My Childhood Friend Is Delicate

Five years ago, the Dongling ruler, chosen by the Mandate of Heaven, died. Song Guanxuan stood in the snow and wind, eyes lowered, coughed twice, and ordered, "Give him a grand funeral."

Five years later, Song Guanxuan was reborn.

He never expected to return to the age of five. He had just been appointed Imperial Preceptor, and everything was starting over.

Gao Zhongjing? Sure, that would do.

He planned to get a place as Gao Zhongjing's study companion, and keep an eye on his enemy while trimming away his wings.

Watching Gao Zhongjing arrive in full finery, his eyes bright as stars, Song Guanxuan fell into thought. What had he said? He wanted me to go back?

--

Gao Zhongjing rose smoothly to the throne and became emperor, only to be brought down by Song Guanxuan himself.

Reborn in the days when they first met, Song Guanxuan was gentle and refined, slight and delicate.

He wanted revenge, but couldn't bring himself to do it.

Song Guanxuan was so frail that a little wind or a harsh word could leave him seriously ill. There was no need to rush.

In the blink of an eye, Song Guanxuan had moved right into his palace.

When the palace servants mistreated Gao Zhongjing because he was down on his luck, only Song Guanxuan walked the broad palace avenues with him and said, "Together, we can weather any storm."

He was beginning to grow reluctant to let him go. Those hands were icy, so they needed more charcoal. He wasn't eating, so they needed a new cook.

Gao Zhongjing: "You mean what happened in our past lives? That was the bond between him and me."

--

As Song Guanxuan's study companion, he returned every last thing Gao Zhongjing had done to him in their previous life.

One day, Song Guanxuan leaned by the window to admire the flowers. A cloak settled over his shoulders, and he brought up an old story: "Making His Majesty wear a cloak? What kind of treacherous rebel would do such a thing..."

Gao Zhongjing carefully slipped a hand warmer into his hands. "You punished him, so you can't poison me again."

--

A gentle, softhearted, love-struck gong x a scheming, innocent, sickly beauty shou

1v1, HE

The childhood arc is very short. The characters are mentally mature. No adorable babies! No adorable babies!

Neither the gong nor the shou is perfect. They grow over time.

The shou is sickly for a long time.

I drew the cover myself, so just have a look.

My next novel will be The Emperor Insists on Bringing Down Propriety and Music. Please add it to your favorites QAQ

Blurb:

The Retired Emperor was still alive when Shen Fuyan became the puppet emperor of Great Qi.

This was Shen Fuyan's fourth rebirth. He'd been fooled in every life, but never in quite the same way.

Someone taught him to be virtuous, worked him to exhaustion, and let him waste away so they could test a miracle drug.

Someone pitied him and took him away, only to push him into the chaos of war and trade him for a title and command of an army.

Someone helped him ascend to the throne, then sent him away as a hostage to suffer humiliation and help their beloved seize power.

For three lifetimes, Shen Fuyan upheld the virtues of gentleness, deference, respect, and frugality. While alive, he was always a shadow of someone's beloved; even in death, he was a useless king whom everyone despised, unable to earn so much as a single line in a memorial couplet.

In his fourth life, the virtuous and compliant Shen Fuyan was well and truly dead. It was time for the world to go mad just the way he wanted.

This bed is too cold. I hear the general runs hot. Invite him over.

The general's eyes blazed with fury as he stripped off his armor and warmed the bed.

This dancer is no match for the Grand Tutor's looks. Have the Grand Tutor drink this cup. Who said he could hold it with his hand?

The aloof Grand Tutor held the delicate cup in his mouth, wine spilling down the front of his robe.

He thought these people would start denouncing him again and calling him outrageous, but behind the curtain, the court historian's ears turned scarlet, while the ministers below gazed at him with tenderness.

The general would brave death for him, his passion burning. The powerful minister would wish him a long life, his influence reaching across the court. The noble and virtuous one would long for him to the point of madness.

Shen Fuyan leaned against the imperial throne. "Vulgar beyond words. Simply vulgar."

In his previous lives, Shen Fuyan had never known the heights of power or unwavering loyalty. But he remembered someone named He Chaolan.

On the muddy, rain-soaked road back from serving as a hostage, his bare feet had been subjected to humiliation. That man broke his hairpin and armor, then knelt on the ground and told him to step on his back to climb into the carriage.

The rain was cold, and the mud was cold, but the back beneath his feet was scorching hot.

Shen Fuyan smiled and sent for him.

Theme: Keep hope in your heart