How To Survive as a Villain

Xiao YuAn was hiding behind the bushes in the Imperial garden. In winter, the wind was icy cold and the bushes were covered in thick snow. Although it was very cold outside, Xiao YuAn was actually quite excited.

Because half a month after the old General’s remonstration, Yan HeQing and Princess Yongning, in the original book, meet each other for the first time at the Jinfeng Yulu Pavilion, now in front of Xiao YuAn!

Fiction becomes reality, and Xiao YuAn was looking forward to it rubbing his hands in anticipation!

But it was now the evening, and the male lead Yan HeQing hadn’t appeared yet.

The snow was constantly falling from the sky, and Xiao YuAn was so cold that he wasn’t able to speak, but he was reluctant to leave. He could only wrap his clothes tightly and keep breathing.

After a while, he heard the sound of footsteps.

Xiao YuAn lowered his body, and quietly looked to where the sound came from.

Yan HeQing was still covered with black charcoal, which made Xiao YuAn disappointed. After the disappointment, Xiao YuAn’s heart was filled with surprise.

Obviously, it was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, the days when water still dripped from ice, but Yan HeQing was wearing thin linen clothes, and he didn’t even have a windbreak robe.

Yan HeQing’s hands were also frozen and cracked because of the cold, some blood had solidified and dried up. With complicated eyes, he took the broom to sweep the snow. Xiao YuAn estimated that this job was assigned to him by Eunuch Zhao.

Yan HeQing went to the Jinfeng Yulu Pavilion, but didn’t immediately start to sweep the snow. Instead, he showed pain in his face, and covering his abdomen with one hand, he pressed it hard. Then he grabbed the snow from the floor and stuffed it right into his mouth.

Oh my God, this is horrible ???

Xiao YuAn’s heart was filled with sadness, how could an stallion protagonist be disgraced to this degree! He’s so starved to point of eating snow!

Forget it, he will soon meet Princess Yongning, and someone will be punished because of this.

Xiao YuAn sighed and continued to observe quietly.

However, although Yan HeQing was embarrassed to look like this, when he picked up the broom, his posture was very tall and straight, his temperament was extraordinary, and he had an imposing aura.

Xiao YuAn couldn’t help but shout in his heart: Look! The male lead makes a broom look like a sword! If you really dare to bully Yan HeQing, you clearly can’t see his Emperor’s spirit and protagonist halo!!! While bullying him, did you not feel the cold running through your spine, did your neck not hurt?!!

However, these people obviously didn’t, because just after Xiao YuAn finished shouting in his heart, a slave came from nowhere and kicked Yan HeQing’s knee.

Xiao YuAn: “…”

A cannon fodder villain! Do you know what you’re doing! You’re kicking the male lead! This is the peak of your life! You must remember it well!!!

Yan HeQing was caught off guard, he stumbled but he steadied himself in time, he didn’t kneel down. Unexpectedly, the slave mended his foot and scolded him viciously: “Oh, you have the courage? Won’t you even kneel?”

Yan HeQing’s knees fell to the snow, but his back was straight.

“You see, look.” The servant pointed at the snow around them with a strange voice. “Didn’t Eunuch Zhao ask you to sweep the snow before Youshi¹ hour?”

Yan HeQing was neither humble nor overactive: “Xushi².”

The servant slapped Yan HeQing and scolded him: “You don’t work hard, and yet you’re quick to talk back?”

Hiding behind the bushes, Xiao YuAn felt that he was a great man and couldn’t stand it anymore, he began to feel sorry for Yan HeQing. After all, the original work was just a textural description, but now it was real in his eyes, his feelings were totally different.

The slave scolded him for a while, and then said a sentence to punish him by having him kneel there for the whole night. If he dared to run, tomorrow he will break his leg! Then, the slave snorted and turned away.

This cannon fodder villain style was too classic, which made Xiao YuAn can’t help but applaud with conviction.

But let the male lead kneel for an entire night? Cannon fodder, aren’t you afraid of becoming a joke, in half an hour, Princess Yongning will come to grace us with her presence! To! Save! The! Protagonist!

Xiao YuAn secretly comforted Yan HeQing in his heart.

Yan HeQing, it doesn’t matter how impatient you are, your true goddess, your white rose, your moonlight will soon come to save you!

Then half an hour later.

Princess Yongning, wasn’t here.

In another half an hour.

Princess Yongning still hasn’t come.

Half an hour later.

Princess Yongning still didn’t come.

As the night got darker, the wind and snow mixed. Yan HeQing knelt in front of the Jinfeng Yulu Pavilion, his hands were tightly clenched into fists, his lips turned white and his whole body was trembling.

After waiting for another half an hour, Xiao YuAn began to roar inside his heart: Princess Yongning! Are you waiting for your hair to turn white?! Where are you?! What’re you doing?! If you don’t come, your husband will freeze to death. Don’t you know?!

The temperature suddenly dropped, Xiao YuAn felt that he couldn’t bear the cold anymore even if he was wrapped in a fur coat, not to mention Yan HeQing who was starving and was dressed in thin clothes. If he went on like this, he would definitely freeze to death.

But Princess Yongning didn’t even appear.

There must be something wrong.

Xiao YuAn started to think fast: it was after half a month from the remonstration, General Sun’s appearance was not wrong, nor was Jinfeng Yulu Pavilion. Even the story of Yan HeQing’s being bullied was not different from the original.

But why did the key figure, Princess Yongning, not show up!

In the original book, Princess Yongning sent General Sun back to his hometown. When she passed by the palace, she ran into Yan HeQing being punished. She couldn’t bear such a thing.

Wait.

What the fuck? Wait!!!

In the original book, Princess Yongning was sent to beg for the old General’s life, so she passed by this place.

But now, because of Xiao YuAn’s modest attitude, the old General didn’t plan to go back to the countryside to farm!

Therefore, Princess Yongning naturally didn’t need to send back her grandfather. How could she pass by this place? How could she come to save Yan HeQing?!

What the fuck!

Xiao YuAn was trying to understand what happened, while taking off his robe, he ran towards Yan HeQing.

Footnotes:

Footnotes

1. 酉时 yǒu shí; The period of the day from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
2. 戌时 xū shí; The period of the day from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.