Chapter 102 Engagement
Amber was cold at heart, but her kiss was particularly hot. He was casual about details, but also concerned about formalities, which was a kind of contradictory extreme. Every time she was intimate with Ludwig, she would stop at the right time, even if they were lying naked on the bed, she would never go beyond the last step.
"Your Excellency, Your Excellency..."
Ludwig's voice was hoarse and anxious, but the emotion in his eyes was hotter than fire. Even the cold-hearted emperor couldn't help but melt at the heat, so he had to blindfold him with his tie.
"Shut up, don't talk."
Amber was afraid she wouldn't be able to control herself.
Ludwig thought, if he couldn't talk, what could he do? He blushed and rubbed the other's neat suit pants with his cold military boots. The touch was cold and hard, causing a shudder. His usually cold and arrogant voice was like honey, sticky and tender: "Then you are not allowed to regret it..."
Amber nodded and agreed: "It's a promise, and I won't go back on it."
He was once the Son of Heaven...
Even if he didn't do it to the last step, the male insect still had countless ways to make Ludwig's legs go limp and his mind go blank. He didn't know how he got through that night. He only remembered the suffocating kiss and his brain was blank due to lack of oxygen.
The next morning, it was just dawn.
Ludwig climbed out of bed with difficulty relying on his biological clock. Seeing that Amber seemed to be still sleeping soundly, he put on his clothes quietly, opened the window and prepared to "leave the same way", otherwise he might accidentally run into Grandpa Fernando.
But Ludwig had just climbed up when he felt something tighten around his waist. The male insect, who had just woken up, held him down. The male insect's charming voice rang in his ears, sounding drowsy:
"Didn't I tell you to go through the front door? If you dare to climb through the window again, I'll call the police."
Do it sneakily like a thief.
Ludwig was startled. He didn't expect Amber to wake up. "What if she gets discovered?"
Amber raised her eyebrows and asked, "Do you think it's more embarrassing to be discovered through the front door or through the window?"
It seems quite embarrassing.
Ludwig's eyes wandered: "Then I'll go through the main entrance?"
Amber smiled and hummed: "I didn't stop you from leaving."
Ludwig could not help but see his mockery, and he bit his lip and said, "You are so cruel."
If he had known this earlier, he should not have come to climb over the male insect's window. He should have let the male insect climb over his window, since the other party was so skilled anyway.
Full of resentment, Ludwig had no choice but to leave through the main door of the bedroom, taking advantage of the hazy sky to leave in a hurry. Amber stood at the window and watched him go. Seeing the other party's vigilant figure, she shook her head slightly, and a smile flashed across her eyes: Fernando went back to the third star yesterday for something, and he was not at home at night. Why was Ludwig so scared?
Amber checked the time, and dressed and washed as usual, neither fast nor slow. But if you looked closely, you could see that she had put a lot more thought into it. She even compared her clothes repeatedly, and changed three sets before picking out one that she liked. It looked like she was getting married.
Well...proposing marriage in person, how come that doesn't count?
The Lan Yi family is considered prominent in the Imperial Star, with countless guests coming and going every day, but Duke Bach never thought that the male insect in front of him would suddenly come with gifts to propose marriage.
Two insects sat facing each other in the luxurious living room. The atmosphere seemed casual, but there was actually some undercurrent. When Bach learned about Amber's intention, he was inevitably a little doubtful: "Amber, are you sure you want to re-engage with Ludwig?"
Duke Bach was unwilling to do so privately. Not to mention the Third Prince for now, if the news of their breaking off the engagement and then getting engaged were spread out, who knows how much controversy it would cause.
Amber had made full preparations for the visit today. Facing Duke Bach's inquiries, she acted like a junior and could not find any faults: "There may have been some misunderstandings between our two families before, but they were all caused by rumors outside. I have always admired Major General Ludwig. It would be an honor to be his partner."
Due to his male identity, Duke Bach could not refuse outright, so he could only change the subject. His eyes fell on the gifts Amber brought, and he stroked one of the exquisitely packaged boxes and sighed, "You brought so many gifts with you. It cost you a lot of money."
Amber understood the meaning of the gift. He opened the lid and saw a Go set inside. The pieces were carved from fine jade and shone brightly under the light. "I don't know what to give you. I heard that you like playing Go, so I prepared a set of jade pieces. I hope you like it."
Perhaps male insects of this era were too arrogant and never willing to lower their heads, which made the gift Amber prepared particularly special.
Duke Bach looked at him deeply and said, "Your Excellency is thoughtful, but Go is too profound and mysterious. I have been studying for so long and have only touched the threshold. It is better to retreat before the difficulty comes."
Amber smiled and said, "It is because it is so profound that we need to explore it more. I heard that you have been on the battlefield before. It is not like a military heroine to retreat when faced with difficulties."
Duke Bach was embarrassed as he had hit a soft knife: "Do you know how to play Go?"
Amber was very humble: "I just got the hang of it."
Duke Bach asked the servants to clean the table and put the chessboard and chess pieces on the table. "It's already a great honor to have even a basic understanding. Ludwig and Sieveri are young and energetic. They can't learn something that tests their patience. If you don't mind, you can play a game with me."
Duke Bach always felt that playing chess could easily reveal a bug's character, even more accurately than playing cards. He was unwilling to give in to the marriage, so he wanted to use chess to force Amber to back off, and said with a smile:
"If you win, everything is easy to talk about. If you lose, then ..."
The words are not yet complete, but the meaning is conveyed.
Amber heard the deep meaning in his words, her expression unchanged, and she smiled slightly: "Then I'll listen to you, how about two out of three games?"
Duke Bach of course agreed.
Amber once heard from the system that after the extinction of the fairies, the world had changed drastically and the rules and dogmas from thousands of years ago had been broken. However, she did not expect that something like Go would still be passed down and was quite popular among the noble circles.
He stroked the warm white chess pieces on his fingertips and started playing against Duke Bach. He was surprised to find that his opponent had learned the game quite well. His moves were vigorous and full of movement, somewhat like the art of war on the battlefield. He thought that his opponent might have been too modest when he said he had only touched the threshold.
Little did he know that Duke Bach was also secretly surprised. He had thought that Amber was a useless fool who knew nothing, but he had not expected that the opponent was so powerful and played steadily step by step. Half an hour had passed and the game was still undecided. He was sweating on his back and began to feel tired.
One inning is over, two innings are over, three innings are over.
Duke Bach was the elder after all, so Amber followed the rules and gave his opponent a little leeway in each round. He didn't play too hard, and in the end he won by a small margin. When the third round was over, he put the remaining chess pieces in his hand into the chess box and said with a smile, "Thank you for letting me win."
Upon hearing this, Duke Bach was surprised to realize that the game was over, and it had already darkened outside the window. Seeing that they were so engrossed in playing chess, the servants did not dare to disturb them. They could only prepare the food in advance and wait by their side.
No matter how reluctant he was, Duke Bach could only slowly exhale a breath, and couldn't hide his admiration in his words: "Sir, you win. I didn't expect you to be so proficient in chess at such a young age. Heroes emerge from youth. I am indeed old."
Amber was unsure whether he agreed or not: "You gave in to me."
Duke Bach waved his hands and said, "Win is win, lose is lose. Although I am old, I will not do anything to default on my debts. It is getting late. Please stay for dinner tonight."
Amber was about to decline the offer, but unexpectedly, Duke Bach seemed to see through his thoughts and said meaningfully, "After dinner, let's discuss your marriage with Ludwig, what do you think?"
Amber immediately changed her tone after hearing this, with a deep smile in her eyes: "You are the elder, I will listen to you."
Things like engagements always require the presence of the parties involved. Duke Bach looked at the time and found that it was almost time for the military to get off work, so he simply called Ludwig and asked him to come back to the old house for dinner without explaining anything else.
Duke Bach had a good idea. Recently, Severi always went out early and came back late. He came back from the military headquarters in the late night, so they would not meet at dinner time in the evening, otherwise there would be a tense atmosphere in the air when the twins met. However, he never expected that Severi would come home very early today and even brought an uninvited guest with him.
"Grandpa!"
Sivley took Fang Yun and walked quickly into the living room, his voice unable to conceal his excitement: "Today I brought a friend back to visit, it's Mr. Fang Yun whom I have been talking about before, you..."
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly found another familiar figure sitting on the sofa in the living room. It was Amber with black hair and dark eyes and a calm face. His voice stopped abruptly and he suddenly became at a loss. He asked with a red face, "Mr. Amber, why are you here too?"
Duke Bach saw the male insect behind Sivlai and frowned slightly. Although he took the initiative to explain, his tone was slightly reproachful: "Ms. Amber came here today to discuss the marriage with your brother. Why did you bring Mr. Fang Yun here without telling me in advance? There is nothing prepared at home. Isn't it rude?"
Although today was the first time they met, Duke Bach had heard Siffre mention this male insect named Fang Yun many times before. To be honest, those deeds that the young female insects called heroic deeds were only impulsive and reckless in his eyes, so he was not optimistic about them.
Hearing this, Sivley lowered his head apologetically: "Sorry, Grandpa, I just wanted to give you a surprise."
Fang Yun also subconsciously waved his hands and said, "No...it's okay, I just came to take a look, you don't have to pay too much attention to me."
Duke Bach said politely: "Sivley is really rude, please forgive me, if you don't mind, let's have dinner together."
Fang Yun shook his head, looking quite cheerful and honest: "Sorry to bother you then."
He and Amber had no communication from beginning to end, and they didn't even make eye contact. Occasionally, they glanced at each other with hostility that only he could detect.
Duke Bach knew why Siffre brought Fang Yun to his home today. He just wanted to meet the parents to finalize the marriage. However, Fang Yun was not only rude in his behavior, but he didn't even bring any gifts on his first visit. He just sat at the table waiting for dinner. It was inevitable that he was inferior to Amber.
Ludwig came back a little late because of his busy work. He parked the aircraft in the yard and strode towards the house. However, he saw three unexpected insects sitting inside. He paused and looked a little stunned:
Forget about Sivley, but why is Fang Yun here too, and...
Amber?
Duke Bach just sat down at the main seat. When he saw Ludwig, he said with a gentle look, "Ludwig, you're back just in time. Come and have dinner. Lady Amber has been waiting for you for a long time."
Sivley also stood up and said, "Yes, brother, Mr. Fang Yun is here today as well."
Amber didn't say a word from beginning to end. She just smiled at him from an angle where no one could see, then patted the chair next to her, motioning him to sit over.
Seeing this, Ludwig consciously walked over and sat down next to Amber. He felt that the scene in front of him was a little unreal, and asked in confusion, "Why are you here today?"
Amber picked up some food for him with a serving chopstick. There was a smile in her eyes, but her tone was nonchalant, as if it was just a normal thing to do: "Nothing. I just happened to have a day off today, so I came here to discuss our marriage with Duke Bach."
Duke Bach also said: "You and Lady Amber have already been engaged once. If you get engaged again, it will inevitably cause criticism. It is better to choose a good day to get married, so as to avoid dragging things out."
Ludwig's chopsticks trembled when he heard this, and he seemed a little surprised. Although Amber had said before that she would ask Duke Bach for marriage, he thought that the other party was just perfunctory and did not expect it to be true.
His heart skipped a beat, and he couldn't tell whether he was panicked or at a loss. Ludwig subconsciously lowered his head to eat, using his movements to cover up his expression as he mumbled, "As you say..."
Amber said nothing, but just picked up another piece of food for him with his chopsticks. Seeing this, Ludwig whispered his thanks, his tone as indifferent as usual, but his military boots rubbed the male insect's legs quietly under the table, rubbing slowly, as if deliberately teasing something.
Amber stepped on him lightly, indicating that he should not act rudely in front of his elders. However, Ludwig groaned softly, and his cheeks were slightly flushed, which was particularly obvious because of his fair skin.
Ludwig glanced at Amber, his amber pupils covered with a layer of water, cold and charming. He moved his rosy lips silently, showing a little resentment: "You were not like this last night..."
The male insect was clearly very enthusiastic last night.
Amber looked away as if nothing had happened. The bed is the bed, and under the bed is under the bed. How can they be the same?
Severi didn't know what happened under the table. He only saw Ludwig's tone was flat, and Amber looked reluctant to say more. He asked carefully, "Brother, are you not happy to marry Ms. Amber?"
Ludwig paused when he heard this, and raised his eyelids to look at Sever. He seldom smiled at his brother, but every time he smiled, it was always with a hint of coldness. He asked in an ambiguous tone, "Why do you ask that?"
Severus seemed to be frightened by his eyes and lowered his head in panic: "I... I just saw that you didn't seem to smile much, and I thought... I thought you didn't want to marry Lady Amber."
Ludwig's lips curled slightly, and his tone was inexplicably scary: "Who said I don't smile? Aren't I smiling now?"
Amber gently pressed Ludwig's leg under the table, signaling him not to confront Severi head-on. The latter gave her face, raised his eyebrows slightly, and remained silent.
Duke Bach, perhaps sensing the undercurrent, glanced at Sivley and said in a slightly serious tone, "Your medical leave should have ended. Why are you still running home every day? Now that you have joined the military, you should learn from your brother and focus more on business."
It's almost like saying that Siffre and Fang Yun are hanging out together and are not doing their job properly.
Sivley said with a bit of embarrassment: "Yes, my vacation just ends today, and I will return to the military tomorrow."
Ludwig vaguely remembered that Sieflei seemed to have rested for a long time, and frowned: "Is your wrist sprained and not healed yet?"
Sivley was about to say something when Duke Bach explained, "It's not his wrist, it's his shoulder. He accidentally hurt his shoulder during training two days ago, so he took a few days off."
"Although it is understandable to ask for leave when you are injured, if you are injured in the future on the battlefield, your injuries will only become more serious. How can you ask for leave every time? Ludwig, if it is not a serious injury in the future, you don't need to approve leave for Severe, do you understand?"
Little did she know that his unintentional rebuke had stirred up a wave of shock in Amber's heart. Amber paused for a moment, and suddenly raised her eyes to look across the table, where she happened to meet Sever's eyes.
There was shame, embarrassment, and a hint of well-hidden resentment, but nothing else.
Amber narrowed her eyes dangerously, could it be Severus?
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