BYBOTE Chapter 27: Have Some Shame

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The Yuqing Kingdom had never appeared in Luo Fei’s textbooks, but it still retained Chinese traditions. During the Dragon Boat Festival, people ate zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) and eggs, tied colorful strings around their wrists, and hung bundles of mugwort on their doorframes. Of course, there were no modern plastic or paper ornaments shaped like gourds, but there were fabric versions! Besides using aged gourd dippers for decoration and good fortune, people also made small fabric gourd pouches to wear around their necks.

Back in his previous life, Luo Fei had done these things with his grandmother during the holidays. Sometimes, he even learned about them in her lessons. He could even teach others now! He knew how to make all sorts of little trinkets, and this Dragon Boat Festival was the perfect opportunity!

Excited! He had to go buy materials and make as many as possible!

Luo Fei was so eager that he didn’t even bother sleeping. After hanging up the quilt that Xi Yanqing had "accidentally" soaked, he immediately went to find Han Xu. Xi Yanqing was worried about him going alone, so he went along. When they arrived at the Han family home, Xi Yanqing went to Han Yang’s courtyard to ask about buying an ox, while Luo Fei enthusiastically explained his plan to Han Xu.

“You want to make sachets to sell?”

Han Xu was a little surprised. He knew that Lou Erbao had excellent needlework skills, but he had always been reluctant to do such work, saying it strained his eyes. And now he was talking about selling sachets?

“Well, I’ve got nothing else to do, and Big Tiger won’t let me work in the fields much anyway. So, why not make some things to sell? At least it can help out with household expenses,” Luo Fei said. “Besides, this is a rare opportunity—Dragon Boat Festival only comes once a year.”

“That’s true. But the things you make are so pretty—if it were me, I wouldn’t want to sell them.”

“What’s there to be reluctant about? As long as I have the skills, I can always make more. But opportunities like this don’t come all the time.”

“Well… alright then. My mother happens to be planning a trip to town tomorrow to buy fabric. We’ve been busy these days, so we kept postponing it. If you get up early tomorrow, we can go together.”

“Sounds good. It’s settled then—I’ll head back now.” Luo Fei lifted the door curtain, and as soon as he stepped outside, he saw Xi Yanqing standing there grinning.

“What are you laughing at?” Luo Fei couldn’t help but ask.

“So you call me ‘Big Tiger’ behind my back?” Xi Yanqing found it amusing—it actually sounded quite nice.

“You were eavesdropping! Go pick up your dignity from the ground!” Luo Fei pushed Xi Yanqing, but the man didn’t budge. Instead, Xi Yanqing wrapped an arm around him and led him out of Han’s house.

“It’s great that you want to earn some money for the household, but don’t overwork yourself, alright?” Xi Yanqing hooked his long arm around Luo Fei’s neck, gently brushing his fingers over Luo Fei’s brows. “You need to take care of your eyes—there’s no place here to get you glasses if you strain them.”

“Mhm, it’s just for a little while. I just want to give it a try. No matter what, earning more money for the family is always a good thing, right? I still want to buy a cow.” As they passed by Zhang Yangfan’s house, Luo Fei suddenly recalled Jiang Baining’s smug expression from before.

Xi Yanqing had already asked Han Yang about the cow, and Han Yang had told him that there was progress. Han Yang’s second uncle had found a good one—just two years old, a red-haired ox with a deep reddish-brown coat. Xi Yanqing figured it was a decent choice and asked them to keep an eye on it. When the time was right, he planned to buy it. But he didn’t tell Luo Fei just yet—he wanted to surprise him.

The two of them walked home under the moonlight and, once again, ended up sharing the same bed.

Just thinking about the quilts Xi Yanqing had deliberately gotten wet made Luo Fei furious! He turned his back on Xi Yanqing, too annoyed to speak. But this just made it easier for Xi Yanqing to cuddle him. His hips pressed against Luo Fei’s backside, his upper body fitting snugly against Luo Fei’s back. His hand rested on Luo Fei’s slender waist, fingers idly tracing circles around his navel.

“That tickles! I can’t sleep!” Luo Fei smacked Xi Yanqing’s hand like he was shooing away a fly.

“Alright, I’ll stop,” Xi Yanqing said, though his actions told a different story. He simply moved his hand to a different spot—this time, groping Luo Fei’s butt!

“Hey!” Luo Fei had no choice but to turn around. “Can you keep those tiger paws of yours in check?”

“I’m not misbehaving—I’m just putting my hand on my own wife’s butt. That’s called ‘legal mischief,’ you know? No matter where you take this case, I’d be in the right.” Xi Yanqing propped his head up with one hand and gently pecked Luo Fei’s nose. “Besides, whose fault is it that you’re so soft and fragrant?”

“F-Fragrant?” Luo Fei lifted his arm and sniffed himself. “I don’t smell anything.”

“You do. You smell yourself every day, so of course, you wouldn’t notice. Only I can.” Xi Yanqing nuzzled against Luo Fei’s neck.

“Get lost, you’re totally making this up, talking all ambiguously like that.” Luo Fei had a strong feeling Xi Yanqing was trying to seduce him. “No kissing! And no wandering hands either! Hey—where do you think you’re touching…? You—you’re so annoying!” Luo Fei let out a soft whimper, and soon enough, only the sound of their increasingly heated breathing filled the room.

“I—I’m telling you, this is just a normal physiological response!” Luo Fei protested.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Just don’t move,” Xi Yanqing murmured as he pressed down on Luo Fei, ready to continue his teasing.

The next morning, when Luo Fei woke up, his eyes were red, making him look like an angry little rabbit. He glared at Xi Yanqing, who was about to smudge his face with ashes again—he practically wanted to bite him!

Xi Yanqing chuckled. “If the farm work weren’t so busy, I’d go with you. Be careful on the road and come back early.”

Luo Fei checked the mirror and found that the ash was applied just right. He patted his chest and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll try to be back before dark. Besides, Han Xu and the others will be with me, so there’s nothing to worry about. Oh, and don’t forget to feed the chicks for me.”

Xi Yanqing patted Luo Fei’s shoulder. “Got it.”

Luo Fei slung his cloth bag over his shoulder and headed out. After meeting up with Han Xu, they traveled to town together with Han Xu’s mother and sister-in-law. Luo Fei didn’t bring all his money with him, only taking 300 copper coins.

The first thing he did when he arrived in town was buy thread. Since thread was lighter than fabric, he and Han Xu decided to get it first before heading to the fabric store.

Luo Fei bought 100 coins’ worth of thread—sixteen different colors, a whole bundle, enough to last him a while. He also purchased red fabric and satin, perfect for making sachets and small decorative rice dumplings. Like before, he chose leftover fabric scraps, since whole cloth was expensive and rarely used for such small projects. These scraps were mostly bought by artisans for their affordability.

He picked up many fabric remnants—some as small as a palm, others as big as a basin. He carefully stacked them together, trying to avoid folding them too much.

The rest of the time, he wandered around town with Han Xu. Han Xu had a long shopping list, including fabric, thread, dowry items, and food.

Han Xu had a habit of bringing back snacks whenever he went out, so whenever he found something new, he had to try it. Luo Fei ended up eating quite a bit with him and wasn’t even hungry by lunchtime.

As they passed a certain shop, Han Xu suddenly looked a little embarrassed. He lowered his voice and asked, “Luo Erbao, can I ask you something? What kind of balm do you and your Big Tiger use?”

Luo Fei was confused. “What balm?”

Han Xu rolled his eyes. “You know, that kind of balm.”

Luo Fei looked even more baffled. “What kind of ‘that’ are you talking about?”

Han Xu was speechless. Was this guy really married? How could he not get it?!

Luo Fei genuinely hadn’t thought in that direction, but after watching people come and go from the shop, he finally caught on.

Han Xu, thinking Luo Fei had figured it out, asked, “Does the one you use work well? If it’s good, I’ll buy the same one.”

Luo Fei felt like smacking Han Xu. How should I know?!

But Han Xu wouldn’t give up. “Luo Erbao, answer me!”

Flustered, Luo Fei stammered, “I—I never really paid attention…”

Han Xu pressed on. “But does it work?”

“I guess…?”

“Then ask your Big Tiger when you get home. I’ll just buy whatever you use.”

“…You damn… I’m not asking that!” Luo Fei was on the verge of losing it.

If he asked, wouldn’t Xi Yanqing run out and buy it the very next second?! Did they even have that thing at home? Oh no! Maybe Xi Yanqing had already prepared it a long time ago, and he just didn’t know! After all, Xi Yanqing had been thinking about eating him for so long!

Once they finished buying things, they went home. Luo Fei was deep in thought on the way back, and when he got home and saw Xi Yanqing say he would cook dinner, he quietly went into the room to rummage around. Mainly because Han Xu kept pestering him, so he agreed. He wanted to see if he could find it and show it to Han Xu so he would stop obsessing over the matter.

Xi Yanqing felt bad that Luo Fei had walked so far, so he decided to cook dinner himself. He never thought Luo Fei would be searching for that kind of thing—he just assumed his little donkey was admiring his new thread and fabric. Usually, when he got new cloth and sewing supplies, he’d cherish them for half the day.

Thinking of that little habit, Xi Yanqing’s heart softened.

Xi Yanqing wasn’t good at cooking anything fancy, so he just made two big bowls of lump soup. He even added some homegrown greens, making the soup look more appetizing than usual. He planned to call Luo Fei to eat, but then he thought it would be interesting to see what Luo Fei was doing in the room, so he quietly lifted the cloth curtain…

Earlier, when Luo Fei spilled all the water in his bowl onto the bed, hadn’t he scared him? Now, it was his turn to scare this little donkey.

“What are you looking for?” Xi Yanqing suddenly asked as he saw Luo Fei crouched over, rummaging through things.

“Nothing!” Luo Fei immediately straightened up and turned his back to Xi Yanqing, stuffing something into his lapel. After that, he turned around and asked, “Dinner’s ready, right? Let’s eat.”

“What’s with the guilty look?” Xi Yanqing pinched Luo Fei’s ear.

“I’m not guilty at all!” Just a tiny bit… nervous! Luo Fei never expected Xi Yanqing to have actually bought that thing, and it was a whole bottle! If not for the shop’s mark printed on the bottom, he might not have even realized. And it was hidden pretty deep—stuffed in the corner of a drawer. If he hadn’t randomly reached in and felt around, he might never have found it.

“Alright, if you’re not guilty, then I am. Just looking at you makes me flustered, like a little donkey running wild in my heart.” Xi Yanqing glanced at Luo Fei’s lapel, then casually looked back at the drawer.

“Stop being pervy! Go eat!” Luo Fei hurried out of the bedroom, relieved that he was wearing a short outfit with a waistband. The fabric was cinched tightly, and the upper part naturally puffed out a bit, hiding the little bottle inside… Well, okay, actually, it was pretty obvious.

Xi Yanqing sat down to eat the lump soup, already knowing what was going on, but he didn’t expose it right away. He finished a whole bowl of soup, and after Luo Fei also finished eating, he asked, “Do you want to take a bath tonight?”

After walking all day, getting covered in dust and sweating so much, Luo Fei naturally wanted to bathe. He nodded eagerly. “Yes.”

Xi Yanqing’s eyes gleamed with amusement. “Then I’ll go prepare the water for you.”

Luo Fei thought, Hurry up and go! I need to put this thing back before you notice!

As soon as Xi Yanqing left, Luo Fei tiptoed into the main room. But then, he was dumbfounded—somehow, the little bottle that had originally fit perfectly in the drawer’s corner wouldn’t stay in place anymore. If he shoved it too hard, he was afraid he’d break it. He was just considering whether to leave it inside and play dumb when Xi Yanqing walked back in!

“Still looking for something?” Xi Yanqing thought Luo Fei would’ve put the thing away by now, so he came in to ask if he wanted to wait until tomorrow to bathe—since Luo Fei had gone out today, his clothes hadn’t been washed. He only realized after getting home and had just washed them, but they weren’t dry yet. Luo Fei was very particular about cleanliness and changed every day, so Xi Yanqing wasn’t sure if he’d still want to bathe without a change of clothes. He hadn’t expected to catch Luo Fei holding the little bottle again. Isn’t this just seducing me into bad thoughts…

“I-I’m just looking for something!” Luo Fei quickly stuffed the bottle into the drawer and shut it tight.

“What are you looking for? I’ll help you find it.” Xi Yanqing walked over and opened the drawer.

Luo Fei thought, Fine, open it then. Worst case, I’ll just say I accidentally dropped it in there and don’t even know what it is.

However, Luo Fei had completely underestimated Xi Yanqing’s shamelessness.

Xi Yanqing opened the drawer, saw the little bottle, and actually put on a bewildered expression. “Huh? What’s this? Did you buy it today?”

Luo Fei’s mind instantly filled with galloping alpacas. “W-What did you just say?!”

Wasn’t this thing obviously bought by you?!

T/N: Please supprt my ko-fi page, thank you🌰🌰🌰