Chapter 187: 194. Dreams Waken, People Return, Yi Zhengqi Leaks Again

194. Dreams Waken, People Return, Yi Zhengqi Leaks Again

The rain over Yunmeng Marsh stopped.

It was again that time of evening.

At first, not long after the chaos at Di Gong Sluice caused by someone's sudden collapse, the rain in the sky gradually diminished without warning.

As if just like the young magistrate who had passed out, the rain had grown tired of falling. It grew lighter and lighter, finally slowing to a halt at dusk.

No more raindrops fell.

The dense black clouds that had pressed down upon Yunmeng Marsh like the gate tower of a heavenly city were suddenly pierced by a gap. A beam of golden, brilliant sunlight bored through the thick fog above the water.

Before the stunned crowd could react, beams of golden sunset light pierced through like awls into a sack, poking holes through the black clouds at the zenith.

Finally, what suddenly appeared before everyone was the same fiery cloud as that evening. But this time, no one dared to harbor any illusions or linger in nostalgia.

Ouyang Rong had a series of fragmented dreams.

After waking, he closed his eyes, felt the soft warmth of the quilt, let his mind wander for a moment, and then forgot them. Those dreams were blurry and indistinct.

Only some lingering, uncomfortable sensations remained in his heart, leaving him with a sense of lingering fear. "It must be a cold..." Ouyang Rong, who was breathing weakly with his eyes closed, muttered to himself.

That was when Ye Weilai had brought him ginger soup to warm his body, mentioning his delicate constitution and susceptibility to wind-cold. Of course, perhaps the wind-cold of this life was different from the colds of his previous life.

But they were equally miserable.

Ouyang Rong didn't know if others had experienced it, but ever since he was a child, whenever he caught this kind of illness, he would easily have those dreams that drove obsessive-compulsive people to madness.

These dreams came one after another, similar to him being placed on a smooth little cart, but the ground beneath the wheels was bumpy and uneven, and the route taken was not designed by a normal person, sliding nauseatingly toward some abyss he vaguely anticipated, unable to turn...

Lying on the bed, even now as he recalled it, he felt extremely uncomfortable. Besides that, he was tired—not just physical exhaustion, but mental fatigue as well. Ouyang Rong stretched, loosened his joints, and prepared to get up.

Halfway through, he suddenly remembered that besides the dream that drove him to madness, he had also had many dreams of his childhood. This included not only his childhood in his previous life but also his childhood in this life, as if he were there in person.

Ouyang Rong became increasingly certain of a fact that he didn't know whether to be happy or sad about. This world seemed to truly be his life.

Or rather, he had come to a place similar to a parallel universe. Hmm, parallel universe, that sounds a bit cliché.

But how else to explain these feelings of similarity, presence, and familiarity...

Perhaps Ouyang Lianghan of this life had already died after drowning; or perhaps he hadn't died, but his soul had merged with his; or perhaps he, from his previous life, had actually arrived at the moment of birth in this life, his memories sealed until they were unlocked after the drowning, and thus, that night in the underground palace, a soul lost and far from home had awakened.

But thinking about it this way, Ouyang Rong's heart sank slightly.

Didn't that mean the relatives and friends of this life were also his bonds, impossible to shake off?

It was just that he didn't know what it would be like after redeeming the 10,000 merit points of good fortune that he had regarded as his hope for returning home upon his awakening in the Pure Land underground palace.

If he could return, would it be his soul departing, with Ouyang Lianghan of this life disappearing?

Or, like a lotus flower, would another petal grow, with him carrying the same memories and consciousness, like a fork in the road, giving birth to two worlds with different endings—one where he successfully returned, and one where he didn't, or faced other outcomes?

And then, these two identical versions of him wouldn't know of the other's existence... Good heavens, it's like a nesting doll, right?

Ouyang Rong couldn't help but fall into deep thought, then realized he had fallen into a vicious cycle of mental exhaustion, and quickly pulled himself out. He raised his hands, which were wrinkled and white from being soaked in water, and patted his flushed, twitching face.

"Forget it, the plum rain season is over, the water is managed, we've made it to midsummer, and next is the autumn and winter low-water season... finally, I can pack up and go home..."

On the bed in the room, Ouyang Rong propped himself up with his hands, looked at the furnishings in the room, and nodded to himself, murmuring. "Tanlang, you're awake!"

As if sensing the movement of the young man getting up on the bed through the half-open window of the main room,

In the courtyard, Ye Weilai, who was bowing her head to spread out medicinal herbs, was overjoyed. Her slightly rounded little face was full of surprise. She wiped her hands, stained with herb fragments, on her small apron and trotted into the room.

Ouyang Rong nodded without answering, turning his head to look at the windowsill beside the bed, where a pot of orchids was blooming in the golden sunlight.

It made one's breathing lighter, for fear of disturbing it.

This looked very much like the cymbidium that the Xiao Shimei kept in the courtyard of Yilan Pavilion at the Su residence. He had some impression of it.

It seemed to be the afternoon.

Ouyang Rong's gaze swept across the room, and he lowered his head to look at his own slender body.

There were some things he didn't even need to ask the white-haired maid, who was running over with her hands covering her chest and sighing in relief; he had already understood some things through the clues.

The heavy rain and rising water in Yunmeng Marsh must have stopped, and after he collapsed, Di Gong Sluice should not have collapsed.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have woken up in the main room of the Plum Forest courtyard at home; he would have long since been transferred to the mountains to avoid the flooded county town.

The blisters on his skin, which were peeling and white, had not yet healed, proving he hadn't been unconscious for long.

Furthermore, his illness should be mostly better. At this moment, Ouyang Rong saw in the room the medicinal materials and treatment methods he had used to treat the Xiao Shimei's fever and cold after she was whipped last time.

Ye Weilai was quite clever; she had used them directly.

And on the new quilt he was lying under, there was the familiar fragrance of the white-haired maid's body and her waist-length silver hair. It seemed she had been guarding his bedside day and night.

"Tanlang, do you still feel uncomfortable? Nu'er will go call the medical officer invited from the prefecture..."

Ye Weilai, like an agile little squirrel that had just emerged from hibernation, brought her white-haired little head close to Ouyang Rong's body, which was only wearing a cross-collared robe. She took his hand and looked him over.

"Tanlang, are you thirsty? Nu'er will go pour you a cup of water..."

The young girl, with slightly dark circles under her eyes, seemed to have so much to say, chattering non-stop. Before Ouyang Rong could ask, she knelt by the bed, raised her little face, and the crystal-clear light in her gray-blue eyes swept over Ouyang Rong's lips, turning the topic to this.

By the bedside, Ye Weilai turned around with a beaming smile, wiped the corners of her slightly red eyes with the back of her hand, and hopped away to prepare to pour tea for Ouyang Rong at the table.

"Uh, I..."

Ouyang Rong touched his lips, which were starting to peel. No matter how hard the heart beneath his chest was, seeing this little figure busy back and forth at this moment, he couldn't help but feel a surge of tenderness.

"Weilai, you've worked hard." Ouyang Rong couldn't help but speak with a bitter smile: "It's my fault for not remembering the lesson, forcing myself to hold on despite the root of the illness, and showing off by soaking in the water, making you and everyone else worry..."

"Tanlang!"

As if the girl who was happily preparing to pour tea had suddenly turned around halfway, she threw herself into Ouyang Rong's arms like a swallow returning to its nest. Her blue eyes filled with tears, and she couldn't help but cry out.

"Cough, cough... Why are you crying? Didn't I say I'm fine?"

Ouyang Rong coughed twice, raised his arms, paused, and then let them fall to gently pat the soft, boneless shoulders of the white-haired maid in his arms, saying helplessly:

"That, wipe it off, don't get your clear snot on me."

"Pfft... I don't have tears, it's just that my eyes got the smell of the herbs on my hands, it's a bit irritating, and I don't have snot, it's not dirty..."

Ye Weilai squirmed in his arms, terrified that the man in front of her would dislike her. She raised her little face, her expression serious, and explained crisply. Ouyang Rong nodded and said: "Did you suck the snot back in?"

"... Ye Weilai."

The master and servant whispered to each other for a while, and Ouyang Rong asked about Di Gong Sluice, Yunmeng Marsh, and the many things that had happened in the county town during the days he was unconscious.

It was indeed as he had analyzed and determined in his heart before.

The heavy rain and rising water in Yunmeng Marsh stopped less than half a day after he fell unconscious. Di Gong Sluice did not collapse, but it was riddled with cracks and in urgent need of repair.

During these days, while Ouyang Rong was unconscious, the county government was presided over by County Assistant Diao and Yan Liulang, who was acting as County Lieutenant.

The people of Longcheng, who had originally evacuated to the refugee camps on Mount Dagu, returned to the county town and villages in groups and families after confirming the water had receded.

With the experience accumulated from organizing the Mount Dagu refugee camp, the county government handled the matters of returning home relatively orderly.

While he was asleep, Longcheng County was mostly peaceful. Even the Liu family on the west bank, who were being secretly watched by Liu Ashan and the others, were honest and had no suspicious movements worth doubting.

They even took the initiative to send several skilled craftsmen to help repair the crumbling Di Gong Sluice.

Furthermore, Liu Zi'an didn't know where he heard about the small crisis at the sluice dam that day. He immediately distanced himself completely from those Dragon King Temple priests who were spreading rumors, and for this, he ran to the county government several times to donate money to show his sincerity and explain...

Ouyang Rong listened silently for a while, not summoning Yan Liulang, Liu Ashan, and the others for the time being, and turned to ask: "How long have I been bedridden?"

"Half a ten-day period."

Ye Weilai remembered the matter of pouring water and hurriedly stopped lingering in her master's embrace, trotting to the table to pour tea. Ouyang Rong glanced at the orchid on the windowsill and suddenly asked:

"Is the Xiao Shimei back?"

"Yes, that day Xie Xiaoniangzi returned travel-worn, discovered Tanlang's injuries, and still worried, made an extra trip to Jiangzhou to invite a famous Jiangzhou doctor to take Tanlang's pulse..."

"Xie Xiaoniangzi comes to visit Tanlang every day, staying for a whole day at the longest, and half a day at the shortest, only going out when she has business, guarding him every day... In addition, people from the Su family also come to visit from time to time, Su Dalang and Su Xiaoniangzi..."

The white-haired little maid chattered, recounting these situations she had kept in mind one by one. She held a cup of hot tea and returned to the bedside. Ouyang Rong listened silently.

After understanding the general situation, he couldn't help but turn his head to look at the bright sunlight outside the window, finding it hard to connect it with the scene of black clouds pressing down on the city and floods about to arrive not long ago.

"The sun rises as usual... so... is it all over..." Ouyang Rong lowered his head and murmured.

"What is Tanlang saying?" Ye Weilai asked curiously. "Nothing."

Ouyang Rong reached out, preparing to take the tea, but saw the white-haired maid in front of him holding the tea and lowering her head, taking a small sip of the tea she had poured for him, as if testing the temperature.

The young girl seemed satisfied and nodded, subconsciously bringing her pink lips, which she had used to sip the tea, toward Ouyang Rong. Ouyang Rong was stunned.

"Mm..." Ye Weilai seemed to have reacted as well; Tanlang was not unconscious, so there was no need to pass tea through lips and teeth.

Ouyang Rong immediately saw the white-haired maid in front of him still in the posture of offering tea, her little head lowered quickly, lower than the teacup in her hand. A patch of peach-blossom red quickly bloomed on her neck beneath her crossed collar.

Ouyang Rong couldn't help but rub his dry lips, looked at the inexplicably shy white-haired maid, and some scenes that might have happened while he was unconscious these past few days flashed through his mind.

Those were the flower buds that had bloomed, wet and filled with water, as they foolishly leaned toward him time and time again. A bit of righteous qi suddenly rose in Ouyang Rong's body.

He couldn't help but lift the quilt slightly, shrink his waist back, cover it silently, and curse inwardly.

How could he be so high-spirited just after recovering from a cold? It seemed he wasn't sick enough; he should go stand at attention and reflect! It was clearly a normal reaction, but it made Ouyang Rong straighten his face. Immediately, his hand, which had reached into the quilt, suddenly felt a light, soft, and smooth piece of fabric by chance on the bedsheet. He didn't know if it was made of silk transported from the Western Regions, but Ouyang Rong's fingertips even felt a slightly cool sensation.

After Ouyang Rong took it out and lowered his head to look, his expression froze.

By the bedside, Ye Weilai, who was lowering her head and holding the tea, suddenly spoke, not knowing if she had seen Ouyang Rong's reaction, and whispered:

"Master, Nu'er is really not dirty..."

It was as if she were responding to Ouyang Rong's feigned disgust at her clear snot, and as if she had sensed Ouyang Rong's reaction at this moment.

Ye Weilai explained, and finally even changed her form of address... The master and servant had a secret agreement: call him Tanlang in front of others, and Master behind their backs.

The white-haired maid seemed to have discovered that when she used this form of address, someone became even more righteous. She didn't know if all men were like this, and even a gentleman couldn't avoid the vulgar, but she only called Master this way.

"Master, Nu'er was so worried about you these past two days. If, in the worst-case scenario, you were gone, how would Nu'er explain it to the Eldest Lady? Nu'er wouldn't live alone either."

Ye Weilai said to Ouyang Rong, who was leaning over to sip tea, her words coming out a bit hurriedly. Ouyang Rong was speechless.

In this era, although the status of women was not as low as in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, this did not include slaves. Some female slaves raised by nobles were easily tired of, and even at eighteen or nineteen, they would be considered old and sold or gifted by their masters, because slaves were not people, but goods, and naturally, it was easy to love the new and loathe the old.

Ouyang Rong understood the situation somewhat, and his heart softened.

"Master, your hands and feet were cold in the middle of the night a few days ago. Nu'er was warming your feet at the end of the bed and forgot to tidy up..." The two looked at each other, as if they had a tacit understanding, and suddenly moved together, driven by the other.

But Ouyang Rong seemed to only want to hold her and comfort her with a few words, while Ye Weilai seemed to want to throw herself at him regardless. Their heads bumped together, and both were stunned.

Ye Weilai smiled sweetly, suddenly threw herself forward again, burrowing like a little squirrel, her little hands suppressing the righteous qi.

"Master, Nu'er will warm you up again, it will be fine once it's warmed up..."

"Don't..." Ouyang Rong.

However, how could righteous qi be suppressed so easily?

"Don't move." At some point, Ouyang Rong suddenly said, completing the sentence. The sun in the sky was venting its temperature unreservedly.

On the windowsill, that pot of orchids showed its full posture, warmed by the sunlight, swaying gently in the wind, sometimes up and sometimes down.

The sun rose as usual, and the afternoon was quiet. Perhaps everyone was asleep. ===== CHAPTER 188 =====