Your Highness, the Shadow Guard Wants to Be More Than Just Your Shadow Guard

Chu Li is the lowest-ranking shadow guard serving by the side of Fifth Prince Xiao Chen. Zhao Gang takes a fancy to his looks and tries to possess him. After Chu Li refuses, Zhao Gang nurses a grudge and hatches a sinister scheme to send him into the abyss. With his intelligence, prudence, and careful planning, Chu Li manages to secure a chance at survival. He exhausts himself helping Xiao Chen ascend the throne, asking for nothing more than to retire once his work is done, marry, and have children. One imperial edict crushes all his hopes: he is appointed as a “plaything” in the emperor’s bedchamber. The imperial robes are close at hand, but imperial power remains far beyond his reach. Brocade curtains cannot contain his boundless fury. If his loyalty cannot win him a way to live, then he will use his own body as armor and the emperor’s bedside as his battleground, turning the whole realm into his game of chess. Xiao Chen’s dark eyes narrow slightly. His long fingers clamp around Chu Li’s neck. “Chu Li, if you lose your chastity, there will be no reason for you to go on living.” A chill runs down Chu Li’s spine, and his eyes redden slightly. “As you command, Your Highness.” He grumbles inwardly: Since when is a shadow guard’s chastity so important? He isn’t a woman, so what does he need it for?