Hundreds of years later, Ye Zhizhou leaned against his lover, whose fur remained soft and comforting. Satisfied, he closed his eyes.
Ji Huaijin raised his head and let out a mournful howl, then carefully wrapped his lover's body in his embrace, covering it with his tail. He closed his eyes, and the totem on his forehead began to emit a brilliant golden light. Half an hour later, the golden light faded, and he closed his eyes forever. Little Black, outside the hall, let out a few mournful cries and chose to sacrifice himself to follow his master.
Thick black mist gradually rose, enveloping the entire hall, securely shielding the two who appeared to be peacefully asleep at its center.
It was just a comfortable nap, and the place they now found themselves in had transformed from a lavish golden hall into a quaint attic. Ye Zhizhou looked down at the delicate embroidered handkerchief in his hand, sighed with his eyes lowered. He hadn't even had a chance to say goodbye to his lover... and what about Little Black? Without him, would that rascal start being picky again...
Suddenly, a gorgeous handle on a small mirror in front of the dressing table shook, and a light screen popped up: "[Mission rewards have been delivered. Would you like to receive storyline data?]"
Ye Zhizhou got up and walked over to pick up the mirror. He was astonished by the exquisite girl reflected in the mirror. He looked down at his clothes—long robes, but in a pale yellow color! He raised his hand, and there was a jade bracelet on his wrist! He touched his hair, and he even pulled out a hairpin...
"Could it be that this time, my body is that of a woman?"
"[Fetching body data... Data acquired. Zou Qing, male (brother), sixteen years old, the third son of the Ministry of Revenue's Zou Qing, the most beautiful man in the capital, and the younger brother of this world's protagonist. He has a proud and naive personality, admires vanity, and meets a tragic end in a brothel.]"
"Where did he die?"
The light screen enlarged a bit to make the text clearer.
Once again, Ye Zhizhou felt the despair of having nothing to live for. He numbly reached out and touched his lower body, and his heart sank as he discovered the red birthmark that represented fertility on his forearm. He looked around and saw that the attic he was in seemed quite secluded and safe, so he lifted his robe and looked below his navel... a very clear red line.
He silently adjusted his clothes and cursed the creator of this world in his heart.
"[Would you like to receive storyline data?]"
He looked at the screen with a heavy heart. "Tongtian, I don't want to have children." After living for so many lifetimes, he swore he didn't want this feature.
The screen flashed and then displayed a colorful line of text: "[Want to avoid the trouble of unexpected pregnancies? Want to experience the pleasures of physical intimacy to the fullest? The Extinction Pill, the best choice for those who want to end their family line. Just one pill, and you can sail through life without worries.]"
"..." He felt like his eyes were going to pop out.
He refused to look at that colorful line of text again, lowered his head, and scratched the pattern on the mirror. "Give me the storyline information." Although he wanted to swallow that Extinction Pill immediately, it was better not to act recklessly when the plot was still unclear.
The small mirror vibrated, and the colorful light screen disappeared, replaced by a normal screen.
He put down the small mirror, suppressed the turmoil in his heart, and began to read the information carefully.
The protagonist of this world was named Zou Qing, the second son of Zou Qing, a minister in the Ministry of Revenue. He was male, but with the added label "brother," making him slightly younger than the original owner of the body Ye Zhizhou currently inhabited. Zou Qing had an ordinary appearance and a gentle personality. He was not highly regarded at home and was often bullied by his legitimate younger brother, Zou Qing.
His biological mother, named Tao Dong, was a distant niece of Zou Qing's mother, the old lady of the Zou family. While she was well-liked by the old lady, her fiery temperament did not endear her to Zou Qing.
When Zou Qing was about to turn seventeen, his fiance, Shen Tingwei, was severely injured and disabled in a battle at the border. After learning of this, Shen Qing insisted on breaking off the engagement, but due to the Shen family's power and influence, Zou Qing's father, Zou Qing, did not dare to do so. Yielding to the desperate wishes of her beloved son, Yuan Hui, Shen Qing's mother, came up with the idea of having Zou Qing marry Shen Qing's sister in his place. On the wedding day, Zou Qing, who had come to the bridal chamber for makeup, was knocked unconscious by Yuan Hui and put into the bridal sedan chair. Eager to complete the wedding to bring good luck to Shen Tingwei's recovery, the Shen family did not notice anything amiss and joyfully carried the sedan chair away.
The next day, Zou Qing's screams revealed the truth, and the Shen family was furious. They went to the Zou family to demand an explanation. Zou Qing, bewildered, was dumbfounded when he saw Zou Qing, who had turned pale after coming down from the carriage.
The two families began a lengthy dispute. Zou Qing, being conservative, believed that since Zou Qing had already gone to the Shen family, he belonged to them now and vehemently opposed the Shen family's request to return him. The Shen family, on the other hand, was very resentful and insisted that the Zou family send the real Zou Qing back and take Zou Qing away. It was unthinkable for the eldest son of a great general to marry the illegitimate son of a Ministry of Revenue official. They couldn't afford to lose this person!
In the midst of the prolonged dispute over whether Zou Qing should be returned to the Zou family, Yuan Hui had enough time to secretly send Zou Qing to a villa in her hometown in the countryside. With no trace of Zou Qing, Zou Qing became even more stubborn and refused to relent. Bitterly disappointed by his shameless actions, the Shen family grew increasingly disdainful of Zou Qing.
A week later, Shen Tingwei miraculously recovered, and believing that Zou Qing's presence had brought good fortune, Shen Qing's mother ordered her family not to continue harassing the Zou family and tacitly accepted Zou Qing's marriage to Shen Qing. And so, this marriage lasted for a year. During this time, neither the Zou family nor the Shen family showed any concern for how Zou Qing was faring in the Shen family. The Shen family adopted an attitude of ignoring him, placing him in a remote little courtyard and ignoring him.
A year later, Shen Tingwei's health improved, but to avoid affecting his mood, the Shen family did not inform him of Zou Qing's presence. Instead, they told him that the brother he was engaged to had tragically drowned, canceling the wedding. Shen Tingwei believed them without suspicion and, now fully recovered, returned to the border.
The old lady of the Shen family believed that Zou Qing's mission as a stand-in had been fulfilled, so she waved her hand and sent him back to his mother's home after Shen Tingwei returned to the border. Zou Qing didn't expect to receive a divorce letter after waiting for a year, and the rumored husband who had healed and returned to the border without even coming to see him once! He returned to the Zou family in a daze but was blocked at the gate by the ashamed Zou Qing, and even his biological mother, Tao Dong, only came out to give him a silver ticket before scolding him as useless and turning to leave. He stood alone at the Zou family's side gate, looking around in confusion.
After waiting for a whole night, but failing to change his family's heart, Zou Qing, unable to bear the emotional blow, jumped into the river in a suicide attempt, only to be saved by a beggar passing by. When he opened his eyes again, the ancient version of Zou Qing had transformed into the modern version of Zou Qing. Modern Zou Qing quickly assimilated the memories of the original host. After venting his anger at the Zou family and the Shen family, he adopted the beggar and bought an estate in the countryside near Beijing, embarking on the path to wealth.
He named the beggar Zou Qi and taught him how to read and write, sending him to school. One year later, Zou Qi became a junior scholar, and Zou Qing became a well-known wealthy landowner in the vicinity.
To facilitate Zou Qi's education, after saving enough money for retirement, Zou Qing sold the estate and opened a small tavern in the capital city. It was there that he met Fei Jinchu, the son of a prominent merchant, and earned Fei Jinchu's favor. The modern Zou Qing, who couldn't be more straightforward, completely ignored the olive branch extended by Fei Jinchu and continued to enjoy his carefree life as a mature, single man.
Another half-year passed, and Zou Qi's family suddenly came looking for him. It turned out that Zou Qi was not a beggar but the lost son of Grand Secretary Yang Xuande. Despite his deep attachment, Zou Qing persuaded Zou Qi to recognize his biological father and changed his name to Yang Qi.
The first thing Yang Qi did after returning home at the age of fourteen was to have someone propose marriage to Zou Qing. Zou Qing was so startled by this move that he felt as if his soul were about to leave his body. He hastily fled for a journey to calm his nerves. Unfortunately, during his travels, he coincidentally ran into Zou Qing, who was on his way back to Beijing. Zou Qing, whose life had been troubled in recent years, drugged him with an aphrodisiac and cast him into a dilapidated temple, even sending an unsavory ruffian along with him.
Frustrated and disgusted, Zou Qing, driven by his indomitable spirit, managed to incapacitate the ruffian and rushed to a nearby river outside the temple to take a refreshing cold bath. Regrettably, he was discovered by Zhan Xuemi, the heir of the Hou family, who had also come for a cold bath. The two locked eyes, their chests pressed against each other, and they let out simultaneous screams.
After they had both gotten dressed and composed themselves, the naive Zhan Xuemi surprisingly developed feelings for Zou Qing. He insisted that he was not a scoundrel and vowed to take responsibility by marrying Zou Qing. Despite Zou Qing's repeated refusals, he realized that Zhan Xuemi was not willing to accept rejection and persistently pursued him. In desperation, he cleverly employed a diversion tactic and made his escape.
This time, he ran much farther and deeper into a mountain valley, deciding to live a carefree life as a joyful little hunter while concealing his true identity. It was during this period that he rescued a killer named Kang Run while hunting in the mountains... Kang Run expressed a desire to become intimate with him.
Zou Qing was in complete despair. He was preparing to run away again but realized that Kang Run was too alert, and he couldn't escape at all! To avoid a forced outcome he dreaded, he confided in Kang Run the fact that he was actually a deserted husband. After hearing this, Kang Run fell silent for a while and left. Zou Qing breathed a sigh of relief and continued to enjoy his life as a carefree little hunter.
A month later, Kang Run returned and kidnapped him to a brothel in the capital city. There, he made Zou Qing watch a passionate male-male performance starring Zou Qing himself, and he affectionately informed Zou Qing that he had avenged him, and the Zou family was on the verge of collapse.
Zou Qing's world was turned upside down, and he was at a loss for words. Just as he was thinking about running away again, he spotted Yang Qi in a corner of the brothel. After all, he had raised the child for several years, and he suddenly felt a surge of affection. He rushed out and gave Yang Qi a good beating, scolding him for not studying properly and daring to visit a brothel.
Yang Qi was initially confused but then overjoyed. He held onto Zou Qing tightly. Seeing this, Kang Run became jealous and approached to settle the matter with Yang Qi. Zou Qing was alarmed and tried to intervene, which only made Kang Run angrier. Yang Qi, unwilling to back down, immediately drank three bowls of vinegar upon seeing Kang Run. He somehow summoned a group of guards and loudly declared that they should capture Kang Run and execute him!
Zou Qing was caught in the middle, feeling utterly helpless. Just when things were getting complicated, Shen Tingwei appeared out of nowhere, seized Zou Qing, and brought him back to the Shen Mansion. Shen Tingwei expressed his desire to reconcile and continue their relationship as husband and wife.
Zou Qing felt utterly defeated.
Upon seeing Zou Qing being captured by his scoundrel ex-husband, Yang Qi and Kang Run immediately ceased their conflict and began to cooperate to contend with Shen Tingwei. Shortly thereafter, Fei Jinchu and Zhan Xuemi, who received the news, hastily joined their team, aiming to snatch Zou Qing back from Shen Tingwei!
However, their enemy was incredibly formidable, and even when the four of them combined forces, they couldn't match the opponent's strength alone. In the end, it was Kang Run who utilized his special skills. On a dark and windy night, he secretly rescued Zou Qing.
Now that Zou Qing had regained his freedom, he had grown disillusioned with the worldly affairs. He felt that since he couldn't escape the fate of being manipulated one way or another, he might as well choose to be with Kang Run and the others. Kang Run and the other three also thought the same, so they left farewell letters for their families and packed their belongings. Together, they embarked on a journey to live a secluded and carefree life.
Ye Zhizhou turned off the screen and felt the need for some solitude.
The protagonist of this world... seems a bit mysterious.