[BL] Eternal Spring

第十八章

Liu Qingyuan pushed him away, coughing. "I told you to leave!"

"Liu Qingyuan!" The king said angrily. "I'm ordering you to protect me, that means staying by me!!"

"You-"

"Stop wasting time speaking nonsense!" Jiang Zhilan pulled him and he stumbled after the fuming king. They rushed to the narrow pass, the ground sloping slightly downwards. There was a loud scuffling and a shout. Liu Qingyuan grabbed the king, eyes darting around. He shoved him towards a small opening.

"Get in!" The king leaned down but quickly turned around suspiciously and grabbed Liu Qingyuan's sleeve.

"How do I know you won't run away to fight them?" Before Liu Qingyuan could protest, he was practically kicked into the short tunnel. He gritted his teeth, crawling forwards several meters. The tunnel was crude, snagging at his clothing every few seconds. Liu Qingyuan pushed into a small cavern, his furrowed brow and shaking fingers the only indications of his struggle.

He'd scarcely turned over when a wandering hand groped down his leg. "S-sorry," Jiang Zhilan's cheeks were bright red. "Can you move over?" Liu Qingyuan shuffled back as far as he could. Rocks skittered across the ground as he moved as much as he could. "Further."

"There's no room, your majesty." Red-faced, Jiang Zhilan resorted to crawling on top of him so he could manoeuvre his legs out of the tunnel and find another space. The king went to turn around to plant his butt on the ground instead of Liu Qingyuan's lap but his boots tangled with cloth.

"What the-" Cursing, Jiang Zhilan tugged at the stuck fabric, blindly groping in the dark. He turned his head, crying out as his skull made contact with a low hanging piece of rock. His hand went for his temple and he pitched forward, one foot still tangled in cloth. Liu Qingyuan caught the weight that fell into his arms, warm skin brushing by his cheek. "Sorry."

With one more awkward tug, cloth ripped and Jiang Zhilan sighed in relief, blinking his eyes in the dark. Wait...it seemed like he was...sitting in Liu Qingyuan's lap...

Both hands were subconsciously placed against Liu Qingyuan's chest in an attempt to steady himself and both legs were practically wrapped around his waist. Jiang Zhilan's face got redder and redder as he noticed the large warm palms at his own waist. Silence descended.

"Comfortable?" Liu Qingyuan's slightly hoarse voice permeated the stillness.

"I-I," His mouth was abruptly covered.

"Shh." The palm was rough and calloused from swordplay. Jiang Zhilan couldn't help but swallow nervously. Liu Qingyuan felt the king's lips purse against his palm, his fingers twitching momentarily.

Outside, a group of assassins burst through the knee-high grass. They looked around the empty space in anger. "Find them!" The leader growled. "They couldn't have run far." They both waited, ears pricked for another sign of conversation or a clue indicating that the assassins had left. The silence was more nerve wracking than ever. Jiang Zhilan started to shift in place.

"Stop moving." Liu Qingyuan's whispered words in the small, silent space lent a degree of ambiguity. Jiang Zhilan stilled. A few more moments and he started squirming again. Finally he tugged Liu Qingyuan's hand away, gasping slightly.

"I couldn't breathe!" He said defensively. "I-I'll move n- ouch!" As he rose, Jiang Zhilan cracked his head against the same piece of overhanging rock. He fell forward uncontrollably, hearing a muffled grunt from the person under him. A hand covered the back of his head; the place that'd been hit.

"Are you alright, your majesty?" Warm air fanned over his face and Jiang Zhilan felt his cheeks heat. Those lips...were so close... Jiang Zhilan shot up, narrowly missing hitting his head for the third time.