Jiang Yichen pushed open the door to his room, expecting the familiar silence that greeted him every night. But instead, his gaze halted on a suspicious lump under the covers of his bed.
Mingyu, hidden beneath the covers of Jiang Yichen's bed, held his breath as he heard the sound of footsteps getting closer, while also internally cursing himself.
Really, Mingyu? Of all places to hide, you chose here? Stupid! Stupid! Stu… Mingyu's self-rebuke was interrupted as the blanket covering him, was abruptly yanked away.
Jiang Yichen stood frozen in silence, his eyes locked onto Mingyu's startled face.
The silence between them stretched, with neither of them taking the initiative to break the silence. Mingyu didn't even move a muscle, and just laid down there on the bed.
He must be thinking I'm crazy. What should I say?
"What are you doing here?" Jiang Yichen finally broke the silence.
Mingyu's lips parted, but words failed him.
"Well…" He said as he sat up, quickly thinking of an excuse, and when he thought of one, he spluttered it out immediately, "Madam Wang said you have always complained that you feel cold at night, so I was just heating up your bed for you."
He then got up and gestured to the bed. "If you lie down right away, your bed is going to feel nice and warm all night."
"Is that so?" Jiang Yichen said with an amused smile, "How kind of you."
Mingyu forced a smile and shook his head. "I'm just doing my duty, Young master."
Jiang Yichen nodded, and said nothing more, only standing there, and looking at Mingyu with an unusually soft gaze that made Mingyu uncomfortable.
"Good night, then." Mingyu said and quickly began to leave, but Jiang Yichen was much quicker.
Before Mingyu could walk past him, Jiang Yichen caught hold of his wrist. "Where are you going?" He asked.
Mingyu gave Jiang Yichen a puzzled look as if saying 'isn't it obvious?', but Jiang Yichen ignored it.
"You said you came to keep me warm, didn't you?" Jiang Yichen asked, releasing Mingyu's wrist and grasping his shoulders instead. His fingers wrapped warmly around Mingyu's shoulders, sending a slight shiver down his spine.
"So keep my bed nice and hot, all night long," Jiang Yichen whispered, his voice low and teasing, accompanied by a sly smirk.
Mingyu's mind reeled. Is this crazy man really seducing me right now? Was I right about him liking me?
Jiang Yichen applied gentle pressure on Mingyu's shoulders, guiding him back onto the bed. As Mingyu sat down, Jiang Yichen released him and turned away, shedding his outer robe with a fluid motion.
Mingyu's eyes subconsciously widened in shock at the turn of events. How had his quest to find Jiang Yichen's plaque suddenly spiral into this?
"Young master. On second thoughts I think my body is not warm enough to keep your bed nice and warm. I forgot that since I was a child, I easily got chills, and my temperature had always been low."
Mingyu's words tumbled out in a frantic lie, but Jiang Yichen simply regarded him with a raised eyebrow, his expression unreadable.
To Mingyu's despair, Jiang Yichen sat beside him on the bed, and their thighs were now touching.
As if that wasn't enough, Jiang Yichen's hand slowly reached for the ropes of his own inner robe, and he began tugging at the rope.
Hell no! Mingyu internally cursed as his eyes darted about the room in urgency.
There was no way he was just going to sit there, and act like the good and obedient servant he had been pretending to be, not when his most priced possession—his virginity—hung precariously in the balance.
With a rush of adrenaline, Mingyu abruptly stood up and grabbed the closest thing to a weapon he could find—a silk clothe draped over Jiang Yichen's pillow.
He locked his eyes onto Jiang Yichen with a fierce gaze as he twisted both ends of the silk fabric around his palms, forming an improvised rope.
"I do not plan on doing what you are thinking." He said in a firm voice.
Jiang Yichen paused his action of loosening his inner robes, and looked at Mingyu with genuine shock which then slowly turned into confusion.
"What are you talking about?" He asked before shaking his head, "Stop joking around and bring the brazier closer to my bedside."
Jiang Yichen's words made Mingyu confused as well. "Brazier?" He asked.
Jiang Yichen then pointed to the corner of his room where a large, shallow bronze container sat atop intricately carved wooden legs. There were glowing embers in the brazier's metal grate, casting a warm glow across the floor.
"That pot of coal over there is called a brazier." Jiang Yichen spoke as if talking to a five-year-old, "I only wanted you to bring the brazier closer to my bed, and keep it hot. What the hell were you thinking?"
"Oh!" Mingyu exclaimed feeling relieved, and also embarrassed at how far into the mud his mind had gone.
But then, how was that his fault? The lunatic was to blame for speaking in a seductive tone, and even stripping in front of him without telling him about the damn brazier in the first place!
Mingyu took a deep breath to cool his head down, and allowed himself to be absorbed back into his good and obedient servant pretense once more.
"I'll go get it now." He said as he dropped the silk fabric back on the bed, and hurried to go bring the brazier close to the bed.
Jiang Yichen, on the other hand, finally loosened the rope of his inner robe and fully laid on his bed. "Get a fan and keep the fire alive all night." He commanded, closing his eyes to sleep.
Mingyu rolled his eyes, but he still did as told. "Sure, Young master." He said.
Mingyu sat cross-legged before the brazier, gently fanned the coals with a wooden paddle, coaxing forth a warm, golden glow which provided heat to the room.
Time passed and Mingyu got bored of just sitting there. His gaze drifted toward Jiang Yichen, whose soft, rhythmic breathing signaled his descent into slumber.
"Lunatic!" He couldn't help cursing as he eyed Jiang Yichen's sleeping form in irritation.
Remembering the reason why he had come to Jiang Yichen's room in the first place, Mingyu's gaze drifted away from Jiang Yichen's form, and his eyes scanned the room once more. That was when he spotted it – a glint of blue, shimmering in the dark.
On a nearby stool, within arm's reach of Jiang Yichen's bed, lay the precious plaque he had been searching for.
Pa! Mingyu slapped his forehead, the sound echoing through the quiet room. "Idiot!" he whispered, self-disgust etched on his face.
How could I not have seen it? The plaque had been hiding in plain sight, mocking his exhaustive search. He had dismissed the spot as too obvious for such a valuable item, and had looked everywhere but there.
He glanced at Jiang Yichen once more before he stood up, and silently walked over to the table to pick up the plaque.
Holding the plaque in his hands, a smile of victory graced his face, and he excitedly, but silently made his way out of Jiang Yichen's room.
Unbeknownst to Mingyu, as soon as he stepped out of the room, Jiang Yichen's eyes fluttered open, and he slowly turned his head to face the door with a piercing gaze.
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A/N: Mini Theater
Jiang Yichen: You are so dirty minded. How could you think so little of me?
Mingyu: (Gives Jiang Yichen a bombastic side eye) What else was I supposed to think? You pushed me to the bed, and began undressing yourself. You didn't even say a single word about the brazier, not until I tried to defend myself.
Jiang Yichen: You had worked so hard, all day. I just wanted you to sit for a moment to rest. I only had good intentions, isn't that right, Author Diamond?
Author: I don't know, dude! Please don't drag me into this, I'm busy writing your future.