Silent night

For low-grade stones, the stone with the highest energy density is fire brick, followed by asphalt, concrete and regular brick. Every material can transfer heat to a cooler material. Materials with a higher thermal conductivity transfer heat more readily. This is one reason why a marble floor feels cooler to bare feet than a wood floor, even though the two floors are at the same temperature. If a stone has a high thermal conductivity, it will also transfer heat to a cooler place the quickest. This means the heat will be given up quickly, so this may not be a desirable trait for some applications. Often two types of stone are needed, one that stores heat well, and another that insulates.

Natural stones with high energy density and excellent thermal conductivity are soapstone and marble. These are till the day the best stones for absorbing large amounts of heat quickly. Some types of granite can be good heat conductors but are not great at storing heat. Although Gypsum holds heat well, it acts more like an insulator than a conductor of heat. Basalt, although excellent at holding heat, transfers heat slowly.

And this precious knowledge was bestowed upon him by his master, sage Gao Shu.

Truth was, his master, Gao Shu was once very pleased with him, so he gifted him those three heat stones. His master was aware of his financial conditions, so he never asked for any fee. Instead, he asked a lifetime favor from him. Although Feng Ye Isey was hesitant, he still gave in.

Firstly, he was so poor that he really did not have anything worth being cheated upon. His family had always been humble. Secondly, his master Gao Shu was well respected and a man of principles. He believed that he would not do anything ill to him, so he traded his fees with a lifetime favor.

He sighed heavily.

Rushing towards the bathroom, he dipped one of the stones in the large tub. The water started boiling, the instant stone touched the surface of it. A great amount of steam evaporated from the water. He quickly used another tub to put aside a portion of hot water and then added more cold water to even the temperature. Shoving back the other two stones in his cabinet. he then went back to the hall. There he again picked her up and this time laid her inside the hot tub. Ye Shi followed closely. She was baffled when she noticed heat stones submerged.

She was aware of the stones. The heat stones were the first and the last gift given to him by his master, so it was very close to his heart. She had asked quite a few times, but Feng Ye Isey always denied it whenever she brought the topic of selling them. It gave her quite a big shock when Feng Ye Isey used those precious stones for an unknown lady.

Shaking her head, she went inside.

Soon Feng Ye Isey came inside carrying the unconscious woman. He gingerly placed her inside the tub and went out leaving the rest of the job for Ye Shi. He was dripping wet and covered with mud. Without any delay, he used the guest room bathroom and took a cold shower. The heat stones were expensive, and he can't afford to use them on him so he took a cold shower. He was drying his hair with a towel when he noticed Yi Shi coming out of his room. "Is she done with her bath?" He questioned her.

"Yeah. I am going to prepare some warm food for both of you" She left after patting him on his shoulder.

Feng Ye Isey hesitated but his worry overcame his hesitation, and he went into his room. There he saw a girl bundled up under his blanket. He crossed the distance between them, bending down he placed his hands on her forehead. He was relieved when he noticed that she had not caught a fever. He wanted to retract his hands but for some reason her fair cheeks made him hesitate. His hand slipped down and started stroking her supple cheeks.

He halted.

Damnn it

Cursing himself he retracted his hands. Turning around, he left the room. However, What he failed to see was that after he left, the unconscious woman smirked in her sleep.

--

The rain continued the entire night.

Feng Ye Isey was worried about her health, so he slipped one of the heats one under her blanket. It was an unusually chilly night today. He panicked when she gained a mild fever in the middle of the night when he randomly came to check up on her. He noticed she was running a fever. In his hurry, he was going to knock on Ye Shi's door but held himself back. It was not a good idea to wake her up this late. So he went to fetch a wet towel and used it to lower her temperature by placing it on her forehead. The entire night he served her. He did not know why he was doing it, but for some unknown reason, his heart ached when he saw her in pain.

It was a silent night. Except for the continuous pitter-patter of rain, the moonlight shined on a couple. The girl had a smile on her face despite a fever, while the boy was crouched near her bead. He didn't know when sleep overpowered him, and he slept beside her in a sitting position.