Chapter 311 A Short Story After the Rain
A torrential downpour adorned the night sky.
Water droplets fell from the sky and landed on the green-tiled eaves of a courtyard house located on the right side of Lin'an Temple.
Four curtains of water cascaded down, like four beaded screens strung together with thread.
The sound of rain from all around was overwhelming.
"Esteemed benefactors, the monk's robes have arrived. They are clean, new clothes that were just delivered today by the tailor shop in the East Market. Please wear them with peace of mind."
“Benefactor Ouyang, the ingredients you requested, this humble monk only found a small portion in the temple kitchen. There are no scallions, ginger, or cooking wine, only some dough, cilantro, and lard, all leftovers from the daytime.”
A monk with an umbrella braved the rain and came to the courtyard to inform them.
From the tightly closed door of a room in the courtyard, Ouyang Rong's voice rang out:
"It's alright, that's enough. Put the clothes and ingredients on the kitchen counter together. Thank you for your hard work."
"That's how it should be."
The monks in the courtyard didn't leave immediately; they said in a somewhat cheerful tone:
"That aunt of Benefactor Ouyang is truly kind-hearted and devout to Buddhism. She has donated a great deal of incense to our small temple. The abbot has long wanted to pay a visit to express his sincere gratitude to Benefactor Ouyang and Bodhisattva Zhen. I never expected to have such a fortunate encounter tonight..."
"Yes, I do have a special connection with your Lin'an Temple."
After a pause, a pleasant cough belonging to a woman came from inside the gate, followed by Ouyang Rong's voice:
"Wait, there's only one stove in this guest courtyard, and it's only in this room?"
"The temple is poor, and each guest room only has one stove; there are no extras."
The monk holding an umbrella in the courtyard smiled wryly:
"How about my junior brother and I go to the neighboring courtyard and bring one over?"
"Never mind, it's not necessary. It's raining so hard... You guys go and rest. Close the gate before you leave."
"Very well, benefactor."
The footsteps of the monk with an umbrella outside the gate gradually faded away in the heavy rain, followed by the sound of the gate closing.
Inside the dormitory, Ouyang Rong and Xie Lingjiang exchanged a glance and simultaneously let out a soft sigh.
This is a temple in Chaisangfang, near the river, called Lin'an Temple. Although it is in the same neighborhood, it is quite far from Huaiye Lane.
Ouyang Rong didn't know how he ended up here. Fortunately, his aunt Zhen Shuyuan liked to burn incense and pray for her nephew everywhere.
She had donated money to most of the temples in Chaisangfang, making her a real sucker... no, a platinum customer. This Lin'an Temple was no exception.
He and his junior sister had just escaped the rain and arrived here in the middle of the night. Ouyang Rong tried mentioning his aunt's name, and was immediately treated with great respect by the monks.
He didn't stand on ceremony and made some requests, which the monks all did their best to fulfill.
Currently, Lin'an Temple has arranged a dormitory room with a spacious courtyard for Ouyang Rong and Xie Lingjiang to stay in.
The two took shelter from the rain and rested by the fire.
However, there was only one stove in the dormitory. Ouyang Rong couldn't help but sigh. It seemed that he would have to squeeze in with his junior sister.
He turned around and gave a serious suggestion:
"Take off your damp outer clothes. Wearing them will make it easy for cold air to enter your body. Hang them by the stove to air them out and make them easier to dry."
A stunningly beautiful young woman, coughing, stood by the fireplace, her voice barely audible: "Hmm."
Both of them were soaked to the bone; they hadn't noticed much of it while running in the rain.
Now that I'm inside the dry, warm room, I suddenly realize that my wet coat feels heavy on my body and keeps dripping water onto my feet.
At this moment, sharing a room, their eyes met briefly before looking away, and their hands, which had been clasped together, temporarily parted.
The atmosphere inside the room fell silent. Without saying a word, Ouyang Rong took off his damp white fox fur shawl, and then took off his outermost plain white shirt, hanging them together by the stove to dry.
Xie Ling and Jiang Yuguang had been secretly watching their senior brother's movements. They saw him take off and hang up his clothes as if nothing was wrong, all in one smooth motion, without making any other moves.
She secretly breathed a sigh of relief, turned to the side, raised her hand to unbutton her collar, and without thinking much, slowly took off the fiery red evening gown with its hem cut off.
Ouyang Rong couldn't help but turn his head to look, and immediately noticed that Xie Lingjiang's close-fitting gauze dress seemed to be somewhat thin and see-through.
Previously, when she was running away in the rain, she was wearing a formal gown with so much fabric that it completely covered her body, making it impossible to see anything special about her.
But now that the wet and heavy evening gown has been removed, the real scenery is revealed—underneath is a close-fitting gauze dress.
The close-fitting gauze garment is made of a special material. It's fine when it's not wet, but now that it's soaked, it immediately clings to the body, becoming even more "close-fitting," and revealing a blue and pink color-blocked undergarment and panties underneath.
This immediately made Xie Lingjiang's graceful figure appear even more curvaceous.
In particular, there is a certain landscape that is extremely vicious and heinous.
Soaked to the bone, this noble lady of the Xie family no longer cared about maintaining a ladylike image. With her cute movements of bending over, lifting her foot, and hooking her finger to take off her shoes, the large bouncing of her chest immediately dazzled someone's eyes.
He swallowed hard. How come these high-class gauze dresses worn by aristocratic ladies look like they're not wearing anything when they're wet? This is what high society is all about, right?
After hanging her dress by the stove to dry, Xie Lingjiang suddenly turned around, followed Ouyang Rong's gaze, and looked down at herself.
She blushed instantly.
"You...you're not allowed to look." She lowered her head shyly.
The stunning young woman covered her chest with her two slender arms and stammered.
Unfortunately, his voice lacked energy, giving him only a cute but fierce look.
"Oh, okay."
Ouyang Rong responded and obediently turned around. He looked around with a normal expression, and then took the lead in demonstrating by taking off his undergarments and going shirtless.
Xie Lingjiang was so frightened that she crossed her arms and leaned back, her beautiful eyes wide open: "Senior Brother, what are you going to do?"
Ouyang Rong said with a serious face: "Change your clothes, it's so uncomfortable to wear damp clothes."
"Then...then why are you changing here?"
Ouyang Rong spoke with reason and seriousness: "As a grown man, it doesn't matter where I change, what could I possibly be embarrassed about? Don't worry about me, Junior Sister."
"..." Xie Lingjiang bit her lip, staring blankly at him: "Senior Brother really doesn't treat me like an outsider."
Ouyang Rong blinked: "Are you still an outsider?"
"Senior Brother, you..."
Xie Lingjiang was speechless for a moment.
Such rapid progress made her heart beat a little fast.
Not long ago, the elegant and dignified Miss Xie, who had made a grand entrance at her highly anticipated birthday banquet, blushed and gasped for breath.
Finally, she mustered up her courage, looked up, and glared at him. "Senior Brother, you're not allowed... you're not allowed to be improper."
Immediately, under Ouyang Rong's direct gaze, she lowered her head timidly and said:
"You...you go to the kitchen to change into your monk's robes. I'll go over there later. After we're done, we'll come back to warm ourselves by the fire and eat longevity noodles. What do you say...okay?"
The stunning young woman's voice lacked confidence, as if she was prepared to be rejected.
"Ahem, alright, I'll do as my junior sister says."
Ouyang Rong nodded calmly:
"Should you change first, or should I change first?"
Xie Lingjiang said shyly, "Senior brother, you're almost all undressed..."
“Okay.” Ouyang Rong nodded.
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingjiang breathed a huge sigh of relief.
He suddenly stopped: "Oh, right, take this and use it to cover up the problem."
"This is……"
"Your skirt is quite long, it'll cover you up a bit."
"Thank you... thank you, Senior Brother."
"Don't mention it."
Xie Lingjiang felt a warmth in her heart as she watched that honest and upright figure walk towards the kitchen.
The senior brother was very good to her. He was an upright and reliable person. Although he could be a little bad and bold at times, he never forced her and respected her. Even though he took her out tonight, she impulsively followed him, getting soaked in the rain, and spent the night at the temple...
So what my aunt said about being completely dominated and bullied by him in the future... well, that won't happen.
Xie Lingjiang felt a surge of joy.
Ouyang Rong walked out of his quarters and arrived at the kitchen door. Suddenly, he turned around and said with a serious expression:
"I won't lock the door. Junior sister, please guard the door for me. No outsiders are allowed to come in except for you."
His tone was very serious.
Anyone who didn't know better would think he was a delicate young lady.
"I, I won't come in... Okay, okay, go change your clothes."
Xie Lingjiang waved her hand in agreement, coaxing him helplessly.
Ouyang Rong nodded and walked into the dimly lit kitchen.
The door was closed.
Ouyang Rong immediately turned around, glanced at the copper lock, and reached out to test it slightly. He found that the copper lock was rusty and made a creaking sound when it was moved even slightly.
He nodded slightly, withdrew his hand, and refrained from touching it for the time being.
After glancing around the kitchen, Ouyang Rong first checked the clean monk's robes and longevity noodle ingredients on the stove, then turned around and quietly wandered around the kitchen, looking it over from all sides.
They didn't immediately change their wet clothes.
"So, now that you've confessed and held hands, what's the next step?"
A certain straight man couldn't help but ponder, muttering to himself:
"It shouldn't be too much to be frank, right? Wasn't that Miss Qin quite generous and forthright before? Although I was still a bit too polite to her... cough cough never mind, my junior sister is completely different from her... Sigh, this kind of thing is more complicated than the most difficult official duties, it's really a headache."
Love is not easy, Ouyang Rong sighed:
"We still can't go too far. Although my junior sister sometimes looks silly, it makes people want to bully her."
"But she is, after all, from a powerful and prestigious family, the most elite kind. You can imagine her family traditions are conservative. Her upbringing from childhood is probably geared towards being a virtuous and chaste lady with a strong sense of self-respect. She must never do anything disrespectful or frivolous... well, unless absolutely necessary."
As he slowly stopped muttering, Ouyang Rong couldn't help but recall the alluring figure he had just seen, barely visible, clad only in a blue and pink undergarment. The image lingered in his mind.
"Speaking of which, was she doing it on purpose? If so, wouldn't I be foolishly missing out?"
"Besides, we finally managed to take her out tonight. If we don't strike while the iron is hot and leave with our prize, are we really going to be a virtuous gentleman who can remain unmoved by temptation and escort her home safely, while we go back empty-handed and toss and turn in bed all night, sighing with regret?"
"If Liu Lang and the others found out, they'd laugh me to death."
Walking up to the vat, Ouyang Rong, exuding an air of righteousness, scooped up water with his palm, rubbed his cheek, and nodded to himself:
"No, that's not my style."
After a well-reasoned and logical analysis, Ouyang Rong gritted his teeth and immediately took action.
He wandered around the kitchen silently, passing an empty rice container.
Squeak—!
Ouyang Rong suddenly heard a faint sound coming from the direction of the rice jar. He looked closely and saw that it was a small mouse peeking out. It looked very young.
The baby mouse seemed hungry, pacing and circling in the empty rice jar.
Ouyang Rong raised an eyebrow, walked over, and caught the baby mouse.
He then searched the surrounding area carefully and found a mouse nest, but the mother mouse was nowhere to be seen; she had probably gone out to forage for food.
Ouyang Rong suddenly turned around, went to the kitchen cabinet, and took out a broken bowl.
He returned to the stove, scooped half a spoonful of lard from the ingredients the monk had brought, and poured it into a bowl.
Ouyang Rong lowered his eyes and tossed the mouse into the bowl.
He turned his head and glanced at the two neatly folded monk robes beside him, then reached out his hand.
He first compared the sizes and then specifically chose the largest monk's robe, which he took away to change into.
He kept only a relatively small monk's robe, folded it neatly, and returned it to the stove.
Ouyang Rong casually placed the small monk's robe over the broken bowl to cover it up.
"Why isn't Senior Brother ready yet?"
Suddenly, Xie Lingjiang's puzzled voice came from outside the kitchen.
"They're here, they're here."
Ouyang Rong suppressed a smile and responded.
He walked to the side, took off his clothes, threw away his wet clothes, and put on the large gray monk's robe.
Ouyang Rong went to the stove, picked up a few ingredients, and walked out of the kitchen without looking back.
Squeak—
The kitchen door was pulled open from the inside, and the figure of the young man in monk's robes stepped out.
At the entrance of the dormitory, Xie Lingjiang, who had been anxiously waiting, breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this.
She saw Ouyang Rong walk out of the kitchen, carrying dough and other ingredients, his expression calm and his tone casual:
"Junior sister, go inside and change your clothes. It's dimly lit inside, so watch your step."
"good."
Xie Lingjiang looked at the thing in his arms again: "Senior brother, what is this...?"
"Junior Sister, aren't you hungry? I won't bother you while you change. I'll bring the dough out and knead it a bit so it'll be easier to make longevity noodles for you later."
Ouyang Rong smiled, walked past Xie Lingjiang without glancing to either side, entered the dormitory, placed the cutting board and dough on the table, bent down to knead the dough, and said earnestly:
"I'll keep watch for you, Junior Sister, you can go in without worry."
Xie Lingjiang turned around, glanced at her senior brother's tall, slender back as he earnestly and honestly kneaded the dough, and nodded gently, "Okay."
She carried the dried hem of her skirt, which had been cut off, to cover her wet chest, and went into the kitchen.
The sight of the upright gentleman behind her warmed the heart of the beautiful young woman.
I heard the kitchen door behind me close again.
Ouyang Rong turned his head instantly, listening intently as if waiting for something; his expression was focused.
After a while, there was still no sound of the brass lock being moved from the direction of the kitchen door.
The door wasn't locked.
Ouyang Rong couldn't help but smile, but he tried to suppress it and continued kneading the dough.
He perked up his ears and waited attentively.
Hmm, what's Ouyang Rong's style? If dog blood doesn't come to him, he'll go to dog blood.
After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, no unusual sounds came from the kitchen.
Inside the dormitory, at a table, Ouyang Rong frowned slightly. Why was there no sound coming from there?
Why is my junior sister taking so long to change clothes?
However, women do take quite a while to change clothes and go out...
He lowered his head and waited patiently, kneading the sticky dough of the longevity noodles in his palms.
The image of rain pattering on banana leaves and the bumpy ride that had occurred not long ago slowly appeared before Ouyang Rong's eyes.
His expression was blank.
A moment later, he even felt that the dough felt stranger the more he kneaded it.
Ouyang Rong shook his head.
Crash!
"oops!"
Just then, a crisp sound of a broken bowl shattering on the ground came from the kitchen behind them, followed by the junior sister's sweet cry.
A glimmer of joy appeared in Ouyang Rong's eyes.
He shouted loudly, his voice filled with worry, "Junior Sister, what's wrong? Hang in there!"
Xie Lingjiang cried out in a panic, "Wait, don't come in!" But Ouyang Rong moved even faster.
He dropped the fake dough—no, the real dough—and dashed out of the dormitory like a whirlwind. He arrived at the kitchen, and without a word, pushed open the door and barged in… but the door didn’t budge.
He paused for a moment, then exerted more force.
The door remained completely still.
The kitchen door had been locked at some point, and there was no sound coming out.
The person was stunned for a while, then his eye twitched violently.
Seriously? Even a gentleman would be wary?!
(End of this chapter)
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