Zhen Yi, not convinced yet, looked down at his body and sat up abruptly then winced slightly from the pain in his abdomen and shoulder. The healer, the one who entered in ancient robes, approached him raising his hands, gesturing Zhen Yi, no, General Yan Zhen to calm down.
"General, don't sit up like this, your wound is still fresh, it's not good for you to stress yourself", the healer said and placed his hand on Yan Zhen's shoulder, gently making him lay down again.
Zhen Yi obeyed and laid down, he stared at the healer then at the wooden ceiling above him..."general Yan Zhen? What is he talking about? I'm Zhen Yi...why this place looks familiar? I studied this exact place description at that book..",Zhen Yi thought to himself and sighed heavily, panic seated creeping into his heart.
"Um...", Yan Zhen started trying to get the healer's attention who was busy grinding some herbs together.
The healer looked at him, "yes, General Yan Zhen?...do you need something?", he asked as he waited for his words.
For a moment, Zhen Yi's calmness completely broke as he realised he's not dreaming, he's truly in xia dynasty.
He sat up again and looked down at his wounded abdomen and shoulder, now covered with bandages.
The healer rushed forward, trying to calm Yan Zhen again, "General, don't stress yourself, please lie down or else emperor Xia Jinhai will scold me".
Zhen Yi's breath hitched.
He looked up at the healer, "what did you say?", he asked as he waited for the healer's response.
"I said, you should lie down or else emperor xia jinhai will scold me", Zhen Yi felt like his head is spinning, he felt like crying at the realisation that he's truly not dreaming, everything is real, too real.
"J-jinhai?", Yan Zhen asked, the healer nodded.
"What happened to me?", Yan Zhen asked as he looked down at his wounded body.
"Did you forget?...you fought fiercely on the war against the northern army. But you got wounded, you were brought here by commander bai renshu"
The healer said and tried to make him lie down but Yan Zhen refused, he's stubborn, no matter if he's Zhen Yi or Yan Zhen, both were similar in this catagory.
"I'm fine sitting up", Yan Zhen said, gently pushed the healer's hand away.
"But—", the healer tried to explain them Yan Zhen shot him an annoyed glare, which made the healer shut up.
"Hey wait...did he just obeyed with one glare?..it's so fun, actually. No one sees me as little 16 years old guy anymore hehehe" , Zhen Yi was lost in his thought, as he freaked out inside.
"Ugh..this pain, I have to adjust to this new change, change i didn't even want at first place. But now that I know everyone obey me here...I'm gonna use this chance nicely"
Zhen Yi grinned internally and looked over at the healer, clearing his throat to get his attention.
The healer looked up at him and Yan Zhen, kept his cold and serious face, like zhen yi studied how the general behaved in book.
"Leave", Yan Zhen said, and he didn't have to tell twice, the healer bowed and immediately walked out of room.
Yan Zhen waited, keeping his cold facade. When the healer finally closed the door and left.
Yan Zhen let out a long sigh, then freaked out and stood up, wincing at the pain he didn't even deserve.
"This freakin' pain...ugh.. I didn't even know this guy, yan zhen...why I have to feel his abdomen pain or shoulder pain?", Zhen Yi muttered.
He found it hard to walk and used nearby things for support. He managed to walk towards the window.
He saw nothing but densed forest with tall trees, the wind sliding through their leaves as birds chirped occasionally.
Zhen Yi looked around the room, he noticed water on a big bowl.
He walked over, cupping the water in his hands and splashed it on his face, trying to calm himself down.
He froze and looked at his reflection...sharp eyes, high bridged straight nose, full lips, sharp jawline, pale skin... everything he studied on 'the rise and fall of xia dynasty' book.
"This guy, no, I look handsome now tho, no wonder he's popular with ladies", zhen yi said proudly and brushed his hair away from his face.
He looked down at his attire..."hmm...just normal white robe without any design? How dare they?...uh wait...I'm healing...I'm under treatment...so I think I have to forgive them...hehehe...this is fun in the most horrible way", Zhen Yi said in a complaining manner, then a small chuckle escaped him.
Yan Zhan sat down on the bed again, replaying everything that happened now.
The conversation with the healer, the realisation that he's inside general yan zhen's body now and everything.
Suddenly...
The realisation hit him hard.
"Didn't general Yan Zhen die in the war against northern rebellion? Then how I woke up in his body alive? He's supposed to die here in healing room...does the emperor really poisoned Yan Zhan?...Why he's in this forest hideout instead of palace?"
Zhen Yu asked himself as he touched his now mascular, powerful body. He had many questions that was unanswered.
After sometime, feeling tired mentally and physically, he fell asleep, hugging a pillow.
Old habits, no, modern world's habit die hard. He's always used to sleep while hugging a pillow.
After sometime, the door opened, revealing emperor Xia Jinhai...
Tall, mascular, almost same facial features as Yan Zhen, calm, he wore a ink blue robe with long sleeve and dragon symbols embroidered in gold threads that shimmered under the light.
His hair descending down to his waist, tied with a matching ribbon.
He's looking every bit of a emperor.
Emperor Jinhai walked in, he saw yan zhen sleeping tiredly.
But what caught his attention is the way Yan Zhen is sleeping, hugging a pillow, a leg thrown over it...not at all the deciplined general yan zhen he knew.
Jinhai chuckled lightly and approached the bed, he sat down beside him in the bed and examined Yan Zhen's injury.
"I was so scared that I might...lose you"
By the afternoon, Yan Zhen stirred and slowly opened his eyes, blinking as he tried to adjust to the sunlight filtering through the window. He felt a presence beside him and turned his head.
Emperor Xia Jinhai was sitting next to him on the bed.
Yan Zhen tried to sit up, but a sharp pain in his abdomen made him wince.
"It's okay. Don't strain yourself," Jinhai said calmly. He placed a pillow behind Yan Zhen's back to support him and helped him sit more comfortably.
"Your Majesty," Yan Zhen muttered.
He was surprised at himself. He was still Zhen Yi inside, yet the words came out naturally, as if his body remembered them.
"Shh."
Jinhai placed a finger lightly against Yan Zhen's lips, making him stop immediately.
"There's no need for formalities right now," Jinhai said, his voice soft. He poured water into a ceramic cup and brought it toward Yan Zhen's mouth.
Yan Zhen froze for a moment. He didn't show it clearly, but he hesitated. A strange sense of guilt settled in his chest, though he didn't know why.
"What's wrong?" Jinhai asked, still holding the cup steadily.
"I… I can drink by myself," Yan Zhen said, glancing at the cup as he reached out to take it.
"It's fine," Jinhai replied. "Open your mouth."
"But—"
"Open it," Jinhai said, firm but not unkind.
Yan Zhen sighed and gave in. He opened his mouth and drank the water while the emperor held the cup.
"It's my shoulder and abdomen that are injured, not my hands, Your Majesty," Yan Zhen said afterward, clearly uncomfortable with the attention.
Jinhai set the cup aside. "Injured or not, you've done more for me over the past seven years than anyone else. This is my turn to take care of you. I've learned about everything you've been through."
Yan Zhen avoided his gaze.
"What he's talking about? Did Yan Zhen had rough childhood? How am I supposed to react now? I don't know anything about him"
He was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt Jinhai holding his hand.
"For now, you should rest," Jinhai said gently. "I don't want you to push yourself. We can talk later."
He gave Yan Zhen's hand a reassuring squeeze before standing up and turning to leave.
Suddenly, Yan Zhen remembered something that had been bothering him since he woke up in this body.
"Your Majesty?"
Jinhai turned back. "Yes?"
"Why… am I kept in a place like this?" Yan Zhen asked. "This hideout is deep in the forest. Why not the palace?"
Jinhai looked at him for a moment before answering. "I ordered that you be treated here. That's why Bai Renshu brought you."
"Why?" Yan Zhen asked, confused.
"Because if you stayed in the palace, people would disturb you," Jinhai said softly. "In the name of concern. In the name of visiting. It would slow your recovery."
Yan Zhen's heart raced slightly at the explanation.
"I'll leave now," Jinhai added. "Make sure you take care of yourself."
With that, he walked out of the room.
Yan Zhen lay back against the pillows, emotions weighing heavily on his chest.
"He's so much caring..Yan Zhen was very lucky to serve someone like him... there's no way he poisoned the food made for Yan Zhen...then why the history changed?"
His thoughts spiraled as he stared blankly ahead.
The door opened again, revealing a servant carrying a tray of food. She placed it on the table beside the bed and bowed.
"The emperor instructed that you eat before the food turns cold, General Yan Zhen."
Yan Zhen straightened his expression, putting on a composed front. "I understand. You may leave."
The servant bowed again and left.
Yan Zhen ate quietly, barely tasting the food.
"What The emperor knows about Yan Zhen's past? How I ended up here after dying in my world and why?"
His throat tightened.
"I want to hug my mother, I want my grandfather to scold me which sword training, I want my dad to advice me, I want to laugh with Chen Ming and Li Qiyue again."
Tears welled up in his eyes.
He buried his face in his hands and sobbed silently.
He had been just a sixteen-year-old boy with a normal life. Now he was trapped in a world he never chose, carrying the weight of another man's fate and responsibilities.
And for the first time since waking up in this body, Yan Zhen truly felt how much he had lost.
Meanwhile, within the imperial palace, quiet unease spread like a thin crack beneath polished stone.
Inside a side hall reserved for internal affairs, several officials gathered under the pretense of reviewing recent military reports. Their robes were neat, their expressions respectful—but none of them were truly focused on the scrolls laid out before them.
"The report from the southern post has arrived," one official said, keeping his voice low. "General Yan Zhen… is alive."
A sharp intake of breath broke the silence.
"That can't be right," another murmured. "He was already weak when he was brought back. Even the physicians said—"
"And yet he lives," the first interrupted. "Commander Bai Renshu personally escorted him to a secluded place for treatment. By imperial order."
The room fell into a tense quiet.
One minister clenched his jaw. "The… preparations were thorough."
No one responded immediately.
"Then something went wrong," someone finally said.
Eyes shifted, cautious and calculating.
"His Majesty has been unusually silent," another added. "No official announcement. No court summons. He hasn't even allowed routine visits."
"That means the emperor is protecting him," a senior official said slowly.
"And if the general recovers?" another asked. "What if he remembers?"
A ripple of discomfort passed through the group.
Yan Zhen was not just a general. He was a symbol—of loyalty, of military power, of the emperor's authority. A living one.
"We cannot act hastily," someone said after a moment. "Any move against him now would draw suspicion."
"Yes," another agreed. "For the moment, we observe."
"Send inquiries," a third suggested. "Gifts. Letters. Concern in the name of loyalty."
"And watch carefully," the senior official added. "A man who survives what he shouldn't… often becomes a problem."
Their discussion ended soon after. Scrolls were rolled up. Polite words were exchanged. One by one, they left the hall, their faces calm once more.
But behind that calm lay uncertainty.
Yan Zhen's survival had disrupted something carefully arranged.
And somewhere deeper within the palace, someone who had never shown their hand yet was undoubtedly paying close attention.