Chapter 0521: A Fragrant Reward
Pitter patter.
Li Luo was sitting in his room, eyes on his books and mind somewhere else. The sound of the shower in the next room was very distracting.
Jiang Qing"e was showering right there!
Of course they had bathed together when they were young. But that was when they were children, and from the age that they began to realize the differences between men and women, the common bathing had stopped. But now Jiang Qing"e was taking a shower in his room, and it was enough to set his heart racing again.
“What is she playing at?
“What a tease.”
Li Luo sulked and tried to remain calm.
The sound of water in the bathroom continued for half an hour before stopping.
Then the door of the bathroom gently opened.
Li Luo decided to sneak a glance upwards, but his eyes never returned from their journey.
Jiang Qing"e"s long hair was down, still damp. She was in a loose-fitting set of white pajamas, which Li Luo recognized as his own, which he had left in the bathroom.
Even with the difference in size, Jiang Qing"e"s shapely body filled out the pajamas appealingly in all the right places.
And because the pajamas were long enough, they stopped perfectly at the mid-thigh area, revealing her lovely legs that made the room seem somehow brighter.
Gulp.
Li Luo felt a catch in his throat. Jiang Qing"e was often clad properly in battle clothing, matched with her cool att.i.tude that left a sense of distance with others. But now she looked completely vulnerable.
The gap in her look gave a strong appeal in a completely different way.
Li Luo was busy looking, and Jiang Qing"e acted as if nothing was wrong. Instead, she walked over to the table and poured herself a cup of hot water, taking two big gulps.
"Your pajamas are quite comfortable. They"re clean, right?"
Li Luo rubbed his nose. Nope, no nose bleed. "If you like it, I"ll give them to you," he said casually.
"Word in school is that Young Lord Li Luo is a real playboy. Are these your moves?"
"Who"s been slandering me like that?!" Li Luo demanded, outraged.
Jiang Qing"e laughed.
Li Luo found himself getting lost in her beauty again. Dark lashes framing golden eyes; smooth, fair skin you just wanted to kiss; a feminine fragrance wafting out of her body heated by the shower...
Li Luo coughed to shake himself out of it. "So, Qing"e, what is it you"re planning to do tonight?"
She tilted her head at him, golden eyes watching him. "Li Luo, you did very well at the hall-level compet.i.tion today," she said with a smile.
Li Luo hastily waved it away. "It was okay, nothing compared to you, Qing"e... Although I am indeed the strongest One Star Hall in East Divine Continent now." He grinned, lowkey happy to show off.
Jiang Qing"e did not burst his bubble. She continued to look at him with a soft expression. "In one year, you broke out of your blank palace state, made it into the Astral Sage College, and became the foremost student in your hall. Today you defeated rivals that started way ahead of you in all ways, and now you are the strongest. Li Luo, you’ve improved so much this year that even I’m surprised.
"I"m very happy today," she said softly.
She knew that his efforts were also motivated by his desire to help her with the burdens of protecting House Luolan.
And he had indeed accomplished it.
She had always been angered by those comments deriding Li Luo as useless. Her heart had gone out to him.
It had nothing to do with romantic love, but rather a deep bond between them.
Although Jiang Qing"e had been very worried about him in the two years where he had blank palaces, she had purposely reduced contact with him. It was not because she had been unwilling to be a.s.sociated with him. Rather, she was afraid that her own outstanding performance would cause him unnecessary pressure.
In the years that Li Taixuan and Tan Tailan had not been around, she had to take care of both the house and the young lord.
Now that Li Luo was growing into his own strength, she felt like she could finally put down a heavy burden.
Li Luo heard the kindness in her voice, and he felt a wave of warmth rush through him. He smiled at the beautiful view in front of him. "And so this is a reward for me?"
"You could call it that," she said with a bit of a smile.
Li Luo took a deep breath, then let it out again. "I"d call it torture, Qing"e."
She rounded the table to stand beside Li Luo and then propped herself against it, her legs beside his face.
Li Luo suddenly felt like breathing was a difficult task, more difficult than beating Jing Taixu.
Watching Li Luo squirm uncomfortably, Jiang Qing"e smiled down at him. "So let me ask you—still thinking of annulling the engagement?"
Li Luo kept his face carefully blank. "And if I am? And if I am not?" Jiang Qing"e folded her arms. "If you choose not to, perhaps our relationship will be better, and there will be more rewards in the future."
Li Luo swallowed hard. "That"s unfair," he protested. "We"re supposed to have a fair fight, not use these honey trap tactics. I know! You"re afraid!"
Her eyebrows went up. "Afraid of what, pray tell?"
"I"m getting more and more awesome by the day. At this rate, I"m going to be able to annul the engagement soon, so you"re trying to interfere with me," Li Luo accused her.
Jiang Qing"e rolled her eyes at him but gave up on the teasing. She looked out of the window at the night sky instead. "Li Luo, when the Holy Grail Meet is over, you"ll have been at the Astral Sage College for about a year." She sighed.
House Luolan"s Housemeet was almost upon them.
All the plotting and intrigue planned by their enemies would culminate then.
If they could not survive that storm, House Luolan would founder in a sea of betrayal.
And his and Jiang Qing"e"s lives might well be at risk.
It was a sobering thought. Even though Li Luo"s growth had been explosive in the last year, it was still far from enough to affect the outcome of the Housemeet. That was why he wanted to win the Holy Grail Meet and then bring the power of the three-tailed heavenly wolf that Princ.i.p.al Pang would grant him.
"House Luolan is the lifework of the Master and Mistress. No matter what others think of it, I will not permit it to be shut down. Even if it costs me my life," Jiang Qing"e said with quiet determination.
"Qing"e, we still have to win the Holy Grail Meet first," Li Luo said firmly.
It seemed like they were going to have to avoid the unknown factor of Gong Shenjun for now.
Although they still did not know why he did not want to win, this win was too important to him to risk it.
"Understood," Jiang Qing"e said.
She stretched up lazily to her full height, until even the loose pajamas showed a generous band of midriff that had Li Luo"s eyes popping. "Your room"s ventilation is better than mine. I"ll sleep here tonight."
She walked off towards Li Luo"s bedroom.
"What about me?" he asked hurriedly.
She did not even look back, casually flipping the door closed behind her.
"Take advantage of the night to do some quiet cultivation in the study? Prepare for the upcoming battle?" Her amused voice came through the door a bit m.u.f.fled.
Li Luo was devastated.
Jiang Qing"e leaned with her back against the door and smiled to herself. Surely after she had pulled Li Luo away, Lu Qing"er"s eyes would be glued to Li Luo"s door. She wasn"t intending to leave so soon.
Lu Qing"er had been making progress with Li Luo lately, so Jiang Qing"e felt the need to reestablish some dominance.