“There, Master. Your shirt is unbuttoned. I shall excuse myself now, so please enjoy your soak.”
Having finished the task, Aseya desperately wanted to beat a hasty retreat to escape the stifling atmosphere. Before he could take a single step, however, Lu Li gripped his forearm with a firm hold.
“My trousers too,” Lu Li muttered. His drunken logic was remarkably straightforward: since Aseya had already stripped his shirt, why shouldn’t he help him shed his trousers as well?
Unfortunately, a completely sober Aseya was currently harboring a mind that was anything but innocent.
“Your… trousers?” With his imagination instantly veering into highly improper territory, a furious blush flooded Aseya’s face.
“Master, please remove those yourself. I am leaving.”
Seeing that Aseya was still refusing to assist him, Lu Li’s face contorted as he made a theatrical show of preparing to break into tears all over again.
“Don’t—please, don’t cry.” Aseya was genuinely terrified of this specific manifestation of the male.
Lu Li is strictly forbidden from touching a single drop of alcohol ever again!
He simply could not comprehend why the usually sweet male transformed into such a… shameless rogue after drinking.
“I… I will help you.”
Squeezing the words past his throat, Aseya snapped his head to the side, squeezed his eyelids shut, and in one concentrated burst of motion, yanked Lu Li’s trousers down. Without throwing a single glance behind him, he bolted out of the bathroom.
“Phew… ha…” Aseya’s breathing was ragged from his frantic escape, but what truly sent his heart hammering against his ribs was Lu Li’s scandalous behavior.
Goodness, why on earth does the Male Lord act this way when he’s intoxicated?
Meanwhile, back in the bathroom, Lu Li assessed his completely bare state and concluded he was finally ready to bathe. He stepped over the edge and settled comfortably into the tub.
He simply lay there.
As Lu Li remained reclined in the water, the gentle, enveloping warmth began to erode his remaining consciousness. Compounded by the hypnotic sedative effect of the alcohol, his mind gradually dissolved into a hazy, seamless slumber.
Standing vigil outside, a significant amount of time passed without Aseya seeing any sign of Lu Li emerging. A sharp note of worry flared in his chest; he was terrified the male might suffer from oxygen deprivation if he soaked for too long.
Approaching the door, Aseya rapped his knuckles against the wood, calling out, “Master? Are you finished soaking? It is time to come out and get some rest.”
A heavy, unbroken silence was his only response.
Terrified that the male had suffered an accident inside, Aseya threw caution to the wind, twisted the handle, and stepped into the room.
The moment he crossed the threshold, his eyes locked onto Lu Li, who had effectively fallen fast asleep right in the middle of the tub.
Within the bathroom’s thick, swirling canopy of warm steam, Lu Li’s frame was semi-submerged. His face was partially obscured by the shifting mist, yet the hazy atmosphere failed to mask the striking, exquisite symmetry of his features.
His damp hair clung messily to his forehead, with stray droplets of water tracking slowly down his cheeks before plunging back into the tub, sending tiny, rhythmic ripples across the surface.
His broad shoulders and taut chest rose and fell in a slow, rhythmic cadence with his respirations. One arm was draped casually over the porcelain rim with his fingers subtly curled, while his long, straight legs looked exceptionally sleek and fluid beneath the water’s refraction.
Aseya stepped directly to the edge of the bath. Just as he bent down, intending to hoist Lu Li out and carry him back to the safety of their bed, Lu Li suddenly utilized his leverage, violently pulling Aseya downward.
Aseya felt the world instantly tilt on its axis. Accompanied by a sharp, abbreviated gasp of shock, he plunged headfirst into the basin of warm, swirling water.
The water splashed violently in all directions through the intimate, steam-filled space, instantly enveloping him.
His formal military garments were saturated in a heartbeat, plastering themselves tightly against his skin.
For the evening’s banquet, Aseya had worn a crisp white dress shirt beneath his uniform jacket. Now, thoroughly soaked by the water, the fabric turned almost entirely translucent.
“Master!” Aseya barked, his voice a volatile mix of embarrassment and mock fury.
The bathtub was entirely too confined, forcing Lu Li and Aseya’s bodies into absolute, seamless alignment as the warm currents pooled around them.
Lu Li’s hands were currently clamped firmly around Aseya’s waist, making it utterly impossible for the general to ignore the searing heat radiating against his skin.
Simultaneously, Aseya’s lower back was pressed flush against Lu Li’s defined abdominal muscles, allowing him to feel the fierce, powerful thrumming of the male’s heartbeat.
Lu Li’s lips were buried against Aseya’s neck not initiating a proper kiss, but rubbing against the sensitive skin in a teasing, erratic fashion, his hot breath washing over Aseya’s throat.
Even though Lu Li was definitively the one who was drunk, Aseya found his own consciousness rapidly dissolving into a hazy twilight.
While a deeply buried part of Aseya secretly wished for something more intimate to transpire between them, he was rational enough to recognize that given Lu Li’s current state of absolute intoxication, nothing substantial could actually happen…
I need to get the Male Lord back to the bedroom first.
He couldn’t possibly allow a noble male to sleep inside a bathtub for the duration of the night. What if he caught a chill?
Letting out a soft, defeated sigh, Aseya reached for a plush bath towel, wrapping Lu Li securely within its folds. After meticulously drying the moisture from the male’s body, he hoisted him up and carried him to the bed.
Slipping under the covers, Aseya settled himself directly beside Lu Li, ensuring he was close enough to monitor the drunk male throughout the night.
Fortunately, for the remainder of the evening, Lu Li remained exceptionally well-behaved, drifting peacefully without throwing any further tantrums.
The silver moonlight gradually faded from the sleeping world, replaced by a delicate, brilliant ribbon of gold cresting along the distant horizon.
Lu Li slowly drifted awake, his cognitive faculties systematically returning to him. The moment his memory replayed his outrageously roguish, shameless behavior from the previous night, he didn’t even attempt to formulate an excuse. He was too terrified that Aseya would simply tack on an extra sentence to his sentence.
Moving with absolute stealth, he slipped out from beneath the blankets. He intended to clean himself up swiftly and march straight into the kitchen to prepare breakfast a culinary offering of deep atonement.
He could only pray that Aseya wouldn’t hold last night’s antics against him.
The moment Aseya opened his eyes, his gaze instinctively swept the room for Lu Li, only to find the space beside him vacant.
Reaching out to touch the mattress, the fabric still retained a lingering, subtle warmth.
It appeared the male had only just departed.
Now that Lu Li was undoubtedly sober, Aseya couldn’t help but wonder how the male would react once he recalled the sheer scale of his behavior from the night before.
Aseya glided toward the kitchen. Peering from a distance, Lu Li’s silhouette with his striking broad shoulders tapering into a lean waist presented a thoroughly magnificent, aesthetically pleasing view.
Ah… Aseya sighed internally. No matter what kind of trouble Lu Li managed to stir up, the moment Aseya looked at that handsome face, it was physically impossible to maintain any real anger.
There was simply no fighting it; Lu Tea-Tea truly possessed a devastatingly effective countenance.
Aseya silently crept up directly behind Lu Li, his movements completely devoid of sound.
When Lu Li casually turned around, he was startled so violently he nearly jumped out of his skin.
“My… Ci jun! You’re awake,” Lu Li stammered, a profound wave of guilt washing over his features as he forced a highly placating, eager smile onto his face.
“Master, are you entirely sober now?” Aseya questioned, adopting the posture of an inquisitor settling accounts after the autumn harvest.
Hearing that specific tone, Lu Li knew he was officially on trial. “Completely sober, I swear! Look, I’m already in the middle of preparing a grand breakfast for you.”
Aseya offered a flat, neutral response. “Mmh. Very well. Carry on then.”
Hearing that detached reply, Lu Li felt a cold sweat break out; he was convinced Aseya was genuinely furious. Yet, he was somewhat baffled as to the exact root of the general’s anger. He didn’t think his drunken behavior qualified as an unforgivable sin sure, he had been an absolute scoundrel… but surely that wasn’t enough to make Aseya truly resent him?
Abandoning the breakfast entirely, Lu Li unlooped his apron, cast it aside, and carefully navigated his way right into Aseya’s personal space.
Dropping his head, he began using his fluffy, unruly hair to rhythmically nuzzle against Aseya’s neck, offering a relentless stream of puppy-like affection.
Aseya felt the ticklish, soft friction against his skin, but he steeled his resolve. He determined that he would absolutely not grant Lu Li an easy pardon this time.
Seeing his standard tactic falling entirely flat, Lu Li immediately switched gears, charting a bold, alternative path.
“My Ci jun, look over there what is that?”
The moment Aseya instinctively turned his head to investigate, Lu Li moved with lightning speed, thoroughly capturing his breath.
Lu Li… had actually… thrown all caution to the wind and crashed his lips directly against Aseya’s.
Beneath the soft, warm ambient light of the kitchen, their gazes locked into absolute alignment, creating an illusion that time itself had ground to a halt for this singular moment.
Lu Li’s kiss was a violent, intoxicating storm of deep fervor and meticulous tenderness. His tongue smoothly pried past Aseya’s teeth, their hurried, scorching breaths intertwining until they became entirely indistinguishable from one another.
Aseya was caught completely off guard initially, his mind turning blank. The moment his instincts caught up, however, he began matching Lu Li’s fierce intensity with equal fervor, looping his arms securely around the male’s neck to pull their bodies into a punishingly tight embrace.
Their lips and teeth remained locked, spinning into an endless, passionate entanglement. The surrounding world dissolved into a meaningless blur, leaving nothing behind but the resonant echo of their racing heartbeats and shared breath.
By the time the kiss finally concluded, both Zerg were completely breathless. Aseya, in particular, looked thoroughly unraveled, his eyes glittering with a heavy, liquid trace of deep passion.
Lu Li murmured, his voice a low, velvety rumble, “Now will you tell me exactly why you were upset, Aseya?”
With a deep crimson flush staining his cheeks, Aseya whispered, “Master… in the future, you must promise me never to consume alcohol in public spaces. Your natural tolerance is entirely too deficient, and I am terrified… that if you are intoxicated, you will perform these exact same actions with another bug.”
Lu Li’s face instantly split into a teasing, deeply amused grin. “Which actions specifically? Kissing them like this? Or demanding that they strip my garments so I can bathe?”
“Master!” Aseya cried out in sheer embarrassment.
“Alright, alright, I yield,” Lu Li chuckled, gathering his general tightly against his chest. “I solemnly guarantee that I will never touch alcohol outside our home again. At most, I will only ever share a small glass of red wine with you in private to heighten the romance between us, alright?”