Qi Zhimu had no choice but to helplessly agree, but his entire body went stiff, not daring to look back.
Behind him, rustling sounds were heard, followed by the sound of water being disturbed.
Uncontrollable scenes of his teacher, completely unclothed and drunk, stepping into the bathtub surfaced in his mind.
However, in the next second, he pinched his thigh hard to dispel the stray thoughts.
"Xiao Mu, come behind Teacher."
"..."
Qi Zhimu had to rely on his impression to back up toward Ruan Mei, keeping his eyes fixed straight ahead.
From this angle, if his gaze drifted down even slightly, he would see things he shouldn't.
It was too close.
Qi Zhimu quietly took another half-step back, maintaining a distance where he could touch Ruan Mei's shoulders with his arms fully extended.
Above the edge of the bathtub, a small portion of Ruan Mei's shoulders was completely exposed within the misty steam.
The back of her neck was as white as snow, smooth as satin, with a delicate texture that showed not a single blemish.
The lines of her shoulders were soft and beautiful; her skin was adorned with a few stray droplets of water sliding down, revealing a hint of healthy, natural flush and a warm, moist luster.
Qi Zhimu had never seen anything like this before, and his face turned red with embarrassment on the spot.
This wasn't appropriate between a teacher and student... The feeling of drifting on the edge of a taboo made his heart race. He held his breath, not daring to move his hands for a long time.
"What are you waiting for, Xiao Mu... Quick, Teacher's shoulders are very sore," Ruan Mei urged.
Sigh... Qi Zhimu sighed as if accepting his fate. He gritted his teeth, steeled his heart, and touched her shoulders.
The soft and smooth feedback from his fingertips felt like touching a piece of finely carved, high-quality jade.
Instantly, Qi Zhimu felt as if his heart was about to jump out of his chest.
"Your hands are so hot. Are you sick?"
"...No, no. Teacher, shall I start massaging your shoulders now?" It wasn't just Qi Zhimu's hands that were burning hot right now.
"Mm."
After a few kneads, Ruan Mei suddenly spoke.
"Not enough pressure."
"...How about now, Teacher?"
"Mmh~"
Ruan Mei let out a soft hum from her nose, her facial expression completely relaxing as she enjoyed her student's massage service.
"That's just right, keep it like this..."
Fifteen minutes passed.
Ruan Mei didn't call for him to stop, and Qi Zhimu didn't dare make a sound, for fear of breaking the inner peace he had finally managed to achieve.
But he didn't expect that after half an hour, his teacher still hadn't made a sound.
After hesitating for a moment, he stopped his movements, only to realize belatedly that his teacher had already fallen asleep.
At this moment, her breathing was regular, even, and light.
This left Qi Zhimu's face full of difficulty.
Teacher is asleep, what should I do?
He couldn't let her keep soaking in the bathtub; it wasn't good for her health.
After hesitating for a long while, between option one and option two, Qi Zhimu chose both.
He tip-toed out of the bathroom to brew some hangover soup. Maybe by the time he finished, Teacher would be awake?
Unfortunately, Qi Zhimu had completely miscalculated.
When he stood at the bathroom door, knocked three times, and called for his teacher three times without getting a response, he could only gently slide open the bathroom door and peek his head in.
With just one glance, he withdrew his gaze. Setting the hangover soup aside for the moment, he looked up at the ceiling and used his peripheral vision to find his way inside.
"Phew... To think such a thing actually happened..."
Ruan Mei let out a soft breath, her expression somewhat complex.
It turned out that the saying about forgetting what happened while drunk wasn't without merit.
She had absolutely no memory of this experience.
Even more unthinkable was that, as a teacher, she had actually used her status to force her own student while drunk... It was a breach of propriety.
She could tell at a glance that she had fallen asleep less than five minutes after Qi Zhimu started massaging her shoulders.
She could also tell what her student was thinking as he stood there for a long time after stopping his movements.
He wanted to wake her, but he felt sorry for her, knowing she was exhausted from neglecting sleep and food for her research.
He didn't want to wake her, but he was worried that soaking in the water for too long would be bad for her health.
The complexity in Ruan Mei's eyes did not fade as she watched the student in the Remembrance walk to her side, quietly waiting for what would happen next.
"Teacher."
Qi Zhimu's voice was a bit louder, trying to wake her.
No reaction.
"Teacher?"
The volume increased.
Still no reaction.
"...Teacher!!"
This time, Qi Zhimu gritted his teeth and patted her fragrant shoulder. When there was still no reaction, he used some strength to shake her.
The calm water in the bathtub rippled several times because of this.
"Teacher, if you don't wake up in ten minutes, Xiao Mu will... will-will-will take liberties!"
Ten minutes passed.
"Teacher, wake up...! If you don't wake up in another ten minutes, I'll... take liberties."
Another ten minutes passed.
"...Please, wake up..."
On the young man's face, which had not yet completely lost its youthfulness, the expression was one of misery.
A drunk person is truly hard to wake.
"Te—Another ten minutes..."
And so, after failing to back down time and time again, this time, Qi Zhimu finally made up his mind.
He rambled on about the dangers of soaking in water for too long, then covered his eyes with a towel and took down the large bath towel hanging nearby.
"I'm sorry, Teacher... Please forgive your student's rudeness!!"
Gritting his teeth, he reached his left hand into the bathtub toward where he remembered her knees to be, and his right hand supported Ruan Mei's fragrant shoulder.
With a slight effort, he lifted her out of the bathtub and wrapped that enticing body in the large bath towel.
Only after finishing this did he tear off the towel covering his eyes, carrying his teacher back to the room without looking away.
He wasn't yet at the level where he could walk freely around the Manor with his eyes covered.
After carefully placing Ruan Mei on the soft bed, Qi Zhimu went back to get the hangover soup, propped her up, and slowly fed it to her.
The entire process was as proper as could be; he stayed far away from places he shouldn't touch and didn't dare look at places he shouldn't see.
Finally, he faced a dilemma.
Teacher was only wrapped in a simple bath towel. It seemed she could only sleep like this, as it was impossible for him to help her change into pajamas.
Just as he pulled over the quilt and before he could cover her, Ruan Mei's eyelashes fluttered, and she half-opened her eyes.
Seeing this, Qi Zhimu's body instantly went stiff, not daring to move an inch.
"...Teacher, you're awake..."
"My feet are a bit sore, help me massage them."
"This... I haven't finished the research task you assigned yet. You should get some rest." Qi Zhimu still held onto a sliver of hope.
"Stop right there—"
"..." The young man gave a bitter smile.
"Come here, help Teacher massage her feet."
Qi Zhimu could only walk back. After hesitating for a moment, he sat on the edge of the bed, glanced at his teacher who was half-propping herself up, and quickly withdrew his gaze.
"Good boy~"
Ruan Mei lay back down and rested her delicate feet on Qi Zhimu's lap.
"Teacher will reward you later..."
At this scene, the young man was dazed.
Those ankles were smooth and supple, feeling silky to the touch.
On the exquisite, small feet, faint blue veins were visible, extending all the way to her beautiful calves.
The soles of her feet had a hint of healthy crimson, and her delicate toes were plump and round, like a string of pearls.
A faint fragrance wafted out. No matter how good Qi Zhimu's self-control was, he couldn't help but blush at this moment.
The young man let out a long sigh.
There was no way to resist, so he could only... face it head-on.
Qi Zhimu hypnotized himself this way, steeled his heart, took hold of those exquisite feet, and massaged them with skillful strength.