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"Mmm." Long San responded while rummaging through the closet and pulling out a new quilt, unfolding it and throwing it onto the bed, burying her completely: "Go to sleep, stop nagging."
"There's a blanket." Feng Ning peeked out from under the blanket and giggled, "That's great, I'll use the new one, you can use the old one."
Long San ignored her childishness and went to wash up and get ready on his own. When he came back, he saw that Feng Ning had already assigned the beds. She closed her eyes, wrapped herself in the new quilt, and slept on the inside, leaving half of the bed outside for him.
Long San undressed, let his hair down, blew out the lamp, and went to bed, trying his best to be comfortable. He wrapped himself in the blanket, making sure not to touch the person next to him. After lying down for a while, he suddenly heard Feng Ning whisper in the darkness, "Long San, you are such a good person. I will remember your kindness and will definitely repay you in the future."
Long San said irritably, "I'm waiting."
"Don't disbelieve me, at least I agree to a divorce and won't tie you down. I'll talk to my family properly, and you can go and marry the girl you love. You won't have to spend your whole life with me."
Long San closed his eyes and mumbled, "Go to sleep."
He heard Feng Ning chuckle softly, heard her steady, rhythmic breathing, and then he himself gradually drifted off to sleep. He didn't know how much time had passed when Long San suddenly woke up with a start, slightly disoriented, but quickly realized what had disturbed him. Beside him, Feng Ning was struggling to breathe.
He turned over, about to call her, when Feng Ning suddenly cried out and sat up. Long San was startled and sat up, calling to her, "Feng Ning..."
Feng Ning turned her head blankly, her breathing uneven, clearly still not fully awake from her dream. Long San called to her again, reaching out to touch her shoulder. Feng Ning leaned against him, nestled into his arms. Long San patted her back and asked, "Drowned again?"
Feng Ning nodded, then shook her head: "I saw him."
"who?"
"The man who knocked me into the water."
"Didn't you say you only recognized the voice and didn't see the face?"
"No, it's the one who pushed me into the water the day I hit my head and got hurt. I saw him in my dream. I ran across the embankment, and he chased after me. Then we started fighting. The fragments are very small, but I saw his face. He has a square face, triangular eyes, and a slightly wide mouth..." She seemed tired, and her voice grew softer and softer. Long San gently patted her back, and she relaxed, her eyelids drooping.
"What else?" Long San helped her lie down and covered her with the blanket.
Feng Ning blinked, but finally succumbed to sleepiness and closed her eyes, whispering, "He also has a big nose, he's not as good-looking as you."
Long San tucked her in and lay down, listening to Feng Ning mutter in a dreamlike voice beside him: "I know him, I should know him, but I don't remember now."
"It's alright." Long San rubbed Feng Ning's furrowed brow. "If you don't remember, you don't remember. You'll remember eventually."
"Mmm. I'm so sleepy." Feng Ning felt like she was about to fall asleep. She held his hand and felt less scared, so she insisted on finishing her dream: "He was very tall. He chased me from the woods all the way to the embankment. He used a hidden weapon. When I dodged it, a stone tripped me. He hit me with his palm. The embankment was very high, and I fell down..." Her voice grew softer and softer until she finally fell asleep.
Long San carefully considered what she had said. This person's features were very distinctive; it was possible to spread rumors and search for this person. He closed his eyes, intending to arrange this matter immediately after waking up.
But something still seemed off. He pondered for a moment, but couldn't recall what it was. Just as he was about to fall asleep, a sudden thought struck him. Feng Ning had said she ran from the woods to the embankment. The woods were downstream, while the high embankment was upstream. This wasn't heading out of the city; on the contrary, it was running towards the city.
Long San felt that things were even more difficult to guess. What exactly happened that made Feng Ning escape and then plan to run back?
Author's Note: To be able to go to the movies today, I stayed up all night to finish this chapter ahead of schedule. I've put it in my drafts now, hoping Jinjiang (the Chinese online literature platform) won't interfere and will release it on time. I plan to read *Identity IV*, and I'll report back on how it is afterward.
I'll reply to all the comments from the first two chapters today. I read all the comments, thank you everyone! Please don't skip me, group hug!
16
16. The lovable and unforgettable Third Madam Long...
This problem didn't bother Long San for long, and since he couldn't figure it out, he wasn't in a hurry. He was always easygoing, so he fell asleep. His hand was still being held by Feng Ning, right under the covers, two hands, one big and one small, clasped together. He ignored this and quickly drifted off to sleep.
He was awakened twice that night by Feng Ning's nightmares, but when he got up early in the morning, he felt he had slept quite well. Feng Ning was even more radiant and smiling happily. However, she was about to go with Granny Yu to Fuling Temple on the outskirts of the city to have the high monks there perform a ritual to exorcise evil spirits for her. This was arranged by Granny Yu, and she could not refuse.
Long San was able to sense her unease, but instead of pointing it out, he did something to distract her.
He had breakfast with her and then drew a simple portrait of the man she had mentioned the night before. Feng Ning looked at it, frowned, and thought for a long time before saying it should be roughly like this. But then another question came to her mind: "Long San, do you think those silk ribbons and colored cords might also be his?"
Long San said, "That person was wearing a mask that time, so I didn't see what he looked like."
Feng Ning opened her mouth but didn't speak. Long San asked, "What's wrong? What have you thought of now?"
Feng Ning shook her head. Long San stared at her, making her feel guilty. She stammered in a low voice, "I was thinking, I can't possibly have anything going on with him, right? He's so ugly." Feng Ning still felt guilty and embarrassed about flirting with other men, but the truth was undeniable: this man was ugly and clearly not a good person. Could she be so blind as to hook up with him? The thought of it disgusted her. She pursed her lips, looking like she couldn't handle it.
Long San couldn't help but touch his face. Fortunately, he wasn't bad-looking. Moreover, considering that he was quite popular with women and had enjoyed many admiring glances, he should be a pretty good type.
He looked up and met Feng Ning's clear gaze, then quickly straightened his expression and pretended to rub his chin in thought: "In that case, he may not be, and since you can't remember the silk rope, it may not be related to matters of love."
Feng Ning lowered her head: "Long San, you're a good person, you're comforting me." This kind of thing is extremely humiliating for a man, she really felt so sorry for him.
She tried her best to recall what had happened, but her headaches would flare up if she tried too hard to remember. However, she was afraid that people would say she was faking it, so she endured the headaches. Fortunately, the headaches were not frequent and were not too unbearable.
"Leave this to me. You can go with Granny Yu without worry," Long San said. Feng Ning nodded, went back to her room to get her things, and prepared to leave with Granny Yu. Before leaving, she gave Long San a letter, instructing him not to read it, but to return it to her when she returned. Long San didn't understand, but still nodded in agreement.
Granny Yu called for someone to urge them on. Long San escorted Feng Ning to the door, where the carriage was already waiting. A maid was helping Granny Yu wait to the side.
Long San instructed Feng Ning to be obedient over there and not to be willful or throw tantrums, as it was a sacred Buddhist site and Granny Yu was very strict. Feng Ning nodded vigorously. Long San then added that Granny Yu was getting old and shouldn't cause her any trouble or worry. Feng Ning agreed again.
Then Feng Ning asked, "Will you come to pick me up in three days?"
Long San was taken aback, instinctively resisting, and quickly said, "I'm very busy. You can come back with Granny Yu." He had been too close to her these past two days, which was really inappropriate.
Feng Ning was somewhat disappointed and replied sullenly, "Oh." Then she turned and got into the carriage with Granny Yu. Long San was about to turn back into the mansion when he suddenly saw Feng Ning open the carriage door and run down.
"Long San, Long San, could you please tell Granny Yu that I'd like to sleep in the same room with her during the days I'm at the temple?" It turned out she was still thinking about the nightmares. Long San had no choice but to go up and talk to Granny Yu. Granny Yu was very surprised, looking at Long San and then at Feng Ning, but finally agreed.
Feng Ning got back into the carriage, while Long San watched from the gate, waiting for them to set off. But just as the coachman cracked the whip, Feng Ning pushed open the carriage door and got out again.
"Long San, Long San, what if I don't get enough food at the temple? Could you please talk to the monks and ask them to give me more food?"
Long San sighed and called out, "Feng Ning."