Chapter 530: Extra: Yi Nuo - Little Wolf Ears (Part 3)

“Yi Nuo…”

After the party, Jiang Qingli sat in the back seat, massaging her throat. Her brow was furrowed as she looked at the young Gray Wolf before her, calling out his name in a daze.

“Do you feel sick?” Yi Nuo sat beside her, rubbing her back soothingly with one hand as he softened his voice. “This hangover soup does induce nausea for a bit. There’s no sick bag in the car… You can use this.”

He took off his jacket and held it cupped in front of Jiang Qingli. Seeing her unhappy face, he added, “Or you can just throw up in my hands.”

Jiang Qingli scrunched up her face. “No, that’s disgusting…”

“I never knew you were a selective neat freak,” a cheerful voice called from the front seat. “You can do it over here if you want. Your big sis won’t mind.”

Jiang Qingli looked up, her face full of reproach. “You! You’re the one who made me drink the most…”

Qin Shu leaned over the seat, stretching her arm out to pat Jiang Qingli’s shoulder. “You’ve still got to practice, Jiang Hui.”

“You build up your tolerance in the military district just to come back and torment the rest of us…” Qiao Lan said speechlessly from the driver’s seat.

“It’s a rare trip back for me, and this party was your idea,” Qin Shu said, raising an eyebrow. “Secretary Qiao, I’m noticing you’re taking Qingli’s side more and more. Have you forgotten you used to be my secretary general too?”

Secretary Qiao replied, “The past is the past, and the present is the present.”

“Heartless.”

“It’s not personal.”

“You’ve gotten pretty bold now that you have Jiang Hui backing you up.”

“President Qin, you brought this upon yourself.”

As the two bickered, they failed to notice Jiang Qingli lowering her head.

Jiang Qingli had been in a good mood and drank more than usual, pushing past her limit. Even after drinking the hangover soup, she still felt unwell.

Yi Nuo thought she was about to be sick, so he quickly cupped his hand under her chin, his expression earnest.

She leaned in, but instead of throwing up, she slowly buried her face in his hand, nuzzling him with the tip of her nose.

Her lips brushed against the pads of his fingers, parting slightly as if to say something.

But in that moment, it was as if the young man’s keen hearing had been stolen away, leaving only the sense of touch.

Yi Nuo’s body went rigid, his mind involuntarily conjuring the image of her lips.

‘As soft as flower petals… and sweet.’

His Adam’s apple bobbed. Flustered, Yi Nuo turned his face away, his breath quickening in his chest.

Jiang Qingli noticed his reaction. She narrowed her eyes, puzzled. “Why are you dodging…? I just wanted to smell your hand… This hand soap is the same as mine. Did you secretly buy the same kind again?”

‘He’d spent his own money on a shopping website to buy a brand of hand soap that was supposedly used by ten percent of the entire Empire.’

‘It was a perfectly normal, aboveboard purchase, no matter how you looked at it.’

‘And yet, she called it ‘stealing’.’

‘As if he were some kind of copycat.’

‘He knew she was doing it on purpose, just to tease him.’

‘But…’

‘Yi Nuo couldn’t refute it.’

‘Because what Jiang Qingli said was the truth.’

‘He had always… used the same products as her.’

‘As her butler, he abused his position when stocking up on supplies for her, always buying an extra set for himself.’

‘It was a breach of a butler’s professional ethics.’

‘Yet he couldn’t stop this contemptible behavior.’

‘He just felt that, in doing so, they grew a little closer.’

“Scared now?”

Jiang Qingli sat up a little straighter, and Yi Nuo quickly reached out to support her back.

She leaned closer, bringing with her a sweet fragrance tinged with alcohol.

It enveloped him effortlessly.

“You act scared when I say a few words, but really… you’ll just do it again next time. Are you doing this on purpose to trick me into scolding you more?”

Jiang Qingli’s voice was a soft whisper, her breath caressing his face as she drew nearer.

‘So soft.’

Her fingers were soft, too, tracing a line from his chin to his Adam’s apple before hooking the edge of his perfectly pressed collar.

She tugged at it playfully, as if teasing a little animal. “Let me see… what other matching things have you ‘stolen,’ you little copycat…”

Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Jiang Qingli was even more assertive than usual. She gripped his arm for leverage, her every breath landing on the skin of his neck.

The two in the front seat were still bickering, oblivious to what was happening behind them.

Light and shadow danced outside the window, casting a starlit glow over them that seemed to encourage the intimacy of the moment.

Yi Nuo bit his tongue, forcing himself to regain his composure. He took her by the wrist and reminded her in a low voice, “Miss, we’re almost home.”

“Hm?” Jiang Qingli tilted her head. She watched him in confusion for a few seconds before breaking into a smile. “Ah, I see. You want me to wait until we get home to continue?”

“I…”

The rebuttal died on his lips as the voices from the front grew louder and the car lurched to a stop.

Qin Shu opened her door and got out.

Jiang Qingli waited a moment. When no one appeared, she slid off Yi Nuo and leaned forward. “Where did Sister Shu go? To find… another lover?”

“So that’s why there are so many rumors about me! Are you the one out there spreading them?”

As Qin Shu’s voice sounded, something cold was pressed against Jiang Qingli’s cheek. “Here.”

Jiang Qingli looked up to see it was a bottle of fruit beer.

“I don’t feel like I’ve had enough. Let’s have some more,” Qin Shu said, twisting the cap off her own bottle and taking a swig. “Cheers!”

Qiao Lan raised her voice. “She’s still drunk!”

“What’s there to be scared of? This stuff has a low alcohol content.” Qin Shu was drunk too, her words lazy and drawn out. “Besides, she’s got a butler with her.”

Qiao Lan glanced in the rearview mirror.

In the back seat.

Yi Nuo was taking the open bottle from Jiang Qingli’s hands, about to toss it. When Jiang Qingli mumbled that it was a waste, he paused, then tilted his head back and drank it himself.

Qiao Lan pursed her lips.

‘This butler is way too controlling.’

‘I’ll have to have a serious talk with the President about this next time.’

‘She needs to be more authoritative with her subordinates.’

–

The car came to a stop in the Jiang Family’s garage.

Qiao Lan unlocked the doors, but there was no movement from the back seat for several seconds.

But then Qin Shu laughed. “Drunk after half a bottle of fruit beer? You don’t see lightweights like that very often.”

Qiao Lan turned to look. The Gray Wolf Butler’s ears were flushed bright red, and his movements were sluggish as he tried to open the door.

Qiao Lan: “…”

It was only most of a bottle of fruit beer; a grade-schooler could drink that and not get drunk. How was he more wasted than Jiang Qingli, who’d had several rounds of drinks?

He tried to stand several times but failed.

Qiao Lan frowned worriedly. “He’s not having an allergic reaction, is he?”

Jiang Qingli pinched his cheek, repeating the question.

The young man looked up, the corners of his eyes tinged with red and his gaze moist, like a little stray animal on the roadside waiting to be taken home.

Jiang Qingli couldn’t resist and pinched his cheek again.

It took Yi Nuo a moment to process before he answered, enunciating every syllable. “I’m… not… allergic.”

“That’s a relief,” Qiao Lan said, sighing. “Do you need any help?”

“No need.” Jiang Qingli was mostly sober now. She hauled Yi Nuo to his feet. “I’ll get him home.”

Yi Nuo opened his mouth, as if to protest, but Jiang Qingli was already forcefully dragging him away.

Watching the young man’s staggering figure, Qiao Lan grew concerned. She started to get out to help, but a hand stopped her.

The culprit who’d handed over the beer was now smiling knowingly. “My dear Secretary General, now is not the time to interfere.”

Qiao Lan said, confused, “But…”

Qin Shu opened another bottle of fruit beer and held it to her lips. “Shh. Don’t spoil this beautiful night.”