financial backing.】

【The third was the Emperor, the most powerful and highest-ranking person in the drama. After a chance encounter, he too fell for Shangguan Haitang.】