139 Falling into the Trap (2)

Looking at the person in front of me, I rubbed my eyes, thinking I must have had too much to drink to be suffering from hallucinations.

I was still thinking that if this door had opened due to a hallucination, I would have to close it, or else it would be bad if someone saw. I walked over to the door, bypassed the hallucination in my path, and shut it. When I returned, the hallucination was still there, so I bypassed him again.

But at that moment, the hallucination suddenly darkened his face, blocked my way, and spoke, "Little Xiao, do you not see me?"

The hallucination spoke!? When the hallucination blocked me, I felt it. Could it not be a hallucination?

I rubbed my eyes, looked at the person again, and hurriedly knelt to pay my respects. "This servant greets the Ninth Prince." After saying this, I let out a hiccup.

Jiang Xuan helped me up. I caught a whiff of alcohol. Had Jiang Xuan been drinking too?

"Button your clothes."

"Eh?" I looked down and saw that the buttons at my collar were undone. I had been drinking with Jialin and had felt a bit warm, so I had opened a few.

"Yes!" I said, using both hands to try and fasten them, but my legs were unsteady and my hands seemed disobedient; no matter how I tried, I couldn't get them buttoned.

"How much did you drink?" Jiang Xuan's expression remained dark as he noticed the two wine jars next to the food box.

Thinking Jiang Xuan wanted a drink, I wobbled over to fetch the unfinished jar and offered it to him. "I was just with..." I turned my head to mention Jialin, but noticed she was no longer leaning against the pillar. She must have run off somewhere to be sick.

I said, "I only drank one jar. What a coincidence that you came, Ninth Prince. Did you come following the scent of the wine? You didn't drink enough earlier, and you want more? Come, come, here you go. This servant really can't handle any more; this wine is too strong and doesn't taste good."

Jiang Xuan frowned, but his face was also flushed, much like Jialin's.

"The Ninth Prince won't drink?" I waved the jar in front of him again, but my grip slipped, and the wine splashed directly onto him.

I shuddered, thinking this was bad. What if Jiang Xuan held it against me? I immediately grabbed my sleeve, intending to wipe the wine off his clothes. He was dressed in purple silk, and in the blink of an eye, the wine soaked into the fabric, making the color hard to distinguish. I didn't know where to wipe.

Sigh, never mind. He must be wealthy enough not to care about one outfit. I would just go through the motions and wipe a bit; as long as he felt my sincerity and didn't blame me, it would be fine. Jiang Xuan was sometimes easy to talk to!

I might as well just wipe any random spot, as I truly couldn't tell where the spill was! But before I could touch him, he grabbed my wrist and hoisted me up from the ground.

"Little Xiao! Where are you wiping?"

He flung me aside and said coldly, "I told you to button your clothes. Did you not hear me?"

Though I was tipsy, I wasn't deaf. His voice nearly shattered my eardrums. I irritably dug at my ear, feeling incredibly sleepy, and his expression began to blur into something like dough.

It wasn't that I wouldn't button them, but that I had no strength to do so. I stood there shaking my head and dared to say, "Not buttoning. I'm hot."

Seeing Jiang Xuan didn't speak, I added, "Ninth Prince, this is no place for you. You should just pretend you were never here and never saw this servant, all right? I'll leave in a moment, as soon as my head and body don't feel so heavy, all right?"

"How much did you drink, exactly?"

I said, "Ninth Prince, please go ahead. I need to lie down. I'm so sleepy, so tired."

Just as I turned to leave, he hugged me from behind. Only then did I realize that his entire body was scorching hot.

"Ninth Prince..." Usually, my first reaction would be to break free, but today, perhaps because of the alcohol, I didn't want to. Not only that, I felt a sense of longing.

I could clearly feel his breathing had lost its rhythm, and his burning breath sprayed against my ear. "Little Xiao, I told you to button them. Why didn't you?"

"Ninth Prince, what are you saying?"

His hands moved to circle my neck, and his warm lips suddenly touched my throat. The heat made my whole body flare up. Jiang Xuan sucked on my neck, and I froze, feeling a sensation I had never known before—intense and indescribable.

He tugged at my clothes with force and bit into my shoulder, a sensation of pain and numbness. I couldn't help but cry out. I wanted to break away, but his hands pressed firmly against my waist, leaving me unable to move.

He suddenly pulled back, his voice low and hoarse. "I told you to button up. Little Xiao, you brought this on yourself. You are seducing me."

"Ninth Prince, this servant didn't..." I felt like I was being wrongly accused.

"Little Xiao, they drugged the wine and lured me here. I didn't know you were here. But I am grateful that you are."

Jiang Xuan kissed my cheek. Every word he spoke was accompanied by a kiss, whispered against my neck, each syllable scalding.

I drifted for a moment. Drugged? What kind of drug? He held me tighter, even his breathing capable of scorching me.

"Little Xiao, you know what I want. I can't wait anymore. Can you give it to me?"

I was still dazed; because of the alcohol, my mind couldn't turn properly, and most of what Jiang Xuan said I only half-understood. Before I could process it, his hand moved. I realized his hand had already reached the edge of my trousers.

I suddenly realized something and pressed my hand against his, saying, "No, Ninth Prince, no!"

But he pulled his hand out, pushed my hand away, and reached back in. He had been drugged; he said he couldn't wait. But I couldn't—I couldn't do this with Jiang Xuan. Even if he wanted to, it shouldn't be like this.

I used my other hand to pin his down and shook my head at him. "Ninth Prince, no, we cannot do this."

Jiang Xuan turned my body to face him. His hands touched my face, trembling violently for some reason. He looked at me and said, "Little Xiao, I cannot have anyone else. I don't want anyone else, do you understand?"

"This servant cannot, Ninth Prince..."

With Jiang Xuan's disturbance, most of my drunkenness had faded, and my willpower had returned.

"Just for a moment, just a moment is enough." Jiang Xuan’s tone was like a plea, but before I could answer, he pulled me forward. I caught him off guard, wrenched my hand away, and thought about running. But when I reached the wall, intending to dash to the backyard, he had already chased me down, his long arms blocking my path.

My heart hammered violently as I looked up at him.

"Little Xiao! Are you still trying to run?"

The sound made my fingertips tingle and my spine shiver. He shoved me against the wall, forcing me to face away from him. He leaned in, pressing against me, his demeanor once again incredibly domineering.

With half my face pressed against the wall, I still said, "Ninth Prince, we really cannot do this."

Jiang Xuan was no longer listening. His hands were firmly pressed on my waist, his legs pinning mine between them. He leaned close, kissing my neck repeatedly, each breath so灼人 (scorching) that it eroded my consciousness bit by bit. I felt as if my whole body was burning, as if I, too, had been drugged.

A moment of surrender brought a flash of clarity. He said he had been drugged; the intent of the person who did it was clear—they wanted to see us like this. If we truly went through with it, both Jiang Xuan and I would be finished.

Jiang Xuan was drugged and his body was out of control; I couldn't blame him. But I was still conscious, and I couldn't let things unfold as others intended.

Thinking of this, I turned around with force to face Jiang Xuan.

Jiang Xuan looked at me and pressed his lips to mine. It was the first time Jiang Xuan had given me such a passionate kiss, even if it was driven by the aphrodisiac. This kiss was different from the accidental contact of before—it was so real. Held in his arms, my heart began to burn. Under this kiss, I felt as if my soul had been drawn from my body, my sanity blown away completely. My hands reached out to embrace his waist regardless of the consequences, tilting my head to seek his lips, my tongue sliding between his teeth.

Seeing my compliance, Jiang Xuan's expression held a hint of pleasure, his gaze no longer as scorching as before.

I followed his lead, responding a few times. Seeing that the moment was right, I pushed him away gently with both palms, keeping them between us, and said, "Ninth Prince, please wait a moment. I have an urgent matter; I will be right back."

"Little Xiao!" Jiang Xuan's tone was urgent.

I said, "Don't be anxious, Ninth Prince. This servant really needs to relieve himself, or it might spoil the mood for you later." I truly didn't know I could say such things.

Jiang Xuan finally released me, and I walked away immediately. I headed to the backyard, hoping to find a water vat or something similar to douse him with cold water—perhaps that would work, or I could just shove him into the vat.

I searched and finally found a water vat, filled to the brim from the rain a few days prior. I was overjoyed, thinking Jiang Xuan might be saved after all.

I figured if I could lure him here and make him squat inside, it might work. With this in mind, I prepared to return to the front yard to find him. But just as I arrived, I suddenly saw Jialin.

She had been off vomiting, but had finally emerged. She stumbled, saw Jiang Xuan, and started to bow, but tripped right in front of him. In his urgency, Jiang Xuan reached out to steady her.

I prepared to go over, but at that moment, the doors to the Lingbo Palace were pushed open. A crowd stood at the entrance, led by the Emperor and the Empress.

I couldn't go out now; if I did, things would become even more complicated. And with Jialin and Jiang Xuan together like this, it was perhaps the most logical scenario.

Thinking of this, I silently crouched down. As I knelt, my gaze remained fixed on Jiang Xuan and Jialin. I don't know why, but I felt a sense of foreboding, and my heart inexplicably ached.

Jiang Xuan's gaze suddenly shifted toward me, his eyes filled with a profound sense of loss.

I hurriedly looked away, forced to face the approaching Emperor and Empress.

"Xuan'er, what are you doing?" the Emperor demanded, his voice filled with imperial authority.

Jialin's clothes were disheveled, and Jiang Xuan, due to his struggle with me, had his robes in disarray. Combined with the effects of the drug, anyone could see what they thought had transpired before them!