Chapter 408 ? Tea Party

Chapter 408: Creature Gathering

Jiang Xun had been lurking online.

He knew everyone might turn into small animals, but he didn’t take it seriously. Every day, he ate and drank to his heart’s content, enjoying a pleasant vacation with Imperial Tutor Shen, documenting local customs and having too much fun to think of home.

That was, until one day when he was lying in Shen Que’s arms reading a book and suddenly rolled off his teacher with a *gulu gulu*.

Dizzy, Jiang Xun tumbled down Shen Que’s body, rolling from his chest all the way to his knees before finally landing with a *splat* on the bed.

Jiang Xun propped himself up with his head, wanting to ask what had happened, but when he opened his mouth, all that came out was a babyish whining sound.

Jiang Xun: “?”

What was this? So cringe.

Where was his imperial dominance?

The next second, he saw his own roly-poly body and soft white belly.

“Baby,” Shen Que picked him up and held him at eye level, “So you’re a little hedgehog.”

Shen Que thought, “It’s actually quite fitting.”

The little thing looked all bark and no bite; in reality, its combat ability was practically zero. When upset or unhappy, it would only curl into a ball. It also holds a grudge and is stubborn—but once you gained its trust, you could get to rub its belly.

Shen Que glanced at Jiang Xun’s belly.

Fluffy white, it looked very inviting to pet.

Only then did Jiang Xun realize there was a row of tiny spines on his back.

He froze for three seconds, then opened his mouth and struggled, letting out a series of high-pitched squeaks and whines that startled him into immediately shutting up.

He glared at Shen Que, trying his best to convey his displeasure.

—*Put me down! Don’t let me prick you.*

Shen Que: “It’s fine, your spines aren’t sharp.”

This was a young hedgehog, and the spines all lay flat and harmless, not raised at all. They felt a bit prickly to the touch but weren’t painful.

Shen Que refused to let go, which only made Jiang Xun more anxious. *What do you mean hedgehog spines aren’t hard? Doesn’t it feel uncomfortable? Put me down!*

But Shen Que wouldn’t budge. He cradled the hedgehog, turning it this way and that, finding everything about it fascinating. He even reached out, trying to peel open the little ball to touch its soft belly.

Of course, Jiang Xun resisted. So the hedgehog flailed in Shen Que’s hands, squeaking and whimpering nonstop. Unfortunately, despite his fierce appearance, his combat ability was abysmally low. All his spines remained carefully tucked away, not a single one raised to prick Shen Que. No matter how much he wriggled, he couldn’t break free.

Jiang Xun: “…”

*A mighty Emperor reduced to this?!*

He curled into a ball, resembling a puffed-up sea urchin.

Seeing that His Majesty was on the verge of sulking, Shen Que finally set him down gently on the blanket. He picked up an apple from the fruit tray and waved it in front of Jiang Xun, asking, “Want something to eat?”

Imperial Tutor Shen knew His Majesty needed to be handled gently—only then could he rub that little belly. Though there was no fur to smooth down right now, the spines too soft to prick skin served the same purpose, didn’t they?

The hedgehog sniffled cautiously, then gave a wary nod.

Shen Que: "Hold on a sec."

Jiang Xun was now tiny, no bigger than an apple, so a whole apple was way too big for him. Shen Zhao took a dining knife, carefully chopped the apple into small cubes, and fed the pieces to Jiang Xun with a toothpick.

The little hedgehog chomped away happily on the apple cubes.

He didn’t notice at all that the ever-proper Imperial Tutor’s eyes had drifted to the hedgehog’s back.

Shen Que had studied early childhood education books. His Majesty’s tantrums were quite similar to a child’s, so child psychology books were perfect. By now, Shen Que was basically an expert in early education theory. He remembered a fairy tale from the books called *The Hedgehog Carrying Apples*.

Real hedgehogs don’t carry apples, but the hedgehog in the fairy tale was adorable doing so. So, quietly, Shen Que sneakily set an apple piece on Jiang Xun’s back.

Jiang Xun remained clueless, still happily enjoying the Imperial Tutor’s feeding.

He ate the second piece, and Shen Que placed a second one. Then the third, the fourth… After who knows how long, Jiang Xun felt his back growing heavier and heavier, like a ton of bricks. His four stubby legs couldn’t bear the weight, and with a *splat*, he flattened against the table, squished flat like a pancake.

Jiang Xun: "?"

Even now, he didn’t suspect the upright and noble Imperial Tutor of playing tricks. He grumbled and whined for a while.

—"So heavy, so uncomfortable… What’s going on? Am I sick?"

Shen Que coughed lightly and stopped feeding him apple pieces, looking away innocently.

Jiang Xun: "……?"

Finally, it clicked.

With great effort, he turned his head to look at his back—and saw a ridiculous pile of apple chunks.

Jiang Xun: "!"

He shot a death glare at the Imperial Tutor.

—*Teacher! How dare you toy with the Emperor like this! This is high treason! High treason!*

Shen Que: "……"

Looking at the puffed-up hedgehog again, he soothed, "Alright, alright, don’t be angry. I’ll take them off right away."

The Imperial Tutor once again witnessed firsthand just how grudge-holding and impossible to please his Majesty could be.

By dinnertime, Jiang Xun had returned to human form, but no matter how hard the Imperial Tutor tried, he couldn’t coax his Majesty into a better mood.

"……"

"Fine." Shen Que gave up, watching his Majesty storming off with regret. "Then what? So you’re kicking me out tonight? I’ll try again tomorrow?"

At these words, the "hedgehog" finally reacted.

Jiang Xun strode to the bed in two steps and dragged the Imperial Tutor out from under the covers. "Not a chance!"

He’d been played with all afternoon—did they think he’d let that slide? Yeah, right!

*

Other couples transformed one by one, but Xie Yu’s pair was different—they changed together.

The moment Shen Ci woke up, he felt buried in fur.

Before him was a giant beast dwarfing him, and he was swallowed up by its fluff. He had to wrestle his way out.

That was an extra-large silver tabby—a white tiger.

Shen Ci looked at himself, then at Xie Yu. He was absurdly small in comparison, his body round and tiny, like a little sticky rice ball.

He was a tiny bird version of a silver tabby, the long-tailed silver-throated tit.

The white tiger towered over him like a mountain, and Shen Ci had no doubt that if Xie Yu rolled over, he’d be squashed flat.

The little bird hopped and hopped, hopping across the terrain, until it finally stopped in front of Xie Yu.

He tilted his head, flapped his wings, and chirped, “Cheep?”

Xie Yu cracked one eye open to glance at him, then tilted his head toward him.

Not daring to use too much force, he leaned gently against the dumpling, letting it flatten a small patch of his fur.

The tit chirped and rolled down his arm, only to be caught by a curved paw, then leaped again, rolling down once more—treating him like a slide.

Once he’d had his fill of play, Xie Yu balanced him on his head and lazily ambled to the balcony to sunbathe.

Most felines grew sluggish after eating their fill, and big cats were no exception. Xie Yu didn’t feel like moving either, so he sprawled in the sunlight, becoming a soft furry cushion, with only his tail swishing lazily.

Meanwhile, Shen Ci looked at himself and attempted to fly.

Long-tailed silver-throated tits weren’t particularly skilled fliers, usually only hopping between trees or flying short distances. He struggled to control his wings, but the balcony winds were too strong, and he was too small—constantly blown off balance before plummeting down.

Xie Yu remained lazily still, but his gaze never left Shen Ci. Whenever the dumpling fell, he’d casually adjust his position, ensuring the little bird always landed safely in his fur.

Shen Ci landed on his back, flapping wildly as he struggled up. His flight was shaky and precarious, but he never got truly hurt. After enough falls, he buried himself in the soft fur, warm under the sun, nearly asleep.

He almost rolled right off Xie Yu’s back in his sleep.

But Xie Yu’s tail casually curled around him, pulling the dumpling back into place before turning to look at him with an inquiring look.

—“Want to go back to sleep?”

The little bird shook his head.

—“No, I want to sunbathe with you.”

He went completely relaxed, rolling around on Xie Yu’s body. No matter how much he flailed, Xie Yu’s tail always caught him before he hit the ground.

Once he’d had enough, the dumpling nestled into Xie Yu’s belly fur, taking a deep breath—full of sunshine's warmth.

Shen Ci: “Xie Yu, you’re so warm.”

The white tiger flicked his tail, gently booping the little bird’s head.

—“Then snuggle up.”

—“I want to snuggle up forever.”

Xie Yu huffed.

—“Then stay forever.”

The little bird fluffed his wings, happily snuggling deeper into Xie Yu’s fur.

*

After spending so much time with Lu Liu, Qi Yi had come to understand that his lover had extraordinary origins—before crossing into this world, he hadn’t been human.

At that time, he was holding a little guinea pig in his hands, gently squeezing it, and asked the Guide beside him, "Lu Liu, so what were you before? A guinea pig?"

Lu Liu was stunned.

He looked at the silly little creature munching nonstop in Qi Yi's arms, skeptically pointed at himself, and asked, "You think I looked like this before becoming human?"

Qi Yi: "..."

The Sentinel really wanted to nod, but under the Guide's intense, oppressive gaze, he reluctantly shook his head.

Lu Liu: "I was cutting-edge technology before, cutting-edge technology, understand?"

He began listing his past achievements: "I helped the Emperor pilot an imperial starship, assisted a general in escaping enemy pursuit, cured a devastating plague, and even matched up ten couples! That's the kind of cutting-edge technology I was!"

Qi Yi still hesitated. "Uh, I heard your host discussing something about 'abusive protagonist roleplay' and 'barely making the grade'... So, were you originally a couple-matching system? What does 'abusive protagonist' mean?"

"..."

Two drops of cold sweat slid down the Guide's forehead. "Uh, that was an accident. Anyway, I'm cutting-edge technology."

He thought for a moment. "I can request special permission from the Mainframe to show you my high-tech self."

So that night, Qi Yi received a small, square screen.

He picked it up and examined it thoughtfully. "Like a handheld game device?"

He was referring to the outdated gaming devices from the outer star systems.

Lu Liu: "Absolutely not! I'm way more advanced than that!"

He turned on the water and immersed the screen. "See? I'm waterproof."

He instructed Qi Yi to unwrap a chocolate bar and then swallowed it. "See? I can eat chocolate."

He connected to the star network, and a torrent of data flashed by. "I can also process massive data streams with supercomputing capability for you."

The small, square screen floated in the air, and somehow, Qi Yi could see expressions of "pride" and "showing his stuff" on its face. Even the guinea pig puffed out its chest, looking very proud.

Qi Yi burst out laughing.

Lu Liu's screen flickered indignantly before he prodded him pointedly. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Qi Yi: "Nothing, I just think this is... very..."

He swallowed the word "cute" on the tip of his tongue and replaced it with, "Very high-tech."

"Of course," the screen said smugly. "I'm the latest generation of high-tech from the Administrative Bureau."

He grabbed Qi Yi and started cycling through standard emoticons.

"QAQ"

"This one, I often use to play cute with the Mainframe."

"= ="

"This one, I use to convey exasperation to my host."

"= 。= This one means completely dumbfounded."

"And there's a supercharged 'QAQ' with watery eyes..."

Lu Liu said as a huge "crying face emoji" appeared on the screen.

Qi Yi crossed his arms and looked at him, amusement in his eyes. "Why are all the expressions so unhappy? Don't you have any happy ones?"

"Uh..."

Lu Liu wiped his sweat, complaining to himself, "How could I be happy?!"

The hosts were all eccentric, a bunch of weirdos all vying for last place. Every day, Lu Liu was either throwing fits in front of his hosts or playing cute and acting obedient before the mainframe. How could he possibly be happy!

Qi Yi: "Then can you make a happier expression? Like... when you're with me."

"When I'm with you?"

The little screen tilted its head, then displayed an emoji.

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Author's Note:

And that's a wrap on this story~ It took over a year to write, and thanks for all the love and for sticking with me~ Since you've made it this far, why not follow Biscuit? [Let me see][Let me see][Let me see]

I haven't fully decided on the next book yet—still cooking up ideas. Feel free to check out my works list to see if anything catches your interest! Both *The Boss* and this one are quick transmigration stories, mainly focused on HC and healing. If you're intrigued, please consider adding them to your collection—thanks a bunch! [Perked-up bunny ears][Scattered flowers]

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