EHW Ch42

Pei Xin’s smile, dark and unreadable, made everyone flinch, not so much out of fear, but from worry.

They continued trying to dissuade him,

“Your Majesty is the people’s hope and Heaven’s chosen ruler. If you leave the capital, the people’s hearts will waver, and state affairs may fall into disorder. ”

“If Your Majesty insists on leading the army yourself, none of us, officials or commoners, could rest easy. Though Your Majesty is brave and skilled in battle, if anything were to happen…”

“General Qin Xuan is already stationed in Liangshan, there’s no need for- ”

Their voices overlapped in a noisy chorus that grated on Pei Xin’s nerves.

He frowned deeply, tempted to slam his hand on the table.

Gu Fangzhi had been watching him closely all along.

When he saw that fleeting flash of killing intent cross Pei Xin’s face, he panicked, afraid Pei Xin might actually start executing ministers, so he immediately reloaded to the moment just before Pei Xin smiled, when all the courtiers were still silent.

Now, in utter quiet, Pei Xin suddenly slapped the table and commanded coldly,
“Silence.”

The ministers: “……?”

But… they hadn’t even said anything?

Was it their breathing that offended him? Their heartbeats?

Could it be that the emperor wanted them to stop breathing and beating altogether?

The ministers trembled, unaware that Pei Xin’s own heart was pounding even harder than theirs.

His face froze. He dared not glance sideways at the man sitting next to him, Gu Fangzhi.

Ever since learning that Gu Fangzhi possessed witchcraft, Pei Xin had gone along with the pretense that he didn’t know.

But just now, he had slipped.

How could he make such a mistake?

After months of keeping his posture carefully bent and guarded, his composure was cracking.

The flustered Pei Xin touched his nose, then the table, then stood up, brushed the chair arm, pushed it in, pulled it back out.

People tended to act busy when embarrassed.

Finally he said, “I have my reasons.”

Originally, he hadn’t planned to explain himself.
But now, frustrated, his words tumbled out faster than he could control.

“The Cangsheng Sect has finally shown itself, this is the perfect chance to wipe them out in one strike.”

The officials understood, though most still disapproved of the plan.

Pei Xin simply declared, “My decision is made.”

They tried a few more rounds of persuasion, but Pei Xin remained firm, his tone steady and logical. It was clear he’d thought it through carefully, not an impulsive move.

At last, the Right Chancellor bowed.

“Every act of Your Majesty is Heaven’s decree. You bear the hearts of the people and the fate of the realm, this is the foundation of a prosperous nation.”

Seeing the Chancellor relent, the rest of the room quieted somewhat.

Pei Xin gave a curt nod.

“That’s better. I won’t lose anyway, so stop talking as if I already have.”

He knew those words probably sounded arrogant to others, youthful and conceited, but they weren’t empty.

He was good at war, better still at winning wars.

And more importantly, he had Gu Fangzhi on his side.

Even if he did lose, Gu Fangzhi could just reload and start again.

That was why Pei Xin dared to make the decision to personally lead the campaign.

Thinking of Gu Fangzhi made his heart jolt slightly.

He sneaked a glance at him from the corner of his eye.

Since the moment he had almost given himself away, Gu Fangzhi hadn’t spoken a word.
His expression was perfectly calm, so calm that Pei Xin couldn’t tell whether he’d noticed or not.

And the calmer Gu Fangzhi seemed, the less sure Pei Xin felt.

Looking away, he said, “I’ll depart before dawn tomorrow. We’ll leave the capital via the outskirts and rendezvous with the elite troops in Jizhou. Aside from those present, no one must know.
If any of the foreign envoys ask, say that I’ve fallen ill and am too weary to receive guests.”

At that, Gu Fangzhi’s head shot up in shock.

He’d found something odd earlier,

Before he reloaded, Pei Xin had seemed about to slap the table.

But after reloading, Pei Xin actually did.

That shouldn’t be possible.

Events before a reload shouldn’t carry over after one.

Had Pei Xin already been irritated back then?

But no one had been speaking at the time, why would he shout for silence?

A slip of the tongue, maybe?

It could be explained, sure…

but something about it just didn’t feel right.

Before he could puzzle it out, Pei Xin announced his departure for dawn.

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

Ahhh!

All the birthday banquet preparations he’d slaved over for the past two months, gone!
There went his bonus too…

It wasn’t that he couldn’t understand, but, he felt utterly drained, like someone who’d spent days hauling manure to fertilize two acres of land, only to realize it wasn’t his field, and now he just smelled like manure for nothing.

That thought completely derailed his earlier line of reasoning.

Pei Xin gave a few final instructions, then said, “Enough. You may all leave.”

Then, “Teacher, stay.”

After the others had gone, Gu Fangzhi asked, “Your Majesty, do you have further tasks for this minister?”

Pei Xin didn’t answer immediately. He simply looked at Gu Fangzhi for a long while.

In those beautiful peach-blossom eyes, he saw no trace of suspicion, thankfully.
Gu Fangzhi’s mind wandered like a wild river; it wasn’t guaranteed he’d noticed Pei Xin’s slip at all.

That thought eased Pei Xin’s tension somewhat.

Though… the longer he looked, the more awkward he felt.

He finally looked away.

“Teacher will remain here in the capital.”

In truth, he had considered bringing Gu Fangzhi along to Liangshan.

But the road was long, the northern winds bitterly cold, and Gu Fangzhi’s frail health might not endure it.

Worse, if anyone discovered his witchcraft along the way…

And knowing him, the trip would be chaos, after a full day’s ride, he’d probably reload and undo all their progress.

Pei Xin wasn’t afraid of dying, even if he lost or fell, Gu Fangzhi could simply bring him back.
He was just… tired of the hassle.

So, keeping Gu Fangzhi safely in the capital was best.

Still, he had grown accustomed to having the man constantly under his watch.

The thought of being away from him for so long made Pei Xin feel… uneasy.

Gu Fangzhi nodded.

“Your Majesty will surely return victorious.”

Pei Xin snorted. “Did that even need saying?”

Gu Fangzhi chuckled. “Such confidence for someone so young.”

Pei Xin’s eyes narrowed. “What did you say?”

Reload.

Gu Fangzhi: “Your Majesty is wise, valiant, and brimming with divine aura.”

Pei Xin: “…………”

That’s better.

He waved a hand dismissively.

“Once I’m gone, keep an eye on the court. Anyone who acts suspiciously, record it.”

Gu Fangzhi could already imagine what would happen once Pei Xin abruptly vanished without explanation.

Their Minister of Rites would have a meltdown for sure.

“A general’s fury leaves corpses by the thousands;
a commoner’s fury wears mourning cloth;
but when a superior gets angry, lunchtime meetings multiply, and work doubles.”

Gu Fangzhi felt the weight on his shoulders, quite literally. Probably a sign of impending shoulder pain.

Pei Xin rolled his eyes. “When I return, there will be a handsome reward.”

Strangely enough, Gu Fangzhi’s shoulder pain vanished immediately.

Ah yes, truly a divine healer, this emperor.

***

That night was Pei Xin’s last in the capital.

From the imperial city to Liangshan, even the fastest horses would take four or five days, it would be an exhausting journey.

Gu Fangzhi volunteered to stay overnight, wanting to make sure Pei Xin got a good night’s rest before departing.

While Pei Xin was bathing, a eunuch, at Gu Fangzhi’s insistence, brought in Snowball.

Snowball adored Gu Fangzhi.

The moment he saw him, the little white dog wagged his tail furiously, spun in circles, and barked as he bounded toward him.

Gu Fangzhi praised, “Good boy, very… spirited.”

The eunuch chuckled. “This servant has never seen Snowball so fond of anyone before.”

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

He rubbed his arm. “You and Eunuch Yang, did you two graduate from some kind of CEO-butler training camp? You’re way too modern for me.”

After playing fetch and tug-of-war with Snowball for a while, Gu Fangzhi suddenly had an idea as he watched the little dog hop around.

He made a save, then raised the ball again to tease Snowball. Just as Snowball crouched, ready to leap, Gu Fangzhi made another save.

He wanted to test what had happened that morning with Pei Xin slamming the table, to see if such anomalies could be reproduced.

He had Snowball jump ten times, then reloaded to the moment before the dog moved.

Of those ten tries,

three times Snowball stayed still,

two times he barked suddenly,

two times he jumped,

once he bit his own tail,

and once he sprinted onto the desk like an athlete and ate half a sheet of rice paper.

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

He patted Snowball’s head again and said encouragingly, “Excellent. Truly unhinged.”

Still, thanks to this experiment, he had a bit more confidence in his theory.
The only thing he wasn’t sure about, was whether using Snowball as his test subject had been a wise choice.

After all, though Pei Xin could be unpredictable, he wasn’t nearly as deranged as Snowball.

With that thought, Gu Fangzhi, ever the diligent researcher, ran two more tests.

In the bath chamber.

Pei Xin stood coldly beside the bath, face dark.

Yang Luhai was utterly baffled.

His Majesty had been perfectly fine just moments ago, so why did he suddenly look angry at the sight of the bath?

He asked cautiously, “Your Majesty, is it the herbs you dislike? Or the decor? Or perhaps, ”

Pei Xin’s expression sank further. He didn’t answer.

Too tired to answer.

He had no idea what Gu Fangzhi was up to now, but the man’s spells kept triggering again and again.

His clothes would come off, then suddenly reappear.

Off again, on again. Off again, on again.

Ten times over.

His robes now clung to him like they were welded on. He hadn’t even managed to remove his outer coat.

All this after he’d specifically arranged to leave Gu Fangzhi in the capital for safety’s sake.

Truly, that man was the bane of his existence.

Annoyance, exhaustion, and exasperation tangled together in his chest until he could no longer stand it. He yanked the jade pendant from his waist and hurled it into the bath.

A second later, the pendant was back on his belt.

He threw it again.

It came back again.

Pei Xin: “……”

Oh, fun.

If Gu Fangzhi were here, strangling him might make this even more entertaining.

Yang Luhai kept prattling nervously in the background, reminding him the herbal bath was cooling and that His Majesty should hurry and bathe.

Pei Xin, beyond irritated, grabbed his collar and tore.

The fabric split with a rip.

Yang Luhai fell silent, staring.

For some reason, in that moment, Pei Xin completely understood Snowball’s feelings,

No wonder the crazy dog wanted to destroy everything.

Tearing something to pieces did feel good.

Besides, Gu Fangzhi would just rewind everything anyway.

With that reasoning, Pei Xin reached out again, ripped the outer robe, then the underclothes.

Yang Luhai was horrified, about to speak up, but when he saw the faint smile curving on Pei Xin’s lips, he dared not interrupt, he simply retreated quietly behind the screen.

When Pei Xin finally came back to his senses, the floor was covered in shredded silk.

And Gu Fangzhi… hadn’t rewound.

Pei Xin: “…………”

Oh.

So, in the Imperial Daily Record, this would probably be written as:

“On such-and-such a day, in the year of the New Reign, His Majesty Pei Xin joyfully tore his clothes to shreds in the bath chamber.”