Bath time

Mu Yi's patience was about to run out.

The pain in his arm had intensified again. Now it came in rapid, densely packed bursts of stabbing pain, making him feel as though he were being shot over and over.

Unable to help himself, he stood and called to the others gathered up ahead, replenishing their energy. "Your captain's been soaking forever. Don't tell me he drowned in there?"

What he meant was that they should go hurry him along.

They glanced back at him, showing no intention of moving.

A few seconds later, Qiu Cai replied, "Our captain always takes this long in the bath."

Unbelievable. What was the point of being so precious about everything?

Cradling his arm, Mu Yi paced back and forth, grumbling inwardly.

Seeing that he seemed anxious, Du Jing said, "If you need something, just go find him!"

"Exactly," An Beize added. "We still don't know how Jin's doing, so we're in no hurry to get moving. The captain definitely won't come back until he's soaked to his heart's content."

Mu Yi immediately turned and headed toward the bathing pool.

Fine, he'd go.

Five minutes later, Mu Yi edged up to the weeds beside the pool.

He hesitated for two seconds, then poked his head out for a look. From this angle, he could only see Zhong Xuezhi's head and shoulders.

Zhong Xuezhi seemed to be in an excellent mood, idly playing with a clump of wildflowers on the bank beside him with one hand.

His eyes brimmed with a smile. He clearly adored them.

Although this was hardly a good time to interrupt, Mu Yi's arm was killing him. He cleared his throat and called, "Zhong Xuezhi!"

Zhong Xuezhi had spotted his furtive figure long ago. At the shout, he replied, "What are you hiding for? Come join me."

Mu Yi rubbed his aching arm. Were the Betas in this world really this uninhibited?

"Mu Yi?" Zhong Xuezhi called again. "Stop hiding. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were a girl trying to avoid any impropriety with me."

Mu Yi's brows shot up. He was indeed avoiding impropriety, but who the fuck was a girl?

He immediately strode forward, marching briskly to the edge of the pool.

Only when he got closer did he realize Zhong Xuezhi wasn't soaking naked. He had a wide towel wrapped around his waist.

That made things easier.

Mu Yi edged closer again, making his way to the bank Zhong Xuezhi was leaning against, then plopped down.

Zhong Xuezhi looked up in puzzlement. "You're not here for a soak?"

Mu Yi held out his arm, which hurt so badly it was cramping. "It's not cold anymore. I came to get a recharge."

"Oh, right." Zhong Xuezhi lowered the hand he had raised to sweep back his wet bangs and took Mu Yi's wrist instead. "Judging by the time, it's about to wear off."

As he spoke, he slowly channeled his energy, infusing the band of ice with cold once more.

The process didn't take long. He finished in no time.

Mu Yi moved his arm a couple of times. The pain had noticeably eased, and he breathed out. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," Zhong Xuezhi replied, then suggested, "Natural hot springs help flush out toxins and improve circulation. Want to come in and try? It might shorten how long your arm hurts."

Mu Yi looked at his arm, then at the snow leopard tail gently stirring in the pool. He was sorely tempted.

In the end, however, he reluctantly refused. "No."

No matter how irresponsible Mu Yi might be, he wasn't going to act like a creep.

Thinking he was worried about not having a change of clothes, Zhong Xuezhi offered again, "You can wear mine."

Zhong Xuezhi liked being clean and always took several changes of clothes whenever he went out. He figured he could wrap himself in a towel on the way back, then change into another set at their resting spot.

At this, Mu Yi propped one hand on his hip and eyed him with a raised brow. "You really don't stand on ceremony, do you?"

Zhong Xuezhi looked as though this were perfectly obvious. "We're both grown men. Why would I?"

"All right." In the end, Mu Yi couldn't hold out. "Just remember, you invited me."

As he emphasized this, he climbed into the hot spring fully dressed.

Zhong Xuezhi gave him a couple of curious looks, then said, "Wouldn't have guessed you were so conservative."

Once seated, Mu Yi settled into a comfortable position and leaned back, echoing his phrasing. "Wouldn't have guessed you were so uninhibited."

"Taking a bath together makes me uninhibited?" Zhong Xuezhi couldn't quite understand. He offered an example. "Then if I asked you to go to the bathroom with me, would that count as sexually harassing you?"

"No." Mu Yi suddenly smiled and said with particular slowness, "That would be seducing me."

"Sedu-! I'm fucking seduc-no..."

Zhong Xuezhi's ability to speak completely short-circuited. Finally, he blurted out, "Is there something wrong with the sex education at your Safe Base?"

Mu Yi shot him a sidelong glance. "Of course not."

Zhong Xuezhi continued, "Don't tell me you really are a girl?"

Mu Yi shot back, "Are you a fucking idiot? Ever seen a girl like me?"

Zhong Xuezhi actually rubbed his chin and looked him over. Mu Yi was tall and powerfully built, with sharply defined features, fierce brows and eyes, and a very prominent Adam's apple.

Beneath his open shirt, his muscles were firm, too.

There was no question about it. He was a man through and through.

But Zhong Xuezhi still couldn't make sense of it. Would one grown man say another grown man was seducing him?

Suddenly, Wenren Jin flashed through his mind. That brat liked to fool around and wasn't picky about whom he fooled around with. Could Mu Yi also...

At that thought, Zhong Xuezhi suddenly began to falter. Watching Mu Yi's expression, he asked, "You..."

"What about me?" Irritated by his staring, Mu Yi formed a ball of pure white electric flame in his palm.

"Keep running your mouth, and I'll turn this pool into an electrified boiling spring."

Zhong Xuezhi: "..."

Well, that settled it. The guy had proved through action that he was perfectly straight.

He really had been overthinking things.

A little embarrassed, Zhong Xuezhi withdrew his gaze and raised a hand to play with the little clump of wildflowers beside him again.

After he had quietly toyed with them for a while, Mu Yi suddenly struck up a conversation beside him.

"You like flowers?"

Zhong Xuezhi turned his head and saw that Mu Yi had returned to his usual half-smiling expression.

He didn't mind the other man's mercurial moods and replied with a smile, "Yeah. They're growing beautifully, after all."

Mu Yi shook his head, unable to understand. "However well they grow, they won't last long enough for you to keep liking them. They might wilt tomorrow."

"You're right." Zhong Xuezhi straightened his wet, disheveled bangs. "They're February Violet, after all. Staying in bloom this long is already about their limit."

"Tonight at the latest, the flowers will wilt, and their stems and leaves will wither right after."

"But..." He abruptly changed tack and asked, "Have you heard of March Jasmine?"

Mu Yi shrugged. "No."

"Figured you hadn't." Zhong Xuezhi smiled and continued, "Before long, March Jasmine will flourish, nourished by the remains of February Violet."

"And February Violet's seeds will be carried deep underground through March Jasmine's roots, waiting to be reborn next year."

Mu Yi fell silent for a moment, then raised a brow. "So?"

"So," Zhong Xuezhi raised a brow as well, looking at him as he continued, "it's not that they can't outlast it."

"On the contrary, in the long stream of their lives, endlessly cycling and continuing, my fondness is nothing more than a fleeting, insignificant instant."

Mu Yi smacked his lips and answered, "Oh."

One comment about flowers not lasting long enough to be liked had turned into an entire lecture on life.

He couldn't keep this conversation going.

After all, whether he felt like living had always depended on his mood. Being dead would be fine, too. Whether he lived or died was largely up to chance.

Cycles? Continuation? Just hearing about it made him tired.

[Note: February Violet and March Jasmine are names made up on the spot. Any resemblance to real names is purely coincidental.]