Chapter 91 Mistaken for a Mountain Spirit by Lü Zhi 3
At this time, Ying Zheng and Liu Bang were still on their way, and the famous scene of the two emperors meeting had not yet arrived. Since Zhu Qing'ai had nothing better to do, she decided to fool someone for fun (?).
She spoke under the guise of 'Qin', and Lü Zhi turned around immediately upon hearing the unfamiliar voice. She saw a simply dressed woman standing behind her.
Her long, black hair cascaded down her back, held up only by a wooden hairpin. Her face was free of makeup, yet she possessed exquisite and beautiful features.
Even in simple clothes, her inherent elegance was undeniable, like a towering mountain...like the vast ocean...
Lü Zhi didn't know why she came up with such words that were obviously not used to describe women, but they just popped into her head subconsciously.
But she had no time to appreciate his beauty. Instead, she took two steps back warily and asked cautiously and respectfully, "May I ask what brings you here?"
As she asked the question, she secretly glanced behind the strange woman in front of her, trying to see if Liu Fei had been hidden away by this mountain spirit.
Yes, Lü Zhi felt that the 'person' in front of her was not a person. She could see clearly when she came that there was no one around this road. She was wondering why there were no neighbors working in the fields at this time of year.
Now that she saw Zhu Qing'ai, she understood why there was no one around; it was probably because of this strange 'woman'.
"Didn't you ask me what I needed?" Why ask her what she needs now?
Lü Zhi's eyelids twitched, and she noticed that the person's black hair seemed to sway for a moment. Her pupils trembled slightly. Who would let their hair move on its own?
She's standing right here; doesn't she know whether there's wind or not?
But she also found it strange that she didn't feel a deep fear of this non-human creature that looked like a mountain spirit, but rather a faint, irresistible fondness for it.
She could still control herself somewhat with reason, but if she let herself go... she had no doubt that she would go up and befriend that 'person' in the next second.
Upon seeing Lü Zhi's micro-expression, the 'mountain spirit' seemed too lazy to pretend to be human anymore, and directly controlled its hair to wrap around Lü Zhi's waist and take her two steps forward.
Lü Zhi: ? ! !
"Why are you standing so far away? I'm not going to eat you."
The 'mountain spirit' smiled gently at Lü Zhi, and Lü Zhi... couldn't help but believe it.
"You...may I ask which deity you are..." The lingering touch of her black hair brushing against her waist made her think of the 'mountain spirit' as some kind of deity.
Zhu Qing'ai smiled and said, "I can't be considered a god. There are no gods in this world. I'm just a loose consciousness drifting in the mountains and fields."
Later, when Lü Zhi thought back to those words, she felt that they weren't even being modest; they were just teasing people. But the current Lü Zhi didn't understand that she would believe anything Zhu Qing'ai said.
The main reason was that Lü Zhi believed that a god-like figure would not need to deceive her.
Although she said she wasn't a god, she couldn't really ignore the other side.
Before Lü Zhi could say another word, Zhu Qing'ai took her left hand in her hand and said, "Such beautiful hands, it would be such a waste if they were calloused, rough and cracked."
Zhu Qing'ai is an illusory image without a physical form, so the touch that Lü Zhi felt was different from that of a person she touched. It did not have the body temperature of a human; it was an icy cold touch.
The feeling is more like a gentle breeze lifting your hand, with wisps of wind supporting the area beneath your palm.
Even the feeling of His thumb stroking her palm and fingertips was like a gentle breeze, cool but not biting, possessing the softness of the wind, and even more comfortable against her skin.
She couldn't help but think of the mountain spirit in "Nine Songs":
If there is someone on the mountain slope, draped in ivy and adorned with maidenhair fern.
It's easy to smile at the same time, and I admire you for being so graceful and graceful. *1
A blush rose on Lü Zhi's face, and she subconsciously rubbed her right hand, which was not being held, on her dress. Her hands had already been washed for cooking, but she still couldn't help making small movements when she touched Him.
She lowered her eyes to look at the clasped hands of Yi Ling and the other person, her tone inevitably bitter: "But I... this is just my fate in this life."
She looked at the fine cracks on her palms, as if she were seeing the beginning of the difficult second half of her life.
I usually numb myself with life and try not to think about the future, but when I'm in front of Him, I don't know why I always want to pour out my grievances.
She opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything.
Zhu Qing'ai looked at her with heartache and gently pulled her into her arms: "Cry, no one will see."
Lü Zhi felt surrounded by a gentle breeze. She closed her eyes and two lines of tears slowly flowed down her cheeks.
She cried for a long time, letting out all the grievances and resentments of the past few years. Although she didn't say it outright, Zhu Qing'ai felt that she could empathize with her.
At this age, she would still be a college student in modern times. Now she is already taking care of her in-laws with her husband and illegitimate child. Zhu Qingai sighed and casually raised her hand to touch the top of Lü Zhi's head, then stroked her hair.
Lü Zhi cried for a long time. When she looked up, she saw that the sun had not moved at all. Despite her emotional turmoil, she did not forget to analyze the situation rationally. This must be the power of the gods.
Her crying was a sign of grievance and weakness, not simply an expression of emotion. She was not a weak person; even tears were a tool for her. She was an ambitious person who would seize every opportunity to climb up the social ladder.
She didn't consider herself a good person, and the scheming and manipulation in her mind might be unfair to this kind-hearted deity if laid bare, but she didn't care about despising her own 'darkness', she only thought that if she could get better off with the help of the deity.
She didn't even have any clear goals, only hoping to deceive the gods into taking pity on her. She didn't have time to think about anything else right now, nor did she have any concrete ideas.
Looking at the detected emotional fluctuations and the gradually increasing energy consumption, Zhu Qing'ai thought, "You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub," so she ignored the changing numbers. After all, if she ran out of energy, she could just notify her clone to send her some.
She led her people to sit down on the edge of the field, as if she wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk, and used a gentle approach on Lü Zhi.
Empress Lü then recounted her life story, from being loved by her parents in childhood to being suddenly married off to Liu Bang by her father when she was young, and now to being busy with household chores every day.
Zhu Qing'ai knew the other person's purpose in dissecting her life, but it didn't matter, since she was a liar anyway.
The two sat on the edge of the field, chatting with the intention of deceiving each other, their words being seven parts truth and three parts falsehood.
The difference is that Lü Zhi was unaware that the other party was deceiving her, and even felt guilty for deceiving the kind gods, while Zhu Qing'ai was completely self-righteous and had no sense of guilt when she lied to people.
The most important thing for a scammer is to have no shame. If you have a shame, why would you scam anyone?
As Lü Zhi spoke, she noticed the subtle expression on the deity sitting beside her. She carefully observed the other's expression and realized that she had spoken very tactfully, so she should not have displeased Him.
"Your father's physiognomy skills are quite accurate..." Zhu Qing'ai deliberately spoke unclearly, glancing at Lü Zhi's lower abdomen for a moment before changing the subject, and said with certainty, "You are going to have a daughter."
Empress Lü realized what the gods were saying: that her father had not misjudged her.
However, she soon became more concerned about her daughter. Regardless of whether her father had misjudged her or not, what could a mere village head do now? If he hadn't lied to her, then it was time to wait for the right opportunity in the future.
She touched her flat stomach with a look of surprise. Compared to the uncertain future, her unborn daughter made her happier.
Zhu Qing'ai tilted her head, making a puzzled expression as if she understood humans: "You don't mind that you're a daughter?"
With a look of doubt in her eyes, Lü Zhi asked, "Why do you despise my child?"
"I've seen many people who aren't happy about this..."
Saying that they weren't happy was a euphemism, and quite a few people were angry about it.
In fact, even in later generations, people are often unhappy about having a daughter.
These words reminded Lü Zhi of her own experiences, including how she was pampered as a child but still had to obey her father's orders and be treated like an object...
She shook her head: "It's fate that she was willing to come into my womb. I like her more than anything, how could I dislike her?"
She wondered why the gods, who believed people would be unhappy about this, would tell her so directly. Was it also a test?
However, she didn't want to lie about this; she was speaking from the heart.
She thought that even in her current state, there was still someone willing to come to her side and stay with her. She cherished him so much that she dared not even feel disgust.
Zhu Qing'ai nodded slightly in agreement with Lü Zhi's point of view: "Your way of thinking is much better than those strange humans." She then looked curiously at the food box that Lü Zhi was carrying, rolled up the lid of the food box with a strand of her hair, and saw the food inside. "You still haven't said who you were looking for before."
Lü Zhi: "I came here to find my aunt and uncle, but I never expected to run into you..." Even Liu Fei, who was following behind her, was nowhere to be seen.
He smiled, indicating that he understood. As the breeze blew, Lü Zhi's eyes were blurred by her disheveled hair. When she opened her eyes again, she saw that the sun in the sky had suddenly moved, the food box was empty, and Liu Fei was weeding in the field.
Her mother-in-law straightened up and called out, "E'xu, once you're done tidying up, just leave the things on the edge of the field for now; they won't get lost."
"Yes, I'm here," Lü Zhi replied, and went down to the field to start farm work.
No one asked her why she stayed on the edge of the field for so long; it was as if someone had taken her place to deliver food to her parents-in-law and done some farm work for her.
Her in-laws both thought she had just come up to collect the food boxes, but when she subconsciously touched her cheek, the dried tear stains and the grass-woven bracelet that had inexplicably appeared on her wrist told her that what had just happened was not her imagination.
She stroked the delicate green leaves on her bracelet, then gazed intently at the lingering dewdrops that adorned the bracelet, beautiful and mysterious.
****
Zhu Qing'ai did not directly tell Lü Zhi that her disguise was 'Qin', thinking that she would just get along like this for now and talk about it when necessary.
So after Lü Zhi met Him once, she often saw His figure, sometimes in the mountains and fields, when He would suddenly appear and startle her when she went up the mountain to collect firewood, or in the fields, He would occasionally come out from behind a tree on the ridge and ask her how she had been doing lately.
Zhu Qing'ai was extremely pleased with Lü Zhi's rapidly increasing favorability towards her, until the monitor she had placed next to Ying Zheng and Liu Bang issued a warning due to their proximity, which reminded her of her important task.
Oh, I have another performance to rush to, but she's just a phantom, so it won't take much time for her to come and go. I'll make it in time!
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The author notes: The Warring States period text *Erya* states, "A woman calls her husband's father '舅' (jiù) and his mother '姑' (gū)." (However, I feel I'll still write "公婆" (gōngpó), as "舅姑" (jiùgū) sounds too awkward!) While the status of women in the pre-Qin and Han dynasties was indeed better than later periods, it wasn't by much. At least in Lü's father's eyes, his daughter, whom he had doted on for many years, was merely a tool to win over a promising talent (Liu Bang). What woman who truly loves her daughter would marry her off to a middle-aged man fifteen or sixteen years her senior, an idle man with an illegitimate child?
But it doesn't matter, Lü Zhi has our heroine to deceive (crossed out) and pamper her like a daughter.
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If there is someone on the mountain slope, draped in ivy and adorned with maidenhair fern, with a gaze both alluring and smiling, you admire my graceful figure. *1 From Qu Yuan, "Nine Songs"
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The premise of this story is that both fish that were caught believe they are the heroine's only one, but in the end they find out...hehehe...fast forward to the love triangle (crossed out) (family/friendship theme, no romance whatsoever)
Zhu Qing'ai: I'm raising fish now, I'm raising them now.
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Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 20:14:04 and 22:34:53 on May 29, 2024!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Xiyue and Qing (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
When Zhu Qing'ai found the First Emperor's entourage, they hadn't even entered the city yet. It was early morning, and even if they were to proceed, it was expected to take more than an hour.
Ying Zheng and his entourage had breakfast outside the city. Because they were having breakfast, the carriage was parked to the side, with only someone guarding it. This made it convenient for Zhu Qing'ai to set up an illusion on the carriage that the First Emperor was going to ride in.
If Ying Zheng were to ride in the carriage later, she would voluntarily move to the side and not take the middle seat, so that she could sit in the empty seat.
Of course, in Ying Zheng's own perception, he was still sitting in the very center. People around him might have noticed, but they wouldn't ask. Liu Bang, the only audience member of this performance, would see that the First Emperor's carriage not only had the emperor sitting on it, but also another 'person'.
While waiting for the convoy to rest, Zhu Qing'ai also spent some time creating some vague memories for Liu Bang, just waiting to stuff them into his mind after they met.
Pretending to have her memories restored is much easier than building a time machine to find the young Liu Bang, and it's also the most cost-effective method.
Time machines are obviously expensive. She's already at level three and hasn't seen anything too outrageous in the shop. Looking at the experience bar that's grown so much longer, she gets a headache.
This isn't an experience bar; it's clearly the main system setting KPIs for each system. And then there's the CPU and KFC, those old systems—it's a truly awful system.
****
Zhu Qing'ai still used the alias 'Qin' from the previous world, the one that had just been unified. She didn't have many decorations on her body. She looked at her appearance and felt there was nothing wrong with it, so she got into Ying Zheng's carriage before him.
She first turned on another monitoring and locator to estimate Liu Bang's location when he arrived, and then chose to sit on the right side of the carriage.
After calculating her expenses, she realized that she had used almost all the system's built-in functions and hadn't spent a single point in the system store. Since she hadn't spent any points, she hadn't incurred any expenses, so she essentially made a profit.
Zhu Qing'ai composed herself and got into character. She'd been playing the "Mountain Spirit" so much lately that she'd almost forgotten her true persona was that of a dignified woman.
But that's okay, every disguise deserves a cute contrast.
She sat in the carriage and waited for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before Ying Zheng arrived with his entourage. He easily climbed into the carriage, which was an advantage due to his height.
Zhao Gao was driving the chariot for the First Emperor. He was a little puzzled when he saw Ying Zheng sitting on the left side. His Majesty usually sat in the center, so why was he sitting so far to the side this time?
However, he cautiously observed out of the corner of his eye that the carriage was shaded by the canopy, and the shadow cast on Ying Zheng's face made him look uncertain. Seeing that His Majesty had nothing to say, Zhao Gao just pondered the question in his heart without saying anything.
After informing the convoys ahead and behind, Zhao Gao flicked the reins and drove the chariot forward for the First Emperor.
The entire motorcade stretched for miles, magnificent and grand, and included not only the motorcade itself, but also a considerable number of honor guards.
The emperor's carriage was accompanied by imposing generals on horseback for protection, and the entourage members all wore solemn expressions, demonstrating the emperor's majesty.
Zhu Qing'ai casually set up a recording device to document the scene, which was probably the only place in history where Ying Zheng and Liu Bang met.
Because of the celestial canopy in the last world, Ying Zheng made fewer tours than in history, and he never met Liu Bang, which she found quite regrettable. Now she can conveniently make up for it by recording this famous scene.
As the convoy moved forward, the sun in the sky also slowly moved. When they arrived in Xianyang City, soldiers were already guarding both sides of the street, keeping the onlookers at a certain distance.
At this time, there was no longer a rule that one had to kneel before the emperor. The people who lined both sides of the road to welcome (watch) the procession were actually craning their necks to see the convoy traveling in the middle of the road, even though the soldiers were blocking their way.
Of course, if you ask just anyone, they'll definitely tell you that this is to admire the emperor's heroic figure, how can it be described as just watching a spectacle?
Because of the emperor's return, there were quite a few people standing on both sides. Zhu Qing'ai had already seen Wang Jian, who was guarding her side, scanning the crowd with a vigilant look, probably to guard against the appearance of assassins.
She quickly located Liu Bang's position; he was so obvious that the surveillance camera she had placed earlier had transformed into a giant golden arrow, floating above Liu Bang's head and pointing at him.
The scene was somewhat comical, but thankfully she was the only one who could see such a prominent sign.
When Liu Bang was to her side and slightly in front, she pretended not to see him. It wasn't until the carriage passed in front of Liu Bang that she seemed to notice something, and slowly turned her head to cast a casual glance at him from above.
She counted the seconds, only letting her gaze linger for two seconds before sitting upright in the carriage again, her eyes fixed calmly ahead, as if she hadn't encountered anything noteworthy.
****
Liu Bang came to Xianyang on business and happened to hear the news that the First Emperor was about to return from his tour. So he lingered for a day and waited in the city for the First Emperor's entourage to return.
He got up very early and found a good spot on the main road in the city. Although he was stopped by the soldiers maintaining order and not allowed to go forward, he could still clearly see the emperor's magnificent convoy from this spot, satisfying his little curiosity.
When the convoy entered the city, he stared wide-eyed at it from afar. He had never seen such a magnificent and grand convoy before in his life. Both the convoy in front and the emperor's entourage brought him, a mere head of the Sishui Pavilion, a great shock.
So much so that he murmured, "A true man should be like this..."
After he finished speaking, he glanced around at the people and only stopped when he saw that no one was paying attention to him.
As his gaze shifted, he suddenly noticed an extra person on the emperor's carriage that was about to pass by. It was a 'woman' dressed in magnificent clothes, dignified and beautiful, with a noble air.
But he seemed to have just seen the First Emperor alone in the carriage...
Liu Bang frowned as he recalled that his memory was correct; the First Emperor was sitting on the left... the left...?
This is the emperor's carriage. If there is no one sitting next to him, why doesn't the emperor sit in the center?
Liu Bang decisively chose the woman he saw over the one he thought was seeing things, since he had never heard of any other woman riding in the same carriage as the First Emperor.
He quickly recalled the rumors that had preceded the First Emperor's entourage. The rumors said that the First Emperor encountered rain while performing the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, but there were also rumors that the rain stopped when the emperor was seen, and that a divine deer personally pulled the First Emperor's chariot.
Could this extra "person" be the "goddess" that the First Emperor met at Mount Tai?
Before Liu Bang could sort out his chaotic thoughts, the emperor's carriage was about to pass in front of him.
At this moment, the people on the bus seemed to notice something, turned their heads to look at the crowd, and gave him a casual glance.
Even from a distance that wasn't too close or too far, Liu Bang could clearly see her cold, inorganic eyes, as if he could picture them in his mind even without seeing them, as if he had encountered them before...
When their eyes met, Liu Bang instinctively held his breath. He wanted to lower his head so as not to offend the deity in her position, but he couldn't control his gaze.
He saw the faint curve of her lips, her expression unchanged. She glanced at him twice and then looked straight ahead again.
It's like a mountain not caring about an ant on the roadside. If Liu Bang were to say this, he's more like an emperor than an emperor. At least an emperor has to maintain a persona of respecting and valuing talent from time to time, unlike a god.
He couldn't quite describe the feeling, and when he came to his senses, he was startled to find his back soaked with cold sweat.
Liu Bang and his entourage had mostly passed by before dispersing with the crowd and heading towards the city gate. He had finished his business and naturally wanted to return to Sishui Pavilion. Although he was not a very high-ranking official, Sishui Pavilion could not function without him.
****
That night
Liu Bang stopped for the night in the cities along the way. He hadn't felt anything during the day while traveling, but now that he was at leisure and lying in bed, the scenes he had seen during the day immediately began to play on repeat in his mind.
Only after careful recollection can one discover more inconsistencies...
The First Emperor's hair was tied up inside his crown, which was one thing, but the woman's seemingly inhuman long hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall, remaining motionless even when the breeze blew past, as if the wind avoided her from both sides.
But Liu Bang also saw very clearly that the ribbons on the First Emperor's crown were dancing merrily in the wind, so there was no reason why her long hair would remain completely still.
He had never seen such dark eyes before, and they looked at him with such cold indifference, yet he subconsciously felt a faint sense of affection for her.
It's not about humans, but something inexplicable, like the connection between believers and God.
But he reacted very quickly and could easily suppress these feelings, so he wouldn't actually have a fanatical belief in her like a cultist.
Liu Bang was thinking about the events of the day when he unknowingly closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Zhu Qing'ai's figure appeared. When she was at level two, entering the dream was extremely troublesome. But she is no longer the same person she used to be. She is now an upgraded level three leader!
"Entering Dreams" appears as a function in her function module. Of course, this function is not as general as "entering dreams". It has a name like "Dream Classroom". As the name suggests, it is used to give lessons to the host.
Classroom scenes can be customized, there are multiple options for teacher AI, and millions of tutorials are available to ensure that all the host's needs are met.
It's impossible to directly implant knowledge into the host's brain, but the host can choose to learn slowly. Zhu Qing'ai looked at the tutorials here and found them to be relatively inexpensive.
It's not expensive; even a novice host can afford it. Clearly, the main system, which the host has never met, encourages the host to learn and master skills on their own, rather than having them directly instilled by the system.
Now she's using this dream classroom for Liu Bang, choosing a place he frequented when he was young, to ensure that seeing it will evoke his childhood memories.
She set the appearance of the teacher AI to that of a young Liu Bang, while she herself appeared in the dream classroom under the alias 'Qin'.
****
When Liu Bang opened his eyes, he felt incredibly heavy. It took him a long time to take even one step forward, and his field of vision was much smaller when he looked around.
Aside from the middle part being clear, the image became increasingly blurry towards the edges, and the harder he tried to see clearly, the blurrier the edges became.
Liu Bang's muddled mind realized that he seemed to be dreaming...
Zhu Qing'ai, who could control everything in the dream classroom, silently stopped adding weight to Liu Bang. This feeling was about right; it was already very close to the feeling of being in a dream.
She watched Liu Bang slowly and laboriously explore his surroundings without feeling guilty, and instead released the teacher AI at the right time.
The courses can be selected randomly, but the opening remarks of the teacher AI can be customized by the system, so there's no need to hide the teacher AI in a corner just to avoid making it stand out.
Just change the AI's appearance to that of a young Liu Bang. Using the built-in AI of this feature saves her the energy of creating a new avatar.
Adhering to the principle of saving every penny and never wasting anything, Zhu Qing'ai has been frugal in supporting this dream classroom.
The classroom was, of course, a limited space. If Liu Bang had just kept walking forward, he might have been able to reach the classroom wall, but he couldn't get there because he was already attracted by the suddenly appearing figure.
The boyish figure reminded him of himself, both in appearance and expression.
With this connection, the surrounding environment became even more familiar.
Hey, isn't this near his farmland? Isn't this the stream that runs along the edge of the fields? This is where he used to sneak off to laze around when he was young!
He could still vaguely remember his father chasing after him with a stick, calling him to do chores. What did he say? It seemed like he had important things to do and that he shouldn't be asked to do any farm work.
Liu Bang: ...
Of course, he didn't feel guilty about it; he was just puzzled as to why he suddenly dreamed of his childhood.
He reached out to poke his younger self's cheek, but the younger version of himself didn't react; his hand passed right through the illusory image of the person in front of him.
It was indeed a dream, and the people in it weren't real.
The young Liu Bang lay on the haystack with a blade of grass in his mouth, while the adult Liu Bang lay down next to the young man in the same position.
Zhu Qing'ai, who was already ready to make her entrance, twitched her lips. You two are really something else.
She made the two of them look up and a phantom image of the First Emperor's entourage appeared in the sky. Since they were in a dream, anything that appeared was reasonable.
After finishing, she monitored Liu Bang's emotional fluctuations and activated the built-in function of the Dream Classroom at the precise moment.
Some courses cannot be learned simply by listening to lectures; practice is also very important. Therefore, the AI built into the Dream Classroom has the function of allowing students to practice from the teacher's perspective.
At this moment, although the students are using the teacher's perspective, they cannot control the teacher's actions and can only watch, as if someone is controlling their body and teaching them 'hand in hand'.
****
Liu Bang watched his younger self slacking off and lay down on the haystack, pondering what it felt like to sleep in a dream.
However, the scene in the sky did not give him this opportunity. He saw the First Emperor's procession again, but the procession floated in mid-air and slowly drifted into the distance. It was obviously fake.
He was lying down, and the illusory convoy was also lying down as it moved. From his angle, it looked almost the same as when he was standing during the day, which made him chuckle.
Liu Bang thought that he had probably thought too much during the day, which was why the First Emperor's convoy appeared in his dream again. But he didn't understand why he was suddenly transported back to the fields of his youth in his dream, since he hadn't been in the mood to reminisce about his childhood during the day.
He continued to watch the convoy passing overhead, and soon the First Emperor's carriage was approaching him again.
The illusory image of the convoy floating in the air was even farther away than in daylight, but Liu Bang's heart pounded as he felt that the person was still very close to him.
He saw her turn her head to look at him again, a familiar smile curving her lips, and the next second she spoke: "It's you..."
Liu Bang suddenly sat up, the phantom in the sky disappeared, and the person also vanished. Just as he was subconsciously searching, he discovered that the 'himself' beside him was also gone.
The young Liu Bang had also vanished, just as he was gazing blankly at the sky.
Liu Bang jumped down from the haystack, ran two steps forward, then suddenly stopped. Why did the haystack seem to have gotten taller?
He slowly raised his hands, and in an instant, his hands shrank by a size!
His surroundings had changed; he was no longer in the fields, but beside a stream.
He recognized this place; the nearby farmers would fetch water from here to irrigate their fields. When he couldn't avoid his father's urging, he would also come here to fetch two buckets of water to get by.
Since he had no tools for carrying water, there was only one possible reason he came here... He was hiding from his father's 'pursuit'.
Liu Bang subconsciously scanned his surroundings but couldn't find his father. After a moment, he remembered that he was dreaming, so what was there to be afraid of?
Alas, his young age and physical condition have affected him too much, giving him this misconception.
Liu Bang didn't mind that he was suddenly in a different place; that's how it was in his dream. He just sat down wherever he happened to be, and now he was even splashing water in the stream.
Strangely enough, when I tried to touch myself, I didn't feel anything. On the contrary, the water here felt cool to the touch, just like real water.
As he fiddled with the water, he suddenly noticed a black shadow on his reflection. He remembered that he wasn't this tall just now. Had he changed physical stages again?
Liu Bang stopped what he was doing, and the water calmed down, reflecting the image of the person behind him.
He was startled. When did the person behind him arrive? Or were the people in his dreams always so elusive?
Relying on the fact that he was in a dream, Liu Bang turned around and looked at the person standing behind him. He felt that the person's face was sometimes blurry and sometimes clear. After he calmed down, he was surprised to find that this was the person who was riding in the First Emperor's chariot.
However, when I saw her during the day, she was now wearing ordinary clothes, and the hairpin holding her hair up was just a simple hairpin. Their temperaments were similar yet different.
Liu Bang found it both unbelievable and quite reasonable; it would be easy for gods to enter the dreams of mortals.
He was about to respectfully bow to the person, and then ask if the person in his dream had any instructions.
But his body was not under his control, and the words that came out were not what he wanted to say. Instead, as if replaying yesterday's scene, the boy said, "Who are you? I've never seen you before?"
"That voice sounds so familiar," Liu Bang thought.
He used to hear that sound every day; it was the same sound he had when he was young.
After the young Liu Bang finished asking his question, there was a moment of eerie silence. The sound of the stream had also disappeared. The adult Liu Bang tried hard to raise his finger. Whether it was to control himself in the dream or to break free from the body of this young man, he did not want to speak to a strange deity in such a disrespectful manner.
He's not stupid; if he angers the gods, he'll be in big trouble.
Why aren't you saying anything?
Hearing the young Liu Bang ask another question, the adult Liu Bang became anxious and shouted: Stop talking! Stop talking! Do you know what's in front of you? This isn't a human being!
Unfortunately, his voice did not affect 'himself' as he had hoped, and the young Liu Bang continued to converse with Him with curiosity.
"What exactly is the purpose of your visit here?"
"It's so chaotic right now, and you're so beautiful, why are you going out alone?"
Liu Bang: ...So you've already started building relationships? That's just like me.
For the first time, Liu Bang realized that being bold wasn't always a good thing. But it didn't matter; he had already prepared his lines for his shameless antics. It was the young Liu Bang who was being disrespectful, not the adult Liu Bang. The gods wouldn't bother with a mere image from a dream.
"I've come to see the future emperor."
Liu Bang: ? ? !
Was it his understanding that was correct?
Startled, Liu Bang stumbled—or rather, the young man stumbled—he merely followed the other man's gaze.
Then he saw the person in front of him bend down and reach out to help him up, but the boy's hand passed right through the other person's and he fell to the ground.
Liu Bang felt no pain, but he found it even stranger. He was in a dream; couldn't a god help a phantom? He could easily change the surrounding environment, so controlling a mortal's dream was simple.
As he pondered, a startling thought popped into his head... unless this was his memory, in which he had indeed fallen to the ground.
He wanted to ask what it meant, but then the boy laughed and pretended not to hear him: "Hahaha."
Liu Bang could understand his past self. He was young then, but not stupid, so of course he couldn't accept such a statement. But now he was in a dream, and he was curious!
Liu Bang followed the boy's gaze, got up from the ground and stood up, but when his face came into view again, it had changed.
She had a striking and aggressive look, even her eyes were golden, unlike the person she had just been.
Liu Bang's mind went blank for a moment. What did that mean?
He recalled that the change in her appearance seemed to have occurred after she said, "I've come to see the future emperor."
His vision dimmed and then brightened again. Liu Bang thought that it must be the memory he had lost and then regained. How could someone in a dream need to blink?
Looking again, He had a gentle appearance and dignified demeanor. He had felt more close to Him just now, but after the change of appearance, the familiarity and intimacy he felt from his memories had faded.
So is He two gods, or just one god who has changed appearance?
Liu Bang couldn't understand it. He could only watch as His younger self talked and chatted, and when someone called him home from afar, He glanced at him indifferently and then disappeared.
Liu Bang finally emerged from his childlike body. He watched the boy run towards home and felt both curious and relieved. He could finally go wherever he wanted!
Unfortunately, before he could even control his steps and wander around, searching for clues in this place from his memories, he was kicked out of the dream classroom.
The sudden plunge into darkness was unsettling, and Liu Bang sat bolt upright in bed in less than two seconds.
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Author's Note: Liu Bang: Does even a god have to change his appearance when he grows up? (Touches his chin)
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