Chapter 118: Extra 2
Late at night, Bai Chunsheng curled up in Yan Jingqiu’s embrace.
Beneath the bright red silk curtains and the flickering shadows of candles, he lay completely unclothed, his pale skin shining like snow, faint bruises scattered across his body, and the smooth curve of his shoulder marked with deep crimson kisses.
Yan Jingqiu held him, stroking Bai Chunsheng’s back in lazy, gentle motions. Rather than trying to lull him to sleep, he wanted to kiss him awake again.
But Bai Chunsheng looked utterly exhausted; every time Yan Jingqiu leaned close, his warm breath brushed his neck and Bai Chunsheng shivered reflexively. Seeing him so helpless, Yan Jingqiu had to restrain his desire, hiding the depth in his eyes while pulling Bai Chunsheng closer.
Once Yan Jingqiu stopped fidgeting, Bai Chunsheng quickly drifted into a dream.
In his dream, he lay on the back hills of the White Bone Mountains, where the grass grew as high as a person’s calf, swaying gently in the wind under a clear, blue sky. He was sleeping comfortably when suddenly, a sharp pain hit his ears, as if someone were tugging at them.
He immediately knew it had to be that mischievous Yan Jingqiu.
Without opening his eyes, he tried to bite out of reflex. His head received a sharp tap: “Got bold, huh?”
“Dare bite even your great-grandmother?!” It was Bai Jianghan’s voice.
That voice pierced his bones… Bai Chunsheng shivered violently and woke up.
Indeed, he was lying in the grass, half his height in blades pressing softly beneath him like a mattress. Still groggy, he rubbed his eyes and got to his feet. Not far off, Bai Jianghan sat, eyes fierce, glaring at him. Bai Chunsheng immediately realized he must still be dreaming.
Still, even in a dream, after committing a little mischief, seeing Bai Jianghan so stern made him uneasy: “Did I have a nightmare?”
Bai Jianghan’s gaze cut him down instantly: “Nightmare???”
She grabbed his ear again: “You call this a nightmare?”
Bai Chunsheng quickly admitted his fault: “Grandma, I’m sorry. I missed you.”
Bai Jianghan let out a cold laugh, unconcerned by his apology, and poked the top of his head with a finger: “The first time you saw that Yan boy, I told you to remember his face. From then on, keep as far away as possible. What did you tell me? You said you’d remember even if you turned to ashes? Looks like all you remembered was that fish at the birthday banquet was delicious.”
Her anger had clearly built up over time: “You little scatterbrain. I warned you to stay far away from Yan Jingqiu. Those wolf-like eyes of his could’ve devoured you—didn’t you notice?”
—Now he did.
Bai Chunsheng felt a pang of grievance.
“And you still went closer? Didn’t realize how tempting you were as prey? When Yan Jingqiu brought you back from Lutai, I already sensed something was off. ‘Friend’? Who looks at a casual friend like that?”
Bai Jianghan’s frustration boiled over: “I sent you to Cuiwei Palace for Hongtao, to Tianqing Sect for Changping, or if all else failed, to the Xu family… All these people, for my sake or our clan’s heritage, would take you in and protect you.”
“Yan Jingqiu is fierce and greedy, the upgraded version of Yan Jianhang.”
“Ye Jingxing was once a dragon of great promise, but Yan Jianhang changed his name and lineage, severing all ties with his past, erasing every trace of his existence, humiliating him and folding him into his own family. To manipulate the world’s marriages, he even had the Dragon King fabricate an identity for Ye Jingxing as a bride to Yan Jianhang. How Yan Jianhang forced him to death… I shudder to think what Yan Jingqiu could do to you.”
“Yan Jianhang left Ye Jingxing nowhere to hide.”
“Yan Jingqiu would inevitably have entertained the same idea—to cut off all your paths of retreat, to trap you by every possible means, so that you would have no choice, no option but to love him.”
“I had already seen enough of that in Yan Jianhang.”
“This kind of obsessive need for control only became so perverse because, pitifully, they had never felt secure in being loved.” Bai Jianghan continued to curse, “That useless Penglai cultivator told me everything. And Yan Jingqiu even had the nerve to shamelessly go to him, saying he wanted to marry you. What a joke—truly ridiculous.”
Bai Jianghan instructed, “If Yan Jingqiu comes to pester you again, just slap him across the face and tell him to get lost. I doubt he would actually dare to do anything to you.”
Bai Chunsheng could not help but speak up for his beloved, protesting on his behalf. “He would dare.”
Bai Jianghan: “……”
She fell silent for a long while. Her gaze traveled up and down Bai Chunsheng, and she saw clearly that he looked utterly radiant, like spring itself.
After quite some time, she ground her teeth and said, “You didn’t just come straight from Yan Jingqiu’s bed, did you?”
Bai Chunsheng paused, then gave a vague hum in response. In truth, if this were a dream, he should still have been asleep in Yan Jingqiu’s arms at that very moment.
Seeing this, Bai Jianghan stared at him in disbelief. “You… you… you haven’t even gotten out of his bed yet, have you?”
Bai Chunsheng shrank his neck, his voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz. “We slept… slept together.”
Bai Jianghan’s teeth ground even harder. “Just wait until I strip that dragon’s hide off him—such a brazen, lust-driven brat!”
Yan Jingqiu had concealed the fact that he had already regained his memories extremely well. It had been nearly half a month since they returned from the Western Region, and Bai Chunsheng had not realized at all that Yan Jingqiu’s memories had long since come back.
Bai Chunsheng defended him in a soft voice, “He was still ill. You can strip him later… after he recovered.”
Author’s Note:
Bai Chunsheng—the master of timing, bold with the weak and cautious with the strong—possessed a kind of linguistic artistry that could anger Bai Jianghan back to life, yet, when Yan Jingqiu heard it, would make him want to bed him to death.
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
