When I went home for Chinese New Year, I spent a million times more money on my foreign wife.

The men's bathing area was shrouded in mist.

Chen Yang, wearing a white bath towel, led his father into the constant-temperature pool.

Several men with dragon and phoenix tattoos on their bodies were already soaking in the pool. They were all muscular and had gold chains floating on the water, making them look quite intimidating.

Mr. Chen paused, instinctively wanting to shrink to the side.

Chen Yang remained calm and walked straight to the best outlet in the middle of the pool.

The gangsters raised their eyelids, about to lash out, but then they saw the young man's muscular physique—though he had no tattoos, his muscles were as firm and smooth as a cheetah's—and his eyes, which were as cold as ice caves when they swept over.

The older men shrank back, silently sank their bodies into the water, and gave up their seats.

"Dad, get down, this spot is good for your back." Chen Yang patted the water beside him.

Mr. Chen carefully entered the water, and as the hot current washed over him, he let out a long sigh of comfort.

"These city people really know how to enjoy life. The water temperature is even warmer than the kang (heated brick bed) at home."

The women's section, separated by just one wall, presents a completely different scene.

Katyusha, wrapped in a pink bath towel, stood under the showerhead, examining a red bath towel with both hands.

That thing has a surface as rough as sandpaper used for sanding walls on a construction site.

"Moon, is this thing for polishing glass?" Katyusha put the bath towel on her hand and held it up on her thigh, her hair standing on end. "Are you sure you want to use it on a person?"

Chen Yue was applying shower gel to her body, laughing so hard she couldn't stand up straight: "Sister-in-law, this is called a bath towel, it's a soulmate. You'll see in a bit, it's a stairway to heaven."

Ten minutes later, in the bathhouse area.

This place is like a slaughterhouse assembly line, with rows of narrow single beds covered with disposable plastic sheets.

The person in charge of scrubbing Katyusha's back is Aunt Li, the top masseuse here.

The middle-aged woman was burly and thick-waisted, with arms thicker than Chen Yue's thighs. She had a piece of red "sandpaper" wrapped around her hand and her eyes were shining as she looked at Katyusha's milk-white skin.

In my 30 years in the industry, I've never seen such good skin.

"Lie down, girl, you know how good this auntie is, I guarantee you'll feel heaven."

Katyusha lay down stiffly, like a warrior about to be executed.

"Are you ready?" Aunt Li tightened her grip on the red cloth in her hand.

Sizzle—!

The first touch was a friction that produced sparks.

"Suka—!!!"

A piercing, Russian curse instantly pierced through the thick soundproofing of the bathroom.

Chen Yang was resting with his eyes closed when he vaguely heard a scream, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up.

Inside the women's section, Katyusha sprang to her feet, one hand already gripping Aunt Li's wrist, her azure eyes filled with the ruthless instinct of someone attacked.

"Someone attacked! This is torture! She's skinning me alive!" Katyusha shouted at Chen Yue.

The aunties and grandmas who were scrubbing themselves in the bathhouse were startled and stopped what they were doing to watch the commotion.

Aunt Li was also stunned. This foreign girl looked delicate, but her grip was as strong as a pair of pliers, making her wrist hurt.

"Sister-in-law! Let go! Let go quickly!" Chen Yue rushed over and pressed Katyusha down. "This is normal! This is called getting muddy! You can't get clean without getting muddy!"

"Mud?" Katyusha pointed to her bright red arm. "This is blood! My blood!"

Aunt Li, having seen her share of ups and downs, seized the opportunity to show off the results on her bath towel: "Look, girl, look at these gray stripes."

Katyusha leaned closer and saw that there were indeed rolls of gray stuff on the red cloth.

She was shocked.

She showers every day, so why does she have so many strange things on her body? Is this some kind of mysterious Eastern power?

Under Chen Yue's kind persuasion, Katyusha lay back down, clenching her teeth tightly, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the edge of the bed.

"Auntie, be gentle, this is her first time," Chen Yue instructed.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Aunt Li chuckled and made her move.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.

The sound was rhythmic, like sawing wood.

From her initial pig-like screams to her later whimpering, and finally to Katyusha's unfocused gaze and unconscious muttering, Katyusha's expression changed.

"I want to go home... I want my mom... I want vodka..."

"Flip it over!" Aunt Li slapped her bottom.

Katyusha was flipped over like a salted fish.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but just when Katyusha thought she was going to die there, the old woman suddenly stopped.

Then, warm milk was poured over his entire body, followed by coarse salt and honey.

In that instant, the burning sensation on my skin was soothed, and an unprecedented feeling of clarity exploded from my pores.

It's lighter now.

I feel like I've lost at least two pounds.

Every pore is breathing, like a butterfly that has just emerged from its cocoon.

After showering and changing into her bathrobe, Katyusha walked out of the women's section with rosy cheeks and a brisk pace.

Chen Yang was sitting on the sofa in the lounge drinking tea when he saw his wife come out and waved with a smile.

"How is it? You made it out alive?"

Katyusha rushed over and grabbed Chen Yang's arm, as excited as a child who had discovered a new continent.

"Chen! That old lady is a magician! I feel like I've been reborn!"

She rolled up her sleeves and held her arm under Chen Yang's nose: "Smell me! I smell like milk! And my skin is so smooth even a fly couldn't land on it!"

Chen Yang reached out and touched it; it was indeed slippery.

[Ding! Detected that the host has taken his wife to experience the ultimate Northeastern bath culture, opening the door to a new world.]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained skill fragment: Master-level Tuina Massage Proficiency (1/3). Collect all fragments to unlock the God-level Traditional Chinese Medicine Master.]

This lousy system makes it so hard to even give you a skill; you have to piece together a puzzle.

"Let's go upstairs." Chen Yang stood up. "Let's make up for the two pounds of meat we lost earlier."

The second-floor buffet restaurant is another battlefield.

King crab, Boston lobster, and freshly cut salmon were piled up like a small mountain.

Mr. and Mrs. Chen held their plates, looking at the high-end seafood they had never seen before, but dared not touch it. They only dared to pick up some fried rice and hot dishes.

"Mom, those crabs are free, take as many as you want." Chen Yang placed two plates of large crabs on the table.

Katyusha has absolutely no goddess-like image to maintain.

She had just been subjected to "torture" and desperately needed to replenish her energy.

She held a huge king crab leg in each hand, cracked the hard shell with a snap, and tore out the snow-white crab meat, eating it with gusto.

The guests at the next table were dumbfounded.

Where did this starving ghost reincarnate? The thing is, this foreign woman looks like she stepped out of a painting, but her eating habits are even more unrestrained than the heroes of Liangshan.

"Eat slowly, no one will take it from you." Chen Yang peeled a shrimp for her. "There's a red wine bath and a sauna later. We'll stay here tonight."

Katyusha, her mouth full of crab meat, nodded indistinctly, then picked up the iced cola on the table and clinked it against Chen Yang's.

"Hurrah! From now on, I'm going to come here every day and have my skin peeled!"

Chen Yang shook his head as he looked at her carefree demeanor.

This silly wife is probably going to become a regular at the bathhouse from now on.