Chapter 81

Bao Jing hooked his lips, no longer paying attention to Yi Yang frantically pounding the door outside, and focused on bathing Ye Xi'an.

He gently pulled the slightly slipping Ye Xi'an upward, his face flushed as he undid the sheet covering her body; the female's soft, jade-like body was exposed to the air, like a luminous pearl in the white porcelain tub.

Bao Jing suddenly dared not look, feeling guilty he lifted his head, peeled off his already damp robe and flung it to the floor, blindly scooping up hot water and pouring it over Ye Xi'an with a splashing sound.

As the warm water slowly filled the tub, steaming mist spread through the air, blurring the bathroom mirror.

Only when the water completely covered Ye Xi'an's chest did Bao Jing dare lower his head to look at her.

Although he had done that to Ye Xi'an before, he really had no memory of it; he had been conscious only briefly before she fainted.

But it had to be said, that wrapped feeling was really comfortable; Bao Jing shook his head, forcing himself to dismiss these thoughts—he still needed to bathe An'an first.

Ye Xi'an's head rested on Bao Jing's chest, her breathing steady and soft, her steam‑reddened lips unconsciously murmuring.

Bao Jing's movements were extremely careful; although he knew Ye Xi'an would not wake, he still feared disturbing her dream.

His fingers lightly brushed aside the few damp strands of hair on her forehead, he lowered his head to gaze at her peaceful sleeping face, a hint of tenderness flickering in his eyes.

The water rippled gently; Bao Jing's skin was naturally smooth, and soaked in water it became even more slick; Ye Xi'an's body sank slightly, so Bao Jing hurriedly steadied her waist, pulling her a bit closer into his embrace.

Her skin in the warm water appeared even softer and more delicate, as if it would melt at a touch.

Bao Jing's fingertips lightly glided over her shoulder, feeling the fusion of her body temperature with the water's warmth, a surge of indescribable peace and satisfaction welling up in his heart.

"Thud thud thud."

Ji Jiangci outside the door felt uneasy and knocked on the bathroom door: "Bao Jing, how's the bath going?"

Hearing Ji Jiangci's voice, Bao Jing set aside his wandering thoughts and shouted loudly in the bathroom: "Almost done."

"Open the door, let me have a look."

Bao Jing frowned: "Bathing An'an is enough."

"Bao Jing, she isn't just your wife; aren't you overstepping by being like this?"

You know, males possess extremely strong possessiveness toward their partners, but the gender ratio and female contribution on Zhu Shen Xing are destined to make it impossible for a female to have only one male.

If every male displayed his possessiveness, the family would inevitably see bloodshed; to avoid this, Zhu Shen Xing's law stipulates that males within the same family cannot be jealous and monopolize affection—they must jointly serve their female master.

It's just that honest fool Yi Yang whom Bao Jing can bully; if he tried to play the possessiveness game with Ji Jiangci, Bao Jing would surely get no advantage.

Bao Jing looked at Ye Xi'an, his eyes full of displeasure but helpless; he tightened his grip on her waist, sat up, gently placed her at the edge of the tub to lean against, then stood, stepped out of the tub, waited for Ye Xi'an to sit steady, and only then went to help Ji Jiangci open the door.

As soon as the door opened, Ji Jiangci, holding a loofah, saw Bao Jing's displeased face; his gaze dropped, scanning Bao Jing's certain part, and he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"What are you doing in the bathroom, making little Bao Jing so excited?"

"What are you looking at!" Bao Jing, who had never found Ji Jiangci so annoying, retorted: "I said I'm enough on my own, why are you butting in?"

Ji Jiangci walked around Bao Jing, squeezed in from the doorframe; as an outstanding graduate, he truly wasn't at ease with Bao Jing: "I'll check, just in case you didn't clean properly."

The instant Ji Jiangci squeezed in, Yi Yang, hiding behind him, seized the moment and also slipped inside.

The already cramped bathroom, now with three additional beastmen over 1.88 meters tall, felt even more crowded.

Especially after Ji Jiangci and Yi Yang stripped off their clothes, the originally white bathroom now, in view, was just a sea of flesh tones.

The three naked men each avoided the others, fearful of touching what they shouldn't.

Ji Jiangci walked to the tub's edge and saw the sleeping Ye Xi'an lying still in the clear water like a water spirit, her silhouette faintly visible beneath the surface.

He crouched, scooped up Ye Xi'an's arm that was beating the water, gave it a light rub, and a clump of black dirt fell from her jade‑white arm onto the bathroom floor.

Ji Jiangci teased, turning to Bao Jing: "Is this what you meant by 'almost done'?"

"I—" Bao Jing opened his mouth but said nothing; he had just been so absorbed that he actually forgot to scrub Ye Xi'an's back.

"What are you standing there for?" Ji Jiangci, while scrubbing dirt off Ye Xi'an, assigned tasks: "Bao Jing, come help wash your wife's hair; Yi Yang, you scrub her lower half; I'll take the upper half."

"Hey!" Yi Yang's face lit up with anticipation—he could finally do something for his wife: "I'm coming!"

He opened the bathroom cabinet, took out a brand‑new scrub cloth, walked to the tub's end, lifted Ye Xi'an's leg, rested it on the tub's rim, gripped her washed‑white ankle, and began scrubbing vigorously.

But Yi Yang lacked experience, having only learned from theory without practice; his force was too strong, and Ye Xi'an's leg instantly turned red, with some spots even showing blood dots.

As soon as Bao Jing approached and saw Ye Xi'an's miserable state, he felt pity, shoved Yi Yang aside, and snapped: "Are you an idiot!"

He blew on Ye Xi'an's leg, glared at Yi Yang, unable to control his tone as he lashed out: "Look what you've done! You just came of age, not just grew a brain!"

Yi Yang also hadn't expected that just two scrubs would ruin his wife's leg like this; he flustered: "Brother Ji, I've injured my wife's leg!"

Ji Jiangci felt helpless; truly, a poor student is hard to manage.

"It's fine; let Bao Jing scrub the leg, you wash the hair—gently, don't pull out your wife's hair."

Yi Yang sniffled, moving from the tub's tail to the other side, eyeing Bao Jing fearfully.

Bao Jing is scary; he always scolds me.

Each doing their duty, the three cleansed Ye Xi'an inside and out, the black dirt they scrubbed off could be rolled into balls.

Ji Jiangci wiped the sweat from his forehead: "Good thing I came to check."

"Yi Yang? What's wrong with you?" Ji Jiangci stared blankly at Yi Yang, whose gaze was dazed and face flushed as if about to bleed.

Yi Yang snapped back, immediately shaking his head: "I'm fine," he said, "just stared at my wife too long."

"If you're fine, then take your wife out; Bao Jing, you go bathe first, after you're done let Yi Yang have his turn."

Having said that, Ji Jiangci rose to fetch a broom, sweeping the sludge off the floor clean; Yi Yang then followed Ji Jiangci's instruction and went to hug Ye Xi'an.

"I'll hold her."

(End of chapter)