The wine at Cuiyi Pavilion was actually not drugged; the aphrodisiac had been smeared directly onto the rim of the cup. Bai Yiyan had noticed this detail and thus avoided touching the wine in his cup altogether, yet he never expected the curious Cao Xiaohan to drink it instead. He could not help feeling a bit annoyed with himself; he should have simply knocked the spiked wine over from the start.
Stepping forward, Bai Yiyan scooped Cao Xiaohan up into his arms, left some silver notes on the table, and quietly slipped out through the back door of Cuiyi Pavilion. The male attendant opening the door took one look at this strange master-and-servant pair and wore an expression of sudden, dawning enlightenment. So that is how it is, he thought. No wonder it felt so odd, though this young master’s tastes are certainly peculiar. It was only after getting outside that Bai Yiyan carried the silly rabbit using his lightness kung fu all the way back to the inn.
No sooner had they left than a piercing shriek echoed from within Cuiyi Pavilion. Hearing the scream erupting from Shuangxue’s chambers, the brothel’s guards kicked the door open and rushed inside. The room was pitch black, and the attendant who hurried over with them hastily lit a lamp. The madam, arriving shortly after, found Shuangxue half-reclining on the bed with her clothes half-disheveled, having shoved Wealthy Patron Niu down onto the floor. Wealthy Patron Niu sat on the floor looking completely bewildered, wondering how on earth he ended up down there. Upon seeing this scene, the madam’s face turned as dark as a pot. The damn fat pig had actually tried to force himself upon her girl without paying a single coin under her own roof.
“Wealthy Patron Niu, it is not that this mother here is being unreasonable, but if you really like our Shuangxue, you could have waited until the bidding three days from now. There was no need to try and jump the queue like this, and acting this way breaks our house rules!” The madam was not afraid of making a big fuss with Wealthy Patron Niu; after all, if his fierce tiger of a wife found out, Wealthy Patron Niu would surely be stripped of a layer of skin. Shuangxue adjusted her already scanty attire and sat on the bed weeping softly.
Wealthy Patron Niu clambered to his feet, still utterly clueless as to what had transpired. “Madam, I truly have no idea what happened.”
“Oh, go on! You did it, so do not try to deny it.” Seeing that Wealthy Patron Niu had not actually taken much advantage of the girl, the madam calculated in her mind how much silver she could squeeze out of him. “Since things have come to this, just fork over fifty taels of silver and we will call it square. Otherwise, everyone in this house will know how eagerly you tried to force yourself on her, and I will personally go to the yamen and report that you owe debts to our establishment.”
Terrified that the matter would blow up and reach his own shrew of a wife back home, Wealthy Patron Niu swallowed his pride, offered a few ingratiating remarks to the madam, left behind fifty taels of silver, and departed with his personal attendant, his mind full of unanswerable questions.
In truth, the mastermind behind all this was none other than Bai Yiyan. Before leaving, he had casually tossed Wealthy Patron Niu right on top of Shuangxue as she lay on the bed. As for Shuangxue’s disheveled clothes, she had messed them up herself upon waking and trying to push the heavy Niu away.
“Brother Liu, it is so hot.” On the way back, Cao Xiaohan kept rubbing his face against Bai Yiyan’s chest, his hands incessantly tugging at his own clothing. Beneath his unremarkable features, an astonishingly seductive allure unexpectedly bloomed. Bai Yiyan suddenly felt that the human-skin mask on Cao Xiaohan’s face was an absolute eyesore; he desperately wanted to see what kind of captivating expression the silly rabbit’s true face would wear under such an influx of passion.
Back at the inn, Bai Yiyan had the attendant deliver a tub of hot water and bolted the door. Reaching out, he peeled the human-skin mask off Cao Xiaohan’s face. Feeling a pair of cool hands touching his skin, Cao Xiaohan found it immensely soothing, leaning his face forward to rub against them more. When those hands attempted to pull away, he hastily reached out to block them.
The moment Bai Yiyan removed the mask, his hands were instantly seized by a pair of burning, feverish little hands and pulled against Cao Xiaohan’s face to rub. Whenever he tried to withdraw them, the fellow would chase right after them. With no other choice, he had to forcibly yank his hands back.
Cao Xiaohan grabbed onto the large hands that felt so wonderfully cool, rubbing them against his soft, tender cheeks. The cool sensation felt absolute bliss, yet the owner of those big hands was so infuriatingly stubborn, constantly trying to pull them away. He refused to let that happen! Grasping the large hands tightly, he thrust his face back against them. But lacking the strength to match the other person, his hands were ultimately pulled away once more.
Regaining his hands, Bai Yiyan looked at the boy’s pouting, aggrieved expression, feeling equal parts amused and exasperated. He reached out and began unbuttoning Cao Xiaohan’s clothes. Sensing a cool object approaching him, Cao Xiaohan dizzily and blindly clung to it, using both hands and feet to scramble upward against the form. Sure enough, he managed to latch onto a cool entity, hugging it tightly and rubbing against it with a blissful sigh, letting out a soft, pleasurable groan: “Mm, feels so good.” Just as he wanted to continue, he was yanked away again, prompting him to flail desperately in an attempt to get close once more, though his limbs remained entirely limp and his efforts proved futile.
Watching Cao Xiaohan, Bai Yiyan took in the disheveled locks of hair, the misty, dazed eyes shimmering with moisture, the flushed cheeks, and the slightly parted lips that faintly revealed a delicate pink tongue, practically inviting a kiss. His clothes were half-undone, exposing fair, tender skin across his chest where two rosy nipples peeked in and out amidst the tangled fabric, stirring boundless imagination. Right now, Cao Xiaohan radiated an aura of unadulterated, bewitching indulgence that hooked one’s very soul. Bai Yiyan’s throat tightened as a surge of heat pooled low in his abdomen. He cursed under his breath: Dammit.
Cao Xiaohan felt overwhelmingly hot, desperately yearning to do something to vent the scorching fever raging inside his body, though he had no idea what to do. Constantly clawing at his own garments, he figured subconsciously that taking his clothes off might make the heat go away. He tossed and turned restlessly on the bed, struggling frantically to peel off the troublesome clothing binding him.
Taking a deep breath, Bai Yiyan reached out to continue stripping him, but his hands kept brushing against that slick, sweat-dampened skin, thoroughly rattling his composure. He was hardly inexperienced; by the time he reached adulthood, he had already ventured out to sample the world. After leaving the valley, there had even been a period where he indulged himself freely, thoroughly enjoying that kind of physical pleasure. Yet, no one had ever been able to ignite his desires as effortlessly as this silly rabbit; his formidable self-control was steadily crumbling away.
Finally, seeing Cao Xiaohan thrashing about with such chaotic energy, Bai Yiyan simply tore the boy’s remaining clothes to shreds, scooped the completely stripped silly rabbit up in his arms, and stepped directly into the wooden bathing tub. Cao Xiaohan only felt himself lifted into an embrace, an embrace that felt unimaginably comfortable, offering a sliver of relief to the restless anxiety he could not purge. He writhed his feverish body against the embrace, trying to rub himself deeper into that comforting frame.
As Bai Yiyan held the unruly silly rabbit inside the tub, the boy twisted around and lifted his head, seemingly trying to make out his face. Lacking control over his weak body, his lips accidentally grazed against Bai Yiyan’s cheek. Looking at those soft, pink lips lingering mere inches away, Bai Yiyan could no longer hold back; he captured those soft petals, parting his teeth to slip his tongue into the boy’s mouth as he plundered and sucked unceremoniously.
Dizzily trying to make out the person holding him, Cao Xiaohan turned his head this way and that to no avail. Suddenly, his lips were sealed. The person first gently licked his lips, tracing their contour with the tip of a tongue, before sliding inward to invade his oral cavity. He felt that foreign tongue gently weaving between his teeth, chasing his own little tongue and entangling with it endlessly. Having never experienced a passionate exchange of lips and tongues before, Cao Xiaohan only felt his body grow even hotter; he was so utterly miserable. Completely uninitiated in matters of intimacy, Cao Xiaohan’s entire body flushed pink as he leaned limply against Bai Yiyan’s chest, murmuring brokenly: “Hot, so hot, mm.” His breathing grew increasingly ragged.
Following the lingering kiss, Bai Yiyan wrapped his arms around the silly rabbit from behind, knowing full well that the boy desperately needed release. One of his hands began to caress Cao Xiaohan’s entire body, finally coming to rest upon the rosy peaks on his chest, while his other hand slid between the boy’s thighs to grip his petite lower half, teasing and playing with it wantonly.
“Mm, ah.” Cao Xiaohan groaned in sheer comfort. As passion overwhelmed him, tears slipped from the corners of his eyes, and his gaze turned mesmerizingly seductive. His body twisted involuntarily, and he sensed something scorching pressing against his lower back, causing a slight discomfort.
“Damn it, you really are a vexing little goblin.” Bai Yiyan’s desire was fully incited, and he was currently caught in a fierce internal struggle: should he take advantage of the boy’s helpless state and devour the rabbit right now, or should he channel the ancient sage Liu Xiàhuì and remain completely uncorrupted while holding a beauty in his lap?