Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Zuiying flew to the imperial palace, pulled out his own authorization tally and walked through the palace gates.

Then, he made his way to the Dark Moon Palace.

Outside the hall, Wuhen leaned against a treetop, snoring with his eyes shut.

When he heard the sound of Zuiying's footsteps, he immediately woke up and flew to the bottom of the tree.

“Zuiying, where did you go? So many days have pa.s.sed since I last saw you!” He said, smiling at Zuiying.

Zuiying didn't mention a word about what happened several days ago, but smiled slightly. “Go get a few days' rest. I'll stay on guard for the next few days,” he said.

Wuhen let out a yawn. “Zuiying, I've been exhausted as h.e.l.l for the past few days without you holding the fort. His Majesty has been in terrible spirits lately, so as shadow guards, we must be on alert every second of every minute, just in case thieves take this opportunity to attack. Since you're back now, I can relax! Since you're on duty here today, I'll be on duty first thing tomorrow morning.”

Zuiying furrowed his sharp eyebrows and asked, “What's happened to His Majesty for the past few days?”

Wuhen let out a sigh. “Ever since His Majesty lost to that blonde man, he's been in an awful mood. He has been drinking his days away. You saw him on the journey back. Since returning to the palace, his condition got severely worse. The imperial doctor said that if this goes on, His Majesty unfortunately won't last over a month.”

Zuiying's eyes instantly widened. “Then… then, what are we to do about this?”

Wuhen let out an anguished sigh. “What can we really do but hope that His Majesty will come around. That blonde man has taken Her Majesty the Empress. It makes sense for His Majesty to be this upset, since I'm afraid she won't ever come back. That's all I'm saying. I hope you can try your best to persuade His Majesty to drink a little less.”

Zuiying nodded. “I will.”

Wuhen let out a yawn, then left the Dark Moon Palace.

Zuiying was walking towards the Dark Moon Palace when he suddenly heard a bang. It sounded like a bottle had been smashed to the ground.

It was still early and there were just two eunuchs guarding the entrance. Zuiying walked up to one of them and asked, “Does His Majesty not sleep at night?”

The eunuch shook his head and furrowed his brows. “Besides spending most of his time drinking, His Majesty sleeps for a while.”

Zuiying let out a sigh. “I'd like to go in and try to talk some sense into His Majesty,” he said flatly.

“B… But His Majesty doesn't allow anyone in. Even Prince Hengan and the top shadow guard would get yelled away.” The eunuch felt a little awkward.

Zuiying pulled a faint smile and replied, “I have something that I would like to report to His Majesty. I hope you can please open the door.”

The eunuch let out a sigh, then opened the door.

Zuiying walked slowly in and saw a drunken Han Moze at the table. He walked over and cupped his fist. “Zuiying, at your service Your Majesty.”

Han Moze slightly squinted and gazed at Zuiying with a smile on his face. “Drink with me.”

Zuiying knew Han Moze was actually a warm person on the inside but cold on the outside, so he wasn't really afraid of him. He walked right up to the table and took a seat. He picked up a bottle of wine and took a sip. “Thank you His Majesty for giving me a drink,” he said nonchalantly.

As the tears glistened in his eyes, Han Moze was plunged into his own pain and anguish. “I really can't defeat that person. Even if I tried my hardest, I can't even touch that person. I'm a real failure. This is the first time I've failed so utterly in life,” he murmured to himself.

Zuiying glanced at Han Moze and sincerely tried to talk some sense to him. “In the history of man, who hasn't failed in life? Since His Majesty cares so much about Her Majesty, then risk your life to protect her, no matter the obstacle.”

When Han Moze heard what Zuiying said, all he could do was muster a smile. “I can't even see her right now. How can I even talk about protecting her? I want to protect her with my life but I realize that I am now really weak. I'm so weak that I've lost the right to protect her.”