Film and Television: The Villain's Life Begins with Joy of Life

Zhou Cheng's figure was hidden in the shadow of the eaves of the pavilion, like a hibernating night bird, listening to the soliloquy below.

He moved silently, taking a few steps, and by the light shining from under the eaves, he quickly saw the girl's full appearance.

She looked about fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in a red dress. The elaborate hair ornaments she wore during the day had been removed, and her hair was simply tied up.

She was facing a full-length mirror, her hands on her hips, her cute and innocent face constantly changing expressions, sometimes widening her eyes to look energetic, sometimes drooping her eyebrows to look dejected.

Zhou Cheng recognized the girl's identity almost instantly.

In the deep palace of Northern Qi, at this age, innocent and carefree, and only able to let herself go in her palace, she was most likely the eldest princess of Northern Qi.

A minor character who appears only briefly in the story, doesn't even have a proper name, but is quite interesting.

After wallowing in self-pity for a while, the girl began to look at herself in the mirror and plan how to escape the palace.

"Oh no, no, the guards over there are too tight, I'll definitely be discovered..." She tilted her head and thought for a moment, "You mean, dive out through the water? But I can't swim..."

"It can't run on land, it can't swim in water, so flying in the sky is all that's left! If only it could fly! It could just flap its wings and soar into the sky!"

She waved her arms and imitated a bird turning in a circle. After she finished, she laughed at herself.

After laughing, she started to sigh.

"Sigh... This princess isn't a bird, and I don't know martial arts, so I can't fly..." She drooped her head, her voice full of melancholy. "As expected, I can't get out on my own... If only someone could help me..."

Zhou Cheng crossed his arms and looked down at the scene.

At first he found it quite interesting, but as he watched, he felt a pang of pity.

The eldest princess of Northern Qi was not a favored princess.

In the story, she was married off to the Qing Kingdom, a long distance away, to the eldest prince, Li Chengru.

Aside from the need for a political marriage, the more important reason was that she and Li Chengru were the same kind of people, both belonging to the type of people in the royal family who were neither loved nor favored.

Judging from the girl's appearance, she probably doesn't even have the most basic freedom.

Moreover, nobody cares about her feelings.

In this era, entertainment is scarce, and women are bound by layers of traditional etiquette.

Look how much this kid is suffocating; he's almost driven to schizophrenia.

"You really want to go out that badly?"

Zhou Cheng floated down from the attic and appeared silently behind her.

"Of course I want to!"

The eldest princess of Northern Qi replied instinctively.

Then, she realized something was wrong!

She actually heard a man's voice in the palace!

She turned around abruptly!

Then, she saw a face!

A dark figure wearing a strange monkey-face mask and completely wrapped in a night suit!

The eldest princess's beautiful eyes suddenly widened, and her pupils contracted sharply.

She raised her hand, pointed at Zhou Cheng with trembling hands, opened her lips, then rolled the whites of her eyes and fell straight backward.

Zhou Cheng reacted quickly, flashing behind her and catching her in his arms.

"..."

He felt a little embarrassed looking at the unconscious girl.

I never expected that my appearance would scare someone into fainting.

He glanced at the full-length mirror next to him.

To be honest, with his outfit, it was quite scary to see him suddenly jump out from behind you late at night.

Zhou Cheng supported the limp girl with one hand and pinched her philtrum with the other.

A few breaths later, she slowly woke up and opened her eyes.

The eyes were initially unfocused, but they instantly sharpened once the monkey-faced mask in front of them was clearly seen.

"Monkey, monkey... ghost... I..."

She opened her mouth to shout!

The next instant, Zhou Cheng's hand was already covering her mouth.

"Ughhhhh—!"

The eldest princess struggled desperately, but her strength was like a tickle to Zhou Cheng.

Out of fear, her large, bright eyes instantly filled with tears.

"Don't shout," Zhou Cheng said in a low voice. "I won't hurt you. Don't you want to go out? If you cooperate, I can take you out to play afterwards."

The eldest princess was taken aback upon hearing this.

She blinked first, her eyes filled with doubt, then nodded vigorously to show her cooperation.

Seeing this, Zhou Cheng slowly released his hand and helped her to stand up straight.

After the eldest princess steadied herself, she bent down and took a few deep breaths.

Once she had calmed down a bit, she secretly raised her head and looked at Zhou Cheng again.

By the light of the candlestick beside her, she could see the person in front of her more clearly.

Dressed in sleek black attire... and wearing a mask...

She glanced at it timidly and found that although the mask looked strange, it was not ferocious or terrifying.

"Who...who are you?" she asked in a low voice, her voice soft and sweet.

Zhou Cheng stood with his hands behind his back, casually surveying her palace, his tone equally casual:

"I came to the palace to look for someone. I got lost and ended up here. Then I wanted to ask someone for directions, and I heard someone muttering something about 'thieves' or something, so I came over to check it out."

"what?"

The eldest princess was taken aback upon hearing this, and then her face fell.

She knew that the one who had just been muttering "thief" was her.

She was now filled with regret, her face streaked with tears. If she had known that chanting "thief" would actually attract thieves, she wouldn't have chanted it!

Unfortunately, she only realized this now, and it was too late for regrets.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, and asked:

"You've come to the palace looking for someone...who are you looking for?"

Zhou Cheng said directly, "Zhan Doudou."

"Ah? Looking for His Majesty?"

The eldest princess was initially startled, but then she thought that it was quite normal for an assassin to come to the palace looking for the emperor.

"You should know where Zhan Doudou is, right?"

"N-I don't know!" The eldest princess shook her head like a rattle.

Zhou Cheng chuckled, the sound sounding somewhat muffled behind the mask:

"You're the eldest princess of Northern Qi, and you've been in the palace for so many years, yet you don't know where the emperor lives? Are you kidding me?"

The eldest princess wore a bitter expression, as if she had swallowed a bitter pill:

"It's precisely because I'm the eldest princess that I don't know!" She paused, then added, as if reciting a tongue twister, "Not knowing is simply not knowing! Knowing is also not knowing!"

Zhou Cheng tilted his head: "Oh? I didn't realize you were so bold!"

The eldest princess raised her chin, trying to appear more confident:

"Of course."

Zhou Cheng nodded, a hint of amusement in his voice:

"Yeah, I don't know who fainted just now."

The eldest princess blushed, but quickly regained her composure and said stiffly:

"I don't know, it wasn't me anyway. I didn't see anyone faint."

Seeing her stubbornness, Zhou Cheng found it slightly amusing.

He leaned closer, his voice carrying a hint of seduction:

"Didn't you want to leave the palace? Just tell me where Zhan Doudou is, and after I go see him, I'll take you away. There are so many fun things to do outside."

The eldest princess remained unmoved.

She straightened her back, trying her best to look like a real princess:

"I am a princess of the Great Qi royal family, and I would never betray His Majesty! Don't try to tempt me; this princess will not yield!"

After she finished speaking, her tone suddenly softened, and she said cautiously:

"I won't betray His Majesty, but... I won't betray you either. You should leave quickly; the palace is extremely dangerous. If you're caught, you're dead!"

Zhou Cheng shook his head: "Don't worry, I have hostages."

"Hostages? Where are they?"

The eldest princess looked around in confusion at first, then realized that the hostage seemed to be her!

Her little face immediately fell, her lips pursed, and she looked aggrieved.

Looking at her appearance, Zhou Cheng suddenly became a little curious:

"By the way, what's your name? Your Majesty is called Zhan Doudou, you're not called Zhan Dingding, are you?"

"What Zhan Dingding?!" The eldest princess immediately objected, hands on her hips. "I am Zhan Yuanyuan! How can you, an assassin, have no professional ethics at all? I am the eldest princess of Northern Qi, and you don't even know my name!"

Zhan Yuanyuan looked indignant.

As the eldest princess of Northern Qi, even if she was not favored, shouldn't she at least know her name? Yet this guy in front of her didn't even know her name!

Zhou Cheng shrugged, looking quite innocent:

"Hey, I told you I'm not an assassin, but you wouldn't believe me. I'm looking for someone, not you, so why would I specifically ask your name?"

It wasn't his fault that he didn't know Zhan Yuanyuan's name; it was simply because the original work didn't use it.

And then there's Emperor Qing. He first learned of Emperor Qing's name through a system notification.

"Zhan Yuanyuan..."

He repeated the name several times.

Well, it's not much better than "War of the Penis".

At that moment, when Zhan Yuanyuan heard him recite her name, a hint of pride appeared on her face, as if she thought her name was quite good.

Just as she was about to talk about her name—

Zhou Cheng changed the subject: "Do you know Ku He?"

"Of course I know!" Zhan Yuanyuan replied without hesitation. "Ku He is a Grandmaster of our Great Qi, who wouldn't know him?"

"Do you know where Kuhe is?"

"Uh—" Zhan Yuanyuan hesitated, "I don't know."

Zhou Cheng nodded nonchalantly. He had only asked casually, not expecting her to know.

Zhan Yuanyuan asked curiously, "Why are you asking Master Kuhe?"

"I asked Kuhe, of course I wanted to see him."

Zhan Yuanyuan immediately gave her a look that said, "Why are you so desperate?"

Zhou Cheng looked at her and explained:

"I'm looking for Zhan Doudou to find out where Ku He is. So I won't hurt you or Zhan Doudou, don't worry."

Zhan Yuanyuan frowned and let out a soft snort:

"Are you kidding me? You're looking for Master Kuhe? You sneaked into the palace at night?"

Zhou Cheng patiently said, "There are only a few people who know where Ku He is. If I don't come to the palace, where else can I go? I need to find Ku He secretly and not let outsiders know."

Zhan Yuanyuan looked completely unconvinced, her expression clearly saying: Keep making things up.

Zhou Cheng was too lazy to explain further to her, and asked again:

"Who is the ninth-rank official on duty in the palace recently?"

"have no idea."

"How come you don't know anything?"

"I just don't know!"

"Alright then." Zhou Cheng sighed. "Since you don't know anything, I'll have to go find Zhan Doudou myself."

As he spoke, he made a gesture as if to turn around.

Zhan Yuanyuan grabbed his sleeve: "No!"

Zhou Cheng looked down at the hand clutching his sleeve, then looked up at her:

"Am I being too easygoing, giving you the wrong impression? You even dared to stop me, are you really not afraid?"

Zhan Yuanyuan's hand trembled slightly, but she still didn't let go.

"Afraid...no, not afraid!" She swallowed hard, trying to make her voice sound calm. "I am the princess of Great Qi! As long as I can protect His Majesty and Great Qi, I have no fear of anyone or anything!"

"Really?"

Two chuckles came from beneath Zhou Cheng's mask.

"If your hands weren't shaking so badly, I might have actually believed you."

Zhan Yuanyuan's breath hitched.

She looked down at her hands, which were indeed trembling violently, and she couldn't control them at all.

Kind of embarrassing.

But she didn't let go; instead, she gripped it even tighter, looking up pitifully.

"You're a good person, aren't you...? You even said you'd take me out of the palace! As long as you don't harm His Majesty, I'll help you with anything!"

Zhou Cheng gave her a deep look.

The gaze pierced through the mask and landed on her small face, which was filled with nervousness.

A moment later, he patted her hand, signaling her to let go.

"Don't say I'm a good person anymore. I'm allergic to the word 'good person'."

He paused.

"Since you're so brave, I'll let you off the hook tonight. But I need you to write me a letter and ask him out."

"Huh? Write a letter?" Zhan Yuanyuan was taken aback for a moment. "...Okay, alright."

She reluctantly agreed.

Zhou Cheng asked her to sit at the desk and dictated the contents of a letter.

The gist of it is: if you want Zhan Yuanyuan to return safely, you should secretly meet him at the inn where he is staying tomorrow at noon. Do not make a fuss about it and do not bring too many people.

Zhan Yuanyuan wrote this "kidnapping letter" about herself with a strange expression.

With each stroke of her pen, she felt the scene was so absurd it seemed unreal.

Even after she finished writing and put the letter into the envelope, she was still completely dazed.

Zhou Cheng took the letter and handed it back to her:

"Go, have your men deliver the letter to your Majesty."

He paused.

"Didn't you want to leave the palace? Today I'll take pity on you and take you out for a night of fun."

Zhan Yuanyuan hesitated and said, "I...I actually don't want to leave the palace. I still think the palace is quite nice..."

Zhou Cheng remained silent for a moment.

"You are my hostage now." His voice was indifferent. "Do what I tell you to do, no bargaining."

Zhan Yuanyuan gave an "Oh" with a wronged look on her face.

Zhou Cheng pointed to the door: "Go. I'll be watching you. Don't think about running away, and don't try anything funny. If things get out of hand, it won't be good for anyone."

As he spoke, he raised his hand, a faint wisp of true energy gathering at his fingertips, and gently waved it from several feet away—

Silently.

The row of candles on one side of the sleeping quarters went out instantly.

Wisps of smoke rose, appearing particularly eerie under the moonlight.

Zhan Yuanyuan's eyes widened instantly.

"Your Highness! Are you alright?"

A palace maid's concerned voice rang out from outside, accompanied by hurried footsteps. "I noticed the light in your room has gone out!"

Zhan Yuanyuan glanced at Zhou Cheng, who had already hidden behind the screen, and pursed her lips.

"It's nothing." She cleared her throat, trying to make her voice sound normal. "I opened the window, but it was windy outside and blew out the candle. One of you can come in and light it again."

"Yes."

The door was gently pushed open, and a personal maid walked in.

She first bowed to Zhan Yuanyuan, then, holding a candle, relit the extinguished candles one by one.

The flickering firelight reflected Zhan Yuanyuan's slightly stiff expression.

Just as the palace maid was about to light the last stick, Zhan Yuanyuan suddenly spoke:

"etc."

The palace maid stopped what she was doing and looked at her in confusion.

Zhan Yuanyuan took out the letter she had just written from her sleeve and stuffed it into the maid's hand.

"Give it to His Majesty," she said in a low voice. "Don't make a sound."

The palace maid's expression changed.

She glanced quickly at Zhan Yuanyuan, then at her surroundings, but found nothing unusual.

She suppressed her emotions, nodded vigorously, and tucked the letter into her sleeve.

Then she bowed and walked backward out of the bedchamber, gently closing the door behind her.

As soon as the door closed, Zhou Cheng stepped out from behind the screen.

"Let's go." Zhou Cheng extended his hand to her. "Since you've been relatively cooperative, I'll take you for a walk outside the palace."

"I...I really didn't want to, really..." Zhan Yuanyuan took a half step back, her voice growing softer and softer.

Zhou Cheng didn't move, he just looked at her.

"The hostages have no say," he said calmly. "You just need to obey."

Zhan Yuanyuan gave an "Oh" with a wronged look on her face.

She knew she couldn't fight back. The other person was several feet away and could extinguish a row of candles with a flick of their finger. If she dared to run, she might not even get two steps before being killed by a single finger.

Although she felt that this person didn't seem like a bad person because he could talk nonsense with her for so long, she was still young and didn't want to gamble at all!

"Bring some money with you," Zhou Cheng reminded him. "I'm only responsible for taking you outside; I won't cover your expenses there."

Zhan Yuanyuan muttered "stingy," and while muttering "I don't want to go out at all," she still obediently took a few silver notes from the box on the dressing table and stuffed them into her sleeve.

"Let's go."

Zhou Cheng stepped forward and put his arm around her waist.

Before Zhan Yuanyuan could react, she was already airborne!

She was so frightened she almost screamed, but Zhou Cheng covered her mouth.

With a light leap, the two reached the upper floor. Zhou Cheng continued walking, using the eaves and pillars for cover, and in a few bounds, he darted out of the hall.

The night wind whistled past my ears.

At first, Zhan Yuanyuan was so frightened that she closed her eyes tightly and clung to Zhou Cheng like a koala.

But soon, she felt the speed of the wind, and felt that lightness as if she were floating on clouds.

She secretly opened one eye.

Beneath her feet, the glazed tiles of the palace rushed past. In the distance, the lights of the entire capital city spread out before her eyes, like a dazzling galaxy.

She was actually...flying in the sky!

Zhan Yuanyuan's eyes widened, her excitement almost overflowing.

She clung tightly to Zhou Cheng, her eyes wide open and her mouth agape in an "O" shape, but she couldn't utter a single word.

-

at the same time.

Zhan Yuanyuan's personal maid ran all the way to the emperor's bedroom.

Her movements quickly attracted the attention of those on duty in the palace that night.

A figure suddenly appeared from the side and blocked her way.

Crabapple blossoms.

A holy maiden of Northern Qi, a ninth-rank master, and a direct disciple of Grandmaster Ku He.

"Stop!" Haitang Duoduo's gaze fell on the palace maid's face. "Why are you running towards His Majesty's palace so late?"

The palace maid, panting heavily, presented the letter with both hands:

"Yes, it was Her Highness the Eldest Princess who ordered me to deliver it... She said it was to be given to His Majesty..."

Haitang Duoduo took the letter and glanced at the envelope.

Her brows furrowed slightly.

It's really too strange for the eldest princess to send a message at night!

Without thinking, she tore open the seal and pulled out the letter.

Unfold.

My gaze swept over it.

Her expression changed drastically!

Haitang Duoduo shoved the letter back into her hand: "Continue to deliver it to His Majesty. Report everything in detail."

With that, she vanished into the night.

When Haitang Duoduo rushed into Zhan Yuanyuan's bedroom, the candlelight burned quietly, and the room was already empty.

Haitang Duoduo stood in the empty hall, her face frighteningly pale.

Someone actually broke into the palace and kidnapped the princess while she was on duty!

They also left a letter, telling him not to make a big deal out of it and to secretly go and ransom the people...

This is outrageous!