Long after, inside the Dragon Palace.
Yiyi, barefoot except for her little white silk stockings, hurriedly ran forward.
The white hem of her dress fluttered with every step, like a flustered little dove.
After running a few steps, she’d glance back and glare at the person behind her, her voice puffing up with soft indignation: “Lilia, stop chasing me! I told you, I’m not going to let you bite me anymore!”
Lilia’s eyes gleamed with determined resolve, her pace not slowing in the slightest, her tone full of stubborn possessiveness: “No! Yibao, you’re mine, I have to bite you!”
Seeing that she still hadn’t stopped, Yiyi anxiously took two steps back.
The tip of her foot, wrapped in white silk, accidentally scraped against a jade vase under a corridor pillar, making a gentle clinking sound.
Her fingers tightened around her skirt hem, her voice rising even higher with a tinge of soft grievance: “I don’t want to! This is the Dragon Palace—if Xiamir finds out, I’ll be done for!”
Yiyi’s foot suddenly slipped.
She fell backward out of control, her back instantly pressing against the icy white jade floor tiles, drawing a soft gasp from her.
Her little feet, wrapped in white silk, flailed anxiously in the air, her skirt folding upward to reveal a hint of rosy calf.
A thin sheen of tears instantly clouded her eyes.
Before she could scramble up, Lilia lunged at her with a playful smile.
Lilia’s palm quickly slid beneath Yiyi’s head, preventing her from knocking it on the ground.
Then, Lilia gently pressed her whole body down, her wine-red hair cascading like a curtain, enclosing the two of them in the middle.
Her nose brushed against Yiyi’s flushed cheek, the determination in her eyes melting into a sly grin: “Yibao, you can’t get away now, can you?”
Yiyi pushed at Lilia’s chest, her fingertips turning white from the effort, tears brimming in her eyes, her voice soft and trembling on the verge of tears: “Lilia, let me go, I don’t want this!”
Instead of rising, Lilia followed Yiyi’s pushing force and tilted her head, using her warm cheek to gently nuzzle Yiyi’s blushing face, like a small animal seeking affection.
Strands of wine-red hair brushed past Yiyi’s eye, carrying a faint scent of dragon musk.
Lilia deliberately made her voice soft and sweet: “Nuzzle Yibao.”
Yiyi stiffened all over at the warm touch.
Tears quivered on her lashes, but didn’t fall.
She puffed out her cheeks and turned her head, trying to avoid Lilia’s closeness.
But with Lilia’s hand still behind her head, there was nowhere to go, so she could only mutter in frustration: “Nuzzling won’t work! I-I still won’t be good with you!”
Lilia just laughed more happily.
Her nose nudged at Yiyi’s lips again, wine-red hair wrapping around Yiyi’s ear, tickling her so much she shrank her neck.
“It’s fine if you don’t want to be good with me.”
Her voice was honey-soft, her fingers gently pinching Yiyi’s whitened fingertips.
“As long as I’m good with Yibao, that’s enough.”
Just then, the familiar sound of footsteps came from outside the corridor.
Luoli appeared at the corner, carrying a gilded tray.
She looked at the two entangled figures on the floor, her voice tinged with hesitation: “Your Highness, what are you… doing here?”
“Luoli?!”
Yiyi panicked instantly, her efforts to push Lilia away suddenly growing stronger.
“Why are you here… Lilia, get up now!”
Luoli’s fingers suddenly tightened around the gilded tray.
The jade cup filled with warm dragon milk inside shook slightly, the milky white liquid almost spilling over the rim.
Her eartips flushed red in an instant, her gaze pausing awkwardly on Lilia pinning Yiyi before hastily looking away.
Her voice trembled with embarrassment: “I-It was His Majesty’s order. He sent me to bring Your Highness your afternoon warm dragon milk…”
At the words “feeding milk,” Yiyi grabbed at the chance like a lifeline.
She pushed at Lilia’s chest even harder, the tears still hanging in her eyes shimmering: “Luoli, quick! Carry me away! Feed me milk!”
But Lilia still didn’t relent. Instead, she looped her arm around Yiyi’s waist, pulling her closer into her embrace.
Her silvery-white hair swept past Yiyi’s neck, making her shiver softly.
Lilia turned her head to look at Luoli, a sly smile in her eyes, her tone slow and languid: “What’s the rush? Yibao’s milk can wait till I finish ‘playing’ with her.”
“Who wants to play with you!”
Yiyi glared at her angrily, her toes kicking at the cold tiles twice, her white-silk-clad ankles tinged faintly pink.
“Luoli, don’t listen to her! Hurry, pull me up!”
“You stay away, you’re not allowed to take Yibao! I finally caught her!”
Lilia frowned and glared at Luoli, her tone full of possessive protectiveness.
“Sigh~ Your Highnesses, don’t make a fuss. Hurry and get up, the floor is cold.”
Luoli set the gilded tray on a jade table beside the pillar, turned around and quickly strode forward, grabbing each girl by the collar.
Her fingertips gently hooked Yiyi’s skirt collar, while her other hand grabbed Lilia’s collar beneath the silvery-white hair.
With a little force, she easily hoisted the two entangled girls up.
“Let’s go. After you finish your dragon milk, Your Highnesses should take your afternoon nap.”
Luoli cradled Yiyi’s knees with one hand and supported Lilia’s back with the other, securely holding both girls in her arms.
Yiyi struggled a bit as she was picked up, but the moment her nose caught the faint lavender scent from Luoli’s collar, she snuggled quietly onto her shoulder, her little white-silk-wrapped feet curling up, her voice turning soft and docile: “So comfortable~”.
Lilia wanted to wriggle in protest too, but seeing Yiyi narrowing her eyes in contentment, she also burrowed closer into Luoli’s arms.
Her silvery-white hair brushed Luoli’s chin, her tone carrying a soft, unwilling grumble: “I can carry Yibao too, and even steadier than you.”