Due to the dense population and the high cost of building bathhouses, along with the need to ensure fire safety, among the nearly one million people in all of Edo, only a very few families had the financial means to establish private bathhouses. The vast majority of townsmen and samurai could only go to public bathhouses to solve their bathing needs.
Therefore, in the Edo Era, where entertainment activities were scarce and there were no convenient means of communication, bathhouses were not only places to cleanse the body but also the most important social venues, almost without exception.
Inviting family and friends to share a moment of tranquility in the bath pool... this was the most common sight in Edo Era bathhouses.
Hence, in the eyes of many, bathhouses were places of very special significance.
They represented relaxation, family, homeliness, friendship, equality... they were the closest "community," filled with rich human warmth and the flavor of life. Inviting friends to bathe together could strengthen the bond and close the distance between "hearts"—Chiba Shigetarou was a person who upheld this view.
So for Chiba Shigetarou, learning that Aoto was bathing in the bathhouse at that moment, was a great opportunity.
A golden chance to further strengthen his relationship with the young man he hoped would become his brother-in-law someday!
He and Aoto didn’t live together, and he couldn’t always be lucky enough to bump into Aoto while he was bathing.
Such an opportunity, if missed, could not be easily found again.
Therefore, Chiba Shigetarou quickly made up his mind—he would go to the bathhouse to find Aoto!
Just as he hadn’t bathed yet, he could wash himself while talking to Aoto.
Though Zhouzhu reminded him that Qianxun House was about to close, and Granny Tang at the men’s bath counter also hinted with a troubled look that the bathhouse was nearing closing time, Chiba Shigetarou ignored all of it, striding into the depths of the men’s bath as he pleased.
Chiba Shigetarou smoothly found Aoto in the bath pool, showing a warm smile as if seeing a long-lost relative.
Immersed in joy, he quickly noticed Aoto, Kondo, and others staring at him with a shocked expression as if they had seen a ghost.
Seeing this, Chiba Shigetarou displayed an even warmer smile—Hahaha, seeing me appear suddenly, Mr. Tachibana is indeed surprised!
He only took the astonished expressions of Aoto as a reaction to his sudden appearance.
Though Chiba Shigetarou keenly noticed the shock on Aoto’s and others’ faces... he did not realize the intense tension and the frightened glint hidden deep in their eyes...
—Why is Mr. Shigetarou here?
At the moment of seeing Chiba Shigetarou, Aoto’s expression was dominated by a strong question.
At this moment, Aoto truly felt what "unexpected" meant, what an "unexpected visitor" was...
"Mr. Shigetarou." Aoto quickly composed himself and asked Chiba Shigetarou in a hurried voice, "What are you doing here?"
"Mr. Tachibana, the reason I suddenly came to visit tonight is that there is a very important matter I would like to discuss with you."
Chiba Shigetarou succinctly recounted how he arrived at Shiwei Hall and was told by Zhouzhu that Mr. Tachibana was now at the bathhouse.
After speaking, Chiba Shigetarou stepped into the bath pool, immersing his body below the chest in the water.
"Oh... this bath pool is pretty big indeed."
Chiba Shigetarou didn’t often come to bathhouses—because the Chiba family was among the few with the financial capacity to build private bathhouses.
Not only did the Little Chiba Sword Dojo have a spacious bathhouse, but it also had many servants who could be immediately summoned to prepare bath water at a moment’s notice.
Therefore, in the eyes of a young master like Chiba Shigetarou, everything in the bathhouse was quite novel
Regarding the matter Chiba Shigetarou mentioned wanting to discuss with him, Aoto was naturally very curious.
If he went out of his way to find him even at night... it must be something important.
But now, Aoto had no extra energy or leisure to care about anything or anyone else besides Toshisuke.
Why didn’t Chiba Shigetarou come earlier or later, but right at this moment—Aoto, Kondo, and Inoue all felt this exasperating sentiment simultaneously.
Misfortunes never come singly... they hadn’t even managed to come up with a perfect strategy to take Toshisuke to a place where she could rest assured, and now a new troublesome problem appeared...
Aoto didn’t need to ask Kondo and Inoue—Chiba Shigetarou, just an ordinary friend of Toshisuke, certainly did not know Toshisuke’s true gender.
To protect Toshisuke’s secret, Aoto and the others definitely couldn’t take Toshisuke out of the bath pool in front of Chiba Shigetarou.
It might have been Aoto’s imagination... but he felt the faint breaths behind him seemed to become heavier, and the tone of suffering seemed to deepen...
The change in Toshisuke’s breathing made Aoto clench his teeth slightly—he must quickly find a way to get Mr. Shigetarou to leave!
However... just as Aoto began thinking about how to make Chiba Shigetarou leave, he heard the sound of water being pushed aside approaching him slowly...
Chiba Shigetarou came to Qianxun House to meet Aoto to deepen their relationship further.
Sitting so far apart from each other... this seemed a bit too distant! Not good for strengthening friendship!

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