Chapter 270

"Am I… back home?"

After rubbing his still-drowsy eyes, Li Ang glanced at the familiar ceiling above him and barely recognized his location… though the main reason wasn't the ceiling—it was the burly old man outside the window, holding oversized pruning shears and staring at him with unmistakable malice.

"…"

This is the sixth floor—you're really persistent…

Li Ang gave the burly old man clinging to the window a blank look, shook his throbbing head, and barely dragged himself off the bed, striving to recall what had happened yesterday.

He remembered Lord Taurus bringing over the brewed liquor, then he opened every bottle, took a sip from each, but as he kept drinking, his awareness blurred—he couldn't hold back anymore, each gulp larger than the last, and many bottles toward the end were drained completely…

No more drinking! Since the badge is already in hand, I don't need to drink anymore—I'll avoid alcohol entirely from now on unless absolutely necessary!

Rubbing his swollen temples, Li Ang tried hard to recall what came after, but no matter how hard he strained his memory, the only thing he could remember was stumbling out of the warehouse drunk after receiving the 【Immortal of Wine】 badge—after that, nothing.

Looking at the description of the 【Immortal of Wine】 badge—the phrase "unable to control one's behavior and speech"—Li Ang winced in guilt, then prayed he hadn't done anything outrageous, before stumbling out of bed, slipping on his slippers, and shuffling out of the room.

…

"You're finally awake!"

Seeing Li Ang stumble out, pale-faced but otherwise normal, Anna—who had been simmering red bean soup in the kitchen—let out a sigh of relief, turned off the stove, wiped her hands, removed her apron, and carried over a hangover remedy, scolding him with mild irritation:

"Brother! What did you do yesterday? Why did you drink so much? And why did you sleep so soundly? Even Mei Lan Ni scratching your soles couldn't wake you up!"

No wonder I only had one sock on…

Looking down at his bare right foot inside the slipper, Li Ang laughed nervously twice, made up two flimsy excuses to dodge the question, then sipped the soup Anna handed him while cautiously probing:

"So… yesterday…"

"You said a lot of drunk nonsense."

Without even looking at Li Ang's expression, Anna knew what he wanted to ask. She snorted, brought out boiled eggs and toasted bread, and spoke with a stiff, expressionless face:

"After Sister Emma brought you home reeking of alcohol, you grabbed her hand and wouldn't let her go—not just thanking her nonstop, but also sighing dramatically about how lucky you'd be if you'd met her sooner.

I sensed something was wrong, so I pinched you several times in secret, but you acted as if you felt nothing, clinging to Sister Emma and pouring out your heart: you said that compared to a drunken monkey, her gentle nature was exactly the type you loved.

Then you said age difference wasn't an issue; if she weren't already married, you'd pursue her relentlessly. Finally, you yanked up all the celery and herbs I kept on the windowsill, tied them into a bouquet, and insisted on giving them to her—I couldn't stop you—and then you dropped to one knee and demanded she…"

"Stop… stop talking…"

Hearing what he'd done in his "drunken oblivion" state, Li Ang's face turned as red as a monkey's rear. He quickly gulped down the warm red bean soup in his bowl, then flushed and stammered:

"Yesterday… it was a special case. I won't get drunk again! Well… under normal circumstances, I won't…"

"You better not!"

Thinking of how her brother had gone wild yesterday, babbling nonsense and clinging to someone, Anna's toes inside her slippers began twitching uncontrollably, making her feel utterly uncomfortable all over.

After glaring at Li Ang—who had made her lose face—Anna, usually so mild-mannered, couldn't help snapping:

"Sister Emma said that after hearing your evaluation, your boss laughed heartily and told you to watch yourself, not to fall into her hands. She didn't know when you'd wake up, so she took two days off for you—you can return after you're sober. Oh, by the way…"

Here, Anna paused slightly, then studied Li Ang with suspicion:

"Brother, I heard people say that when drunk, people lose self-control and do things they normally want to but dare not. So… do you actually have feelings for Sister Emma?"

"…"

Feelings… if I didn't lie, then yes, I've thought about it.

After all, Sister Emma is gentle and beautiful, and she's always been kind to me—and, uh, cough— but it was just a passing thought. Who doesn't have a few fleeting, romantic, even slightly wicked little fantasies?

But those thoughts are just thoughts. People aren't wild beasts driven purely by instinct—we can't indulge ourselves without restraint—so those little notions are immediately crushed by reason.

Only when I entered the "drunken oblivion" state did my reason and mental speed drop by over ninety percent; the thoughts usually held tightly in check became slightly harder to suppress, so…

It's not my fault! It's all the 【Immortal of Wine】's fault!

After convincing himself for a long time and dumping most of the blame onto the 【Immortal of Wine】, Li Ang finally felt a bit better, then looked Anna straight in the eye and said seriously:

"Don't talk nonsense. Those drunk words mean nothing. Sister Emma has always taken care of me—I deeply respect her."

"…"

True, I remember yesterday how Sister Emma refused your confession, blushing and trying to leave, but you clung to her, begging repeatedly, asking if you really had zero chance—how very respectful of you.

Anna bit her lip, held back, and ultimately couldn't bring herself to reveal everything Li Ang had done yesterday. She took a deep breath and changed the subject:

"What about Princess Veronika? When are you two getting married?"

"This… this is complicated…"

Recalling the clever, charming Princess—whose every quality made refusal nearly impossible—Li Ang hesitated inwardly.

Honestly, facing Princess Veronika's relentless pursuit, he truly couldn't hold out much longer—but… he didn't want to give in yet. After all, while she was wonderful, what she truly wanted was probably the Lai family's resources, not him.

It might sound pretentious, but he still wanted a partner who chose him for himself—not for his family. And right now, he wasn't ready for an early marriage. Hmm… something just felt off.

"Let's just keep delaying it…"

After uttering the classic scoundrel line, Li Ang, who had fought several rounds with Princess Veronika but failed to break off the engagement, sighed helplessly:

"Our relationship involves too many things—it's not as simple as it looks. I can't sort it out right now."

"Fine! Take your time sorting it out!"

Glaring at Li Ang again, Anna took another deep breath and asked coldly:

"Tell me—what about Isla, Olivia, Amy, Nicole… what's going on with them?"

"Huh? How do you know?"

"I heard you mumble their names last night when I wiped your face with a warm towel."

Glaring at Li Ang once more, Anna gritted her teeth:

"If you hadn't been drunk, I'd never have known you were this… Spill it! Who are they? Which one do you actually like?"

"…"

Shitty badge! You've ruined me!!!