Chapter 5 IF Line: Your Highness, stop chasing, it's just a bitter tea seed (1) From the extra collection point of Chapter 178 of the main text, reader "Branch with Light"
Deep in the dense forest, Li Yuheng was running for his life.
Her long, silvery-white hair brushed against the spiderwebs adorned with morning dew, and her pointed ears trembled slightly with her rapid breathing.
He nimbly leaped over the gnarled tree roots, but then heard even more hurried footsteps behind him.
How could a human possibly run that fast?!
"stop!"
A cold, angry shout came from behind.
Shu Bai, carrying his sword, sped through the forest, his magnificent prince's robes getting torn in several places by tree branches.
"It's just a piece of bitter tea!" Li Yuheng shouted back as he ran, "Your human fabrics are so comfortable!"
"Borrow?" Shu Bai cleaved through the vines blocking his path with a single sword stroke. "Are your brain's blood vessels and large intestine reversed? Is your brain filled with shit? Even if the Heavenly King himself came, you'd still be stealing!"
"...Then I'll give you ten more!"
"I'll take your life!!!"
Li Yuheng is the youngest elven elder in this forest. He has lived for three hundred years and has never seen such a handsome human.
Three days ago, when Shu Bai entered the forest, he hid in the treetops to spy on him.
This morning, she finally couldn't resist and took the prince's most intimate garment while he was washing up by the stream.
"Wait!" Li Yuheng suddenly slammed on the brakes, turned around, and waved a bitter tea seed as a white flag. "I surrender!"
The tip of the sparse white sword was pointed directly at his throat: "Reason?"
“You’re lost.” Li Yuheng blinked his emerald eyes. “This forest is man-eating; you won’t get out without an elf to guide you. And…”
He waved the bitter tea leaves: "Your change of clothes is in my hands."
Shu Bai's expression was as if he wanted to nail him to a tree and let him dry in the wind.
"Lead the way." The prince finally sheathed his sword. "If you dare to play any tricks, I'll turn you into a specimen."
Li Yuheng didn't take it seriously at all, tossing the bitter tea seeds in his hand thoughtfully, "Specimens are so uncreative. How about making them into sachets?"
Shu Bai: "???"
But his hand, which was about to draw his sword, was instantly held down.
"Just kidding!" Li Yuheng stuffed the bitter tea seed into his arms. "Let's go, Your Highness. I promise to take you to the edge of the forest."
…
As it turns out, the elf's promises were just as unreliable as a holiday study schedule.
“This is the third day.” Shu Bai leaned against the tree with his arms crossed, looking at Li Yuheng picking fruit from the branches with a complicated expression.
The elf was shamelessly sticking out his rear end, groping among the tree branches, with a few leaves stuck in his silver hair from the previous night.
"...Where exactly is this border you're talking about? I didn't realize you could lie, besides stealing bitter tea seeds?"
"Look, you're in a hurry again."
Li Yuheng first tossed a red fruit to Shu Bai, then picked one up himself and pretended to take a bite. Suddenly, he noticed that there were still mud spots on the peel, so he quickly grabbed the corner of his clothes and wiped it off before putting it in his mouth.
He chewed a couple of times, then, as if remembering something, he secretly glanced at the fruit in Shu Bai's hand that hadn't been wiped clean yet, and added indistinctly, "We're almost there! Try this, it's as sweet as first love."
Shu Bai looked down at the red berries in his hand, still covered in mud, a half-smile playing on his lips:
"Someone like you had a first love? That's enough to make me laugh for half a year."
Upon hearing this, Li Yuheng almost choked and jumped down from the tree in a few steps.
"What do you mean? What's wrong with me? Let me tell you, we elves are famous for our loyalty, and we're popular among all races!"
Shu Bai disgustedly took out a handkerchief and wiped the fruit from head to toe three times before reluctantly taking a bite.
The bright red juice immediately stained the corners of his lips. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Exclusively stealing bitter tea seeds?"
“One thing at a time,” Li Yuheng pointed to his handsome face, “Do I look like someone who’s desperate for attention?”
Shu Bai looked him up and down, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment:
"Yes. He looks like a human being, but does all sorts of beastly things."
Li Yuheng: "..."
His eyes darted around, and suddenly a thought struck him: "Hey, you wouldn't be... secretly asking about my romantic history, would you?"
Shu Bai paused slightly while chewing the fruit, then turned his head and neatly spat the pit aside.
He dusted off his clothes, his face full of disdain: "Asking about you? What would I want?"
"Then why are you asking about my first love! Admit it, you're interested in me."
"...I'm interested in you??"
Shu Bai sneered upon hearing this, pointing a finger to the sky, "If I ever fell for a pervert like you who steals other people's bitter tea, may I be struck by lightning right now—"
No sooner had he finished speaking than dark clouds suddenly gathered in the clear blue sky.
A bolt of lightning struck an ancient tree not far away, and the smell of burning smoke instantly filled the air.
Li Yuheng blinked slowly: "...Look, even God can't stand it anymore."
Shu Bai withdrew his hand expressionlessly: "Coincidence."
Li Yuheng: "Really?"
Click!
Another bolt of lightning struck precisely at their feet, splashing mud all over them.
The two of them looked down at the still-smoking crater on the ground.
An eerie silence suddenly fell over the air.
Shu Bai stared at the still-smoking crater on the ground for three seconds, then suddenly looked up at the sky:
"The weather is nice today."
After saying that, he took off running, so fast that he left an afterimage in his wake.
Li Yuheng paused for a second, then immediately chased after him: "Why are you running! Weren't you quite talkative just now?"
Shu Bai ran wildly through the woods without looking back: "Standing under a tree during a thunderstorm instead of running? Do you think I'm stupid?"
Li Yuheng suddenly stepped in front of Shu Bai.
After all, elves can fly much faster in the forest than humans can.
"Get out of the way!" Shu Bai slammed on the brakes, nearly bumping into him. "Don't you know that a good dog doesn't block the way?"
"I won't let you~" Li Yuheng wiggled his pointed ears triumphantly, "You just have your eye on me."
"If I wanted you, I would—"
Thunder rumbled in the distance again.
"Holy crap, stop talking now, or you'll really kill me!"
Li Yuheng suddenly lunged forward and covered his mouth.
The two rolled around in a ball, with Shu Bai pinned to the grass. Enraged, she kicked him, her mouth muffled as she protested, "Song Sou! If you're not happy, then shut your mouth!"
Li Yuheng held him down tightly: "Promise you won't make any rash oaths first!"
"Don't give me anything, don't give me anything!"
"Look, you're going to swear again!"
Shu Bai was pressed to the grass with his mouth covered by him. She was so angry that her eyes turned red. She raised her leg and rammed it against Li Yuheng's waist.
Li Yuheng grunted but refused to let go: "You promise first!"
The two remained deadlocked, and the distant rumble of thunder could be heard again.
Shu Bai glared at the rogue spirit on his body, then finally closed his eyes and nodded in resignation.
Li Yuheng finally let go, but before he could even feel smug, he was kicked away by Shu Bai.
"After you covered someone's mouth with mud," Shu Bai scrambled up and frantically wiped his mouth. "Did you wash your hands?"
"I washed them!" Li Yuheng said, showing her hands with a pitiful expression. "I washed them with dew!"
Shu Bai's expression became even more ferocious: "That's even dirtier! Who knows if there's bird droppings or bird urine mixed in!"
"Why are you so difficult to please! If you think it's dirty, then don't eat the fruit I picked!"
"So didn't I just wipe it three times with a handkerchief?" Shu Bai retorted through gritted teeth.
Li Yuheng was so angry that he jumped up and down on the spot: "You think my hands are dirty? I haven't even complained about your sharp tongue yet! How can you be so difficult to please! I pick fruit for you and you think it's dirty, I help you find the way and you think it's too slow, and now you even complain about my washed hands! Do you know how many creatures in the forest want me to touch them but I won't! Your mouth is always chattering away, and the words you say are more poisonous than the swamp gas. If I really get poisoned, it will definitely be because of your curses!"
He became more and more agitated as he spoke, when suddenly a brilliant idea struck him. He pointed to his mouth and shouted, "You think my hands are dirty, but my mouth is clean, right? Believe me or not, I'll shut you up with my mouth!"
Shu Bai was frantically wiping his mouth with his head down, and didn't hear what he was yelling at all. He just blurted out, "Come on then! Who's afraid of who!"
The next second, Li Yuheng rushed forward, cupped Shu Bai's face in his hands, and kissed him on the lips.
The world suddenly fell silent.
The two remained frozen in their kissing pose, like two statues struck by lightning.
After kissing him, Li Yuheng quickly took a few steps back, covering his mouth with a shocked expression, as if he wasn't the one who had taken the initiative to kiss him.
Shu Bai suddenly realized: "You actually dared to kiss me?!"
"Didn't you tell me to come if I had the guts?"
"I told you to argue with your mouth! Who told you to kiss me!"
"You didn't explain it clearly!"
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