Chapter 261: This Wine Today Has a Real Kick.

The ninth day of the first lunar month was Li Wei’s birthday. Ever since he turned fifteen, he had never celebrated it. His subordinates didn’t even know the date, and even his own mother never mentioned it.

Only Nanny Liang, who had served his mother, would cook him a bowl of longevity noodles each year. But she had passed away from illness three years ago, so even that one bowl of noodles was gone.

By the ninth day of the first month, the imperial court was already back in session, but the festive New Year atmosphere had yet to fade. A glance outside revealed streets bustling with cheer. Children chased each other, playing and setting off small novelty firecrackers from the Ministry of Industry.

Li Wei walked into his usual tavern.

"Shopkeeper, two jars of wine."

"Right away, Great General. Just a moment."

Li Wei was a regular. The people here weren’t awed or distant because of his status as the Great General. They were as warm and friendly as ever, but not sycophantic.

The Shopkeeper personally brought over the two jars of wine and patted them mysteriously. "Five years old. Just dug them up from the cellar a few days ago. I saved them especially for you."

Li Wei could tell from the mud seal on top that it was aged. He readily paid the silver and said, "Many thanks."

He left with the wine, and only then did a clerk walk over.

"That Great General really doesn’t put on any airs. His rank is so high, yet he still comes out to buy his own wine. That kid from the Li Family in the next alley scraped his way into a post as a seventh-rank official, and boy, is he full of himself. He expects to be waited on hand and foot, walks around with his nose in the air. If there’s a pebble in his path, someone has to pick it up before he’ll take another step. He’s so pretentious, it’s like he wishes someone would carry him to the latrine. It’s just unbelievable."

The Shopkeeper slowly flicked the beads of his abacus. "The Great General is the kind of good official who truly serves the country and its people. As for that other one... heh. His arrogance won’t last long."

The clerk sidled closer, ready to gossip. "Shopkeeper, there are rumors all over that the Great General will become Her Majesty’s Imperial Consort. Do you think it’s true?"

The Shopkeeper unhurriedly wrote the result of his calculation in the ledger.

"True or false, who can say for sure? We’ll all find out on the day of the Emperor’s grand wedding."

The clerk: "..."

’What’s the difference between saying that and saying nothing at all?’

Li Wei strolled down the street, carrying the wine and wondering where to go drink, when a carriage brazenly blocked his path.

Before he could get a clear look at the driver, the carriage curtain was lifted, revealing the Emperor’s exquisite and wicked face. "Great General, care for a dip in the hot springs?"

Li Wei boarded the carriage without a second thought. Only after he was seated did he speak. "Your Majesty, how could you come out like this?"

Xiao Yang was wrapped in an exquisite fox-fur cloak, the white trim making her small face look even more beautiful.

"Didn’t I bring you along? Or can the Great General not protect me?"

Of course, Li Wei would protect the Emperor with all his might, but he wouldn’t make reckless boasts. "Your Majesty’s safety is no small matter. This subject will inform the soldiers..."

"Enough." Xiao Yang cut him off, lightly resting her foot on his knee to stop him from leaving.

"I don’t want to be so high-profile. My people are in the shadows. Everything is arranged."

Only then did Li Wei breathe a sigh of relief.

Seeing him like this, Xiao Yang couldn’t help but laugh. "While I am very pleased with how steady and reliable you are, acting like this... you’re more like an elder than Prince Jing."

Li Wei’s jaw tightened. ’Is Her Majesty saying I’m old?’

"Between this subject and Your Majesty, we are first ruler and subject, and all else comes second. Your Majesty’s safety concerns the stability of the entire nation..."

Xiao Yang raised a hand and manually shut him up.

"I’m quite certain the Great General has never been in a relationship with another woman."

’If he had, he wouldn’t be saying so many unromantic things.’

Unable to speak, Li Wei stared intently at her. When she pulled her hand back, he grabbed it, using the momentum to pull her straight into his arms.

One hand still held her wrist, while the other was already clamped firmly around her waist.

He lowered his head and took a deep breath of her scent, like a cat getting its fix.

"This subject is clumsy with words and not very good at coaxing people. Please, Your Majesty, teach me."

Though his words asked for instruction, a trail of light kisses was already falling upon her.

Xiao Yang understood. Li Wei was the hands-on type, a rough man of few words and a whole lot of strength.

Obedient and steady, but the sexual tension he created was off the charts. His entire appeal came from that heroically handsome face and the overwhelming pheromones he practically radiated.

’He’s just... devastatingly handsome!’

Xiao Yang had had enough of the palace and wanted to get out for some fresh air. She hadn’t expected to run into Li Wei halfway, so she decided to whisk him away on a whim.

When they arrived at the Palace, having learned from a few past social disasters, Xiao Yang obediently stuck to the hot spring reserved exclusively for the Emperor, ensuring no one else would disturb them.

Li Wei dutifully followed, first helping Her Majesty into the water before going off to the side to wash himself clean, only then approaching her.

A hot spring bath isn’t just for soaking. There should be food, drinks, and palace maids to scrub one’s back.

But with Li Wei present, the palace maids were all sent out.

Li Wei took over the palace maids’ duties. As much as he enjoyed it, it was certainly a challenge for him.

’These wrists look so delicate and slender, it feels like they could snap with the slightest force. How can they withstand my moves?’

’This skin is so tender and smooth.’ He was afraid to grip it tightly for fear of hurting Her Majesty, but if he didn’t, it felt like she would slip away in the next moment.

The hot spring wasn’t even that hot, but he was so worked up that beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

While Li Wei held and washed one of her hands, Xiao Yang held a wine cup in the other, sipping slowly. She leaned against a jade armrest, leisurely watching him get flustered.

Seeing that Li Wei was stubbornly wrestling with the task and refusing to give up, she couldn’t help but lift her foot and give him a light kick.

"You can learn how to attend to my bath later. For now... get those clothes off."

’Wearing clothes at a time like this, how distant of you.’

Li Wei might be clumsy with words, but he was obedient. If she told him to strip, he stripped.

Those full muscles, the clean, smooth lines, the eight-pack abs, the V-lines winding their way down... The scars didn’t diminish his appeal; on the contrary, they added a kind of wild attraction.

Xiao Yang’s eyes were full of appreciation.

’Tsk, tsk. This wine today is really strong.’

Li Wei placed his hands on the edge of his belt. He gave it a tug, then stopped and looked up at Her Majesty.

Their eyes met. Xiao Yang raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

Li Wei took her hand and placed it gently on the fastener. "I’ll have to trouble Your Majesty."

Before the words had even left his lips, he bent his head and kissed her.

Xiao Yang: "..."

’I get it now. Who said Li Wei was clumsy? These moves of his are deadly.’

Ripples spread through the water. Droplets trickled down fingertips, splashing up into translucent blossoms.

Incessant kisses, a heavy grinding, a torturous push and pull amid the rippling water. Just as she was about to break, he sent her soaring to the heavens.

Deep in the throes of passion, Li Wei’s voice became impossibly sexy and hoarse. "Your Majesty... this is this subject’s most beautiful birthday."

Xiao Yang: "What... birthday?"

Li Wei paused. "Your Majesty didn’t know today is this subject’s birthday?"

Xiao Yang: "I just wanted to come out and play, and I ran into you on the way." ’I really didn’t know.’

"Heh!" Li Wei laughed. "Then it must be... fate."

"HISS... Li Wei, have you gone mad?"

"May Your Majesty forgive my crime."

Xiao Yang’s scalp tingled. ’Forgive his crime? What crime?!’ She was the Emperor! She was the one who wanted to ravish him, so how did she end up being the gift delivering itself to his door?

"Li Wei, believe it or not, I will have you killed!"

Li Wei’s lips curved into a smile as he buried himself deep within her. "Alright."