Chapter 25

The Mid-Autumn Festival was celebrated with brilliant lanterns and decorations at the foot of the mountain, bustling with early festivities. Yet the two people up on the mountain still leisurely enjoyed their own little life.

Early morning, Ah Wan woke up right on time. She pulled open the nightstand drawer, took out the phone inside, and opened it to check.

【Package delivered…】

She memorized the pickup code, put the phone back, and then gently turned over, lifting the blanket to look at the young girl sleeping inside.

The nights in the mountains were getting colder and colder. Little Snake disliked her coldness and didn’t even want to hold her while sleeping.

Ah Wan could only, after washing up every night, pour a kettle of boiling water and stuff it under the covers. Only after warming herself up would Little Snake wiggle her tail and crawl over to her.

Around six o’clock, the sky wasn’t very bright yet.

Little Snake was curled up under the blanket, both hands hugging Ah Wan’s waist, her face buried in her stomach, sleeping soundly. She showed no sign of waking up.

Ah Wan couldn’t bear to disturb her, letting her sleep. She wrapped an arm around her back, patting slowly. Unconsciously, she lowered her head and nudged her forehead with the tip of her nose, lightly sniffing her long hair.

Little Snake only wore a long-sleeved pure cotton pajama top and a pair of shorts. Her long, fair, and tender legs were draped over Ah Wan, occupying the space domineeringly.

She had put on a little weight lately from eating well, but her figure remained very well-proportioned. It was especially comfortable to hold—soft and plush.

Ah Wan’s hand rested lightly on the bend of her knee. Whenever the little creature moved slightly, that smooth, slippery skin would brush against her fingertips, teasing her heart into uncontrollable, frantic pounding.

She wanted to hold the human in her arms and bully her fiercely, but she only buried her head in the crook of Little Snake’s neck, breathing in a restrained yet reckless manner.

Like a thief, stealing a wisp of fragrance.

Then eagerly inhaling it into her lungs, letting it melt into her blood and bones.

An hour later, the little snake in her arms finally stirred slightly, as if about to wake.

Ah Wan cupped her face, watching her slowly open her eyes to glance at herself, then squint and grin foolishly, looking a little silly.

“Stupid snake,” Ah Wan said, pinching her. “Wake up.”

Little Snake habitually lazed in bed, humming and unwilling to get up.

Ah Wan let go and lifted the covers to get out of bed, but just as she turned over, she was tightly hugged from behind.

“Human, where are you going?” Little Snake leaned on her back, mumbling with her eyes closed, “Sleep.”

Ah Wan looked down at the arms wrapped around her waist, thought for a moment, and replied, “I’m going down the mountain for the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

Hearing this, Little Snake, who was originally drowsy, suddenly woke up. She raised her head to look at Ah Wan, then climbed upwards along her back, settling steadily on top, her arms hooking around Ah Wan’s neck as she acted spoiled: “Snakey wants to go too.”

“I thought you wanted to sleep?” Ah Wan countered.

Little Snake shook her head with her eyes closed, replying sincerely, “No. Snakey will accompany Human for the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

Ah Wan turned her head to look at her small form sprawled on her shoulder. Just seconds after speaking, she was already so sleepy her head was nodding. Her tone couldn’t help but soften.

“If you don’t want to go, you don’t have to.”

“No,” Little Snake immediately refused, rubbing her chubby cheek against Ah Wan. She replied obediently, “Snakey will accompany Human for the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

Hearing this, Ah Wan’s heart softened bit by bit. She was about to respond, but Little Snake suddenly spoke again.

“If Human isn’t home, what if they eat Snakey?”

As her words fell, Little Snake tilted her head, leaned on her shoulder, and fell asleep again. But her sleep wasn’t very deep; she was still mumbling softly.

“If Snakey gets eaten, what will Human do?”

Ah Wan’s heart melted completely. She pressed her lips to her forehead and muttered to herself:

What kind of snake are you, anyway?

Most snakes start hibernating around the end of September. Why did this little one’s hibernation time come so early?

Ah Wan worriedly touched her face. Only when she didn’t feel any feverish heat did she relax a little.

After sleeping in a bit more, it was somewhat late when they descended the mountain. The sky was almost dark, but it was just in time for the liveliest part of the evening.

The tourism industry near where Ah Wan lived had gradually flourished in recent years, attracting quite a few visitors.

But even though she’d lived here so long, this was her first time going down to join the bustle.

Little Snake, having slept all day, had perked up a little. She took the initiative to hold Ah Wan’s hand, swinging it back and forth, still looking curious about everything.

“Human, look at that!”

Ah Wan looked in the direction she pointed—a bouquet of balloons wrapped with little string lights, twinkling beautifully in the night, very popular.

“You want one?”

Ah Wan looked down at her.

The pretty light reflected in Little Snake’s eyes. She watched for a moment, then stiffened her face and shook her head. She hugged Ah Wan’s arm, pressing her cheek against it, and said quietly, “Don’t want.”

Don’t want?

Ah Wan didn’t believe it. Looking at her expectant, envious expression, she thought for a moment and said to her, “Well, I want one.”

So saying, she pulled her over.

The vendor’s business was good, the small stall crowded with people.

But luckily, Ah Wan had long limbs. Standing there, she wasn’t blocked. She carefully made a selection.

The light from the string lights was slightly dazzling. Ah Wan squinted to look; they all seemed about the same.

She tugged at the hand in her palm and asked, “What kind do you like?”

The words fell, but the human beside her didn’t react for a long time.

Ah Wan turned to look. Little Snake had her back to her, staring with intense curiosity at a couple leaning against the railing opposite them, kissing.

The little creature was watching exceptionally intently, not even blinking.

Ah Wan frowned and immediately raised her hand to cover her eyes. Little Snake grabbed her hand and called out softly, “Human, what are you doing?”

The couple opposite heard the commotion over here. They stopped kissing and turned to look, somewhat embarrassed.

The straight-haired girl instantly flushed completely red, covering her face and burying herself in the curly-haired girl’s neck to hide, not daring to move.

Ah Wan looked up, speaking with slight apology: “Sorry.”

“Uh…”

The curly-haired girl was also a bit awkward but responded graciously, “It’s okay.”

As she spoke, she gently patted her lover in her arms, bending down to move her hair aside, softly comforting her.

Ah Wan glanced once and didn’t linger. She put her arm around Little Snake and quickly walked away, finding a spot with slightly fewer people before finally letting go.

“Why did you cover Snakey’s eyes?”

Little Snake’s first sentence was a direct question.

Ah Wan didn’t speak, just quietly looked at her. Only after a long moment did she reply, “What were you staring at other people for?”

“Watching them eat each other’s mouths.”

As she spoke, Little Snake stared at Ah Wan’s mouth and even swallowed hard, as if terribly hungry.

“Human, Snakey wants to eat yours too.”

“You don’t want to.” Ah Wan refused without hesitation, but when she saw Little Snake’s wronged expression, her heart softened again. She explained helplessly, “You can’t just do that casually.”

Little Snake didn’t understand this and tilted her head. “Why?”

“You have to like someone.”

“But Snakey likes Human.”

Little Snake said it straightforwardly and ardently.

Ah Wan stared at her for a moment, a bit dazed. She turned away, covered her mouth, and coughed twice to cover it up. “What did you say?”

She added, “I didn’t quite catch that just now.”

“Like you.”

Little Snake finished speaking, licked the corner of her lips, and repeated eagerly, “Snakey likes Human.”

Hearing this, Ah Wan didn’t respond. She just rubbed her head and suddenly changed the subject. “Have you ever spent Mid-Autumn Festival with anyone before?”

“No,” Little Snake answered honestly. “Snakey has never celebrated Mid-Autumn Festival.”

Hearing this, the smile at the corner of Ah Wan’s mouth lifted even higher. She proactively took her hand.

“Come on, let’s go get you something to eat.”

“Eat what?”

“Ever eaten mooncake before?”

“No.”

Little Snake followed along, answering while staring fixedly at the human.

Right now, she didn’t actually want mooncake. She just wanted to eat the human’s mouth.

As Ah Wan walked, she gently rubbed the hand in her palm. She looked over several shops before choosing that mooncake store with the very long queue, then walked over without hesitation and stood in line.

She usually hated trouble the most, but for Little Snake, she would descend the mountain and walk into the crowd.

“What flavor do you want?”

When it was finally their turn, Ah Wan asked as she took out money.

Little Snake, holding her hand, swayed back and forth within that small square foot of space at her feet, as if tethered by a leash, unable to wander far. She looked up at the large sign and said greedily, “Wants meat.”

She loved meat the most.

Ah Wan chuckled and said to the shop owner, “Two Yunnan Ham Mooncakes.”

So saying, she handed over the money.

When she took the mooncakes, Little Snake’s eyes were astonishingly bright. She kept bouncing on her tiptoes, humming expectantly.

Ah Wan led her away with one hand, holding the mooncakes in the other. She found a place with fewer people. Watching her bouncing, unable to wait and wanting to eat immediately, Ah Wan couldn’t help but smile too. She peeled open one mooncake and handed it to her.

This shop’s Yunnan Ham Mooncakes had a thousand-layer, flaky crust. Even a small bite made crumbs fall. One bite from Little Snake and at least half a pound of crust fell off. Her mouth was also smeared with quite a bit.

“Clumsy.”

Ah Wan scolded her, reaching out to wipe the flaky crumbs from the corner of her mouth. But as she wiped, her heart fell into disorder. Looking into those eyes, she didn’t choose to withdraw her hand immediately. Instead, she traced along the seam of her lips bit by bit, painting on her lips.

Little Snake stared at her intently. In her naivety, there was a hint of expectation, as if she understood everything. She slowly opened her mouth and proactively took Ah Wan’s finger into it.

Her snake tongue gently wrapped around it once, licking clean the flaky crumbs stuck to her fingertip, then released it.

“Is it good?”

Ah Wan’s tone was soft, her eyes full of affection.

Little Snake held up the mooncake and nodded blankly, looking at her longingly. After thinking, she offered her own mooncake. “Does Human want to try?”

Ah Wan looked down at the mooncake with a bite taken out of it, took a shallow breath, and replied, “Better not.”

Hearing this, Little Snake felt an inexplicable sense of disappointment.

But Ah Wan suddenly bypassed the mooncake between them, still using that same finger from before, gently wiping away a crumb stuck on Little Snake’s cheek, and then slowly placed it into her own mouth.

“Human…”

Little Snake involuntarily took a few steps closer, staring at Ah Wan’s mouth, licking her own fangs.

Why did her venomous fangs feel so itchy today?

Ah Wan gently sucked on her own finger, then pulled it out, frowning slightly, and said in an airy tone, “Didn’t get the taste.”

So saying, she bent down to be at eye level with Little Snake.

“The flavor here…”

Ah Wan’s finger lightly tapped on her lips, her smile very beautiful, as she asked, “Would it be more fragrant?”

Little Snake couldn’t help but flick her tongue out, just the very tip.

The forked snake tongue quickly swept across Ah Wan’s chin, then retracted like a guilty thief, carefully hidden away.

“Teasing me?”

Ah Wan curved her lips, looking at her, her eyes smiling, watching with amusement.

Little Snake instantly looked the picture of innocence, her face tensely shaking her head, replying seriously, “What is teasing?”

“Teasing is…”

Ah Wan tilted her head closer, sniffing lightly beside her cheek. Her breath sprayed onto her face, startlingly hot.

Little Snake felt as if thousands of Gu insects had burrowed into her body through her tiny pores; otherwise, why would half her body feel so numb, tingling, and itchy?

She cautiously raised her eyes to look at Ah Wan. She opened her mouth to speak, but Ah Wan gently rubbed her cheek with the tip of her nose.

The movement was gentle, unusually intimate.

“Like this.”

Ah Wan suddenly spoke, startling the mesmerized Little Snake.

Her slightly rough, large hand slowly moved down, taking hold of Little Snake’s wrist, her fingertip feeling the tempo of her pulsing heartbeat.

Little Snake froze for a second, then suddenly released the mooncake, silently allowing Ah Wan to invade the territory of her palm.

Ah Wan didn’t hesitate to grasp her hand. One large, one small, palms facing, fingers interlocking tightly, pulses fitted closely together, pulling their heartbeats to gradually resonate in sync.

Ba-thump, ba-thump—

Growing a crimson thread woven from flesh and blood between them, gradually drawing closer to each other.

Little Snake slowly lowered her head, looking at their tightly held hands. Her cheeks involuntarily started to flush with heat.

They had clearly been holding hands just minutes ago to buy mooncakes, but the warmth in her palm wasn’t as high as this time.

Ah Wan tightly squeezed her dirty little hand, covered in flaky crumbs, showing no intention of letting go.

Little Snake looked at their hands, then at the mooncake. Suddenly, she lost all desire to eat.

Ah Wan raised her hand to pinch her face, closed her eyes, and slowly leaned in…