Chapter 488 – Extra 9 (Afterword)

Méi Guǒ started writing Rebirth: Degenerate Slave Abuses Tyrant a long time ago. However, it has been sleeping on her computer all along, with no intention of finishing it or even publishing it. If it weren’t for her editor Na Lan, Méi Guǒ believes this novel would still be dormant on her computer.

Originally titled “Rebirth: Not Saying There Are No Clothes“¹ , it was changed to “Rebirth: Degenerate Slave Abuses Tyrant” to better suit online publication. (Actually, Méi Guǒ has always been bad at naming things, haha.)

This novel was first posted on November 12, 2011, and completed on April 26, 2012.

While Méi Guǒ was writing this story, many readers asked why Luo Wei couldn’t be with Long Xuan, and why Luo Wei ultimately chose Wei Lan. Méi Guǒ addressed this question in a comment. Even in matters of love, some mistakes are unforgivable; once you miss the chance, it’s gone. Long Xuan has made too many mistakes, deeply hurting Luo Wei in both his previous and present lives. Even if Long Xuan wanted to make amends later on, and did his utmost for Luo Wei, it was already too late, the boat had already sailed².

As for Luo Wei, he was not a good person, which is something Méi Guǒ had said in her group right from the beginning of the novel. In both lives, Luo Wei has been a cold-hearted person. In terms of cunning and ruthlessness, Luo Wei was not inferior to Long Xuan. Long Xuan’s hands were stained with blood, just like Luo Wei’s. It’s just that in his rebirth, Luo Wei’s only goal was to redeem the mistakes of his previous life, so in this life, he was not aiming for dominance over the world, but only to protect his family.

Did Luo Wei love Long Xuan? Did he still have feelings for him? Méi Guǒ‘s answer is that he did love him before, but after the destruction of his clan, the tragic deaths of his loved ones, and his ten years as a slave and prostitute in his past life, that love has been extinguished and turned into hatred. In this life, Luo Wei may feel a flutter in his heart when he sees Long Xuan, not because of love, but because of hatred. Some readers may argue that it’s precisely because he loved Long Xuan so deeply that Luo Wei hated him so much now, and that’s not entirely wrong. Luo Wei did love Long Xuan deeply, but in this life, even if his hatred towards Long Xuan ultimately became meaningless, he could never turn it back to love.

In the first half of the novel, many readers disliked Wei Lan, wondering how a passerby could become the male lead. Méi Guǒ wants to clarify that Wei Lan was never a passerby; he was just as important to Luo Wei as his family members. Before meeting Wei Lan, Luo Wei had never planned for himself. It was only after Wei Lan appeared in his life that Luo Wei found a newfound will to live for himself.

Some readers also mentioned that there seemed to be something lacking in the relationship between Luo Wei and Wei Lan. Yes, their relationship was always calm and steady, without any surprises, but why can’t a calm and steady relationship be love? Luo Wei has been deeply wounded by love and couldn’t throw himself into another passionate love affair like a moth flying into a flame. Wei Lan was gentle and doted on Luo Wei. He was someone in front of whom Luo Wei could allow himself to cry freely, to love without feeling humiliated, and to reveal his true self. Méi Guǒ wants to say that Luo Wei’s feelings for Wei Lan eventually surpassed his feelings for Long Xuan in his past life. This may seem cruel to Long Xuan, but it’s the truth.

Long Xuan loved Luo Wei, but didn’t Wei Lan also love Luo Wei? The person who gave solace to Luo Wei in his past life and weathered countless storms with him in this life was only Wei Lan.

As for Sima Qingsha, he has hurt Luo Wei, and Luo Wei has hurt him as well. He had true feelings for Luo Wei, but Luo Wei was only using him. This is also why Luo Wei didn’t hate Sima Qingsha; he felt guilty towards him. Sometimes love is one-sided. You fall in love, but don’t receive a response, yet you still remember it for a lifetime.

As for whether Luo Wei could give Long Xuan a chance to renew their fated relationship in another lifetime, Méi Guǒ hasn’t figured that out yet because that would be a different story altogether.

After this, Méi Guǒ will complete two more novels: “The BT Western Han Dynasty’s Picking Chrysanthemums” and another ancient-style story that’s been sleeping on their computer. After completing these two novels, Méi Guǒ will think about Long Xuan and Luo Wei’s story again, but that will be a long time from now.

In any case, thank you, readers, for your companionship all this time. “Rebirth: Degenerate Slave Abuses Tyrant” is truly completed tonight. Let’s meet again in the next novel.

(Méi Guǒ, on the evening of April 26, 2012)

—— The end ——

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1. 重生之岂曰无衣 – Chóngshēng zhī qǐ yuē wú yī : or “Rebirth: How Can It Be Said There Are No Clothes?” ↩︎
2. 木已成舟 – mù yǐ chéng zhōu: idiom, “the wood has already become a boat”, meaning it’s too late, what is done cannot be undone. ↩︎