3.23

As time passes the story also progresses. With the help of Jia Hyson, the story has cut off a lot of the fat and has moved much quicker than in the original. Less than a year has passed and Zheng Ting has been kicked out of the Zheng family, Song Chuntao and Zheng Jinhai have an enacted a 'forgive me for lying, forgive me for hurting you, forgive me for the damage Zheng Ting did' thing which resulted in a big display of public affection through very moving gifts, shamelessness and the power of money and now they're together.

Jia Hyson could honestly say, from the bottom of his heart, 'Good for them.'

But also, 'Ugh, living through this shit is almost worse than reading it.'

Playing the gay best friend was tougher than he thought ah.

Jia Hyson did not have many close friends in his original life. His best friend was almost quiet and they were both satisfied with meeting a few times for lunch or watching a movie. For others Jia Hyson only had shallow connections with schoolmates and those he befriended during his university days, acting playful when attention was on him but immediately turning back into a quail once ignored.

He didn't initiate contact or conversation much and had a lot of social anxiety when he was young so he missed out on experiencing a time where he had to stay up and listen to someone talk about their convoluted love life or meet someone who can be a mutual sounding board for relationships and work without any pretexts or sexual tension.

...To be honest, after experiencing it now Jia Hyson didn't think he missed out on much. That shit was exhausting.

Maybe for other people they'll find this platonic dependency with a non-romantic interest very rewarding but Jia Hyson realizes that he honestly could not find any happiness in such a relationship and was really growing a little bored playing besties with Song Chuntao. He prefers hanging around and teasing Sefu more ah. Sefu is quiet and straightforward and the sexual tension felt really, really good. Like bondage good.

Bebe who has been quietly listening to his inner musings suddenly spoke up. 'So. It turns out you're the type of bastard who prefers their hoes over their bros?'

Jia Hyson: '...Bebe who taught you this sort of awful language?'

Bebe: 'Isn't it all thanks to my spicy chicken host?'( •᷄ὤ•᷅)?

Jia Hyson thought about it for a moment before realizing he could not say anything to this.

Anyway, the story was moving nicely, the majority of the amnesia events have passed and Prince Farrell's part of the story was no longer very important. Jia Hyson felt quite satisfied with his work ah.

Unfortunately, just because the story is progressing well, that didn't mean the rest of the world was also going to have a happily ever after.

It started with a simple mistake in shipping and Samotrelis not only lost x tonnes of fresh produce for their client but also had to compensate them with more produce for less money. Then news about child labor in Samotrelis began to crop up. Finally, a case where three workers died in the mine due to poor machinery and equipment.

All sorts of unsavory news was cropping up on Samotrelis online. Nowadays social media was the main form of media people followed and Samotrelis had also followed this trend. Even if there is faked news, with so much of it, people cannot help but believe that at the very least some must be real and their impression of the people leading the country will inevitably drop.

Prince Farrell's reputation has also taken a dive with the messy rumors, and Jia Hyson's playboy lifestyle has been taken out and shined on in an unflattering light. The problem here is he's played with so many types of people that anyone could claim that they slept with him. Suddenly there were accusations of rape, abuse of power, prostitution, home-wrecking, and even pedophillia. Even though many people have spoken out in defense of him, Prince Farrell has inevitably taken a big hit in the eyes of the public.

Many foreign leaders and big shots were also jealous of the utopia Samotrelis flaunts itself to be and also used their powers to help throw more dirt under the table making the situation even messier. It was like if a movie queen who had been adored by many suddenly had rumors of a big sex scandal, those co-stars and lackeys who had always been quick to please her immediately showed their true feelings and spat on her. Even if the scandal was originally false, the spit alone would drown her. Unfortunately for Jia Hyson, if Samotrelis was that movie queen he would be the skin she wears and bears the brunt of a lot of the aftermath from these messy accusations.

Jia Hyson initially thought it was not much and ordered his subordinates in charge of these things to divert and suppress, however as time passed and more and more things cropped up, he found that this small problem had turned into a large one. As the youngest prince and the face of the royal family, he became very busy trying to clean up and do damage control with their clients and allies overseas while he tried to communicate with his increasingly haggard family.

Finally it got to the point where he had to just stop due to all the smearing being done on his character, making his words hold far less weight and his integrity questioned. Now he had no choice but go back home to see what's wrong personally while gnashing his teeth as he side eyes Sefu with great irritation and suspicion.

No matter what the context no one likes people falsely accusing them of a disgusting crime like forcing underage teenagers. Jia Hyson was majorly pissed about that article and had already threatened to sue for slander but these sort of cases are hard to prove but harder to wash off.

Even if the lawsuit is successful in the future, his reputation might still not being able to be washed clean. After all he's known to be promiscuous, rich and his family is now suspected of corruption. It wouldnt be too hard to assume there will be crimes swept under the rug thanks to his money and prestige, especially in a time where many rape crimes too often are.

'I cannot believe this bastard is still planning to go through with the full on rebellion thing!' He silently complains to Bebe, 'Ugh, why can't he just kidnap me and lock me in a small dark room like a normal person?!'

'...Bebe is going to ask you to stop and really think about what you just said. Really think about it. Go ahead. Don't rush. Bebe will wait.'

'Rebel bastard!' Jia Hyson just curses, 'You be nice to him, he wants to rebel. You be mean to him, rebel. Tease him, rebel. Fuck, is the radical mindset so hard to shake off?!' After all, Sefu's issues could be more or less solved through slightly less problematic means. Jia Hyson was really hoping for a kidnapping. Bebe was betting on a faked death. Even blackmailing by using his rebel identity and selling out the rebels he knows in order to marry the youngest prince was a viable option.

Resorting to rebellion before anything else really was the definition of making a mountain of a molehill. It may even be an understatement ah. No one can truly live another's life and no one can truly empathize with them either, however Jia Hyson who felt he had a decent grasp on people's heart really did not understand Sefu's choice.

Unless he had read wrongly from the very beginning and Sefu had never truly dropped his anti-royal mentality, inciting rebellion really was the most troublesome choice to take. Jia Hyson's frown worsens at the thought. It shouldn't be the case right? Was the author god's few words that defined Sefu's existence really such an unshakeable truth of reality?

Jia Hyson trusts Sefu like he trusted the previous personas- to a certain extent. He had dropped his guard in the previous world due to becoming so powerful and subconsciously didn't see his baby wannabe gongs as a threat which resulted in a big yandere backstab courtesy of Tian Shun. Now that he was just a slightly stronger human being and his love interest was written out specifically to rebel and kill him, Jia Hyson naturally would do his best so he wouldn't make such a mistake again.

Unfortunately ah, it's really difficult to be wary after so many years together. Plus, Sefu was 85% his favorite type of gong, and Jia Hyson was always weak to things he liked. On the bright side though he was at least confident Sefu didn't plan to really harm him if nothing else. After all, this wasn't like the supernatural world where you can bind ghosts in your shadows and other such extreme things.

"Sefu..." Jia Hyson leans onto Sefu's broad shoulders with a tired sigh, the past few weeks have been the most work he has probably ever done in this world. Right now they were on a private jet to Samotrelis, given the location it would take a few more hours to reach there. "I don't understand, why is this happening?" He asks with an undercurrent of confusion and worry that isn't exactly faked.

Jia Hyson rather likes his Samotrelian family so he genuinely rather not see them ruined like in the original world. It makes him feel a little guilty about pulling them into this but if one looks at it another way, this would have happened anyway given the problem of the rebels hadn't been sorted out both originally and now.

To be fair, Jia Hyson himself wasn't aware of the rebels identities and could only imply occasionally about the possibility of spies in their palace since his identity wouldn't have been capable of discovering evidence for such a thing in the first place. He also didn't know their true motives after all this time either since the story just implied it was the corruption of the royals that resulted in this reaction. Clearly though the royal family in reality was quite innocent and so doing his part in trying to minimize corruption in Samotrelis seemed to have little impact. Honestly if he didn't actually have Farrell's original memories he too might have suspected his tyrannical reputation was also faked.

Thinking about it some more just made his head hurt and he sighs again.

Sefu looking down at his prince's haggard but still handsome face felt pity and lightly pressed his lips to the top of his head. "This lowly servant is sure the storm will pass soon my prince." He comforts as he ignores his own bitter feelings of guilt welling up.

Jia Hyson: '...' You are the storm though! Fuck off! (┛ಠДಠ)┛彡┻━┻

Biting his lip Jia Hyson looks up at Sefu before tentatively grabbing his arm and hugging it tightly with a lost expression, "But what if it doesn't?" He mutters, "Sefu.. those things online aren't true, someone must be behind this..." He clutches onto Sefu tighter, squeezing those delicious biceps that have tensed up under his touch.

"Whoever these disgusting bastards are that did this shall pay!" He spits out, expression resentful and venomous as his hands grope the disgusting bastard's arm. "I hate them! I will never forgive them! Cowardly scum of the earth!"

Sefu who was emotionally hit multiple times while having his tofu eaten: '...'

Jia Hyson: 'Rub, rub, rub, rub, rub,'(人 •͈ᴗ•͈)

Bebe: 'Wah, the system shard next to you may belong to the bipolar prince but out of the two of you Bebe's scum host is still the more two-faced one. Applause.gif.'

Arriving back to Samotrelis, the welcome was no longer as warm as Jia Hyson was used to and the atmosphere was tense. Some citizens looked at Jia Hyson strangely and even with some contempt and disgust making him feel quite uncomfortable. He had never gotten caught for the majority of his crimes in his originally life and only suffered minor hits to his reputation that was washed white over time and effort so this was actually the first time he's ever been publicly scorned like this albeit subtly.

Obviously his mood was not good seeing this.

Sefu, sensing Jia Hyson's emotions, hesitated before tentatively touching the back of his hand with his own comfortingly. When Jia Hyson made no move to reject the action, even nudging back with equal gentleness. Sefu tried to hide the small bubble of happiness that inevitably welled up inside him at such a sweet dependent gesture and opportunistically took a mile after an inch by lightly holding his hand as they walked to the palace.

Jia Hyson who was being emotionally hit while having his tofu eaten: '...' Okay, he can admit it. They really were made for each other.

Bebe: *throws rice* 'You deserve each other, hope you stay together forever~' *throws rice* ＼（Ｔ∇Ｔ）／

Jia Hyson: 'The words are clearly so supportive but somehow it sounds like I'm being cursed out.'(⇀_⇀)

By the time they arrived onto the island and finally stepped into the main palace, Jia Hyson was definitely tired both mentally and emotionally.

He felt like the prodigal child who went out to make it big in showbiz only to come back with a debt, a sex scandal and a drug addiction. After all, Samotrelis was still a more closed-off and conservative country than most so there were many citizens dissatisfied with the baby prince moving outside.

Jia Hyson didn't think to much of it till now given he was originally chinese and naturally felt more at home in the area, but right now his identity represents the country. In retrospect, to prefer living in China, a place so different from Samotrelis, to the point he was staying there 80% of the year, was quite unpatriotic for a member of the Royal family. It was no wonder there were some that were unhappy, even blaming his deviancy in the media as a result of living outside too long and mingling with the bad crowd.

An old auntie who used to give candy to him when he was younger even came up to him in order to fiercely scold him for the things he had done. Jia Hyson didn't dare to fight back given the auntie was so old and righteously angry, he could only bite his lip and weakly defend himself while silently seething about which rebel bastard thought up framing him for pedophilia and rape were. Sefu certainly wouldn't have dug such a big pit like that for him but the other rebels wouldn't have that sort of sympathy ah.

The auntie might have slapped him in her angry disappointment if Sefu hadn't stopped her. After that they picked up speed and rushed back to the palace lest anything more like that could be repeated.

It was evening when they arrived, but the palace was oddly quiet. Jia Hyson asked around, after all ruined reputation or not he was still the prince, and all of his family members were gone, trying to put out all the metaphorical fires that had suddenly sprouted up everywhere. When he tried to call them, all of the lines were busy so reluctantly he asked for dinner in his childhood room. He was too tired to go to his personal palace which was about twenty minutes on horseback.

Taking a long relaxing hot shower Jia Hyson comes out I'm a fluffy bathrobe to see Sefu placing down plates of hot dishes onto a nearby table like the world's scariest waiter. The collar of his suit was open and tie, loosely undone exposing the older man's collarbone and producing a bit of sex appeal that Jia Hyson greatly enjoyed. At the very least, Sefu can appease his anger by being eye candy.

"My prince, dinner is ready,"

Jia Hyson smiles tiredly and nods, "Sefu, eat with me." He orders quietly.

"It will be my pleasure," Smiling faintly but expression a little unreadable, Sefu picks up a small bowl filled with fat and juicy curried prawns and passes it to Jia Hyson. Jia Hyson immediately perks up when being presented one of his favorite dishes.

"Ah, you spoil me," He chuckles delightedly before popping a hot, already peeled prawn into his mouth and enjoying the spicy sweet flavor of the dish.

"Because I enjoy spoiling you," Sefu rasps.

Jia Hyson grins impishly as he continues to snack on the prawns and the curry. Like many cultures, Samotrelians usually used their hands to eat traditionally. The curry wasn't very strong in spice and complemented the mild flavor of prawn well, Jia Hyson enjoyed eating this even without rice to accompany the dish. Just eating it made his previously down mood improve tremendously. "Isn't that just because I'm too cute," he winks, feeling playful enough to tease again.

"Mhm," Sefu's smile widens, making his scarred face look a little younger and more dashing. However somehow it put Jia Hyson a little on edge. Licking his fingers he reaches out to grab a nearby glass of water and sipped it nervously. It felt a little like watching a cliche but well directed horror movie. You knew a scare was coming but you couldn't help but get tense and frightened. "Cute like a kitten, it makes this lowly servant want to cage you up."

Kitten Jia Hyson: Σ('◉⌓ ◉') 'Mreow???'

"You-" Jia Hyson was a little shocked at how forward he suddenly was. Also kitten?! This prince was a sexy panther! Where was he a soft fluffy baby cat?! Those aesthetics are completely off! "What are-"

Jia Hyson blinks a few times and frowns before rubbing his eyes. "Ah?" He rubs them again but his vision was getting blurrier and his limbs heavier. Using the last of his consciousness he turns dumbfounded to Sefu who was calmly watching him, arms out ready to catch him when he falls. "Se..fu...?"

Then it all goes black.

Sefu holds onto the unconscious body of his beloved, heterochromatic eyes filled with guilt and an obsessive love. Lifting him up Sefu barely makes a noise of complaint despite how heavy the other must be and tremblingly kisses the lips he had been dreaming of for years. "I'm sorry my prince." He hoarsely whispers, "But don't worry. The storm will pass soon."

And you'll never have to see him again.