After Being Mistakenly Taken for a Fellow Traveler by Emperor Long Aotian - Chapter 95

To be honest, the kiss wasn’t a pleasant experience. It was sudden and intense, the Emperor grabbed his chin and pressed his lips against Zhou Xun’s with the force of a hunting lion.

And—

Clearly, the Emperor was an immature hunter. He managed to make them clash their teeth against each other’s lips.

Zhou Xun: …

The impact made him see stars. He silently touched his sore lips, while the Emperor next to him awkwardly and quickly said, “I—I saw in movies before, like ‘The Princess Bride’ or ‘Flipped,’ the protagonists just kiss like that… Um…”

Zhou Xun: …

“Okay, I guess what just happened could have been a classic scene with grand background music, one that might rank among the top 50 iconic kisses in film history…” The Emperor mumbled, sounding somewhat frustrated and indignant, “But nobody told me that kissing like this would cause our teeth to collide!”

They exchanged glances and ended up laughing together.

“Does it still hurt? I mean, your lips… still hurt?” The Emperor scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed, cautious, and with a hint of furtive excitement and cunning, “If it doesn’t hurt anymore, I mean, we could…”

“…Try again.”

The Emperor cradled Zhou Xun’s head with both hands, his long hair slipping through his fingers and cascading onto the dimly lit, golden outer robe. Zhou Xun’s eyelashes were long, and his nose was straight. He looked up as the Emperor leaned closer, bit by bit.

With a slight distance between them, a gentle breeze brushed against his eyelashes. As the distance narrowed to a near imperceptible degree, he heard the Emperor’s voice, “…Aren’t you going to close your eyes?”

Zhou Xun: “Why?”

The Emperor: “I’m a bit nervous… Never mind.”

This time, their lips touched smoothly without hitting each other’s teeth. They kissed, then exchanged breaths within their mouths.

Zhou Xun’s breathing grew more rapid. One of the hands that had been holding his head moved to his waist, pulling him closer. He made an uncomfortable sound and gripped the Emperor’s shoulder blade.

He wasn’t aware of his own appearance at the moment, and, troublingly, his waist was really slender.

But he didn’t dislike the feeling. Being enveloped in the other’s breath was warm and comforting—even somewhat akin to being slightly drunk, floating on clouds, like new wine with green yeast, a small stove of red clay, and sweet rice wine on a snowy day, filling him with a soft, hazy sensation. Even the slight aggressiveness of the kiss was just a spicy kick in the wine, soon overshadowed by the lingering aftertaste.

Even if the Emperor were to pick him up and move him somewhere else, and place him down again—he might not even react.

The kiss ended when both of them were nearly breathless. With Zhou Xun’s chin resting on the Emperor’s leg, the back of his neck was being comforted repeatedly by the Emperor’s hand through the hair. Zhou Xun lay there, feeling lazy and reluctant to move.

“Actually, I was worried just now…” After a long, peaceful silence, the Emperor said, “Worried…”

The Emperor: “I was worried about hitting your nose, so I studied the angle carefully.”

Zhou Xun: …

He burst into a chuckle, and the Emperor patted his head, “Alright, alright, you should get out of here quickly. Don’t stay here, I’m feeling…”

Zhou Xun: “Feeling what?”

The Emperor’s voice grew faint, “Especially uncomfortable.”

Zhou Xun: …

He realized it and turned his face, but bumped into something hard.

Zhou Xun: … #￥@#%%

How could he have forgotten!!

…The Emperor was still hard.

The bump made both of them stiff. First, the Emperor became as stiff as a stone, leaning back on the chair. Zhou Xun was also stiff because he not only felt the heat and protrusion but also…

That thing was quite impressive.

Zhou Xun: …

“I…” Zhou Xun’s face turned red to the base of his neck. He composed himself and asked, “What will you do next…”

The Emperor: …

“I have superhuman willpower.” The Emperor kept staring at the ceiling, “And didn’t we agree to start from pursuing each other?”

Zhou Xun: …

“Now, it’s my turn to pursue you!” The Emperor looked at the ceiling and gave Zhou Xun a thumbs-up.

Zhou Xun: …

The Emperor: “You should get out now, or there will be a serious accident…”

Finally, the sound of the imperial doctor came from outside. Zhou Xun hesitated, “So, I should leave?”

The Emperor: “Yes, yes, leave, and don’t come back.”

Zhou Xun left, looking back three times. After he left, the Emperor, waiting with closed eyes for the doctor to come in and check his pulse, discovered the hairband that had fallen onto his knee.

The Emperor: …

The Emperor hesitated and grabbed the hairband. While the doctor was outside, he couldn’t resist taking a sneaky look at it and sniffing it…

It had a faint fragrance, subtle and unassuming, a cold and distant scent, like plum blossoms touched by snow, or like the person who had just rested on his knee…

He.

This hairband was originally tied in his long hair, and when removed, the long hair would cascade down like a waterfall. What if it were tied somewhere else?

Tied around the neck, tied around the wrist, Zhou Xun’s skin was very fair, and this dark red hairband would definitely…

The Emperor: …

“Your Majesty, if you don’t want to expose yourself, take this medicine and wait a bit longer, and it will…” The elderly doctor, with blurry eyes and white hair, entered with the medicine, “Your Majesty??”

The Emperor: …

The elderly doctor: “Your Majesty, you’re… well now?”

“The events of today must not be leaked,” the Emperor said coldly, “Anyone who leaks it will be executed without mercy, and their nine generations wiped out!!!”

The elderly doctor and the young apprentice quickly knelt down, “Yes, Your Majesty!!”

…The Emperor was still as mercurial as ever, ready to exterminate entire families at the drop of a hat. The elderly doctor wiped the sweat from his forehead, but…

He couldn’t help but sneak a glance at the Emperor’s lower half.

…Given the scandalous nature of the situation, it was understandable that the Emperor wouldn’t want it to be known.

…However, wasn’t the Emperor a bit quick? There was no one else around, and it didn’t seem like the Emperor had been in a state of undress, so how had it—

The Emperor’s murderous glare made the elderly doctor shrink his neck and stop any further thoughts.

“…Then,” the elderly doctor hesitated as he was about to leave, “I’ll prescribe some medicine to help restore Your Majesty’s health.”

The Emperor: …

“Everyone leave,” the Emperor said with a regal, frosty demeanor. “Oh, and that Consort Zhao—have her…”

“—Shave her head and send her to the temple to play football!!! She’s never to eat meat again in this lifetime!!”

Everyone hurriedly agreed, and after a long while…

“Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah—” The Emperor clutched his head, screaming in agony in the Chang Le Palace, “How could it happen so quickly? How could it happen so quickly? Nothing even happened yet, and my grand magical prowess was shattered!! Just a fantasy, just a fantasy—how could I lose face as a time traveler? How could I lose face as a Dragon Overlord? Xiao Yan, Fan Xian, send me condolences ah ah ah—”

“My power, my power ah ah ah—”

Little Li, who had heard the screams from afar: …

Little Li, who knew the Emperor best, approached with a friendly smile the next morning when the Emperor emerged from Chang Le Palace with a dark expression. “Your Majesty, it’s been a while since you practiced martial arts or strengthened your body.”

The Emperor: …

Little Li: “I’ll get that ‘Dragon Sun Eighteen Moves’ manual for you.”

The Emperor: …

“No need.” The Emperor kicked him with force and said irritably, “Bring me other books!!”

Little Li ducked and fled, “What books?”

“How to court someone, how to please someone, how to date… Just find everything you can.” The Emperor impatiently instructed.

“Your Majesty, this…” Little Li, still covering his head, looked surprised, “Why does Your Majesty need these books?”

The Emperor snorted coldly: “Aren’t you the one who prides yourself on understanding me best? Don’t you get it that I’m going to pursue him as someone who likes him? Otherwise…”

“This is too unfair.” The Emperor said lightly. Then, seeing Little Li standing dumbly, he kicked him again and said, “Hurry up and get to work?!”

Little Li, muttering submissively, hurried off. Meanwhile, Hong Ling, who was watching from the side, felt a weight on her shoulder.

She looked back and saw it was Green Medicine. Seeing her downcast expression, Green Medicine said, “You see, this is how a man who truly likes another person acts.”

Hong Ling felt a pang in her heart and said after a long pause, “Young Master Cai has been very good to me too… I also want to be good to him, like…”

Helping him mend his brotherly relationships, taking care of Zhou Xun, and stopping those who spread malicious rumors about Zhou Cai.

“…How does he treat you now when he’s in power, and how did he treat you before?” Green Medicine said with a mixture of pity and frustration.

Hong Ling finally shook her head, “I’ll take care of my own matters.”

Leaving palace matters aside, Zhou Xun returned home—his first action was to bury himself in his blankets.

He felt his heart pounding rapidly.

His face was hot, and he couldn’t help but smile. When he thought of certain scenes, he had to bite his lip.

For example, the four words that popped into his head at the time…

The Great Roc Spreads Its Wings…

Zhou Xun: …

Okay, all his expressions vanished.

After a long while, he emerged from his blankets, expressionless, and asked for water to wash his face.

Until…

“Master,” Lian Rong came in from the door and interrupted Zhou Xun, who was reading, “Someone is looking for you at the door…”

Zhou Xun looked up, “Who?”

“It’s…” Lian Rong hesitated, looking somewhat puzzled by the scene at the door, “It’s the Emperor.”

Zhou Xun: !!

He put down his book, cautiously walked out of his room, and approached the Emperor.

Until…

“Whoosh—”

A whistling sound came from the door.

Zhou Xun: ?? What is this.

As Zhou Xun stepped out, he saw the Emperor, wearing a large gold chain, holding the reins of a steed, and carrying a bouquet of… roses, whistling at him.

The Emperor then flicked his hair upward, thinking himself very handsome.

Zhou Xun: …

With a blank expression, Zhou Xun seriously doubted whether he had opened the door correctly and was about to close it…

But the Emperor didn’t give him that chance.

The Emperor placed the roses in his hands and, with an air of (self-perceived) elegance, said, “Handsome man, want to go for a ride?”