Chapter 29: The Celebration Feast
At seven in the evening, Coach Dan led the group, including Lu Li, to a famous local restaurant. Typically, athletes’ diets were strictly controlled during competitions, and they were not allowed to eat uninspected food. However, Coach Dan clearly didn’t care about these “trivial” rules. After all, she was a former national-level athlete who had coached in Chuanhai and even pulled some strings to get Zou Yameng into the provincial team in the previous life. In short, Coach Dan wasn’t just any ordinary coach.
That afternoon, Lu Li checked out of the rental house, ignoring the landlady’s resentful gaze as he left with his backpack. Then, without a hint of embarrassment, he checked into the hotel – Coach Dan had generously booked him a separate room. The stern-faced female coach, usually known for her serious demeanor, looked at Lu Li with unusual warmth.
He then had to deal with a group of energetic female athletes who surrounded him, asking all sorts of questions. A few bold ones even dared to pinch his cheeks. This was the consequence of not working hard enough; if you didn’t work hard, you would become a plaything for women. When Sister Yameng and Coach Dan returned from their conversation, the girls immediately straightened up, acting like well-behaved young ladies.
“Wuwuwu, Xiao Li Zi, what skincare products do you use? Your skin is so smooth!” Zhou Wen, the most mischievous of the bunch, asked, her mouth practically watering.
Lu Li wiped his forehead, feeling a bead of sweat forming. “I don’t use skincare products.”
Sister Yameng walked over and pinched her best friend’s nose. “Oh really? Trying to get handsy while I’m gone?”
“Ouch, ouch, ouch! Stop it, you’ll ruin my nose, and then no handsome guy will want me!”
Zou Yameng sat down next to Lu Li and couldn’t help but hold his hand. “Did they do anything to you?”
Do anything? Sister, you have no idea how enthusiastic the girls from the Women’s Sports School could be. Lu Li wiped his sweat again, trying to maintain a straight face.
“They were all very nice to me.”
Zou Yameng shot her teammates a suspicious look. She didn’t believe him for a second. She knew exactly what those girls were like.
“Don’t you dare lay a finger on my brother! Absolutely not!” Zou Yameng declared, her tone brooking no argument. She rarely pulled rank on her teammates, which was probably one of the reasons why they liked her so much.
The group chatted and played cards in the hotel for a while before it was finally time for dinner. The girls excitedly followed behind Zou Yameng, discussing what dishes were good in Lingyue City, what dishes wouldn’t make them fat, and what dishes, with added L-carnitine, would make them lose weight.
As they settled down at the restaurant and the dishes were served one after another, the girls’ conversation naturally shifted to the day’s match.
“Xiaomeng, did you go online? The video of your match has over 100,000 views! You’re famous!”
“That last shot was amazing! It was so powerful; it felt like it could punch a hole through someone.”
“I know, right? Even He Ping was stunned! I never thought she would be shut out like that!”
Coach Dan chuckled and opened a can of beer. “Anyone underage here? Behave yourselves and stick to non-alcoholic drinks.”
“Cheers to Xiaomeng!”
“Long live Big Sister Yameng!”
Although Lu Li’s glass was filled with milk, he still clinked it with everyone else’s. He didn’t know the athletes from the Chuanhai team well, but the lively atmosphere made him feel included. He was naturally a pessimistic and negative person, but he enjoyed being surrounded by optimism and positivity. It made him feel like his existence in this world held at least a sliver of meaning.
His gaze drifted towards his sister, meeting her eyes across the table. Her affection for him was palpable, her eyes sparkling with joy and another emotion he couldn’t quite decipher.
Lu Li finished his milk in one gulp and poured himself a glass of beer. He wasn’t much of a drinker, but he wanted to get drunk tonight.
As the night wore on and the drinks flowed freely, the girls’ conversation became increasingly uninhibited. Lu Li, however, seemed lost in his own world, his eyes fixed on his sister as he drank steadily. Zou Yameng was all smiles. Perhaps slightly tipsy, she interacted with her teammates with even less restraint. She was beautiful, not just physically, but like a bird with wings bathed in sunlight, radiating the beauty of freedom.
In his previous life, the only time he had seen Zou Yameng drunk was on his college graduation day, when he took An Baili to meet her. He couldn’t remember what his sister had said, only that she had dragged him off to drink, case after case, until her face was flushed and her eyes were glazed over.
And tonight, Zou Yameng seemed drunk again. She leaned against Zhou Wen’s shoulder, singing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” in a tone-deaf voice. Lu Li couldn’t help but smile. It was so bad that the other customers might complain. After a few more drinks, he felt his head spinning, and his vision tripled, turning Zou Yameng into three identical figures.
For some reason, the girls started arguing about who had the smallest waist, lifting their shirts and comparing themselves right there in the private room, completely intoxicated. Lu Li found it hilarious. He slurred, raising his glass, “No one has a smaller waist than Sister Yameng… What’s there to argue about… My Sister Yameng is the best… the best…”
His hand loosened, and he slumped over the table, completely passed out. Lu Li’s collapse seemed to be a signal, as the other members of the Chuanhai Women’s Table Tennis Team also started to collapse onto the table one by one, snoring without a care for their image. Coach Dan, her back still straight, sighed in exasperation and called the other coaches to come and take the girls back to the hotel.
“Huh? Yameng, you’re not drunk?”
Zou Yameng lifted her head from the table. Her cheeks were flushed, but her eyes were clear and bright, nothing like the hazy gaze from before. The truth was, she had a high tolerance for alcohol. Even Lu Li didn’t know that she could drink most people under the table, especially when it came to beer. She simply hummed in response and walked over to Lu Li, gently helping him up.
Lu Li was sound asleep, his mouth slightly open, drool trickling down his chin. He looked completely different from his usual composed self. Zou Yameng couldn’t help but smile mischievously. She discreetly buried her face in his neck, inhaling his scent. She had always loved doing this.
“I’ll take Li Zi back first.”
“I’ll have someone pick us up.”
“No need. Li Zi has a weak constitution. He’ll catch a cold if he sleeps out here like this.” With that, Zou Yameng helped the unconscious Lu Li out of the restaurant, hailed a taxi, and returned to the hotel.
She laid Lu Li on the bed and tucked him in, but she didn’t leave. She didn’t turn on the light either. Her bright eyes sparkled in the darkness. She carefully leaned down, her warm breath brushing against Lu Li’s peaceful sleeping face. After a long moment, Zou Yameng made up her mind. Her lips covered his, prying open his mouth. Her tongue explored his mouth, tangling with his.
She gently caressed her brother’s face, feeling her own temperature rising rapidly, especially her ears, which were burning hot.
“Li Zi…”
“Are you awake?”
“No response means you agree~”
She undid the buttons of his shirt, her tongue trailing down his neck, stopping at his chest. There was one thing she had never told Lu Li. She had always found his scent intoxicating, like a forbidden fruit she longed to taste. Now was her chance. Zou Yameng’s tongue swirled around his nipple, and then, with a gentle bite, she sank her teeth into his skin, as if savoring a raisin.
The sensation sent a jolt of desire through her, years of suppressed longing surging forth like a tidal wave. Her breathing grew heavy, her legs instinctively pressing together. But what ultimately broke the spell was the insistent ringing of Lu Li’s phone. She picked it up and saw a message from someone with a golden retriever as their profile picture.
[Silly Goose: Can’t sleep… Lu Li, are you there?]
[Silly Goose: Can I call you…?]
It was like a bucket of cold water had been thrown over her. Zou Yameng instantly sobered up.
[Lu Li: Who is this?]
[Silly Goose: ???]
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