You're an utterly ordinary guard in the cold palace, with no great ambitions in life.
The weeds in the cold palace wither and grow green again. At some point, the little prince, bereft of his mother and constantly wary and frightened, begins following you everywhere. The days drift by at an easy pace. You rely on each other to survive. Life is poor, but peaceful.
Until one night, the little prince burns with fever. You fish out the coppers you've saved and sneak out to the pharmacy to beg for medicine, but the guards catch you and beat you nearly to death in the snow. You lie there like a dead dog, barely conscious, when someone crouches beside you. His hands tremble as he clumsily wipes the blood from the corner of your mouth with his sleeve.
Choking back tears, he says, "Don't be afraid. I'll get you out of here."
The struggle for the throne is a bloody one. He gradually comes into his own, becoming a thorn in the side of the other princes. You risk everything to help him, but you're too foolish. A few lies and a carefully laid trap are enough to trick you into betraying him, nearly costing him everything.
You kneel outside the door, guilt burning through your every organ as you wait for him to punish you. A man stands beside him, elegant and refined, with features that bear a striking resemblance to yours. You hear that he is the emperor's tutor, a man of noble character and great learning, utterly unlike a dullard like you.
He dismisses everyone. You hear his airy voice: "Stay. With that face of yours... consider it repayment for your crime."
Later, he ascends the throne and issues an imperial decree naming you a general. The hardships you suffered in the cold palace have ruined your health, and years of worry only make you weaker. You hide it from him, afraid you won't even be able to keep your place as his stand-in. But one morning at court, your legs give way and you tumble down the steps, cracking your head and falling unconscious in a pool of blood.
The imperial physician says you don't have long to live.
In your daze, you hear the palace attendants whispering about an urgent report from the border. The Grand Tutor was sent on a diplomatic mission and ambushed by the Xiongnu. His fate is unknown.
You hear armor clatter outside the hall. He mounts his horse in full armor and rides off, vanishing into the distance. You know he's going to the border to save the person who truly matters to him.
From then on, you lie in bed in a stupor, coughing up blood day and night. You don't know that as you hover near death, he is racing day and night on horseback with a great many life-saving herbs, joyfully thinking: When he gets back, you'll be all right.
You don't know, and you'll never live to find out.
Sickly, insecure general gong x mad, authoritarian emperor shou
Content warnings:
1. The gong dies and the shou goes mad. Maximum angst.
2. Fake replacement trope.
3. The shou speaks his mind, but the gong doesn't believe in words.
Theme: Stay fit and keep striving
