Chapter 548: Reincarnation
Translator: Pika
“Big brother, big brother!” A bright and clear voice called into his ear. Zu An was still in a daze. He hadn’t yet reacted to the world suddenly changing around him. A cute little girl was in front of him, spreading her arms. “Big brother, carry me!”
Zu An was perplexed. What’s going on?
He couldn’t ignore the adorable little girl in front of him, though. Her hair was tied up in lovely pigtails, making her look just like a doll.
He instinctively spread his arms to welcome this cute little child.
“You’re the best, big brother!” The little girl got on her tiptoes and planted her lips against his cheek. Seeing the trail of saliva she’d left on his face, she dissolved into a fit of laughter.
Zu An was left speechless.
Before he could feel annoyed, a horrifying fact struck him. He wasn’t much older than this little girl, who seemed about ten years old. In fact, his arms and legs were as small as hers. He was a scrawny teenager himself!
Did I somehow become young again? Zu An was stunned. He remembered that he was Wu Ding just a moment ago, an old man with one foot already in the grave. How did he suddenly become a child?
Also, where is this place?
He looked around him. The surroundings looked both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.
While the surroundings seemed similar to his old palace, the houses and rooms seemed somehow different.
He had sat on the throne for more than fifty years, so there was no way he wouldn’t recognize his own palace. These rooms were clearly different from those of his time.
“Big brother, you meanie! You’re ignoring me!” The little girl in his arms puffed up her cheeks and pouted.
“Big brother?” Zu An’s mind finally returned to the present. Looking at the cute little girl in his arms, he froze for a moment, then asked, “Manman?”
He had experienced Pei Mianman dying in his previous life. Since this scene was clearly another part of the trial, he wondered if Pei Mianman had somehow followed him here.
“What Manman? You’re a meanie! Big brother doesn’t even remember my name! I’m San Cai!” The little girl pinched his cheeks. Even though she was angry, she was still so young that it didn’t hurt at all. In fact, it actually felt rather good.
“San Cai…?” Zu An was momentarily stunned, but all of a sudden, memories began to pour in. His name was Xian, the son of the Shang King Wen Ding. As for this Wen Ding, after searching his memories, he concluded that Wu Ding was Wen Ding’s great great grandfather.
He began to curse. He’d actually become the son of his grandson’s grandson! What kind of nonsense is this?
His memories informed him that he had two younger sisters. The younger one was the cute little girl in his arms, San Cai. He had another sister, who was slightly older, named Mu.
Only now did he realize that there was another young lady standing at the railing. Even though she was younger than he was currently, he could tell that she was a beauty in the making. She had pretty curved brows and snow white skin, and waves of black hair flowed behind her like a waterfall.
Her eyes were the most attractive part of her. They were enchanting, gleaming like the most precious of gemstones. From time to time, they seemed to ooze a slight, seductive charm.
Bloody hell, she’s only ten years old, and she’s already such a devilish beauty. What will she be like when she grows up?
That young lady looked at him, and her expression grew slightly strange. However, she still bowed and spread her cherry-red lips to greet him. “Big brother…”
Zu An felt his heart tremble. The girl’s voice was so soft and beautiful, and even he, a king who had seen all manner of beauties, couldn’t help but be enamored by her. She truly was an enchantress!
“Hello, sister.” He replied. He pushed aside his distracting thoughts about her. He was trying to figure out just what the heck was going on. What was this section of the trial about? And where did Manman go? There was no way that she had really died in the previous part of the trial, right?
His eyes grew red when this possibility occurred to him, and his heart felt so pained, it seemed about to burst. He could rely on alcohol and women to numb himself before, but so many memories returned when he’d found Pei Mianman’s pendant. The pain, which had been suppressed over several decades, surged so powerfully that he could no longer keep it under control.
“Big brother, why are you crying?” San Cai noticed that something was wrong, and she quickly helped him wipe away his tears. Unfortunately, there was only so much that her little hands could do. She quickly called out to the other girl. “Big sister, what’s wrong with big brother? Did I make him mad at me?”
The other young girl—Mu—walked over to him, bringing with her a subtle, elegant fragrance. “Big brother, are you okay?” she asked gently.
Zu An froze. In that instant, it felt as though it was Pei Mianman asking him that question. Unfortunately, he had buried her with his own two hands in the previous world, so there was no way she could be the young lady in front of him.
“Big brother, let’s play a game together,” San Cai said with a smile, trying to cheer him up in her own way.
The young girl named Mu tugged on his hand as well.
Zu An’s heart had been shattered by what he’d experienced in his most recent life—how could he possibly be in the mood to play games with two little girls right now? However, he couldn’t get away from their constant coaxing and pestering, and eventually agreed to play with them.
As he watched these two charming girls and heard their innocent laughter, the shadows looming over his mind gradually began to dissipate, and he managed a faint smile.
Right now, at least, he could distract himself from the pain in his heart.
San Cai was still a little girl, after all. After playing for a while, she fell asleep in Zu An’s arms. Her innocent and pure expression was extremely adorable.
When he saw drool dripping from the corner of her mouth, Zu An couldn’t help but curve the corners of his own lips upwards in a smile.
Beside him, someone snorted. “You really are nothing but a good-for-nothing pervert. You won’t even let such a little girl pass you by.”
Stunned, Zu An looked at the girl beside him. These blunt words did not sound like they belonged on the lips of such a young girl.
When she saw his expression, the girl named Mu sighed deeply. “Ah Zu, aren’t you usually quite sharp? Why do you look so stupid now?”
Zu An felt his heart explode with joy when he heard her address him in that way. “Manman!”
He subconsciously stood up to hug her, forgetting all about the little sister fast asleep in his arms.
With a thud, San Cai fell to the ground. She immediately cried out in pain, and tears began to stream down her face as she wailed miserably.
Both Mu and Zu An were left speechless.
Mu glared at Zu An, then quickly helped San Cai back to her feet, patting her gently to comfort her.
San Cai was a little girl, and had been fast asleep just a moment ago. After pouting and crying for a bit, she fell back to sleep.
Zu An sighed. “She’s a pig. How can she go back to sleep after that?”
Mu snorted. “Weren’t you the same when you were little? It’s your fault for being so careless and dumping her on the ground. If she hurt herself from that fall, things would have been bad. I can’t believe that you fathered so many children in your past life, yet you still don’t know how to hold a child!”
“What do you mean, ‘I fathered many children’?” Zu An smiled in embarrassment. “I was just too happy to see you again.”
“Really?” Mu sneered. “I’ve been looking over the Shang monarch’s records. After Fu Hao’s death, Wu Ding took in many wives and gave birth to many children.”
Zu An was taken aback by this sudden accusation, and hurriedly tried to defend himself. “That was the Wu Ding from history, not me! After you died, I was completely heartbroken, and I had to rely on drinking to numb my pain. I was nothing more than a walking corpse. How could I remember anything else?”
“Hmph, it probably wasn't just alcohol. You probably indulged in other pleasures to drown out your sorrows too,” Mu said accusingly, but her expression softened. “I thought that you’d already forgotten about me. Why else didn’t you recognize me, even after such a long time?”
Zu An could hardly feel more wronged. “You still kept your original appearance during the previous trial! But you look so different now, and you already died once. I wasn’t able to put it all together so quickly.”
Pei Mianman pouted. “What do you mean I look different? This is what I looked like when I was younger! Those who truly know me would have easily recognized me, but my lover somehow couldn’t. I can’t believe it.”
“This is what you looked like when you were younger?” Zu An exclaimed, pleasantly surprised.