PatPat-Chap2

Upon leaving the bathroom, Yu Zhou was still in shock. Even though she considered herself a calm person, this incident was beyond her imagination.

Fortunately, she was a writer and only twenty-five years old. Had it been her mother in front of her, she might have had a heart attack.

Speaking of which, a faint excitement lingered in Yu Zhou’s heart.

She had always felt that she shouldn’t be so mediocre, she had always felt that she should aspire to be someone who did great things.

Or rather, there should always be some secrets that are different from others.

After her failed attempt to deceive her classmates in fourth grade by claiming to be a Sailor Moon private investigator, Yu Zhou began to slowly realize the true meaning of life.

The true meaning of life is to gradually accept one’s mediocrity.

The sudden appearance of the strange Xiang Wan ignited a spark in her dull and boring life. The reason why she refrained from calling the police was partly because she was really afraid, but also because her resurrected teenage spirit was shining.

Time travel, it’s so cool.

So Yu Zhou brushed her hair aside and glanced back at Xiang Wan in the living room again.

Xiang Wan remained sitting upright with very little head movement.

“Your waist looks pretty good.” Yu Zhou greeted her.

“Ah?” Xiang Wan looked up.

After washing away the fatigue and chaos, Yu Zhou leaned against the hallway doorway and gazed at Xiang Wan. Indeed, Xiang Wan looked very much like a person from ancient times. When she looked at people, her gaze seemed hesitant, as if she had something to say. She would first glance down at the ground before tilting her head slightly as she looked up.

Modern people rarely have such restraint. The last time Yu Zhou saw a similar radiant look was perhaps in the 1987 version of “A Dream of Red Mansions.”

“Do you want to take a shower?” Yu Zhou paused for a moment. “Uh, a bath?”

Xiang Wan appeared slightly surprised, she rose to her feet, and was on the verge of saluting. “Thank you, miss.”

“No need.” Yu Zhou interjected, carried away by the moment, raising her hand to stop Xiang Wan. “Don’t salute me in the future. I won’t return it.”

“Yes.”

“Come over here.” Yu Zhou walked across the hallway in her slippers, and opened the first door on the right. Inside was a bathroom, complete with separate areas for wet and dry activities, a marble sink, a wall-mounted toilet, and a shower room.

Xiang Wan hesitated before stepping inside, her feet landing first on the water-absorbent mat and then on the small tiles. Inadvertently, she glanced up and saw a clear reflection of herself in the mirror.

Her pupils suddenly dilated, staring blankly at the mirror.

“It’s a mirror, don’t be afraid.” Yu Zhou took down the showerhead and tested the temperature with her hand while explaining.

Mirrors also existed in the Li Dynasty, however, they were bronze mirrors that could only reflect a blurry image. How could they be as vivid as this one? Xiang Wan turned her head to the left, her hair tassels brushing against her temples. As she gazed into the mirror, even the movement of her eyelashes was clear.

She tilted her head to the right, and the jade ornament on her hairpin flashed, lifelike.

The wrinkles under her eyes piled up, and she shyly smiled at the girl in the mirror. Her bright eyes and white teeth were as brilliant as the clouds and the sky.

Xiang Wan glanced up at the small lamp above her head. It was a very beautiful lamp, with flowing light and colorful colors, making the person in the mirror look like she was in a fairyland.

“Future…” she murmured, feeling the future so vividly for the first time.

It was a realm that even a master painter couldn’t depict, and a paradise that poetry and songs couldn’t carry. Especially at this moment, the heat radiated through the glass, making her image in the mirror blurry and dream-like. She leaned closer, her nose almost touching the cold mirror. With a slight touch, she recoiled.

She stole a glance at Yu Zhou, who had adjusted the water temperature and was holding the showerhead, leaning against the glass door and raising her eyebrows at her.

Yu Zhou wanted to say, “You’ve wasted a lot of water.”

From the perspective of Xiang Wan, Yu Zhou was patiently waiting for her turn, with her hair and white T-shirt half wet, which made her look tall and good-looking.

When Xiang Wan finally looked at her, Yu Zhou stepped back, replaced the showerhead on the wall, and pressed the switch to turn off the water. “The water temperature is ready. Lift this up, and the water will come out. When you turn it on, remember to step back a bit to avoid getting splashed and feel cold. Oh, you’d better undress first.”

“You’re a lady. Should I help you undress?” Yu Zhou laughed.

“No need,” Xiang Wan blushed.

“Good.” Yu Zhou admired Xiang Wan’s independence.

She pulled out a dirty laundry basket and retrieved her own underwear, pointing it with a gesture, “Put your clothes here. I’ll find you a pair of pajamas. Later, I’ll open the door slightly and hang it on the door handle, you can get it yourself. I have new underwear that hasn’t been worn yet. I’ll find them for you later. Also… the new towel is the fourth one from the left, the blue one. Don’t use the mixed-up ones.”

“Oh, here’s a bath sponge. You can use mine. Do you know how to use shower gel?”

She chattered away, but then noticed Xiang Wan frowning at the showerhead.

“I, I’ve never showered with water falling from the top like this before,” Xiang Wan admitted. She didn’t want to cause any trouble, but this was really difficult.

“Ah?” 

“It’s like water pouring down from the sky and hitting you in the face. I think it’s a bit dangerous.” said Xiang Wan. 

If encountering such a strong rainstorm, even holding an umbrella wouldn’t be enough to resist it. Her parents wouldn’t allow her to go out.

“What…” Yu Zhou laughed, looking at the showerhead and making a humming sound.

Xiang Wan lowered her head.

Yu Zhou laughed briefly before stopping, yet a smile lingered in her eyes. “Okay, then use the bathtub. But it’s in the master bathroom, um… in the bathroom attached to my bedroom. If you don’t mind, it’s okay.”

“Is it inconvenient for you, Miss?” Xiang Wan asked.

“For me? I’m fine,” Yu Zhou led Xiang Wan to the master bedroom. “By the way, I’m Yu Zhou. ‘Yu’ as in zhiyu(as for), ‘Zhou’ as in xiaozhou(little boat).”

“Miss Yu,” Xiang Wan smiled.

“Call me Yu Zhou. We don’t use ‘Miss’ here.”

“……Yu Zhou.”

“Yes.” Yu Zhou glanced at her, her voice was so sweet

She gave Xiang Wan everything she needed and filled up the water. After training her on how to use the shower gel, Yu Zhou closed the door and played with her phone on the bed, listening to the faint sound of water inside.

Suddenly, the sound of water became louder, and there were small footsteps as if she was wiping her body.

Yu Zhou suddenly remembered something important.

She ran toward the bathroom door and knocked twice, “May I ask, do you wear foot-binding in the Li Dynasty?”

There was a pause inside, then a clear voice came through the door, “No, we don’t.”

That’s good. Yu Zhou breathed a sigh of relief. She was afraid that Xiang Wan would change her slippers, and she couldn’t bear to look.

She sat on the edge of the bed waiting for Xiang Wan to come out. 

Wearing Yu Zhou’s cotton pants and long-sleeved T-shirt, Xiang Wan held a towel, learning how to dry her hair like Yu Zhou. Her adaptability was quite strong, earning her high praise from Yu Zhou, who mentally awarded her a high score in the “Modern Life Essential Course.”

Yu Zhou smiled contentedly, “Am I considerate?”

“Hmm?”

“In ancient times, girls didn’t show their arms or legs. If they were seen, it was very serious. So I specially found long sleeves for you.”

Xiang Wan’s expression was complicated. She glanced at Yu Zhou’s smooth legs and considered, “In our dynasty, the customs are open-minded. It’s not uncommon to bare chest and expose breasts.”

Speechless, looking at her eyes, it seems that she is despising this modern person for being too conservative.

“Uh…” Yu Zhou was a little embarrassed and didn’t know what to say. She looked at Xiang Wan for a while, frowned, and said, “Are you not wearing a bra?”

“Well, this bellyband, I don’t know how to wear it.” Xiang Wan raised the small object in her hand.

Yu Zhou coughed twice, “Uh…”

“You can sleep without wearing it for now.”

“I have to wear it tomorrow. Won’t you teach me how to wear it? Help me once, and I’ll know how to do it myself.”

“It’s inconvenient.”

“We are both girls, what’s inconvenient?” Xiang Wan has had maids waiting on her since she was young, doing everything from eating and drinking to changing clothes and bathing, so she doesn’t feel any inconvenience.

Yu Zhou frowned and chuckled, not knowing what to say.

When she glanced up, she saw Xiang Wan still studiously looking at her, so she decided to speak frankly, “I’m a lesbian.”

“Les, bian?” Xiang Wan repeated after Yu Zhou like a parrot.

“Lesbian means, hm, a very fashionable thing.”

“Fashionable?”

“Just kidding. It means that I like women.” Yu Zhou glanced back at her straightforwardly. “Although many people misunderstand and think that being a lesbian means being interested in all women around you, in fact, it’s not like that. But helping you wear a bra is still not very convenient.”

“Got it.”

“Aren’t you surprised?” Yu Zhou raised her eyebrows.

After packing away her undergarments, Xiang Wan asked, “Broken sleeve peach, dui shi, male-male and female-female relationships, what’s so unusual?”

“Wow,” Yu Zhou exclaimed in surprise.

“Weren’t they in your gaozhong^[1] textbook?” Xiang Wan asked, confused.

Although she didn’t know what a “gaozhong textbook” was, or if there was a “jiuzhong^[2] textbook”, she remembered what Yu Zhou had just said.

“There is no such information in my textbooks,” Yu Zhou smiled and said to her. “Are you tired? Rest in your room for a while. Let your hair dry naturally. I won’t let you use a hair dryer today. You’ve had too much to process today.”

“I’m not tired.” Xiang Wan shook her head.

Yu Zhou sighed, “When I ask if you’re tired, it means I want to go to sleep.”

“Got it, I’ll take my leave.” Xiang Wan said, pursing her lips, before turning and heading to the guest room with ease.

As Yu Zhou watched Xiang Wan walk away, she rubbed her neck, shook her head, and laughed. Finding a comfortable spot to lie down, she called out to Wanwan, who was at the foot of the bed, “Wanwan, come here.”

The little cat was still in heat and became excited when she heard Yu Zhou’s voice. She whimpered a couple of times and ran into her arms. 

Nuzzling her furry little head in Yu Zhou’s armpit, she rubbed against her and lifted her butt up, straightening her tail and kicking her legs back.

“Poor thing,” Yu Zhou held her and patted the base of her tail gently. 

“Not uncomfortable anymore. Not uncomfortable.” She whispered and fell asleep hugging Wanwan.

1. Gaozhong means high school, but has the same pronunciation as cake(gao in dangao) in Chinese, Xiang Wan didn’t know what high school was so she thought it was cake. ^{[return to text]}
2. Jiu means wine in Chinese, Xiang Wan understood high school as cake and thought about wine after that. ^{[return to text]}