Heaven's Golden Finger

Chapter 39: Family Coming out of the Woodwork

Chapter 39: Family Coming out of the Woodwork

Shirong wondered if Shun Shixiong had thought about things. Oh, he'd gotten a room with two beds, which was good, but then he'd gone and ordered a single bath. "Maybe this isn't a good idea...."

"Sect Master Qiong won't do anything at the moment. Houttan City may be disorganized but its ruler won't allow cultivators to fight within its borders."

"That...."

"He may try to make trouble for us with the city guards, though. We'd best stay alert."

"But...."

"I doubt he'll bother us tonight. Just eat your dinner and clean up."

"Should we...."

"There isn't a better inn, Shirong Shidi. We'll just...."

"SHUN! LISTEN TO ME!" It wasn't quite a shout, but it was definitely louder than it should have been.

Shun eyed him, clearly startled by his sudden and horribly rude interruption. Apologies would have to wait. "I was trying to say, should we bathe separately?"

It took his Shixiong a moment or so to consider the question. "Shirong," he said quietly, "We've bathed together before with you feeling the way you do. Does it truly matter?"

Ignoring the use of his name without a title for the moment, Shirong gazed wide-eyed at Shun Shixiong. "You don't mind me looking?"

A faint pinkish glow formed along Shun Shixiong's cheekbones. "You've already seen everything, remember?"

Now it was Shirong's turn to blush. That doll proved just how much attention he'd paid to his Shixiong's... ah... assets. "That doesn't mean you'd want me to look."

"I trust you not to stare. And there won't be space for two baths, anyway."

By this time they'd reached their room and settled in. Servants had already brought in a large tub and were filling it with bucket after bucket of cold water. Shirong couldn't help examining the thing curiously as they waited. Large enough to take up most of the room's floor space, it was a square structure of framed wood and an unexpected material. "Is it made of canvas?"

"It appears to be. Waterproofed, obviously."

There were sigils embroidered around the rim of the tub, symbols Shirong didn't recognize, though they resembled Sanskrit from his other life. Were they some proto-version of the language or was it coincidence? "They're heating the water," he noted, seeing steam rising off the surface. "That's convenient."

"Mm. Yes."

By now the last bucket of water had been poured in and the servant had shown them how to drain the water once they were finished with it. "If sirs require more water, sirs need only ask."

Once the servants were gone, Shirong hesitated. "Shixiong should go first," he suggested, taking refuge in formality.

"Just undress and wash, Shirong. You're wasting time." Shun Shixiong was already undoing his outer robe, folding it up and putting it on his bed.

Shirong flushed. Forced himself not to stare as his Shixiong undressed. As Shun Shixiong had said, he'd seen it all before. He didn't know why it embarrassed him so much now.

Turning away, he stripped as quickly as he could then slid into the water, trying not to look. Once seated it wasn't so bad. The water distorted everything below its surface, so he couldn't really see anything important. It reminded him of the pattern used to censor naked sims and he had to force back a foolish grin.