Yu Shizun was dressed as ethereally as ever, like a fairy in white gauze veiling her face, a flowing water skirt hugging her form, and cloud-like scarves draped over her arms, swaying gently without a breeze. Her beauty seemed almost unreal.
But Yan Zhen had no mind to appreciate it just then. A bead of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
“Sorry, Yu Shizun. I mistook you for someone else.”
Yan Zhen’s tolerance for alcohol wasn’t great to begin with, and he’d been drinking a superior-grade vintage steeped in Tier 6 medicinal herbs. After just two cups, he’d already started feeling woozy.
Considering the celebratory mood, he hadn’t bothered refining the liquor in his system, so the buzz had lingered right up to now, leading him to grab the wrong person.
Yu Shizun’s presence had certainly sobered him up in a hurry.
She uttered a single word coolly: “Hand.”
Only then did Yan Zhen realize he was still holding on to her. He quickly withdrew his paws and flashed an awkward but polite smile.
Yu Shizun showed no sign of holding a grudge. Instead, she asked curiously, “What’s a rice bowl?”
Yan Zhen flushed with embarrassment and stammered, “Uh, it-it just means two together.”
At those words, an unwelcome image flashed through Yu Shizun’s mind: Xuan’er and Bailan, naked and kneeling before Yan Zhen, begging him for favors. Her gaze turned icy in an instant, and she turned her face away.
It was too much to watch.
Yan Zhen’s face burned red, leaving him at a loss for words.
The air grew tense. To ease it, Yan Zhen took the initiative. “Where are Mentor and the others?”
Yu Shizun closed her eyes to rest as she replied, “They’ve all gone to bathe.”
“Then why didn’t Yu Shizun join them?”
The word “join” made Yu Shizun’s eyes snap open. She glanced at Yan Zhen, saw he was just making casual conversation, and closed them again. “I bathed before coming here… Besides, if I were there, they’d feel awkward around me.”
Yan Zhen nodded, then noticed something off about her. “Are you tired, Yu Shizun? Why not just sleep here tonight? I can have Long Ying clear out a room for you. She can bunk with Cai Lian.”
Once more, those two words—”together”—sparked another inappropriate vision in Yu Shizun’s head, throwing her thoughts into disarray.
“No need. I’ll sober up and head back.”
Yan Zhen looked puzzled. “Can’t you just refine it away?”
“That wouldn’t be proper,” Yu Shizun said. “Besides, this is wine offered in respect to Lady Chen Xi.”
“There’s no need to be so rigid about etiquette,” Yan Zhen advised. “If it feels bad, better to refine it right away.”
Yu Shizun shook her head, and Yan Zhen dropped the subject.
Respectfully not refining toasts was a matter of courtesy, but only while at the table. Once away from it, no one fussed over such things.
Yu Shizun clung to it because of her deep, heartfelt respect for the Beautiful Female Master.
Still, Yu Shizun seemed to have drunk quite a bit herself. The younger ones had all toasted her, and she’d returned toasts to the Beautiful Female Master.
Aside from Long Ying, who drank like it was water, Yu Shizun had imbibed the most.
As Yan Zhen considered brewing her some tea, Yu Shizun suddenly swayed and slumped against his shoulder.
He turned to look and found her breathing steady and even—she had fallen asleep.
No wonder she was just sitting there on the couch, not leaving. She must have been thoroughly drunk.
Yan Zhen smiled to himself, thinking how surprisingly cute Yu Shizun could be at times like this.
After a moment’s thought, he gently helped her rest her head on his thigh and lifted her legs up too, so she could sleep more comfortably.
Yu Shizun dreamed.
In the dream, she went to Yan Zhen to discuss business, only to find him stacking Xuan’er and Bailan together, ravishing them at will.
Before she could retreat, Yan Zhen yanked her over, clearly intending to turn her into a “rice bowl” too!
Yu Shizun tried to resist, but Xuan’er and Bailan pinned her down from either side, aiding their man in his mischief!
“I’ve had designs on you for a long time, Yu Shizun~”
Yan Zhen cackled like a villain, swiftly stripping off her dress—and then…
And then nothing. The dream-Yan Zhen kept trying to undress her endlessly, as if he’d never quite manage it.
As a Supreme Powerhouse, she didn’t sleep long—less than the time it took for an incense stick to burn. When Yu Shizun opened her eyes, she saw Yan Zhen smiling faintly at her. Thinking she was still dreaming, her heart clenched. She raised a crystalline jade hand and pinched his cheek hard.
“…No!”
Yan Zhen blinked, saying somewhat aggrievedly, “Yu Shizun, that hurts.”
His speech came out a bit lispy, one cheek pulled taut.
Yu Shizun finally snapped out of it—this wasn’t a dream. She let go at once, sitting up from his lap. Her ink-blue-tinged hair swayed lightly, wafting a faint fragrance.
Seeing the bruise on Yan Zhen’s cheek, she felt a pang of guilt. “Sorry, I thought—”
Yan Zhen rubbed his face; it didn’t hurt much. “It’s fine. I’m tough-skinned. It’ll heal quick.”
After a brief hesitation, Yu Shizun placed her jade hand on his cheek. “Let me heal it for you.”
Yang Mystic Force, Wood Mystic Force, and Water Mystic Force all had healing properties. Back at Silver Moon Mystic Academy, Mentor Yu Xuan had once used Water Mystic Force to treat Yan Zhen’s wounds.
Yu Shizun’s Water Mystic Force was countless times stronger than Mentor Yu Xuan’s had been back then. The little bruise vanished with just a touch.
Yet Yu Shizun didn’t pull away right away. Instead, she gently caressed his face, as if making up for her earlier roughness.
“Does it still hurt?”
Yan Zhen felt her small hand cool and silky against his skin, like a soothing breeze. He answered honestly, “Not anymore.”
Only then did Yu Shizun withdraw her tender hand. The eyes not hidden by her veil glimmered with a hint of reproach. “Don’t touch me randomly next time, or it won’t just be a pinch on the cheek.”
Yan Zhen bristled at that. “Yu Shizun leaned over on her own.”
Their gazes locked, and the air fell silent.
“…”
“…”
In the end, the one in the wrong—Yu Shizun—lost first. She turned her face away but stayed stubborn. “Next time, remember to help me up.”
“No way,” Yan Zhen said firmly, shooting her a sideways glance. “Sleeping’s way more comfy lying down.”
Yu Shizun was just as stubborn. “Next time, I won’t sit next to you.”
“I’ll sit,” Yan Zhen grinned. “Wherever Yu Shizun is, that’s where I’ll be!”
“Oily tongue.”
“Nyah nyah nyah~”
Yan Zhen pulled a classic Shiba Inu face, flicking his tongue out playfully a few times. It made Yu Shizun flush a little; she quickly shoved his face to the side and scolded, “You’re a Saint Son now. Watch your image.”
Yan Zhen tucked his tongue away. “Yu Shizun’s no outsider.”
—No outsider? Does that make her an insider?
The thought crossed her mind, muddling her feelings further. She shoved Yan Zhen flat onto the couch and shot to her feet, heading for the door.
“I’m heading back first. Swing by the Yu Family when you have time. Yu Lu probably wants to see you.”
With that, she hurried off.
Leaving Yan Zhen alone on the beauty’s couch, staring blankly.
Speaking of the Yu Family brought to mind how his mother-in-law had hoped he’d impregnate Mentor Yu Xuan before becoming a Saint Son!
But now that he’d become the Jialan Flame Holy Son ahead of schedule, he could no longer be the Yu Family’s live-in son-in-law.
His mother-in-law’s feelings must be awfully complicated right now.
