No, gentlemen also guard against

Chapter 1017 Choosing a Day to Descend the Mountain [Seeking Monthly Tickets at the Beginning of the Month!]

The night is getting darker.

Inside the room, Ouyang Rong said thoughtfully:
"A few days ago..."

Aqing nodded:
"Yes, a few days ago, Master suddenly went into seclusion in the middle of the night. Before dawn, all the senior uncles rushed to the Queen's Palace and entered Master's seclusion place... At that time, I was guarding outside the inner hall and saw my fifth senior uncle. Because I had only seen my sixth senior uncle before, I mistook her for her..."

Ouyang Rong asked calmly:
"Is your master still in seclusion now?"

Aqing paused for a moment, then answered truthfully:

"Master is still in seclusion, but Fifth and Sixth Martial Uncles have already returned, leaving only Second Martial Uncle in the inner hall. I don't know why... Also, Master approved my leave to leave the hall, but I didn't see Master before I left. Second Martial Uncle came out and told me..."

She thought for a while and added:
"However, I think it's probably nothing serious, otherwise my uncles wouldn't have left, and they wouldn't have allowed me to take a vacation to come back and visit my brother."

Ouyang Rong's expression returned to calm: "That makes sense."

The information provided by Aqing confirmed his previous guess: Xue Zhongzhu had definitely come up with a way to deal with him, and there was no need for the female rulers like Yun Xiangyi and Hua Xiangrong to gather around.

Aqing curiously observed her brother's reaction, and while looking him over, she spoke:

"Looking back now, from what she said, I think she knew me, and she even called me by my name..."

Ouyang Rong glanced sideways.

Aqing tilted her head slightly:

“Brother, you’re probably right. She probably knows about our sibling relationship. By the way, when you deliver food to the water dungeon, has she ever treated you differently or said anything to you?”

Ouyang Rong was silent for a moment, as if recalling something, and then slowly murmured:
"Looking back now, it is indeed different. There was a certain special leniency shown towards me. If it were anyone else, I should have been suspicious and investigated."

"That's it."

Aqing said crisply:
"From what I've observed, Fifth Martial Aunt holds a rather special position within the hall, no less than Second Martial Aunt. Even Master and the others show her great respect. She is definitely not a simple person. Brother, you must be careful in the Qingliang Valley water prison..."

Ouyang Rong narrowed his eyes slightly:
"Well, I see."

He remained leaning back in his chair, lost in thought for a moment, while Ah Qing continued her work, carefully trimming his beard.

Until a certain moment, Ouyang Rong noticed that the light in front of him had dimmed. When he came to his senses, he found that there was a bulging piece of cloth in front of him... After a moment of stunned silence, he suddenly realized that it was the young woman's breasts.

Suddenly, Ah Qing appeared behind his chair, bending down to trim his beard.

Ouyang Rong didn't know when he had ended up in this position. He felt that they were too close, and it was even blocking his breathing. He felt like he was suffocating. Moreover, Ouyang Rong found that his hot breath seemed to be exhaling upwards. He wondered if A Qing felt anything.

The two were positioned so that neither could clearly see the other's expression.

Ouyang Rong couldn't hold back and instinctively tried to turn around.

But from above came Aqing's reproachful voice, tinged with annoyance:

"Brother, if you move around, you might cut your face. Brother, you mustn't move..."

Ouyang Rong paused for a moment, feeling quite helpless.

Aqing seemed oblivious to everything, continuing her actions. Ouyang Rong could feel the resistance as she gently stroked his chin, her delicate fingertips occasionally brushing against his stubble, giving him a ticklish sensation.

Perhaps sensing that her brother was behaving well, or perhaps feeling that the atmosphere and posture were indeed a bit off, Ouyang Rong heard A Qing's softer, more delicate voice from above after a short while:

"Brother, are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

Ouyang Rong was about to nod, but found he couldn't move, so he had to speak instead:
"Yes... a little."

The young woman's voice was gentle and soft.
"Where do you feel unwell? You can tell Aqing."

Ouyang Rong was somewhat speechless.

Because Ah Qing's voice didn't sound wrong, he felt that if he took the initiative to say something, it would seem like he was just being presumptuous. It didn't seem like there was anything wrong with the occasional slightly intimate gestures between the siblings, or that someone was just being naive...

Ouyang Rong, who usually avoids internal conflicts and overthinking, was a little conflicted at this moment.

However, he quickly made a decision. He simply closed his eyes, ignoring the youthful and beautiful thing in front of him that swayed slightly with the young woman's movements, as if seeking to avoid being bothered by what he saw. Perhaps this is what a certain school of Buddhism advocates: not seeking externally.

The young man with his eyes closed whispered:
"It's alright, Aqing, you can continue. Just trim it to a near-perfect consistency, no need to be too meticulous..."

Ah Qing's voice came through, her tone leaving no room for argument:

"How can this be done?"

Upon hearing her words, Ouyang Rong almost simultaneously felt a warm, fragrant breath on his chin, making him feel even more itchy and wanting to scratch...

"Um, okay then..."

Perhaps this is what the book refers to as "breath as fragrant as orchids," he couldn't help but think as he responded.

At the same time, Ouyang Rong also heard A Qing muttering faintly:

“Brother, your beard is so long. If I don’t trim it for you, they might trim it for you when you go down the mountain tomorrow… That won’t do…”

Before he could frown and speak, Aqing suddenly asked:
"Brother, is itchy?"

Ouyang Rong's attention was diverted, and he hurriedly responded:

"Uh-huh."

"Is it here?"

Ouyang Rong felt two warm, slender fingers touch a spot on his chin.

He couldn't help but remind:

"Move to the left a bit."

The young woman asked playfully, seemingly with a smile, "Is this...the place?"

"Yeah, almost."

She nodded:
"Is it about right? Then let's go a little further to the left."

Ouyang Rong took a deep breath and said, "Yes, it's here... Wow, Aqing is really skillful."

For some reason, Ah Qing seemed to bite her lip, and as her slender fingers deftly tickled him, she uttered a soft complaint in her voice:
"Hmph, you're only just realizing this now, brother? Weren't you skillful enough in sewing all those clothes before? You probably didn't even notice..."

The young man with his eyes closed looked somewhat embarrassed and said apologetically:

"Well, I usually just wear them as is, but my brother really likes wearing the robes that Ah Qing made because he finds them comfortable, more comfortable than other expensive clothes bought outside. He's gotten used to wearing them..."

As the conversation drifted to this point, he seemed to be trying to recall something, then added:
"However, Wei Lai seems to have praised you. I remember every morning when I went out, she would try her best to pick out the robes you sewed for me to wear. She probably thought A Qing was skillful and even wanted to learn, but in the end, it was all talk and no action. I guess that girl is envious of you, A Qing..."

Ah Qing smiled broadly at his words, her shaving movements slowing down slightly. After listening intently to his reply, she murmured something to herself:

"Sister Wei Lai..."

There was a moment of silence between the two, and they remained in the same position. Ah Qing had come to her senses and then bent down to carefully trim the beard on his chin.

The mustache on his lip has been trimmed. As for the mustache on his chin, the best way to trim it is certainly not for Ah Qing to stand in front of him, squat down, or tilt her head to trim it, as that would be much less efficient... Instead, she should stand near the back of his head, over his head, and trim it carefully in a way that resembles holding Ouyang Rong's head. That would be much more convenient.

But this also meant that someone's face was almost pressed against her breasts, and occasionally, if he moved too much, it would make him unable to breathe for a moment...

Ouyang Rong didn't think too much about it. With his eyes closed, he took another deep breath and began to enter a state of mind where he was focused on his nose and mind.

However, while he could meditate and block out his eyes and even his sense of touch, his sense of smell was difficult to detect. Every now and then, his nose would lightly brush against a piece of fabric, and a faint scent of gardenias would drift into his nostrils, making it hard for Ouyang Rong to ignore, causing his mind to flutter.

He couldn't tell if the fragrance was from the soap shavings Ah Qing used to wash clothes or the perfume in his shampoo... At that moment, with his eyes tightly closed, he couldn't help but wonder.

Just then, a startled cry came from the direction of the wardrobe not far away:
"What are you doing?!"

It's a brilliant idea.

Ouyang Rong instinctively wanted to get up, but the posture was inconvenient and he was afraid of getting scratched, so he held back.

Ah Qing seemed to turn her head and glance at it, then immediately spoke:
"It's all trimmed, brother. I... I'll go get you a towel. You can rest for a bit."

Ah Qing uttered only one word before running away lightly.

Ouyang Rong was left looking somewhat embarrassed, lying on the chair.

He quickly opened his eyes, turned his head to look, and found that Miaosi had already run over angrily.

The Peach Blossom Spring painting, which had been circling Ouyang Rong, suddenly appeared in front of the little ink spirit, only to be shoved aside. She jumped onto Ouyang Rong's shoulder, hands on her hips, and reprimanded him:

"Little Rongzi, look what you've done! You're utterly shameless! In broad daylight, I, this fairy maiden, even stumbled upon you! I was sleeping so late and I still managed to bump into you. You can imagine how long you two have been together... Ugh... If you're so capable, don't try to shut me up..."

Before Miaosi could finish its rant, Ouyang Rong covered its mouth without saying a word. The little guy whimpered a few times and waved its paws wildly in strong protest.

It wasn't until Aqing returned from outside that she handed Ouyang Rong a wet towel, then calmly "rescued" Miaosi from Ouyang Rong's arms, held the little one in her arms, and patted her little head with her fingers.

Miao Si glanced up at the seemingly nonchalant pretty young woman.

"Hmph, don't pretend nothing happened, this fairy saw it all..."

The brilliant idea came to an abrupt end.

Ouyang Rong, who was wiping his stubble with a towel, glanced to the side and saw that A Qing had taken out a handkerchief from somewhere, with pastries wrapped in it. She picked one out and put it to Miao Si's lips.

The latter mumbled a couple of times, then ate the pastry somewhat indistinctly. He even took the pastry with both hands, like a little mouse that had sneaked out in the middle of the night, holding the "rice" in both hands and burying his head in it, his words completely blocked by the pastry.

Perhaps feeling that Ouyang Rong and A Qing's gazes were a bit too conspicuous, Miao Si turned her back and waved her hand, as if signaling them to go away and make a fuss. The female immortal saw nothing and didn't care about anything.

Ouyang Rong couldn't help but glance at A Qing. The little girl was quite good at dealing with Miao Si, knowing how to stop her from talking nonsense.

Aqing picked up another one, put it in her mouth, and her eyes curved into crescents with sweetness. She whispered to Ouyang Rong, who was wiping his face, "..."
"Brother, would you like some?"

Ouyang Rong glared at her:

"We'll have dinner soon, and some snacks too."

Aqing paused for a moment, then shrank back and put down the bag of pastries in her hand.

Ouyang Rong glanced at the night outside, put down the face towel, and walked out the door towards the kitchen.

"I'll get you some side dishes and boil some water so you can take a hot bath first."

Aqing glanced at Ouyang Rong's retreating figure with a somewhat indescribable look in her eyes.

The tone of her brother's voice just now reminded her of her mother when she was a child, who also disciplined her gluttonous nature in the same way.

"okay."

The pretty young woman nodded obediently and followed him out.

Miao Si's eyes darted around, and she reached out her devilish hand towards the bag of pastries: "Hmm, if you won't eat them, I will..."

After getting the snacks, she jumped down from Aqing's arms and ran happily back to her wardrobe lair, muttering, "Little Rongzi, don't save any food for this fairy, I'm full."

With a wave of his hand, Little Ink Spirit held a snack in his hand, stood ramrod straight, and spoke with great bravado.

As night deepened and dinner ended, Ouyang Rong cleaned up the dishes, took a hot shower, and returned to his room.

Inside the room, only a single lamp was lit on the table, its yellow light illuminating only half the room. The desks and beds at both ends of the room were mostly hidden in darkness, indistinct and unclear.

As soon as Ouyang Rong entered the room, he looked at the wardrobe where Miao Si was. The wardrobe door was closed and there was no movement.

I don't know if she's asleep, or if, as the Fairy Goddess said not long ago, she's no longer involved in certain matters—it's like she's been beholden to those who have given her food and received gifts…

Feeling refreshed, Ouyang Rong walked into the inner room, untying the knot that bound his long hair as he went. In this era, the most troublesome thing in daily life was washing hair. Both men and women had long hair, so they experienced the same trouble.

Not only is it difficult to dry, and you might easily catch a cold, but daily maintenance is also troublesome. It's greasy and uncomfortable, especially for Ouyang Rong, a stranger in this land. He usually washes his hair every two weeks, but he didn't wash it tonight. At least he wrapped his black hair up to avoid getting it wet.

However, it seemed that Aqing had washed her hair and finished bathing early. When he was cooking, Ouyang Rong reminded her not to catch a cold, but the little girl was very bold. With her long hair wet and wearing a thin nightgown, she circled around him while he was busy, which made Ouyang Rong quite helpless.

While they were eating, he had to stand at the table and carefully wipe her clean, which made the little girl, who was unusually lively tonight, smile so much that her eyes curved into crescent moons. He wondered what she was laughing about.

Ouyang Rong shook his head and walked to the bedside. Aqing was probably asleep; there was no movement on the bed. His gaze swept over the bed casually, but suddenly stopped...

(End of this chapter)