Chapter 89: Quarrel Part 1

Lai Li’s fierce expression didn’t hold for long. His waist was pressed down by his brother’s hand, sinking deeply into the bedding.

He had thought he would accept anything Dai Linxuan did with a hundred percent enthusiasm, but only at this moment did he realize it wasn’t entirely true. He felt pleasure, but not as much as he had anticipated, creating a faint sense of disappointment that felt very strange.

Perhaps it was the discomfort of his body being forced open to another person…

This sudden thought made Lai Li furrow his brows tightly, a wave of angry fear surging in his chest—how could his brother be “another person”?

He shouldn’t feel uncomfortable at all.

During intimate moments, the partner’s subtle reactions were always impossible to hide. Even without seeing Lai Li’s expression, Dai Linxuan could feel the slight resistance from the muscles under his hand.

He didn’t soften like he had over two years ago. Instead, he deliberately thrust deeper, gazing intently at Lai Li’s profile, which bore a hint of endurance.

Lai Li suddenly said, “You didn’t finish last time.”

“…Mm.” Dai Linxuan came back to his senses. “Remember now?”

“Part of it.” It was his own memory, yet it felt like looking at flowers in the mist—some parts clear, some blurry.

Over eight hundred days ago, it had followed a similar process. Dai Linxuan had dawdled for more than twenty minutes before getting to the main event, but he pulled out after a short while, gave up, and used his hand instead.

“Why did you—” Lai Li started to ask, but suddenly stiffened, his voice shifting pitch. He grabbed Dai Linxuan’s wrist in retaliation and endured, saying, “Don’t poke there.”

“You don’t get to decide right now.” Dai Linxuan laughed, leaning down to kiss the long scar running from his shoulder across his back. “How did you get this scar?”

The scar from twelve years ago hadn’t been this large back then; it stretched longer as his body grew. Dai Linxuan had considered many ways to fix it, but ointments didn’t help much. He had thought about surgery for Lai Li, fearing the boy would feel inferior about it during puberty.

But little Lai Li had resisted strongly back then.

“Change positions.” Lai Li suppressed his heavy breathing.

Though the scars on his back weren’t many, perhaps it would let Dai Linxuan enjoy himself more fully, but Lai Li insisted that Dai Linxuan accept all of him.

Scars or sickly aspects—his brother had to willingly take them.

Rationally, he should wait until Dai Linxuan’s mental state stabilized before forcing acceptance, but at this point, Lai Li found he couldn’t endure even a second longer.

After a rustling sound, they shifted to face each other.

Seeing Dai Linxuan’s face, Lai Li’s heart instantly felt at ease; all discomfort vanished.

Lai Li barely spared a thread of attention to recall: “By the rules, ‘Cricket’ isn’t allowed to use bladed weapons, only bare-handed combat against you bastards—let me finish!”

Dai Linxuan interlaced their fingers and pinned them to the side.

Lai Li took a deep breath and paused. “Sometimes, to hype things up, the organizers would bribe a ‘bug handler’ to let their cricket hide a knife in the fight, giving the spectators a more thrilling visual…”

Lai Li had been slashed across the back, but he dodged in time—no severe injury, no threat to his life. Huang Kun got his money, so naturally he didn’t pursue it; he just had an underground quack doctor stitch him up with about ten stitches.

Not dying from infection was pure luck.

Back when Lai Li was in the Slum District, his body was actually quite resilient. No matter how many injuries he sustained, he healed quickly and never got sick. For some reason, after coming to the Dai Family, he started frequently running fevers, catching colds, and going to the hospital—only a few times were deliberate… In any case, it wore Dai Linxuan out completely.

Usually, the more energy and emotion invested, the harder it was to let go.

Yet even after investing so much, Dai Linxuan still dared to think of abandoning him.

“Why are you angry again?” Dai Linxuan leaned closer, seemingly wanting to kiss him, but after a second’s hesitation, his warm lips landed on Lai Li’s eyes instead.

Lai Li grew even more displeased and directly lifted his hand to cup the back of his brother’s head, fingers threading into his hair and pulling him down forcefully.

The moment their lips and teeth collided, thunder crashed outside.

The sky had darkened at some point, pressing black and heavy against the high-rises. Heavy rain poured down, pounding the glass with crackling sounds, while damp mist seeped in through the not-quite-sealed windows.

It wasn’t cold, though—there was floor heating.

Dai Linxuan couldn’t control himself, his voice hoarse. “I’ll go close the window.”

“No need, just like this.” Lai Li stared at him for a moment. “Do you find it disgusting?”

“What…”

Dai Linxuan’s gaze shifted downward to the crisscrossing scars on his body, feeling both heartache and amusement.

With so many scars on his body, he shouldn’t be engaging in such intense activity, but no matter what was said, Lai Li ignored it and didn’t cherish himself at all.

“Not ugly, very sexy.” Dai Linxuan touched his collarbone, fingertips tracing along the scars one by one, finally circling the tattoo. “Little Chestnut, I like all of you.”

Dai Linxuan didn’t want to eroticize the hardships Lai Li had endured, but Lai Li clearly needed affirmation. “You and Lady Hess are quite in sync.”

The tattoo Lai Li designed for himself was very similar in inspiration to the pair of rings He Si made—both featured snake elements.

“Don’t mention others…” Lai Li said intermittently, then asked with difficulty, “What about yours?”

“I’m keeping it.” Dai Linxuan knew what he meant. “Are you sure you want me to wear the ring too? It’s no different from coming out publicly.”

Though the auction had sold a single ring before, if the two rings appeared together, anyone slightly perceptive would see they were a pair.

As expected, Lai Li had no retort.

Dai Linxuan’s eyes darkened slightly as he began a long bout of wicked actions. Lai Li was oblivious, thinking it was only natural, furrowing his brows and staying silent.

Memories from two years ago intertwined with the present, chaotic and fantastical, overlapping across time and space, their hot kisses scorching his skin, giving the illusion that even his scars were melting.

But whenever he fell into a daze, unsure of the time, an indescribable stimulation would pull him back, sending the night from two years ago away and leaving only the current reality.

He sobered, saw Dai Linxuan’s face clearly, and murmured lowly, “Bro.”

Dai Linxuan didn’t hear clearly and leaned closer. “What?”

Lai Li didn’t speak, just nuzzled his chin like a puppy.

Rain and winter’s sleet battered the floor-to-ceiling windows indistinguishably, streaking the glass with mottled patterns. The room’s amorous atmosphere blurred; it was hard to tell if the slow beads rolling down were hot sweat or rainwater.

No one knew that the eldest young master of the Dai Family and the brother he had raised for twelve years were, on an utterly ordinary day amid the storm, engaging in their secret, taboo act.

Another bolt of thunder exploded, startling them both into a pause before they embraced even deeper in unison.

“Hah…” Lai Li tilted his head back and demanded, “Don’t pull out.”

Dai Linxuan’s voice grew even hoarser. “It’ll be hard to clean.”

Lai Li suddenly shouted, “Bro—”

Dai Linxuan’s fingertips trembled sharply, and Lai Li got what he wanted, receiving it all.

Dai Linxuan was silent for a moment, then rested his forehead on Lai Li’s shoulder and sighed. “On purpose, huh?”

Lai Li said softly, “Can’t stand hearing it?”

Dai Linxuan coaxed patiently, “How about a different name in bed from now on?”

“No.” Lai Li’s face darkened. “Dai Linxuan, I’ve called you ‘bro’ for twelve years, and I’ll call you that for life.”

“You’re my bro—an unchangeable fact. Escaping won’t help.”

“…Your Majesty is right.” Dai Linxuan rolled onto his side beside Lai Li and touched his face. “Shower?”

Lai Li shook his head. “Later.”

Dai Linxuan asked, “Uncomfortable?”

Lai Li shook his head again, then after two seconds said, “You wanna keep going?”

Dai Linxuan leaned in slowly and kissed him. “No.”

Lai Li’s face turned icy cold as he gritted out, “So eager to see Dai Yi?”

Dai Linxuan knew Lai Li had seen his phone and replied to messages. “I’m worried about your body.”

He knew exactly how to soothe Lai Li. “I’m not in a rush for this moment. We’ve got plenty of time.”

Lai Li was pleased by those last four words. He pushed his brother down, climbed on top, and buried his face in his shoulder, nuzzling a few times. The earlier discomfort vanished like smoke, drowned in overwhelming pleasure that left him exhilarated.

His eyes gleamed. “Bro, I want…”

Dai Linxuan: “Hm?”

Lai Li changed tack for some reason. “When are you meeting Dai Yi?”

“Seven-thirty.” Dai Linxuan glanced at the wall clock. “Or I could talk to Xiao Yi and reschedule?”

Lai Li thought for a moment. “No need, go ahead.”

Dai Linxuan didn’t say more. “We have a bit of time left. What do you want to eat? I’ll make it.”

Lai Li wasn’t one to yield for others; if he said no need, he meant it.

Dai Linxuan realized he had been a bit impulsive. He hadn’t planned to advance this far so soon—at least not until evening. When he dragged Lai Li home, he hadn’t canceled dinner with Dai Yi, also considering that Lai Li might need some personal space afterward.

And the dinner with Dai Yi gave them a perfectly legitimate reason to separate.

Lai Li licked his canine tooth and pressed down on Dai Linxuan’s shoulders. “I don’t want to eat anything—don’t move.”