SMMW | Chapter 7
by _squishee〖※ Wen Qing Favor +10〗
“Nice! What did I tell you? Sincerity for sincerity. What’s a little bit of medicinal herb? Did you see that? Favor plus ten!”
[Why are you getting so excited over a guy getting +10 favor?]
[All three female leads combined don’t even add up to 10, I’m seriously done]
[Yun Ling offered money and you wouldn’t sell, but here you are rushing to give it to Wen Qing for free, 666]
[Are we even playing the same game?]
[Wen Qing’s favor got raised way too high. At this story node, the hero-saves-the-beauty scene was originally supposed to auto-trigger for the female lead with the highest favor]
[The female lead with the highest favor is only at 4 right? (laughing)]
[Yeah yeah, what comes next was supposed to be the “confirming feelings” scene, but it turned into a gay confession scene instead]
[Streamer, are you gay?]
“No! I already said I’m not.” Song Hao stared at the rapidly scrolling comments and argued his case with reason.
[He’s panicking]
[Hahahahahahaha when Wen Qing asked him, he also immediately did the triple ‘not, not, not’]
[Explaining means covering up]
[Covering up means it’s true]
[Which means the truth is that the streamer is gay]
[Logical closed loop!!!]
〖New location unlocked: Wen Family, Private Book Loft〗
“Go, go, go, let’s check out the new place.” Song Hao was eager to change the subject and called on the viewers to shift their attention to the new scene.
Upon entering the Wen residence, the young servant first greeted him in a lukewarm tone, “Yuan Xiucai has come again, huh.”
Then Wen Qing came over at a quick pace to receive him and led him to sit in the book loft.
This so-called book loft was a three-story small building packed to the brim with densely crammed books.
Wen Qing gestured to Yuan Hao, indicating he could pick whatever he liked to read.
Clicking the left-side bookshelf on the first floor brought up three options.
〖Choose the book you want to read: Zhouyi / Master Sun’s Art of War / Studies of Rites〗
Naturally, Song Hao tried them one by one.
〖You chose to read Zhouyi, ※ Literary Talent +1, Calculation +2〗
〖You chose to read Master Sun’s Art of War, ※ Literary Talent +2, Cunning +1〗
〖You chose to read Studies of Rites, ※ Literary Talent +5〗
“My god… every single one of these is so profitable, and there are even stats I’ve never seen before. Is this a book loft? This is cheating, right?”
Before Song Hao even finished marveling, Wen Qing came over in the game carrying a food box. Three pastries and a pot of tea, and it was once again time for the happy stat-farming session.
〖The pastries freshly made at home, Brother Yuan, have some. You seem to like osmanthus cake. This is just the season for it, after this period passes, you won’t be able to eat it anymore.〗
Of course Song Hao decisively chose the osmanthus cake, and as expected Literary Talent went up by one again. This time he had picked up a total of 6 Literary Talent.
“No wonder he was able to take first place those last two times. If I had a cheat like this, I could do it too.” The new location was way too useful. Song Hao was dizzy from the windfall that had fallen into his lap, dizzy in the happy kind of way.
“No Fatigue added, free books, random stat boosts, and pastries to eat. I should just live here.”
[Holy crap, is this reasonable?]
[A new gay side route???]
[Could Wen Qing be a woman disguised as a man?]
[How did you get this? How much Wen Qing favor do you need?]
[Don’t be too in love, I’m just saying]
〖Yuan Hao exchanged insights with Wen Qing, read poetry and books, and also ate pastries, only returning in the evening. On the road, passersby saw him coming out of the Wen residence and all began whispering.
“Are they… right, right… I heard… oh my god… then it must be true…”
※ Reputation changed. Female favor gain growth halved for one year.〗
[Now you’re really Southern Tong]
[Wishing you 99]
[Here’s a wedding gift then [Heart x1]]
[wedding gift [Free Flower x1]]
[wedding gift [Lollipop x1]]
Song Hao still stubbornly insisted, “It’s fine. Career first, family later. Once I become emperor, I’ll have a harem of three thousand.”
[Then hurry it up, this game might be gone soon]
[Heard it’s still in the price negotiation stage]
[I heard that too, those money-grubbing officials want three million, and however you look at it, it’s not worth that much, right?]
[Would be awful if the buyer gives up in the end]
[At the streamer’s speed, finishing the game is gonna be rough]
“No problem. I go through plot fast.”
〖※ Fatigue +3, Physique +1, Tongcao x4〗
“Four tongcao, not bad, not bad. Quit while I’m ahead, I’m not like I absolutely have to reload…”
〖※ Wen Qing Favor +5〗
“Huh???”
[???]
[What did you do to get another +5?]
[Is it bugged?]
[This Wen Qing is kind of weird, could he really be gay?]
[Ew~ if it’s real then I’m not shipping it anymore]
[Ye Gong loves gayness]
“It should, it should…” Song Hao had no idea what to say for a moment and could only try his best to patch it over. “Ah! His mother took the medicine, it worked, so he started thanking me again. Never mind that, let’s keep digging herbs.”
〖※ Fatigue +3, Physique +1, Tongcao x2〗
“Why is there even less? Again!”
〖※ Fatigue +3, Physique +1, Tongcao x5〗
“Still no baiweizi, again!”
……
[New here, polite question, is the streamer lagging?]
[Watch a bit longer and you’ll get it. He’s gathering herbs for his mother-in-law]
[Hahahahahahahahahahaha]
[At this speed, even meeting the emperor is gonna be rough]
[Ha~rem~ of~ three~ thou~sand~]
With this repeated over and over, Song Hao finally dug up baiweizi. The game schedule also became regular. At the start of the month he attended classes at the academy, in the middle of the month he went to the Back Mountain to dig herbs, and at the end of the month he went to Wen Qing’s house to read books, moving between those three points in a line.
Very soon, the Qixi Poetry Gathering arrived.
The theme was love poetry, and as a bonus event, it even offered prize money of 1000 for first place, 500 for second, and 200 for third.
Naturally, Song Hao was not going to miss it. So when he went to Wen Qing’s house to choose books, he also frantically loaded and reloaded saves, doing his utmost to find books related to love poetry.
He rummaged and searched, if there was none on the first floor then the second, if not on the second then the third, if not up high then down low, if not down low then into the corners. That was 1000 qian, after all!
At last, in a corner, he found a book tucked very deeply away. It had a plain-colored cover, and when he opened it, the front page was covered almost entirely with huge twisted characters that read: “Zi Min Zi.”
Song Hao examined it for a while and guessed, “…Mengzi?”
“So ugly, but weirdly familiar. Why does it look like the book I wrote?” Song Hao stared at those two ugly characters with an odd expression. Then suddenly inspiration struck, and he guessed, “Wait… that lousy book of mine, could Wen Qing be the one who bought it?”
“Holy… shit…” Song Hao went speechless.
[Those ugly characters are definitely yours]
[??? Why am I getting a little touched by this]
[Yuan Hao Favor +10]
[Yuan Hao Favor +500]
[Now we really do have to call him sister-in-law]
〖Wen Qing walked into the book loft carrying a food box and asked, “What book did you pick to read today?”〗
Song Hao’s brain started spinning like mad. In the end, he decisively clicked Load Save and said, “Reload first!”
[Why are you feeling guilty?]
[Not daring to face your gay brother?]
[Reading the lousy book you wrote won’t give stats anyway, right?]
[This is so suspicious]
[Doesn’t look straight at all]
After reloading, Song Hao casually clicked a bookshelf, and the system popped up a new set of options.
〖Choose the book you want to read: Bian Er Chai / Yixiang Chunzhi / Selected Mandarin Duck Poems〗
〖You chose to read Bian Er Chai, ※ Romantic +3〗
〖Yuan Hao replied: I just picked one at random. I’ll read it to you, “A little lighter, I’m suddenly in the mood and want to fool around with you…”〗
“Holy crap! A porn book!!!” Song Hao grabbed his hair and immediately loaded the save again.
〖You chose to read Yixiang Chunzhi, ※ Romantic +5〗
〖Yuan Hao replied: I just picked one at random. I’ll read it to you, “Whatever he tells him to do, he does, otherwise that breaks the rules, and the punishment for breaking the rules is three strikes pounding the buttocks…”〗
“Even dirtier, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!! Don’t read it, don’t read it out loud!!! Brother, does your mother know your house has this kind of stuff in it? Help, ahhhhhhhh, don’t tell me my stream is gonna get flagged and banned in a minute…”
Song Hao covered his ears and started screaming. He felt filthy. He wanted to go wash his eyes.
〖You chose to read Selected Mandarin Duck Poems, ※ Romantic +1, Literary Talent +2〗
〖Yuan Hao replied: I just picked one at random. I’ll read it to you, “Exquisite dice with red beans set within, do you know that longing pierces to the bone?”〗
Song Hao slumped in his chair and weakly said, “Thank god… this one’s normal…”
[That was so dangerous]
[I screamed along with you]
[Wen Qing is definitely gay, I know what those first two books are]
[The content level is huge…]
[I’ll send a hot-air balloon, streamer, can you pick the first one?]
“No. I have principles too. Just this one, don’t switch it. My heart can’t take it.”
〖Wen Qing smiled and said, “I didn’t even know that book was here. A large portion of the book loft’s collection was bought at random by the servants, and I haven’t read them.”
Yuan Hao said, “The poetry gathering is coming up, let’s read together, maybe we can win a place.”
Wen Qing nodded and agreed. He sat together with Yuan Hao, reading the poetry collection, and the two of them began reciting line by line, one after the other.
“When will I see you again? On my lapels and sleeves, I only stain them with tears in vain. In sorrow, I gaze until the tall city fades from sight, and the lights have already reached dusk.”
“If only your heart were like mine, then surely you would not fail this longing.”
“Fish sink and geese vanish on the road to the ends of the earth, and only then do I believe how bitter separation in this world can be.”
“In life and death, in parting and joining, with you I have made this vow. Taking your hand, I will grow old with you.”
…〗
On the game screen, the two of them were in the quiet and peaceful book loft, sunlight spilled over their sleeves, each holding half the pages of the same book, taking turns reading out the love poems written there.
Clearly there was no sound, yet Song Hao somehow felt as though he could hear the rhythm of the tones, the light and slow cadence of recitation.
At this moment, Song Hao was not in a hurry to click through the plot. Instead, he carefully read one line all the way through before clicking the next. When it came to the protagonist’s turn to read, he silently repeated it along with him. By the end, he unconsciously read it out loud, “…Taking your hand, I will grow old with you.”
His gaze was focused more on Wen Qing. Before, he had never carefully looked at Wen Qing’s face. Only now, when he looked seriously, did he realize that he really was… beautiful.
Delicate brows and eyes, fair skin, black hair falling to his elbows. Not the kind of beauty that was overly eye-catching, but more like a cluster of green bamboo, natural, clear, gentle, pleasing to the eye. Song Hao could not quite describe it. He only felt that a face like this ought to belong to the true protagonist of the world.
And on top of that… Song Hao leaned closer to the screen again and blinked hard. He thought he saw that when Wen Qing lowered his eyes, on the eyelid near the outer corner, there was a small mole, tiny and adorable, like a little pixel dot.