Chapter 77: The Free and Easy Young Marquis (10)
Huo Yuan was initially puzzled by what Huo Xian meant by “dyeing the Liang River red,” but when he saw him gather a pile of materials and start mixing, he suddenly understood—Huo Xian was making gunpowder. Or, to be more precise, explosives.
This world already had gunpowder, but it hadn’t yet developed toward thermal weapons, being used only sparsely for firecrackers and fireworks.
In his first mission world, Huo Xian was a world-class scientist. Although he followed the path of high-end scientific research, as a science student, math, physics, chemistry, and biology were all his strong suits. Give him tools, and he could create the most powerful explosives in this world.
“Huo Xian, if Emperor Haoyuan finds out you developed such powerful explosives, won’t he become wary of you?” Huo Yuan asked hesitantly.
Huo Xian said, “In the original host’s memories, Emperor Haoyuan actually intended to groom him as the next emperor. But based on my two contacts with him in the palace, his attitude toward me is strange, even somewhat guarded. This never happened before.”
“Guarded? Could it be Xiao Jinli stirring up trouble in front of him?” Huo Yuan was the first to think of the world bug.
Huo Xian shook his head: “It doesn’t look like it. It seems more like Emperor Haoyuan himself is troubled by something.”
Huo Yuan was just about to follow up when he suddenly changed the topic: “Hey Huo Xian, too much, too much! Don’t add anymore, it’s going to blow up!” He scrambled to stop Huo Xian’s hand from adding materials to the pot.
Huo Xian smiled and said, “It’s okay. A little bit more makes it more powerful.”
“…Another 20g and you’ll send us both to the Western Paradise.” Huo Yuan’s knowledge reserve was actually higher than Huo Xian’s, but he was an alien consciousness and couldn’t apply it flexibly to daily life.
“I finally got you a physical body to accompany me for a lifetime; how could I bear to send us to the Western Paradise?” As he spoke, his heart suddenly stirred. He turned sideways, leaned forward, and planted a shallow kiss on Huo Yuan’s forehead.
Huo Yuan’s hand shook, almost turning Huo Xian’s 20g into 40g. If that happened, they really would have ascended together.
He looked at Huo Xian in confusion and asked, “What are you doing?”
Huo Xian smiled and asked, “Do you remember our relationship in the last world?”
He remembered. Lovers.
So, they needed some intimacy that others didn’t have.
Thinking this, Huo Yuan urged, “Finish mixing the explosives first.”
Huo Xian, knowing Huo Yuan’s direct personality well, felt his heart skip two beats. His movements became faster. The precise ratio that originally required half an hour took him only fifteen minutes to complete, with accuracy comparable to using measuring cups and scales.
After washing his hands, Huo Xian looked at Huo Yuan with a composed face, wanting to see the surprise from “Direct-Ball Yuan.”
“Direct-Ball Yuan” lived up to his name. To be intimate, he naturally chose to gnaw on lips. However, before gnawing, he whispered a small complaint: “I’m so short.” He had to stand on tiptoes to gnaw on Huo Xian.
Huo Xian couldn’t help but laugh. Just as the smile rose on his lips, warm, soft lips were offered up, along with a pair of beautiful, clear eyes.
Emmmmmm……
He didn’t like closing his eyes as a cat, and now that he had a human body… he still didn’t close his eyes.
“Close your eyes.” Huo Xian raised a hand to cover his eyes. Once the words fell, he deepened the kiss.
Huo Yuan had no experience with French kissing as a cat—after all, French kissing between a human and a cat wasn’t very reliable. So, Huo Xian’s sudden move shocked him so much that all the hair on his body stood on end. His body instinctively wanted to dodge, but unfortunately, Huo Xian seemed to have seen through his intention. One arm tightened around his waist pulling him forward, while the other supported the back of his head, leaving him no way to avoid or escape.
Thump, thump, thump, thump—
Huo Yuan couldn’t describe the feeling. His heart beat so fast it felt like it would jump out of his chest. The blood supply to his brain slowed, giving him a sense of hypoxia. His body grew hot in waves, followed by weakness in his limbs.
Wei… weird. It was too weird. Was being human this scary?
“Why are you distracted?” Huo Xian asked, laughing and crying at the same time.
Huo Yuan had just breathed fresh air, but before he could speak, his legs went soft. If Huo Xian hadn’t been quick to catch him, he would have performed a full-body prostration right there.
So awkward.
He mimicked the protagonists in TV dramas who, after an awkward moment, bury their face directly into the other protagonist’s arms: “You kissed me until my legs went soft.”
Huo Xian: “……”
What is called “ignorance is the greatest flirt”? This is Huo Yuan!
He really, really, really… wanted to execute justice on the spot!
“Huo Xian, your heartbeat is so fast. The dopamine secreted by your brain… mmph…” Before the words “is a bit over the limit” could be said, his mouth was blocked again.
In the end, it was the “Medical Immortal” Du Hanxu rushing into the Princess’s residence like a whirlwind that interrupted them. When Huo Xian let go of Huo Yuan, Huo Yuan’s brain had nearly crashed. Dizzy and disoriented, he was dragged by Huo Xian to meet the guest.
Du Hanxu came for the Jade Bone Muscle Regeneration Pill. He wanted to know the specific ingredients. He was an ancient version of a research fanatic, focused on medical and drug research. The Jade Bone Muscle Regeneration Pill was the most unique pill he had ever seen, with miraculous effects in beauty and youth preservation.
The Eldest Princess arrived just in time to hear the last sentence. Her footsteps faltered slightly. Inexplicably, she felt a little bit… moved.
“To be honest with Mr. Du, that pill was a gift from a wandering Taoist. There were only two. One was taken by Huo Yuan when he was critically ill. Now that his injuries are healed and his old scars are gone, I invited you to identify it because I was worried about adverse reactions,” Huo Xian said sincerely.
Du Hanxu shook his head. “I am ashamed. I cannot identify the refining materials used in this pill either, but it is beneficial and harmless to the human body.” He paused, then asked with expectation in his eyes, “Young Master Huo took one pill, then the other one…”
Huo Xian smiled and politely refused: “If it is truly as you say, sir, I must preserve this pill carefully. Forgive me for not being able to gift it to you.”
Although Du Hanxu had expected this, he couldn’t hide his disappointment. He quickly gathered his emotions and sighed, “I have long heard that Taoist pills are unique. I had never seen one with my own eyes before, but seeing it today, I know the reputation is well-deserved.”
“Since ancient times, Taoism has spoken of ascending to immortality. Anything related to immortals in the heavens is ultimately not a realm we mortals can touch.” Huo Xian’s smile was light and open-minded.
Listening from the side, even Huo Yuan almost believed there really was a wandering Taoist who gave the medicine.
Since Du Hanxu had verified the harmlessness of the Jade Bone Muscle Regeneration Pill, the remaining pill was naturally given to the Eldest Princess.
The Eldest Princess, who admitted she was tempted but didn’t plan to shamefully ask for it, was naturally pleasantly surprised to receive such a precious gift. Besides that, she felt a bit embarrassed. It was too precious to accept, but if she didn’t accept it, she couldn’t resist the temptation. Who asked her to be a woman? Nature loves beauty; it wasn’t something one could suppress just by saying so.
So, Huo Xian suggested giving Huo Yuan some remuneration. As for what the remuneration should be, naturally, he, the “good friend,” would sound it out. The result was that Huo Yuan, with a bewildered face, was gifted a three-courtyard house on the East Street and a shop by the Eldest Princess. The house was only one street away from the Princess’s residence.
Huo Yuan: “???”
He asked in confusion, “Why give me a house and a shop? I don’t need them.”
Huo Xian pinched his cheek, saying without a hint of guilt, “You don’t need them, but I do.”
“…Huh?” Huo Yuan still didn’t understand.
Huo Xian patiently explained to him. He needed a private space to conduct more experiments. These experiments included but were not limited to explosives; cement, glass, steam engines, and so on were all on his candidate list.
Although the Son of Destiny in this world was full of hatred, apart from completing the mission, Huo Xian wanted to conduct a bold experiment. Just as in the first mission world where he became someone who contributed to the progress of the country and society, he wanted to see if the World Law would allow or reject it if he pushed forward the civilization and technology of this world.
Huo Yuan listened, dumbfounded. After a long while, he asked in a trance, “Are you trying to emulate a cheating protagonist in a novel?”
Huo Xian raised his eyebrows lightly and countered, “Aren’t I the Son of Destiny of this world?”
Son of Destiny, aka the Protagonist.
Huo Yuan: “……” That made so much sense, he couldn’t refute it.
“However, Yuanyuan, I will need your help when the time comes.” Huo Xian had already brought him to the entrance of the house, unlocking the door as he spoke.
This house was originally the residence of a third-rank official. A few months ago, he received a transfer order and moved his whole family, leaving the house empty. The house had just been renovated inside and out, almost no different from a new one. The location was excellent. Perhaps thinking he might never have the chance to return to the capital after the transfer, the official had listed it at a high price with the broker, likely wanting to make a retirement fund out of it.
The Eldest Princess lacked for nothing, so naturally, she didn’t lack money. She had considered larger mansions, but this dynasty was quite particular about status and residences. Especially at the foot of the Imperial City, houses larger than three courtyards required an official rank of fourth grade or higher to inhabit. Ordinary people only deserved three courtyards or less. In other words, a three-courtyard house was the highest level of residence Huo Yuan, a commoner, could live in.
But that’s digressing…
“What help do you need from me?” Huo Yuan asked actively as he followed Huo Xian into the house.
Huo Xian didn’t hide it: “I want to trouble you to first help me compile a list of convenient items for the people. Currently, focus mainly on the four aspects of food, clothing, housing, and transportation. I will select from them based on convenience to see if they can be developed.”
“OK, no problem at all,” Huo Yuan agreed crisply. Thinking about it, he added, “Or you can just tell me what you need first. I collected a lot of data in the previous two worlds. As long as you don’t want to build missiles in this world… well, building missiles is actually possible, but it would probably take tens or hundreds of years. The technological level of this world hasn’t even reached the budding stage yet.”
Huo Yuan’s words jumped around a bit, but Huo Xian understood he was trying to express that his database was rich and he could help with whatever Huo Xian wanted to do.
Huo Xian said, “There’s no rush for now. Emperor Haoyuan is behaving abnormally, and Xiao Jinchi (the Fourth Prince) also has secrets. Before we know if they are enemies or friends, let’s just do big things quietly without alerting them.”
“Mmhmm.” Huo Yuan nodded repeatedly.
After closing the gate, Huo Xian took Huo Yuan’s hand and led him inside, saying, “Let’s look at our new home first. If there are places that need fixing, I’ll get people to fix them before the New Year, and we can organize it again.”
Huo Yuan had no opinion on where he lived and said obediently, “I’m fine with anything, you decide.”
This sounded very much like the tone of a little wife who listened to her husband in everything.
Huo Xian’s Adam’s apple bobbed gently. In the end, he couldn’t resist kissing his “little wife” on the lips twice.
Huo Yuan: “…???” Walking just fine, why kiss him?
Just as Huo Xian was showing his “little wife” the new house, inside the Imperial Study of the Palace, Emperor Haoyuan, who had fallen asleep while reviewing memorials at the imperial desk, suddenly woke from a dream with a start. He bolted upright, then quickly stood up. Due to the excessive movement, he knocked over the imperial desk directly but seemed unaware of it. His eyes were wide open, filled with terror. Sweat dripped from his forehead like rain, and his face was pale, as if he had experienced life and death in the dream.
His personal attendant, Huang Yu, didn’t rush to tidy up but spoke cautiously: “Your Majesty?” Emperor Haoyuan seemed not to hear. His breathing was rapid yet silent. His trembling right arm lifted, slowly touching his left chest. Beneath his ribs, his heart was still beating, not… pierced by an arrow.
The person who shot the arrow was… his own nephew, Huo Xian.
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