Chapter 2 Assassination? No, it's like delivering food to your door!

Yun Zhan didn't sleep a wink all night.

Lying on the dragon bed that could fit seven or eight people, he felt like a salted fish on a frying pan, tossing and turning, his mind replaying a terrifying short film about the “process of making skull artworks”.

As dawn broke outside the window, he sat up abruptly, sporting dark circles under his eyes that rivaled those of a panda.

"No! Absolutely not!" He grabbed his messy, bird's-nest-like hair and roared at the empty palace, "I, Yun Zhan, a well-educated, well-rounded young man from the 21st century (this is debatable), didn't transmigrate here to be used as material for a figurine! Three years! Three more years! Let's give it our all and turn this bicycle into a motorcycle!"

Self-rescue! We must save ourselves!

How to save it? Hoping this seemingly crumbling Great Yin Dynasty will suddenly be revitalized? Hoping the entire court will suddenly become loyal, patriotic, and dedicated to governing? Forget it. If the original owner hadn't been so reckless, the empire wouldn't have collapsed in three years. Relying on him to reform with modern knowledge? Thinking about those muscular "concubines" yesterday, he felt this bureaucratic system was probably harder to move than reinforced concrete.

After much thought, Yun Zhan came up with a simple, direct, and to-the-point idea: if he could just kill Yan Linye, this "chosen one" would be gone, wouldn't history be rewritten? He wouldn't have to die!

"Better to die than to die myself"—this is the first principle for a transmigrator to save their life!

"Yes! Strike first, or suffer the consequences!" Yun Zhan slapped his thigh, a flame of "hope" igniting in his eyes (though it was mostly desperation). "I'm the emperor now! The emperor! Sending a few top imperial guards to assassinate a commoner who hasn't even started an uprising is as easy as crushing an ant!"

Thinking of this, Yun Zhan instantly perked up, as if he could already see Yan Linye's death and his own carefree and happy future.

"Grandpa Gao! Grandpa Gao!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

The diligent eunuch Gao appeared almost instantly: "Your Majesty, have you gotten up? This servant will help you change your clothes?"

"What are you changing clothes for! I have important business to discuss!" Yun Zhan said with a serious expression. "I'm asking you, does our palace have any... well, those kinds of highly skilled martial artists who can kill without leaving a trace, take ten steps and kill one person, and leave no trace for a thousand miles?"

Startled by the question, Eunuch Gao cautiously replied, "Your Majesty, are you referring to... the secret guards?"

"Yes! The secret guards!" Yun Zhan's eyes lit up. "That's them! Call two... no, call five of the most capable ones over here! I have a secret mission!"

Although Eunuch Gao wondered to himself what His Majesty was up to now, he still obeyed and went to carry out the order. Not long after, five men dressed in black, with composed demeanor and sharp eyes, silently appeared in the hall and knelt down in unison: "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Looking at the five people before him, each with bulging temples and piercing gazes, Yun Zhan felt a sense of reassurance.

“Ahem,” Yun Zhan adopted the air of an emperor, “I am entrusting you with a difficult but glorious task.”

The guards held their breath.

"Go and kill someone for me." Yun Zhan lowered his voice, creating a mysterious atmosphere. "This person is named Yan Linye, and he should currently be... in..." He tried hard to recall the vague record in the miscellaneous book, "That's right, he's active in the Hejian Prefecture area! Find him for me, and then..." He made a throat-slitting gesture, "Be clean and efficient, leave no trace."

The head of the secret guards raised his head, his eyes resolute: "Your Majesty, rest assured, your subordinates will not fail in your mission!"

"Good! I await your good news!" Yun Zhan waved his hand, feeling as if he were in complete control and ready to win.

The guards withdrew silently, just as they had arrived.

Yun Zhan let out a long sigh of relief, feeling as if half the weight on his heart had been lifted. He thought smugly that once this major threat was dealt with, he would definitely reorganize his harem, replacing all the muscular men with cute, soft girls! Then he would consider developing the economy and improving people's livelihoods...

Yun Zhan spent the first day in anxious waiting, and he had no appetite.

The next day, he began to feel restless, frequently asking Grandpa Gao if there was any news.

On the afternoon of the fifth day, Eunuch Gao finally stumbled in, his face ashen: "Your Majesty! Your Majesty! There's news!"

Yun Zhan jumped up excitedly: "How was it? Did you succeed?"

With a mournful face, Eunuch Gao reported, "Your Majesty, the secret guard... Secret Guard Number One... he... he's gone!"

"Gone?" Yun Zhan's heart skipped a beat. "What happened?"

"According to the reports from the accompanying guards, they tracked the target all the way to Hejian Prefecture and were about to find him. But when Brother Number One was climbing over a small hill, he slipped and fell... fell into a bear trap dug by a hunter. The trap was several meters deep and filled with water... By the time they tried to get him out, he... he was already dead..."

Yun Zhan: "..."

He died before even achieving his goal? What a pathetic way to die! What happened to the imperial guard he was supposed to be? He couldn't even dodge a bear trap?

"Useless!" Yun Zhan was so angry his liver hurt. "What about the others? Continue the mission!"

Eunuch Gao wiped his sweat: "Let's continue! Guards number two and three have taken over the mission. They have successfully located Yan Linye's residence and decided to operate at night, using sleeping gas."

Yun Zhan's hope was rekindled: "And then?"

"Then... they had just lit the sleeping incense, and before they could even blow it in, a sudden downpour began. The rain was eerily heavy, extinguishing the incense and soaking Number Two, who was hiding on the roof, to the bone. To make matters worse, the rain made the eaves slippery, and Number Two lost his footing and fell off the roof, landing right on top of Number Three... Both of them passed out. The next morning, they were discovered by Yan Linye, who was up early. He thought they were refugees who had suffered hardship, and instead of mistreating them, he kindly gave them some dry food and travel expenses, and... sent them away..."

Yun Zhan opened his mouth wide, his jaw threatening to dislocate again.

Downpour? Knocked unconscious? And then treated like a beggar by the target?

Does Yan Linye come with a built-in weather forecast and maximum luck?!

"What about numbers four and five?!" Yun Zhan practically shouted.

"Brothers Number Four and Number Five have learned their lesson and decided to forgo any scheming and launch a direct assault! They've laid an ambush on Yan Linye's usual route, ready to catch him off guard and deliver a fatal blow!"

"This time it should finally succeed, right?!" Yun Zhan felt like he was about to have a heart attack.

The old eunuch's voice trembled with tears: "It was almost done...it was almost a success. Brother Number Five's sword was about to touch Yan Linye's back! But just then, a startled wild boar suddenly appeared out of nowhere and charged straight at Yan Linye. Hearing the noise, Yan Linye instinctively dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow! But Brother Number Four, trying to avoid the charging boar, twisted his foot and collided with Brother Number Five. Their swords...stabbed each other in the thighs...and now...now they're still lying in the clinic in Hejian Prefecture..."

Yun Zhan froze completely on the dragon throne.

Slipping into a trap, being caught in a downpour while drenched in smoke, a wild boar coming to the rescue, teammates killing each other...

This isn't an assassination attempt, it's more like a group of people putting on a comedy show for Yan Linye!

A chill ran up his spine from his tailbone to the top of his head. Yun Zhan was now absolutely certain that the "chosen one" described in that miscellaneous book was true! This Yan Linye was practically God's favorite son; anyone who messed with him was doomed!