CH 30

Kitten Wanwan was shocked, baring its teeth while hissing at the two soaked figures.

Yu Zhou had no time to comfort it. She immediately took off Xiang Wan’s backpack, placing it on the floor before running to the bathroom to prepare the shower.

“Wanwan, we don’t have time to fill the bathtub, is it okay to use the shower?” Her voice came from the bathroom.

She wanted Xiang Wan to take a hot shower as soon as possible to avoid catching a cold. Since Xiang Wan had already been drenched in the rain, Yu Zhou thought using the shower should be fine.

While adjusting the water temperature, Yu Zhou recalled how Xiang Wan had previously expressed her fear of using the shower and refusing to do so.

Yu Zhou didn’t know how Xiang Wan ended up listening to her and standing in the downpour.

Maybe Xiang Wan really wanted to go back, so she was willing to take risks. But… Sighing, Yu Zhou adjusted the water temperature and set up the shower. Then she quickly returned and said, “Take off your clothes quickly, otherwise you may catch a cold. I’ll find a large towel for you. Set the water temperature a bit hotter and wash for a bit longer to get rid of the chill, okay?”

“Throw your clothes in the entryway. The water is quite dirty, I’ll use a plastic bag to collect them and take them to the living balcony later, or else they’ll drip water everywhere.”

Xiang Wan watched her, panting slightly, but didn’t move.

“Go ahead, take them off. I won’t look,” Yu Zhou said, turning her back to Xiang Wan and tidying things up.

Noticing Yu Zhou’s back was also wet, Xiang Wan gathered her courage and crossed her hands to grab the hem of her T-shirt, pulling it off with a swift motion.

Behind Yu Zhou, the sound of Xiang Wan unzipping her shorts followed, and the denim shorts fell to her feet. She stepped out of them barefoot.

Hearing the sound, Yu Zhou straightened up and said, “No need to take off your underwear. Go take a shower, and you can take off your underwear in the shower. If you can, wash them; if you think they’re too dirty, just leave them… I’ll wash them for you.”

“Uh, or you can throw them away.”

Xiang Wan had learned to wash her underwear by hand on her second day, but she was always reluctant. Now that they were filthy, Yu Zhou wasn’t sure if Xiang Wan would be willing to wash them herself.

When she didn’t hear any movement for a while, Yu Zhou wasn’t sure whether Xiang Wan was still in the entryway or had quietly walked barefoot to the bathroom. The sound of water from the bathroom was loud, so she couldn’t hear clearly. Growing anxious, she called out “Xiang Wan” twice.

There was no response.

Turning around, Yu Zhou met Xiang Wan’s gaze.

Standing there half-naked, clad only in her underwear, with her hair loose and draped over her shoulders and neck. Her subtly visible bosom rose and fell in her bra as rainwater dripped from her cheeks into the valley between her breasts. 

Xiang Wan looked at Yu Zhou silently. She resembled a mermaid that had just come ashore.

Yu Zhou’s eyes flickered as she didn’t dare to look down, focusing only on Xiang Wan’s face. “What’s wrong? Why don’t you go and shower?”

Xiang Wan didn’t seem to care what Yu Zhou had seen, tilting her head and breathing a bit heavily, she asked, “You’ve been so good to me, even offering to wash my underwear. Do you really want me to leave?”

Her voice was sweet. The mermaid didn’t use her vocal cords to trade for a pair of beautiful legs; instead, she questioned the person who saved her ashore with a voice from the depths of the ocean.

Yu Zhou gave in, grabbing Xiang Wan’s wrist and dragging her towards the bathroom. She pushed her in as she said, “Can you ask me that question after you’ve finished showering? With your weak body, you were even tormented all night when you had diarrhea last time. You’re from ancient times, I don’t even know if you’re resistant to antibiotics. If you get a fever, it’ll be troublesome. Do you understand the seriousness of the situation, Xiang Wan?”

She was getting a bit angry, but the angrier she got, the angrier she became at herself. Why didn’t she think of these things when she let Xiang Wan go out?

Feeling somewhat guilty, Yu Zhou put on a fierce expression, pointing at the shower’s water stream: “Stand there, get your body wet and warm, then take off your underwear and shower.”

She glanced at Xiang Wan, who was covered in goosebumps.

Feeling the shared cold, Yu Zhou also belatedly got goosebumps.

“Xiang Wan, I’m cold too,” she said.

Xiang Wan glanced at her before stepping under the shower, walking into the rising steam.

Yu Zhou let out a breath and then turned to close the door for her.

Then, shivering, she ran to the bathroom in the master bedroom to take a thorough shower.

After the shower, the soreness in her bones seemed to come out, making Yu Zhou uncomfortable. Despite that, she forced herself to go to the kitchen, found some brown sugar and half-dried ginger, chopped them up, and put them in a pot to make ginger soup. She didn’t have a good grasp of the proportions, so she just added ingredients by sight. If it was too thick, she added water; if it was too light, she added sugar. That’s how she always cooked.

Soft footsteps sounded behind her. As she stirred the ginger soup, she said, “Finished showering? Did you blow-dry your hair? Make sure it’s thoroughly dry. Wait a moment, and then you can have some ginger soup soon.”

Xiang Wan, wearing a large nightgown with the smell of shower gel, said, “It’s dry.”

Yu Zhou stirred the soup for a while longer before whispering, “I’m sorry.”

She didn’t mean any harm, but she was worried that Xiang Wan wouldn’t be able to return quickly. After all, Xiang Wan wasn’t from here,  even though she didn’t seem to miss her parents much, she still had friends, right? Sisters, and pets like cats and dogs that she’d raised?

She must be missing them too.

Xiang Wan neither accepted nor rejected the apology. She walked over to Yu Zhou, curiously watching her make ginger soup.

In truth, Xiang Wan wasn’t that curious about the ginger soup, but she wanted to ask Yu Zhou something, and at the same time, she didn’t really want to hear her answer.

She wanted to say to Yu Zhou, “You’re actually a great person, so why are you always apologizing?”

She had heard it several times in the recording studio and at her own place as well.

It seemed that whenever something unexpected happened, her first reaction was always, “I’m sorry.”

It was as if she felt she was bothering the world.

However, there were others who truly disturbed the world.

“Why aren’t you talking?” Yu Zhou glanced at her. “Did the shower make you dumb?”

Xiang Wan continued to stare at the ginger soup, tilting her head.

“If you’re okay, go check the bag at the entrance to see if anything got wet and if they are still edible. The bear cookies might be ruined since they were in a paper box, but the AD calcium milk should be fine. Wipe them with a wet tissue and put them in the snack cabinet,” she instructed her.

“Why put them in the snack cabinet? Isn’t this my luggage for when I go back?” Xiang Wan seemed to be testing something with her gaze.

“Oh, right, you want to take them back with you next time?” Yu Zhou said. “We don’t know when that’ll be. Just eat them for now; they have an expiration date. I’ll buy you more next time.”

“Alright.”

Once the ginger soup was ready, they each had a bowl, their faces flushed and their bodies warm from the drink. They then watched the heavy rain outside the window together.

“This rain is really heavy. Back in your time, houses would’ve collapsed, right?” Yu Zhou sighed.

Xiang Wan glanced at her, as if to say, “Who are you looking down on?”

Yu Zhou laughed, “Don’t be upset. Our drainage system is much better than it was in your time, right?”

“I saw something on TV this afternoon,” Xiang Wan said.

“What was it?”

“Never underestimate the wisdom of the ancients.”

“Hahaha!” Yu Zhou downed the last sip of soup, hissing through her teeth, as if she had just taken a shot of alcohol.

After finishing the ginger soup, she escorted Xiang Wan to the bedroom door, told her to lie down, and added an extra blanket. It was already chilly on a rainy day, so she didn’t turn on the air conditioner. Xiang Wan lay in the bed, watching Yu Zhou standing by her side like a door god, so she couldn’t help but look at Yu Zhou quizzically.

“Are you cold?” Yu Zhou asked.

Xiang Wan shook her head.

“Are you hot?”

Xiang Wan still shook her head.

“You have to be hot, you have to be,” Yu Zhou frowned. “You have to sweat. How come you haven’t sweated at all?”

She reached out to touch Xiang Wan’s forehead, finding that there was no sweat at all, but fortunately, she didn’t get a fever either.

“Should I… turn on an electric blanket for you?” she mumbled to herself.

Xiang Wan looked at her, when Yu Zhou bent over to tuck her in, her silky, washed hair fell down, brushing against her face. It smelled nice with a hint of the sweetness from the ginger soup.

“An electric blanket, what is that?”

“I was just joking. I don’t have the time to set one up for you, I’m exhausted too,” Yu Zhou replied.

“Then why don’t you go rest?”

“I need to keep an eye on you,” Yu Zhou sighed. “I’m afraid you’ll have a fever.”

“I won’t have a fever,” Xiang Wan stared at her, saying seriously.

Yu Zhou laughed, “Can you be sure about that?”

“I promise, I won’t have a fever. You go to rest, and tomorrow morning, I want to eat sugar water eggs.”

“You said it. If you don’t have a fever, there will be fermented glutinous rice eggs for you tomorrow morning. If you feel uncomfortable, call me anytime. If you can’t call out, use the phone next to your pillow to call me.”

“Alright.” Xiang Wan closed her eyes.