Nooo, I Don't Wanna!

[Minna-san, I'm baaaack again](Anything that seems strange is because it had to pass review

[Please follow, send gifts, add the book to your library, and comment awa]

[Follows, readers keeping up, and gifts are what motivate me to update ovo]

[Today is this book's last day in its recommendation period. Please, everyone, move those fortune-making fingers and give this book's stats a boost qwq]

[If this kid sees the book's stats doing badly, I'll cry and throw a tantrum. I might even stop updating www]

[Oh, right, one more thing: affection is actually the kind of value you can exchange through the system. After all, I'd planned to write the male lead as a succubus from the very beginning.]

[Some stuff in this chapter got banned by Chu Nan Shen He, so I put it at the end of the chapter. I'm begging you, dear readers, please boost the stats a little. Seeing the numbers has made this kid not really want to write anymore qwq]

Yelan's fingertips brushed lightly across Baichen's face, glowing like pearls in the moonlight.

The young man was pinned against the wall,

those amber eyes dangerously close, filled with dangerous temptation.

"What are you afraid of?" Yelan's breath carried a faint scent of tea. "Weren't you having fun yesterday?"

Baichen's eyelashes trembled slightly, his chest heaving.

Yelan's knee pressed between his legs.

[System warning!]

[High-risk intimate contact detected]

[Host's heartbeat abnormal]

(H-help...)

[System notification:]

[A moth to the flame beneath the moon, danger, danger, danger!]

Yelan's red lips curved into a playful smile as her fingers deftly undid a button.

Baichen sucked in a breath.

"Looks like my cutie is having fun~" Yelan leaned down. "Even more delicious than the jade in Ningguang's collection..."

[Yelan's affection +5%, currently 50%]

[Status acquired: Yelan's mark (deepened)]

Baichen cried out, but she sealed his lips with hers.

The kiss was more forceful than last night's, with an aggression he couldn't resist.

Yelan's teeth nipped his lower lip, and the moment the young man winced in pain, she pried his teeth apart and freely plundered every inch of territory inside his mouth.

"Mmh... mm..."

(This part got banned, it was too long, waaah)

[Warning! Warning!]

[Plot warning for that kind of thing!]

[Host's sanity dropping sharply!]

Just as Yelan's lips were about to touch the young man, three rhythmic knocks suddenly came from outside the window.

Yelan's movements paused, a flash of annoyance in her eyes.

"Tch, what a mood killer." She casually pulled the bedding over Baichen. "Stay here and don't move."

Yelan put on a robe and walked over to the window, pushing it open to take a note handed in from outside.

By the moonlight, Baichen saw her brows gradually draw together.

"That woman Ningguang..." Yelan crumpled the note. "She had to pick a time like this."

She returned to the bedside and regretfully stroked the young man's hair. "Looks like tonight's game has to end early." Her fingers lingered over his lips. "But don't worry... we have plenty of time."

Yelan fetched a new set of sleepwear from the dressing table and changed Baichen into it herself.

[Yelan's affection +3%, currently 53%]

Early the next morning, Ganyu arrived at the tearoom on time to pick him up.

When she saw Baichen's lips, her qilin horns began to tremble violently.

"Are... are you all right?" Her voice shook a little.

Baichen pulled his collar tight and shook his head. Yelan brewed tea nearby, smiling like a satisfied cat:

"I told you, the mosquitoes in Liyue are fierce~" She pushed a cup of refreshing tea in front of Ganyu. "Especially... the females in heat."

Ganyu turned deathly pale and hurriedly pulled Baichen out of the tearoom.

[Ganyu's affection -2%, currently 27%]

[Note: shock and worry]

The second day's activities for the recreation season were held on Feiyun Slope.

Stalls of every kind lined both sides of the street, offering everything from traditional Liyue handicrafts to specialty snacks from other nations.

Baichen followed behind Ganyu, feeling somewhat dazed.

"Today is mostly free time." Ganyu looked at him worriedly. "Do... do you need to rest?"

"No."

Baichen shook his head and forced himself to perk up.

Passing a mask stall, he stopped and picked out a fox mask to wear, finally covering the marks on his neck.

"Baichen! Over here!"

Xiangling waved in front of the Wanmin Restaurant stall. Beside her stood a young woman wearing a hat bearing the hexagram of peace: Hu Tao of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.

Today, Hu Tao had changed into a short red outfit, and her plum-blossom pupils sparkled.

"I heard you stayed at Yelan's last night?" She leaned over to gossip. "That woman didn't eat you up, did she?"

Baichen's mask nearly slipped off.

Xiangling hurriedly pressed a skewer of candied hawthorns into his hand. "Ignore her! Try this, my newly developed 'Glaze Candied Hawthorns'!"

The skewers of candied hawthorns seemed to have been enchanted. Their outer shells had an intoxicating crystalline clarity, transparent as crystal.

Through the thin coating of sugar, the vivid red hawthorns inside were just visible, like rubies set within it.

When you took a gentle bite, the sugar coating instantly shattered between your teeth with a crisp, pleasant sound, as though a sweet symphony were playing in your mouth.

As the coating broke, the hawthorns' sweet and sour flavor instantly bloomed on your taste buds, their distinctive texture leaving a lingering impression.

[Xiangling's affection +2%, currently 28%]

[Hu Tao's affection +1%, currently 24%]

Just as the three were happily chatting, a commotion suddenly spread like ripples from the far end of the street.

The bustling crowd seemed to be pushed by an invisible force, parting of its own accord to either side and opening a wide passage.

Everyone's gaze followed the passage in unison, and they saw a woman in a long white robe trimmed with gold thread walking lightly toward them.

Her steps were graceful and unhurried, as though each one fell upon a cloud.

As she drew closer, people could clearly see her long, snow-white hair cascading over her shoulders, held high by nothing but a jade hairpin.

The hairpin shone with a soft luster in the sunlight, complementing her white hair and making her look all the more refined and otherworldly, like a fairy who had stepped out of a painting.

"Having fun?" Ningguang stopped in front of Baichen, her gaze sweeping over the marks on his neck that the mask hadn't fully concealed. Her eyes turned slightly cold.

She suddenly reached out and removed the mask, her fingertips brushing gently over the red marks. "Yelan's taste... is as crude as ever."

Ningguang took a small porcelain bottle from her sleeve, dipped into the ointment, and applied a little to the marks.

The cool touch made Baichen shiver slightly, and the medicinal fragrance soon covered the scent Yelan had left behind.

[Item acquired: Ningguang's snow jade ointment]

[Effect: removes marks, charm +5%]

"You're coming with me on my inspection today," Ningguang announced, leaving no room for refusal. "It's a good opportunity to introduce you to a few important people."

Ganyu wanted to speak, but in the end she lowered her head and stepped aside.

Hu Tao made a face and pulled Xiangling away.

Ningguang's inspection route covered all of Feiyun Slope.

She first took Baichen to see the Feiyun Commerce Guild's exhibit, then went to Heyu Teahouse to hear Yun Jin perform.

Today, Yun Jin was dressed as Shenhe from Divine Damsel of Devastation, her flowing sleeves displaying all the poise of a master performer.

"Master Yun's opera is one of Liyue's finest," Ningguang whispered in Baichen's ear, her warm breath spilling over it. "Especially... her evening performances."

She placed suggestive emphasis on "evening," lightly scratching the young man's palm with her fingertip.

Only then did Baichen notice that there really was a section labeled "Special joint performance" at the very bottom of the playbill.

[Ningguang's affection +3%, currently 40%]

[Awareness of rivals awakened]

The afternoon's itinerary was a visit to the harbor to watch a performance by the Crux Fleet.

Beidou stood on the deck and waved heartily. Her outfit was much bolder than those of most Liyue women, and her tanned skin gleamed in the sunlight.

"Hey! Cutie!" Beidou jumped straight off the ship and threw an arm around Baichen's shoulders. "I hear that woman Yelan has her eye on you?"

She smelled of sea breeze and wine, and her free-spirited manner was utterly different from that of other Liyue women.

Ningguang frowned and pulled Baichen back to her side:

"Beidou, please remember where you are."

Beidou burst out laughing and suddenly leaned close to Baichen's ear. "There's a private party tonight. Want to come?" She shot Ningguang a challenging glance. "I guarantee it'll be more fun than hanging around these old fuddy-duddies~"

[Crux Fleet captain Beidou's first appearance]

[Current affection: 25% (highly interested)]

Ningguang led Baichen away from the harbor with a cold expression and headed straight for the Jade Chamber.

As the sun set, the palace floating in the sky was dyed gold and red by the evening glow, breathtakingly beautiful.

"You're staying here tonight." Ningguang pushed open a carved wooden door. "I'll keep an eye on you myself."

The room was several times more luxurious than the guest room in the tearoom, with thick carpets covering the floor and gauzy curtains hanging around the bed.

Ningguang waved the maids away and poured Baichen a cup of tea herself.

(Banned some stuff that doesn't matter but probably still wouldn't pass review)

A hint of coldness flashed in Ningguang's eyes, and she casually tossed the thing out of the window.

"Shameless," she said coldly, suddenly reaching out to stroke Baichen's cheek. "But... I am rather curious..."

Ningguang leaned closer, her red lips almost touching the young man's. "Between her and me... who's the better kisser?"

(Baichen's thoughts: Wait, I'm a succubus, right? Why are they all doing this? I can't go on living like this.)