Chapter 18: No More Pretense, Cards on the Table

With a sour, distinctly masculine sense of envy, Jiang Luan approached the wooden tub. He dipped a wooden comb into the water to wet it and began to slowly comb Qi Shaolin’s hair.

Qi Shaolin was submerged in the water, leaning against the edge of the tub, and sniffled, "It’s a bit small."

Jiang Luan, currently feeling both jealous and bitter, was hypersensitive to the words "big" and "small." After all, he had transmigrated into the body of a "ge'er" whose own equipment was remarkably petite.

"My apologies for the small tub, Young Master," Jiang Luan said expressionlessly. "I will certainly find a larger one next time so you can swim to your heart's content."

"My wife, you’re unhappy," Qi Shaolin blinked. "Why?"

Jiang Luan tossed the comb into the water and poked Qi Shaolin’s face. "I told you to come ashore, so why didn't you listen? You even went into the water to fish someone out! Do you realize how dangerous it is to suffer from hypothermic shock in the river?"

"But my wife, you asked me to help you retrieve the account book," Qi Shaolin said softly. "I only found the person... the account book was lost. I'm sorry."

"..."

Jiang Luan remained silent for a long moment before patting Qi Shaolin’s cheek. "You don't need to listen to me, nor do you need to listen to anyone else. If you trust me, then I have only one request of you, always..."

Qi Shaolin raised his head to meet Jiang Luan’s gaze.

"Brother Lin," Jiang Luan said earnestly, "I just want you to live a healthy life."

"..."

Qi Shaolin was suddenly speechless. He took Jiang Luan’s hand, held it in his own, and whispered, "Are you this kind to everyone?"

Jiang Luan smiled. "I am only kind to my own people."

Qi Shaolin’s expression shifted, becoming somewhat complex. He hesitated, "Actually..."

Before Qi Shaolin could finish his thought, a knock at the door interrupted him. Jiang Luan didn't pay it much mind and opened the door a crack, finding the auntie standing there with some dry clothes.

"These are for you," the auntie said.

"Thank you, Auntie!"

Just as Jiang Luan reached out to take them, he noticed the auntie looked troubled. She coughed lightly and said, "My old man isn't home, and I didn't expect him to take all his clothes with him. Now all that’s left are some of my old garments..."

Jiang Luan paused for a moment, stifling a laugh as he took them. "It doesn't matter, Auntie. He can wear anything. Thank you for your help."

"By the way," the auntie added, "there is someone outside who says he is from your household and is looking for you in a hurry."

Jiang Luan figured it must be Zuo Lang. He had instructed Zuo Lang to come to the money shop later to move the account books, and he likely hadn't found them there and had followed the trail of inquiries.

"Auntie, please tell him to wait by the door for a moment, he can come in shortly," Jiang Luan said.

After closing the door, he entered with the clothes, feigning a serious expression. "Are you warmed up? Come, let's get you changed."

Qi Shaolin dried himself off and allowed Jiang Luan to help him dress, his face still lost in thought. When he finally snapped back to reality, he looked down to see he was wearing a gaudy, colorful outfit—it was a woman’s dress! The skirt was too short, revealing his two hairy legs...

Qi Shaolin: "..."

"Hahahahaha!" Jiang Luan doubled over with laughter. Once finished, he leaned in teasingly, "Come, let me take a good look—which young lady is this, looking so tall and fierce?"

"I won't wear this." Qi Shaolin’s face darkened, and he reached to peel the clothes off.

Jiang Luan hurriedly moved to stop him. "No, you aren't allowed to take them off! Running around in the street with your backside bare is indecent exposure!"

Qi Shaolin took a deep breath, turned to Jiang Luan, and said aggrievedly, "Wife, you are the one being indecent toward me!"

"Hey, you're talking back now?" Jiang Luan remarked, surprised.

The two wrestled, one trying to undress and the other determined to keep the clothes on. However, Jiang Luan was no match for Qi Shaolin’s strength; he was shoved and nearly tumbled into the wooden tub.

"Watch out!"

Qi Shaolin reached out to catch him by the waist, feeling the softness of his touch, and paused for a second. Jiang Luan also managed to grab hold of Qi Shaolin’s outer robe, tearing it into two pieces with a loud "rip."

"..."

Both fell silent.

Qi Shaolin stood there with two strips of colorful rags hanging from his shoulders, his broad shoulders and narrow waist fully exposed, his lean abdominal muscles tapering down...

Watching this at close range, Jiang Luan was even more dumbfounded.

"You, you, you...!"

Though he didn't know why seeing the naked body of the same sex made him so frantic, he lost his cool completely and started thrashing wildly in Qi Shaolin’s grip.

"Hey!"

Qi Shaolin failed to hold onto him, and Jiang Luan fell entirely into the tub, splashing a massive amount of water and drenching Qi Shaolin from head to toe.

So much for a clean bath.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. "Young Master, Young Mistress, I am coming in."

"Wait, not yet!"

Jiang Luan struggled to get up, tripped on the hem of the clothes, and slipped again. Qi Shaolin had no choice but to catch him. When Huazhao entered, she saw the two of them, soaking wet and tangled in an embrace.

She paused, subconsciously remarking, "Mandarin ducks playing in the water?"

"..."

After a moment of speechlessness, Jiang Luan asked in surprise, "Huazhao, why are you here?"

He suddenly remembered that Qi Shaolin was practically half-naked from the torn clothing, so he hurriedly took off his own outer robe and covered Qi Shaolin with it, determined not to let anyone take advantage of the boy.

"..." Huazhao smiled. "I heard the Young Master had fallen into the river, and I was worried, so I came to check. Seeing that the Young Master and Young Mistress are safe, I am relieved."

She was just about to turn and leave when she heard Jiang Luan’s sudden voice:

"And were you worried about Zhen Xiuxiu, who also jumped into the river?"

Huazhao froze at the question, then nodded. "As the Young Mistress says, I will bring some gifts to visit the Zhen girl later. I don't know what kind of madness took hold of that child today, suddenly..."

"I hate people who use children for their own ends," Jiang Luan said, abandoning any pretense of subtlety. "I don't know what methods you used to threaten that girl, but you've done enough evil—be careful of the backlash."

Huazhao’s eyes widened in feigned confusion. "Young Mistress, what are you saying? I don't understand..."

"That's fine. If you don't understand now, I will help you understand slowly," Jiang Luan said softly. "And that includes your master as well."

"..."

Seeing that Jiang Luan was truly prepared to drop all pretenses, Huazhao stopped acting. After all, there was only a simple-minded young master in the room.

She shed her "innocent flower" facade and sneered. "Jiang Luan, I address you as Young Mistress, but don't think you’re actually the master of the Qi house. What makes you think you have the ability to fight the Prince?"

"Whether I have that ability or not isn't for you to decide," Jiang Luan said coolly. "We shall see."

"But you lost today," Huazhao scoffed. "You lost completely. Did you think that by convincing the Old Master and getting to the money shop, you could hold the Prince hostage? You’re far too naive..."

"Are you sure?" Jiang Luan smiled. "Is destroying one account book enough to settle everything?"

"..."

Huazhao had initially believed Jiang Luan was just a sore loser talking tough. But she was naturally suspicious, and her eyes flickered as she mentally reviewed the accounts to see if there were any real slip-ups.

Seeing her reaction, Jiang Luan knew he had her.

"Calculating the time, the 'gift' I sent the Prince should have arrived by now," Jiang Luan said pointedly. "Miss Huazhao, you may go back and enjoy it with him. I won't see you out."

Upon hearing this, Huazhao’s expression darkened. Without another word, she turned and hurried away. Jiang Luan watched her retreating figure and expressionlessly wiped the water from his face.

Meanwhile, inside the Qi residence, a servant entered carrying a basket. "My Prince, this was sent from the East Wing."

"Sent from the East Wing? What is it?"

Prince Su-Ping, who had been lounging on a recliner warming himself by the hearth, lazily took the basket and lifted the lid—

"Jiang Luan!" He flung the contents away, erupting in rage. "That damned wretch dares to be so arrogant! I will make you pay for this!"