Chapter 91

In the darkness, senses were heightened, and every chase and entanglement of the tongue could be clearly felt.

The short distance pushed onto the sofa, the eyes were tightly covered, unable to see anything.

Qin Qingzhuo was pressed onto the sofa, and Jiang Ji bent one leg between his knees, one hand pinching his waist. “Take off your clothes yourself, be quick.”

“Otherwise, would you rather rob wealth?” Qin Qingzhuo took off his coat, stopped there, with a smile at the corner of his lips. “I have a boyfriend now.”

“You have a boyfriend and still act so proactively?” Jiang Ji leaned closer to his ear, lowering his voice. “It’s asking for trouble.”

At the two words, Qin Qingzhuo’s earlobes slightly reddened.

“Tell me, how do you want me to f*ck you?”

“Alright, alright,” Qin Qingzhuo grabbed his wrist, trying to remove his hand from his eyes, but still with a smile in his tone. “Had enough fun, huh?”

Only then did Jiang Ji move his hand away and kissed his lips. “Qin Qingzhuo, how can you seduce a kidnapper?”

“I said you should to rob wealth,” Qin Qingzhuo laughed, “If the kidnapper doesn’t rob, what can I do?”

“Don’t make excuses,” Jiang Ji pinched his waist again. “You were already seducing the kidnapper before you said anything.”

“My bad, my bad, I couldn’t resist the temptation. I thought this kidnapper had a good figure and might be my type.” Qin Qingzhuo reached up and touched his face, “And upon closer inspection, he looks just right for my taste. Otherwise, should we change from robbery to seduction?”

“Fine.”

An agreement was reached, and Jiang Ji’s fingers traced his waist backward.

“Hey, I was joking.” Qin Qingzhuo reached out, his fingers slipping between Jiang Ji’s, stopping his movements. “Been messing around all day, let me rest for a bit, or we might really overindulge. Just cuddle for a while, okay?”

His tone was gentle and sounded like a negotiation, and Jiang Ji didn’t speak anymore, lowering his waist to lie on the sofa and embrace him.

The two of them lying on the sofa was a bit crowded, but Jiang Ji quite liked the feeling of being close together. Although not as intimate as when they were making out, simple cuddling and kissing were enough to bring joy.

Although the room was not lit, the streetlights outside shone through the windows, and the living room didn’t seem very dark.

After cuddling and kissing for a while, Qin Qingzhuo’s fingers gently traced the contours of his abdominal muscles. “Why did you come so late? Did you give the food to Jiang Bei?”

Jiang Ji hummed. “To catch you in the act. Seeing you rush back like this, did you also sponsor someone else?”

“Indulging with one is enough,” Qin Qingzhuo laughed. “Having another one might exhaust me to death.”

“No need for another one,” Jiang Ji said. “I can handle it myself.”

“I believe you,” Qin Qingzhuo said with a smile.

After a pause, the laughter in his voice faded slightly, and he lowered his voice a bit. “Did you see that post?”

Jiang Ji hummed in response.

“Don’t take it to heart,” Qin Qingzhuo touched his hair. “Public opinion comes and goes in waves. When the heat dies down, or when other big events happen, your situation will be forgotten.”

“You rushed back just to discuss with Li Zi how to handle this matter?”

“Mmh.”

“Tonight didn’t eat much, is it because of thinking about this matter?”

“Not really,” Qin Qingzhuo said, “I wasn’t very hungry to begin with.”

As soon as he finished speaking, his stomach growled suddenly, as if protesting.

Jiang Ji chuckled, repeating his words, “Not very hungry?”

Qin Qingzhuo: “…”

Jiang Ji reached into his clothes, touched his abdomen, and then sat up against the sofa, saying, “Let me make you something to eat.”

“You can cook?” Qin Qingzhuo looked at him slightly surprised.

“Not much, but I can manage to make noodles or something,” Jiang Ji got up and walked towards the kitchen, “Let me see what’s in the fridge first.”

Qin Qingzhuo muttered, “Probably nothing there,” and also got up from the sofa.

He had told the housekeeper earlier to take back any food he couldn’t finish, as it would be a waste to throw it away when it spoiled, so there were basically no perishables in his fridge.

He found a hair tie on the coffee table, tied his hair up casually, and walked towards the kitchen, saying, “I haven’t been back much these days, the fridge should be quite empty, otherwise, we can just order takeout.”

Jiang Ji stood in front of the open fridge door, glanced at the shelves filled with bottles of alcohol, then turned around and lightly flicked his earlobe, “Are you an alcoholic? So much alcohol.”

“You found that out,” Qin Qingzhuo crossed his arms, leaning against the door frame with a smile, “Regretting being with an alcoholic now? It’s not too late to regret.”

“What a coincidence, it’s not,” Jiang Ji rubbed his hair a couple of times, “I just happen to like alcoholics.”

Qin Qingzhuo’s eyes sparkled with amusement, “Most of it was gifts from friends, it’ll be given away later. I just drink occasionally for fun, can’t possibly drink all of these.”

He glanced inside the fridge, “Is there nothing to cook?”

“There’s instant noodles,” Jiang Ji picked up an unopened packet of instant noodles from the fridge door, glanced over the few items inside the fridge, and took out a glass jar, “Is this braised beef?”

“Mmh, made by Lin Qi’s mom,” Qin Qingzhuo said, “It tastes pretty good.”

“Enough for a bowl of noodles.” Jiang Ji took out all the ingredients needed at once, using his long fingers to handle everything, grabbing an egg, vegetables, and even another jar of braised beef.

Qin Qingzhuo watched nervously, taking the ingredients from him, “Let me help.” He walked over and placed the ingredients on the countertop, then asked, “What do we need to do? I’ll assist you.”

“What assistance do you need for making noodles,” Jiang Ji said, “Just keep me company.”

“Wouldn’t that make me seem too lazy?” Qin Qingzhuo smiled, “I should at least make some effort.”

After saying that, he took the vegetables to the sink and washed them carefully, breaking them apart leaf by leaf.

Actually, he knew nothing about cooking, except for mulled wine and hot milk, plus calling the housekeeper to cook, he basically never used the stove at home.

So after washing the vegetables, leaning against the countertop, watching Jiang Ji skillfully light the fire, turn it off, beat an egg with one hand, and cook a perfect poached egg, while also blanching the vegetables and preparing the sauce, he was almost surprised, “You really can cook?”

“You thought I was bluffing?”

“I thought you would at least look up some tutorials or something.”

“Not really, it’s just a clear soup noodle,” Jiang Ji scooped out the poached egg, then started boiling water for the noodles, “My mom used to make it often, so I learned by watching.”

“Oh, by the way,” Qin Qingzhuo chatted with him, “Did I ever ask you for your mom’s name?”

“Yu Luo, Luo from Tengluo.”

“Yu Luo,” Qin Qingzhuo repeated, “Sounds like green vines. Such a beautiful name, she must be very beautiful herself.”

Jiang Ji “Hmm”ed, “Too bad I don’t really resemble her.”

“There must be some resemblance,” Qin Qingzhuo looked at him, “Otherwise, how could you turn out so well?”

Jiang Ji leaned in and kissed him lightly, “If there’s a chance to go to Runcheng in the future, I’ll take you to see her.”

“Okay,” Qin Qingzhuo nodded.

When the noodles were cooked in boiling water, Jiang Ji scooped them out into a bowl with the sauce, sprinkled some chopped green onions, then added the blanched vegetables and poached egg on top, and cut two pieces of braised beef on a cutting board.

He picked up a piece of braised beef with his fingers and placed it near Qin Qingzhuo’s lips. Qin Qingzhuo took a bite, but Jiang Ji didn’t withdraw his hand, lightly wiping the sauce from Qin Qingzhuo’s lower lip with his fingertip, reminding him, “Not done yet.”

Qin Qingzhuo glanced down at his finger, dipped in sauce, extended his tongue to lick the sauce off the tip of Jiang Ji’s thumb, then sucked on his index and middle fingers to clean off the sauce, before looking up at Jiang Ji with a hint of a smile, “Is that enough this time?”

Jiang Ji didn’t say anything, just leaned in to kiss him again, not satisfied with just cleaning the sauce off their tongues, he pressed Qin Qingzhuo against the countertop, deepening the kiss.

When he was with Jiang Ji, it always seemed easy to get carried away. At first, Qin Qingzhuo tried to remain sensible, thinking he should remind Jiang Ji after a while that the noodles were ready, but later, he became completely immersed in the kiss, thinking he might as well forget about the noodles altogether.

— — Appetite and desire, it’s hard to tell which is more important at the moment.

It was Jiang Ji who stopped just before things escalated further, licking Qin Qingzhuo’s lower lip lightly, “Should we eat the noodles first or me?”

“First…”

After a moment’s hesitation, his stomach conveniently growled again.

This time, Qin Qingzhuo couldn’t help but laugh first.

Jiang Ji also smiled, reaching out to pat his abdomen, “Okay, got it.”

Although it was called clear soup noodles, the broth unexpectedly turned out to be very delicious.

If Qin Qingzhuo was just mildly surprised watching Jiang Ji skillfully prepare this bowl of noodles earlier, then when he tasted the soup, his numb taste buds were completely awakened, and he was almost pleasantly surprised.

“Is it good?” Jiang Ji sat across from him, sipping on a glass of orange juice.

Qin Qingzhuo nodded, “It’s kind of beyond my expectations.”

“Is the noodle delicious or am I delicious?” Jiang Ji looked at him.

With his unchanged expression, it seemed like he genuinely asked a usual taste comparison question.

Qin Qingzhuo swallowed a mouthful of noodles, appearing to genuinely contemplate, and after a moment, solemnly gave his answer, “Hmm… it’s hard to say, they’re both good.”

“Let me taste.” After Jiang Ji finished speaking, he held Qin Qingzhuo’s wrist as he handed over the spoon, tasted the soup from his hand, “It’s okay, not as delicious as my mom’s.”

After saying that, he looked up at Qin Qingzhuo, his eyes showing a hint of disbelief, “And you still find it hard to choose between them?”

Qin Qingzhuo withdrew his hand, smiling, “It’s already quite absurd to compare yourself to the noodles you made yourself.”

He really thought the noodles tasted good, not much different from the traditional Suzhou plain noodles, of course, Lin Qi’s mom’s braised beef also played a part.

Taking another bite of the noodles, he thought for a moment and said, “Actually, you’re the one who tastes better.”

His voice was so soft it sounded like a whisper. Jiang Ji sat opposite him, sipping his orange juice absentmindedly. When he heard Qin Qingzhuo’s words, he put down his cup and looked at him, “What did you say?”

“Hmm?” Qin Qingzhuo pretended as if nothing happened, “I didn’t say anything.”

He lowered his head to eat noodles. A few seconds later, Jiang Ji across from him made a soft sound of disbelief.

Qin Qingzhuo raised his head to meet his gaze, and both of them burst into laughter.

After finishing the noodles, Qin Qingzhuo got up and went to the kitchen, rinsed the bowl and chopsticks, and put them into the dishwasher. As he turned to walk towards the living room, he couldn’t help but pick up his phone again and open the post.

Just as he was about to scroll to the end to check the latest public opinion, a hand reached over from behind and took the phone from his hand.

“Don’t look,” Jiang Ji turned off the screen and placed the phone on the nearby desk, “Didn’t I tell you I don’t care?”

“How could I not care at all,” Qin Qingzhuo didn’t move, sighed softly, “I’ve experienced this kind of thing before.”

“But I really don’t care,” Jiang Ji hugged him from behind, “I don’t think I’ve told you, but I’m not interested in becoming a so-called celebrity.”

He said that, and Qin Qingzhuo felt somewhat surprised.

In fact, in terms of attention, Jiang Ji had already become a bona fide “celebrity”.

But Qin Qingzhuo suddenly realized that he had always assumed Jiang Ji would become a prominent “celebrity”, but he had never asked Jiang Ji for his own thoughts.

“The last time I asked you about the kind of life you wanted in the future, you mentioned wanting to be a wandering singer,” Qin Qingzhuo turned his face towards him, “And now, do you have any new ideas?”

“Leaning towards behind the scenes,” Jiang Ji’s nose gently brushed against his earlobe, “Just like what you’re doing now.”

Qin Qingzhuo fell into thought. Objectively speaking, his current life was indeed much freer than when he was a singer four years ago. He didn’t have to deal with the media and paparazzi every day, nor did he need to excessively pay attention to public opinion.

Considering Jiang Ji’s personality, a more liberated life suited him, and Qin Qingzhuo hoped he could live more freely in the future.

However, he also felt that with Jiang Ji’s talent and ability, becoming a behind-the-scenes producer seemed a bit of a waste. He should be seen by more people… Thinking of this, he felt a bit conflicted and couldn’t help but sigh.

“Don’t sigh,” Jiang Ji said, “The boat will straighten itself when it reaches the bridgehead. Just go with the flow. Other people’s praise and liking have no meaning to me, and I don’t care about their insults and dislikes. There’s no need for you to be unhappy for those things.”

Qin Qingzhuo replied with a “Hmm,” and apart from that, he didn’t know what else to say.

“But since you’re already unhappy, let’s do something joyful,” Jiang Ji’s fingers slipped into the waistband of his pants from behind, nibbling gently on his earlobe, “How about coming from behind this time? Good?”

Jiang Ji found that Qin Qingzhuo’s ears were very sensitive, easily turning red, and gently blowing on his ear when it reached the critical point could make his entire body tremble slightly.

“…Not in the kitchen,” Qin Qingzhuo said with slightly unsteady breathing in the midst of passion.

“Then where do you suggest?” Jiang Ji whispered to his ear, “You lead the way.”

In the process of walking from the kitchen to the living room, Jiang Ji licked Qin Qingzhuo’s left ear all the way, from the earlobe turning red to the entire ear, even the neck to the collarbone were faintly flushed. Near the sofa, while some rationality still remained, he suddenly remembered something, “By the way, don’t you think that post is a bit strange?”

Jiang Ji slightly paused his actions but continued to gently nibble on his earlobe from behind, “Hmm?”

“I’m thinking,” Qin Qingzhuo, pressed against the sofa, turned his face slightly, “If it’s just your fans paying attention, would they really know so much about you? It feels like someone deliberately gathered information about you, and the time span is very long, something ordinary people would find hard to achieve.”

“It’s Shi Yao’s doing,” Jiang Ji said, “He used to have people take pictures of me.”

“Yeah, Shi Yao probably saw us together and worried that I would help you invite a more popular singer for the finals, so he tried to ruin your public image by exposing your dark secrets. He really went to great lengths to prevent you from winning the championship in the finals…”

“Although I think you’re right, Teacher Qin,” Jiang Ji extended his hand to cover his neck, forcing him to slightly lift his head, “mentioning another man at a time like this, don’t you think it’s inappropriate?”

“What kind of man is Shi Yao?” Qin Qingzhuo chuckled, “I’m just worried he might resort to other dirty tricks.”

“Forget about it,” Jiang Ji slightly tightened his index and middle fingers, gripping his protruding Adam’s apple between them, “Teacher Qin, focus a bit.”

Qin Qingzhuo swallowed, his Adam’s apple moving up and down, “…Okay.”