Chapter 32
Jiang Qingyu waited for Fu Jingqiu in the underground parking lot of the mall.
To conceal things a little, he carried several large and small bags in his hands, looking as if he was struggling quite a bit. But judging from the packaging alone, it was impossible to guess what was inside.
Fu Jingqiu still had a strong sense of boundaries. He only helped Jiang Qingyu carry the bags and did not look through them or ask what he had bought. Instead, he took the initiative to share what he had bought that afternoon.
Last night, the storage compartment beneath the RV had been filled with packages, and today it was filled with tools. It was packed full, and just looking at it gave people a sense of security.
Jiang Qingyu secretly put the things into the space and took a look. What Fu Jingqiu had bought was actually quite comprehensive. There were several things that he himself had not thought of before, and Fu Jingqiu had filled in the gaps.
He vigorously expressed his appreciation for this man’s thoughtfulness. Holding Meimei, he rested his chin lightly on her head. At first glance, it looked almost like two cat heads stacked together, a particularly adorable scene.
Jiang Qingyu took the initiative to suggest, “Everyone’s tired today. How about eating out?”
Fu Jingqiu had originally planned the same thing. After dinner, they could take a little walk to digest the food, then go soak in the hot spring.
That way, they could avoid the effort and time of preparing ingredients, cooking, and cleaning up.
Jiang Qingyu checked the time on a review app, sent the location to Fu Jingqiu, and the two happily drove over.
When they arrived, there were actually no empty seats. They waited for a little over ten minutes, and it could be considered good luck that the two tables ahead of them skipped their numbers, allowing them to eat.
Jiang Qingyu was already familiar with the sand onions here. Whether stir-fried with meat or eggs, they were very delicious. Among this restaurant’s signature dishes was a Gobi sand onion and chuck tender beef dish. It came in an enormous pot, with large slices of beef spread all around and a small mountain of sand onions piled in the middle.
Just smelling it, one could sense the rich fragrance of oil. The sand onions were crisp and tender, and the beef was fresh and delicious. No wonder it sold well.
Eating lamb and beef here was far too common. Fu Jingqiu could eat both, but Jiang Qingyu still accepted beef more easily, so he boldly ordered another plate of grilled meat skewers. The chunks of meat were huge, evenly covered in seasoning, and smelled incredibly fragrant.
Eating them tucked into flatbread was even more beyond words. All one could do was keep giving a wild thumbs up.
The potato chip dry-pot chicken was somewhat like a creative dish. The chicken had been fried beforehand, giving it a slightly charred texture before it was coated in a spicy sauce. It went extremely well with rice.
There was also one dessert Jiang Qingyu liked very much. He had bought it during the day while stockpiling supplies, but he had not yet had time to taste it himself.
Nang cup yogurt. A hot nang freshly baked on the spot was hollowed into a cup, filled with old yogurt in the middle. The outside was crispy, while the inside had been soaked soft, yet still had a little chewiness. It was sweet, fragrant, and relieved greasiness.
Jiang Qingyu was very satisfied with this meal. He told Fu Jingqiu not to interfere and took the initiative to pay the bill himself.
After coming out of the restaurant, Fu Jingqiu took the initiative to ask whether he wanted to stroll around the mall and buy something.
Jiang Qingyu was puzzled. “What do you want to do? Just say it directly. Or do you have private business to handle?”
Fu Jingqiu said, “I booked a room at a hot spring hotel. Let’s go stay there tonight.”
“?”
Jiang Qingyu suddenly stopped, turning his face as if he could not believe it. “What did you say?”
Fu Jingqiu said, “Didn’t you say last night that you wanted to soak in a hot spring? I found a place with relatively good privacy and very high reviews. We can go relax.”
We, relax?
And the privacy was relatively good?
Fu Jingqiu said, “You opened packages and tidied things up last night, then ran around outside buying things today. Tonight, soak a little longer. After you come out, I’ll give you another massage.”
Again? And a massage after soaking in the hot spring?
After soaking until his body was soft, his bones were weak, and his whole person was hazy and drowsy, wouldn’t he become a lump of dough that anyone could knead and rub, letting Fu Jingqiu arrange him however he wanted?
But Fu Jingqiu had good intentions, had booked the place in advance, and even wanted to take him for a walk to digest dinner. Jiang Qingyu truly could not say no.
After Fu Jingqiu finished explaining his plan, he asked thoughtfully, “Does that sound good?”
“G-good.” Jiang Qingyu braced himself and said, “Thank you. That was thoughtful of you.”
He prayed to the heavens that the place Fu Jingqiu had booked would not be decorated too ambiguously, and that the atmosphere would not make people’s minds wander!
It would be best if it had a super-large hot spring pool, the kind where swimming from one end to the other would take several minutes. He could flee, Fu Jingqiu would not chase, one at the head and one at the tail, both focusing on enjoying themselves without disturbing each other!
Jiang Qingyu anxiously took a walk with Fu Jingqiu to digest food, then anxiously drove with him to the hot spring hotel.
Although it was called a hotel, it was actually more like a resort. There were also many dining and entertainment areas inside, and the place occupied a vast area.
When they drove in, Jiang Qingyu casually searched online for the hot spring resort’s reviews and prices. Fu Jingqiu had clearly done his homework carefully. If one set aside Jiang Qingyu’s own thoughts that even he could not explain, today’s arrangement was actually quite considerate.
After confirming the reservation information, their ID cards were taken for registration.
The service staff led them through a winding, secluded outdoor corridor. On both sides, steam rose and white mist drifted, all from semi-open outdoor hot spring pools.
Rain fell beyond the eaves with a soft patter, weaving an irregular transparent curtain, sometimes dense, sometimes dripping down.
Staff members moved among them, providing fruit, snacks, wine, and drinks to the guests inside.
Jiang Qingyu instantly relaxed, curiously taking in the surrounding scenery and facilities.
Once his nervousness faded, he instinctively began looking forward to the following arrangements. Jiang Qingyu clenched the hem of his clothes and quickly followed Fu Jingqiu, leaning close to whisper, “The environment here is pretty good.”
Fu Jingqiu said, “If you like it, we can stay here a few more days.”
Jiang Qingyu lifted his chin somewhat proudly. “We’ll see.”
Fu Jingqiu laughed softly, walked ahead, and swiped the card to enter the room.
The heating inside had already been turned on in advance. As soon as Jiang Qingyu entered, he subconsciously started taking off his jacket while looking around. “The environment is really quite nice. The room is pretty big.”
Fu Jingqiu pushed open the balcony door. The room was connected to a semi-open two-person hot spring pool. Beside the pool, on the railing, sat a snack box and fruit platter, as well as several bottles of red wine and champagne, plus an ice bucket.
Besides that, there was also a QR code for ordering food by scanning, so the service could be considered very thoughtful.
Inside the cabinet by the balcony, several bathrobes were hanging, along with neatly stacked towels and various toiletries and skincare products.
Fu Jingqiu roughly looked around. “Looks fine. Take off your clothes. Let’s go soak directly.”
Jiang Qingyu choked. No, wait, so direct?
His heartbeat had only just calmed down a little, hey!
Before Jiang Qingyu could respond, Fu Jingqiu had already gotten to the point. He took out the bathrobe and bath towel, placed them on Jiang Qingyu’s bed, and began taking off his clothes on his own.
His movements were very fast, like the male lead in a TV drama who was about to do a certain thing and removed his clothes with great decisiveness.
It was still very pleasing to look at, though Jiang Qingyu had barely blinked a few times before Fu Jingqiu’s shirt had already disappeared, and he was now undoing the button of his pants.
Seeing that his pants were about to fall as well, Jiang Qingyu suddenly turned around and pretended to be very busy, as if searching for something in his pants pocket, while secretly observing Fu Jingqiu’s movements from the corner of his eye.
Fortunately, the other man did not take off the final layer after all. He found a bath towel and wrapped it around himself, then looked toward Jiang Qingyu and asked as a matter of course, “Why aren’t you taking yours off?”
Jiang Qingyu still pretended to be very busy, not raising his head. “Ah? Oh, I, um, I’ll be there right away. You go in first.”
“All right.” Fu Jingqiu did not dwell on it. Wearing the bathrobe, he went straight outside, leaving Jiang Qingyu standing alone beside the bed, silently biting his finger.
Someone please tell him.
Why was this room a king-bed room?
Or was it that rooms with private baths defaulted to being for couples?!
Jiang Qingyu struggled briefly, took a deep breath, and thought, since they were already here, it was too late to regret it now.
Gritting his teeth, he decisively began taking off his clothes and undoing his pants, wrapping himself in a bath towel as if going bravely to his death, then walked toward the hot spring pool.
“…”
Who scattered rose petals in the pool?!
Fu Jingqiu was already sitting properly in the pool, both arms resting on the handrails on either side. Even at a time like this, his posture was very proper and not lazy at all.
He called to Jiang Qingyu, “It’s very comfortable. Come down.”
Expressionless, Jiang Qingyu sat at the edge of the hot spring pool, turned his back, took off the bathrobe, and folded it neatly. Then, like a little fish, he silently sank down along the pool wall and smoothly moved to a place relatively far away from Fu Jingqiu.
However, it was not very effective.
After all, the pool was round, and the space invisibly felt a little smaller. No matter how much Jiang Qingyu hid, he was still in a position where Fu Jingqiu could pull him over with one reach.
Fu Jingqiu finally noticed that something was wrong with Jiang Qingyu and asked in confusion, “Why do you keep turning your back to me?”
Jiang Qingyu gave two dry laughs. “Haha, am I? I’m a little afraid of water.”
After saying this, he immediately reacted and wished he could slap himself twice.
What kind of thing was he saying? Even if he was afraid of water, he should not be afraid of a hot spring pool that would only reach his waist if he stood up. This was obviously trying to cover things up and only making them worse!
Fu Jingqiu naturally was not stupid either. He immediately understood why Jiang Qingyu was reacting like this, and there was laughter in his voice. “What are you afraid of? We’re both men. Besides, we haven’t taken everything off. It’s fine.”
You’re fine, but I’m not!
Jiang Qingyu awkwardly turned around, still not daring to lift his eyes to look at him. “Um, it’s just my first time, so I’m a little unused to it.”
Fu Jingqiu was still playing the role of a thoughtful older brother and comforted him, “Don’t be too nervous. When you were in university, didn’t you ever go to the bathhouse with your roommates?”
He had. But everyone had been in separate stalls. Those young men had not really had particularly well-trained bodies, so Jiang Qingyu had not even bothered to look.
Every time, he wrapped a bath towel around his waist before entering the stall to shower. His main principle was that he was not interested in other people’s bodies, and others should not even think about looking at his.
Jiang Qingyu spouted nonsense. “Mainly because your figure is too well-trained. I… I feel a little ashamed of my own inferiority.”
Fu Jingqiu froze slightly and sat even straighter than before, imperceptibly moving closer to him. “Why would you think that? Your figure is also very good.”
“Ah?” Jiang Qingyu was bewildered. “These skinny arms and legs of mine can be called a good figure?”
Probably in order to praise him and say something to reignite Jiang Qingyu’s confidence, Fu Jingqiu naturally began observing him carefully. Jiang Qingyu felt as if he had lifted a stone only to drop it on his own foot. His body stiffened slightly, and his gaze darted around.
Fu Jingqiu said, “Although you’re a bit thin, your proportions are very good, and your muscle mass isn’t low. Your skin is firm and resilient, and your posture is especially beautiful. It’s not as simple as you say.”
He was stating facts and absolutely not exaggerating. His suggestion could be called sincere. “If you want to train yourself into my build, I can make a plan for you. Strength training. As long as you persist, one day you can do it.”
“No, no, no, no.” Jiang Qingyu hurriedly waved his hand. “Let’s forget that. Hearing you say this, I suddenly feel I’m pretty good as I am now. No need to train more.”
It was very hard for him to imagine Fu Jingqiu’s body with his own face growing on top of it. That would be terrifying, okay!
But thanks to this interruption, Jiang Qingyu finally relaxed a little. Hugging his arms, he secretly swam a bit closer to Fu Jingqiu. His delicate collarbones were faintly visible in the mist. A faint blush rose on his fair cheeks, and the pale pink color of his lips deepened, making him look even prettier.
Fu Jingqiu lowered his eyes to look at him. His line of sight was slightly higher, so the scenery was almost entirely visible. He vaguely felt that something was not quite right, but he could not quite say what.
Looking like this, Jiang Qingyu was actually more delicate than he had seemed at first glance. His was the kind of appearance that grew more pleasing the longer one looked: fair skin, red lips, white teeth, and innocent round eyes. This was also why Fu Jingqiu often felt that he looked obedient.
Speaking of which, it was strange. How…
Why did he look better with his upper body bare than when wearing clothes?
Fu Jingqiu vaguely understood why, when he occasionally saw people online posting shirtless photos or videos, there were so many people in the comments.
For a moment, he did not continue speaking, making Jiang Qingyu also not know what to say. Jiang Qingyu hugged his arms and pressed himself down into the water, trying to submerge completely.
But as soon as the warm water reached his chin, Jiang Qingyu’s gaze moved downward, inevitably seeing both their lower halves, and with a whoosh, he stood up again.
Fu Jingqiu raised his face to look at him. “What’s wrong?”
Holy shit!
So exaggerated?
Was it because of being in the water? Why was there such a big bulge?
Jiang Qingyu secretly glanced down at himself.
Mm, normal.
No, then why was Fu Jingqiu like that???
On what grounds!!!
Jiang Qingyu sat down again in a distracted state, his mouth running ahead of his brain. “Mm… I just feel like my waist is a little sore. No, I mean my legs.”
Fu Jingqiu was very calm. “Come over. I’ll massage it for you.”
No! Need!
Jiang Qingyu could even imagine that scene. If he turned his back and let Fu Jingqiu massage his waist, wouldn’t he have to sit on the stone bench in front of him, with his backside and Fu Jingqiu’s… uh, rubbing together?
What a horrifying scene.
Who could save him? He felt like he was about to become gay.
Jiang Qingyu laughed awkwardly. “It’s fine, no need. I’ll be fine after soaking for a while. Um, do you want fruit? Or wine?”
Fu Jingqiu did not dig deeper and readily agreed. “Sure. I’ll get it for you. What do you want?”
Jiang Qingyu was burning internally. “Something cold.”
Not long ago, he had still been delighted at having picked up a reliable teammate. Yet not much time had passed, and he had already started having improper, ambiguous thoughts about such an upright gentleman. It truly was not right.
Fu Jingqiu was so good to him!
In a flustered state, he opened a chilled bottle of green grape juice and took a fierce gulp. No matter how he shifted his gaze, from the corner of his eye, he could always see Fu Jingqiu’s wet body, slightly reddened from soaking.
Fu Jingqiu seemed to catch his furtive gaze and could not help laughing. “Didn’t you say you didn’t want to train? I understand now. You don’t want to train, but that doesn’t stop you from liking it, right?”
He very generously opened his arms toward Jiang Qingyu. “Then do you want to touch?”
Dear heavens, please do not test me in this way, thank you.
Jiang Qingyu stammered, “C-can I?”
Fu Jingqiu was truly generous. “You can.”
Back when he had been in the unit, his comrades often jokingly touched each other’s muscles. Although he had not participated in that kind of activity, he could understand it.
It was simply that it looked nice to touch, made people envious, and made their hands itch.
As if afraid Jiang Qingyu would feel embarrassed, Fu Jingqiu took the initiative to grab Jiang Qingyu’s hand and place it on his abdominal muscles, saying openly, “How is it? Or is it not clear enough to touch in the water?”
Heat surged across Jiang Qingyu’s cheeks. “It’s pretty good.”
It was over. He really was not normal anymore.
However, Fu Jingqiu stopped there and did not let Jiang Qingyu touch his chest muscles. First, the action felt a little strange. Second, he could feel that the other man’s strength was already withdrawing, so he let go naturally.
Jiang Qingyu’s body had become hot, and there was a faint tendency for certain other parts to heat up as well, but his mind was still very clear.
It was not as if this reaction and these thoughts were something he could control. Although they were not exactly pure, he could not just stay here embarrassed and at a loss. He had to do something.
He did not want to ask Fu Jingqiu how he viewed same-sex love, or what he would do if someone of the same sex confessed feelings to him. Those were nonsense questions that could not be applied to real situations.
In any case, Fu Jingqiu was unlikely to separate from him in the short term. Calculating the time, starting from the torrential rain, large-scale fever cases would gradually spread nationwide, officially opening the curtain on the apocalypse.
By that time, Fu Jingqiu would definitely be bound together with him. If there really was a possibility of affection growing over time, there was no need for Jiang Qingyu to make pointless probes now.
Besides, matters depended on human effort.
What he should do now was:
Prepare for a rainy day.
At the same time, during this period, he could also think carefully about whether he was interested in Fu Jingqiu’s body or had feelings for Fu Jingqiu as a person.
There was still a fundamental difference between the two.
If it was the former, he could, uh, buy toys. If it was the latter… that would be another matter.
The urgent priority was that he had to buy that thing.
The situation was changing constantly. If he really needed it in the future, he could not be unprepared.
Thinking of this, Jiang Qingyu swam to the edge of the hot spring pool and stretched his arm out to reach for his phone.
He did not know whether the stool holding the items had been kicked farther away by him, but it was a little difficult to drag over.
Fu Jingqiu noticed his need in time and immediately moved closer to help. His chest pressed against Jiang Qingyu’s back. With one hook of his long, ape-like arm, he smoothly retrieved Jiang Qingyu’s phone. “Here.”
He said with amusement, “You still want to play with your phone at a time like this?”
The certain fish soaking in the water seemed to glare at him. “What? Not allowed?”
Fu Jingqiu raised an eyebrow, not understanding why he had suddenly become so confident. Still, he said, “How could that be?”
What had he figured out?
Could it be that he had resolved to grit his teeth and endure some hardship, following Fu Jingqiu’s systematic training for a while?
Jiang Qingyu glanced once more at the outline of that thing under the water, then quickly searched on the shopping app, selected the largest size, and placed an order for thirty thousand pieces.
Fu Jingqiu did not know why he had suddenly been so eager to get his phone, but after a series of operations, a faint smile appeared on Jiang Qingyu’s face.
That expression seemed to hide some wicked little thoughts, along with a slyness that made one want to investigate. Fu Jingqiu lost focus for a moment, then asked him, “Do you want fruit?”
“Mm-hm, mm-hm, mm-hm.” Jiang Qingyu’s eyes did not leave the screen. “I want grapes. Get them for me.”
Fu Jingqiu agreed and went to get the grapes. Jiang Qingyu held his phone and typed rapidly, seemingly replying to someone’s messages. He had no energy to pay attention to what was happening on Fu Jingqiu’s side and clearly could not take the grapes himself.
Fu Jingqiu thought for a moment, then brought a grape to Jiang Qingyu’s lips. The latter lowered his eyes to look at the grape, then raised them to glance at Fu Jingqiu, and without any hesitation, opened his mouth and ate it.
Eh? Fu Jingqiu had thought Jiang Qingyu would be embarrassed and put down his phone to eat.
The little ancestor gave a small “mm.” “So sweet. Delicious. More.”
Fu Jingqiu did not think too much of it, assuming Jiang Qingyu was busy with something important, and actually fed him one grape after another.
Because they were the kind with thin skin, crisp sweetness, and no need to spit out peel or seeds, even that step was omitted.
Jiang Qingyu was communicating with the seller about paying extra to switch to SF Express. At the same time, he searched the shop for useful items and carefully read the instructions for use, his expression extremely serious.
After all, if everything went smoothly, he would be using these things in the future.
In any case, it was the apocalypse. There did not seem to be anything wrong with enjoying life while one could.
His execution ability was extremely strong. As soon as he figured things out, he started making preparations. He even took time to do some research, asking netizens to fill in anything he had not thought of, then added everything to the cart and checked out together.
Although there was still a tiny bit of embarrassment.
He switched back and forth between various apps, but it did not delay him from turning his head to eat the things Fu Jingqiu fed him. He even took time to give the other man a thumbs up.
Fu Jingqiu vaguely felt that he looked a little like a child like this, and the kind spoiled and cherished in the palm of the family’s hand. He found it amusing inwardly, but his movements never stopped.
By the time Jiang Qingyu was a little full and stopped Fu Jingqiu from continuing to feed him, the matter with the seller was more or less settled too. Feeling pleased, his cat-like eyes staring at Fu Jingqiu became even brighter. “I just made a big decision.”
Fu Jingqiu thought he was about to tell him and immediately listened attentively.
After a long silence, the two stared at each other, neither speaking.
Fu Jingqiu did not know whether to laugh or cry. “So you were only sharing that you made a decision?”
He had thought Jiang Qingyu would tell him what decision he had made.
Jiang Qingyu gave a humming laugh. “I can’t say it yet.”
Since the opportunity had been delivered right in front of him, why wouldn’t he seize it?
Fu Jingqiu, this person, was somewhat slow in certain areas, and as long as there was a reasonable cause, he seemed able to accept even some slightly excessive things.
Just like feeding him food earlier.
Since that was the case, it would be better to influence him subtly, boil the frog in warm water, and then give him a push at the right time.
Yes.
Jiang Qingyu considered himself not exactly a good person. Since there was a chance of success, why not?
