Chapter 41

Thunder boomed outside the window. Inwardly, Rong Tang felt relieved after hearing Su Huaijing’s frank admission.

His gaze lifted, and just as he was about to respond, he caught a glimpse of the quilt on the bed. After a moment of hesitation, his eyes fell on the cabinet in the corner and he said, “Then bring me another quilt and pillow. I might kick off the quilt when I sleep at night.”

Actually, no; he just knew that Su Huaijing was an especially defensive and vigilant person, and having him agree to sleep in the same bed with him was already a decision made out of physiological fear. If they were to share the same quilt……

Rong Tang was very worried that Boyboy might not be able to sleep peacefully throughout the entire night.

He thought he was kind, considerate, and tactful in finding good reasons as well as a way out for Su Huaijing. When the latter heard this, he narrowed his eyes to throw a glance filled with exceptional regret and unwillingness at the quilt covering Rong Tang.

Why can’t we sleep under the same quilt?

Aren’t we already married?

Which properly married couple hasn’t slept in the same bed for over half a month after the wedding?

What a bully.

Su Huaijing felt a little indiscernible resentment, but he still obediently opened the cabinet, pulled out a quilt and pillow, bent down to place them upon the bed, and asked, “Can I go wash up?”

——He means to climb onto the bed and sleep after washing up! He means to sleep in the same bed with you!

Rong Tang heard the rumbling thunder outside the window and nodded. When he saw Su Huaijing’s back once he’d turned, he couldn’t help calling out to him: “Do you need me to accompany you?”

Su Huaijing was a total soft-hearted mess.

He has always been uneasy and confused these days. On the one hand, he thought that Prince Ningxuan must have some agenda to deliberately approach him. On the other hand, he felt that it was great luck to have come across Rong Tang after returning to the capital. 

If the harsh treatment he experienced in Sichuan was in order to meet such a person in the future and cherish him in his heart, then Su Huaijing reasoned that it wouldn’t be a big deal even if he suffered a bit more.

In that case, it’s great to have Tangtang.

Wherever Tangtang is, he will have a home. 

Su Huaijing’s eyes curled, and he shook his head. “No need; it’s windy and raining outside. Be careful about catching a cold. I’ll be back in a minute.”

Rong Tang is still a little hesitant, but the noise of the windstorm in the courtyard is indeed terribly loud, and even the leaves are being blown against the eaves, battering and crashing wave after wave. If this body of his got wet from the night rain, he would easily fall ill and never recover.

So he frowned and said, “Then be quick about it.”

He had no other meaning when he said this; he was simply worried that a sudden strike of thunder would frighten Su Huaijing while he was washing up alone outside.

But the room was illuminated by warm yellow light from lanterns and candles. The not-so-wide step bed is pressed against the wall, with bed curtains hung up on both sides. Rong Tang is leaning on the headboard of the bed, covered with a quilt from the waist down, and his upper body is draped with a thin blanket. He is holding a storybook, and when he looked up and said, in a cute and lazy manner, “Then be quick about it,” it was awfully seductive.

He resembles a mountain spirit who’s just entered the world; his every move is clearly breathtaking, but he is completely unaware of it. He emits a contradictory sense of purity and allure, tempting people to peel off his outer layer and see what the heart beating beneath his skin looks like.

Su Huaijing’s eyes dimmed, and his Adam’s apple rolled slightly. His fingers dropped to his side to tap his waist tablet, and his lips curve into a slight smile: “Okay.”

He turned around and went out. Rong Tang sat on the bed and waited for him. Before he came back, Rong Tang rolled his quilt inside again and pressed the edges neatly, leaving a clear line of division for Su Huaijing.

The beds in Dayu are very small. Even if the step beds in the courtyards of Song Garden are prepared for two people to sleep in, they are actually not much bigger than modern single beds. When two people sleep, they have to be close together. Though it’s not a squeeze, Rong Tang wants to reduce his presence as much as possible to make ample room for Su Huaijing.

Therefore, after waiting for a long time until he almost dozed off, Su Huaijing finally entered.

As soon as Su Huaijing came inside the door, he saw that the bed had been divided into three equal parts, with Rong Tang and the quilt only occupying one third. He was stunned for only a moment before bursting into laughter.

He removed his outer clothing and walked slowly to the side of the bed. Instead of getting on, he bent down, supported one hand on the bed, and lifted his other arm to shifted his wrist over to Rong Tang. His voice was hoarse and a little sticky: “Tangtang.”

Rong Tang: “Ng?”

Su Huaijing said, “My body smells good.”

Rong Tang was slightly startled, blinked a couple of times, and didn’t react.

The main villain only gained some weight after marrying him, but his wrists are still thin, just skin covering the bones. At first glance, they look white and solid, a bit like White Rabbit candy*.

(*TN: a popular milk candy in China.)

Rong Tang swallowed shamefully.

Su Huaijing tilted his head, lowered his voice, and said extremely obediently, “I was afraid of dirtying your bed, so I went to take a bath just now.”

There was only hot water for drinking in the courtyard, and he wanted to sleep with Rong Tang as soon as possible, so he’d taken a bath using cold water. There were traces of cold air on his exposed, snowy wrist. It has a hint of honey locust, flowers, and is indeed fragrant.

Rong Tang frowned. He was about to say that he isn’t taking care of his body; thus, how could he take a cold bath on a rainy day? Then he saw Su Huaijing blinking and acting childishly: “So Tangtang, how can you stay so far away from me? I’ll feel you dislike me.”

He was like a small vendor standing on the street, trying his best to promote his products. He raised his arm, as if wanting Rong Tang to take a careful sniff, and said earnestly, “I truly smell good.”

Rong Tang was stunned for a long time and belatedly glanced at the separator he’d just demarcated on the bed. His ears were, inexplicably, a little red.

Rong Tang tugged the quilt, then tugged it again, until the both quilts flopped one atop another. He raised his head and looked at Su Huaijing.

Na! I don’t dislike you!

Su Huaijing’s smile deepened, and he lowered his hand. Just before stepping away, a hint of regret crossed his features once more. “Are you sure you won’t give it a sniff? I added some gardenias to the bath. I smell delightful now.”

The more he said that he smelled good, the deeper the blush crept into Rong Tang’s cheeks. Memories of receiving letters addressed to “Tangtang, my husband” before their marriage flooded back, along with the guilt of abducting a minor.

Rong Tang forced himself to angle his head: “I’m not smelling it!”

“Oh.” Su Huaijing lowered his head and responded dully, with a hint of regret in his tone.

He removed his clothes and went to bed. The two quilts have been stacked together by Rong Tang. He was afraid that the draft would seep in and chill Tangtang, so he lifted his hand to tuck the corners of the quilt for him. Then he shifted his way and leaned against the head of the bed.

Rong Tang didn’t feel anything when he asked the question, and he didn’t feel anything when he took the initiative to move inside. Even when he was leaning inside and waiting for Su Huaijing, Rong Tang still didn’t feel anything was wrong.

But when there was literally an extra person on the bed, when Su Huaijing stuck to his side and leaned against the headboard with him, even if they did nothing at all, merely lowering his head to flip through his ancient book, his presence could not be disregarded.

Rong Tang has always regarded him as the main villain in his juvenile years and as the Boyboy he raised with in-app purchases. Besides, Su Huaijing likes to flirt with him so much that, as a matter of course, Rong Tang looks at him with some affection. But when he was on a side of the bed and in such close quarters, he suddenly noticed the masculine scent of the main villain that could not be ignored.

It wasn’t prominently mixed with the scent of gardenia and honey locust, but it still reminded Rong Tang that he was actually an adult man in this world.

He can serve as an official in the court, marry a wife, have children, and be a man of the same gender as him.

Rong Tang felt an inexplicable wariness based on biological instinct—when two males come together in nature, it is usually to fight for territory and mates.

But before he could carefully experience the emotion, there was a sudden crash of thunder outside the window. Su Huaijing seemed startled and swiftly reached into the quilt to grab Rong Tang’s fingers.

“……”

That vigilance dissipated in an instant. Rong Tang was stunned for a moment, and realised again that this was his Boyboy who was afraid of thunder and loved to act coquettishly. Instead of pulling away his hand, he patted the back of his hand with his other hand. His voice settled in with the night rain, carrying an unspeakable tenderness: “It’s okay, I’m here.”

Su Huaijing was stunned for a moment, and his eyelashes trembled. He could no longer continue reading his “Chronicles of Mountains and Rivers.” He lowered his eyes, his gaze landing on their overlapping hands that are covered by the quilt.

The sound of thunderstorms in early summer often bring new life. Su Huaijing listened to the sound of rain outside the window for a while, and Rong Tang slowly patted him, patiently comforting him without saying a word. 

Su Huaijing was silent for a moment, then abruptly let out a laugh.

“Thank you, Tangtang.” He said, “I’m really afraid of thunder.”

Not now.

If a person himself, has never been afraid or has never seen others be afraid, it is difficult for them to develop a fear of a specific thing or to worry about whether others will panic because of it.

The reason he’d come to Rong Tang’s room at night when there was thunder and lightning was because he was worried that Tangtang would be woken up by the racket and would not be able to sleep well all night.

And the reason he has this worry is because he had been afraid before.

Very, very afraid.

Rainwater trickled through the roof, dripping onto the dirt floor. Rats squeaked in the corner, scurrying one after another as if relocating. They boldly darted past the foot of his bed, occasionally pausing to meet his gaze in the darkness. Thunder and lightning echoed ominously, while the creatures with clear yet dark eyes give rise to countless unknown fears in the bottom of one’s hearts with their gaze, as though poised to consume them.

The young Seventh Prince had never witnessed such a situation.

And he’s never been afraid of thunder.

When he was in the imperial palace, his nanny would remain gently by his bedside on rainy days. The fire lights in the rooms were dim but not dark, to the extent that nothing was visible. Despite the thunder, lightning, wind, and rain outside the windows, they would never penetrate into the rooms. The candles burned steadily without flickering. Nanny’s soothing voice as she sang lullabies was also particularly tender and stirring, as if cradling a sleepy child upon a cloud. She would slowly pat him to sleep, and even if the world outside turned upside down, it would not disturb him at all.

And when dawn arrived the next day, the plants and flowers in the imperial gardens were full of vitality. After school, the san ge brought si jie and ran all the way into his palace. He smiled and teased him with a grasshopper: “Qi di, qi di*! Should we dig up some bugs to play with?”

(*TN: qi = seven, di = younger brother) 

Previously, His Highness the Seventh Prince feared nothing.

He didn’t fear insects, the dark, thunder and rain, or lotus pastries. He didn’t even fear tigers—which everyone is afraid of—at all. Because the Fourth Princess constantly talks about asking her gu nainai* to teach her how to hunt tigers when she grows up, he isn’t fearful in the least.

(*TN: paternal grand-aunt, referring to Princess Duanxi.) 

At that time, he even thought that this gu nainai was so great that he would have to learn from her when he was taller than his si jie.

He never knew what fear was growing up in the ivory tower, being protected and loved by everyone in the imperial palace.

But then something unexpected suddenly occurred, and one summer night, fire swept through the ivory tower where he’d grown up. The nurse desperately sent him out of the palace and spit out a mouthful of black blood onto the palace road. The eunuchs and maids, running helter-skelter to escape, trod on her body as they passed by. In the palace, Imperial Father and Imperial Mother had been strangled until their eyeballs bulged out. Thunder exploded in the scorching sky. It was as if Pandora’s box had been opened.

Fear began to grow, and confusion continued to spread.

There was a long time when he felt that this was actually a nightmare. Once he wakes up, san ge will still take him to play in the imperial gardens, si jie will still give him sweet pastries to eat, and perhaps Crown Prince gege will scold them for leading their xiao di astray. But when there’s no one around, he will cast off his Crown Prince stateliness, squat on the ground, and make him laugh with a rattle-drum.

He, more than anyone else, doted on this didi of his, who shared the same mother.

Su Huaijing thought, everything would be fine once he woke up.

But Sichuan had many thunderstorms during the summer, and the thunder was so loud that he couldn’t sleep all night. Rainwater fell from the roof onto the bed, leaving a wet, sticky mass. From time to time, there were mudslides on the mountain roads, and the cries of the people seemed to be able to pass through the sky to land unerringly in his ears.

He missed his san ge, si jie, da ge, nurse, Imperial Father, and Mother…… but no one showed up.

Xingfeng didn’t discover him from the beginning.

Su Huaijing stayed alone in the Li Mansion in Sichuan. In the midst of the cracks of thunder and squalls of night rain, as he faced the water dripping in the house and locked stares with the relocating rats, he finally recognised one fact:

He has no home.

……

Many years later, he is no longer fearful of thunder or mice, and he doesn’t know what else in the world he will be fearful of.

Sometimes Xingfeng would be scared when he saw Su Huaijing appear like he didn’t care about anything, but Su Huaijing truly isn’t afraid of anything anymore.

When he was a child, he always sought out his mother to act spoiled when he knocked or bumped into something, but now he can dislocate any part of his body and reattach it himself without batting an eyelid.

When he was a child, he would cry and call for his gege when he saw a mouse. Now, he would even laugh out loud when he observed a mouse foaming at the mouth and dying after it ate his medicine.

When he was a child, he itched to poke his ears until he became deaf when he heard thunder, but now he is only worried about whether Rong Tang would be afraid of such sudden and annoying noises and whether he would be woken up by nightmares.

But Rong Tang asked him in turn, Are you afraid?

He would take the initiative to carefully shift his body and leave half a bed’s space for him, and he would hint to him: If you are afraid, you can stay with me.

His Tangtang is truly the most kind-hearted, most kind-hearted little Buddha in the world.

Su Huaijing laughed softly and accompanied Rong Tang to read a storybook for a long time. When the thunder subsided and it was very late, he finally got out of bed and blew out a few candles before laying with him on the same bed to sleep.

Rong Tang is always unbearably sleepy and wants to fall asleep as soon as he gets into bed. But when he is half asleep and hears the thunder outside the window, he will press forward almost instinctively. His hand digs into Su Huaijing’s quilt from under his own quilt to grab his hand and squeeze it gently, his voice unclear: “Don’t be afraid ah, this is a normal weather phenomenon; don’t be afraid ah…”

The fragrance of gardenias linger all over the entire bed. Su Huaijing lay there for a while and heard the regular, extended breathing coming from his side. He sighed softly and finally couldn’t curb his impulse. He turned around and hugged his little Buddha, quilt and all.

“I truly smell good.” Su Huaijing said softly, his hoarse tone echoing in the long night, like guqin music.

He rubbed his chin on the top of Rong Tang’s head, a bit fiercely, as if he were giving an order, but also as if he were carefully and anxiously praying: “You said you like gardenias, then you must also like me, okay?”

“If you don’t say anything, I’ll take it that you agree.” Su Huaijing schemed a little and contentedly closed his eyes.

The author has something to say:

You little juice, tsk!