Chapter 9: Let's Bathe Together
Chapter 9: Let's Bathe Together
Prince Qing turned to look at Zhan Yuan.
Zhan Yuan immediately stepped forward and bowed. "Your Highness."
Prince Qing nodded at him and then pointed to the two children. "Take them back to the post house first."
After all, the most important things now were to treat their injuries and have something to eat.
Everything else could wait.
As for the girl's origins and how she was related to him, well, he wasn't Feng Xuanrui, a mere child who would bring a stranger home without a second thought.
But she was still a pitiful child, and he couldn't just leave her there. He would take her back first and figure out the rest later.
After speaking, Prince Qing whistled by flicking his fingers.
Soon, a sleek and valiant black horse trotted over from the darkness of the night.
As it approached, it gently nudged its head against Prince Qing.
Prince Qing casually patted it a couple of times before slapping its neck. "Alright, let's get going and take them back."
Zhan Yuan softly acknowledged and then lifted Feng Xuanrui and Sui Sui, one in each arm, placing them on the horse.
The warhorse was sturdy and tall, so carrying the two children was not a problem.
However, they had to be constantly watched over, or they might fall and get hurt.
With this in mind, Zhan Yuan lowered his voice as much as possible and said, "Hold on tight, don't fall off. Let's get back quickly so we can tend to your injuries."
Seeing the two children nod obediently, Zhan Yuan felt a warmth in his heart.
He thought to himself, "It's probably because the young master of the Qi Kingdom's manor rarely behaves so obediently."
Zhan Yuan, ahead of Prince Qing, hurried back to the post house on horseback.
They had brought along a physician on their journey, so upon returning, they first had him examine the children.
When the physician, known as Old Liu, discovered that Feng Xuanrui's foot was badly sprained and swollen, he was startled.
"Oh my! What happened here? How did it get so twisted? Let me take a look. Don't move around, stay still!"
"Young master, if you keep moving around like that, you might develop a chronic condition, and I, Old Liu, might not live to see another day!"
......
Old Liu was quite a talker, and Feng Xuanrui quietly covered his ears.
He was in such a pitiful state, and the first thing he wanted to do was take a bath.
Old Liu couldn't refuse him, so after carefully examining him and confirming that there were no open wounds, he reluctantly agreed. "Be careful now. Don't put any weight on that injured leg."
"Just a quick wash will do!"
......
It was easy to arrange a bath for Feng Xuanrui, but Qing Shan and Qing Shui were terrified. They had sent out a search party, thinking that the young master had returned on his own, and now they were so relieved to see him back that they wanted to cry and cling to his legs.
Now that Feng Xuanrui wanted to take a bath, the two men eagerly attended to his every need.
However, things became a bit more complicated when it came to Sui Sui.
There were no maids in the post house.
Prince Qing was on an official trip, and his entourage consisted mostly of deputy commanders and attendants.
Feng Xuanrui had secretly followed them, and it wasn't until they were a hundred miles out of the city that Prince Qing discovered that there was an extra "young master" in their group.
Sending him back would delay their journey.
In the end, they had no choice but to bring him along.
Feng Xuanrui's group included Qing Shan, Qing Shui, four bodyguards, and Old Liu with his two apprentices.
It wouldn't be appropriate for these older men to help a young girl like Sui Sui bathe.
How embarrassing!
Zhan Yuan approached several of the bodyguards, but as soon as they heard what he needed help with, they ran off in fear.
Finally, Old Liu heard about the situation, rolled his eyes, and said, "If you all are useless, it's up to me then!"
Zhan Yuan: ?
Hey, you weren't like this in front of the Sixth Young Master.
Old Liu was an older man and a seasoned physician.
In his eyes, there were only two types of people: the sick and the healthy.
So, in the end, it was Old Liu who bathed Sui Sui.
At first, Sui Sui refused.
Not because she understood the difference between males and females, but because she was simply a stubborn child.
The main thing was to separate Feng Xuanrui from the group. Of all the people here, Sui Sui was only familiar with her brother.
She didn't sense any malice from the others, but...
The system understood better than anyone that it wasn't so much that Sui Sui was afraid of being separated from Feng Xuanrui, but that she was even more afraid of being abandoned once again.
Feng Xuanrui was young and didn't understand these things.
However, he felt sorry for Sui Sui and had been comforting her.
After coaxing her for a while, he found that whatever he said, Sui Sui would obediently agree, but as soon as she turned around, she would start shedding tears again.
Seeing his sister's tears, Feng Xuanrui's heart ached.
Then, with a grand gesture, he declared, "Let's bathe together!"
Zhan Yuan: ???
No, Sixth Young Master, you're already ten years old!
You're not the same age as the little girl, so you can't just bathe together naked!
While the Great Xia Dynasty had liberal customs, there was no saying of separating boys and girls at the age of seven.
But for half-grown children to bathe together, wasn't that a bit too much?
Zhan Yuan had good intentions, but he didn't know how to say it.
Finally, it was Old Liu who smiled and said, "Can you scrub? Do you know how to apply medicine? Can you comb hair? Can you even use your injured foot properly?"
Feng Xuanrui: ...
A fatal blow, Feng Xuanrui was left speechless, but he stubbornly held onto Sui Sui's hand, refusing to let go.
Finally, Old Liu came up with an idea, "Alright, how about this. We'll have two tubs side by side, but with a screen in between. Sui Sui is a young lady, and it wouldn't be proper for you to just stare openly like this."
Feng Xuanrui was somewhat satisfied with this arrangement, and after comforting Sui Sui again and seeing her tears turn to smiles, the two siblings finally separated.
After a busy time at the post house, Feng Xuanrui finally soaked in the not-so-large bath tub, letting out a comfortable sigh.
What a stimulating day it had been!
Next door, Sui Sui was undressing, her curious eyes fixed on the large wooden tub filled with steaming hot water.
She had never bathed in hot water, at least not as far as she could remember.
During Chinese New Year, her uncle's family would grab the boys and toss them into broken wooden tubs to wash away the dust of the passing year.
But Sui Sui had never been given that treatment, not even allowed to use the dirty water after the boys were done with it.
Sui Sui could only make do with cold water, quickly wiping herself down, and waiting for warmer days to wash properly in the river.
Could she finally bathe in hot water now?
Sui Sui pressed her lips together, finding it hard to believe.
Old Liu's initial idea had been to instruct Sui Sui to scrub herself.
While a doctor might see past gender, it was unknown whether Sui Sui, having just encountered mountain bandits, felt aversion or fear towards adult men like them.
To take care of the child's emotions, Old Liu felt he needed to consider more carefully.
However, as soon as Sui Sui took off her ragged clothes, revealing her body scarred by old and new wounds, Old Liu froze in his tracks.
Then he heard her ask cautiously, "Is this water for me?"
Old Liu's heart felt like it was soaked in vinegar, and he wished he could turn back time to the moment he'd first conceived of this idea and slap himself twice.
How could he be so thoughtless?!
Who would dare to lay such cruel hands on such a young child?
Seeing the purple-red bruise on Sui Sui's left arm, it was evident that it had been inflicted recently, the bruise spreading across a large area.
How could anyone be so heartless towards a child this small?
Old Liu was so furious that he jumped up on the spot!
...
(End of Chapter)
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