Without herself noticing, Aitao's whimpering had already turned into sobbing. The sound of her unlatched door opening interrupted her cry. She stuck her head out of the quilt and turned backward. It was her mother, Wunwu Din, standing outside the door in her white duanda, a short-sleeved short robe that was designed for mobility.
Tiredly Yawning, Wunwu inquired, "Jiao Ai, li cuo e feng de fa? fei zhi de. Fa fa cai che di le. (Li'l Ai, did you have a nightmare? It's okay. Mom is here.)" She closed the door and lay next to her daughter.
Having her mother lying beside her, Aitao couldn't hold herself anymore. She buried her head in her mom's arms, sobbing and repeatedly apologizing in a small volume. "Fei Zhi Te. Win yei li zhi yo cui ai te lv er, zuo wi yo yan xuan pu qie wi pei shao jing o, (It's okay. Because you are my beloved daughter, I don't mind being awakened,)" Wunwu started humming the old lullaby that she had hummed to all her three kids and patted her daughter on the head, bearing the cool wind that blew in from the glassless window. She forgot to get into the quilt when she lay down, and she wasn't managing to because Aitao was already in her cuddling.
Although Wunwu had no idea what had happened, her words still guided her daughter. Aitao gradually stopped crying and asked her mother, "Ai? Zhi win yei ai fa? (Love? Because of love?)"
"Tang zan de. Win yei yo ai li, zo wi yu dun zu ge, yo tou gui dai tao li zhen pian, (Of course. Because I love you, I will, no matter what, come to you.)"
"Jie jie, fa. Yo wi qin pu ma de, (Thanks, my mom. I am no longer afraid,)" Aitao, sniffing, told Wunwu as she moved away from her arms. She now knew what she had to do. She now understood what was right to do. If her brother was willing to take her, an extra burden, to his adventure every night and her mother was willing to comfort her in the middle of the night, then she, Aitao, herself was willing to find her brother.
After her mother had gone back to her whole bedroom, Aitao rushed to the pond again. She had a guess that the pond could somehow teleport people to somewhere, but the question was where. She could already imagine her brother lying in the mud with no one by his side. She had her mother giving her strength while her brother was alone. Aitao had made her decision. She'd bring her brother back if she could find a way to come back. If not, she would stay there with her brother, so at least he had a companion. Aitao, by heart, believed that as long as their love for each other remained, everything would work out.
She took a step forward and jumped into the pond. All the koi swam away as she fell into the water. A big splash was made when her shoes touched the pond's surface. Regardless, not a single part of Aitao was wet.
The next moment, Aitao realized that she was in a cavern. Stalactites were hanging on the ceiling, and the ground was rough and tilted. The tiny lighting of this place was provided by a glowing kind of pinkish-purple tetragonal crystal that formed sparse clusters on the ground and pillars connected to the ceiling. The light emitted from the crystal made the place dreamy and unreal. The heat was also produced by the crystal, so the place was not as cold as any other caverns but warm like summer.
When Wongtao opened his eyes again, he saw his sister shaking him and calling his name. He slowly sat up while caressing the tiny bruise on the back of his head, "Che zhi zhen fe ti bang? (What is this place?)" He looked toward those crystals with confusion.
"La ke shi nang gao jiang zhi ke dian qie tao che ke tong jue te shuan zong fen. Che pu nai gao qie zhi, tan zhi yo wou pan ba ta hai wi ke he wi gui xu te shuan zong fen, (That pond is probably a portal to this cavern. It is hard to explain, but I can open a portal to get back,)" Aitao elucidated as she helped her brother to get back on his feet.
"Che ti bang fan hu te. (This place is cool.)" Wongtao viewed the place with delight and walked around as he appreciated the clusters and pillars. He had stopped caressing the bruise on his head the moment he stood up so Aitao wouldn't know he was hurt. Wongtao softly stroked one of the pillars to feel the smoothness and warmth of the crystal. To him, this place was fascinating. The only other place where he could see purple crystals was in his mother's archive, which contained artifacts, toys, and luxuries from foreign lands. Although his own people, Jurens, mostly could not understand the beauty of these crystals other than jade, Wongtao was a fan of them and other foreign wonders. He could see culture, knowledge, faith, and exotic ways of life in his mother's collection. It was one of the reasons why he couldn't stand those military generals' ambition.
Watching her brother not bothered by her previous act of childishness, Aitao felt an intense guilt tickling the squashiest part of her heart. She honestly preferred to be scolded than effortlessly forgiven.
Aitao had her fists joined before her chest as she yelled, "Yo ai li, Wongtao. (I love you, Wongtao.)" She was originally going to say sorry, yet she then realized it was too courteous and diplomatic to say. Thus, she decided to express her love.
"Yo we ai li, Aitao, (I love you, too, Aitao,)" Wongtao, turning back to his sister, answered while gently curving his lips upward, making a full grin on Aitao's visage. She nodded with her eyes overflowing with tears. Her brother, chuckling in delight, continued, "Er xie yo fen gui cai che di yan te gen hai jin te. (And we will have a lot of fun here.)"
