Chapter 19

Little Snake huffily coiled her tail up to protect her abdomen. Ah Wan frowned when she saw this and reached out to poke her tail tip.

But Little Snake protected it very closely, refusing to let her see.

When Ah Wan just lightly poked it, Little Snake immediately arched up reactively, opening her mouth wide and hissing, baring her venomous fangs in a threat display.

Ah Wan froze for a second, her expression shifting slightly. She hadn’t expected Little Snake to bare her fangs at her.

Thinking it over, she loosened her grip. Looking down at her, Ah Wan’s tone turned suddenly cold. “Suit yourself.”

After saying that, she casually shoved Little Snake into her pocket.

Little Snake squirmed inside, adjusting her position, and laboriously poked her head out of the pocket to get some air. Her tail was secretly curled up inside, hidden.

Her body felt so uncomfortable. She didn’t know what was wrong with her.

Her mating season was usually during spring and summer. Why did she feel so terrible now?

She desperately wanted to snuggle Human.

Little Snake swayed her tail, growing restless again, squirming randomly inside the pocket.

Ah Wan clearly felt it. Her steps faltered. After a moment’s hesitation, she reached out and lightly patted her through the fabric. “Don’t fuss.”

The little lump inside really did stop moving.

By the time Ah Wan finished gathering herbs and came down the mountain, the rain had stopped. She took off her bamboo hat and carried it, carefully scooping the little one out of her pocket for some air.

Seeing her lying listlessly in her palm, Ah Wan couldn’t help but frown.

A little bit of sun emerged in the afternoon, shining lazily. When Ah Wan pushed open the courtyard gate with Little Snake, the flower vines covering the ground swiftly retreated, incidentally sucking the rainwater off the ground in the process.

Ah Wan gently set Little Snake down, watching her struggle to lift her head high as she crawled forward, but visibly lacking energy.

In the bamboo basket was the single herb she had specifically dug up for Little Snake. Once she ate it, she’d be better.

Ah Wan stood at the door watching her climb up a table leg by herself, obediently falling asleep in her snake nest. Only slightly relieved, Ah Wan went inside to brew her medicine.

By dusk, a thick, bitter medicinal smell came from the house.

Ah Wan turned off the fire, took a bowl from the cupboard, and poured the greenish-black medicine from the pot into it.

Little Snake caught the smell. She lifted her head to look around, then immediately perked up. Tumbling and scrambling out of her snake nest, she pushed her nest with her head, eager to flee.

But before she could get far, she couldn’t crawl anymore. Looking back, she saw Ah Wan holding the medicine in one hand, and lightly pressing down the tip of her tail with the other. Head tilted, Ah Wan’s voice was a bit terrifying.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Little Snake wiggled her tail but couldn’t pull it free. With a chirp, she immediately turned around to rub her head against the back of Ah Wan’s hand. Then she lifted her head, peering up with her tiny beady eyes, her pink tongue flicking out slowly. She looked unbelievably well-behaved.

Ah Wan knew she was an expert at acting cute to get her way and ignored it completely. She pinched Little Snake’s tail tip, lifting her back into the snake nest, and then sat down—

The little one instantly turned her head away, presenting her back, and lay flat on the table.

Playing dead again.

Ah Wan rapped lightly on the table and said with a frown, “Don’t make me do this the hard way.”

Only then did Little Snake slowly turn her head back around. But just her head—her body remained stubbornly turned away, twisted almost into a pretzel.

Ah Wan stirred the bowl of medicine with a spoon, her tone slightly gentler. “This time it’s not bitter. It just smells bitter, but it’s sweet to taste.”

Little Snake believed her. She leaned in to sniff, then stuck out her tongue to sample it first. But Ah Wan blocked her.

The slick snake tongue brushed across Ah Wan’s palm. The numbing, itchy sensation traveled along her wrist’s pulse, all the way back to her heart.

Ah Wan took a shallow breath, secretly clenching her fist. She took the spoon out and set it aside, then placed the bowl at Little Snake’s mouth. “Drink it all in one go, it won’t be bitter.”

Little Snake obediently opened her mouth wide.

Without hesitation, Ah Wan tilted the bowl and poured it down. A very rich, intensely bitter flavor flowed smoothly down Little Snake’s throat.

Urgh~

Little Snake stuck her tongue out and dry heaved. Ah Wan pinched her mouth shut. “No spitting it out.”

Little Snake slapped Ah Wan’s wrist with her tail angrily. Ah Wan hesitated, then let go.

“Human, you’re bad! How could you trick Snakey!” Little Snake questioned, huffing angrily.

Being scolded didn’t make Ah Wan mad. Instead, seeing her angry little face even lifted her mood somewhat. She coaxed gently, “Alright, don’t be mad. Tomorrow I’ll take you down the mountain to the market and buy you some crispy noodles.”

“Really?” Little Snake still doubted, lifting her head to look at her.

Ah Wan nodded. “Mhm.”

“Woo~”

Little Snake wagged her tail and crawled over, affectionately rubbing against Ah Wan’s finger. “Human is still the best.”

Ah Wan chuckled softly and flicked her head with a finger. “Weren’t you just scolding me?”

“Wasn’t me.” Little Snake stubbornly denied it. She curled her tail up to encircle Ah Wan’s finger, happily flicking her tongue, as lively and energetic as she’d been before the sickness.

Ah Wan tried poking her head with a bit of force. Like a roly-poly toy, Little Snake just bounced right back up. Just as she was about to get angry, seeing Ah Wan’s expression, she immediately yielded. She curled up in Ah Wan’s palm, rearing her upper body to rub her head against the crook of Ah Wan’s thumb, rolling around affectionately.

“You’re not sick anymore?” Ah Wan asked.

Hearing this, Little Snake carefully assessed her body. Indeed, that weak, uncomfortable feeling was gone. So she nodded.

A hint of expectation faintly showed in Ah Wan’s eyes, though her words carried the indifference of not caring. “Then turn back if you’re better. Don’t forget you still have to work for me.”

After saying this, Ah Wan picked up the bowl and left immediately, her steps swift.

Little Snake turned her head to look at her but only caught a glimpse of two reddening ears.

As night fell, Ah Wan came out while toweling her hair dry after washing up, but suddenly stopped in her tracks.

On the bed, the young girl was only covered with the blanket up to her waist, her smooth, jade-like upper body bare. She was sleeping soundly, sprawled on Ah Wan’s pillow, half her little face squished, her rosy mouth slightly open.

Ah Wan slowly walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, looking down for a long time. Then, very carefully, she reached out and gently stroked the girl’s soft lips.

A pink snake tongue slowly extended, wrapped around Ah Wan’s finger, gave a light suck, then quickly darted back in.

Ah Wan carefully got into bed, leaning back against the headboard, reading a book.

As she slept, Little Snake’s hands started grabbing randomly. Once she felt Ah Wan’s waist, she opened one eye, raised her head to glance at her, gave a silly grin, then stretched her arm up to wrap around Ah Wan’s neck. She called out in a sticky voice: “Human~”

Ah Wan caught her instinctively, wrapping an arm around Little Snake’s waist.

The girl’s body was incredibly soft. Her curves perfectly fitted against Ah Wan’s waistline, bringing them even closer together.

Ah Wan gently set her book down. Looking at the little one in her arms, she saw her rubbing and nuzzling, her hair getting all frizzy.

Ah Wan used her hand to smooth it a bit, tucking the stray hairs around her ear behind it, then pulled the blanket up to cover her shoulders.

A whole night of chirping insects and calling birds couldn’t compare to the chaos inside Ah Wan’s chest.

Ah Wan’s heart—

Bang Bang Bang!

Beat in complete disarray.

The next day, Ah Wan woke before dawn.

The human in her arms held her tight like an octopus, her face pressed into Ah Wan’s chest, her slender fingers tightly gripping Ah Wan’s collar, pulling it slightly out of shape.

Ah Wan touched her forehead. Normal temperature. Finally reassured, she held her close and fell back asleep for a while longer.

Morning came. The two quickly made something simple to eat, then prepared to head down the mountain.

It had rained recently, and the temperature had dropped a bit.

Ah Wan casually pulled two jackets from the wardrobe and called Little Snake to set off.

The jackets had hoods. Before leaving, Ah Wan casually put the hood on Little Snake’s head.

Though she wasn’t sure exactly what had happened to her a few days ago, it was still better to be cautious, just in case she caught another cold.

As Little Snake walked, the hood strings bounced in front of her chest. She couldn’t help but look down at them constantly, even trying to touch them with her tongue.

Seeing this, Ah Wan pinched her cheeks to make her look up. With a very serious tone, she said, “Except in front of me, do not stick out your tongue in front of anyone. Do you understand?”

Little Snake didn’t speak, just playfully stuck her tongue out at her. It was obvious she hadn’t taken it to heart.

“Stick it out again, and I’ll cut it off immediately.” Ah Wan could only resort to her old method of scaring her.

This finally made her behave a little bit.

Arriving at the market at the foot of the mountain, there were many people buying and selling goods.

Ah Wan didn’t need to restock much. She just felt that the little one hadn’t been feeling well these past days, so she brought her down for some fresh air and to buy some snacks to cheer her up.

The stalls were filled with all kinds of small snacks. No matter the kind, they were all ten yuan per pound. Mostly adults there with their children picking out snacks.

There were so many snacks, Little Snake couldn’t even take them all in, almost drooling with desire.

Ah Wan lightly tapped her on the head and sighed helplessly before squeezing into the crowd herself.

Little Snake rubbed her head with her hand. Looking up and not seeing Ah Wan, she quickly followed.

Her favorite crispy noodles were a must, of course. The little one grabbed handful after handful, stuffing them into the bag. But midway through grabbing, her movements suddenly stopped. She stared blankly at another section, then pointed urgently, grunting at Ah Wan.

“Human, really big crispy noodles.”

Ah Wan was responsible for holding the bag open for her. She lazily glanced in the direction Little Snake was pointing and replied, “That’s instant noodles.”

“Instant noodles?” Little Snake tilted her head.

Ah Wan couldn’t be bothered and just said “Mhm,” then added, “Only two packs allowed.”

“Mmm!” Little Snake obediently listened, taking only two packs.

With a big bag full of crispy noodles, they were ready to pay. Then Ah Wan spotted a pile of colorful jelly cups.

She thought for a moment, reached out, and grabbed two, putting them in.

After paying and coming out, Little Snake fussed to eat crispy noodles. Afraid she couldn’t keep her snake tongue hidden, Ah Wan wouldn’t let her eat, tying the bag shut right in front of her face.

This made the little one so angry she stomped her feet. But Ah Wan, carrying the bag, was in a great mood as she headed back up the mountain.

Once home, Little Snake wanted snacks, but Ah Wan still wouldn’t allow it. She held the bag up high, putting on a stern face. “No eating when you’re sick.”

“Am not.” Little Snake was frantic, reaching to grab them, but accidentally stumbled right into Ah Wan’s arms.

The scent on Ah Wan mesmerized her. Unable to resist, Little Snake leaned against Ah Wan’s shoulder, pulling her collar aside, greedily taking small, rapid sniffs.

Ah Wan looked down to see her pulling her collar open and burying her face inside, whimpering like a little beast unable to find comfort.

Ah Wan reached out and felt her forehead.

Why was it hot again?