A perfect match.
In truth... wasn't she also at the age when she needed it most?
Yet, the conflict between herself and Liu Huan was growing deeper by the day. Just thinking about how many women he had been with made her sick to her stomach.
"Uncles, you've already had your drinks alone with my aunt. Now I'd like to propose a toast to you all as well."
Li Zhiyan was not the kind of person to sit back and wait for defeat.
He opened another bottle of Moutai and held it out toward Liu Huan.
Since a kid was offering a toast, how could he refuse to take it?
"Uncle, your liquor capacity is truly impressive. I'd like to propose a toast to you too."
"Uncle, you're really handsome. I'd like to toast you as well."
Li Zhiyan showered them with flattery. He extended the bottle toward the middle-aged men opposite him, filling their glasses right to the brim.
Watching how Li Zhiyan effortlessly painted these seasoned veterans into a corner where they couldn't refuse, Wang Shangyan couldn't help feeling that this young man was remarkably skilled in the ways of the world. By using his status as a junior to dish out free-flowing praise, he had smoothly maneuvered all of them into accepting a full glass of wine.
Thinking back on what Li Meifeng had just said—that this kid even knew French and computer programming—she felt that Li Zhiyan was shrouded in a certain air of mystery.
"Uncles, I'll finish mine first."Sensing Rao Shiyun's worry, Li Zhiyan gave her hand a gentle tug under the table. That finally calmed her down quite a bit. She vaguely believed that Li Zhiyan must be capable of holding his liquor, but it was also true that his head wasn't entirely clear.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been groping her thigh just a moment ago.
Seeing Li Zhiyan polish off yet another glass, all seven of them felt they were reaching their limit.
Was this kid some kind of monster? Drinking like this, even a bear would have been knocked flat on its back.
Yet he was still standing there perfectly fine.
Still, they decided to hold on a little longer. The kid had drunk way more than any of them, so he was bound to collapse any second now. That was what everyone was thinking to themselves.
Surely such a bunch of seasoned veterans of the drinking table couldn't lose to an eighteen-year-old kid!
No sooner had he finished drinking than Li Zhiyan poured himself another full glass.
"Uncles, let me top you all up again."
Li Zhiyan poured himself a full glass and then repeated the routine.
The men opposite him started to panic a little.
Something was wrong. This wasn't right!
The kid looked like he was swaying and might keel over at any second, yet there he stood, just like a tumbler doll, insisting on drinking with them more. Could there really be such a freakishly talented wine god in this world?However, under Li Zhiyan's flattering words, their glasses were once again filled to the brim with baijiu.
As soon as they finished drinking, Li Zhiyan immediately opened another bottle of Moutai and repeated the previous routine.
Following another fierce round of pouring and drinking by him,
the potbellied man's brain shut down after drinking just half a cup, and he slumped straight across the wine table.
After forcing down another glass, the rest of them could no longer hold their liquor either. Some collapsed onto the floor,
while others slumped over the table in unseemly displays, leaving only Liu Huan swaying as he managed to stay on his feet.
"Uncle Liu, the two of us simply must have a drink together today."
Li Meifeng chimed in from the side as well, saying, "That's right, exactly."
"Old Liu, all your buddies here have been drunk under the table today, so you certainly can't lose face. Li Zhiyan has done our company a huge favor, so you absolutely must properly share a drink with him."
By this point, Liu Huan was completely bewildered, watching blankly as Li Zhiyan filled his glass to the brim.
Amidst his haze, he began to hallucinate.
He imagined that Rao Shiyun, whom he dreamed of sleeping with, was casting a look of contempt his way—a gaze that seemed to mock him for being unable to outdrink even a kid.
With that, he gulped down the liquor in his hand in one fierce draught.
This time, he finally reached his limit and crashed down onto the floor.
Inside the room, the three of them—including Li Meifeng—were left in a daze.
All seven of them! To think they had actually been outdrunk and knocked out by Li Zhiyan all by himself!
Looking at the seven people he had drunk under the table, Li Zhiyan's mind remained incomparably clear, filling him with a sense of awe at just how powerful the God of Wine skill truly was.
Under normal circumstances, if he had drunk this fiercely—tacking on over a dozen consecutive shots of baijiu—he would most likely be lying in an ICU right now.
"Bastard!"
"That text message really didn't lie!"
Unable to suppress her fury any longer, Wang Shangyan picked up a Moutai bottle, walked over to Liu Huan—who was lying on the floor completely blacked out—and smashed the bottle right over his head.
Blood began to gush from Liu Huan's forehead, yet amazingly, he still did not wake up.
Li Zhiyan was startled as well. This woman was truly ruthless; it seemed that women born in the late 1970s weren't all gentle after all.
A woman like Wang Shangyan had an inherently harsh edge to her temperament, and the way she struck just now was genuinely vicious.Just like that, a solid blow with a beer bottle.
Liu Huan wouldn't be leaving the hospital for at least ten days or half a month!
"What happened!"
"A married couple, how could you be so vicious?"
Li Meifeng panicked a little.
"I received a text message saying this bastard wanted to get Sister Rao drunk here and then take her to a hotel."
"I was still a bit skeptical at first, but I confirmed it just now. They clearly colluded and were trying desperately to get Sister Rao drunk."
"Sister Li, don't worry about this anymore."
Since it was a couple's business, Li Meifeng didn't know what to say, but she felt a bit scared inside.
Fortunately, Liu Huan looked down on her; otherwise, if she really had become Liu Huan's mistress and been caught by Wang Shangyan, would she also have a bloody hole in her head?
"We're leaving."
Rao Shiyun felt a bit afraid of this woman, so she took Li Zhiyan by the hand and walked out of the private room.
...
After going out, Rao Shiyun didn't call a designated driver.
She just pulled Li Zhiyan's hand and walked along the street. In the Wancheng of 2010, most areas in the suburbs didn't have many people around.
After reaching a willow tree, Rao Shiyun finally stopped. By this time, the alcohol was slowly getting to her head.
"You brat, you drank so much and you're still this clear-headed. It's really impressive."
Thinking of how Li Zhiyan had drank alone against seven people at the table just now to protect her.
Rao Shiyun felt a surge of warmth in her heart.
"This time, Aunt really owes you a huge favor."
"If Wang Shangyan hadn't spoken up, I wouldn't have even guessed that this Liu Huan wanted to get me drunk. No wonder those people kept toasting me one after another, and there were even a few acquaintances among them. These men really gang up on people."
"Aunt doesn't even know how to repay you."
Looking at Li Zhiyan's somewhat unfocused eyes.
She knew very well that although Li Zhiyan indeed had a talent for drinking, it was impossible for him to be completely unaffected.
He must be feeling pretty miserable right now.
"Aunt, if you want to repay me, just let me kiss you."
Li Zhiyan said, sounding as if he were joking.
At this moment, the alcohol was also getting to Rao Shiyun's head. The kid in front of her was more than twenty years younger than her.It's just a kiss on the cheek or the forehead; it's just being kissed by a kid.
"Alright, then Auntie will let you give her a kiss."
Li Zhiyan hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. At least his drinks hadn't been wasted.
"Well then, Aunt Rao, here I come."
Gently wrapping his arms around Rao Shiyun's slender waist, Li Zhiyan wanted to press against Rao Shiyun's stomach.
However, this movement was a bit too difficult.
As he became acutely aware of Rao Shiyun's upper curves, Rao Shiyun experienced an instinctive reaction. With the alcohol going to her head, she, who had been lonely for far too long, seemed somewhat unable to control her own behavior.
"Mmm..."
How could she go back on a promise she'd made to a kid?
Holding Rao Shiyun by the waist, Li Zhiyan leaned in and kissed her on the tip of the nose.
The moment she felt Li Zhiyan's lips touch the tip of her nose, Rao Shiyun's hormones surged.
The feeling was like an electric shock. Why on earth was this kid kissing her there?
But the very next second...
Li Zhiyan planted a direct kiss right on her lips, gently nibbling at them.
After kissing Rao Shiyun, Li Zhiyan checked the system—the task was already completed, which made him let out a sigh of relief.
A traditional woman like Aunt Rao had always looked at him as just a kid.
If he went too far, it was entirely possible they would never speak to each other again for the rest of their lives.
Li Zhiyan knew very well that many women of the older generation had extremely strong principles.
Rao Shiyun and Gu Wanzhou were both women of that sort.
A simple kiss was enough. He shouldn't push his luck and tick Aunt Rao off; that would be bad.
Yet he had underestimated the strength of Rao Shiyun's alcohol buzz, and he had underestimated what kind of chemical reaction would be triggered when a forty-year-old woman, lonely for too long, had her hormones awakened.
There was only one thing on her mind right now: to share a proper, passionate kiss with the Li Zhiyan right in front of her.
"Xiaoyan."
"You can't just randomly chew on a woman like that. That's not how it works."
"Auntie will teach you."
"You need to use the tip of your tongue to gently find Auntie's tongue."
What on earth am I doing!
"And then, gently feel it."
With those words, Rao Shiyun pressed her lips to Li Zhiyan's.
Beneath the willows, bathed in the orange glow of the streetlights.An 18-year-old boy and a 42-year-old mature woman embraced tightly, releasing the hormones within them.
Li Zhiyan truly had not expected this.
Happiness had arrived so suddenly, allowing him to experience Aunt Rao's embrace from such close range.
When it came to kissing, Li Zhiyan had very little experience and no idea what constituted a mature and complete system.
However, a mature woman like Rao Shiyun knew vastly more about this sort of thing than he did.
Under Rao Shiyun's nimble guidance, Li Zhiyan finally felt as though he were truly drunk, greedily basking in Aunt Rao's gentleness.
Until a cool breeze blew by, and Rao Shiyun suddenly snapped out of her drunken haze.
*What am I doing?*
She felt somewhat dazed. It seemed she had been teaching Li Zhiyan how to kiss!
He was merely an 18-year-old kid.
This child Xiaoyan really gave people no peace of mind!
Somewhat flustered, she pushed Li Zhiyan away and turned her back to him. Her face was burning so hot that she could barely keep her eyes open.
How was she supposed to face this kid from now on?
She was already forty-two years old, and she had even discussed remarrying with her husband calmly over the phone.
Yet tonight, she had actually kissed an 18-year-old kid.
It was utterly mortifying. If her husband were to witness this scene, any hope of remarrying would undoubtedly vanish completely.
I'm sorry, husband...
Li Zhiyan stood there without speaking to Rao Shiyun.
Truth be told, he had wanted to resist for a moment earlier, but Aunt Rao was simply too beautiful.
Moreover, the moment she kissed him, he had become utterly powerless to resist.
Now that she had sobered up, it was best to handle the situation with a cold shoulder.
She was his elder; it was better to wait for her to speak first.
...
After a long while, Rao Shiyun slowly turned her head back.
By this time, she had completely sobered up, and she felt an extreme sense of regret over her impulse just moments ago.
Li Zhiyan was merely a child who had given her a simple kiss, yet she had actually taken it upon herself to seriously teach him how to kiss, and even led by example. How was she going to face this kid in the future?
"Xiaoyan, Auntie will take you home. It's not too far from here."
She decided to pretend as though nothing had happened at all.
She would contact Li Zhiyan again after some time had passed!
That way, he would still be that rustic kid, and she would remain just an ordinary aunt to him.
That would be best!
By now, the warmth on Rao Shiyun's face had gradually faded, though the lingering effects of the alcohol still made her gait a bit unsteady.
"No, Aunt Rao, I'll walk you home first. Otherwise, I won't be at ease."
"Let's call a designated driver to take you home, and I can walk back by myself."
Li Zhiyan was a thoughtful person, so he had considered Rao Shiyun's safety quite thoroughly.
"Alright."
Once the two of them started chatting about other topics, the awkward atmosphere dissipated.
It was as if the two of them had never kissed at all just now.
...
After seeing Rao Shiyun safely home, Li Zhiyan walked back on his own.
The smell of alcohol on him had completely dissipated.
"The God of Liquor skill is truly formidable. Let's see if the seventy thousand yuan rewarded by the system has arrived."
He took out his VIVO flip phone.
Sure enough, the seventy thousand yuan had arrived, bringing Li Zhiyan's total savings to a full two hundred thousand.
"I'm still short eight hundred thousand from my goal of becoming a millionaire."
"Money-making is certainly fast..." Li Zhiyan thought to himself.
At the moment, the system mission had not yet refreshed, but Li Zhiyan was not in a hurry either.
He recalled the physiological knowledge Aunt Rao had just been teaching him.
Mature women were truly wonderful; they were thoroughly proficient in all sorts of knowledge.
Li Zhiyan couldn't help but vividly imagine the scene of Rao Shiyun teaching him how to feed himself, as well as the carriage scene.
As long as he behaved obediently, he would receive the most perfect experience.
Thinking of this, Li Zhiyan felt a slight itch in his heart.
It wasn't until he returned home and saw the lights still shining that Li Zhiyan tucked away his bizarre thoughts.
Opening the door, his mother was sitting at the dining table waiting for him, just like always.
"Xiaoyan, are you still hungry? Mom made dumplings for you today."
"Mom, I'm starving!" Li Zhiyan called out happily.
At the dinner table earlier, they had mostly been drinking rather than eating, so Li Zhiyan was genuinely quite hungry.
He went to the kitchen to fetch the dumplings and watched as her son devoured them voraciously.Reply with only the corrected sentence. Zhou Rongrong sniffed at Li Zhiyan.
"Son, have you been drinking?"
Naturally, Li Zhiyan didn't dare admit to this. His mother was a very traditional person who strongly opposed things like smoking and drinking.
"No, do I look like someone who's been drinking? Other people were just drinking nearby."
Zhou Rongrong leaned in closer to sniff him again before finally setting her mind at ease.
However, she quickly noticed something a bit unusual—was there some lipstick around Li Zhiyan's mouth?
It seemed her son really had grown up.
The only headache-inducing part was that this brat wouldn't actually find a forty-year-old girlfriend and bring her home to show her, would he?
For the sake of her son's happiness, it seemed she needed to strengthen her psychological preparedness lately, lest he actually bring home a girlfriend that much older and she wouldn't be able to handle it.
...
Late at night, Rao Shiyun tossed and turned, continuously dwelling on what had happened earlier beneath the willow tree.
Was that really something she had done?
She had taken the initiative to kiss Li Zhiyan, kissing a boy who had only just reached adulthood.
And she had even so earnestly taught him step-by-step how to do it.
This was the sort of behavior only a loose woman would exhibit, yet she had actually done it.
"I shouldn't contact that kid for the next few days."
"If my husband finds out, any chance of remarrying will definitely be ruined."
Although Rao Shiyun and her husband had deep conflicts, they had after all been married for over twenty years.
That emotional bond remained profound, and she was still planning to remarry her husband after the New Year.
Now, Li Zhiyan's sudden appearance had completely thrown her inner peace into disarray.
"Or perhaps I should just delete Li Zhiyan and pretend this person never existed in my life."
Opening QQ, Rao Shiyun wanted to delete Li Zhiyan's contact information.
Yet try as she might, she simply couldn't bring herself to press that delete button.
What did he do wrong?
Li Zhiyan had merely been drunk and didn't know for a moment where he should kiss, and since he was a normal man, he had kissed her lips a few times.
Everything that followed had been entirely her own initiative, including the guidance she gave him with her personal demonstration.
Such a good boy—how could she bear to delete him?
Coming from a single-parent family, he had managed to educate himself through self-study.
Furthermore, tonight he had even helped her block so much alcohol.
When the image of Li Zhiyan standing beside her drinking flashed through her mind, Rao Shiyun suddenly felt that she was truly deserving of blame.
How could she have even thought of deleting him? Although Li Zhiyan claimed he was fine, how could he possibly be fine after drinking so much alcohol?
If not for the alcohol rushing to his head and clouding his judgment, how would he have ever dared to touch her leg under the table?
Li Zhiyan was a very honest and rustic kid; unless he was drunk, he would never do such a thing.
"Xiaoyan, are you alright?"
"Are you still feeling uncomfortable?"
Though she intended to let the matter slowly fade away, Rao Shiyun still couldn't help sending a message to Li Zhiyan to ask if he was still feeling unwell.
Within a few seconds, Li Zhiyan's reply came back.
"I'm fine, Aunt Rao. I can hold my liquor very well."
Reading Li Zhiyan's reply, Rao Shiyun felt even more distressed.
The boy was still comforting her at a time like this, while she had actually been thinking of deleting him.
No, from now on she must treat him very well and cherish him like her own biological son.
"Alright."
"Get some sleep early, Xiaoyan."
Li Zhiyan: "Aunt Rao, you should get to sleep early too. It's getting late, and since you drank so much alcohol today, you need to get a good rest."
After exchanging a few words, Rao Shiyun looked at her slender middle finger.
The events that transpired beneath the willow tree echoed continuously in her heart.
Everything felt so real. Although she felt a strong sense of guilt and felt terribly sorry for Liu Zifeng's father, Rao Shiyun still couldn't help but reminisce.
Slowly, she closed her eyes.
...
Over the next few days, Rao Shiyun chatted with Li Zhiyan just as before.
The two of them seemed to have completely forgotten what happened the previous night.
Li Zhiyan was also tactful enough not to bring up the incident under the willow tree, while his relationship with Gu Wanzhou grew much closer.
During these past few days, Li Zhiyan spent most of his time hanging out with Li Shiyu at the internet cafe playing video games, waiting for the system's new mission to drop.
On the fourth day, while Li Zhiyan was chatting with Gu Wanzhou at the internet cafe, the system's new mission finally refreshed.
"Gu Wanzhou's distant cousin is selling his Brothers Internet Cafe for two hundred thousand yuan."
"He has also asked Gu Wanzhou to help introduce someone with the capability to take over Brothers Internet Cafe."
"Please buy Brothers Internet Cafe."