The elevator safely reached the first floor, and Song Mian and Chu Jiangmin walked hand in hand, whispering in each other’s ears and complaining.

“These young people nowadays…”

“Come on, come on, why bother with other people?”

Chu Tao and Jiang She waited until everyone had exited the elevator and they were sure there was no danger of being discovered before they both let out a sigh of relief.

Chu Tao tightened his bathrobe and slipped out of Jiang She’s embrace, patting his flushed face. “Let’s wait a bit before we go. My parents walk slowly.”

Jiang She grabbed his hand. “No, we have to follow them.”

“Why?”

“Otherwise, it would be awkward if we accidentally end up in the same pool as your parents.”

“…”

The two of them silently followed Song Mian and Chu Jiangmin, keeping a distance.

The narrow corridor leading to the outdoor hot spring could only fit four people walking side by side, and there weren’t many people passing through. As long as Song Mian turned around, she would notice Chu Tao sneaking behind.

So, Chu Tao simply lifted his bathrobe to cover his face, leaving only his eyes visible.

Luckily, Song Mian never turned around; she only occasionally leaned against the glass to look outside.

When they reached the exit, Song Mian lifted the curtain, immediately shivering from the cold, and then pulled Chu Jiangmin into the nearest medicinal hot spring.

Chu Tao sighed in relief. Given his mother’s love for comfort, she would probably stay in one place once she found it, especially since it was so cold outside. Even if Dad tried to pull her out, she wouldn’t want to leave.

“We’ll go to the biggest pool,” Chu Tao said, pointing at the farthest pool, which was the most luxurious, designed like a cave with decorative rocks.

That pool was surrounded by rocks and numerous colored lights, making it hard for anyone to see them, even if Song Mian and Chu Jiangmin walked by.

Jiang She lifted the curtain, and the heavy covering was pulled back, allowing the cold wind outside to rush in.

The mountain air was damp and biting, and as soon as their skin touched it, their pores tightened up.

Chu Tao squinted, pulling his thin bathrobe tighter, and stepped onto the soft snow with his slippers.

The snow only reached his ankles, but the slippers filled up with snow, and the cold made Chu Tao shiver.

“It’s really cold,” he muttered under his breath, then grabbed Jiang She’s hand, narrowing his eyes as he quickly walked forward.

Jiang She was a bit more tolerant of the cold, but even he couldn’t resist the biting wind, and his skin tightened as his limbs turned numb.

“How about we find a small pool to soak in first, warm up, and then go to the others?”

Without waiting for Chu Tao’s reply, he pulled him toward a rose pool near the medicinal pool.

The temperature of the hot spring was 39°C.

Jiang She took off his bathrobe and hung it on a nearby chair, stepping into the water first. As his legs touched the water, the sudden change in temperature made his skin feel like it was numbing.

But soon, the warmth spread, and the coldness in his upper body was quickly dispelled.

Chu Tao stood on the edge of the pool, hesitating.

After all, this place was a bit too close to his parents, and though it was late at night and it was unlikely anyone would see them, it still felt a little too daring.

But it was so cold. He was thin to begin with, and he didn’t have much fat to resist the cold. After stepping into the snow, the melted snowwater was now trickling down his skin, trying to freeze again, making his skin feel uncomfortable.

Jiang She extended his hand toward him. “Come here, babe. It’s really warm.”

Chu Tao pressed his finger to his lips, signaling for Jiang She to be quiet. Only then did he take off his bathrobe and drape it next to Jiang She’s.

He hesitated for a moment, then gingerly dipped his leg into the hot spring. But the moment his skin touched the hot water, he quickly withdrew it, softly complaining to Jiang She, “It’s so hot.”

39°C wasn’t a very high temperature, but his skin had been frozen by the snow, and as soon as it touched the hot water, the pain was sharp.

Chu Tao was also sensitive to heat—he didn’t like hot showers and kept the water temperature low when he bathed.

Jiang She grabbed his ankle, splashing water at him playfully, “You’re getting more delicate in front of me.”

“I’m not delicate,” Chu Tao glared at him, as though to prove himself. He gritted his teeth and stepped back into the hot water.

The moment he stepped in, Jiang She pulled him into his arms and hugged him tightly.

The cold was immediately blocked out, and the hot spring water reached his chest. The rising steam from the water misted his hair.

He was held tightly by Jiang She for a while, letting his body adjust to the hot water. The faint scent of rose essential oil surrounded him.

There were other people in the hot spring, and when they saw the two young men holding each other, they exchanged meaningful glances.

This wasn’t an unusual sight in the hot spring pool, as young people are often easily excited.

But Chu Tao, who was shy, felt a bit embarrassed when he noticed everyone around him watching. He pushed Jiang She’s hand away and said awkwardly, “Ahem, be a little more discreet.”

Jiang She didn’t care at all. He raised his hand, wet from the hot spring water, and gently pinched Chu Tao’s cold earlobe. “When we’re naked, no one knows anyone. It doesn’t matter how embarrassed we get.”

He continued pinching Chu Tao’s earlobe until it warmed up, then withdrew his hand with a mischievous smile.

The water in the hot spring wasn’t fully transparent, so no one could see what anyone was doing below the surface.

As soon as Jiang She’s hand pulled away, it slid down Chu Tao’s spine, gently tapping his tailbone twice.

Chu Tao stiffened, his face tightening. He lowered his voice and said, “If you touch me again, I’ll leave.”

He looked nervously at the other people in the pool, worried someone might overhear.

Luckily, the people in the pool were mostly quiet, lazily leaning against the edge, enjoying the moonlight in the mountains. No one was whispering.

Perhaps it was because some strangers had just entered, making it hard for them to strike up a conversation.

Jiang She retracted his hand, leaned against the steps, and placed his arms on the edge of the pool, playing with the soft snow.

“I’ll keep my hands up, I won’t touch you anymore. Is that okay?”

He spoke casually, then slyly hooked his foot around Chu Tao’s calf, trapping him between his legs.

Chu Tao tried to struggle, but the water made movement difficult, and Jiang She deliberately resisted, not letting him escape.

Helpless, Chu Tao grabbed a handful of snow from the edge and smacked it onto Jiang She’s face.

“Let go of my legs!”

Jiang She was caught off guard, and the half-melted snow hit his face. The sudden chill made him shiver, and he instinctively loosened his grip. Chu Tao took the chance to slip away.

The snow quickly melted in the hot water, disappearing into the spring, leaving only the droplets of snowmelt dripping from Jiang She’s face.

Jiang She wiped his face, grinning at Chu Tao with a deep smile. “Oh, so you want a snowball fight, huh?”

As he spoke, he subtly grabbed another handful of snow, forming a small snowball in his palm. He slowly approached Chu Tao, still spinning the snowball.

Seeing Jiang She’s movement, Chu Tao quickly realized what was happening and turned to run.

But the water made it hard to move quickly, and he was slightly slower than usual. Before he could escape, Jiang She wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him into the water.

The splash caused quite a commotion, and Chu Tao staggered back, squinting and laughing. “Alright, alright, I won’t mess around anymore!”

Jiang She, however, didn’t listen. He was far more mischievous than Chu Tao had imagined. While Chu Tao had only smeared snow on his face, Jiang She used the chaos in the pool, under the fragmented light, to press the snowball against Chu Tao’s chest.

“Still want to try?”

The snowball cracked under the pressure between Jiang She’s palm and Chu Tao’s chest, rapidly melting from the steam in the water.

The chill lasted only a moment, but the stimulating contrast between the heat and cold kept Chu Tao restless for much longer.

He shivered, biting his cheek to suppress the sensation, while a faint glimmer of moisture appeared in his eyes.

He had thought Jiang She would only smear snow on his face, or maybe on his head or neck, but Jiang She clearly had no intention of being that gentle.

Chu Tao shrank into the hot water, letting it cover his skin, even his hair becoming soaked.

He curled up for a moment, trying to calm the restless feelings that surged inside him.

After a while, he lifted his face, dripping wet, and gave Jiang She a resentful look.

“You did that on purpose.”

Was he planning to keep messing around like this until they rushed back to the bedroom?

Jiang She smiled playfully, reaching out to help Chu Tao wipe the water off his face. “What’s wrong? You’re getting more sensitive now.”

Chu Tao’s wet hair, exposed to the air, quickly froze and became stiff, awkwardly sticking to his face and ears.

Chu Tao realized that his and Jiang She’s pheromones were perfectly in sync now, and they were just a step away from something more.

Jiang She, however, seemed to have become accustomed to his own pace. Although he had doubts, he never thought to dig deeper.

Jiang She’s final remark was not quiet, and some of the people in the same pool could hear it.

The ambiguity in his words and the affectionate gestures were hard to miss.

“Wow…”

“How open-minded.”

Chu Tao really couldn’t keep his calm any longer. Fortunately, the hot spring water had already warmed him up thoroughly.

He stood up and said, “Let’s go, let’s change places, let’s try the bigger pool.”

Just as Chu Tao was about to step out of the water, Song Mian and Chu Jiangmin, who were in the medicine pool across from them, also stood up at the same time.

Song Mian let out a long sigh. “Ah, it’s so hot, I can hardly breathe.”

Chu Tao was startled and immediately ducked back into the water, leaning against the wall and lowering his head below the pool’s edge, barely daring to breathe.

The two pools weren’t far apart, but Song Mian obviously had enough of the medicine pool and wanted to move to a different one. The Rose Pool was the closest, with fewer people and a lower temperature than the medicine pool.

As Song Mian came out of the medicine pool, the cool breeze made her breath feel much clearer.

Chu Jiangmin followed, taking Song Mian’s bathrobe and draping it over her. “Be careful not to catch a cold, going from hot to cold like this.”

Wrapped in the robe, Song Mian leaned against the edge of the pool and touched her frozen hair. “Do you think the kids went off somewhere? We haven’t seen them at all.”

Chu Tao glanced at Jiang She, silently biting his lower lip.

Jiang She, being a bit bolder, secretly looked up, checking the “enemy situation,” and then whispered to Chu Tao, “Your mom hasn’t come over.”

Chu Tao grabbed his arm. “Stop looking around, you’ll give us away.”

Jiang She teased, “What’s there to be afraid of? If we get caught, I’ll just marry you and take you home.”

Chu Tao, not liking Jiang She getting the upper hand verbally, mumbled, “Why can’t it be me marrying you and taking you home?”

Jiang She didn’t care about such things. “That’s fine too. I’ll go reintroduce myself to your parents.”

As he spoke, he started to get up.

Chu Tao was startled and instinctively hugged Jiang She, lightly biting his shoulder.

Jiang She was just teasing him, not actually planning to leave.

Chu Tao’s bite wasn’t hard, just a light mark with a soft touch of his lips.

Jiang She’s gaze deepened, and his fingers mischievously rubbed Chu Tao’s back with force.

The movement made some splashing sounds, causing Song Mian to glance in their direction.

Now even Jiang She didn’t dare to make a move.

Then, they heard Chu Jiangmin’s voice. “It’s so dark outside, and there are so many people in the pool. You probably didn’t notice, but someone might have seen you.”

Song Mian turned her head and took out her phone. “Oh, I’ll call them.”

When Chu Tao heard Song Mian, he froze for a moment.

He glanced at the bathrobe hanging on the railing.

When he came down earlier, he had absentmindedly put his phone in the bathrobe, and his phone wasn’t on silent.

If his phone rang, his parents would know he was nearby. And if they happened to catch him and Jiang She together in the pool, there would be no way to explain it.

It would turn into a family drama of coming out.

Chu Jiangmin suggested, “Why not call Tao Tao? Xing Ning’s phone seems to be a bit broken.”

Song Mian frowned. “Xing Ning’s phone is broken? Why didn’t you take him to get it fixed?”

Chu Jiangmin replied, “It’s not a big deal. It still works, and besides, he doesn’t really use his phone much, what with the school’s restrictions.”

Song Mian scolded him, “You don’t care about the kids at all. What if you need to contact Xing Ning and can’t get through?”

Chu Jiangmin wrapped his arm around her shoulder, comforting her. “Alright, alright, I’ll take him to get it fixed when we get back. You just call Tao Tao now.”