EHW Ch57

Gu Fangzhi continued lying on the ground, staying in character as a boneless chicken claw for a while longer.

Then, suddenly, he covered his face with both hands,
and let out a wail from beneath his palms.

“AAAAAAHHHHH !!!”

Snowball had no idea what was going on, but very considerately perked up its ears and joined in, howling at the ceiling in unison:
“AWOOOOOO, !!”

Pei Xin: “……”

Wow. How lively.

A madman and a rabid dog, a perfect match.

He slowly rotated the ring on his finger, drawling lazily,
“So, so, so… good at, at, at singing, next, next, next… palace, palace banquet…
Teacher and Snow, Snow, Snowball can come, come, come sing, ”

The short sentence was stuttered to death, but Pei Xin didn’t even care anymore.

The dragon was in an excellent mood, his imperial face beaming as he looked at Gu Fangzhi’s ears, red to the point of bleeding.

Gu Fangzhi fell silent at once at the teasing.

Amid Snowball’s howling, he tried desperately to cool down his overheated brain.

After countless deep breaths, he finally lowered his trembling hands from his face.

Pei Xin was standing above him, sipping water, eyes cast down, gazing at him calmly.
When their eyes met, Pei Xin asked, “Once, I walked sixteen times and never managed a sip of tea. Now Teacher should understand why I cherish tea so much, hm?”

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

He barely resisted the urge to make a “Heytea” joke and covered his face again in defeat.

Seeing him flounder only made Pei Xin even more delighted.

After months of frustration, he was finally getting a proper outlet for his grievances, and oh, it felt good.

“Enough,” Pei Xin said, smiling faintly. “I haven’t blamed Teacher.”

Gu Fangzhi muttered weakly, “I can’t forgive myself…”

Then realized he hadn’t used the proper deferential form, so he quickly reloaded a save and corrected, “This minister cannot forgive himself.”

But immediately afterward, he realized there was no point, Pei Xin already knew everything.

Pei Xin let out a small “Ha,” and within that laugh, Gu Fangzhi heard a mix of bitterness, irony, and resignation.

He forced himself to calm down.

No matter what, he was still five years older than Pei Xin.

Oh wait, not yet five; his birthday hadn’t come, so four, and Pei Xin still called him “Teacher.”

He couldn’t just keep running away from this forever.

Gu Fangzhi opened his interface panel again and again, checking.

It was still the same familiar page,

the gold logo of “Founding Emperor” floating midair, with two glowing buttons below it: “Load” and “Save.”

Inside, three save slots.

Nothing else.

No manual, no guide.

He had no idea where to even begin figuring out how Pei Xin could follow him through his reloaded timelines.

For the third time, Gu Fangzhi lowered his hands from his face and said weakly, “Your Majesty… I didn’t know you’d be pulled along when I load saves.”

“I’ve known for a while,” Pei Xin said.

“I also know Teacher meant no harm.”

He set his teacup down with a clear clink and continued,

“So I’ve decided not to hold it against Teacher, for sitting on my imperial bed, calling me a child,
sneaking glances at my body, touching the scar on my waist, forcing me to eat vegetables, and making me recite books, and for causing me to miss several prey during autumn hunts.”

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

Not holding it against him?

You remembered every single detail, and you’re gritting your teeth while saying it!

Still, he could understand Pei Xin’s feelings now.

If their roles were reversed, if he were the one being reset in time over and over without reason, he probably would’ve snapped months ago.

That was what made Pei Xin fit to be emperor.

As the saying goes, “When Heaven entrusts a great task to someone, it first torments him,
tests his patience, his strength, his heart.”
(Note 1 paraphrasing Mencius)

Looking at the dark circles under Pei Xin’s eyes, Gu Fangzhi felt a pang of guilt.

Softly, he said, “Your Majesty has suffered.”

Pei Xin gritted his teeth, refusing to admit it.
“A…a…a dragon…does not…suffer.”

Gu Fangzhi: “……”

Pei Xin took a deep breath and steadied himself.

“Teacher, it’s time to get off the floor.”

The boneless chicken claw finally grew bones and slowly pushed himself upright.

Gu Fangzhi looked everywhere except at Pei Xin, one hand on his forehead, face filled with hollow despair.

Snowball was trying to climb up his trousers, as if wanting to crawl into his arms, but halfway up, it decided to bite the hem of his robe and swing on it instead.

Pei Xin folded his arms and thought for a while.

Then he said, “I know Teacher meant well. The time reversal was for my sake. So I’ll let the past go. But from now on, we’ll make three rules.”

Gu Fangzhi nodded repeatedly. “Yes, yes, yes, Your Majesty.”

Pei Xin held up one finger.

“First: if Teacher uses time reversal again, unless it’s an emergency, you must tell me beforehand.”

“Second: if I ever face trouble or difficulties, Teacher must lend me his strength.”

“Third: you must never again use time reversal to take advantage of me.”

Then, with a stern face, “And you are forbidden from calling me ‘kid’ or teasing me again.”

Gu Fangzhi had already lost all dignity in front of Pei Xin.

He didn’t dare say anything else.

“Yes yes yes, of course of course, alright alright, absolutely absolutely.”

Pei Xin: “……”

So perfunctory.

He huffed and finally decided to end his lecture.

“I’m going to bathe.”

Then, pointedly, “This time, I would prefer not to be pinned down in the tub, unable to get up.”

Gu Fangzhi’s face flamed red,
and he raised his hands to cover it again.

Pei Xin reached forward, forcibly pulling his hands down and holding them tight.

He made Gu Fangzhi look him in the eyes. “Did Teacher hear me?”

Snowball, still swinging from Gu Fangzhi’s robe, let out a startled squeak when Pei Xin suddenly leaned in, then bolted off, a white blur ricocheting around the room.

Neither of them paid it any mind.

Gu Fangzhi stammered, “I… heard…”

But halfway through, his words caught in his throat.

They were standing close, close enough that he could smell the faint bitterness of medicine on Pei Xin’s skin.

Looking into Pei Xin’s sharp eyes, memories began to flood his mind,

That time Pei Xin had pulled him up, and he had accidentally brushed a kiss against Pei Xin’s cheek.

That other time, on their return from Wucheng, in the carriage, Pei Xin had kissed him.

Twice.

He’d thought those moments had been erased
by reloading the save files.

But now, Pei Xin remembered.

Every. Single. Time.

Some people look like they still have their “first kiss,” but in reality, it’s already been lost one or two times over.

Gu Fangzhi’s face flushed scarlet, his gaze darting away.

His shy expression was so obvious that Pei Xin instantly knew what he was thinking.

Yet he deliberately asked, tightening his grip around Gu Fangzhi’s wrist, “What is it that Teacher just remembered?”

Gu Fangzhi’s face grew even redder.

He rubbed the edge of the table behind him, mumbling, “This table… really is… a table. Must’ve cost quite a bit, huh?”

Pei Xin: “……”

He let out a short laugh, then took one more step forward, closing the distance between them even further.

Gu Fangzhi’s back hit the edge of the table.

No room left to retreat.

Instinctively, he tried to reload a save, but Pei Xin was still holding his wrist firmly, he couldn’t move.

Pei Xin stared straight into his eyes, still drawing closer.

“What is Teacher thinking about?”

A cool hand pressed lightly against the back of Gu Fangzhi’s neck, making him shiver. Pei Xin’s voice sounded a little different from usual, softer, lower.

In a tone just quiet enough for the two of them to hear, Pei Xin asked,
“Does Teacher also want to make up for the one that was left unfinished last time?”

As he spoke, his nose brushed against Gu Fangzhi’s; they were so close now that Gu Fangzhi could practically count Pei Xin’s eyelashes.

The alcohol that had faded earlier came rushing back, and his heartbeat pounded wildly, like it might leap right out of his throat.

Gu Fangzhi had no doubt that in the next second Pei Xin’s lips would land on his.

He even remembered that feeling, he’d been kissed twice before, after all ,
the lips slightly cooler than his own, thin and dry, pressing against him with startling force.

Pei Xin gave a low laugh, apparently pleased with Gu Fangzhi’s reaction.
“Teacher’s face is very red.”

With that, he released the back of Gu Fangzhi’s neck and stepped away.

Gu Fangzhi finally managed to breathe, yet for some reason, a faint sense of loss welled up in him.

But before he could even gather his thoughts, that same hand returned to his neck, tugging him forward,

Pei Xin’s lips brushed his cheek. Light. Fleeting. Gone in an instant.

Then, with perfect seriousness, Pei Xin said,

“This is to repay the time Teacher kissed me.”

That night.

Pei Xin took pity on Gu Fangzhi, who was dying of social embarrassment, and let him sleep on the small couch without making him give a massage or pat his back.

Perhaps because he had finally vented all his pent-up frustration, Pei Xin was in an excellent mood and fell asleep easily even without Gu Fangzhi’s help.

Gu Fangzhi, however, could not sleep at all.

He tossed and turned, flipped and rolled, roasting himself on the bed like Turkish kebab ,
burying his face in the blanket from time to time to silently scream.

Fortunately, his tear ducts worked fine; by now his tears were flowing like hand-pulled noodles.

Sighing again and again, he mentally replayed everything he had ever done to Pei Xin.

So the strange moments before all made sense now , Pei Xin’s memories had synchronized with his when he reloaded saves.

And to think he’d even used Snowball to run tests!

No wonder Pei Xin had insisted he accompany him undercover in Wucheng, and had actually believed his “divine dream revelation” story, because Pei Xin had been right there with him, checking every warehouse together.

Lost in thought, he didn’t notice dawn creeping in until the sound of palace servants moving outside reached his ears.

Staying up all night… was agony.

Pei Xin was a light sleeper and soon stirred as well.

When he opened his eyes, he saw Gu Fangzhi sitting cross-legged on the bed, wrapped in a quilt, meditating like a statue.

“Good morning, Your Majesty.”

Gu Fangzhi spoke dully, submitting a “petition”: “May your servant reload and sleep again?”

Pei Xin: “…Teacher didn’t sleep all night?”

Gu Fangzhi nodded. “I’m so sleepy, Your Majesty.”

Was this… pouting?

Only foolish rulers would fall for that.

But last night’s rest had been the best he’d had in ages, peaceful and dreamless ,
and Pei Xin didn’t particularly mind repeating it.

He schooled his face into a stern expression. “Granted.”

Gu Fangzhi smiled faintly. “Thank you, Your Majesty. Good night, Your Majesty.”

In the next instant, the pale morning light vanished; the footsteps of maids outside faded into nothing.
The quilt automatically flew back over him.

Pei Xin collapsed onto the bed. “Zzzzz…”

And then, he had a nightmare.

Pei Xin: “……”

In his dream, he thought bitterly, I’ll never be a foolish emperor again.

Unless, of course… Gu Fangzhi pouted at him again.

---

Merry Christmas everyone, please donate to my ko-fi so I could buy more raws and keep the site running.