Xiao Cheng didn't move. The clothes in his hands were nearing the end of their washing process. He washed them, wrung them out, and waited for them to hang up.
"Wait."
After saying that, she got up to hang up the clothes.
After hanging up the clothes, I'll be heading out.
However, as soon as he turned around, he was stopped. To be precise, it was the little figure who hadn't spoken to him for two days who suddenly rushed into his arms and hugged his waist.
She raised her little face, looking at him innocently and fearfully, and weakly said, "There are mice in the house."
The sudden embrace stunned Xiao Cheng, and he stopped walking away.
The girl in his arms was trembling. Her face, which had been rosy while eating, was now pale with fright, and her slender, soft body was shaking.
Xiao Cheng's body reacted several beats slower, and his heart even stopped beating for a moment, but he didn't push her away.
I've seen her afraid of snakes.
I've never seen her afraid of mice.
Xiao Wei sat to the side washing clothes, silently watching without saying a word. A few days ago, a snake appeared in the backyard, and he remembered that his older brother had clearly sprinkled lime powder and rat poison nearby.
Where did this fearless rat come from?
Xiao Cheng seemed to have finally remembered this matter and explained, "There won't be any rats."
"Yes, yes, I just saw it! It's huge, bigger than my face!"
Bai Lu buried her face in Xiao Cheng's chest in fear, clutching his clothes tightly with both hands, clinging to him like a paper doll.
She understood what it meant the deadline had arrived.
The time has come to collect the debt from Li Chengbin.
In his past life, Xiao Cheng went out tonight, and the next day, something happened at Li Chengbin's house.
Then, the police came to search...
Xiao Cheng, Luo Shiliu, Wang Hao, and Xiao Dazhuang were imprisoned. During this time, Xiao Wei went to deliver seasonal clothes and meals to Xiao Cheng. Whether he was abducted by human traffickers or it was done on purpose, he disappeared without a trace.
Bai Lu knew that Xiao Cheng hadn't done anything; he was just a pawn thrown out by the big boss to incite conflict. However, the consequences of this incident indirectly led to Xiao Wei's uncertain fate.
This became an unresolved regret for Xiao Cheng throughout his life.
Not to mention, during those days inside, his opponents used their power to settle personal scores, abusing him with electric batons... in an attempt to extract a confession through torture.
Tonight, she wouldn't let Xiao Cheng go out no matter what; so be it if he didn't want to be reserved.
Anyway, this is the 1990s, nobody knows who she is, and family rules and etiquette have no say in her affairs.
"Brother Cheng?"
Besides Luo Shiliu, there were also Wang Hao and Xiao Dazhuang outside, shouting one after another.
Afraid that he might not hear her, she pounded on the door even harder, the knocking sound louder than thunder on a rainy day.
Xiao Cheng frowned, his gaze sweeping coldly over the door, and miraculously, the thunderous knocking stopped.
Bai Lu seemed not to have heard anything from beginning to end, turning a deaf ear to what was happening outside the window, and instead of grabbing his clothes, she hugged Xiao Cheng's waist tightly, refusing to let go.
Even through her knitted sweater and shirt, Xiao Cheng could feel her tense body and rapid heartbeat, which made his thoughts chaotic and unable to make a judgment.
"I have to go out," he explained.
Bai Lu raised her pitiful little face, her clear eyes misting over with a thin layer of water: "But there are mice in the house. What if they jump onto the bed at night? I'm scared."
"When I'm scared, I jump around and run away. If I accidentally fall, my stomach..."
You know what will happen to your stomach.
Xiao Cheng's eyes were filled with her glistening tears. He couldn't hear what she said, but perhaps there was the word "fear" in it, along with the muffled trembling sounds coming from his arms.
The hand that had been hanging by his side finally rose and patted her back twice.
"I'll go take a look."
Go, go, go catch mice?
Xiao Wei's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
How do I catch mice in my house? Where can I catch them?
Bai Lu is clearly lying, can't you see that, brother?
Xiao Cheng, with Bai Lu by his side, searched every room in the house, under and on the bed, in the wardrobes and wooden chests, in every nook and cranny, even the kitchen, woodshed, and bathroom.
After repeated checks, there were no rats.
He then offered a few words of comfort, saying he would be back later, before turning and hurrying out the door.
Not a moment to lose.
We hadn't even reached the door yet.
A scream came from behind.
Xiao Cheng's waist was hugged again, and he heard the girl's trembling voice from behind: "There was a mouse, a really big one, it just ran past my feet, really..."
"Squeak!"
A mouse squeak suddenly came from somewhere.
The small body behind Xiao Cheng instantly turned to face him, burying itself in his chest again. Its soft, boneless little hands gripped his arm tightly, and its entire body trembled from head to toe, unable to stand steadily and about to slip off.
Helpless, he bent down and, just like last time, carried the girl with weak legs back to her room and placed her on the bed.
This time, however, Bai Lu didn't give Xiao Cheng a chance to leave. As soon as she put him down on the bed, she hugged his neck tightly.
I don't know where the supernatural power came from, but it managed to pull this grown man off the bed and cover him with the blanket.
They were still using the same blanket.
Xiao Cheng: "..."
A faint fragrance wafted into my nostrils. I could clearly see that she was covered by her blanket, while his was neatly folded at the foot of the bed.
"I feel a bit cold. Sharing a blanket will keep us warm and protect each other. There really are mice in the house. They were squeaking really loudly just now, didn't you hear them?"
Bai Lu's face was pressed against Xiao Cheng's shoulder, her hands wrapped around his strong, lean waist, her body trembling as she nestled in his arms, perfectly demonstrating how terrified she was of mice.
"Besides, it's pitch black at night now, and there's no way to find any mice. What if a mouse suddenly crawls onto the bed in the middle of the night and bites me? Will I die? Will the baby in my belly die...?"
"Acheng...I'm scared..."
For the past few days, we slept separately with our blankets in different places, but these last two nights we've been back to back, ignoring each other.
Caught off guard, Xiao Cheng was stunned for a long time when he found himself in a warm and soft embrace. He even forgot where to put his hands. The sound of the woman's heart beating faster and her soft, trembling voice penetrated his bones and made his heartbeat even more uneasy.
Xiao Cheng took a deep breath, raised his hand and then lowered it. Before he knew it, his hand had gently landed on Bai Lu's back. Perhaps it had been there unintentionally when he lay down.
Or perhaps it was those last four words that dispelled the awkward silence of the past two days, and her large hand gently patted him to comfort him again.
It also became natural.
"Don't be afraid..."
The deep voice was less cold than usual, and more like a lullaby, a rare display of gentleness.
Bai Lu knew without a doubt that Xiao Cheng wanted to wait until she fell asleep before going out.
She just won't sleep!
Even if you pinch my thigh, I can't be seduced by his soft, low voice!
—
After hanging up the clothes, Xiao Wei waited for a while, but no one came out. He then silently went back into the house and locked the door.
Then he went back to his room, closed the door, and went to sleep.
The lights in the main house were all off, and no one had come out yet. Xiao Dazhuang and the others who were waiting outside the wall were all stunned.
"Sixteen, why did you just imitate a mouse's squeak?" Wang Hao couldn't wait for Xiao Cheng, so he could only blame Luo Sixteen.
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