Read Novel Full Chapter 38
When walking up the long stone steps, Qi Mingxuan led the way, holding Li Shu’s hand in his left hand without letting go. After stepping out of the secret door, he turned around and faced Li Shu.
Leaning forward slightly, Qi Mingxuan’s movement was subtle, but since the two were already close, this action made the gap between him and Li Shu even smaller. As their faces drew closer, Li Shu spoke up: “Your Majesty?”
Qi Mingxuan didn’t respond, he just kept looking at him intently, his face getting closer and closer.
Li Shu wondered if he had been affected by the “poisoned man” earlier. Otherwise, how could someone who was fine a moment ago look so silly now?
He reached out and wanted to explore the man’s forehead, but the man stopped him halfway and held it in his hand, refusing to let go.
The man’s movement didn’t stop, and in a moment, his face was almost touching Li Shu’s.
Just as Li Shu was about to say something, he noticed Qi Mingxuan stop his movement, staring at him blankly.
“Qi Mingxuan?”
This name seemed to trigger a reaction in Qi Mingxuan. The dazed look in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by an unmistakable heat. This wasn’t the first time he had seen such a look in the man’s eyes and he had long been accustomed to it.
But Qi Mingxuan always had the heart of a thief but not the courage of one. No matter how hard he restrained himself, he didn’t dare make a move. Therefore, Li Shu remained still, he was curious about what Qi Mingxuan wanted to do.
As for what Qi Mingxuan wanted to do, he himself didn’t know. His mind was muddled, and he could only follow the most primal feeling. Seeing the young man’s opening and closing lips, revealing the small pearl-like teeth hidden behind and the rosy tip of his tongue, he couldn’t help but feel dry-mouthed and tongue-tied.
“Bang, bang—”
He could hear the rapid pounding in his chest. He stared at the young man’s lips, lowered his head as if fascinated, and leaned closer —
Just as it seemed they were about to kiss, Li Shu suddenly tilted his head, and the kiss landed on his cheek instead.
Feeling the gentle touch on his cheek, Li Shu suddenly realized that his earlier feeling was correct—Qi Mingxuan did indeed want to kiss him.
Qi Mingxuan was a little dissatisfied when the kiss failed. He licked the tender cheek, then gently pecked and kissed it, reluctant to let go.
Continuing downward, he lingered in an attempt to find that original target.
Li Shu took a step back to prevent him from succeeding. Looking at the man who was still in a daze, he narrowed his eyes dangerously.
“Your Majesty.” Li Shu’s tone was neither light nor heavy. It was not so different from usual, but beneath the gentle coat lay a layer of ice.
The two simple words were like a bucket of ice water poured over him, snapping Qi Mingxuan out of his reverie and forcing him to sober up from his romantic fantasies.
“Are you awake now?”
When he looked up, he saw Li Shu looking at him with a half-smile but not a smile. Unsure of Li Shu’s attitude, he stood in place, not daring to make any move.
Li Shu, who had initially felt a bit offended, found his annoyance dissipating at Qi Mingxuan’s current demeanor.
Qi Mingxuan, such a tall man who was the unparalleled emperor of this world, now looked like a big dog afraid of being abandoned by its owner. He stood there hesitantly, not daring to approach. Li Shu could even imagine a pair of drooping ears above his head.
“Zi Shu…” Qi Mingxuan whispered his name softly.
“What just happened?” He couldn’t believe that the now sober Qi Mingxuan would behave like this.
His face was still wet with Qi Mingxuan’s saliva.
“I don’t know either. I just felt dazed. Everything around me seemed blurry, and then… it happened.”
The temptation in his heart was amplified infinitely, and the voice of temptation kept saying: Go ahead—
Go ahead—
Go ahead and do what?
Do what you want to do the most—
So Qi Mingxuan did.
But he hadn’t completely lost his sanity. When he approached Li Shu, he had already regained some of his senses but continued to follow his inner desires: he wanted to be closer to Zi Shu.
In fact, he was mentally prepared for Li Shu’s anger. Initially, Li Shu’s attitude made his heart sink, but then things turned around, and he found that the young man was suddenly not angry anymore.
“Zi Shu, are you… not angry anymore?” After hesitating for a moment, Qi Mingxuan finally asked this question.
After asking, he looked at Li Shu carefully. Seeing a slight curve at the corner of the young man’s mouth, he was momentarily stunned.
“There’s nothing to be angry about. It’s my negligence. Your Majesty is now in his prime of life. It’s normal for you to think about these things.”
It was also his own negligence. He had never understood feelings and love for thousands of years, and neglected Qi Mingxuan’s needs in this aspect, naturally assuming he was like himself.
The young man had always been aloof and indifferent. Qi Mingxuan had never imagined the young man would say such words, and he was speechless with shock.
“Zi Shu, what..what do you mean?”
Qi Mingxuan admitted that he did want something to happen between him and Li Shu to confirm that he was his. No man in the world could remain indifferent when facing the person he loved. He had always adhered to etiquette, not wanting to overstep boundaries, fearing the young man might be disgusted with such actions. Now it seemed he had misunderstood something.
Qi Mingxuan’s mind wandered, the misunderstanding was so big.
Ignoring the distracted Qi Mingxuan, Li Shu walked away briskly.
Qi Mingxuan remained dumbfounded for a while, smiling foolishly before finally chasing after him.
With the information obtained from “Li Cheng”, Qi Mingxuan spent some effort and finally dismantled Xiqiong’s arrangements within Great Zhou’s territory. He was only grateful they had learned of it early; if it had been any later, even knowing Xiqiong’s plans, they wouldn’t have been able to deal with that force so easily.
The Mu family was also vindicated, and hundreds of thousands of souls found peace. The progress on Yu Rongxiu’s side was also smooth. A large number of officials were dismissed from their posts and replaced with new blood. Although Great Zhou was going through some tough times, after this bone-setting and recuperation, removing the malignant tumors, Great Zhou’s future undoubtedly would be better.
“Li Cheng’s” identity as a spy was never revealed to the public. Apart from this, everything else he had done was revealed to the world. With such serious crimes, the Li family definitely couldn’t escape unscathed. Regardless of gender, they would all be exiled to the borderlands.
Li Shu returned to the Left Prime Minister’s Mansion once again, but this time, he wasn’t alone. The Left Prime Minister had already been executed, and it was impossible for Li Xinuo to stay hidden in the palace forever. Seizing this opportunity, Li Shu decided to take her out.
Qi Mingxuan accompanied him to pick her up.
They hadn’t seen each other for a while and Li Xinuo looked haggard but there was determination in her eyes. She was no longer the fragile flower raised in a greenhouse, she had her head raised high, ready to face the thunderstorms and bask in the sunshine and fragrant flowers of the outside world.
But even the strongest people have their vulnerable side. When she saw Li Shu, her eyes suddenly turned red.
Days of grievances and fears burst forth, and tears couldn’t stop flowing down her cheeks.
Li Shu stepped forward, gently held the person in his arms, and said softly, “It’s okay to cry, big brother is here.”
Finally, the dam burst, and Li Xinuo cried loudly in her elder brother’s arms.
She already knew about the execution of the Li family. “Li Cheng’s” crimes had been made public, and her elder brother no longer had to bear the sins of his past life. Everything was different now, and she should have been happy; after all, that was her enemy, and he had received the punishment he deserved.
But she still felt sad. When the news came, her heart felt empty, as if she had stepped into the void and fallen into an endless abyss. When she came to her senses, she felt a coldness on her face. When she reached out and touched it, she suddenly realized that tears had streamed down her face at some point.
Reason and emotion were never the same. Rationally, she knew “Li Cheng” deserved his fate, but she still felt uncomfortable. Setting aside everything else, “Li Cheng” had never treated her badly.
That night, she sat by the window and thought a lot, both about her past life and this life. Standing at the crossroads of her past and present lives, both sides were gradually moving away from her.
Her tears remained unwiped throughout the night.
The fear and confusion in her heart had no outlet until she saw her only relative. Like a drowning person, she grabbed onto the only piece of driftwood, finally finding a release for her emotions.
At first, she only sobbed softly, but with Li Shu’s gentle reassurance, her cries grew louder. She thought of her past life. Except for her elder brother, everyone was kind to her or mistreated her because of her status. Her lover, her father—they all used her without caring about the suffering she endured.
Only her elder brother would bring her little trinkets to make her smile, help her deal with those who bullied her, and travel far to bring her gifts just to see her smile…
When she made the decision, she told herself it was okay, as long as her elder brother was safe. But when it came time to act, she realized she wasn’t as strong as she had imagined. It felt like she was back in her childhood, sitting in the dark cave, surrounded by darkness, with only her elder brother’s hand reaching out to her.
After crying for a while, Li Xinuo finally began to recover. She stopped her tears and pulled away from her elder brother’s embrace.
“Big brother, I want to go back and take a look,” Li Xinuo said softly.
She knew she was the least qualified person to go back to the Left Prime Minister’s Mansion now because all of this was her fault. But that was the place where she grew up, where her relatives were.
Even though those relatives were all fake. Li Xinuo smiled mockingly.
“Go ahead and take a look.” Li Shu patted the girl’s head. After this time, she probably wouldn’t have another chance.
After wiping her face with a handkerchief, Li Xinuo finally noticed Qi Mingxuan, who was dressed in ordinary clothes. She tried to bow, but he stopped her.
“No need for formalities.”
There was no one left at the Left Prime Minister’s Mansion. Li Xinuo stood at the door, feeling a bit lost. She had only left for a few days, but now it looked desolate.
She composed herself and said, “Big brother, I want to take a walk by myself.” She knew this would be her last time here.
“Go ahead, but don’t be too sad.”
Compared to Li Xinuo, Li Shu’s expression was much calmer. Qi Mingxuan couldn’t tell if he truly didn’t care or if he was burying all his emotions deep down, not revealing them.
It seemed like the young man was always like this, as if nothing could touch his heartstrings. Sometimes, he even wondered if the young man’s acceptance of him was genuine or a compromise to his status.
Regardless of which it was, he wouldn’t let go.
Walking to the young man’s side, he familiarly found the young man’s hand under his wide sleeve robe. He circled the young man’s slightly cool hand and held it in his palm.
“Do you want to go in and take a look?”
“Alright.”
They walked side by side, very close to each other. Under the setting sun, their shadows intertwined with each other, inseparable.
The two walked while talking, not walking very fast. After walking around, they found Li Xinuo already waiting at the door. Li Shu prepared to take her back to his residence but was refused.
“Big brother, I want to walk my own path from now on.”
These days, Li Xinuo has thought a lot. In both lifetimes, she had been trapped in the imperial city, embroiled in power struggles. Now, apart from her elder brother, she had no attachments here. Why not go out and explore?
So what if she is a woman? The world is so big, anywhere could be called ‘home’.
“Have you made up your mind?” Although he was a little surprised by Li Xinuo’s decision, Li Shu didn’t intend to oppose it. It was her life, and she should be the one to decide.
Li Xinuo replied firmly, “I have.”
“Do whatever you want to do. Big brother will always be here. If you get tired, come back and rest.”
“Thank you, big brother.” Li Xinuo smiled. It was the first time she had smiled in so many days. This smile swept away the past gloom, bringing a sense of vitality.
Li Shu knew that the scar in Li Xinuo’s heart was slowly healing. One day, it would return to its original state, leaving only a faint trace.
When the figure was no longer visible, Qi Mingxuan hugged him and said, “Let’s go back.”
Li Shu gave a faint smile. “Okay.”
With the massive purge, batches of officials were removed from their positions one after the other, leaving many vacancies. This gave capable officials who had been suppressed for not being willing to compromise a chance to advance. In just two years, Great Zhou underwent a complete transformation.
Xiqiong’s plan was exposed, and other small countries and allies of Great Zhou started retaliating. Xiqiong had no time to take care of itself, and naturally had no ability to take advantage of the chaos in Great Zhou to do anything.
As Xiqiong gradually declined, Great Zhou flourished.
After firmly securing the throne, Qi Mingxuan no longer deliberately hid his relationship with Li Shu. Although the ministers were surprised, they didn’t dare to oppose openly. They had witnessed the emperor’s iron-fisted methods over the past two years. Besides, Li Shu’s abilities were obvious to all, and they lamented missing out on such a good son-in-law.
Just like in the original plot, Yu Rongxiu rose steadily and became an influential figure.
Li Xinuo spent her whole life traveling, but she would write a letter to Li Shu every now and then, both to reassure him and to share her experiences. Her life path was completely different from the original plot, and she was clearly happier now than she would have been following the original storyline.
Along the way, she met like-minded friends and found a lifelong partner.
Li Shu stayed in this world for more than forty years. Qi Mingxuan sought out many famous doctors to restore his health. Dr. Lin also found a way to detoxify him and eventually, his body was no different from an ordinary person’s.
But due to the damage suffered in his youth, his lifespan couldn’t be the same as an ordinary person’s. Qi Mingxuan went mad searching for a cure, but all the results were the same. He knelt beside the bed, watching his beloved’s life gradually fading away and cried uncontrollably.
“You promised you wouldn’t leave me…”
‘You’ve fulfilled your promise with a lifetime’s effort. I’m sorry, but this time I have to break my word.’ Li Shu wanted to reach out and pat Qi Mingxuan’s head, but ultimately failed.
——————————–
System Space.
A young man in a simple white robe was sitting cross-legged on the bed. He had a perfect face that couldn’t be described in words, as if his features were meticulously carved. Paired with his silver-white long hair, like the pure snow in a mountain stream, his fox-like eyes, with their upturned red corners, added a touch of allure.
Wing-like eyelashes fluttered lightly, and the young man slowly opened his eyes. They were eyes that could pierce straight into one’s heart, with a coldness like snow that suppressed the inherent charm of those eyes.
“Host, are you okay?” A metal sphere emitting a faint blue light bounced over, twisting its body and asking worriedly.
In the system space, the system had a physical form. The round ball floating in front of Li Shu was precisely 1314.
“I’m fine.” Li Shu rubbed his forehead. His feelings for Qi Mingxuan seemed to run a bit deeper than he had realized.
“Is this the system space you mentioned?” Li Shu looked around. It was a room filled with futuristic technology. The roof, walls, and floor were all made of gray-white material with a metallic texture. The furnishings were extremely simple, consisting only of a bed, a table, and four chairs.
In the center was a huge transparent spherical object filled with a faint blue liquid. A large snow-white fox was curled up in the middle of the sphere, its eyes tightly closed, and its nine tails wrapped around its body, forming a protective barrier.
This was Li Shu’s true body.
“Yes,” 1314 replied. “This is the original form of the system space. The host can remodel it according to preferences.”
“Let it stay like this for now.” Li Shu walked up to the giant sphere, placed his hand on it, and stared at the sleeping fox inside. It was the first time he had observed himself from this perspective.
There was a connection between the soul and the body. In the small world, due to the spatial barrier, he couldn’t sense the condition of his body. After returning to the system space, the soul and body reestablished their connection, and he could feel that the injuries on his body were gradually healing.
“Host, the ratings for the previous world are out. Would you like to see them?” 1314 said as it brought up the mission panel, only to be blinded by the large orange “S”.
!!!!!!!!
This…this…this…it didn’t read it wrong, did it?!
It was actually an “S”!
With the plot line collapsing like that, it had prepared itself for mission failure, but unexpectedly, the host gave it such a big surprise. Not only did he complete the task, but he also received an “S” rating!
It was too surprising.
1314 floated over to Li Shu and said in a trembling voice, “Hos…host, our last mission, our last mission…”
It was so exciting that it couldn’t even finish its sentence.
“What’s wrong? Did we fail?”
“No no no, we didn’t fail, we succeeded! It was a great success! Host, our mission has been rated ‘S’!” 1314 said in one breath, its voice not even sounding breathless.
Seeing the host’s lack of reaction, 1314 provided a briefing on the rating system after completing missions.
The ratings range from A to D, with A being the highest and D the lowest. The quality of mission completion decreases with each subsequent rating, and anything below a D was considered a failure, while anything above an A was considered overachievement. The ratings are closely related to the mission rewards, with higher ratings resulting in more generous rewards.
Throughout history, very few had achieved an S rating on their first mission, so 1314 couldn’t be more excited.
“Let me see, hmm, completion rate of 100%, male protagonist’s happiness at 96%, female protagonist’s happiness at 92%. They are both very high, so many rewards.”
1314 counted the string of zeros behind the points and felt like it was suffocating. It had never seen so many points before.
Li Shu wasn’t interested in these things, so he casually glanced at them and handed them over to 1314 to handle.
1314 neatly organized the rewards into categories and suddenly exclaimed, “Ah! Host, there’s a courtyard here, it’s the one the male protagonist from the previous world gave to you.”
Li Shu suddenly opened his eyes. Looking at the small orb the system presented to him, he felt a momentary instability in his emotions.
The courtyard In the small orb was beautiful. It was exactly what Qi Mingxuan said he would give to him. After a few twists and turns, it ended up in his hands.
“Put it away properly,” After rubbing it for a few times, Li Shu handed the orb to 1314.
“Okay, host, the system store is open, is there anything the host would like to buy?”
Li Shu shook his head.
Seeing the host’s lack of enthusiasm, 1314 silently floated away, letting the host take his time.
Time didn’t pass in the system space. After an unknown amount of time, 1314 floated over and woke Li Shu up from his cultivation.
It was time for the second mission.
~
Li Shu woke up in a daze, feeling dizzy. The light above his head made his eyes involuntarily tear up. He tried to raise his hand to shield his eyes, but found his arm weighed more than a thousand pounds. It was difficult to even move it.
Where was he?
His mind felt muddled, shrouded in a thick white fog that blocked all memories. Trying hard to recall, he could only remember vague figures.
As he got used to the brightness, his eyes didn’t hurt as much anymore. He stared at the light above his head, vaguely feeling that he shouldn’t be here.
After regaining some strength, Li Shu turned his head with difficulty and surveyed his surroundings. Hindered by his line of sight, he couldn’t see the entire place clearly, but from what he could see, the people living here were either rich or noble.
This should be a hotel. Though it looked luxurious, it lacked the lively atmosphere of someone being there, and there were no traces of the owner’s life here.
Then why was he here?
Li Shu tried hard to remember, and gradually, a few figures emerged from the white fog, accompanied by indistinct voices. Concentrating hard, he could only vaguely hear words like “support,” “resources,” “scandal,” and “fans”.
Were they talking about him? With only these few words, he couldn’t make out much. Li Shu closed his eyes and tried to recall more useful truths from the mist.
“Creak—”
Just as a clear face was emerging, there was a sound of the door opening.
Li Shu struggled to turn his head and looked towards the door.
Two men in black suits supported a handsome young man in a suit as they walked in. The young man frowned tightly, and pursed his thin lips together, obviously trying hard to endure something.
Who was he?
Li Shu had regained some strength and tried to ask, but only emitted a few gasps.
The two men walked straight to the bedside. Without even glancing at Li Shu on the bed, they lifted the young man onto the bed.
Then they left without saying a word.
The man was very close to him, and Li Shu could feel the abnormal warmth emanating from him. Seeing the man’s expression of endurance, Li Shu wondered, was he sick?
Just as he was about to take a closer look, the man suddenly opened his eyes. Those eyes were extremely dark, with bloodshot veins, and the expression on his face as he looked at Li Shu seemed as if he wanted to devour him alive.
Li Shu wanted to ask him what was wrong, but he still couldn’t speak.
However, his small movement angered the man. He suddenly rolled over, pressing Li Shu beneath him, and said in a dangerously low voice:
“You want to climb into my bed so badly? I’ll grant your wish today!”