I'm.... so many things.... first of all.. ... more>>

Spoiler

u fell in love with a BOY U r*peD. u dont even know him... he died for u and all u can do is sit there and draw pe*ophilic pictures and romanticising him.. you say u love him (for 30 years! after the MC's death! wow! but u didnt even know he existed :)...)

He probably only loved the idea of him unconditionally loving him and dying for him... POS brings the gullible and naive MC back into the palace to f*ck his life up... entitled ass prick...

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I'm thinking I guess I really cant deal with emperors plot stuff if they have like.... Like okay, the ML has children with his other concubines.... His responsibility as a king *gag* "oh no, we must have other people in the harem cus thats... politics!" while the supposed lover of the emperor just gotta sit there grit their teeth and endure this f*cked up plot honestly... poor little MC please run away you'd find a better life in a simple home somewhere...

my most minimum condition to a good romance is... at least let the ML be decent... the formula is mentally ill and crazy in love! NOT just the mental illness......... <<less

i like how the synopsis bravely proclaims that there's "no ab*se" in this story while the 'r*pe' and 'r*pe victim becomes lover' tags are right there for everyone to see.

one star for bold face of whoever wrote the description.

you know how sometimes there are little things about the MCs that you happen to dislike, but tolerate anyway, because overall they're good/well written/nuanced characters?

... more>> not the case, for this story! If I ever met the MC of this novel irl, I would probably commit crimes. Violent ones.

there are very few cases (because there are very few stories, where the themes are this disturbing) where, I feel the need to 'protect' the ML.

usually, authors try to balance powers, dynamics, and give solid foundation to their main CP, right? But here the main motivation of the MC is pure and plain obsession for the man he once r*ped.

high key, the ML would be so much better off being single than being with this creepy sort of MC. <<less

The emperor is super gross and his reasons for loving the LJB is just utter bull* he doesnt know sh*t about him basically filled in his idealized person on the ljb after his death then called it love.

Brought him back to the palace just to make him go through sh*t again because he "loves" him.

Poor ljb probably had stockholm syndrome the first time and had to be trapped again

So, the Emperor actually does not love the MC at all. Just the idea of him. I bet if the

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Spoiler

Empress back then hadn't revealed the traitors in the harem which was literally ALL of them EXCEPT MC

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the Emperor wouldn't fixate on our gullible MC. There's also the fact that mc's family poses no threat to the emperor so less trouble for him, really. He does stay true to his words tho. He dotes on the MC. So there's that, I guess.

I actually kinda like the MC but let's face it, his type wouldn't survive in a true ancient chinese harem political arena or whatsoever. He also feels like one of those white lotus in rebirth stories that you can't help but hate lol he's too gullible and submissive but he does try his best, really.

Basically, after reading this novel, it just felt like I was reading about the Emperor raising his favorite pet or something. Would've been more interesting if it was the MC who was given a second chance. But eh, with his character, he'd still be a white lotus through and through. He'd have to have a change of character for it to be at least interesting. <<less

I'm just going to say, I personally think the low rating was because the Shota tag. I mean, sure ML is young, and he already introduced to Sexuality in his 14 years old age. But MC still waiting for ML's certain age to be on Full Base with ML. The Certain Age is the Appropriate age in Ancient Time where they can bear to get pregnant. If you can't handle a 'Teenager' in CONSENSUAL s*xual Relationship in ANCIENT TIME, WHY THE F DO YOU READ THIS NOVEL OR ANY HISTORICAL... more>> NOVEL IN THE FIRST PLACE??!!!

Anyway, other than that, the story so far is Pretty Nice. MC and ML have a Good Character. ML and MC also has Great Parents and Good siblings. MC treat ML very well. The first chapter, the start of MC's regret and yearning... Emotional. And this novel is the Journey of how MC going to change things for the Better, and Especially to Care and Loving ML so much and no one can ignore that.

Pray so hard the rest of the story is as Good and as Satisfying and as Loving as the Author promise us!!! 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 <<less

sweet... sweet... sweet

I like the way the prince prepare for Lin Jiabao to become queen. He didnt deliberatly opposed his father & mother, but he shows with his cleverness how he didnt need help from harem to stabilize his throne. He also knows how to protect Jiabao from harm eventhough Jiabao is someone who is brave & firm in urgency times. Jiabao is also such a cutie, he is somewhat naive & (too) kind but he knows how to protect his loved one. Jiabao also not a virg*n mary, he... more>> is not someone who always forgive everyone who do harm to him.

All in all, this is such a sweet royal palace story. <<less

Would give this zero stars if I could. The ML is a terrible person and completely unlikeable. I was willing to give him a chance, maybe the author intends to have him grow as a person and learn his lesson, but...

Like, IDK I am probably being dumb to fail to understand how other readers were able to draw a lot of theories about the Gong-MC's affection to the shou with that one whole paragraph...

So am I going to question MC's feelings based on that measly word count that totals to at least 1% of the whole story? Uh. Tbh I don't want to bother myself making criticism on such a small part of the story when the entire 99% is spent on MC coddling and protecting ML from the... more>> green tea b*tches of past and present. As I see it, (pre-rebirth) MC is a good emperor but as he is naturally unfeeling, he thoroughly neglected his backyard (harem) thus snakes run rampant behind his back. The wake up call came thru death and he suffered alone for a few decades. His first love came too late. Again, this backstory is told in just one chapter meaning it was not the main point. I like how the entire story is spent with MC doing the do and never allowed any slip ups to happen again and paving the way to make the shou his only one. Gong really did make full use of his second chance.

Perhaps before rebirth MC got moved from the shou's sincerity that started his affection but Rebirth gave them chance to fall deeply in love for real with each other.

Overall the story is very sweet and all kinds of dog blood were prevented before it happens which I appreciate. The chapters might seem few but one chapter is really long. I enjoyed reading MC's preemptive strikes and verbal taichis whenever he goes against the tradition. <<less

Alright! This is SWEET ? (omit 1 star cause I don't really like the Gong)

Truly you would not know what treasure (ayyyyy.... Look at what I did) is until you lose it.

This story is filled with Gong redemption journey towards Shou (read: pampering shou until you have cavities) the problems are solved rather quickly and no heavy dog blood angst.

Rec for a light reading when you just get tired of dog blood stories

This story feels like g*ooming. An emperor was betrayed by everyone in his harem except one ger who sacrificed his life. The emperor goes back to when he was still a crown prince and vows to protect the ger who saved him.

However, by this point, the emperor has lived a full life once already. He r*ped the ger, but this is a story set in ancient china and he is the emperor, so I guess that's how things were. The ger gave birth for him, but the child became a... more>> casualty in the harem politics. Then the ger was basically isolated. The emperor didn't know this ger at all until after the ger had died. Then he became obsessed with the only person who didn't betray him, but you can't fully understand someone after they've died. At best, he is constructing a fantasy in his mind around this poor ger.

Then, the emperor becomes a crown prince and strategically puts this ger into a position where he can marry him. The ger starts at 13, and the crown prince keeps an eye on him through shadow guards until he can take him as a concubine at 14. He sneaks into the ger's room at night to kiss him, and makes sure to set up frequent run-ins. Then when he finally takes the ger as a concubine, he doesn't have an*l penetrative s*x, but he does do a lot of touching, kissing, and some blow jobs. It is basically s*xual g*ooming to get the ger used to touches and intimacy.

This is all while the ger only knows him as a crown prince with near ultimate authority. Never does the prince/emperor really try to understand his ger's thoughts and feelings. He conducts background research, and just assumes from there. He never asks the ger directly what he wants. While he does dote on the ger, it almost feels like he is keeping a pet, not a living human being with thoughts of his own. This little ger basically exists to please the emperor.

The power imbalance is far to strong both with the age and with the face that one is a royal, and one is barely a servent. The author does nothing to rectify this imbalance or at least try to make them equals in any way. Because of this, this relationship is in no way consensual.

Again, this is set in ancient china, so the dynamics are different, but I can't read this as fluffy, which the author clearly intends for it to be, without taking into consideration all of this periphery. Even if you ignore the rebirth, this is still a royal taking advantage of an unbelievably innocent and naive ger.

All of this is not to say that I liked the character of the ger much. He is essentially a door mat. Had he been a real person living in ancient china, he culould not survive anywhere, much less the emperor's harem. <<less

I got carried away by the comments and I didn't want to read the book, the truth is very good, what they say that ML is cruel I think they haven't read novels with the silent Lover, Nirvana in fire (it's not bl) they are novels of times of emperors, but in those times women were hardly worth more than for exchange goods for the parents, I think this is one of the softest novels I read from ancient times, give it a chance...

5.0/5* RECOMMEND!!!

This story totally gave me diabetes!! FLUFF, FLUFF, FLUFF

Premise is like The wife is first and Sharing rain and dew, but with added sugar. Royalty and palace setting. The shou dies in his first life when he saved the Emperor.

ML (shou) is simple, innocent, pure hearted, normal level handsome and a Ger. Not OP nor overbearing. Not totally sure whether he counts as naive as well? He seems so oblivious to schemes etc, but his reaction is always top notch as he always asks himself (if a schemer asks... more>> for favors) 'does this hurt reputation of hubby or is it against rules?'. If so, he will directly refute.

ML lives a truly blessed 2nd life, without knowing that MC (gong) has taken all obstacles away. ML never needs to face slap, as MC has already done it for him without ML knowing. ML rise from a normal palace attendant to become the Crown Princess and later the Empress.

I loved that the shou came from a loving, caring family!! Totally fits the story and MLs character.

MC (gong emperor) is cruel and ruthless, but soft towards his siblings and parents. And is a super doting hubby.

SMUT!! Yes, there is actually explicit smut in this story, though descriptions are short and not super vivid, but do expect hand jobs, blow jobs.

WARNING:

• The shou is 14y when he marries the gong (20y old). They have s*x (hand, oral), but not all the way. That is saved till the shou was 16. I think it is fitting for this historical setting and didn't mind at all. It was kinda kinky in a good way.
• The gong already had other kids, also in his 2nd life, but straight after rebirth he only loves and touches the shou.
• The r*pe tag is only in the 1st life. The shou was a palace attendant. The Crown Prince (MC) r*ped him when he was drunk. ML shou became a little concubine that in the end died whilst blocking a blade for the then Emperor. In the 2nd life there was no r*pe.

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I came back to reread and rate back to 5⭐ bcoz this is really a good one for me and the rating is relatively low. Though the NSFW part is still pw protected and not working. I mean it should be fine but kinda awkward to read with some parts missing and ruined the mood tsk tsk tsk

My review for the story:

I can't wait so I mtl it.

I am actually quite sad with the rating becoz this is very well written. Just not sure if it's becoz we... more>> have different tastes in novels but if you like pampering, doting, doting family, heartwarming story then this is it mah frends! Hahaha

To point out the age, goodness this is the ancient times! ANCIENT mah frend! Lol! My mom was not even born on the ancient times but married at 15! Imagine that! Also even 14 year olds or (younger?) nowadays has been rolling on the bed with their bf/gf grrrrr lol

Next, yes Jiabao is definitely not suited for harem intrigue which was why he died in the first life right? Right? He is not clever and omnipotent. He is a very cute and innocent little ger. He had not even thought of entering the harem, he cried really hard.

Now, since ML was reborn of course he has the advantage. And he promised that he will do everything to protect his baby. He can do everything so why not? Right? Right? He arranged for his harem to be cleaned, arranged for Jiabao to enter the Royal Kitchen at first and protected him. So what else do you want? Lol

If I can do it too I will do the same. And I would want to be pampered too. If someone can clean all the intrigues and obstacles for me and live a happy and comfortable life then damn! As a reader just thinking about all the intrigues and scheming in a harem, grrrr that is very tiring.

Yes, Jiabao without protection can't survive in the harem alone. But he has the crown prince so I did not find any plot holes.

Fluff fluff fluff! If you like fluff and a heartwarming light read give it a try! <<less

The negative review came from brain dead ppl who read 1 chapter and then judge the whole book.

Give it a try. It's really full of fluff although yes feel like g*ooming but what do u expect ancient ppl get married that young when average life is like 40yo? We take for granted of our peaceful era n abundance of food n marriage law, legal age etc, n thinking life back then must b like this too. Standing on high moral ground n condemning the ancient ppl marrying young n call... more>> it g*ooming. Blinded by their righteousness n moral right didn't c at all the love n care ML shown. He's an emperor if u want no other woman n children don't read this genre idiot. He's reborn when he already have other concubine n children. What do u want him to do?strangle them all directly?

Give it a try ignore those negative review n read 20 chapter before u decide hate it or like it. Chapter pretty short so its an easy read for me. Thank you so much for translator excellent translation as always ❤️ Greatly appreciate ur hard work despite ur own commitment in real life ~ <<less

All about the children...

ML first gave birth to a boy then he gave birth to twin boys, and then a pair of boy and girl and at last a ger.

So the total number of children are six so why is everyone saying that there are only five children???????

MC (fantasy ancient Chinese emperor. Not modern educated gentleman) is in the category of s*um gong but given another chance, he became a pampering gong since he got obssesed with MC whom he lost without knowing how sincere he was to him untill it was too late in his first life.

I like how charmingly pure and kind his little ML (story setting is fantasy ANCIENT China where people are married earlier. 14 year old is OLD ENOUGH to have a partner) is and with this slice... more>> of life genre, the novel is a smooth sailing read. The antagonist (whose braincells aren't on par with us modern people) are easily and cleanly dealt with without wasting time and letting them create more havoc.

MC wants a second chance with ML and their children... and MC did spent it well. I think at first, he only felt guilty and greatful to the only person in the harem who liked him without calculations, but as they interact MC fell deep to ML and sincerely loved him and his children. It is a fluffy read all through out. <<less

Dare I say that the top reviews are just a bunch of underage readers who are "antis" and cannot tolerate the idea of even a smidge of toxicity in their bl novels. I bet they are normies too. You can criticize a novel but judging it from the first chapter and then conflating it as if the toxicity level of the novel is thru the roof is absolutely ridiculous. Additionally, making up lies about the story is super f*cked up because why are you misleading the possible future readers? The... more>> personal preference of dislike is seeping thru, it's actually corny. If I could down vote these reviews, I would. I also wouldn't trust the chapter they claimed to end reading with.

To the future readers, I implore you to actually give the story a chance. It's not heavy plot wise and the gong actually absolutely treasures the uke (contrary to what those s*upid reviews are saying). As it is not heavy, the story is easy to follow along and it doesn't require much thinking. It's a perfect read when you just want to read something sweet and fluffy, or just want to cleanse your palette after reading something else. <<less

➺ 3.75/5 🌟

I understand why there are quite a few low ratings of this danmei on NU. There are really some questionable aspects portrayed in the story that makes some people hate this. I'm fully aware of that aspect and I'm not saying I support that theme on my reads but my mind just automatically focused more on the fluff, which is honestly majority of the story.

Let's not talk about the age gap because 6 years is not that big of a deal, right? If you're looking at it in... more>> a superficial perspective, there really is nothing wrong about that certain age gap. If you want scrutinize it deeper though, the MC Xuanyuan Hancheng already lived on his 50s before he was given a chance to rebirth. So mentally, he's on that age. This is where most of the hate came from.

After his rebirth, XYHC came chasing after the boy that can be considered as his 'the one that got away' from his first life. But the thing is, the ML Jiabao is only 12 years old at the start of the rebirth, and XYHC is 18 years old PHYSICALLY. He's also aware how young the ML is so he didn't come after him that early BUT he already slowly arranged everything so when the ML reached 14, he can make his move.

Most people might be uncomfortable with this fact. I've talked about this on my reviews on other historical danmei I've read but being married at 14 or 15, this might be immoral in our times, but we are in a historical setting where it's true that 14 years old is a standard marriageable age. I don't support marriage with a minor like any other people, but it's A FACT that it's legal in that historical setting and I've read enough historical setting fiction that I'm already used to it.

What some readers couldn't accept more is the 'g*ooming' element that came with that set up, where they worded it as 'waiting for him to ripe before plucking out' (which is honestly a disgusting way to put it). In retrospect, XYHC never established any kind of relationship with Jiabao in those 2 years and chose to stay away and silently paved the way for Jiabao. He didn't even try to talk to Jiabao in those 2 years, afraid that he might scare him away. So I really wouldn't call it g*ooming, to be honest.

Some people also couldn't accept the fact that XYHC is mentally a middle-age man and it makes the other readers detest this thinking that he's chasing after a minor when he's already that old. Remember that in most rebirth danmei, the MC's actual age will never be proportionate with their physical age once the rebirth happens. I never really looked at their actual age most of the time so it was never a problem for me because I always see the him after the rebirth, not before. I even forget his actual age because the story is never about that.

I've said so many things about what made this received such a low rating. But the thing is, I'm here because of the fluff, which is basically the entire story itself. I was here for that aspect. I enjoyed every interaction between the MC and ML and I'm satisfied about it. I got what I wanted when I picked this up and I was not really bothered by the things I mentioned above (which can be judged depending on the reader's own perspective) that's why I gave this danmei a positive rating. All I'm saying is I understand where the hate came from, but I personally enjoyed the plot a lot so that's the only thing that matters to me. <<less

I really feel sorry for ML, it seems like no one really loves him... the author wrote that his family was forced to let him into the palace because his uncle secretly told his cousin that he had to enter in his place but they really didn't do anything to stop it, they cried a bit and then decided that it was better for him than his older sister because his sister had a better future than him having a fiancé and instead being a twin (man who can give... more>> birth) would be hard to marry, basically they weighed the pro and con and decided the one that was best for them, they didn't even think if the ML would die in the palace without a whole body or what kind of horrible tortures and r*pes he could suffer at the hands of the nobles, in fact in the first life he was really forcefully r*ped, but his family didn't think twice to send him, they did nothing to try to prevent him from entering the palace, they could for example pretend that he was seriously ill so they had to look for someone else, or in the worst case help him to flee before to take him away but basically they don't care much...

The MC is even worse for the ML... he basically treats him as a toy, the author implies that the MC fell in love at first sight with the ML in the first life but like a spoiled child after he got the toy he liked he got bored and forgot about it and let it die, in this life he basically still treats the ML as a toy, he didn't regret ruining the ML's life, forcing himself sexually... he just thought he should have played with it more him and not leave him alone and abandoned, he never thought to respect the feelings of the ML, to let him go back to his family, to ask him what he thought?, what he wanted?, in fact, in this life, he read a letter that said that the ML wanted to start his own business and return to his family and that only made him take the initiative to lock him up faster, he never reflected on whether the ML would be happier without knowing him, living in his small town with his family and his small business, being free and independent, for him, the ML has no will, it's just his toy and nothing else, he likes ML so he should stay with it, nothing else matters, just what he thinks... this is really a pity for ML. I understand that this is the behavior of EVERYONE, absolutely EVERYONE, the nobles of ancient China, and that it is normal that being an ancient prince the MC is so selfish and egotistical, because we are talking about a time when if someone wanted to r*pe you and he was a noble, you still had to thank him for his "favor" towards you, and your family could sell you for money. I know this happened in real life and I shouldn't complain because this is an old novel but... I still feel sorry for the ML...

I think the real problem with this novel lies precisely in that, that it is an ancient story, where the imperial power can do whatever it wants with people, and if you complain they kill you and even your whole family, so no matter how well the MC behaves with the ML, it will always feel somewhat forced, and it doesn't seem convincing, since we are not used to the culture of that time... So if you don't like this genre, don't read it, I regretted it... <<less

Don't pay attention to the low ratings, even though I respect their opinions, I have to disagree. It's a good story, there are enough face slaps and intrigue to keep you interested, but there's also lots of fluff and love. I specially like that both the MC and the ML families don't have any type of jealousy or hate, just love within their members. I read that a reviewer wrote that the gong just loved the idea of the shou, maybe it started like that, but he ended up... more>> loving the shou to death, holding him like a precious treasure, just like his name. <<less