Chapter 61

At this, Li Sipei could no longer lie still. He abruptly tried to sit up from the bed, but his movements were too sudden, and he lost his strength. Before he could sit upright, he fell straight back down.

Mi Zhao was startled by his sudden movement, afraid that he might have hurt himself. Without a second thought, he tossed aside his drawing and pencils and quickly reached out to support him.

With Mi Zhao’s help, Li Sipei leaned against the headboard. His chest rose and fell slightly in agitation, and his gaze was cold, refusing even to glance in Mi Zhao’s direction.

Seeing this, Mi Zhao took the initiative to hold Li Sipei’s hand. “Alright now…”

Before he could finish speaking, Li Sipei pulled his hand away and placed it on the other side of his body, deliberately avoiding Mi Zhao’s touch.

Left with no choice, Mi Zhao picked up the discarded drawing and pencils, put the pencil back into the case, then tore off the sheet of paper and waved it in front of Li Sipei’s eyes.

“Look at my drawing. How did I do?”

Li Sipei sat rigidly, completely silent.

Mi Zhao clicked his tongue and shook his head. “Such a temper. You won’t even give me a little face.”

At those words, Li Sipei’s long eyelashes trembled slightly. The bedside lamp’s light was limited, and he had turned his face toward the shadows, making his expression hard to discern. But Mi Zhao could see his thin lips press together slightly.

After a long pause, a chilly voice drifted over. “You drew someone else. What’s there to look at?”

“Someone else?” Mi Zhao raised an eyebrow. He had guessed that Li Sipei was upset about this. In fact, he had done it on purpose. In the past, dealing with an angry Li Sipei had given him headaches, but now he suddenly found it rather cute.

Sure, Li Sipei got jealous a little too often, but that just meant he liked him.

Otherwise, why would he care?

Thinking about this, Mi Zhao no longer found it annoying. Instead, a sweet warmth bubbled up in his heart. He shook the drawing in his hand and said, “Look again. Who’s in the picture?”

Li Sipei cast another glance at the drawing out of the corner of his eye—and instantly froze.

Seizing the moment, Mi Zhao leaned in and kissed the corner of his lips, a triumphant smile playing on his face. “Just because I changed your hairstyle, you don’t recognize yourself anymore?”

Li Sipei tilted his face slightly, his gaze shifting from the drawing to Mi Zhao’s face.

Their eyes met at a close distance.

Mi Zhao loosened his grip, letting the drawing drift onto the blanket. Then, he lifted his leg onto the bed, half-kneeling as he cupped Li Sipei’s face with both hands.

“You’re my boyfriend now. If I don’t draw you, who else would I draw?” As Mi Zhao spoke, his warm breath brushed against Li Sipei’s skin. His dark eyes narrowed and widened with the rhythm of his words, reflecting the soft glow of the lamp as if they could speak.

With that, he wrapped his arms around Li Sipei’s neck and rested his chin on his shoulder. “Don’t be mad anymore. I didn’t ignore your video call on purpose.”

The topic shifted in an instant.

Li Sipei’s heart wasn’t made of stone, and he wasn’t truly mad at Mi Zhao. With Mi Zhao’s coaxing, the cold aura around him gradually softened.

His expression remained indifferent, but his hands had already instinctively circled around Mi Zhao’s waist.

“Then why did you hang up on me?”

Mi Zhao realized he had completely misjudged Li Sipei in the past. The way Li Sipei had introduced himself at the villa was spot on—he was an incredibly serious person in every aspect.

“Oh, come on. How could I video call you in a situation like that? I’m not thick-skinned enough for that.” Mi Zhao laughed helplessly. “Wouldn’t that be the same as giving you a live stream while I’m taking a shit?”

The phrase “taking a shit” seemed to hit a nerve, making Li Sipei’s brows instantly knot into a frown.

“Don’t say those words.”

“…” Mi Zhao almost forgot that his boyfriend was a reserved person who didn’t like internet slang. He couldn’t help but grin as he leaned in and asked, “Which words?”

Li Sipei didn’t answer, only staring at him in silence.

Mi Zhao stuck out his tongue playfully, then tilted his head and kissed Li Sipei’s lips. “Alright, alright. I won’t say it anymore… I’m all set now. When do we start?”

Mi Zhao didn’t want every meeting with Li Sipei to revolve around just one thing. It made it seem like they were only together for physical reasons. But at the same time, Li Sipei’s serious, proper demeanor was so adorable.

And, well… a little tempting too.

Just as his lips brushed against Li Sipei’s, he couldn’t resist slipping out his tongue to pry open Li Sipei’s teeth, sweeping over the roof of his mouth.

Li Sipei’s head tilted back slightly, as if resisting, but his hands made no move to push Mi Zhao away.

Mi Zhao sighed inwardly. He knew all too well how stubborn Li Sipei could be. With one hand, he reached for the back of Li Sipei’s head, holding him firmly in place, then deepened the kiss without hesitation.

In the dim light, the two kissed for a long while.

Mi Zhao’s coat and sweater had already been tossed to the foot of the bed, and his pants were halfway down, stuck at his knees.

Flustered, he struggled to get them off, but the more he fumbled, the harder it became. No matter what, they just wouldn’t come off.

Just as he was about to use both hands to yank them down, Li Sipei suddenly grabbed his wrist and gave it a gentle tug.

Caught off guard, Mi Zhao lost his balance and tumbled into Li Sipei’s arms.

Li Sipei caught him, holding him close. Then, reaching past his waist, he grabbed the fabric of his pants at the knees.

With ease, he pulled them off entirely—before his hand moved up to grasp the edge of Mi Zhao’s last piece of clothing.

Mi Zhao sat on Li Sipei’s lap. He had always taken off his clothes by himself before, but this was the first time Li Sipei had touched his underwear. For some reason, his face suddenly felt hot with embarrassment.

“Lift up,” Li Sipei urged near his ear.

“Huh?” Mi Zhao turned his head and met Li Sipei’s lowered gaze.

Li Sipei’s expression remained unchanged as he calmly uttered two words: “Your butt.”

“…”

Mi Zhao wanted to say he could do it himself, but then he remembered—that wasn’t his role. So, gritting his teeth, he played along. As soon as he lifted up, he felt cold—his last piece of clothing was gone.

Turning defense into offense, he flipped over and pressed Li Sipei against the headboard. Before he could say anything, a sudden sharp sting spread across his backside.

His body jolted, eyes widening in disbelief. He gaped at Li Sipei. “Did you just slap my butt?”

Before his words even finished, there was another sharp smack.

The sound was crisp and clear.

Li Sipei resisted the urge to do it again and simply explained, “There’s a lot of flesh. I just felt like doing it.”

“And you slapped it too?”

“It was instinctive.”

Li Sipei had wanted to do this for a long time—especially whenever Mi Zhao turned his back to him. His eyes had been practically glued to those two round curves. They were firm yet always seemed to tremble slightly with every breath Mi Zhao took.

Every time, he had to fight the urge to reach out and touch them.

Mi Zhao had no idea what was going on in Li Sipei’s mind. He only felt like Li Sipei was doing it on purpose—first getting mad, then slapping his butt, all just to mess with him.

He narrowed his eyes, clenched his teeth, and leaned in to bite Li Sipei’s collarbone.

Bite after bite, the atmosphere shifted. Their lips found each other, sticking together as if glued, impossible to separate.

Until Li Sipei’s phone rang on the bedside table.

Mi Zhao lifted his head to glance at it, but Li Sipei blocked his view with his hand.

“It’s your call,” Mi Zhao reminded.

“Ignore it.”

Mi Zhao propped his hands against Li Sipei’s chest, a little concerned. “But what if it’s something important…?”

A thin layer of sweat had already formed on Li Sipei’s face, softening the sharp lines of his features. His brows furrowed slightly, and his eyes were filled with obvious emotion, yet his voice remained calm. “Have I ever had anything important?”

“…”

Mi Zhao thought about it seriously. He really hadn’t.

After all, to everyone else, nothing in the world was more important than Li Sipei getting his rest.

Though, of course, this kind of “rest” was a little different.

Meanwhile.

Lin Qiuzu hung up after his third unanswered call. He stood outside the locked iron gate of the apartment complex, peering inside for a long time before finally calling a friend.

His friend answered instantly, sounding exasperated. “You’ve been struggling this long and still haven’t gotten in?”

“The security here is ridiculous. They won’t let me in unless they can reach the resident. They’re insisting I call Li Sipei directly.” Lin Qiuzu, who lived in a villa himself, had never encountered such strict security before. He was so frustrated his teeth were about to crack. “Is your property management out of their minds? Do they think I’m a thief or something?”

His friend also lived in the complex. Lin Qiuzu had often used visiting him as an excuse to try and “accidentally” run into Li Sipei. Unfortunately, even though he had memorized the garage and neighborhood layout, he had never once caught sight of him.

“I told you, our property management is perfectly normal. Have you ever had trouble getting into my place?” His friend said. “The only thing unusual is the security around Third Master Li. The patrols around his building are much more frequent. I’m guessing someone from his side gave special instructions.”

Lin Qiuzu groaned. “So what am I supposed to do?”

“You have two choices—give up or get Third Master Li to pick up the phone and let you in.”

“But he’s not answering!” Lin Qiuzu sneezed, his nose nearly dripping. He had chosen fashion over comfort, wearing only a leather jacket over a paper-thin undershirt that did nothing to block the wind. After standing outside in the freezing cold for over an hour, his brain felt like it was going numb.

His friend was silent for a moment before cautiously suggesting, “Then… maybe just go home?”

Lin Qiuzu’s voice shot up. “How could I? I haven’t even seen him yet!”

His friend wisely chose to remain silent.

Frustrated, Lin Qiuzu crouched down. He had come here with high hopes, only to be met with crushing disappointment. When Li Sipei had been hospitalized, he had gone to visit several times, but the place had been swarming with people. Even Old Madam Li had shown up from time to time, making it impossible for him to approach. Now, after finally waiting for Li Sipei to be discharged, he had wanted to be the first to make an impression—only to be stopped at the gate.

By tomorrow, news would spread, and more people would come. Seeing Li Sipei would only get harder.

Lin Qiuzu had been around plenty of men before. Even Li Yan and the others were easy for him to hook with just a crook of his finger. Yet no man had ever been this difficult to approach.

Stepping back into a small alley, he tilted his head up, counting the floors.

Through the thin curtains of Li Sipei’s bedroom window, he could see a faint, warm light glowing from within.

Clearly, Li Sipei was still awake.

But what was he doing? Why wasn’t he answering the phone?

Maybe he was busy and didn’t hear it ring. Or maybe… he just didn’t have time to pick up.

Lin Qiuzu could only try to comfort himself with that thought.