Teahouse Daily Life (2)
You, only have me (drunk)
Regarding alcohol tolerance, if we were to rank a few people from Houshengtang, the undefeated Murong Yan, much like her own status in the teahouse, stands firmly at the top. No one has ever seen her drunk.
Next in line is Zi Yan, who was once polished by Chunfeng Tower. Unless she drinks excessively, even after three or four pots of fine wine, this elegant woman would merely have rosy cheeks and continue to behave normally.
Then there’s Song Shuqing. Though her alcohol tolerance isn’t high, she has great ambition. Even if her face doesn’t change color after drinking, just three pots are enough to alter her personality (or maybe just revert to her true self?), and she occasionally experiences blackouts.
Lastly, we have Cao Yun and Ming Qin, whose alcohol tolerance is equally matched.
Bad…
Equally bad.
Bad to the core.
These two, who were once the highly skilled 『pillars』 of the Shadow Guard Camp, become utterly useless after a mere sip of alcohol. Even a child’s punch would be unavoidable for them.
Cao Yun, usually reserved and steady, turns bright red and giggles foolishly before passing out.
As for Ming Qin, who is always obedient and honest, she becomes even more open-hearted, forgetting any adult restraint and answering all questions like a child, 『revealing everything』 without holding back.
Is this information important?
Very much so.
At least for Zi Yan, she deeply regrets not knowing in advance that these three seemingly invincible 『former』 shadow guards have such poor alcohol tolerance and would quickly lose their composure.
Now, she and Murong Yan are on the first floor of the teahouse, facing the three drunken 『experts』, exchanging helpless glances.
Tonight, Zi Yan orchestrated a meal with Ming Qin and Cao Yun, who wouldn’t burn down the kitchen, while Song Shuqing fetched several large jars of plum wine and cured meat from the neighboring town. The five of them were preparing to celebrate New Year’s Eve together for the first time in the teahouse.
(You ask what Murong Yan did? She funded it! Such a sacred, important, and indispensable task naturally falls to the County Princess!)
Not knowing everyone’s alcohol tolerance, Zi Yan thoughtfully poured a cup for everyone during the meal, and then…
Then there was no “then.”
Enjoying the delicious food, Ming Qin and Cao Yun, pleased by the sweet taste of the plum wine, drank it without suspicion. Song Shuqing, in high spirits and with a hearty appetite, kept refilling her own cup, showing no restraint whatsoever.
So, before midnight, the three seasoned 『former』 shadow guards were already tipsy and mentally unstable.
As the only two fully sober people, Murong Yan and Zi Yan could only hold their heads in their hands in exasperation.
“Princess… I’m sorry.” Apologizing to the woman beside her, Zi Yan reached out to stealthily take away Song Shuqing’s cup, “It seems we won’t be able to stay up late together tonight.”
“Don’t blame yourself, it’s alright.” Murong Yan, standing, allowed Ming Qin, seated and hugging her tightly, to bury her face in her abdomen, the warm breath making her waist tingle. “This feels somewhat familiar.”
Listening to Ming Qin’s mumbling, the woman chuckled.
“Zi Yan, what are you doing?”
Suddenly speaking up, Song Shuqing, who had been leaning against the wall with her eyes closed, grabbed Zi Yan’s outstretched wrist. Her face was normal, and her speech clear. If it weren’t for the scattered wine jars on the ground, one might think she was fine. “You little rascal, stealing my heart isn’t enough, now you want to steal my cup too?”
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“Lord Song… I didn’t mean to steal your cup. It’s just that you’ve had too much, you can’t drink any more.” Ignoring the first half of the sentence, Zi Yan explained softly, letting her wrist be loosely held, “Give me the wine, alright?”
“…Dear Zi Yan, you’re so cold. How can you call me Lord Song? Don’t you love me anymore?” Pulling the woman into her lap, Song Shuqing looked extremely aggrieved. “How can you be so fickle?”
Suddenly losing balance, Zi Yan suppressed a scream and patiently explained, “Lord Song, don’t joke around, you’ve really had too much.”
She paused, lowering her voice, “…How could I not love you?”
“But.” Song Shuqing opened her squinting eyes, holding the woman’s waist. Seemingly deliberate, she said clearly and slowly, “Last night you kept calling me Shuqing, saying you wanted me. How come now… mm.”
Before she could finish, Zi Yan lost her composure, hastily covering the shadow guard’s mouth, “Stop talking!” With slightly reddened ears, she raised her voice for once, “Let go of me.”
“I won’t.” Came the decisive refusal.
Removing the hand covering her mouth, Song Shuqing held the woman’s wrist, tilting her head with a sly smile, “You have to let me call you Ah Yao, then I’ll let go.”
“Mm…” Seeing her lover’s rare mischievous side, Zi Yan’s heart trembled, feeling extremely embarrassed. But seeing Song Shuqing’s unyielding stance, she compromised, “Shuqing, let go of me, okay?”
“Not enough.” The smile on her face grew wider as the drunk woman leaned closer, “Nighttime Ah Yao isn’t like this.”
The sweet smell of wine wafted over, and Zi Yan, helpless, inhaled deeply, trying to ignore the still-sober County Princess nearby.
“Shuqing, my dear Shuqing.”
Pressing her cheek against the shadow guard’s, the usually cold woman slowly exhaled, her soft and enticing voice momentarily revealing the true nature of a nine-tailed fox, “Let Ah Yao go, Shuqing, please?”
Lifting her head, staring intently at the woman in her arms, Song Shuqing finally let go after a long pause, “Alright.”
Seemingly satisfied, yet with a low voice, the shadow guard nibbled the woman’s earlobe, whispering, “But Ah Yao, come back at night, don’t keep me waiting.”
Daring not to react further, Zi Yan stood up with a flushed face, accidentally meeting Murong Yan’s gaze.
“Mm, thank you for your hard work.” Without extra expressions or comments, the County Princess simply said lightly.
“She… she rarely acts like this.” Feeling the heat spreading to her neck, Zi Yan defended Song Shuqing, “Even when she’s mischievous, it’s always just a little, never like tonight…”
So domineering.
But she didn’t dislike it.
Murong Yan considerately lowered her head, not intending to add fuel to Zi Yan’s already burning face. Gently patting Ming Qin’s head, she spoke softly, “Ah Qin, are you sleepy?”
With rosy cheeks, Ming Qin looked up at her lover, eyes shining with delight, “It’s Yanyan!” With a foolish smile, she hugged tighter, “The best and most beautiful Yanyan in the world! My peony flower, my peony flower.”
Showing a helpless yet affectionate smile, “You’re drunk too.” Looking at the endearing shadow guard, Murong Yan sighed softly, “Zi Yan, may I borrow a room upstairs?”
She turned to ask the woman trying to wake up Cao Yun.
“Of course, Princess, please feel at home,” Zi Yan replied, then pondered what to do with the six-foot-tall man snoring on the table in front of her.
Murong Yan nodded, looked at Cao Yun, then at Ming Qin, and called, “Ah Qin, Ah Qin, do you still have strength?”
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In the midst of her stupor, Ming Qin’s muddled brain could only catch the sound of her beloved woman’s voice, clear as a cold spring, “Strength, strength, how could someone who protects Yanyan not have strength?”
She stood up and punched the air, mumbling in a daze.
“Then can Ah Qin help carry Cao Yun back to his bed and then take me to the room upstairs?” Murong Yan asked gently, as if making a polite request.
“Okay!” Even with her mind unclear, the shadow guard’s compliance to her beloved woman was absolute. Nodding, she effortlessly hoisted the taller man over her shoulder as if carrying a sack of flour, and walked straight to Cao Yun’s room.
Casually tossing her unconscious senior brother onto the bed, the drunk Ming Qin’s actions were rough, showing no concern if his head hit the bedboard. She then walked back out, standing before Murong Yan, proudly reporting, “Done!”
“Good girl.” Like soothing a young child, the woman patted Ming Qin’s bowed head, “Now, can Ah Qin take me upstairs?”
“Of course.” Ming Qin, squinting comfortably, expertly picked up Murong Yan.
Even after doing the same action a thousand times, despite her grogginess, she still managed to be inexplicably gentle, steadily supporting the woman’s bottom as she ascended the stairs.
Only when she heard the sound of a door opening upstairs did Zi Yan breathe a sigh of relief, looking down at her hand tightly gripped under the table by Song Shuqing.
“Shuqing…” In the space where only the two of them remained, the shyness in Zi Yan’s voice lessened, “Why don’t you go upstairs to rest for a while, okay?”
With an inexplicable smile, Song Shuqing propped her head on her hand, looking at her beloved, raising an eyebrow, “Why? I’m not sleepy.”
She lifted Zi Yan’s soft fingers to her lips and kissed them.
“Shuqing.” Feeling a bit ticklish and having had a few drinks herself, Zi Yan felt a heat in her chest. Looking at the shadow guard staring directly at her, she softened her voice, “Don’t be like this…”
“Like what?” Tilting her head, one corner of her mouth lifted, Song Shuqing asked, interlocking her fingers tightly with Zi Yan’s.
“Like… like looking at me like this.”
It was a rare, unabashedly honest gaze, as if wanting to devour her, to possess everything. Yet Zi Yan couldn’t avoid Song Shuqing’s eyes.
Because she liked it.
“If I don’t look at you, who should I look at?” Leaning in to hold her lover, Song Shuqing brought her face closer, her nose filled with the familiar scent of Zi Yan’s favorite perfume and a hint of the stove’s smoke from cooking earlier.
Grasping the shadow guard’s shirt tightly, Zi Yan’s throat felt dry. She swallowed and turned her head slightly, trying to speak, “Lord Song… Shuqing… look at whoever you want.”
“Hmm.”
A soft, indistinct hum escaped her throat, “So Ah Yao allows me to look at others?” Song Shuqing’s tone was light, but her eyes were serious, “Would Ah Yao be happy if I found someone else?”
“No… no.” Biting her lower lip, Zi Yan looked at the shadow guard’s hand on her waist, her eyelashes trembling, “I wouldn’t be happy…”
“Don’t bite.” Lifting her chin, Song Shuqing gently rubbed her lips with her thumb, speaking softly, “In that case, Ah Yao needs to express her feelings clearly. What does Ah Yao want, and what doesn’t she want? You have to tell me everything.”
Forced to look directly at her beloved, Zi Yan felt the warmth spreading from her cheeks. Slowly, she began, “I don’t want Shuqing to find someone else. It would make me unhappy.” She wrapped her arms around the shadow guard’s neck.
“I… I don’t allow it.”
“Good girl. I also don’t like it when Ah Yao finds someone else.” Unbothered by having her most vulnerable spot held, Song Shuqing smiled, nodding encouragingly, “What else?”
“I want Shuqing’s eyes to only see me, her mind to only think of me.” Zi Yan whispered in the woman’s ear, revealing her hidden desires, the possessiveness and longing she always suppressed, “You, only want me.”
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Lifting her head, her eyes slightly red, she let go of her forced composure, softly pleading.
“Shuqing, okay?”
Gently stroking Zi Yan’s head, “Okay.” Song Shuqing supported her neck, leaning forward slightly, “I promise.”
“Only look at you, only think of you.”
“I only want you.”
The next second, the distance disappeared.
Always claiming to be delicate, Song Shuqing lifted the woman in her arms, allowing her to passionately tug at her collar, steadily heading towards the room on the third floor.
The author has something to say:
Oh no~
LP: Re-translated on May 29, 2024