Xu Nianhua suddenly opened her eyes to find darkness enveloping the room, her back ice cold and her heart in extreme discomfort. That suffocating, gripping pain forced Xu Nianhua to breathe deeply.
She rolled her eyes, taking a long while to come to her senses.
Forgetting even her shoes, Xu Nianhua ran straight into her second brother’s room, and only upon seeing him asleep did she realize it had all been a dream, that reality had shifted.
In the bed, Xu Nian’an vaguely felt someone watching him. When he opened his eyes and saw a figure standing in his room, he was startled and jolted backwards.
"Second Brother, it’s me."
Xu Nianhua hastened to identify herself.
Recognizing his little sister’s voice, Xu Nian’an naturally knew her and, upon realizing it was her, he let out a sigh of relief. From outside the window, a breeze blew in, chilling his back.
"Little sister, why aren’t you sleeping and instead running to my room in the middle of the night?"
Xu Nian’an looked out the window. It was barely lit up, probably a little past four in the morning.
"I had a nightmare," Xu Nianhua said as she sat at the edge of the bed, listening to his breathing and his voice, feeling extremely happy. She grinned and said, "Did I scare you, Second Brother?"
Xu Nianhua cocked her head and said, "So, it turns out Second Brother is such a scaredy-cat, afraid of ghosts, too."
Xu Nian’an: "Little sister, how about I give you a scare next time?"
Waking up in the middle of the night to see a figure standing by the bed would startle anyone.
"Don’t, Second Brother, I’m the cowardly one, really scared of ghosts. You mustn’t scare me," Xu Nianhua whispered in a teasing tone, obviously making fun of Xu Nian’an being a scaredy-cat.
Yawning and still not fully awake, Xu Nianhua assured herself she wasn’t dreaming anymore. As sleepiness overtook her, she said, "It’s not yet dawn, I’ll go back to sleep."
Watching her quietly leave, Xu Nian’an thought to himself: You really are my dear sister!
He heard Xu Nianhua softly return to her own room and, lying back in bed, found himself unable to fall asleep again. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw that dark figure by the bed.
Xu Nian’an tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Lying in bed, he began to recite the Admonitions Scroll. He liked this text a lot—when he felt bad or unsettled like now, reciting it would quickly calm his mind.
Xu Nianhua returned to her room and slept soundly, dreamless until dawn, her lips curled up in a smile.
"What’s the matter with Nian’an today? Why is he up so late?"
Ji Ying muttered. Zhou He had gotten up early to make breakfast, and Ji Ying wanted her to rest more, but Zhou He was shy and just quietly went about her work. Ji Ying, worried that saying too much would make Zhou He uncomfortable, let her be.
Usually, Nian’an and Nianhua would be up very early, but why weren’t they up today?
Seeing Zhou He nearly done cooking the morning noodles and they still hadn’t risen, Ji Ying went to call them.
"Nianhua, your sister-in-law has cooked the noodles," Ji Ying called out to Xu Nianhua softly.
Xu Nianhua had a nightmare in the first half of the night and slept soundly in the second; it was still early, and she was in a drowsy state. Hearing Ji Ying’s voice, she sleepily opened her eyes and sat on the bed, her brain slowly starting to function.
Seeing her daughter beginning to wake up, Ji Ying went to call Xu Nian’an. She wasn’t as gentle with Xu Nian’an as with Xu Nianhua; Ji Ying simply flung back his quilt.