Chapter 990 A Late-Night Embrace [Happy National Day! Requesting double monthly votes!]
It was already past 3:45 AM, the night was pitch black, and rain was falling.
At the gate, Ouyang Rong tiptoed, folded his umbrella, and pushed the door open to enter.
I was a little afraid of waking Aqing.
Ouyang Rong first tiptoed into the house. The room was dark, and he could not see the details of the inner room.
Ah Qing must be asleep... Ouyang Rong thought to himself, then took a clean set of clothes and went to the bathhouse.
As I was leaving, a long, silvery snake suddenly flashed across the rain-soaked sky.
The thunder didn't arrive until Ouyang Rong entered the bathroom, its roar echoing in his ears.
Ouyang Rong didn't heat water, took a cold shower, and didn't even turn on the lights.
While I was taking a shower, there was a constant thunderstorm outside.
Ouyang Rong ignored him, his expression unchanged.
Some even listened intently for a while, seemingly lost in thought.
A moment later, he tilted his head back and rested it on the edge of the bathtub, then closed his eyes.
My mind was completely absorbed in the Pagoda of Merit.
Inside the Pagoda of Merit, there is a pure white space.
Ouyang Rong looked around, and everything was familiar, giving him a sense of loneliness and solitude.
As usual, he first flew to the round little wooden fish and checked the blue-gold characters on it.
Merit: 1,898
It's still quite a distance from three thousand merits.
The only recent ways to accumulate merit, besides the political achievements in Jiangzhou, are through feedback from Aqing, Sha Ergou, and the mysterious prisoners in the water dungeon.
It's really a bit tight to have only accumulated this much after so long.
Ouyang Rong shook his head.
Currently, Cui Hao's handwritten Kui Xing talisman and red and black talismans are ready, only lacking three thousand merits, which can serve as another trump card.
After a moment's thought, Ouyang Rong turned around and looked at the Blessing Bell high up.
The ancient bronze bell hangs silently overhead.
The bell remained silent, without the slightest ripple.
Ouyang Rong flew up and touched it with his palm; it was icy cold, and no information entered his mind.
Since I first met Li Shu at the dining hall and successfully activated and redeemed the dual-color blessings, no new blessings have arrived at the Blessing Bell.
As for the two-colored blessing, Ouyang Rong gradually came to understand some of the truth.
It seems that this has come true for Chen Jiaxin and Yun Xiangyi.
He originally intended to use Li Shu, Yu Nianyuan's direct disciple, to smoothly explore the secret areas within Qingliang Valley.
Unexpectedly, Chen Jiaxin appeared halfway through, leading him onto the boat in a daze, and then helped him.
Thinking of this, Ouyang Rong couldn't help but shake his head.
Good fortune is a strange and unexpected thing; its fulfillment can be quite surprising...
He had almost finished washing and was just about to put on his clothes when there was a knock on the door.
Ouyang Rong's first reaction was to be stunned. Before he could ask any more questions, an anxious voice came from outside:
"Brother, are you home? Brother, open the door quickly..."
It was Aqing's voice.
Ouyang Rong immediately stood up in the bathtub and subconsciously asked:
"What's wrong with Aqing? Don't panic..."
"Brother, thunder... a nightmare... I... I'm scared..."
A flustered and fearful voice could be heard from outside the door.
His voice, trembling with sobs, stirred a pang of pity in Ouyang Rong's heart.
Her keywords made Ouyang Rong realize what was going on.
Ah Qing probably had a nightmare in the middle of the night and was eventually woken up by the thunder...
Ouyang Rong immediately turned over and got out of the bathtub, but before he could even hurriedly put on his clothes...
"Boom—!"
A bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, followed by a deafening roar that echoed in the ears of all things.
"Squeak—"
The sound of a door opening followed immediately afterward.
The slender girl in thin clothes at the door seemed impatient and burst through the door, fleeing from fear.
A silvery arc of electricity flashed across the sky outside the door, illuminating the bathhouse even more.
At the same time, Ouyang Rong noticed that a strong wind mixed with rain suddenly rushed into the house. The cold wind that accompanied the girl's intrusion made him feel chilled to the bone, as if silver needles were being inserted into the acupoints on his body, which stimulated his spirit!
"Wait, wait a minute..."
Ouyang Rong, who was hurriedly reaching for his clothes on the clothes rack by the bathtub, called out in a panic.
Before he could finish speaking, the slender girl with flowing hair rushed towards him like a moth to a flame.
"Brother! Waaah..."
Caught off guard, Ouyang Rong could only use the clothes in his hand to shield the two of them slightly before she could hug him.
“Ah Qing, you…”
Ouyang Rong was about to blurt out some words of reproach and admonishment.
However, after the two embraced, and Ouyang Rong felt A Qing's slender frame tremble inexplicably, making him feel pitiful, he swallowed all his words.
I didn't blame her anymore.
At that moment, thunder roared loudly outside, like a colossal beast howling and threatening to devour everything in the world.
Inside the bathhouse, the two were very close together.
It's not just physical distance, but also the distance between hearts.
The girl hugged him very, very tightly.
Every time there was a clap of thunder outside, her shoulders would tremble and she would hug him tighter. If lightning came first and thunder followed, the silvery-white arc of electricity would illuminate the entire world, including the bathroom, several degrees. The slender girl would bury her head deeply in his shoulder and make a whimpering sound like a bullied kitten on the street.
Later, this even became her stress response. The first word Ouyang Rong spoke startled her so much that she mistook it for a thunderclap. She shrank back and curled up in Ouyang Rong's arms, almost standing, wishing she could burrow inside him.
"I'm not afraid."
He said.
Ah Qing seemed still immersed in the fear of thunder and did not respond.
Or rather, she did respond, at least Ouyang Rong didn't hear it; her response was mixed with muffled guttural sounds, or the slight nodding of her head with her chin resting on his shoulder.
Ouyang Rong didn't want to make any big movements, like pushing her away, for fear of scaring her.
He hesitated for a moment, and his hand involuntarily rose up.
It hovered in the air for a moment, and after several attempts to retract it, it was finally put back up.
Ouyang Rong pressed down on A Qing's trembling, rounded shoulders with both hands from behind.
He felt that Aqing's shoulders were too small and her shoulder bones too thin, not even taking up half of the space in his two large palms.
Any man in this situation would inevitably feel a pang of pity and guilt.
Ouyang Rong was also a man, not a saint, and was no exception.
If it were an exception, he wouldn't have abandoned everything to embark on this journey to Yunmengze.
At the same time, the sobbing girl in his arms felt a warmth on her shoulders, like being enveloped by sand on a beach in the afternoon, as if she were completely wrapped up by the young man's large hands, leaving no gaps.
Ouyang Rong's action silenced the occasional flashes of lightning around them for a moment, as perceived by the two men.
The surrounding atmosphere was quiet. Aqing was like a kitten that had been drenched in the rain. While being nursed, her little head was gently stroked by a hand.
In fact, if there were outsiders present at this moment, looking at it from the side, it would look very much like Ouyang Rong had taken the initiative to reach out his arms and hug her...
However, Ouyang Rong was unwilling to think in this direction, or was unwilling to admit his actions.
It was genuine concern from his older brother, without any other ulterior motives.
Ouyang Rong said in a low voice:
"Don't cry, your brother is here."
Aqing didn't say anything, she just kept her head down.
After a short while, his trembling shoulders eased slightly.
Ouyang Rong felt increasingly guilty.
Ah Qing was afraid of thunder on rainy days... He had never realized this before, and Ah Qing had never told him.
At the same time, Ouyang Rong also thought of something that might be related to her fear of thunder and rain.
This refers to the events before Ouyang Rong woke up in Longcheng and met A Qing and A Shan's family.
The night he awoke in Dragon City, the city was flooded. Even though he was in the underground palace, he could see lightning and thunder outside. He was even misled by "Master Ignorance" into thinking that there was some huge, roaring beast outside.
Later I learned that it was a massive flood that swept everything away during a torrential downpour.
Or rather, in the eyes of the poor families in Longcheng at that time, this torrential rain and flood were no different from the hellish beasts in Buddhist scriptures.
They all lead to broken homes, death, and separation of wives and children.
And that's the case with Aqing's family.
The torrential rain and flood destroyed Aqing and Ashan's homes.
It also took away the biological father of the two siblings, leaving only their mother to struggle alone.
Later, out of consideration for Liu Ashan's act of jumping into the water to save the magistrate and his serious illness and near death, Yan Liulang made an exception and arranged a charitable home at Donglin Temple to temporarily accommodate Aqing and Ashan's family.
This led to Ouyang Rong's later acquaintance with A Qing's family and their subsequent anxiety.
That torrential rain and massive flood can be said to have changed the fate of both of them.
There are saviors and those who are saved.
It all started with that torrential rain and flood; that was the perpetrator.
There is a cause and effect, a predetermined fate, hidden within it.
The girl's later experiences also shaped her personality.
To put it bluntly, the reason why Aqing is so well-behaved, sensible, and independent at a young age is that she can not only take care of others but is also gentle and easy to talk to.
In a sense, it is caused by dangerous environmental factors such as torrential rains and floods.
This beautiful young girl, who was clearly exceptionally talented, became sensitive and lacked love. In any environment, she would subconsciously want to observe the people in the same room around her, and observe their emotional state... This is a manifestation of her subconscious insecurity about her surroundings since childhood.
Because of the unsafe environment they have always lived in, a person will pay extra attention to the various signals emitted by their surroundings and become so sensitive.
The sudden downpours and thunderstorms, along with nightmares, are the most typical examples.
Only a girl shaped by such an environment could be so gentle and sensible.
Ouyang Rong lowered his head slightly.
A feeling of indescribable heartache welled up inside me; I had felt the same way before.
Most people are like this, but some manage to break free, while others spend their entire lives wandering in the same place.
No wonder Aqing was so afraid of the thunder and rain at night... He should have realized it sooner; he shouldn't have left her alone at home to sleep...
The guilt in someone's heart grew stronger.
At this moment, Ouyang Rong listened to the thunderous sounds outside the doors and windows, sounds that resembled the torrential rain and flood of that time.
He lowered his head slightly, resting his chin on Aqing's rounded little shoulder, his expression somewhat indifferent.
The brother and sister, far from home, stood silently by the dark bathtub, embracing each other.
Or perhaps they were enjoying this moment of peace and the rare embrace from their partner.
Ouyang Rong's bare shoulders were still wet, with water droplets hanging from them, running down his strong muscles and soaking the clothes in the partition between the two of them, as well as A Qing's bathrobe.
Neither of the two people in the darkness brought up these minor details.
Aqing happened to be using one of Ouyang Rong's gray robes as a nightgown; the robe was large and very thin.
Now, soaked from the bathwater, her nightgown clung tightly to her rounded thighs, and she curled up tightly in Ouyang Rong's arms, making him feel the warmth and softness of their skin against each other...
"Ah... Brother... Why did it take you so long to come back..."
Aqing's stammering voice reached my ears.
These were "immature remarks" that she would never have made in the past. Of course, the girl knew that her brother had to go to work and had important matters to attend to, and couldn't be with him every day. She had never made such a thoughtless remark before, except for this moment tonight...
Ouyang Rong quieted down, then hugged her slender body tightly. Instead of blaming her, his tone was unusually gentle, like velvet that had been sun-dried for a long time, making Aqing feel so warm that she couldn't help but stretch and turn over.
He whispered:
"It's my fault, brother. I won't do it again. When it thunders and rains, I'll stay by your bedside."
"Brother..."
After hearing Ah Qing in his arms suddenly call out in a drawn-out tone, Ouyang Rong heard nothing more.
He couldn't help but let out a nasal sound:
"Um?"
Aqing's voice trembled with tears:
"Ah Qing thought her brother wasn't coming back..."
Ouyang Rong squeezed her shoulder, seemingly somewhat helpless:
"Silly sister, didn't I say that your brother would be back before dawn?"
"But...but I woke up several times. The room was dark, the bed was empty, and the pillow next to me was cold, not as warm as my brother's...There was thunder in the middle of the night, and I had a nightmare. I woke up and fell asleep again, and then had the nightmare again..."
Ouyang Rong hadn't comforted anyone in a long time, but now he patiently held the girl, speaking haltingly to soothe and explain:
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. Lei won't hurt kind-hearted Aqing. Hmm, nightmares are usually the opposite; they're actually a good thing..."
Ah Qing, nestled in his arms, seemed to have slightly detached her face from his chest. In the darkness, she tilted her head back, looking at his face, listening intently without saying a word.
Ouyang Rong didn't ask her what kind of nightmare she was having at all.
A moment later, he suddenly hooked his finger and flicked her nose, laughing as he said:
"Little slug."
Aqing realized what was happening, lowered her head to wipe herself, and then simply gave up. She buried her face in her brother's broad and warm chest, which seemed to be able to accommodate everything about her, with embarrassment.
It seems that the snot from his crying was accidentally smeared on his chest.
Aqing blushed and stammered, "No...nothing."
Ouyang Rong reached out and gently rubbed her soft, burning earlobe, then nodded and said:
"It has indeed been wiped clean."
Ah Qing stammered shyly, then fell silent, burying her head and hugging the person in front of her tightly, somewhat afraid that her brother would continue to laugh at her...
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(End of this chapter)
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