Chapter 124 - Play

As Lei Xing walked into the room, the Emperor narrowed his eyes at her, "You're back, I was starting to think you forgot your way home."

Lei Xing glanced at him and mumbled, "I lost track of time."

"Come here." The Emperor then said with a smile. Lei Xing suspiciously looked at him, sighed and then walked up to where he was sitting. When she got to him, the Emperor put out a hand to help her sit.

Lei Xing slightly knit her brows then sat down on her own, ignoring his hand. The Emperor was not bothered and simply grabbed her hand, "Are you still angry?"

"No, I'm not...Why would I be angry?" Lei Xing quietly responded.

The Emperor raised an eyebrow, "It seems like you're pouting."

Lei Xing let out a breath and flatly stated, "I'm not angry."

{...It's because of that Li Ru who was talking nonsense...}

"That's good then." The Emperor then released her hand, swiftly cleared the table in front of them and put the qin that was behind him on it and looked at Lei Xing, "Play something for me."

Lei Xing blinked at the qin, then glanced at him and said, "It's better if you play..."

"I want to listen to you play." The Emperor stated.

Lei Xing frowned at the qin, then nervously said, "I...I'm tired" She quickly jumped up as she announced, "I'm going to bathe."

She then saw a smile slowly creep up on the Emperor's face as he looked at her and went, "Alright, I'll be here waiting."

Lei Xing knit her brows as she felt a shiver run down her spine. She quickly turned and left the room with her heart pounding. Lei Xing soaked in the bath for a long time, stalling again for as long she could. Then she begrudgingly returned to find the Emperor reading his memorials and then let out a sigh of relief, thinking that it was all just her imagination. 

{...This is all that Li Ru's fault! She needs to get her eyes checked -_-)...Making me jumpy for nothing haha...ha...}

She did not bother him and happily crawled up on the bed, snuggled up with her blanket and settled in to sleep. Only for the Emperor to shortly get in behind her and gently pulled her into his arms. Lei Xing went rigid and kept her eyes closed, trying to calm herself, thinking that this was normal, he did it all the time so it did not mean anything different. 

The Emperor looked at her face and twitching eyebrows then sighed, "Xing er', I know this is a small thing...but it still bothers me..."

Lei Xing knit her brows in confusion and slightly opened her eyes to see him frowning off to the side and she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He then turned back to her and she blinked as her heart jumped.

{...Freaking calm down! You're being annoying!...}

Lei Xing took a deep breath to calm herself. The Emperor, who was oblivious of her internal tribulation then asked, "Why won't you play for me?"

"Huh?" Lei Xing responded, completely baffled.

{...You're still on that? -_-)...}

The Emperor knit his brows, "Well, you play for other people, even your maids...I've asked you several times and you always deflect it...I play for you all the time...so why won't you?" He finished looking at her with a displeased expression.

Lei Xing blinked, feeling a bit at a loss wondering why that would bother him, as she mumbled, "What does a master like you want to listen to a noob like me for?"

"Noob?" The Emperor asked with a raised eyebrow.

Lei Xing offhandedly responded, "It means a novice..."

"A novice..." The Emperor thought for a bit, then raised his eyebrows, "Ah, I can understand that then. You want to look your best for me but -"

Lei Xing blinked and immediately frowned at him and blurted out, "How did you get to that conclusion?"

The Emperor smiled at her and stroked her face, "It's obvious...You happily play in front of other people, yet you refuse to play when I'm around. You called me a master, so you're worried about disappointing me since you're a...noob?" He finished with a smug expression, happy with his wise deduction. 

Lei Xing's expression fell and she narrowed her eyes at him.

{...Did this as***le just call me a noob? -_-)...}

The Emperor continued unperturbed, "Don't worry, no matter how you perform I will enjoy it...As I've said before, you have great learning capacity, so even as a noob, you do quite well." He reassuringly said with a smile.

Lei Xing's lips twitched, she felt the urge to hurl him across the room for repeatedly calling her noob, despite the fact that she started it. She took a deep breath to calm herself and said, "You're misun-" Her words were cut off when the Emperor lowered his head and kissed her.

He nibbled on her lips for a bit, then whispered against her lips, "Let's keep my explanation." and then went to kiss her again, a lingering, deepening kiss. Lei Xing had gotten used to his kisses over the last weeks, and so did not think much of it, her mind went blank and she indulged in it, even willingly opening her mouth to grant his tongue access when it prodded. 

The two drowned in the kiss for a long while, completely absorbed in each other's taste until...Lei Xing inhaled sharply when she felt his hand under her shirt and undergarment, groping one of her b.r.e.a.s.ts. Lei Xing's eyes flew open and she immediately pushed him and his wayward hand away. The Emperor lightly groaned when the kiss was broken, displeased with the interruption.

Lei Xing gulped and blankly stared at him, and the Emperor returned her stare. The stared at each other for a while as they gasped for breath with their hearts pounding erratically.

Lei Xing finally broke eye contact, blinked a few times then breathily said, "I'm still sick."

The Emperor knit his brows, "I was informed that you're fully recovered."

"W-well, I may...look fine on the outside, b-but that doesn't mean I'm completely recovered...on the inside." Lei Xing finished then turned to her side and went to move his arm so she could move out of his arms cage and put some distance between them. But the Emperor simply moved the hand to hold her waist instead, preventing her from scurrying away.

Lei Xing froze and refused to turn her head to look at him, her heart was jumping wildly and she was feeling incredibly agitated. The Emperor lowered his head again and kissed her reddened ear then whispered into it, "How much longer do I have to wait?"

Lei Xing took a deep breath then nervously responded, "You don't have to wait, you can go somewh-"

"I only want you..." The Emperor bluntly stated, a bit impatiently. He kissed her ear again then whispered, "I thought I had been making that very clear." He then kissed down to her earlobe and sucked on it for a bit, lightly grazing it with his teeth, "Xing er', I only want you." He softly whispered.

Lei Xing gulped and knit her brows. She did not know how to respond and just laid taking deep breaths as his kisses moved from her ear to her face, and then trailed down her neck. She could feel his hand fiddling with the ties of her shirt, loosening it. She inhaled deeply then tightly closed her eyes. 

{...It's better this way...The sooner he leaves, the better...It's fine...}

Heart-pounding erratically, breathing heavily, eyes shut tightly with lashes fluttering she came to terms with was about to happen. She knew she could not delay it forever.