After all, this was Keqing's first time with something like this, too.
Skipping past dating, holding hands, hugging, and kissing to go straight to home base—even a girl with strong initiative could not help but feel nervous.
But she definitely had to do it. Keqing would never let this painstakingly created opportunity slip away!
She had gone to such lengths, even spending huge sums to buy up several nearby hotels at a premium, all to carefully create the current situation. Wasn't it all for this chance to lift the trophy right at the finish line?
Do it! She had to do it for real!
Only then could she achieve the most ideal outcome and make Ye Ming take proper responsibility!
Keqing silently encouraged herself.
But... what was she supposed to do next?
Recalling the knowledge she had found online, Keqing's pretty face gradually turned red, and a hazy gleam of moisture filled her violet eyes.
She tucked a few loose strands of long hair behind her ear, revealing her slender, snowy-white neck and the alluring flush on her crystal-clear skin.
The shyness and embarrassment in her heart were nearly driving her mad, but even so, she forced herself to remain calm. Her hands trembled slightly as she placed them on Ye Ming, then slowly lowered her head.
PS: Updating in the early morning is too exhausting. I'll gradually adjust the schedule and try to fix the update times to noon and evening.
Keqing, Will You Be My Wife?
Emptiness. An unprecedented emptiness.
His body was limp and weak, his waist and back ached, and even his bones felt as though their marrow had been sucked dry—weak and fragile. His mind was blank, and his spirit had never been so calm, like an enlightened monk who had cast aside all worldly desires.
So when Ye Ming woke up and opened his eyes, his reaction was strangely calm. For a moment, he could not even summon surprise.
His eyes were vacant, unfocused as they stared blankly at the ceiling. His mind was empty.
He did not even know when he had woken up.
He only remembered that when waves of strange sensations from his body had roused him, he opened his eyes and saw Keqing biting her lower lip, her brows furrowed.
Perhaps because his mind was unclear, perhaps because of the alcohol, or perhaps because of his own desires—whatever the reason, a few minutes later, Ye Ming went from passive to proactive and instinctively took control...
Recalling what had happened, Ye Ming lay in bed for quite a while before finally emerging from the lofty spiritual realm of an enlightened monk without worldly desires. He slightly raised his head and looked at Keqing, who was sleeping on his chest.
Keqing slept peacefully. Two tear tracks still lingered on her delicate face, while the girl's elegant purple hair, usually as smooth and refined as premium silk during the day, had become a mess, spilling over her body and covering half her face.
Her weight on his chest made it a little hard to breathe. Ye Ming sighed and looked up at the clock on the wall.
It was already nine in the evening. Monday had passed before he even realized it.
Perhaps Ye Ming's sigh woke Keqing. The sleeping girl shifted slightly, then groggily opened her eyes.
Their gazes met.
Keqing stared at Ye Ming blankly. It took her quite some time to realize the situation, and she let out a muffled cry before instinctively burying her face in his chest, avoiding his gaze.
Ye Ming remained calm.
"Keqing, you're the Keqing from the game, aren't you?"
Though it was phrased as a question, Ye Ming's tone was certain.
Ye Ming was not an idiot. What had happened during the day could not be explained away by drunkenness alone. But once the Keqing on top of him became the Keqing from the game, all the questions that had been troubling him finally had reasonable explanations.
Keqing kept her head lowered, seemingly thinking, and did not immediately answer Ye Ming's question.
Ye Ming raised a hand and placed it on Keqing's smooth back, gently stroking it as he said softly, "If you have something you can't say, you don't have to answer. But don't make up lies to deceive me, okay?"
"Yes... and no."
Keqing answered in a muffled voice, her heart uneasy.
When making her plan, she had imagined Ye Ming's reactions and prepared a whole series of perfect responses. She had written enough lines to fill an entire folder and memorized all of them. She was confident she could handle any possible extreme situation, but she had never imagined that Ye Ming would be this calm.
So calm that it made her panic.
Keqing was afraid.
"I'm... I'm sorry, I... I didn't mean to. No, no, I did mean to. No, not exactly, I... I..."
The more she spoke, the more flustered she became. Keqing babbled incoherently for quite some time before gradually recovering her ability to speak normally.
"I... I just like you. I want... want to stay by your side. I... I..."
"I'm sorry."
By the end, Keqing did not even know what else she could say, so she could only apologize guiltily.
Ye Ming silently looked at Keqing. After thinking carefully for a while, he asked, "Then... are you willing to be my wife?"
"Huh?"
Hearing something completely beyond her expectations, Keqing's mind seemed to short-circuit. After staring blankly for a while, she raised her head and looked at Ye Ming in shock.
"Surprised? Actually, there's nothing to be surprised about, is there?"
During the time since waking up, Ye Ming had already sorted out his thoughts.
"At lunch, my palm got shocked. Then, when I was about to get up and walk you out of the bedroom, my knee got shocked again. You did both of those, didn't you?"
"You possess supernatural power that doesn't belong to this world, have enormous wealth that most people could never obtain in their entire lives, and you're so beautiful, with such a great figure and such a cute voice. You're this outstanding, yet you were willing to use such methods just to stay by my side. Whether emotionally or rationally, I can't think of any reason to reject you."
Ye Ming spoke bluntly. "Of course, it wouldn't be realistic to say that I already love you so deeply I'd die for you. But if you don't mind, feelings can always be cultivated slowly. As they say, affection grows with time."
Actually, after saying so much nonsense, the main reason Ye Ming had not rejected Keqing was the girl's feelings for him.
In Genshin Impact's setting, the girls' feelings were not like those of Ship-Girls in Azur Lane, who regarded the Commander as the pillar of their lives and the most important person to them.
But settings were just settings. Ye Ming was not Keqing, so he could not understand what kind of feelings she truly had for him. Just as when he asked Keqing, "Are you the Keqing from the game?" and she answered, "Yes and no," Ye Ming did not know how heavy the feelings of the girls in the game truly were. Nor did he want to coldly reject the girl's feelings like an irrelevant outsider.
Fine, wanting to sleep with a beautiful girl was also a very important reason.
"Keqing, are you willing to be my wife?"
Ye Ming gently stroked Keqing's smooth back and asked again.
"I-I am!"
Keqing answered joyfully. This had been her wish all along—how could she possibly be unwilling? "As long as I can be with you, I'm willing to do anything!"
"Then... would you be okay with being one of my wives?" Ye Ming asked without changing expression.
"Huh?"
Keqing raised her head in surprise.
Bzzzt—bzzzt—bzzzt—
Ye Ming's phone on the bedside table suddenly vibrated. He picked it up and saw that it was Fu Hua calling.
Ye Ming looked at Keqing and made a shushing gesture. After seeing her nod, he answered the call.
"Ye Ming, are you okay? Why aren't you home so late? Are you working overtime? Why didn't you reply to my messages? Laffey and I both miss you. Where are you right now? Who are you with? A coworker?"
The moment the call connected, Fu Hua fired off a string of questions, her tone rather anxious.
Ye Ming did not speak.
He looked at Keqing. The girl was gazing at him pitifully, like a kitten trying to please its owner, with a faintly expectant look in her eyes.
Ye Ming understood Keqing's gaze.
After a brief silence, he took a deep breath and said, "I'm with my wife. I'll be back in a while."
Keqing: Want to Do It Again?
Honestly, Ye Ming did not really know how he should treat Fu Hua either.
After all, ever since her confession on Saturday, it had become difficult for Ye Ming to continue treating Fu Hua as nothing more than an ordinary childhood friend.
After receiving the confession, Ye Ming felt that he had made his attitude toward Fu Hua very clear. Yet Fu Hua's response had been ambiguous—I think some things don't need to be rushed. There's still a long road ahead of us. We can slowly do the things we want to do.
That answer left Ye Ming completely unable to figure out what Fu Hua was thinking.
Since he could not figure it out, he was not sure what he should do.
But Ye Ming could understand Keqing's attitude. The girl had already shown her feelings through her actions.
Therefore, now that they had already slept together, Ye Ming felt that he should give the girl a response when he noticed the expectant look in her eyes.
Since they had already crossed that line and she had become his wife, why should he keep hiding it?
Ye Ming had never been someone who hesitated and wavered.
"I'm with my wife. I'll be back soon."
After a brief moment of thought, Ye Ming held the phone and spoke calmly and naturally to Fu Hua on the other end.
As soon as he finished speaking, the other end of the call fell completely silent, as though the connection had been cut. After a long time, Fu Hua's voice finally came through.
"W-Wife? What wife? We grew up together. How come I never knew you had a girlfriend?" Fu Hua's tone was calm, but her voice trembled slightly.
Before you continue