Chapter 105
Xiao Qiyun's figure disappeared behind the door, and the sound of water soon followed.
Su Zhelan slowly got up, picked up the plain white bathrobe, looked at it, and then tossed it back onto the tatami mat with disdain. It was so uncomfortable, clinging to her skin like a wet blanket...
After taking off his clothes, he wrapped a clean towel around his neck and walked out barefoot.
Beside the steaming hot spring pool, Xiao Qiyun leaned against the edge with his eyes closed, water droplets sliding down his collarbone and onto his chest. Hearing footsteps, he lazily opened his eyes—
The next second, he suddenly stood up from the water, splashing water all over the ground.
"What are you doing?" Xiao Qiyun rushed to the edge of the pool, grabbed Su Zhelan's wrist, and said, "Get down quickly, or Mr. Su Yan will definitely kill me if you catch a cold."
Su Zhelan shrank back at the shout, but still stubbornly insisted, "I don't like the feeling of wet clothes sticking to my body..."
Xiao Qiyun frowned, tightening his grip: "Nonsense!" He pulled Su Zhelan to the edge of the pool. "Get down here right now."
The warm spring water instantly reached her waist, and Su Zhelan was scalded and jolted. The hem of her bathrobe swayed gently with the water.
"And now?" Xiao Qiyun's voice came close to his ear, "Are you still cold?"
Su Zhelan then realized that the two were very close. In the rising steam, Xiao Qiyun's bathrobe was already soaked, but he still maintained a proper distance and did not get too close.
"No, it's not cold anymore..." Su Zhelan stammered, shrinking back, but the pool wall blocked her way.
Xiao Qiyun suddenly released his grip and took a step back to create some distance. Amidst the rippling water, he turned to Su Zhelan's side and began to close his eyes to rest.
Su Zhelan paused for a moment, then breathed a sigh of relief and slowly slid into the water, letting the warm spring water wash over his shoulders. The rising steam blurred his vision, and he secretly glanced in Xiao Qiyun's direction—his soaked bathrobe clung to his broad shoulders and back, rising and falling slightly with his breath.
Silence spread through the hot spring, broken only by the occasional splash. Su Zhelan submerged half her face in the water, exhaling a string of tiny bubbles.
The steam from the hot spring was so thick it was almost impenetrable. Su Zhelan leaned against the edge of the pool, feeling drowsy, his fingertips turning pink from the hot water. In the rising steam, he vaguely heard the sound of the courtyard gate being suddenly pushed open.
"Ze Lan! I'm back!"
Sheng Xuan's voice was like a thunderclap piercing the fog. Su Zhelan jolted and was about to get up when Xiao Qiyun gently pressed her arm down: "Don't panic."
But Sheng Xuan's footsteps were getting closer and closer, accompanied by the crisp sound of his footsteps on the stone steps. Su Zhelan had just straightened up when she saw Sheng Xuan appear at the corner of the corridor. Upon seeing the two people in the pool, her face suddenly darkened.
"What the hell are you doing?" Sheng Xuan's temples were bulging with veins, and his fists were clenched so tightly they cracked.
Xiao Qiyun slowly stood up from the water, maintaining a safe distance: "As you can see, I'm accompanying Zhelan to soak in the hot springs." He looked up at Sheng Xuan, his tone calm but with a hint of aloofness.
Su Zhelan quickly smoothed things over, taking half a step forward: "Shengxuan...you're back, that's great...you must be tired from the journey, would you like to soak in the hot springs and rest?"
Sheng Xuan forced a smile and said, "Okay."
He ripped off his outer robe and threw it on the ground, stepping into the hot spring in his undergarments, splashing water all over Su Zhelan's face. Before Su Zhelan could react, Sheng Xuan had already strode up to him, his tone deliberately forceful: "Stay away from him."
Xiao Qiyun's brows twitched slightly, but he didn't move. He simply looked at Su Zhelan and said, "Zhelan, you go up first."
Su Zhelan felt uneasy under the tense atmosphere between the two. Just as she was about to move towards the edge of the pool, Sheng Xuan grabbed her wrist: "What's the rush?"
Caught between the two, the steam from the hot spring made Su Zhelan dizzy. He had already been soaking for a long time, and now the argument between the two made him feel uneasy. He felt a tightness in his chest and his breathing gradually became rapid.
"Wait, wait..." Su Zhelan's voice trembled as she tried to push the two away. "You two calm down... I'm feeling a little unwell..."
Before he could finish speaking, his vision suddenly went black, his legs went weak, and he slid into the water. Xiao Qiyun reacted quickly and grabbed his arm, pulling him half-into his arms.
Sheng Xuan, disregarding the argument, quickly reached out to support Su Zhelan's back: "Zhelan? What's wrong?"
Xiao Qiyun touched his forehead, his brows furrowed: "He's been soaking for too long and he's emotionally agitated. I'm afraid he's fainted from the heat."
Sheng Xuan pulled Su Zhelan out of the water. The boy's pale face was still flushed, and his wet eyelashes were tightly closed.
"Don't panic," Xiao Qiyun's voice came from behind, steady and strong. "He's just overheated. Take him upstairs first."
Sheng Xuan then realized that Su Zhelan's bathrobe was too thin due to the water, so he quickly pulled his own outer robe over Su Zhelan's body and wrapped him up tightly.
Xiao Qiyun carried Su Zhelan and strode towards the shore, hot spring water dripping from the boy's body. Sheng Xuan followed closely behind, catching up in a few quick steps and grabbing the hem of his robe that was about to slip off.
"Go and get a clean handkerchief," Xiao Qiyun ordered without turning his head, his voice carrying an unquestionable air of authority.
Sheng Xuan gritted his teeth, instinctively wanting to retort, but when his gaze fell on Su Zhelan's pale face, his throat tightened, and he turned around and quickly walked towards the inner room.
He rummaged through the room and found a few clean handkerchiefs. He then quickly filled a basin with warm water. When he returned with the basin, Xiao Qiyun had already helped Su Zhelan change into a clean undergarment—the collar was slightly open, intentionally to dissipate heat.
When Su Zhelan slowly opened her eyes, her vision was still a little blurry.
A warm breeze gently brushed his cheek. He turned his head slightly and saw Sheng Xuan kneeling by the bed, clumsily fanning himself with a folding fan. The fan swayed and occasionally lifted a few strands of hair from Su Zhelan's forehead.
Xiao Qiyun's fingertips were still resting on Su Zhelan's wrist, the warmth seeping through her skin. He looked down at the boy's pale face, his voice as soft as if afraid of disturbing something: "Awake?"
But his hands didn't stop moving. The wet towel slowly wiped Su Zhelan's wrist, the water droplets rolling over the protruding wrist bones and being silently wiped away by his fingertips.
Sheng Xuan immediately threw down his fan and rushed over, the fan ribs falling to the ground with a "thud" without him even bothering to pick them up.
"Are you still dizzy?" As he bent down, the dampness from his clothes brushed against Su Zhelan's face, carrying the distinctive sulfurous smell of the hot spring.
Su Zhelan opened her mouth, but her throat was too dry to make a sound.
Xiao Qiyun had already supported the back of his neck, the rim of the celadon cup touching his lips: "Slow down."
As the warm water touched her tongue, Su Zhelan saw the water stains on Xiao Qiyun's rolled-up sleeves meandering down the lines of his forearm muscles, forming a small puddle in the crook of his elbow.
"...You guys..." His voice was hoarse and didn't sound like his own. Su Zhelan slowly sat up, supporting himself on the bed. Sheng Xuan immediately supported his lower back, while Xiao Qiyun gripped his forearm tightly.
Just as they sat up straight, Su Zhelan suddenly raised her hand—"Bang! Bang!" Two sharp blows landed precisely on the foreheads of Sheng Xuan and Xiao Qiyun.
Sheng Xuan covered his head and hissed, red marks quickly appearing under his wispy hair: "Who told you to soak until you're exhausted..." His mutterings faded under Su Zhelan's glare.
Xiao Qiyun simply rubbed his temple with the heel of his hand; the skin where he had been tapped was flushed red, but his tone remained calm and even: "Be careful next time."
"There'll be a next time?!" Su Zhelan grabbed a soft pillow and threw it, cotton wadding bursting out from the seams. "Get out of here, all of you!"
Sheng Xuan grabbed his shoulder, her palm burning hot: "Don't get excited, rest a little longer." She pressed Su Zhelan back onto the bed with such force.
Xiao Qiyun then took Su Zhelan's wrist and placed his fingertips on her pulse: "Your temperature is normal."
Su Zhelan struggled but couldn't break free, and could only stare at the two people in front of her—only then did she see that Sheng Xuan's dark blue clothes were stuck to his chest in patches of light and dark, and water stains spread along the fabric to his waist and abdomen; obviously, he hadn't had time to change since coming out of the hot spring; Xiao Qiyun's sleeves, rolled up to his elbows, were wet and stuck to his skin, and water droplets were dripping from his wrist bones.
Su Zhelan suddenly felt weak. "..." Her Adam's apple bobbed, her voice muffled, "My clothes are soaked."
Sheng Xuan lowered his head and tugged at the fabric sticking to his stomach: "It's nothing..."
"Go change," Su Zhelan interrupted, her gaze sweeping over Xiao Qiyun's soaked cuffs. "Catching a cold would be even more troublesome."
Xiao Qiyun released Su Zhelan's wrist, grabbed Sheng Xuan by the back of her collar, and walked out: "Come on, let's change."
Sheng Xuan struggled to turn around: "Ze Lan, wait for me, I'll bring you something delicious—"
After the door closed, Su Zhelan stared at the lotus pattern on the canopy ceiling for a long time before getting out of bed and heading towards the small kitchen. —Anyway, he had nothing better to do.
The small kitchen was fully stocked with ingredients. Su Zhelan skillfully rolled up her sleeves and scooped up a spoonful of milk, pouring it into the earthenware pot.
As the milky white liquid shimmered with gold under the firelight, he vaguely recalled the time when he was in the mountains with Master Su Yan. When Gu Linzhao was not around, the food Su Yan cooked was simply... hard to swallow... As he thought about this, he kept watch over the stove, occasionally lifting the lid to check.
When Sheng Xuan and Xiao Qiyun returned with food boxes after changing their clothes, the room was quiet and the bed was empty.
"Ze Lan?" Sheng Xuan put down the food box, looked around, and asked, "Where is she?"
Xiao Qiyun's gaze swept across the room, finally settling on the slightly ajar back door. He walked over and pushed it open a crack—
"Here it is." Su Zhelan's voice came from the small kitchen.
Sheng Xuan rushed over and saw Su Zhelan peeking out from the stove, her cheeks flushed from the steam, and her wisps of hair still damp with moisture.
"What delicious food are you making?" Sheng Xuan leaned forward, sniffing the air. "Let me try some!"
Su Zhelan slapped away his outstretched hand: "You just took it off the heat, do you want to burn your skin? You have to wait for it to cool down."
His gaze passed over Sheng Xuan's shoulder and landed on the food box on the table. He paused for a moment, then said, "...Let's eat first."
As dusk crept onto the windowpanes, the three had already finished their dinner. Beneath the trees in the courtyard, the white marble chessboard gleamed with a warm luster. Sheng Xuan, holding the black pieces, scratched his head in frustration, while Xiao Qiyun's white pieces had already quietly surrounded a large area of the game.
"I'm not playing anymore!" Sheng Xuan pushed the chess pieces away. "Xiao Qiyun, you definitely cheated!"
Su Zhelan chuckled and brought over a celadon tray. Six cups of double-skin milk pudding were as smooth and creamy as jade.
Sheng Xuan snatched a cup and was about to pour it down her throat when Su Zhelan grabbed her wrist: "Can't you use a spoon?"
The moment the porcelain spoon sliced through the milk skin, the smooth milk pudding trembled and cracked. Sheng Xuan wolfed down most of a bowl, milk stains still clinging to the corners of her mouth: "Another bowl, please!"
Xiao Qiyun lightly tapped the rim of the plate with the tip of his spoon: "Are we making so much for Mr. Su Yan and the others?"
Su Zhelan was putting the chess pieces back into the wicker box when he heard this, his fingers paused. "Hmm." He lowered his eyes and brushed away the fallen leaves on the chessboard. "Master really likes this; it's been a long time since I made it."
"...I'll go with you," Sheng Xuan suddenly said.
Xiao Qiyun also tossed the white piece back into the chess jar: "Let's play together."
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