In the Luo family, Luo Qinghan had always been the one who was continuously exploited and bled dry.
However, for her father and her daughter, Luo Qinghan had endured it all.
Today, she finally realized that she no longer had to endure.
She hugged her quilt, her hands gripping the duvet tightly.
Lin Xiao paid no attention to Luo Qinghan. He assumed she was accustomed to sleeping on her side and turned his back, trying not to overthink.
Still, thinking about the events of the Lin family back then made his mind a mess. Today, he had finally avenged all seventy-two members of the Lin family.
Both of them had things on their minds, and it was the first time they had shared a bed with someone of the opposite sex in years. Neither of them could sleep until late into the night.
"Wah… I want Daddy! I want Daddy!"
Suddenly, Xun'er's crying broke the silence of the night. She sat up abruptly on the bed, sobbing.
"What's wrong, baby?!" Luo Qinghan's years of experience raising children kicked in, and she sprang from the bed, rushing to Xun'er's side.
Lin Xiao, having spent four years in the army, still possessed quick reflexes. He was faster than Luo Qinghan, reaching Xun'er's side in an instant and scooping her up. "Xun'er, what's wrong?"
His actions made Luo Qinghan pause.
"Daddy!"
Xun'er immediately clutched his clothes. "Don't go! Don't go!"
She kept murmuring, her hands tightly gripping Lin Xiao's shirt.
"She had a nightmare," Luo Qinghan said softly. "Before you came back, she was often bullied by other children. I tried to intervene many times, but I couldn't. Today… it's finally over."
As a mother, she always felt a sense of guilt towards Xun'er because her helplessness had subjected Xun'er to things she shouldn't have had to bear.
"From now on, I won't let anyone bully her," Lin Xiao said gently, patting Xun'er's back.
The little girl woke up quickly and fell asleep just as quickly.
Within minutes, she was fast asleep, her breathing even and steady.
As Lin Xiao prepared to put the little girl back down to sleep, she seemed to sense something. Even in her sleep, she clung tightly to Lin Xiao's clothes.
"It seems I'll have to bring her into bed with us," Lin Xiao tried gently. He couldn't bear to be separated from his daughter. He looked at Luo Qinghan helplessly and then carried the little girl to the bed.
Luo Qinghan didn't object. She nodded, watching as Lin Xiao placed Xun'er between them, where the imaginary boundary had been.
Xun'er still held onto Lin Xiao tightly.
The more she did, the more Lin Xiao felt he had failed his daughter. For years, he hadn't fulfilled his responsibilities as a father or a husband. They had both suffered too much.
He thought it would be over now, and the little girl would finally sleep soundly.
But within two minutes, Xun'er seemed to be dreaming again. Not only were her hands gripping Lin Xiao tightly, but her legs were also kicking wildly. She cried out, "Go away! Go away! Hurry, go away, woo woo woo…"
Her voice was laced with sobs, clearly having dreamt of something terrifying.
Lin Xiao quickly held her close, gently stroking her head to comfort her.
Luo Qinghan sighed. "She's been like this when she sleeps lately…"
Always like this?
Lin Xiao, who had finally managed to get Xun'er to sleep again, asked upon hearing Luo Qinghan's words, "So, you're often woken up at night?"
"Yes," Luo Qinghan nodded. "Since Xun'er was born, I haven't had a good night's sleep. When she was first born, my mother and I took turns caring for her every night. Later, as she grew older, she was often bullied by other boys, which led to nightmares at night. When she has nightmares, I can't sleep either."
In the faint light of the bedside lamp, Lin Xiao finally noticed Luo Qinghan's face without makeup.
She was only twenty-six years old, but her face already bore the signs of hardship and exhaustion, different from the Luo Qinghan he remembered.
Back then, her face was full of youthful energy, and her radiant, confident smile was a constant. But now… in the lamplight, her eyes were filled with tender affection as she looked at her daughter.
She was a mother now.
"You've suffered," Lin Xiao said, understanding the feeling well. It was like his training days, when any moment, day or night, could be an emergency assembly. He had to react as quickly as possible. During missions, sleep at night was a luxury; his attention had to be highly focused, always ready to move.
"It's alright, I'm only doing it for Xun'er," Luo Qinghan replied. "She doesn't have a father, so I have to try and give her the love of two people."
"Now you have me," Lin Xiao said softly.
Luo Qinghan looked up at him.
They made eye contact for three seconds.
Then, she turned her head away, nodding almost imperceptibly. "Yes, I have you now."
They settled back down to sleep.
After much coaxing, Xun'er did not wake up in the middle of the night again.
The next morning.
Lin Xiao's eyes snapped open. His first instinct was to look at the little girl who was clutching his arm tightly.
Xun'er hadn't let go in her sleep; she had only gripped him tighter.
But then, he noticed Luo Qinghan's sleeping posture.
She was holding Xun'er close in her arms, hugging her tightly.
It looked as though she was afraid someone might appear in the middle of the night and snatch the little girl away from her.
He chuckled softly and gently tried to dislodge his arm from the little girl's grasp.
Children are light sleepers. The slightest movement woke Xun'er.
However, unlike last night's nightmare, she blinked her eyes groggily, released Lin Xiao's arm, rubbed her eyes, and then, half-asleep, looked at Lin Xiao. After a long moment of thought, she managed to blurt out, "Daddy."
"Good morning, Xun'er," Lin Xiao said, gently kneading her cheek.
"Hey, Daddy, don't pinch my face~" Xun'er pouted and struggled slightly. Unable to break free from Luo Qinghan's embrace, she looked at Lin Xiao helplessly. "Daddy, why isn't Mommy hugging you, but hugging me instead?"
"Huh?"
Lin Xiao was taken aback by her question.
"I see on TV that parents always sleep hugging each other. Why isn't Mommy hugging Daddy?" Xun'er struggled again, then gave up.