Pei Yubai didn't move. Not because he didn't want to, but because his legs wouldn't obey him.
Qiguan Yuan walked up to him and stopped.
They stood very close, close enough for Pei Yubai to see the droplets still clinging to his eyelashes.
Qiguan Yuan looked at him. His gaze moved down from his face and lingered on his bright red ears for two seconds.
Then he smiled.
His voice seemed almost lingering as it curled around Pei Yubai's ear. "This is the second time. It's very rude to intrude on someone else's territory. Peeking at someone while they bathe is hardly a good habit."
His voice was a little lower than yesterday, perhaps because he hadn't been awake long and his throat hadn't fully warmed up.
Low and languid, with a slight downward lilt at the end.
At such close range, that voice seemed to pour straight into his ear, vibrating against his eardrum.
Pei Yubai felt a tingling surge from his tailbone, up his spine and all the way to the back of his head, as though something had sent an electric shock through him.
He opened his mouth but made no sound.
Qiguan Yuan's scent surrounded him.
It was the same elusive scent from when they had brushed past each other yesterday. But instead of wafting lightly past him as it had then, it now enveloped him completely.
Cool and clean, it mingled with the warmth of the hot spring's steam, becoming something he couldn't describe.
Pei Yubai's mind stopped working altogether.
Qiguan Yuan tilted his head, watching his expression. "Can you tell me your name?"
Pei Yubai heard his own voice as though it came from very far away.
"Pei Yubai."
A little stiff. At least, in all his twenty-six years, Pei Yubai had never been so flustered.
Qiguan Yuan rolled those three syllables over his tongue. "Pei... Yu... bai."
He pronounced them one by one, very slowly.
His voice was already low, and as he spoke those three syllables, it sounded as though he held a piece of candy in his mouth. Each syllable was sticky, slipping slowly between his lips with a barely perceptible lingering note.
Pei Yubai's ears were so red they looked ready to bleed.
The redness spread from his ears to his neck, traveling downward until it disappeared beneath the neckline of his tank top.
Qiguan Yuan watched that flush and raised an eyebrow. "I forgive your rudeness. But there mustn't be a next time."
Pei Yubai said nothing. His lips pressed into a line, his jaw tight.
Qiguan Yuan paid no mind to his silence.
He turned and sat down on a nearby rock, glanced down at his feet, then raised his head to look at Pei Yubai.
"To make up for it, could you help me put on my shoes and socks? My back really hurts."
He paused, then repeated that name, very slowly, as though deliberately chewing up each syllable before letting it out. "Pei... Yu... bai..."
Pei Yubai nodded.
His movements were stiff, like a robot with rusty joints.
He walked over to Qiguan Yuan and crouched down.
Beside the rock sat a pair of black cloth shoes and a pair of white socks. The socks were cotton, very soft and neatly folded.
Qiguan Yuan's shoes and socks were in an ancient style. Rather than modern no-show socks, these were long, reaching above the ankles, and had to be carefully smoothed out when put on.
Pei Yubai picked up the socks.
Qiguan Yuan had already raised a foot and rested it on his leg.
His foot was a normal size for a man, neither particularly small nor particularly large.
But his feet were beautifully shaped-a high instep with a smooth curve, like a little arched bridge. His toes were long and straight, his toenails neatly trimmed and faintly pink.
His ankles were slender, the bones protruding in rounded curves, his skin so fair that the bluish veins beneath showed through.
His heels were rounded and free of calluses, as though he had never walked at all.
Pei Yubai's hands paused.
He took a deep breath, stretched a sock open, and carefully slipped it over Qiguan Yuan's toes.
His touch was gentle, as though afraid of hurting him. He pulled it up little by little, smoothing the edges so the fabric lay snug against the skin.
As he pulled the sock all the way up, his fingers brushed Qiguan Yuan's ankle. The skin there was cool, like a piece of cold jade to the touch.
Qiguan Yuan said nothing, looking down at his hands. His hair was still wet, silver strands hanging down and dripping onto his red robe, where they left a small dark patch.
Pei Yubai picked up the other sock and repeated what he had just done.
His hands were a little steadier this time, but he still didn't dare use much force, gently pressing the edge of the sock with his fingertips and easing it upward bit by bit.
Once the socks were on, he picked up the shoes.
The cloth shoes were black, with cotton uppers and soles made from many layers of cloth, densely stitched.
He spread the opening of a shoe, supported Qiguan Yuan's heel, and guided his foot inside. It fit perfectly, neither tight nor loose. He straightened the opening and, after making sure everything was right, withdrew his hands.
Qiguan Yuan looked down at his newly donned shoes and socks and wiggled his toes. Then he raised his head and looked at Pei Yubai.
Pei Yubai was still crouched in front of him, not yet standing. His hands rested on his own knees, his head lowered, looking at something or other.
His ears were still red.
Qiguan Yuan watched him for two seconds, then reached for another outer robe draped over the rock, slipped it over his shoulders, and pulled his wet hair free of it.
"Thank you."
Pei Yubai stood and took a step back. His legs were still a little stiff.
Qiguan Yuan rose from the rock, gathered his robes around him, and properly adjusted the long red gown.
His movements were slow and unhurried. From these few brief encounters alone, it was apparent that he seemed to do everything at a leisurely pace.
Once he was dressed, he looked at Pei Yubai and suddenly asked, "Are you staying in a private courtyard at the temple?"
Pei Yubai nodded.
Qiguan Yuan gave a quiet "Mm" and asked nothing more.
He walked past Pei Yubai at an unhurried pace. As he drew alongside him, that cool fragrance drifted over again, mingled with damp moisture. It was fainter than before, but still enveloped Pei Yubai completely.
Only after Qiguan Yuan had passed him did Pei Yubai turn around.
He watched Qiguan Yuan's retreating figure. The red robes stood out in the green woods, his wet silver hair clinging to his back and leaving dark patches on the fabric.
He didn't walk quickly, but his steps were steady and made little sound on the gravel path.
As he passed through the trees blocking the way, he turned slightly sideways. The red hem of his robe brushed a trunk, and then he disappeared behind the trees.
Pei Yubai stood where he was, looking at those trees.
He lowered his head and glanced at his hands. His fingers still held the feel of the socks' cotton fabric and the coolness of Qiguan Yuan's ankle.
He clenched his hands, then released them.
Then he turned and ran back the way he had come. After a few steps, he stopped and took a deep breath. He ran a few more steps, then stopped again.
By the time he returned to the entrance of his private courtyard, the gate to the courtyard opposite was still shut. It was quiet, as though no one was there.
He pushed open his gate, entered his courtyard, then closed it and leaned against it.
He stood there for a while.
Then he lowered his head and glanced at his ears. Without a mirror, he couldn't see them, but he didn't need to look to know.
They were definitely still red.
The livestream hadn't started yet; that would have to wait until eight in the morning. The courtyard was quiet, with only the bamboo rustling in the wind.