Huo Yin could tell that the question his eldest brother had originally wanted to ask was definitely different from the one he’d settled on.
Huo Cheng had clearly realized how awkward it was to bring up directly and had rephrased it into something more polite.
Even so, it was still too blunt.
There were no outsiders present, but four or five pairs of eyes were still fixed on Luo Li.
The boy’s pale earlobes visibly flushed red, and Huo Yin wasn’t sure if he’d even grasped the implication. From his vantage point, Luo Li’s slender shoulders trembled faintly, his embarrassment plain as day.
Huo Yin nearly marched right up to him and demanded of Huo Cheng: Have you lost your mind? How is that even possible? And you’re supposed to be the head of the household!
Sure, Luo Li had a delicate face that could pass for a little girl’s, but no matter how he sliced it, something like that was impossible…
“…Mm.”
Amid the stunned silence, the boy—his snowy cheeks burning red—lowered his head and twirled a strand of his waist-length hair around his finger. He gave a tiny nod.
Huo Yin’s clenched fist went rigid.
Just like with a woman.
That must be how… there could be a posthumous child.
He—he actually…
Even Huo Cheng faltered for a moment. “Is that true?”
Luo Li inwardly cursed the man—why was he still pressing?
He’d already lied through his teeth—what more did he want?
“It’s… it’s exactly what you’re thinking…! What else could it be?”
Zhang Banxian jumped in without missing a beat. “Exactly right! This is the Little Young Master’s private matter. I trust the Eldest Young Master will keep it under wraps and safeguard him along with Master Huo’s child. That way, you can fulfill the master’s dying wish.”
Beneath the milky-white wool fabric, the boy’s belly remained perfectly flat. Probably because it was still early in the pregnancy? Huo Jieqi hadn’t been gone long, so the child would be small indeed.
Huo Cheng pinched the bridge of his nose. “Very well, then… Little Madam, please move into the Huo Mansion and focus on resting.”
Luo Li let out a quiet breath of relief.
But no sooner had the words left his mouth than a servant near Huo Lan knocked on the door.
When asked, the man explained that Huo Lan’s madness had flared up again. He was throwing a fit, and the servants were at their wits’ end.
Huo Cheng turned to Zhang Banxian for advice. The Zhang Banxian’s eyes gleamed as he replied, “The Second Young Master is troubled by yin-sha spirits. Why not have the Little Young Master spend a few days with him? Carrying Master Huo’s own child as he is, those evil spirits won’t dare come near.”
Huo Cheng had just begun to nod in agreement when Huo Yin barked, “Absolutely not. What kind of talk is this—putting a concubine in the same quarters as a young master?”
Huo Cheng replied coolly, “A-Lan’s mind is like that of a child. It should be fine.”
Fine? What was fine about it?
That fool… he’d grab people and kiss them!
Zhang Banxian looked baffled. “Didn’t the Third Young Master have the Little Young Master look after the Second Young Master before?”
Damn it… how did this Taoist even know about that?
Huo Yin hesitated. “Sure, but he was all thumbs back then. How could he possibly take good care of my second brother?”
Zhang Banxian grinned slyly. “The servants can’t manage him anyway. Might as well give the Little Young Master a shot.”
Huo Yin—a refined young master fresh from overseas studies—couldn’t match wits with these sly street operators. Seeing Luo Li nodding along like a fool, he tugged at his sleeve while no one was paying attention.
He hissed under his breath, fierce as could be: “You’re not allowed to kiss my second brother anymore. Hear me?”
Luo Li bristled at being called clumsy and refused to respond.
“I’m serious—no kissing. Promise me!”
Luo Li whipped his head away and huffed. “Fine, no kissing.”
As if he’d want to kiss that fool anyway. No sense of restraint—he’d only end up hurting him.
Still, Huo Yin couldn’t shake his unease.
…Better to keep watch over him, just in case something went wrong.
As for what that “something” might be…
Huo Yin told himself it was to stop this outsider from taking liberties with his dim-witted brother.
~~~
Huo Lan’s madness had intensified. After checking the feng shui, Zhang Banxian declared that the spot in front of the ancestral hall behind the mansion was ideal for treating the Second Young Master’s ailment.
The ancestral hall was sacred, forbidden ground for the Huo Family. Quietly, Zhang Banxian had tipped off Luo Li that the evil spirit had once been housed there.
“You look after the Second Young Master here for a few days,” he’d said. “If he stays calm and doesn’t have a fit, everyone in the mansion will buy that you’re truly carrying Master Huo’s child.”
Luo Li wasn’t convinced. “What if he does have an episode?”
“That’ll depend on how you handle it, Little Young Master. Whatever it takes, keep him settled for these few days—at least until the inheritance is in hand.”
With that, the Taoist made himself scarce, dumping the troublesome Huo Lan squarely in Luo Li’s lap.
Luo Li had no choice but to bunk down with Huo Lan.
“Together” was a stretch, though. The room in front of the ancestral hall was vast; Huo Lan stayed in the inner chamber while Luo Li occupied the outer one. They rarely crossed paths.
Servants handled meals and washing up, leaving little for him to do.
The one exception came at night, when Huo Lan needed help changing for bed—Luo Li’s cue to put on a show of assistance.
Tonight, however, even after the usual hour, Xi Wang—the boy assigned to help Huo Lan dress—hadn’t shown.
Luo Li considered stepping out to check, but one glimpse through the door stopped him cold. Pitch blackness stretched outside, broken only by a forlorn, blood-red lantern swaying before the gaping maw of the ancestral hall. A chill wind whistled through, raising gooseflesh on his skin.
He slammed the door shut and retreated, abandoning the idea entirely.
It was just changing clothes…
Maybe he could help Huo Lan himself.
After wrestling with the notion, Luo Li knocked on Huo Lan’s door.
“Um… are you asleep?”
A faint rustle came from inside. Luo Li pushed; the door wasn’t locked.
“Don’t… don’t come over…”
Huo Lan’s voice drifted out, muffled and low. Luo Li flicked on the light. The bed was a wreck. Huo Lan slumped against the edge, his shirt buttons popped open at random, his belt dangling loose.
He’d clearly tried undressing himself—and failed.
Luo Li wavered, then sat down beside him.
He reached out and pinched a button between his fingers. “Hold still. I’ll get your clothes off.”
Up close, fool or not, the man cut a fine figure. Broad shoulders and chest, a lean waist—his disheveled attire only added to the rugged appeal.
Huo Lan sat frozen by the bedside, muscles taut with nerves, but he stayed put. He let Luo Li work the buttons free without a peep, his lips pressed into a thin line.
Luo Li had zero experience helping anyone undress; his fingers fumbled, yanking and twisting until the fine shirt was hopelessly creased. At last, he’d freed enough buttons to pull the shirt off—when Huo Lan suddenly clamped a hand around his wrist.
“I… I’ll do it myself…”
Luo Li snapped, irked. “You’re blind—you can’t even find the buttons. How?”
The words struck Huo Lan like a blow. A shadow of melancholy fell over his face.
His wits might be scrambled, but his pride remained. The mighty Second Young Master reduced to this was humiliation enough; having Luo Li spell it out only deepened the shame.
Luo Li caught himself and shifted awkwardly. “I-I didn’t mean any disrespect. Xi Wang’s not here anyway, so it’s the same if I help.”
Huo Lan dug in his heels with stubborn insistence, his words halting. “I know. You don’t want to look after me. It’s… it’s those people making you.”
He paused. “Everyone here pities me at best, despises me at worst. I’m… nothing but trouble.”
Xi Wang must have skipped out because he was sick of the hassle, tired of waiting on him.
The servants put on a good front, but his haughty third brother? Sure, Huo Yin never bullied him outright, but that day he’d dragged Luo Li along just to poke fun.
He might be simple-minded, but he wasn’t clueless.
Truth be told, Huo Lan knew he was dead weight to the Huo Family now. His eldest brother putting up with him was mercy enough.
He had no right to impose on Luo Li.
“Go rest. I can handle it myself.”
【666 insecure top is great】
【Is the rich second young master so insecure that he’s throwing himself at you? Interesting】
【Please, our Lili is beautiful and kind-hearted, he definitely wouldn’t despise an idiot, no moral kidnapping allowed】
【I want to be an idiot too, ah-ba-ba, Lili, help me undress, okay? Ah-ba-ba】
【It doesn’t seem like acting upstairs】
Luo Li forced steadiness into his voice. “If you really want me to rest, hurry up and let me change you.”
He thought for a beat, then laced his tone with mock accusation. “Unless… you actually mind me helping?”
“No!”
Huo Lan shot back at once.
If anything, he was elated.
To feel those soft, sweet-scented little hands on him—to be this close, drinking in that clear, melodic voice—left him buzzing with thrill.
But he had his secrets.
“That day… when I kissed you, afterward… I kept getting sick.”
“Even now, being near you like this…”
His eyes strayed, unbidden, to the boy’s flushed pink lips. The memory flooded back.
That tight, narrow mouth, whimpering at the first touch; cheeks bulging and hollowing; his tongue yielding under suction, now and then curling to tease in return.
Luo Li’s mouth held some deadly magnetism.
Just the thought of kissing him set his body aflame.
Lovesickness, maybe?
He’d heard tales of it. Never dreamed it’d torment him like this.
If Luo Li found out about his “illness,” he’d only grow to loathe him more.
Huo Lan wore his usual vacant look. “Getting close to you… it makes me feel bad. Should… we call a doctor?”
His mind might mimic a child’s, but the body was all man—fully grown and restless.
Sturdy and powerful, with distinct muscles and bones, and even more so, the shape outlined by the taut fabric of his long pants was impossible to ignore.
It was only at this moment that Luo Li realized that taking care of this Second Young Master was far more troublesome than he had imagined.
For instance, in this current situation, he had no idea how to respond.
If he called for someone, would this guy spill the beans about the fact that they had kissed?
Looking at him like this, it was really hard to trust him.
Luo Li’s pale pink palm was pressed with shallow crescent marks by his nails.
He pressed down on Huo Lan’s shoulders, lowered his curled long lashes, glared fiercely with a flushed face, and ordered him.
“No need. I… I’ll take care of it for you.”
“But you can’t tell anyone, got it?”
…
Huo Yin carried an oil lamp as he walked toward the backyard of the Huo Mansion.
The servant behind him caught up and asked, “Third Young Master, it’s so late! Where are you going?”
Huo Yin coldly replied, “To the Ancestral Hall, to see Dad.”
In reality, who exactly he was going to the Ancestral Hall to see was something only he knew in his heart.
The events of the day kept replaying in his mind. Luo Li was still so young, yet he was willing to bear a child for that old man Huo Jieqi… No, maybe it was deliberate, maybe he had his eyes on the Huo Family’s wealth.
But compared to that, the so-called “special constitution” body actually piqued his interest even more.
What could it be like?
To captivate that impotent, aloof freak Huo Jieqi and make him obsessed, it must be something truly extraordinary.
Huo Yin’s hand gripping the oil lamp unconsciously tightened, and his breathing grew heavier.
However, just as he reached the front of the Ancestral Hall, he sensed something amiss.
Only one lamp was lit inside a room—it was in his second brother’s quarters.
He walked to the window, held his breath and listened intently, and detected some strange movements inside.
Huo Yin’s brows furrowed tightly, suspicion rising in his heart.
And at that moment, he heard a man’s low groan.
It sounded like extreme pleasure, and even the bed frame started creaking and shaking.
