Under the moonlight

Chapter 173 Dazzling Fireworks, Like a Dream

Huang Meng slept very comfortably. Although she had been back from S country for three months, everything she had experienced there, especially the fear and terror she felt at the time, had not diminished with the change of environment. Those emotions were like ghosts, always pouncing on her in the dead of night.

She dreamt more than once that Xu Ao was beaten to a bloody pulp by Saudi Arabia, and Li Shuo was not spared either. Everyone she knew around her was seriously injured and lying at her feet. Looking around, she saw only herself in the world, enduring unbearable pain. Every time this happened, she would wake up in tears. The helplessness and desolation in her dreams often made her feel confused. Had she returned to her own world? Or was the world in her dreams the real one, and her current life just a dream?

For a long time, she would wake up crying from such dreams, then fall into doubt, deny herself, and firmly tell herself that it was all over, all over, Xu Ao was alright, Li Shuo was alright, she was alright, they were all alright, it was just a nightmare. This state lasted for more than a month. At that time, Xu Ao was not yet completely out of danger, so she never mentioned it to him. So, when he held her as she fell asleep, there was no more death or sorrow, not even a dream.

Xu Ao had been awake for a while. In fact, he hadn't slept at all. Looking at Huang Meng's peaceful sleeping face, he raised his hand and gently tucked the hair that had fallen across her cheek behind her ear. His gaze fell on the dressing table opposite the bed.

A small notebook lay neatly in the center, containing all of Huang Meng's plans, which he had read out completely when she went out to buy clothes.

Xu Ao stared at the notebook, imagining the girl in his arms sitting at the table, racking her brains to plan a surprise for him. There were many crossed-out sections in the notebook; it seemed she was really troubled! Xu Ao smiled slightly, leaned forward, and gently kissed her cheek. "Since you've gone to so much trouble, how could I let you down?"

Xu Ao lay back down, patiently waiting to wake up.

At six o'clock in the evening, Huang Meng was woken up by her phone alarm. She leaned back a little greedily, wanting to find that warm support, but the person behind her held her waist firmly. His hands were really warm, and she could feel the heat coming through his clothes.

"Girl, stop moving." Xu Ao said in a deep voice, but his hand, which was on her waist, involuntarily slipped through her lower abdomen and wrapped around her with his arm, keeping her far away from his embrace.

"What's wrong?" Huang Meng shifted her body and turned around to look at Xu Ao's legs, which were almost dangling to the side of the bed. She couldn't help but wonder how someone could have their head on the pillow and their body on the side of the bed. What kind of sleeping position was that?

"It's nothing, it's just... hey, get up, I'm hungry," Xu Ao said helplessly, closing his eyes.

"Oh, oh, okay, no, wait, wait a minute, I, I know a place with pretty good food, let's go there to eat, let's go, while it's not too congested yet, wait for me a bit." Reminded by him, Huang Meng quickly moved on with her plan, jumped out of bed and went to the dressing table to start working.

Whew, Xu Ao breathed a sigh of relief as he saw that the space in front of him was now empty. If she had twisted around a couple more times, he might not have been able to control himself. Holding her to sleep was already a challenge enough! Xu Ao looked at Huang Meng, who was busy with her own things, and said slowly, "I'm going to take a shower. No rush."

"Didn't you just wash it? Your wound isn't fully healed yet!" Huang Meng said, turning to look at Xu Ao while applying blush.

"Yeah, I sweated a lot while sleeping." Xu Ao walked out with his head down guiltily. Sigh, I don't even know when... Oh well, I'll take a shower first!

Huang Meng quickly got ready. Watching Xu Ao put on the clothes she had chosen for him, she pulled him out. Once they were in the car, she started anxiously checking the time again. Xu Ao almost lost his composure, but he pretended to be nonchalant as he watched her anxiously, occasionally offering her a few words of comfort.

The car finally stopped, and Huang Meng quickly pulled Xu Ao out of the car. "Hmm, just right."

"What's just right?" Xu Ao asked, amused, looking at Huang Meng's serious expression.

"Oh, it's nothing, it's just that the timing of our meal was perfect, haha~"

"Okay, let's go then?" Xu Ao smiled at her, waiting for the next step.

"Okay, let's go. Hey, I heard that we can get there faster this way, and the scenery looks pretty good too, right?"

Xu Ao followed her finger and looked at the scenic path she mentioned. Indeed, the path led to a spacious park lawn, a great place to watch fireworks.

"Okay, I'll listen to you." Xu Ao looked at the girl in front of him with endless tenderness in his eyes.

Huang Meng felt a slight sense of smug satisfaction at her cunning scheme succeeding, then slowly walked forward, arm in arm with Xu Ao, counting, "One, two, three, four..."

"Five, six, seven, eight, nine."

"Ten," they both silently counted in their minds.

A dazzling display of fireworks burst right above them. Huang Meng looked proudly at her masterpiece, turned around, took Xu Ao's hands, and said with a bright smile, "Look, these fireworks are blooming for us!"

Xu Ao had never paid attention to these clichéd romantic gestures before. He always felt that love could never be more straightforward and direct than expressing it directly. He thought that conveying love through material means was just a merchant's tactic.

But now, he wants to thank Huang Meng. Her fireworks and the happy smile on her face made him realize that love can indeed be conveyed through material things. Regardless of whether it's a marketing ploy, at this moment, he is willing to be captivated by it.

They kissed passionately, as if they were the only ones in the world.

"Ahem, ahem, uh, well, I didn't mean to disturb you. The fireworks are over, shall we go somewhere else?" Li Shuo's voice suddenly came, startling the person in his arms. The softness that had been lingering on his lips and tongue suddenly slipped away like a startled little fish.

Xu Ao remained in the kissing position, his slightly parted lips red and moist, as if still savoring the sweetness of the moment, but his gaze toward Li Shuo was filled with coldness.

Standing behind Huang Meng, Li Shuo naturally couldn't see Xu Ao's murderous gaze; he only knew that they were all hungry.

"Hey, let's go, the food's getting cold." He was actually getting impatient. Xu Ao smiled helplessly, then took Huang Meng's hand and walked towards him.

They stopped in front of a quaint little courtyard, which they had decorated sweetly and romantically. According to Zhao Meng, Huang Meng had arranged it all. Judging from his tired expression, doing these tedious things was no easier for him than talking about work.

If the dazzling fireworks were a delightful surprise, then the faces bathed in warm light in the courtyard represented a deep sense of satisfaction and happiness for him.

That's great, everyone's here.