Uma Musume, from entry level to basement

But now it is completely unable to attract the attention of Qi Cao and the others.

Because the person who occupied their entire attention now was Tang Han, who was lying in the dark corner of the room, his body so weak that the color had faded to white.

"I'll take Tang Han and Trena back to rest!" Rudolf symbolically put one of Tang Han's arms on his shoulder, and then lifted Tang Han up from the ground.

"I'll help too!" The Emperor of the East China Sea trotted over, put Tang Han's other arm on her shoulder, and then he and Rudolph carried Tang Han out of the room.

"....." Qicao looked at Tang Han's back as he was taken away, his outstretched hand hanging in the air reluctantly, his heart aching slightly.

Just when Tang Han's figure completely disappeared from the sight of the air tank, the night-blooming cereus in the center of the room also ended its flowering period early due to the effect of the growth agent. The petals that emitted a holy light gradually dimmed and eventually withered.

Qi Cao touched the wrinkled withered flowers, and the flower language of Epiphyllum came to his mind.

Because the time and energy required to grow a night-blooming cereus is extremely enormous. It takes at least three or four years from seed cultivation to flowering.

Compared to the price paid, Epiphyllum normally only blooms for about four hours at night.

Therefore, the flower language of Epiphyllum is: "A moment of beauty, a moment of eternity."

Although its beauty is short-lived, it can leave a permanent mark in people's hearts.

Just like the mysterious man who suddenly appeared in front of the statue of the Three Goddesses that day, although it was only a brief moment and I only saw him once, I could never forget him, and his figure echoed in my mind all day and all night.

I want to find him, I want to see him again...

So when she was secluded in her dormitory embroidering all day, and Tang Hantelena came to ask her what her deepest wish was, Qicao's answer was:

I want to plant a night-blooming cereus myself and see it bloom with my own eyes!

So in order to help her realize this wish, Tang Hantelena, who knew nothing about flower growing, taught himself to become a researcher who could accurately mix plant nutrients in a short period of time.

In order to have enough time to watch the entire bloom of the night-blooming cereus, she even drank less energy supplements and relied solely on her willpower to hold on until the flower bloomed...

But when Qi Cao actually cultivated an Epiphyllum and saw it bloom with her own eyes, she was surprised to find that...

I don't seem to like the fleeting beauty of Epiphyllum...

Because it is... too short...

It was as fleeting as a leaf drifting in the wind, shattered at the first touch, let alone being held in one's arms and feeling it properly. What was left to her was not eternal beauty, but deep regret...

"....." Qicao covered his chest with his hands, his eyes fixed on the direction where Tang Han left.

Perhaps her wish...

It's something else...

194. The flower language of sunflower: silent love

"My wish..."

Qicao walked out of the small, lightless room where the Epiphyllum was being cultivated, with his ears twitching.

It was noon now, and the sun was high in the sky outside, providing warmth to all the plants in the flower garden indiscriminately.

Because he had been in a dark environment for a long time, Qicao felt that the sunlight was a bit dazzling, so he stretched out his hand to block the sun in front of his vision to make his eyes feel better.

Because of Tang Han, the Qi tank has not felt any fatigue until now, and it feels like there will be no problem even if it can move for another hour.

"How long...did he last..." Qi Cao bit his lips hard, trying to feel some pain.

After all, the extra time he had now was all squeezed out by Tang Hantrena from the time that originally belonged to him...

Every minute she could move now meant one more minute of pain that Tang Hantrena had to endure.

That's why Qicao wanted to bite his lips to make himself feel painful, in an attempt to make himself feel better about his guilt.

However, Ai Lisuzi also took into account that the trainer would definitely feel pain after being jumped, so this energy potion also has the effect of relieving pain. So even if Qigou bites her lips hard now, she will never be able to experience the same pain as Tang Han suffered at that time...

Qi Cao knew this, and it was precisely because he knew this that he could not forgive himself, and his guilt towards Tang Han grew deeper and deeper.

She just stood there blankly, breathing in the fresh air in the flower garden, waiting for the effect of the energy potion to wear off, and then she would fall asleep...

After a long wait, the air tank gradually adapted to the brightness of the sun outside. The sunlight was no longer dazzling, so she put down her hands that were blocking the sunlight.

At this moment, Qi Cao suddenly discovered that in his field of vision, not far away there was a sunflower shining brightly in the sun.

Qicao remembered that it was the sunflower that she and Tang Han cultivated together a few nights ago.

Compared to the holy and beautiful Epiphyllum, the appearance of the sunflower seems quite ordinary.

It has neither the pure white petals of the Epiphyllum, like a guardian knight, nor the noble yellow core of a king's crown...

It has only orange petals like the common people in a small town, and a large disc-shaped flower core as black as coal...

But such an ordinary sunflower completely attracted Qi Cao's attention, and he unconsciously took a step towards it.

"..." Qi Cao squatted beside the sunflower, stroking its large and soft orange petals, recalling the meaning of sunflower.

Because sunflowers always grow towards the sun, their flower language is:

Silent love.

There is no one else in sight, you are everywhere. When you are with me, you are the sun, I can't take my eyes off you. When you are not with me, I lower my head and see no one...

For some reason, the image of Tang Han staring at her face in order to know the status of the flower emerged in Qi Cao's mind...

Tang Hantrena's appearance at that time was like this ordinary sunflower, always facing the sun, always looking at her...

"When exactly did I meet Tang Hantrena?"

Qi Cao looked up into the distance, his thoughts returning to that afternoon.

At that time, she was isolated in the dormitory. Because she had nothing to do, she was embroidering. The embroidery filled up her half of the room, leaving only a small space on the bed, so that people could only sit but not lie down to sleep.

She sat in the only empty space and continued to embroider the unfinished flower.

Then President Rudolf came to visit him, followed by a man in black wearing strange clothes. That was Tang Hantelena.

However, what Qicao cared about most at this moment was not her interaction and communication with Tang Han at that time.

But what exactly is that thing that fills half of her room and the unfinished embroidery pattern on her hands?

"Epiphyllum?" Qicao shook his head.

Although she couldn't remember it for the moment, she knew clearly that the flower she embroidered at that time was not the Epiphyllum, but another kind of flower...

"What is it?" Qi Cao began to recall.

Peony? No...

Narcissus? No...

Tulips? Not really...

"What on earth is this..." Qi Cao covered his head in pain, his brows furrowed.

She knew it was something important, but she just couldn't remember it.

Suddenly, Qi Cao glanced at the sunflower with an expression...

Then, the image of sunflowers before her eyes gradually overlapped with the image of embroidery in her memory...

"That's it!" Qi Cao exclaimed.

She remembered! She finally remembered!

What I embroidered at that time was not the so-called holy Epiphyllum, nor any other colorful flowers, but the same variety as the ones before, all of which were sunflowers emitting warm light!

"!" Qi Cao looked at the sunflower in front of him, his pupils shaking violently.

So what she had always needed wasn't the fleeting beauty of the Epiphyllum! It was...

Sunflowers are your eternal companion!

So, her pursuit of the mysterious man who had suddenly appeared before the Three Graces that day was completely pointless! He was merely a passing figure in her life. What good would it be if she could find him? What good would it be if she couldn't? He was, after all, a withered ephemeral flower, leaving only regrets behind...

Therefore, what she should really care about are the people around her who take care of her and help her like the sun gently shines on all things!

President Rudolph, classmate Donghai Emperor, friends from school, my family...

as well as......

"Tang Hantelena!" Qicao's brain suddenly woke up, as if the congested dam that blocked her thoughts was blown up, and she suddenly had an epiphany.

She stood up suddenly and ran towards the tent.

After lifting the tent door, Qi Cao immediately saw Tang Han lying powerlessly on the bed, his body so weak that it had turned into a white line drawing.

"Gas tank?"

"Senior Qi Cao?"

Rudolph Symbol and the Emperor of the East China Sea were a little confused when they saw the Qi Trough suddenly rushing in.

But the Qi Trough did not respond to the Rudolf symbol and the East China Sea Emperor. Instead, it came to the bed and squatted, staring at Tang Han closely.

At this time, Tang Han had fallen into a deep sleep due to the side effects of the energy potion after its effect ended. He was unable to respond to the outside world, and it was even more impossible for him to stare at the energy tank like before.

But Qicao didn't care. After all, Tang Han had done enough for her.

Next, it was her response.

"In that case, from now on, I will be the one watching over you..."

Qi Cao held Tang Han's hand, his gentle eyes filled with unquestionable determination.

"Senior Qi Cao?! What are you doing?!"

“Ah…”

Before the East China Sea Emperor next to him could react, Qi Cao suddenly yawned, his originally excited spirit gradually weakened, and he began to become drowsy.

The effect of the energy potion has finally ended...

Then, under the surprised gazes of Rudolph the Symbol and the Emperor of the East Sea, Qi Cao lay down on the bed, reached out and hugged Tang Han tightly, with a smile warmer than ever on his face, and fell into a deep sleep...

195. I’m hugging you!

About a day and a half passed, and the unconscious Tang Han finally recovered from the side effects of the energy drug and slowly opened his eyes.

"....." Tang Han stared blankly at the familiar ceiling of the tent in his sight with a dull expression. It was obvious that his brain processor had not yet been fully loaded.

"What time is it now?"

Tang Han stretched out his right hand, covered his still dizzy head, and fell into deep thought.

He only remembered that in order to allow his energy tank to have enough time to watch the night-blooming cereus bloom, he deliberately and secretly reduced the capacity of his bottle of energy potion, resulting in him falling into the side effects half an hour before the night-blooming cereus bloomed.

Although that period was indeed difficult to endure, under the dual blow of physical exhaustion and mental depression, Tang Han wanted to give up several times, thinking that if he just fell asleep, he would be happier...

But Tang Han still held on until the buds of the night-blooming cereus began to tremble and the petals bloomed. Only then did he relax contentedly, maintaining his original sitting position and falling into a complete sleep.

"So we succeeded, right..." Tang Han was extremely excited at this moment, and suddenly felt that all the torture and pain he had suffered before were meaningful!

But just as Tang Han was about to get up, he suddenly felt something hugging his left arm...

"?" Tang Han turned his head and saw that the quilt on the left was slightly bulging, as if there was a horse girl hiding inside...

"Huh?" Tang Han was stunned.

Had he seen a scene like this before?

Is there a horse girl named Qi Cao hidden inside this quilt?

"Gurgle..." Tang Han swallowed his saliva, then tremblingly lifted the quilt.

The quilt was lifted, and a horse girl with short, smooth hair that reached her shoulders, light orange eyeshadow at the corners of her eyes, and a yellow bow tied on her left ear appeared in Tang Han's sight.

"ZZZ..." Qi Cao was holding Tang Han's arm tightly at this time, sleeping peacefully.

"That's right!" Tang Han screamed in despair.

At this moment, his expression was like that of the little man in "The Scream" created by Edvard Munch, terrified and distorted.

Because the current scene is exactly the same as what Tang Han remembers!

Tang Han couldn't help but start to doubt whether the so-called blooming of the night-blooming cereus was just his imagination, and in fact, this thing never happened in reality...

Now he is still in the period of successfully cultivating sunflowers!

If that were true, wouldn't that mean he would have to go through the hell of cultivating Epiphyllums for another 72 hours?!

"No!" Tang Han wailed in pain.