Chapter 60
Si Jingce quickly scooped up the clothes, tucked the little bird into his pocket, and hurried out.
As he drove back to the hotel, he called Xiao Li and dragged him out of bed. “Why did Yanyan’s mating period erupt ahead of time?”
According to what Xiao Li had said before, Yanyan had technically been in mating season all along, just in a relatively stable state with no obvious abnormalities.
Only after nearly a year would it suddenly flare up, causing him to switch between human and bird forms.
But from the start of Yanyan’s mating period until now, it hadn’t even been a full year…
What Si Jingce feared most was something going wrong with his body. After hearing the explanation, Xiao Li fell silent for a long moment.
“Ah… the sample size was too small. One year was just a conservative estimate,” Xiao Li finally said, finding his voice. “After all, the reference case back then was a pelican… how big was that fish compared to Yanyan?”
At this moment, the little pearl bird was slumped in the passenger seat like a soft pancake, warm to the touch—like a freshly baked bird pancake.
“So what do we do now? Yanyan’s turned into a bird,” Si Jingce asked.
Xiao Li hesitated. “You… you need to deal with the mating period first.”
As for how to turn him back… Xiao Li scratched his head. “Maybe… try giving him some electrolyte water?”
Treating electrolyte water like some kind of miracle cure?
Si Jingce didn’t say it out loud, but thinking it over, it really seemed like the only option left.
He drove back to the hotel, ordered delivery, and had electrolyte water sent up.
Yanyan was placed on a soft blanket. When Si Jingce touched him, the little bird leaned into his hand, rubbing against him and whining softly in a spoiled manner.
The electrolyte water arrived quickly. Si Jingce poured some into the bottle cap and brought it to the bird’s beak.
Yanyan poked his head out, took a small sip—then immediately turned away.
What kind of flavor is this? It’s awful!
No matter how Si Jingce coaxed him, Yanyan refused to drink.
“Be good, just one more sip,” Si Jingce patiently coaxed. “Otherwise you’ll feel worse.”
With that one sentence, Yanyan ended up drinking many “last sips.”
Still, it wasn’t as effective as the electrolyte water he usually made himself. Only after three capfuls did Yanyan finally regain some strength.
The little bird in front of him turned back into a human, obediently wrapping himself in the blanket and rolling into Si Jingce’s arms.
“What’s going on with you?” Si Jingce lifted his chin to check him. Seeing that he was fine, he finally let out a breath. “I was halfway through my speech and suddenly saw you run off—you nearly scared me to death.”
Not just him—everyone had been startled.
Separated by a blanket, Yanyan couldn’t feel his warmth, so he burrowed closer before speaking. “I suddenly felt really uncomfortable, so I ran back to the lounge.”
He leaned weakly against him, his voice soft with guilt. “I was very well-behaved… I didn’t drink much of that alcohol-mixed drink.”
Hearing him immediately defend the fruit wine, Si Jingce grabbed his hand with annoyance. “Si Yanyan, I’m banning you from alcohol.”
But the moment he touched him, he was startled.
Yanyan’s whole body was still burning hot—like holding a small furnace, as if he might melt at any moment.
Si Jingce quickly checked his temperature, but the thermometer showed normal.
“Brother, don’t check anymore,” Yanyan said softly, with a faint trace of breathlessness. “I’m still in mating season. This is normal.”
Si Jingce instinctively tightened his grip on his waist.
Yanyan’s thoughts were still muddled. One moment he felt wronged about the alcohol ban and wanted to cry, the next his mind drifted elsewhere as he blankly leaned in Si Jingce’s arms.
Eventually, his thoughts circled back to that drink at the ceremony.
Even though he felt uncomfortable now… that fruit wine had been really good.
He knew Si Jingce’s personality—no matter what, he wouldn’t allow him to drink again. But if he kissed him, the man would definitely soften and agree.
So Yanyan did exactly that.
Driven by the desires of his mating period, he instinctively leaned in and kissed the corner of Si Jingce’s lips.
“Stop acting spoiled.” Si Jingce held the back of his neck, then moved upward, pressing the back of his hand against Yanyan’s face. “Do you still feel uncomfortable anywhere?”
The cool touch made Yanyan sober up slightly. He lowered his eyes and shook his head. “No… nothing else.”
And then… nothing happened.
Si Jingce carefully asked what he wanted to eat and ordered food.
Even Yanyan was a bit confused by this reaction.
They were together, right?
He was in mating season, right?
Then why… did Si Jingce have no reaction at all?
“You didn’t eat anything tonight.” Si Jingce handed him chopsticks as if nothing was wrong. “Eat something first. You need strength.”
Yanyan didn’t quite understand what he meant, but after he said it, his stomach really did start growling.
After eating half his fill and washing up, Yanyan slowly climbed into bed, settling into Si Jingce’s arms.
Si Jingce was still replying to messages.
The Annual Star winner had run off right after receiving the award, which inevitably caused trouble for others.
Fortunately, this time they had a professional host who managed the situation well. And since Si Jingce’s award had been the final segment, the impact wasn’t too serious.
His phone kept buzzing.
[Yunduan]: Ge, did you find Yanyan? It’s not too late to come to the after-party—there’s tons of food here, even a huge king crab!
[Second Uncle]: What happened? Why did you and Yanyan suddenly leave? You didn’t argue, right? On such a good day, don’t get upset—anything can be talked through.
It wasn’t strange for his uncle to think that way.
At the ceremony, Yanyan had suddenly stood up and left. Si Jingce hurriedly finished his speech and ran after him. Later, someone even snapped photos of him leaving with a grim expression…
Anyone seeing that scene would think the two had a massive fight.
And that ring… he would have to find another suitable moment to give it.
Just as Si Jingce was about to reply to the messages, a hand suddenly entered his field of vision and covered the phone screen.
He turned his head. The culprit looked innocent. “Brother, did I accidentally block your screen just now?”
There was nothing accidental about that little move—it was full of deliberate intent.
During mating season, a little bird wouldn’t become completely soft and obedient like it had taken medicine, but those unconscious clingy behaviors were even more distracting.
After being stared at for too long, Yanyan shrank his neck guiltily, but soon felt he hadn’t done anything wrong, and looked back at Si Jingce openly.
Your boyfriend is in mating season! Don’t you know you should do something?
Knowing full well it was just that last step away, Yanyan still held back from saying it outright, instead testing Si Jingce’s reaction with all kinds of “accidental” touches.
But every time, Si Jingce only calmly caught his wandering hands, with no further action.
After several attempts, the boy began to grow suspicious—
Could it be… his boyfriend really couldn’t?
The thought had just flashed through his mind when he saw Si Jingce switch off both of their phones.
The two phones were set aside. A broad palm covered Yanyan’s lower abdomen. The contact softened his body immediately, his “little bird claws” nowhere to rest, finally grabbing onto Si Jingce’s clothes and wrinkling them badly.
“That should be enough time to digest.”
Hearing this, Yanyan froze, his cheeks instantly flushing red.
The little bird brain finally understood the roundabout way humans spoke.
“Digested.” Yanyan said seriously, as if discussing something important. “And I’ve regained my strength.”
The lights seemed to go dim as Si Jingce stroked his soft hair and kissed him heavily.
Like tasting a plump cherry, sweet juice spreading between lips and teeth—Yanyan melted unbelievably in his arms. Si Jingce couldn’t help tightening his hold bit by bit, his fingertips trembling.
“Brother…”
The little chick was almost out of breath, weakly pressing a hand against Si Jingce’s chest. Though he didn’t use much force, it was effective—Si Jingce’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he barely restrained his remaining rationality and broke the kiss.
A faint blush lingered at the corners of Yanyan’s eyes, his lips swollen red from the kiss.
A thumb brushed across them, sending waves of shivers through him.
“There were a lot of things I wanted to tell you on stage today,” Si Jingce said, his expression restrained, his tone unconsciously tinged with grievance. “But you left first.”
Yanyan lightly kicked his thigh. “That’s your fault.”
His ears were red like tomatoes. “If you had done it earlier… maybe none of this would’ve happened.”
That’s just how big boyfriends are—one little hint and they get shy, refusing to take the next step. Only a pearl bird like him would indulge such a human.
And that indulgence had indeed led to some consequences.
It was just a pity about such a good award ceremony—he had wanted to hear Si Jingce confess for another ten minutes.
Yanyan had no idea what he had missed. His gaze gradually focused on Si Jingce.
“Anyway… it’s not too late now.”
They were already inseparable partners. Doing this was completely normal.
It was just the first time, so some shyness was inevitable.
Yanyan took a deep breath to steady himself and slowly began unbuttoning Si Jingce’s clothes.
Si Jingce caught his hand and kissed it.
“Baby.”
Hearing that, Yanyan smiled. “Baby is here.”
His hand was pulled forward, and a small ring slipped onto his ring finger.
Under the dim light, Yanyan saw clearly what it was.
“A shiny ring,” Si Jingce said. “From the moment it was delivered until now, it went through quite a few setbacks. But fortunately, it’s now on your hand.”
“From the moment I got it, I kept imagining how good it would look on you… Now it seems my imagination was too limited.”
The boy beneath him stared blankly at the ring, his eyes wide with uncertainty.
Suddenly, he raised his head and kissed Si Jingce, looking straight into his eyes. “Brother, I love you so, so, so much.”
Si Jingce smiled softly. “I love you very, very, very much too.”
