Chapter 31
Deep in the East China Sea, a family of three embraced for a long time.
Jia'er was sandwiched between his parents, held so tightly he couldn't move, but he still managed to squeeze out some space to look up—was this his father?
He didn't call me by the wrong name, did he?
Looking at those eyes that were exactly the same as his own—both had identical red lines at the corners of their eyes…
Yes, he didn't call me by the wrong name, this is indeed my father!
He really saw his father!
Jia'er snuggled happily in his father's arms, wiggling his bottom. If he were in dragon form at that moment, his father and mother would surely have seen his tail wagging back and forth joyfully.
As for Ao Guang, after embracing his wife and children, he would pull them out to look at them one moment and then pull them back into his arms the next, repeating this over and over again, seemingly without ever getting tired.
He still couldn't believe what he was seeing.
Overwhelmed with joy, he was so engrossed in this unconscious act that he didn't even realize it himself.
Yinglong was suddenly pulled into his arms and then lifted out to examine her closely, which made her feel a little dizzy.
"Idiot, do you even recognize us anymore?"
Do we need to confirm this so many times?
“Yes, Father, don’t you recognize us?” Jia’er chimed in.
What is my father doing, sometimes carrying me and sometimes holding me tightly?
Only when he heard them both speak did Ao Guang realize something, and he stopped, feeling somewhat embarrassed. Their voices were so beautiful, so real, lingering in his ears—how long had it been since he had heard them?
Overwhelmed with joy, his chest was filled once again. This king of the East Sea, standing on his own city wall for the first time, seemed at a loss for what to do.
The surrounding seawater kissed them intimately. Ao Guang seemed to realize where he was before he could react. In the blink of an eye, he swept his arm and held his wife and child firmly in his arms. Then, in a swift flash, he took them back to the Dragon Palace.
The Dragon Palace seemed unchanged from when they left; the guards at the gate still stood diligently at their posts. Today, all was peaceful in the seabed, with only plankton swimming silently. Just when everyone thought it would be another ordinary day of guard duty, suddenly a surge of water erupted, the world spun, and then a very blurry figure swept past them.
The guards at the gate were instantly thrown off balance by the powerful surge of water, and when they came to their senses, they were all disoriented. After a long while, a large turtle among the guards struggled to its feet, twisted its body, and then stroked its whiskers, asking dazedly, "Uh, did something just go in?"
"Idiots, that's our king, that's the Dragon King returning to the palace." The sea lion said disdainfully, setting up its double halberds. What kind of eyes did these guards with it have?
"Oh, is our Dragon King returning to the palace? Why does he look so rushed?"
"Yes, that's not like my king's usual style..."
The guards at the gate were whispering amongst themselves. They had been bored at the bottom of the sea for too long, and the slightest rustling of wind could keep them talking for half a day. They considered it a way to pass the time while on guard duty.
Their king was so fast that they didn't even see a shadow of him, let alone the person they were holding.
Unbeknownst to them, their little prince and queen had returned, and the Dragon Palace was about to become lively again.
The layers of waves on the seabed began to subside, but another heart-pounding wave grew bigger and bigger.
After quickly bringing his wife and child back to the Dragon Palace, Ao Guang closed the door and, where no one could see, began to stare at the mother and child in his arms as if in a dream.
Yinglong couldn't stand being stared at like that by this idiot, so she broke free from his embrace and took a few steps back.
Throughout this process, the Little Dragon King kept his eyes fixed on her.
As for Jia'er, he just stayed in his father's arms, not knowing how to move—he looked at his father's face, and finally it gradually overlapped with the remaining image in his memory.
"Father, I miss you so much!" Jia'er threw herself into her father's arms, burying her face between her cheeks.
After so long, he finally saw his father.
When Ao Guang heard the child's voice, he was momentarily dazed, recalling how the child was so young and innocent back then, unable to even speak clearly, but now he was strong and articulate—this was their child, their child, who had really grown up so much.
While looking at the child, Ao Guang also glanced in a certain direction ahead.
He simply couldn't resist.
Jia'er began to ramble on about how much he missed his father. He talked about what he and his mother had seen and heard on their journey back, and how much effort they had put in to come back and see their father. They had really traveled for a very, very long time.
During this process, he spared no effort in praising himself, saying how well-behaved and obedient he was to his mother.
"Yeah?"
Upon hearing this, Yinglong and the child had a slight disagreement.
"Yes, Jia'er listens to his mother very well," Xiao Long boasted.
"So who almost caused trouble before they came back?"
Jia'er puffed out his cheeks, and after a short while, he continued:
"That was my mistake..."
After he finished speaking, he looked at his father, and his father looked at his mother.
So Yinglong crossed his hands:
"Did you know what? On his way back, he passed by a human village and actually took a liking to their candied hawthorns. He wanted to go down and take them, which almost caused us to be exposed."
Upon hearing this, Jia'er lowered his head somewhat guiltily, but he quickly raised his head again.
Good heavens, he finally figured out what that human thing was called!
Ao Guang looked at the child's round head, at his innocent, wide eyes that blinked adorably. Ao Guang remained silent, simply gazing at the child with doting affection and a smile.
From the moment they met until now, he has only looked at the mother and son and smiled, without saying a single word.
Then Jia'er started talking non-stop again, occasionally interjecting with a word or two from her mother, and the palace instantly became lively.
The Little Dragon King's gaze darted between two places, his heart already melting into a lump of mud.
Yinglong watched the heartwarming scene of the father and son in front of her, and she listened carefully to what the child was saying—she had no idea that her little one could talk so much now! He kept talking non-stop, and she could go out and make up stories later.
In the deep blue wonderland, innocent children's voices dance with the swirling bubbles, weaving the flowing seawater into a thick, unforgettable afternoon.
Jia'er talked non-stop for a long time, and his father watched him the whole time. When he finally got tired of talking, he started to look around. This huge dragon palace looks so beautiful. Can he go and play?
Just as the father and son in front of him were about to finish their heartfelt rambling, Yinglong stretched out his hands and yawned.
"Mmm~" She stretched her body comfortably, and then was about to fall down.
Upon seeing this, Ao Guang rushed over.
"Father, I can..."
"call out!"
Before Jia'er could finish speaking, her father had already escorted her out of the palace.
"Ah!" Xiaolong was caught off guard and his body flew out.
The guards at the entrance of the Dragon Palace were quite surprised to see something fly out of the palace.
"Aaaaaaah!"
Koji's body was caught before he hit the ground.
The surrounding soldiers all curiously gathered in a circle, and after they saw the face of the person who had caught the object in the circle, they exclaimed in unison in surprise:
"The young prince?"
*
Inside the Dragon Palace, Yinglong stretched lazily, trying to lie down, but she didn't; her body was held firmly in her arms.
I miss you so much~
In a low, muffled voice, this was the first thing Benlong had said to them since they had met.
Yinglong was being held tightly in his arms, and she wasn't exerting any strength at all. Her body was completely relaxed as he lifted her up.
Forced to rest her head on Benlong's broad, warm shoulders, she couldn't help but bury her face in his arms as well.
"I really miss you." And that was it again.
Since we met, he has only said these few words.
Their bodies were pressed tightly together, and Yinglong felt like he was being suffocated by this idiot's embrace.
"Hey? What are you doing?" Yinglong couldn't help but raise his hand and gently pat him, wondering why he was being so dramatic.
But what she received in return was an even tighter hug.
Why.
With a soft sigh, Yinglong went with him.
After hugging her for a while, Benlong let go of her, then looked intently at her face and fell silent.
As if to confirm whether she was real, he was looking at her with his eyes and secretly squeezing her hand.
Yes, it's warm and soft, it's real.
Yinglong felt her cheeks being pinched lightly, and she frowned slightly—what is this idiot doing?!
He just stared at her like he was investigating, while his hands were fidgeting with her. Did he really think she was a mannequin?
She raised her arm and slapped the person in front of her on the shoulder with a "smack," feeling helpless.
"What are you doing? You really think I'm a fake..."
Before she could finish speaking, she was suddenly pulled into someone's arms again.
This time she was hugging him even tighter than before, and she felt like she was suffocating again.
"Idiot, let go!"
She was released after the person on top of her struck her with a hammer.
Finally able to breathe in the fresh air, Yinglong took the opportunity to catch his breath.
Ao Guang seemed embarrassed by his own behavior. He lowered his head in shame, but after a while, he raised his head again. This time, his eyes sparkled like stars, and the corners of his mouth curved into a wider smile.
Yinglong looked at him and felt that there was definitely something wrong with him.
Ao Guang felt that something was wrong with him; he felt like he was going crazy with joy.
I could hear and see nothing; all I could see was her silhouette.
Seeing his expression, Yinglong raised his hand to poke his head, but his hand was suddenly grabbed.
The Little Dragon King felt he couldn't let go of her even a little bit today, otherwise he would feel very uncomfortable.
He had been gone for so long with the children, without any news from them. He had been waiting anxiously for them to return, and he couldn't let them disappear from his sight again.
Thinking this, he subconsciously took another step forward, but before he could take the step, Yinglong suddenly pointed at him and said, "Don't hug me!"
Benlong raised his hand and then lowered it again. He stood there a little embarrassed, scratching his head. Okay, if you can't hug me, then you can't hug me.
"Was it tough coming back this time?" He asked blankly after scratching his head, because he had just heard his children say that it had been really tough for them to come back this time.
Noticing that the person in front of him had finally calmed down, Yinglong pondered.
"Hmm~" It's not exactly hard work, it's just that taking care of the baby has been a little bumpy.
"What happened?" Ao Guang asked curiously. Had Zai Zai caused her trouble?
What did they encounter? Yinglong recounted the details of his travels to the fool, picking and choosing what to tell him.
This idiot was hearing about what was happening to them outside for the first time, so he listened very attentively, imagining in his mind the scenes of them going through all of this.
Hearing her actually start talking about how well-behaved and curious the child was, he couldn't help but grin happily.
"So he didn't actually cause you any trouble, right?" Benlong was happy for her and a little proud. Everyone said the child resembled him, but the child was clearly very well-behaved.
"Hey, who said that?" Yinglong stretched lazily again at the end, beginning to shatter the fool's little pride.
"Didn't I tell you? On his way back, he passed by the human race and actually took a liking to their candied hawthorns, trying to get them, which almost caused us to be exposed."
These are such lovely little things! As Ao Guang listened to her words, his eyes curved into crescent moons.
Looking at this foolish guy's silly appearance, Yinglong suddenly remembered his figure standing on the city wall. On the vast city wall, there was only his lonely figure.
"So, you anticipated our return, so you went there to wait for us beforehand?"
Ao Guang didn't deny it; he just smiled slightly, his eyelashes fluttering.
There's no coincidence, it's just a dream come true.
Since they left, he went to the city wall every day to wait, counting down the days until their return. But he waited and waited, and they never came. As time went by, he even dreamed of them… From initially rushing there, he eventually became a steadfast rock on the wall. Every time he saw ripples on the water and sunlight streaming down, he instinctively thought they had returned, and his calm heart would pound wildly. But every time, it wasn't them. Their phantoms would vanish like bubbles just as he was about to touch them, and he would return disappointed time and time again. Now, he dared not hold any more hope, and each time he would simply wait quietly alone on the city wall. But this time, this time it was so real. He had actually seen them long ago, when they were about to enter the East Sea, but he thought it was just another illusion, like before. Until she and the child came to his side, even their voices were so real. Only then did he finally believe—they had really returned!
In any case, this time it's for real!
Thankfully they're back!
Thinking of this, he finally couldn't hold back any longer. Taking advantage of her inattention, he took a step forward and hugged her in his arms.
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