The waiter stared at the empty basin in his hands. He had brought up such a massive portion, yet now only a tiny bit of broth remained at the very bottom. He looked Bai Mo up and down. This guest’s appetite was almost on par with a pig’s, so why was he still so painfully thin? Truly, appearances could be deceiving.
Seeing the waiter staring intently at him, Bai Mo asked, “Is there something you want to say to me?”
The waiter snapped out of his daze. “Oh, no, no! This servant will go prepare your hot water right away.”
[Momo, I’m sleepy too. See you next time,] the Map of a Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains yawned and vanished.
After Bai Mo finished washing up, however, his sleepiness had completely evaporated. What was he supposed to do now? Having no nightlife was honestly quite boring. Well, there’s no internet, but I can still chat with someone face-to-face.
Bai Mo threw on his clothes, opened the door, and headed next door. He had originally wanted to chat with Mo Luo’an about the fish in the pond and maybe borrow some pocket money while he was at it but when he saw that the light inside was already extinguished, he grumbled, “Why go to sleep so early? This young master isn’t even asleep yet.”
Back in the valley, Mo Luo’an would always wait for him to fall asleep first before going to bed himself. Now that he had recovered, did the doctor just stop worrying about him?
Left with no choice, Bai Mo turned and walked toward the room at the end of the hall. He stopped before Jun Wuye’s door. My fellow transmigrator is definitely better company. He probably can’t sleep this early either.
Bai Mo knocked. “Brother, you’re not asleep yet, are you? I came to chat!”
After a brief pause, the tightly shut door creaked open. Jun Wuye appeared before him wearing only a white inner robe, water still dripping from his hair.
“Come in.”
Jun Wuye turned around and walked back inside as soon as he opened the door.
Bai Mo slipped into the room, shut the door behind him, and followed Jun Wuye over to sit on the daybed. “You were taking a bath just now? No wonder I had to wait so long.”
Jun Wuye held a cloth to dry his damp hair. “Speak. What did you want to chat about?”
Bai Mo picked up a teacup from the table, spinning it playfully in his hands with a lazy, careless air. “I couldn’t sleep, so I wanted to find someone to chat with. Since you’re awake anyway, keep me company.”
“I can chat until my hair is dry.”
Hearing this, Bai Mo glanced at Jun Wuye’s hair. Ancient people’s long hair was vastly different from a modern buzzcut; drying it without a hair dryer was no quick task, meaning it wouldn’t dry anytime soon. Wait, why does his hair look so much silkier than mine? I wonder how it feels to the touch?
Bai Mo’s gaze drifted downward along the damp locks. Tsk, tsk, tsk. This guy’s physique was actually incredible. How was his waist so slender, almost like a woman’s? And his hips, why were they so perfectly shaped?
Staring at him, Bai Mo felt a strange sensation rise in his chest. Could he be a woman disguised as a man? No, wait, he’s flat-chested.
Sensing a burning gaze sweeping all over his body, Jun Wuye turned around and furrowed his brows. “What kind of look is that?”
Caught red-handed, Bai Mo didn’t mind at all. “The look of someone appreciating beautiful things. Brother, I didn’t expect a guy like you to have such an amazing body. You even have a six-pack. Do you work out regularly?”
Jun Wuye glanced at Bai Mo’s frame. “My body is certainly in better shape than your current one.”
“Is that so? How about we compare?” Bai Mo stood up on the spot and began unbuttoning his clothes. Though he had been bedridden for over half a month, his body’s foundation was excellent; he had abs too, and his… well, his was clearly larger.
Jun Wuye turned his back again. “Boring.”
Bai Mo stopped his hands and sat back down. “Fine, let’s talk about something that isn’t boring. Do you think we still have a chance of going back?”
He desperately wanted to go back. That modern world was truly the most fun place he had ever been, with the best food and the most comfortable lifestyle.
Jun Wuye’s hand drying his hair paused. He wanted to return too. “I hope so.”
“As long as there’s hope, that’s enough,” Bai Mo said. “You mentioned yesterday that you’ve only been here for a little over a month. In this past month, have you figured out who poisoned you?”
“No. This past month, I have been in seclusion suppressing the spread of the poison,” Jun Wuye replied. “However, I do have some clues now. Alright, it’s time for me to rest.” He set down the cloth and made a polite gesture toward the door.
“So soon!” Bai Mo stood up, his seat barely even warm yet. “Let’s chat a bit more.”
“Have you forgotten that I am currently injured?”
Although Mo Luo’an had used acupuncture to help control the poison earlier, meditating to regulate his breath before sleep had already become an unbroken habit.
“Uh…” Bai Mo had indeed forgotten about that. He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “Heheh~ Then get some rest early. I won’t disturb you further.”
Returning to his own room, Bai Mo lay on his bed. Recalling Jun Wuye’s nearly perfect physique, he peeked down into his own collar. Time to sleep early and wake up early. I need to start working out.
The next morning, Bai Mo was out in the inn’s backyard practicing his punches at the crack of dawn. This left several of the other guests harboring unspoken grievances. If they hadn’t witnessed Bai Mo dragging a giant, bloody snake section into the inn yesterday, they wouldn’t have tolerated such an early-morning disturbance.
Unaware of the inconvenience he was causing others, Bai Mo trained furiously with a single, burning goal in mind: to surpass Jun Wuye’s physique.
Awoken by the noise outside, Jun Wuye opened his window. Seeing that the culprit of the racket was Bai Mo, he muttered, “Has he gone mad?”
Meanwhile, Mo Luo’an finished his breakfast and was preparing to head upstairs when he ran into Jun Wuye coming down. “Morning, Mr. Jun. Once you’ve had breakfast, let me know. I will clear your meridians for you.”
Jun Wuye nodded in agreement. “Alright.”
Mo Luo’an returned to his room to prepare the necessary tools and had Mo Xiao brew the herbal medicine he had formulated the night before.
Within fifteen minutes, Jun Wuye came upstairs to find Mo Luo’an, who gathered his supplies and followed him back to his room.
“Mr. Jun, just like yesterday, please remove your upper garments and lie face down on the bed.”
Jun Wuye stripped off his clothes, leaving only his inner trousers, and prone-laid on the bed without the slightest hesitation.
Mo Luo’an took out a silver needle, heated it over a flame, located a pressure point on Jun Wuye’s back, and inserted it.
“Hiss.”
Jun Wuye had not expected the needles to hurt significantly more today than they had yesterday.
“Your senses are beginning to recover, so you will feel some pain,” Mo Luo’an explained, gently massaging the area around the needle to help him relax.
Jun Wuye tried his best to ease his muscles. Mo Luo’an did not pause his hands despite the patient’s discomfort.
After fifteen minutes, Jun Wuye’s back was completely covered in silver needles. Aside from a small gasp of pain at the very beginning, he endured the rest in silence.
Mo Luo’an withdrew his hands. “Done. Hold still for fifteen minutes.”
Looking at the needles, Mo Luo’an could not help but recall when he had treated Bai Mo. That guy would scream bloody murder with every single needle inserted. If he had to undergo this specific treatment, he would probably pass out from the pain.
Jun Wuye’s brows were locked in a tight frown. Hearing that the insertion was finished, he let out a breath. While the needles stung sharply upon entry, the pain dulled to a manageable ache once they settled.
“Did you and Bai Mo know each other before?” Mo Luo’an inquired. He kept feeling as though there was some unspoken history between the two.
Instead of answering, Jun Wuye countered with a question: “Do you know Lei Feng?”
“Never heard of him,” Mo Luo’an replied, his brow furrowing. This man clearly didn’t seem like one of Chu Yan’s old acquaintances. Bai Mo had barely spent any time outside of the valley, yet he had somehow managed to pick up such an odd new friend.