The Princess’ Shadow Guard – Chapter 62
by Little PandaThe Story of Sleeping Beauty (The Crown Prince’s Downfall)
Different from the outside which was filled with the fragrance of medicine, inside the dark room of the Imperial Medical Academy, the air held a heavy aura of sickness and a thick smell of blood.
It was originally a place for decocting medicinal herbs, but after Ming Qin was poisoned, it was tidied and cleared out, in order to place the unconscious person here for the imperial physicians to conveniently care for.
The solid wood floor was covered with all kinds of bottles and jars, and stacked medical manuals and ancient books were placed leaning against the wall. On a black stone slab lay a woman with a deathly-ash complexion; her four limbs were tightly chained by iron locks as thick as three fingers, making her unable to move.
Lying on the bed, Ming Qin convulsed from time to time, struggling powerfully to break free from her restraints, just like a shackled, frenzied wild beast.
The skin rubbing against the shackles was bluish-purple from her immense strength, swollen, and the places where the skin was broken and bleeding, even when coated with a thick medicinal ointment, still showed faint signs of festering due to repeated abrasion.
On her exposed arms were several scabbed scars, which did not look like sword wounds, but rather more like marks left behind from five fingers deeply scraping away skin and flesh.
Ming Qin’s brows were tightly furrowed, and a piece of white cloth was stuffed in her mouth to prevent her from biting her tongue to commit suicide. Her whole body was covered in cold sweat, which mixed with her tears and saliva, creating a soaking wet patch.
But even though she could not speak, the painful wails coming from the depths of her throat were still incessant.
Sometimes they were low, muffled roars from a forcefully suppressed throat; sometimes they were broken and mournful wails that escaped despite her clenched teeth, like a violent, out-of-tune zither. Every single sound revealed the bone-gnawing, heart-gouging pain the woman was experiencing.
When Song Shuqing led Murong Yan into the room, this was the scene they saw.
“She… it has been a month and a half since she was poisoned.” Leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed, Song Shuqing spoke in a sorrowful tone, “We are thinking of ways to alleviate her pain every day.”
“…Ah Qin?”
Looking at the person before her who seemed like an oil-exhausted, dried-up lamp1, Murong Yan for a moment could not believe that she was that powerful, forthright shadow guard who always had a bright smile.
How could it be like this, how could my own Ah Qin become like this?
“She cannot hear you speak… she cannot hear, cannot see, has no sense of smell or taste, and cannot perceive the outside world.” Song Shuqing lowered her gaze, looking at the person she had done her utmost to protect, who was still lingering on her last breath2 without any improvement, her expression pained. “The only thing she has now is pain.”
“Clearly, Qinqin had no sense of pain before.”
This world is truly ironic.
“How could it be like this… Why? Ah Qin…” Murong Yan did not dare to blink; although her vision was gradually blurring, she still wanted to see everything before her clearly.
She walked forward slowly, utterly crestfallen3, and just as she was about to reach out and grasp Ming Qin’s withered fingers, she was stopped by Song Shuqing.
“Qinqin can’t feel anything right now, she might accidentally hurt you…” Pulling open her sleeve and removing the bandage, Song Shuqing revealed the five-fingered scratch marks within, so deep the bone was visible, and gave a slight, bitter smile. “Who could have thought that Qinqin would be this strong even in a coma.”
Every time I help Qinqin apply medicine or feed her congee, I always get accidentally injured by her random struggles.
“Wang Wei… Imperial Physician Wang is still working hard to develop an antidote, but even if the detoxification is successful, no one can guarantee the possibility of a full recovery.” Looking at Ming Qin, who had cloth forcefully stuffed in her mouth and was struggling powerfully, Song Shuqing swallowed.
“Qinqin now… only wants to die…”
Her expression was sorrowful.
“It’s all me, it’s all my fault, Ah Qin…” Murong Yan murmured, her whole body trembling. “Ah Qin… what should I do with you, what on earth should I do with you?”
I originally thought I had planned for everything.
If Ah Qin lived, that would naturally be for the best, and I would live on with her.
If, unfortunately, Ah Qin was already dead, then I would also slit my throat to go to the Yellow Springs with her.
Murong Yan lowered her head, her hands braced on the edge of the bed. Her weak legs slowly gave way and she squatted down. Moisture gathered in her vision, and a sour feeling filled her nasal passages. As the emotions of self-blame and guilt exploded in her chest, bean-sized tears fell drop by drop, making her seem as if she had lost her soul.
But…
This state of being half-alive and half-dead, this pain that makes one not want to live, where every inhale and exhale craves release.
This leaves me with what to do, and how should I decide?
A wave of dizziness washed over her, and the woman knelt on the ground, feeling as if she could not breathe. The golden hairpin on her hair bun slid off, falling to the ground with a piercing sound. The sharp object, emitting a golden light, unknowingly and imperceptibly4 tempted Murong Yan to grasp it in her hand.
She contemplated, as if making a momentous decision.
Looking at her beloved lying on the bed suffering torment, emitting painful groans as if being gnawed on by hungry ghosts, Murong Yan was filled with grief. She only wished that in the next second, she could stab her in the heart to end her suffering, and then pierce her own chest as well, to accompany her on the road.
This shocking thought began to grow and spread wildly in Murong Yan’s heart. Tear stains still hung on her cheeks, but her original pained expression had already transformed into one of determination.
Ah Qin… don’t be afraid.
It won’t hurt anymore.
I will be with you.
I won’t let you be lonely.
Absolutely not.
Just as she propped up her body and was about to raise her arm, Song Shuqing suddenly spoke, “Commandery Princess, have you heard the fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty?”
“Sleeping Beauty?” Murong Yan repeated with some confusion, her hand still tightly clutching the hairpin.
“Yes, Sleeping Beauty.” Even seeing the sharp weapon in the woman’s hand, Song Shuqing just said calmly, “It is a story about an unconscious person who, upon the call of a cherished loved one, awakens once more.”
She squatted down and took a handkerchief from her bosom, handing it to Murong Yan. “Besides the antidote developed by the Imperial Medical Academy, Qinqin’s life also depends on her own desire to survive.”
Unnoticeably taking the tightly gripped golden hairpin from the other woman’s hand, Song Shuqing asked, “Is the Commandery Princess willing to become that person in the dream who can make Qinqin reignite her will to live?”
In the originally silent and gloomy dungeon, the creaking sound of an iron door opening rang out.
Several jailers carrying oil lamps shouted as they lifted up Murong Xiao who was huddled in a corner, roughly holding him up and walking him out of the cell, and threw the limp and powerless man into a carriage.
The carriage slowly drove out of the palace walls. After an unknown amount of time, it stopped at a granary. When Murong Xiao was lifted out of the carriage, he saw Song Shuqing and Xu Jun standing outside in the snow.
“You bitch.”
Although he did not recognize Xu Jun, it was impossible for Murong Xiao to forget the woman before him who had severely tortured him. The hand without fingernails faintly ached. “You dog of inferior, lowly bloodline.”
“Yes, yes, yes, everything you say is right, you are the best and most noble.”
With the long nail that had once pierced the man’s palm stuck in her hair, Song Shuqing yawned and scratched her ear with her little finger.
“As a fossil who is about to become infamous for a thousand years5, can’t you choose some nicer last words? For example, something like 『May my body never again be born into a royal family』6, that way it would have more dramatic tension when adapted into a TV drama.”
“Song-shijie, should I tell the Court Scribe7 what you just said?” Xu Jun, at the side, tilted his head to confirm, a little uncertain.
“No, no, I was just kidding, a trash person like this doesn’t need too many scenes in a TV drama either.”
Waving her hand casually, Song Shuqing walked towards the sinister-faced Murong Xiao and said with a beaming smile, “Today is your execution day. Unfortunately, to your disappointment, the Commandery Princess Chongwen has things to attend to and doesn’t want to bother with you at all, so she asked me to supervise the execution.”
“Jiejie, impossible.” Murong Xiao’s eyes widened, losing his composure for the first time, and he turned his head to search the surroundings for the figure he longed for. “No, Jiejie will come to see Gu…”
“Aiya, the Commandery Princess Chongwen’s heart has long been filled with other things, how could she have time for you now.” Song Shuqing put her hands behind her back and looked at the panicked man before her. “And don’t you blame me, I didn’t want to see you one bit either.”
She tilted her head to signal the guards holding the man, then turned and entered the granary.
“However, don’t be too sad, at least your punishment was ordered to me personally by the Commandery Princess.” The woman said with false comfort as she walked. “From before your death to after your death, even the place where you are to be buried, were all designated by the Commandery Princess.”
Although, the Commandery Princess’s ‘grind his bones to dust and scatter his ashes8, in a place where he can never be reborn for all eternity9’ sounded a bit vague, as a professional, she would still find a way.
“Song-shijie, they are ready.” Xu Jun said, watching the guards strip Murong Xiao naked and tie him to a human-shaped wooden stake, lying on his back in a spread-eagle position.
The woman nodded, “According to the Shadow Guard Camp’s investigation, there were a total of twenty-three women who were sent into the Eastern Palace standing up but were carried out lying down. According to the Wuzuo’s10 autopsies, the causes of death ranged from torn scalps, pierced lower bodies, to ruptured internal organs from heavy blows… hmm… truly a wide variety.”
Song Shuqing looked down at the naked man with a disgusted expression, as if looking at a piece of filth. “Tsk, your tastes are truly terrible, you should be sent for chemical castration, it’s a pity Wang Wei’s abilities are limited.”
“Insolent, what do you want to do to Gu?” Murong Xiao looked up at the woman standing beside him, his face alert.
“I think before you enter hell, you should have a taste of what you’ve brought to others.” Opening the jade jar in her arms, Song Shuqing poured the foul-smelling liquid inside onto Murong Xiao.
“I hope you have fun in a bit, after all, you like it so much? Don’t you?”
Just before leaving the granary, Song Shuqing suddenly thought of something and turned back. “Remember to clench your teeth, don’t die too quickly, after all, this is only the first step.”
The iron door closed with a HONG!, and just as Murong Xiao was feeling puzzled, he heard the rapid breathing of a beast by his ear.
A side door was slowly opened. A giant bull the size of five men had bloodshot eyes, the veins on its neck were bulging, and its sturdy front legs were pawing the ground restlessly.
When it saw the man before it and smelled the fishy stench coming from his body, its taut nerves snapped, and it charged towards the wooden stake.
Outside the granary, hearing the continuous miserable shrieks and the low roars of the bull coming from inside, “This medicine seems quite effective,” Song Shuqing said calmly to Xu Jun beside her as she twirled the jade jar in her hand. “By the way, have you eaten yet?”
Listening to the man’s heart-wrenching screams from inside, Xu Jun broke out in a cold sweat and subconsciously pressed his legs together. “No, Shijie told me not to eat yesterday so I didn’t. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Afraid that the person inside would die too quickly, Song Shuqing calculated the time as she spoke, “It might get a bit messy later, I was just worried you wouldn’t be able to stop yourself from throwing up.”
“After all, the sky is still very bright, we have a lot of time.”
LP: Re-translated on September 04, 2025
Deserved!
Footnotes
- 油尽灯枯 (yóu jìn dēng kū): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “the oil is exhausted and the lamp has dried up”. It is a metaphor for being at the end of one’s life or completely spent.
- 苟延残喘 (gǒu yán cán chuǎn): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “to prolong life unjustly, with gasping breaths”. It means to be on one’s last legs, to eke out a meager existence, or to cling to life.
- 失魂落魄 (shī hún luò pò): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “to lose one’s soul and have one’s spirit fall”. It describes a state of being utterly devastated, dejected, or dazed.
- 神不知鬼不觉 (shén bù zhī guǐ bù jué): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “gods don’t know and ghosts don’t perceive”. It means to do something stealthily, without anyone noticing.
- 流传千古 (liú chuán qiān gǔ): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “to spread for a thousand autumns”. It means to be passed down through the ages or to be remembered for eternity, usually for a good reputation, but here used sarcastically for infamy.
- 愿身不复生王家 (Yuàn shēn bù fùshēng wángjiā): A famous historical quote attributed to Princess Changping, a daughter of the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Upon the fall of the dynasty, her father, the Chongzhen Emperor, attempted to kill her to spare her from capture, lamenting, “Why were you born into this family?” She survived but lived a tragic life. Her quote expresses the profound sorrow of being born into royalty during a time of collapse.
- 史官 (shǐguān): Court Historian or Scribe. Officials in ancient China responsible for recording historical events, court proceedings, and the words and deeds of the emperor.
- 挫骨扬灰 (cuò gǔ yáng huī): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “to pulverize the bones and scatter the ashes”. It signifies extreme hatred and a desire to completely obliterate someone, ensuring they have no grave and can never be properly remembered or find peace in the afterlife.
- 永世不得超生 (yǒngshì bùdé chāoshēng): Literally “for all eternity, to be unable to be reborn”. A curse in the context of Buddhist and Daoist beliefs in reincarnation (samsara). It means to be trapped in a state of suffering after death, unable to enter the cycle of rebirth and find peace or a better life.
- 仵作 (wǔzuò): A coroner in ancient China. They were responsible for examining bodies to determine the cause of death, particularly in cases of suspected homicide.
Thanks for chappy. Sodomy by cow…. Hell of a torture method. Also thanks for fixing the ads they were getting really bad.
Umm that bull is…
… it’s horny
Thanks for chappy. Sodomy by cow…. Hell of a torture method. Also thanks for fixing the ads they were getting really bad.
Umm that bull is…
… it’s horny
Amo mucho a la hermana song… Ella hace lo imposible por su hermana menor aunque me mata de risa que ella piense en las series de televisión con respecto a esto… Pero bueno como dijo la hermana hay mucho tiempo para torturar a ese gran HP…
Amo mucho a la hermana song… Ella hace lo imposible por su hermana menor aunque me mata de risa que ella piense en las series de televisión con respecto a esto… Pero bueno como dijo la hermana hay mucho tiempo para torturar a ese gran HP…