The Emperor Reigns Them All - Chapter 8 Subordinates

Ever since He Mulan, a 28 year old forensic investigator, transmigrated into the post-army civilian Hua Mulan’s body, she’s been under a lot of pressure. Unlike the folktale ending, there are no flowers or applause to be found here. After leaving the army and returning to her hometown, word by the countryside has painted the now 32 year old Hua Mulan as a homicidal maniac, an old hag, and a freak of nature, among other nasty things. Between piecing together Hua Mulan’s scattered memories, grappling with her fellow villagers’ prejudice against her, and fending off Mrs Hua’s attempts to match make her, He Mulan has her hands full. All He Mulan wants to do is protect Hua Mulan’s body till her soul comes back, but fate has other plans…

- Description from Novelupdates

Lacking a pocket dimension, lacking a power, lacking a thigh to hug onto and the three life advantages (money, power, and looks), he had been cautiously living in the apocalypse for ten years, getting closer to falling inside the zombie’s mouths. But unexpectedly, he had the terrible luck, to be caught in a fight between two gangs and die, it really left people feeling disappointed.

But when he opened his eyes, he had returned to a decade ago, three months before the apocalypse!

Like before he still lacked an ability, an ordinary person without a pocket dimension, but he did have ten full years of experience living in the apocalypse! Even if he didn’t fight zombies, didn’t hunt monsters, he could still live a carefree farming life in the safe zone.

Find a safe house, utilise all kinds of skills from his previous life to farm in exchange for meat, and if possible, find a person to peacefully spend the rest of his life with; ordinary people had their own ordinary little pieces of happiness.

Originally believing he had picked up a beauty he returned home to prepare a golden house, but on the contrary he was the one being pushed down……someone once said, whether it is people or matters, by no means can you only look at the surface!

- Description from novelupdates

“It’s not a lie, my family is really an ordinary family, I really don’t know any big people”

As a sophomore in high school, Chen Chu really didn’t feel that he was special, an ordinary family, an ordinary student.

Until a rich man in this city donated 10 million yuan to the school to install air conditioners for the whole school, build teaching buildings and sports fields.

In front of the teachers and students of the whole school, the rich man put his arms around his shoulders affectionately, and the leaders, teachers and students of the school were all surprised.

Chen Churen was dumbfounded: “Listen to my explanation, my family is really an ordinary family, and I really don’t know the richest people in this city!”

…

The city leaders came to the school for inspection, patted him on the shoulder kindly, asked him about his studies and how his campus life was, and invited him to visit him.

Looking at the strange eyes of all the school leaders, teachers and classmates who said “you are just an ordinary family”.

Chen Chu was numb: “I’m not lying, my family is really an ordinary family, how can I know the city leaders!”

- Description from novelbuddy

For as long as he could remember, life had always been cruel.A young man in his early twenties—his name now lost to the past—was dealt a life filled with misfortunes.A cold, empty apartment, a soul-crushing job, and, finally, a terminal diagnosis.With nothing left to live for, his only comfort had been escaping into the fictional world of Path of the Elemental Sage, a story of heroes, magic, and survival.But fate had other plans.When death finally came for him, he didn’t fade into nothingness.Instead, he awoke in the world he had only read about—a world of chaos and danger where death lurked around every corner.The air smelled of magic, the sky was filled with possibilities.{«[Status Window]»}[Name: Lyrium Blackwood][Age: 16][Rank: D-][Skills: None][Elements: None}At first, confusion filled his mind.Who was Lyrium Blackwood?Why was he here?And why did this body feel so different?But as his memories returned, so did the realization: this wasn’t some blessing or second chance.He wasn’t reincarnated as the protagonist.No destined savior.No cheat abilities.No grand fate.He was just another mob, a face in the crowd meant to exist and die without leaving a mark.But this young man—the one who had left his old name and life behind—wasn’t the kind of person to roll over and accept his fate.“This world is dangerous. The protagonist isn’t the only one fighting for survival here,”he muttered, his red eyes deep and sharp.Unlike the naïve characters in the story, he knew the stakes.He’d read the web novel.He’d seen the carnage, the betrayals, the disasters that wiped out entire cities.And if there was one thing he refused to be, it was a pawn in someone else’s game.“I don’t care about glory. I don’t care about saving the world. All I care about is surviving—no matter what it takes.”Lyrium Blackwood wasn’t planning to live quietly or avoid danger.The only way to survive in this brutal world was to rise to the top.To be strong enough to stand above both heroes and villains.Using his knowledge of the story’s events and his iron will, Lyrium sets out on a relentless path to surpass the protagonist.Whether through clever manipulation, brutal training, or sheer desperation, he’ll climb higher and higher, leaving nothing to chance.But the deeper he gets, the more he realizes that this isn’t just the story he once read.As fate pushes him closer to the heart of the narrative, Lyrium begins to suspect that his reincarnation wasn’t an accident—and the world itself might be watching him.“I don’t care who or what stands in my way. If the story wants to kill me, I’ll rewrite the ending myself.”----------------------------------I apologize for any mistakes in this story, as it’s my first attempt at writing a novel.