Chapter 105: Drunk

Chapter 105: Drunk

When drunk, Chu Lanting becomes especially proactive.

Having discovered this, Pei Du lay propped against the headboard, his phoenix eyes narrowed, half-lowered lids concealing a surge of desire.

The bedroom lights were off, cold moonlight streaming in from outside.

It was as if a sheer white veil had been draped across the room.

It cloaked not just the room's sparse furniture but also the figure straddling his waist.

His throat bobbed. Feeling the man in his arms move, the arm around his waist suddenly tightened.

"Easy. Slow down."

Chu Lanting had no idea when he'd gotten completely drunk.

Maybe it was after leaving Uncle Tian's place, when the cool breeze hit his head.

Instead of sobering him up, it just mixed the cold air with his boozy haze.

Making it harder and harder to tell reality from fantasy.

Feeling the resistance at his waist, he looked up, mildly annoyed.

His usually cool, clear eyes now held a hint of reproachful pout.

As if to say, Pei Du, why won't you let me keep going?

Pei Du had been fed plenty of drinks that night too, but he held his liquor well, and it didn't show on his face. From leaving Uncle Tian's place to carrying Chu Lanting home on his back.

The whole way, he showed zero signs of being drunk.

But now, meeting the man's gaze and catching that pouty, reproachful look in his eyes...

His breathing turned ragged, and his grip tightened.

"That hurts."

The soft, warm voice carried a whine, startling Pei Du into letting go at once.

He leaned back against the headboard, catching a faint, long-missed scent of jasmine.

Pei Du had meant to get Chu Lanting to bed early, but things had turned out like this instead.

His gaze darkened. He raised his arms again, circling the man's waist, guiding him slowly...

......

"You're up? Head hurt? Drink some water."

The water slid down his throat at just the right temperature. Chu Lanting's brain hadn't fully rebooted, so he just let the other man feed him water.

Lying back down, he felt a warm palm rubbing his waist, and his thoughts slowly started to piece themselves back together.

He still remembered how, last night, unable to refuse Uncle Tian's insistence, he'd been taken home and coaxed into drinking more.

He had a low tolerance—one cup and he was done.

Once the alcohol kicked in, he couldn't remember much of what came after.

He only vaguely remembered lying on a broad, warm back, swaying, and mumbling something about 'wanting to go home.'

He couldn't remember what the person carrying him had said in reply either.

The worst part was that he actually remembered how, after Pei Du had washed him up and carried him to bed, he'd flat-out refused to sleep and instead clung to him...

Burying his whole face in the pillow, Chu Lanting felt like he might spontaneously combust.

He wasn't the proactive type—at least not when it came to that kind of thing.

But last night, he hadn't just been proactive—he'd wrapped his arms around Pei Du's neck and called him 'husband.'

So mortifying!

Pei Du sat on the edge of the bed, watching the ears under that soft short hair turn red enough to bleed. He couldn't help but smile, never pausing the massage.

"I heard there's a fruit wine in the next town over..."

"!!!"

Drinking ruins everything. He'd already embarrassed himself enough last night—why was Pei Du still talking about alcohol?!

Pei Du caught the glare from those glistening, tear-bright eyes and wasn't the least bit annoyed. Instead, he smirked.

He reached out and pulled the man into his arms. "Nothing to be shy about. We're married now, aren't we?"

The familiar woody scent drifted to his nose again.

Chu Lanting breathed it in, and the tight wire in his mind slowly loosened.

He buried most of his face in the other man's chest, his still-red ears giving away how he felt.

This was something else.

He rarely lost control like this.

Even if Pei Du hadn't stopped him, how could he just let him run wild like that?

What he didn't know was that the sight of him like this only made Pei Du's already racing heart pound even harder.

For those ten days on the main planet, he'd been torn every day between going home and staying at HQ.

Knowing that the second he walked in, he'd see that cold, distant look on Chu Lanting's face—and that he'd bring up the lie detector, bring up going back to Planet 207—

Pei Du had spent all ten days at the base, never once setting foot in the villa.

If Shen Yu hadn't passed along the message, he might have left him alone in the villa for ages—long enough that Chu Lanting would've come to the base himself to find him.

After seeing the lively, vibrant Chu Lanting, how could he stand the composed, distant one who wanted to talk about splitting up?

Thankfully, that lively Chu Lanting was back at his side now.

With that thought, Pei Du couldn't help pulling the man in his arms closer.

"Huh—"

"After breakfast, we'll sort out the stuff."

Before he could finish, Chu Lanting heard the voice above him and nodded.

His expression softened as well.

Pei Du had gotten the gifts for Uncle Tian and the others ready before they even set out.

They weren't anything fancy, just everyday essentials you can't really do without.

Even better, this time he'd brought seeds from plants that grew strong on planets where most other vegetation couldn't survive.

Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.

Turning this planet around wasn't going to happen overnight.

It might take a long time, but as long as someone stuck it out, this planet was bound to change for the better eventually.

This time, only Chu Lanting and Pei Du had come back.

It wasn't until they'd handed out most of the stuff from the airship that the two of them finally had a free moment.

Uncle Tian and the others had been helping out nearby, and it wasn't until no more townsfolk showed up that they headed back to the courtyard for a drink of water.

"You really splurged this time. Next time you come back, don't bring so much stuff."

Sweat was still beading on Uncle Tian's forehead, and he was all smiles as he spoke.

Xiaoyi and Xiaoyuan, sitting next to him, both looked up the moment he said that.

Even Chu Lanting stopped mid-sip. Before he could even look up, a low, deep voice reached his ears.

"Mhm."

Pei Du wasn't just anybody.

When he'd first crash-landed on this planet after hitting a temporal rift in his airship, everyone had tactfully avoided asking who he really was.

After all, only people from the top-ranked planets had access to tech that advanced.

Later, how Pei Du acted while he had amnesia and how he carried himself after getting his memories back only made them more sure of what they'd guessed.

Nobody ever said out loud what Pei Du really was, but they all knew a man like him wasn't going to stay here forever.

Chu Lanting was no different.

At Pei Du's low response, Chu Lanting just tightened his grip on the cup in his hand.

Pei Du was a major general—there was no way he could stay here.

A person has to make a lot of choices in life. This time, which way was he supposed to go?