[A note: After reviewing the setting, I found a huge logical bug. The author can't make it internally consistent, so a complete rewrite from the beginning may have to be delayed until later. The author takes a long time to revise, so I don't recommend waiting.]
After following his lord to overthrow Dayong and establish a new dynasty, Jing Xuan thought that a life of noble titles, high office, and everlasting glory for his family lay ahead.
But no. The new emperor issued an imperial decree sentencing his entire family to death.
Fortunately, Heaven took pity on him, and he was reborn.
With this opportunity, he should have worked hard to change his fate, chosen the best and most generous lord to back, and written a heartwarming tale of a ruler and his loyal minister in perfect harmony.
But no, again.
His lord killed him once more for becoming too powerful and threatening the throne.
And then he was reborn, and reborn again... and again and again.
He was reborn only to die horribly, then died horribly only to be reborn. He launched countless rebellions, putting the realm in the hands of one lord after another and helping them don the imperial robes, yet he never once managed to meet a good end himself. Other people say that losing your head is just a scar as big as a bowl. For him, losing his head is no big deal: don't lose heart, let's start over one more time!
So here's the question: if being reborn once is Heaven's favor, what do you call being reborn over and over like this?
Jing Xuan threw his head back and roared: ...Heaven is messing with me!
*
After countless failed attempts to escape the cycle of being reborn and dying horribly, Jing Xuan's mood shifted from eager anticipation, delight, and burning enthusiasm to hopelessness, agitation, and numbness.
On his seventh death at the hands of Prince Yong, he finally made up his mind:
This time, he would get rid of other people before they could get rid of him!
He had been a stepping stone for royal heirs and great clans so many times. Surely it was his turn to be emperor?
Before the next cycle began, he would make every one of those petty lords experience his various ways of dying!!!
*
After being reborn several times, Gongsun Yan finally discovered the reason he had inexplicably become trapped in the cycle.
It was that thug from Qingyang City, Jing Xuan, the man who had picked a huge fight with him the very first time they met.
Whenever Jing Xuan died, Gongsun Yan would return to the day in the twelfth year of Changlong when he played chess with Prince Liang, Xiao Jue, in Chenzhou.
As the second son of the main branch of the Gongsun clan of Lidong, one of the most prominent aristocratic families of the age, Gongsun Yan had been composing fine prose by the age of seven and presenting brilliant arguments at court by eleven. A man of extraordinary talent and an enviable family background, he had grown up hearing that the Second Young Master was as handsome as Pan An and Song Yu, and as gifted as Xie Lingyun of the Jian'an era. Naturally, he looked down on a lowlife like Jing Xuan.
But no matter how clever his schemes, he could never save Jing Xuan from his inevitable death. He, too, was forced to travel back in time alongside Jing Xuan again and again.
In the end, Gongsun Yan had no choice but to swallow his pride, lower himself, and go to Jing Xuan's side to keep him under close watch and stop him from getting himself killed.
At first, he thought: Why should I waste so much effort on a thug like this? Once I figure out how to break the cycle, I'll send him straight back to Qingyang and find someone to give him a proper beating.
But later, after the two of them had shared hardships and plotted to win the realm, Jing Xuan came running to him with a map of the new dynasty's borders in hand. All of Gongsun Yan's anger and arrogance vanished without a trace.
Only two words remained in his heart:
“I'm done for.”
*A versatile lordly top, except at literature, x a well-read young master from a prestigious family as the bottom
*Top-focused, 1v1, both leads are strong. Any romantic interest other characters show in the two male leads is platonic.
*Not recommended for readers devoted to either the top or the bottom. The romance develops slowly, but that's just because I have my own pacing (not really), and I want it to match the plot's pace.
*Blurb updated January 26, 2026
Disclaimer:
The setting draws a little on the Eastern Han and Three Kingdoms, a little on the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and a tiny bit on the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. However, the historical research is extremely, extremely, extremely loose: 0.1% research, and the remaining 99.9% is made up. Please don't take it as real history. The author doesn't have an IQ over 200, and all military strategies and schemes in this story follow Schrodinger's logic. My skills are limited, so personal attacks are not welcome.
Kind words build good ties; cruel words hurt hearts.
Theme: Step up and take responsibility.
Should I test it next or should I tell it directly?
I like 🥺, it's the smell I like
It's really God's choice to cook food.
Oh oh oh, I like this kind of confrontational dog and cat smell [star eye][star eye][star eye]
It's so well written, why hasn't anyone read it? Call Dada 💪 💪 💪 💪 💪 💪 💪 💪 💪 💪
I got this from Little Sweet Potato. The author is great. I was a little confused when I read the first paragraph of your copy. I need to think about it before I can straighten it out. It's the part about rebelling and establishing a new dynasty and then being confiscated by the emperor of the new dynasty. It's a bit awkward. The copywriting must be smooth and smooth. Your meme is good. Don't make mistakes in the copywriting. It's heartbreaking!