Reborn in the 80s, Get Rich by Eating Melons

Chapter 607: Chapter 607 You’re Overthinking

It was Guo Miaomiao’s first time visiting a bathhouse, and Tong Yao had brought her to a rather high-end one in Kyoto. The bathhouse had individual pools and each room had three round pools, each person used one for themselves.

Faced with the luxurious bathhouse, Guo Miaomiao was filled with curiosity and a bit of embarrassment, feeling like a country bumpkin.

Seeing Tong Yao’s snowy-white skin, Guo Miaomiao’s eyes widened with admiration, "Sister Yaoyao, your skin is so fair, just like a fairy. I’ve never seen a girl with such fair skin."

Tong Yao blushed at Guo Miaomiao’s unabashed gaze, "If you stay out of the sun more often, your skin will get fairer."

"Really?" Guo Miaomiao’s eyes were filled with anticipation. She was turning eighteen the next year, an age when one starts to pay attention to her appearance.

Tong Yao looked at Guo Miaomiao’s rosy face and nodded, "At least it will be fairer than it is now. Tomorrow we’ll go to a milk tea shop, and buy you some new clothes."

Guo Jinnian nodded, "Yes, we’ll buy you a few new outfits tomorrow and dress you up nicely."

Hearing about new clothes, Guo Miaomiao hurriedly waved her hands, "No need, no need, Sister, you just need to give me an old outfit of yours. Don’t spend money on new clothes for me, it would be quite expensive."

Guo Miaomiao had always worn hand-me-downs from her sisters and it had become a habit. She never dared ask her parents for new clothes or money.

Guo Jinnian protested, "That would not do, from now on, following me, you’ll never wear other people’s old clothes again. I can afford to take care of you."

Guo Miaomiao didn’t want to be a burden to Guo Jinnian, "Sister, who would marry you if you have to look after your younger sister? I can take care of myself once I start working."

Tong Yao laughed as the sisters argued about who was to care for whom, "Alright, stop arguing about this. Miaomiao, after you start earning money, you can pay your sister back."

Guo Miaomiao nodded firmly, "Sister, I will definitely take care of you like you’re my parents in the future."

Guo Jinnian looked taken aback, "Stop! I don’t want to hear about elder sisters acting like mothers. I’m only twenty-five, not fifty-two."

Guo Miaomiao chuckled. After soaking in the hot water, a layer of dirt came off with a simple rub. The water turned a shade darker. She felt embarrassed and confessed, "Mom and dad never give me money to go to the bathhouse. So, in winters, I just wipe my body with a towel. I can’t clean the grime off. This is my first time taking a bath in the winter." _{𝖓𝖔𝖛𝔭𝖚𝖇.𝔠𝖔𝔪}

Tong Yao reassured her with a smile, "It’s alright. From now on in Kyoto, you can take a bath whenever you like. Don’t worry too much. Your parents won’t be able to control you anymore."

Guo Jinnian agreed, "Yes, we’re far from the emperor’s eyes now. They won’t be able to control you anymore. When I moved my household’s registration, I moved yours over to mine."

At that time, seeing Guo Miaomiao’s name on the registration book, Guo Jinnian, in the heat of the moment, added Guo Miaomiao’s name to hers. Thinking back, she figured it was the right decision.

Guo Miaomiao’s eyes twinkled as she laughed, looking quite similar to Guo Jinnian. Her eyebrows were very beautiful. Once dressed up, she would definitely turn into a pretty girl.

The three of them spent more than an hour in the bathhouse before returning home. Gu Hongwei had also gone to the men’s bathhouse, but he had finished much earlier and was waiting for them outside.

Tong Yao found it strange, "Hongwei, why didn’t you wait inside? It’s so cold out here."

The winter night temperature was very low, plummeting to more than ten degrees below zero. Their hair had started to freeze just after stepping out of the bathhouse.

Gu Hongwei shifted uncomfortably as he shook his head, "It’s the same out here, I’m not cold."

Tong Yao felt that Gu Hongwei’s behavior was odd. She instinctively looked back at the bathhouse, and Guo Jinnian also noticed the anomaly and curiously questioned Gu Hongwei, "Are there any Flood Beasts in the bathhouse? You seem scared to go in. Weren’t you alright when we arrived?"

Gu Hongwei looked even more uneasy, "You’re overthinking it. Let’s go."

Guo Jinnian "tsked" in disbelief.

Tong Yao didn’t pay much attention initially and was about to leave, but then two men walked out of the bathhouse, looking rejuvenated and incomprehensibly smirking. Tong Yao had a sudden realization.

She looked at Gu Hongwei, whose discomfort increased as he felt his secret had been exposed.

Tong Yao gave a soft laugh but didn’t say anything. Gu Hongwei, feeling awkward, worried that Tong Yao might misunderstand. He felt that a girl like Tong Yao, with her disposition, would not tolerate a man lacking principles. Even though he was a man himself, he couldn’t accept it either. After a while, he decided to clarify things.

After all, they were long-term business partners. He couldn’t afford to let her question his character.

Seizing the opportunity while Guo Jinnian and Guo Miaomiao were talking, he cleared his throat and explained to Tong Yao, "Yaoyao, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t do anything."

Gu Hongwei had a private pool too. Suddenly, a scantily-clad woman entered the bathhouse, startling Gu Hongwei, who then shooed the woman away with a stern face.

Being a pure and innocent man who had never been in a relationship, Gu Hongwei was unsettled by the incident. He even felt that the bathhouse was not clean. It was then that he realized that he had a kind of mental cleanliness-phobia towards such matters. He decided never to come back to this bathhouse.

Tong Yao hadn’t expected Gu Hongwei to go out of his way to explain things to her and suddenly laughed, confirming her suspicions.

She grinned at him, "I believe you, don’t worry, I won’t give Jinnian any ideas."

Given Guo Jinnian’s personality, she wouldn’t have thought in that direction.

Looking embarrassed, Gu Hongwei nodded, deciding it was best not to say anything more. After all, discussing such matters was somewhat uncomfortable.

Guo Jinnian noticed that the two were lagging behind and hastily stopped to wait for Tong Yao. She asked curiously, "Yaoyao, what were you two talking about? It seemed quite amusing."

Tong Yao shook her head, and smilingly glanced at Gu Hongwei, "Nothing."

However, Guo Jinnian felt that something was definitely going on. She playfully tugged on Tong Yao’s arm, "No, you two are definitely hiding something from me. Does it have something to do with what happened in the bathhouse just now? I noticed that Hongwei wasn’t acting normal earlier. Something must have happened."

Containing her laughter, Tong Yao replied, "Why don’t you ask Hongwei."

To his surprise, Tong Yao passed the buck to him. Gu Hongwei felt a chill run down his spine. As he met Guo Jinnian’s gaze, he looked away uncomfortably.

Narrowing her eyes, Guo Jinnian challenged Gu Hongwei, "Confess and you’ll be shown leniency. Tell us what happened."

Gu Hongwei shook his head, saying, "Nothing."