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Chapter 3: Who Are You?
Chapter 3: Who Are You?
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"Immortal Master Shen, this lowly mortal sends you some fruits and snacks on behalf of Ying'er, as she wasn't able to visit you because she was called by the family's elder since the Immortal Master took her as his disciple."
Shen Haoran raised an eyebrow at the audacity of the young man in front of him and he couldn't help but to chuckle mentally because he already had seen through about his schemes.
'Well, it wouldn't be the first time as well to meet a fellow world-hopper but most of the time, we don't have roles that would be contradictory on the tasks that we had but right now, it's not a case if the other world-hopper took the role of a protagonist.'
In the original plot, Xiao Zixin didn't want the engagement, even Zhang Hui Ying wasn't favor on this arrangement as well and because of that, they hated each other, and their attitudes would often clash with one another if given the chance they encounter one another.
Zhang Hui Ying, because she came from a household of military generals, is often reckless and brash, that isn't befitting of how a noble lady should be.
Xiao Zixin, on the other hand, is a gentleman and a scholar as he came from the Prime Minister Xiao Household, a household of scholars and strategists that serves the Empire for almost eight generations and one of the oldest households within the Northern Xia Empire.
Shen Haoran anticipated difficulty when he took Zhang Hui Ying as his disciple and helped her annul the engagement.
According to the original plot, the protagonist might not approve of his engagement that was arranged for them since they were young, but he won't accept the annulment because of his pride as a noble.
But what Shen Haoran didn't expect was, Xiao Zixin immediately agreed about the annulment of his engagement with Zhang Hui Ying and not just that, he also apologize for whatever had occurred and promised that he will protect Zhang Hui Ying's reputation since annulling the engagement will tarnish the noble lady's reputation within the Imperial Capital.
Shen Haoran knew this as well that annulling the engagement will greatly tarnish a noble lady's reputation since this is an ancient era where narrow-minded principles still apply.
If the original plot still follows, the male protagonist Xiao Zixin would annul his engagement to Zhang Hui Ying in public while holding the "pure-hearted" girl named Daiyu within his arms and that leads to Zhang Hui Ying's reputation to be tarnished and choose suicide to save herself from humiliation.
Shen Haoran raised an eyebrow when he read the plot as it feels like he had sensed a déjà vu because of that scene, and he shook off his head as he recalled that maybe it's one plot that he encountered before but it's usually in a western-fantasy or modern-school settings that he encounters these kinds of world plots.
Anyway, after he safely annulled Zhang Hui Ying's engagement to the male protagonist and when he started to teach the former villainess under his tutelage, he learned that the former villainess and the male protagonist seems to develop a certain kind of relationship that wasn't a romantic but a platonic one and for him, this is a good thing.
He also keep in check about that stupid heroine who seems to love chasing the male protagonist and trying to set him up into a honey trap but whatever report came to him about that girl, it will always either she was being punished or being humiliated by the male protagonist instead.
Shen Haoran planned to use the male protagonist against the Crown Prince to his advantage, as he intended to weaken the Crown Prince's faction. With the help of the second Prince, who was the rightful Crown Prince in the original plot.
When the second prince was falsely accused of a crime, he didn't commit. Not only did the second prince lose his right to the crown, and they banished his Empress mother to the Cold Palace and left to die without proving her innocence.
Aside from the fact that he weaken Crown Prince Long Mingyu's faction and authority, what reported back to him is that the male protagonist also sworn an allegiance to him, just like what happen in the original plot but later on, numerous scandals appeared around Crown Prince Long Mingyu that makes his reputation sinks to the bottom.
Which raised a suspicious on his part and now that he uncover those secrets about the male protagonist, it's time to confront him and it's been like 2 or 3 years already since he entered to this world.
Shen Haoran looked at this seemingly innocent male protagonist while looking at the basket of goodies he presented in front of him, and he wasn't an idiot not to catch on the scent that lingers on those foods.
« Esteemed host, there are potions that were mixed within these foods and it's not harmful to the host but… »
Shen Haoran almost raised an eyebrow but managed to calm himself when Silver suddenly speaks through his mind as Silver explained about the potions that were mixed within the snacks that the male protagonist provided but what caught his attention is that Silver paused its sentence.
'If it's not harmful, then what are these potions for?'
He already knew that there are potions that were mixed within these snacks, but he couldn't identify what are those potions were for.
« Esteemed host, the potions that were mixed is for the individual's soul restoration…. »
Now that was an information that he wasn't expecting.
'WHAT?!'
Shen Haoran wasn't an idiot, and he didn't need Silver to explain things for him as he glared back at this innocent male protagonist who keeps on smiling back at him.
? "Who are you?" ?
Shen Haoran used the most common language in every modern setting world plot that he entered and the smile on the male protagonist's lips became even bigger, as if he had received something valuable this time.
Before he can do anything, Silver's system emergency alarm activated without warning.
« Warning! Silver system activation for deporting the esteemed host's soul out of the world plot. Silver prioritizes the safety of the esteemed host! Get ready for immediate departure!
»
Without seeing everything of what happened, everything went blank.
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