My Days as a God in Ancient Times
Bathing was indeed an urgent matter.
Earlier by the lakeside, Lan An had been too embarrassed to bathe with so many others around.
With women nearby, the idea became even more unthinkable.
Now, if it was convenient, he truly wanted to have a proper bath.
Before he could nod, Chu Qiuzhe had already gone into the kitchen again and returned with a roll of plastic wrap. "Lan An, come here. I'll wrap your arm first so it doesn’t get wet."
At this moment, Lan An was unusually obedient. Whatever was said, he simply followed.
"Take off your clothes" Chu Qiuzhe said, his tone perfectly justified as if he were doing nothing more than helping. "You have to take them off to bathe anyway. It'll be easier for me to wrap your wound if you do."
Lan An knew exactly what was on his mind, but the excuse was too strong. He couldn't find a reason to argue against it.
He couldn’t exactly say he would bathe with his clothes on.
Besides, they were both men. Seeing each other bare-chested didn’t seem like a big deal.
With no way around it, he obediently stripped off all three layers, leaving only a pair of white undergarments.
Perfect. His sculpted physique looked like it belonged in an artist’s reference book.
Chu Qiuzhe had no intention of acting like a gentleman. He stared straight at those defined muscles, nearly drooling.
"Ahem" a voice suddenly interrupted from inside Chu Qiuzhe’s mind.
Xiao En flew out. "Big bro, you're really something. I'm gonna dip. I’m a proper person, I can’t be watching such an inappropriate scene."
He said this aloud, right in front of both of them.
Chu Qiuzhe, having his intentions so openly exposed, nearly curled his toes in embarrassment.
Lan An’s expression turned a little odd as well.
In that strange atmosphere, Chu Qiuzhe finished wrapping Lan An’s arm and led him to the guest room.
Patiently, he explained how to use the bath products, then filled the tub with water.
"You can wash on your own" Chu Qiuzhe said, deciding that no matter how much of a pervert he was, he wouldn’t go as far as to watch someone else bathe. "Call me if you need anything."
Lan An sank into the warm water, feeling the gentle waves against his skin. His thoughts wandered.
"I left pajamas outside the door for you. Took your clothes to wash, so they'll be ready by morning" Chu Qiuzhe said after showering and changing into fresh clothes. "Don’t soak for too long. Be careful with your arm"
Water splashed as Lan An stepped out of the tub. He rinsed off once more, marveling at how wonderful this world was.
Endless hot water, no need to boil it beforehand.
Even the bath products were far better than soap. He had never felt this clean and refreshed in his life.
By the time he finished dressing and stepped out, Chu Qiuzhe was already waiting with a hairdryer in hand.
Seeing Lan An in a modern, lake-blue silk pajama set, long hair cascading past his waist, Chu Qiuzhe couldn't help but think he looked like he had broken through the dimensional wall.
It was amusing. A little out of place. And yet, undeniably attractive.
Lan An had never worn such clothing before. Pajamas, as they were called.
Light and breathable, they seemed suitable for sleeping. The only issue was the so-called underwear. Though elastic, it felt a little too tight.
Chu Qiuzhe, ever the careless one, hadn’t considered their size difference at all.
The pajama set was loose enough, but he had simply grabbed a pair of his own unworn underwear without a second thought.
"I'll dry your hair for you. Sleeping with it wet can give you a headache."
After spending the evening together, Lan An had a rough guess about what kind of mechanical device Chu Qiuzhe was holding.
He didn’t object. In fact, he was curious to try it out.
The soft whirring of the hairdryer filled the room. Gentle fingers combed through his hair, sending tingles down his scalp.
His heart skipped a few beats.
"Hey, Wangye, why do all of you grow your hair so long?" Chu Qiuzhe’s voice brushed against his ear. "Isn’t it inconvenient?"
It was. Of course, it was. But the body was a gift from one's parents. Cutting it short wasn’t an option.
"Lan An? Lan Xuandu?" Chu Qiuzhe nudged when the other didn’t answer. "You keep going quiet like this. You’ll end up with no friends"
The warmth of a young man’s presence, mixed with the lingering humidity of a post-bath atmosphere, made Lan An feel as if half his body had gone numb.
Was there something wrong with the venison he ate earlier?
He stood stiffly in place, like a wooden statue.
Chu Qiuzhe had gotten used to it. "Almost done. Sleep early. If you hear the cook in the morning, just ignore her. She’ll leave after making breakfast."
Lan An finally snapped back to reality and gave a small nod.
The first time sleeping on such a soft bed, he suddenly felt that even the emperor’s dragon bed might not compare.
Everyone in the world wanted to climb higher, yet he never had.
He only wanted to find a peaceful place, do what he loved, and stay far from court politics and power struggles.
The thought returned to him. What kind of dynasty was this?
Chu Qiuzhe, on the other hand, had a heart big enough to fall asleep without a care in the world.
Only Xiao En, still hovering anxiously, remained uneasy. Bringing someone from another era into this world was a dangerous thing.
Even if Lan An had passed all the necessary checks and was clearly a good person, there was still a risk.
Lan An could do qinggong. The villa’s outer walls were nothing more than decorations to him. If he ran off and got into trouble, what then?
^Qinggong (轻功), which means the ability to lighten the body in Chinese martial arts.
Sigh. How did he end up stuck with a host whose only interest was chasing after men?
The next morning, Lan An, a light sleeper, heard the quiet clatter of cooking.
He could tell that the cook was deliberately keeping her movements soft. Maybe she didn’t want to wake Chu Qiuzhe.
Another thought surfaced. Chu Qiuzhe lived alone in such a large house.
Was he never afraid?
In no more than the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the noises from the kitchen faded away. Soon after, the sound of a door closing echoed through the quiet.
Not long after that, Lan An heard the soft, rhythmic breathing from the room next door gradually grow uneven.
He waited for nearly a quarter of an hour before the sound of a wheelchair rolling toward his door reached his ears.
"Lan An, are you awake?" Chu Qiuze’s voice was gentle, carrying a trace of something hard to define.
Lan An's eyes cleared as he turned over and got out of bed.
"If you're up, come eat breakfast." Chu Qiuze lounged comfortably. "I figure it should be raining over there by now. Let’s go take a look after we eat."
"Mm."
They had barely begun their meal when Chu Qiuze’s mind was suddenly flooded with the nonstop chime of gratitude points being collected.
The relentless ringing nearly made his head spin.
"Hurry up and eat." Excitement flickered across Chu Qiuze’s face. The sheer amount of gratitude points meant his legs were recovering even faster. "It's raining over there. I can feel it."
Joy flashed in Lan An’s eyes as well.
They finished breakfast in just a few quick bites and rushed out the door.
The same cave as before.
The sky should have been bright by now, but the entire cave was shrouded in darkness. A thick, gray mist lingered at the entrance, obscuring the view beyond.
The rain drummed against the earth, the sound echoing in the hearts of all who listened.
It was raining. It was really raining. It had finally rained.
Inside the cave, the hunters and guards did not cheer. Instead, some were moved to tears, clasping shoulders, patting backs, offering quiet words of encouragement.
The same scene played out across the city. Nearly every citizen had rushed outside, laughing and weeping in the downpour, crying out that the heavens had finally opened their eyes.
Only the people of Yuhou County knew the truth. It was their "Male God" who had brought the rain.
No one organized them. The people simply raised their voices in unison, chanting that familiar, embarrassing phrase.
"Male God, may your blessings be eternal, may your life be as long as the heavens."
Their voices shook the mountains.
Left behind to hold down the fort, Chen Cuizhi found his own eyes growing misty.
He had come from a small village and worked his way up as a scholar. He understood better than anyone the joy in the hearts of the people.
At the same time, he couldn't help but worry about the Wangye and their "Male God" still deep in the mountains.
The rain did not stop. It poured for three days and three nights.
There was no shortage of things to do in the cave.
Chu Qiuze had brought out a few decks of playing cards and taught everyone how to play Landlord.
The game quickly became a hit, the group playing round after round with boundless enthusiasm.
Even Lan An, the lone wolf of the group, had the faintest hint of a smile on his face these past few days.
When the skies finally cleared, the land began to breathe again. Sunlight pierced through the lingering clouds, casting golden rays over the earth.
"Everyone, get ready" Chu Qiuze called out. "It's time to head back home."
A cheer erupted. As comfortable as the past few days had been, everyone had been thinking about their families.
Home was where everything would finally be right again.
As they made their way down the mountain, they spotted a dense crowd gathered at the base.
"What’s this?" Someone gasped. "Did the townspeople come to welcome us back?"
The hunters who had gone up the mountain with them were especially thrilled. In the front rows, they spotted their own families, guarded by soldiers.
Though their role in this journey had mainly been to guide the way, they had still served the God and the wangye.
And the wangye had promised there would be rewards for their efforts.
This was something to bring honor to their ancestors. When they got home, they’d have to set up a few banquet tables to celebrate.
"Wangye, may you live long and prosper! May the Celestial Deity enjoy eternal blessings and a life as vast as the heavens!"
As soon as the group reached the foot of the mountain, the thunderous chant erupted once more.
For Lan An, who had lived in ancient times, it was a familiar and gratifying sound. Back when he returned to the imperial city after a victorious battle, the cheers were no less grand than this.
For Chu Qiuzé, however, a man from the modern era, no matter how many times he heard it, the overwhelming embarrassment still made his skin crawl.
Yet, seeing the townspeople neatly dressed, faces clean, and spirits lifted, he decided not to spoil the moment.
Let them be.
Chu Qiuzé blinked away the sting in his eyes.
With this rain, the climate across the disaster-stricken region would gradually return to normal.
If nothing unexpected happened, there wouldn’t be another severe drought or flood for at least three to five years.
That meant post-disaster reconstruction had to begin immediately. They needed to make use of the autumn season to plant one last batch of crops before winter arrived.
That brought them back to the issue of the potato seeds.
Lan An and Chen Cuzhi both understood the value of potatoes, but the common folk did not.
Having experienced famine once, people were cautious. They preferred planting crops they were familiar with, ones that could yield a harvest before winter.
This potato, something they had never seen before, was hard to believe.
The Celestial Deity had claimed it could yield thousands of catties per mu, but to seasoned farmers, that sounded too good to be true.
Most were hesitant, agreeing only to plant a small amount. Only a handful of families were willing to follow the God lead and dedicate their entire fields to potatoes.
Promoting it would be a challenge. And so far, introducing potatoes hadn’t earned Chu Qiuzé the gratitude he had expected.
For the first time, he realized that his words didn’t hold as much sway over the people as they once had.
Hadn’t they always believed in him?
Chen Cuzhi returned from surveying the fields. "Before, everything you said had immediate results. But this time, they won’t see any returns for months."
It made sense.
A rough estimate showed that the stolen relief grain would barely last through the winter. Come spring, the granaries would be empty once again.
That made this autumn planting all the more crucial. No one could afford to be careless.
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