WHF Ch 27 – “Good technique? I’ll try it.”

“Didn’t you say we weren’t going to any improper places?” Xiu Ma snatched the clothes from Yu Tianbai’s hand.

“How is this an improper place? I know the owner, I guarantee it’s a legitimate business!” Yu Tianbai snatched Xiu Ma’s clothes back.

In a massage parlor at 5:00 PM, a clothing tug-of-war was taking place. Xiu Ma was currently at a disadvantage. Why? Because he really hadn’t expected Yu Tianbai to snatch his clothes so swiftly and unexpectedly. First, he’d taken his hoodie, and now he was holding onto his T-shirt, neither side willing to let go.

Seeing that it did look like he was bullying an innocent young man, Yu Tianbai released his grip, smoothed out his own clothes, sighed, and explained:

“It’s not like you have to get completely naked!”

“What kind of massage parlor requires you to take off your clothes?!” Xiu Ma’s voice was even louder. After speaking, he forcefully pulled down his T-shirt, which had been pulled up to his abdomen.

Seeing the beautiful abdominal muscles covered, Yu Tianbai clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction, took two steps back, and closed the locker door. The curtain behind him opened, and two older men walked past, chatting and laughing, shirtless, wrapped in towels, full of vigor, their beer bellies equally prominent. Seeing Xiu Ma staring at them with his mouth closed, Yu Tianbai asked:

“What are you thinking about?”

Clearly, this was just an ordinary Northeastern massage parlor, not even comparable to the foot massage street Xiu Ma had passed by on the way here. There were no low-cut tops, no high heels, no suggestive atmosphere. This was a proper massage parlor, even approved by the neighborhood uncles.

Xiu Ma’s indignation subsided somewhat. He crossed his arms, leaned against the locker, and averted his gaze from the bouncing bellies of the older men.

“Then why aren’t you taking your clothes off?”

Yu Tianbai didn’t laugh, took a deep breath, and pulled up the corners of his mouth. “I’m apologizing to you. If I was just looking for fun, I definitely wouldn’t have brought you. And I didn’t lie to you, the massage here is really good, I guarantee you’ll be satisfied.”

Seeing that the young master was still unmoved, he yanked open the locker, grabbed the hem of his shirt, and pulled it upwards. Xiu Ma was startled by the sudden display of undress and instinctively grabbed Yu Tianbai’s arm.

“What are you doing?” he asked Yu Tianbai.

Yu Tianbai looked at him as if he were an idiot. “Aren’t you too shy to undress yourself? I can undress for you.”

Xiu Ma looked up, avoiding Yu Tianbai’s partially exposed upper body, and conceded defeat for the moment. “Where will you wait after I go in?”

The person opposite him didn’t rush to answer, his hand still holding his shirt. He tilted his head and asked, “Why do I feel like you’re afraid to look at me – we’ve already been intimate before.”

Referring to bathing together, but he said it quite loudly. The older men who had just passed by looked back at them. Xiu Ma remained silent, grabbed both of Yu Tianbai’s arms, and pushed them down, along with his shirt.

“No need to choose, I’ll choose for you.” Xiu Ma turned his head, pulled up the hem of his shirt, took it off, and threw it into the locker, then kicked off his sweatpants. “You wait here, I’ll come out after I’ve experienced your ‘good intentions’.”

He emphasized the words “good intentions,” clearly accepting Yu Tianbai’s challenge in his own way. But was this a valid challenge?

Yu Tianbai tilted his head, watching the young master angrily lift the curtain. The light fabric fluttered as he hit it, then he swung it forcefully behind him. Yu Tianbai couldn’t help but laugh. Xiu Ma clearly noticed his laughter, and in the last moment before he disappeared from sight, he left behind a right hand displaying a middle finger.

A sense of defiance, like someone about to die but determined to roll over first.

Hearing the footsteps disappear around the corner, Yu Tianbai’s smile faded. He moved his shoulders and wrists, stretched his neck, and took off his shirt.

The room was very different from what Xiu Ma had initially imagined. There were no colorful romantic lights, nor the gaudy decorations unique to suburban areas, only a “technician” in a white coat. The elderly technician was wearing reading glasses and looking at a simple cell phone. Seeing a customer, he uttered weakly, “Lie down.”

Extremely normal, extremely legal, extremely unlike Yu Tianbai, and equally, extremely boring.

Xiu Ma silently spread the mat underneath him, lay down, placed his arms under his face, and covered himself with a towel.

Boring.

Could Yu Tianbai really have just brought him here for a simple massage?

Xiu Ma looked at the room’s furnishings with boredom: white walls, fresh green radish plants, a black fan. It looked like a traditional Chinese medicine clinic. He was somewhat inclined to believe that the massage here was good. Maybe this time Yu Tianbai was truly being kind, truly just wanting to apologize.

But again, wasn’t this way of apologizing too boring?

He heard the frail-sounding technician leave the room, then push the door open and come back in. The glass door with the curtain jingled, like the heart hanging in his chest—this person should at least come in and keep him company for a while to count as an apology.

As he was lost in thought, the technician’s hands pressed onto his back, startling him with their coldness. Surprisingly, despite the technician’s frail appearance, his grip was quite strong, immediately pressing Xiu Ma’s face flat against the massage table.

Appearances can be deceiving, and hand strength can’t be judged by sight.

Actually, when Yu Tianbai was snatching his clothes earlier, there was one thing Xiu Ma had lied about: while he was law-abiding, he was also very reserved. In other words, he didn’t like to be touched.

So, the moment the technician’s hands touched his back, goosebumps erupted from his back to his face. The cold was followed by heat, his face felt like it was pressed against a grill, the technician’s slightly cool hands like tongs turning the meat. And the meat was him, the other person the butcher, he the meat on the chopping block.

What’s more, the technician didn’t say a word, didn’t even seem to breathe. The only sound in the room was the whirring of the ceiling fan. With the creaking of the rotating axis, Xiu Ma’s body alternated between hot and cold. He closed his eyes and heard the pitiful cracking of his cervical vertebrae under the technician’s hands.

Endure it, for Yu Tianbai’s good intentions. Bullshit good intentions.

Xiu Ma wasn’t very talkative, and certainly didn’t have Yu Tianbai’s knack for making conversation, but in this situation, he had to say something.

“Master,” he forced out the two words, “Could you make a sound or something?”

Speaking was worse than not speaking. As soon as he spoke, he felt the hands on his back stop. A strange silence spread through the massage room, and then, the so-called technician suddenly laughed.

Hearing this overly familiar laughter, Xiu Ma stared blankly for two seconds, then blurted out, “Holy shit, you—”

The technician who had been massaging him for a long time was none other than Yu Tianbai.

So this was his fucking way of apologizing!

Before Xiu Ma could finish cursing, Yu Tianbai pressed down on the back of his neck, silencing him. Now Xiu Ma confirmed two things: one, his grip was indeed strong, and two, he wasn’t wearing a shirt either. As for why, it was because he was currently lying on his back.

“Don’t make a sound, I borrowed this room,” Yu Tianbai lowered his voice, speaking directly into his ear. “If you shout, people will think we’re doing something improper.”

Referring to the kind of improper things Xiu Ma had imagined would happen in a massage parlor.

The fan on the wall was still whirring. Xiu Ma felt his breathing slow down, following Yu Tianbai’s scent. He stared for a long time before remembering to blink. Finally, he gave his first comment on Yu Tianbai’s apology:

“When did you come in?”

The frail old technician had disappeared. If he saw what the massage room looked like now, he’d probably lose his last breath.

“Right after you lay down—it seems you don’t understand me at all, you don’t even recognize my footsteps.” Yu Tianbai finally moved away from his back, stood up straight, but didn’t remove his hands. “If I had told you directly to try my technique, you wouldn’t have agreed.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the person in front of him sat up with lightning speed, making eye contact with Yu Tianbai.

“Why did you take your shirt off too?”

This clearly contradicted his previous promise, and also clearly differed from the white coat worn by other staff members. Yu Tianbai’s expression was evasive. He shrugged.

“Feels good,” he replied.

What feels good? Xiu Ma’s expression already conveyed his skepticism. Yu Tianbai looked like he’d been caught and helplessly twitched the corners of his mouth.

“I borrowed a little from Thai massage practices.” He gestured to the tray beside him. “I’m going to use essential oils next.”

Essential oils, two deafening words. The atmosphere was now uncontrollably sliding towards that of a brothel.

“I’m leaving,” Xiu Ma said resolutely.

“You can’t,” Yu Tianbai replied, equally firm.

Compared to Xiu Ma’s consistently physically restrained gaze, Yu Tianbai looked at him freely. His eyes swept over him, returning to Xiu Ma’s face. He said, “Your ears are red.”

“Because you were just lying on my back,” Xiu Ma exhaled forcefully through his nose. “Dead weight.”

The two were in a stalemate for a moment. Unexpectedly, Yu Tianbai didn’t continue his sophistry. He dragged over the red leather armchair and sat down heavily. Xiu Ma had never seen him give up so easily, it was quite strange.

“I envy you, you know why?”

Xiu Ma looked at him, cross-legged on the massage table, a little bewildered.

“I envy your life, the good parts and the bad parts. Sometimes, big ups and downs aren’t the most painful. The little bits of stimulation that come bit by bit are the most disgusting. Before you’re ready, everything becomes calm again. In the end, you look back, and you haven’t resisted anything, haven’t accomplished anything.”

As he said this, Yu Tianbai’s mouth held his usual smile, a carefree, unrestrained smile. He blinked, and the smile disappeared.

“I’m talking about myself. I’m really, really pathetic.”

He had never heard Yu Tianbai speak so bluntly about himself, and with such words. It reminded him of the word Yu Tianbai had used to describe him on the day they first met.

Stupid.

But this was worse. Pathetic was more miserable than stupid, and more painful.

After taking a deep breath, Xiu Ma responded, “Aren’t you cold? I remember you’re afraid of the cold.”

Yu Tianbai was sitting shirtless under the fan. The room had heating, but his fingertips were visibly red.

The person opposite him raised an eyebrow and asked, “Oh, are you concerned about me now?”

After asking, he crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, feigned composure, and asked again, “When did I tell you I’m afraid of the cold?”

Admittedly, Mr. Yu had a good figure. The posture of crossing his arms was ordinary, but with his shirt off, it was anything but ordinary. Watching the red beads of the necklace roll against his chest, Xiu Ma simply looked away.

“I mean, instead of sitting here doing nothing and berating yourself, you might as well come back and continue massaging me.”

Xiu Ma lifted his chin, pointing at him, and smiled innocently. “Didn’t you say your technique was good? Let me try it.”