Chapter 38

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Ah Wan had gone to bed very late the previous night. As a result, she hadn’t slept long before drifting into a hazy dream.

In the dream, she was holding Little Snake and kissing her, her hands teasing her wantonly, stimulating Little Snake until she panted and gasped repeatedly. Yet, she still had no intention of letting her go, instead becoming even more forceful, bullying Little Snake until she melted in her arms like a pool of spring water.

When daylight came, Ah Wan woke from her dream feeling a bit flushed and restless. She squinted at the ceiling, then without hesitation, turned over and pulled Little Snake, who had her back to her, into her arms.

Holding Little Snake was very soft and comfortable, like a large glutinous rice cake—squishy, sticky, and soft. If you gently nuzzled her, she would reach out her hands to hug you.

Clingy, impossible to shake off.

But today was a bit strange. Ah Wan had been holding her from behind for so long, even nudging the back of her neck with the tip of her nose, but Little Snake had no reaction at all.

Ah Wan slowly woke up, raised her head slightly to look at her. She was staring with a pair of bright, big eyes, playing with something by herself, though it was clear she had been awake for a while.

Thinking about how Little Snake usually loved to nestle in her arms whether asleep or awake, but now had her back turned, a flicker of dissatisfaction rose in Ah Wan’s heart. She simply reached out and pinched her face, turning her head around. “What are you doing?”

Little Snake lay flat on her back and looked at Ah Wan, her mouth pressed tightly shut without speaking. Only the smiling curve of her eyes showed she was very happy right now.

“Not talking?” Ah Wan gently pinched her cheek and leaned down to scare her. “I’ll bite, okay?”

Hearing this, Little Snake opened her mouth and stuck out a pink tongue, making a funny face at Ah Wan.

A pink tongue…

Ah Wan thought her eyes were playing tricks on her, but Little Snake stuck it out again, exclaiming joyfully: “Human! Snakey can change it now!”

The snake tongue was gone, replaced by a tongue just like any normal human’s.

Ah Wan was stunned for a moment. Before she could speak, she heard the Little Snake beneath her ask proudly: “Snakey is amazing, right? Does it look real?”

Her little expression was mischievously cute and adorable.

“Not really,” Ah Wan teased her deliberately.

Little Snake became anxious upon hearing this. She grabbed Ah Wan’s collar, whining, “No way, it has to look real. This morning Snakey tasted your mouth for a long time, it can’t not be real.”

As if feeling her verbal explanation was too weak, Little Snake added, “If you don’t believe it, taste Snakey’s and compare.”

As her words fell, Little Snake slightly parted her lips, her pink tongue tip faintly visible inside.

Ah Wan took a deep breath, her large hand gripping and twisting the pillow tightly, almost grinding her teeth as she said, “What did you taste this morning?”

“Human’s mouth,” Little Snake obediently replied. “Oh, and Human’s tongue.”

“Heh,” Ah Wan was angered into laughter. No wonder she had inexplicably had that kind of dream. She then landed a slightly firm slap on Little Snake’s bottom and urged her, unable to vent her frustration, “Stop sleeping, get up to celebrate the first day of the new year.”

After being hit, Little Snake felt an indescribable shame and a hidden thrill in her heart. Her eyes, like a pool of crystal-clear spring water, gazed wetly at the human, her body trembling almost imperceptibly.

Ah Wan’s heart trembled for an instant. She couldn’t help but want to throw caution to the wind and pin her down to tease her fiercely. After taking several deep breaths, she barely managed to restrain herself, holding back her strength to knead Little Snake’s waist before leaning down to pick her up.

“Hungry?”

Ah Wan held Little Snake in her arms, letting her sit on the crook of her arm. She reached out to smooth her long hair, tucking it all behind her ears, then leaned in and kissed the tip of her ear.

Little Snake hugged her neck and shook her head shyly. After their gazes met for a while, her eyes drifted down to Ah Wan’s thin lips.

The young girl couldn’t hide her thoughts. She swallowed plainly, licked her teeth, and stared at Ah Wan, saying fervently, “Want to taste.”

Ah Wan gazed at her, but after a moment, she looked away, curved her finger, and flicked her forehead lightly. She chuckled softly, “In your dreams, Little Lecherous Snake.”

Little Snake immediately covered her head, glaring at Ah Wan with some dissatisfaction.

The sounds of cooking soon drifted from the kitchen, mingled with the voices of two people talking and laughing.

Little Snake sat on the kitchen counter, hands braced at her sides as she watched Ah Wan work.

A crisp cracking sound rang out. Ah Wan tossed away the eggshell and pulled out a pair of chopsticks. Her movements were swift and powerful as she stirred, quickly beating the egg mixture until it was smooth and clear, not clinging to the chopsticks. It was effortless.

Little Snake stared fixedly at her hands’ movements. Her ten fingers were slender, well-proportioned, and strong. Her nails were trimmed round and clean, the nail beds full and beautiful, showing a healthy rosy hue.

Even more beautiful was Ah Wan’s every move. Whether chopping vegetables or cooking, she looked like a painting. Little Snake often couldn’t tear her eyes away.

Ah Wan turned on the stove and poured oil into the wok to fry the egg.

“Human,” Little Snake was right beside her. She raised her leg slightly and gently hooked Ah Wan’s leg with her toes, slowly drawing circles on it, her tone sticky, “Snakey can pick up eggs too. When winter is over, Snakey will go up the mountain to steal bird eggs. You’ll fry eggs for Snakey to eat every day, okay?”

She wasn’t really greedy; Little Snake just suddenly discovered today that she liked watching Ah Wan beat eggs. Her fingers pinching the chopsticks, the tendons on the back of her hand clearly visible with the gentle stirring motion.

It was clearly a light action, yet it always felt exceptionally powerful.

Little Snake liked watching her hands; she never got tired of it.

Ah Wan didn’t answer directly, but glanced at her and smiled. “You sound so self-righteous, Working Snake.”

Spring thunder rumbled, and all things grew.

It had rained all night long, the pattering sound coaxing people to sleep.

This morning, Ah Wan slept in a little. When she woke, she habitually reached out her hand, but found nothing there.

Slowly opening her eyes, she stared at the empty space beside her on the pillow, stunned, then threw off the covers and got out of bed.

Outside the door, Little Snake stood under the eaves, tilting her head slightly to look at the sky. Her whole body seemed to glow white. She reached out curiously to catch the water dripping from the eaves.

Ah Wan, dressed in her pajamas, walked to the doorway. After seeing her, she breathed a small sigh of relief. Then, she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the doorframe, quietly watching.

“Human!” Little Snake turned her head and saw Ah Wan. Her pink, transparent snake tongue flickered excitedly as she cried out in surprise, “The Awakening of Insects has come.”

Ah Wan walked over and stood beside her, looking down gently, responding with an “Mm” before asking, “The Awakening of Insects is here, so what?”

“Snakey wants to go out and play.”

“Go where?”

“To hunt!”

A frown creased Ah Wan’s brow. She was a little curious. “Have I been starving you?”

“No,” Little Snake came over and hugged her arm, pressing her cheek against it and acting soft and spoiled. “But if Snakey doesn’t hunt, her teeth get itchy.”

As she spoke, she lifted her head, opened her mouth wide, and showed her two little fangs to the human.

Ah Wan cupped her face, carefully examining it from all angles with a serious expression. “Let me see which tooth is itchy. I’ll pull it out.”

“Mmph!”

Little Snake was so frightened she immediately covered her mouth, scrunching her brows as she tried to sound fierce: “Human! Snakey’s teeth can’t be touched.”

“Can’t touch them?” Ah Wan gently squeezed her cheeks with both hands, leaned down to look at her, and whispered wickedly past her ear, “Why didn’t you say so when you were kissing?”

“I…”

Little Snake’s momentum instantly deflated. She glanced at Ah Wan a couple of times before looking away, tilting her head to rest it in her palm, stubbornly muttering, “That’s different.”

“Snakey… likes being kissed by Human.”

“Teeth can be kissed by Human too.”

As she spoke, she lifted her gaze to look at the human. Her long eyelashes fluttered slightly like butterfly wings, brushing into Ah Wan’s heart with every beat.

“Then, does Human want to kiss Snakey now?”

As her words fell, Ah Wan didn’t reply. Instead, she lowered her head and kissed her without hesitation, meticulously and patiently licking her two small fangs. On this drizzly morning, they exchanged a lingering, tender kiss.

In the third month of spring, new sprouts emerged from the ground. A little white snake darted through a freshly plowed field, occasionally popping out a dirty, round little head before turning and burrowing into a narrow hole.

Ah Wan sat quietly waiting under a willow tree, holding a very worn book in her hand that looked quite old.

A light breeze drifted by, carrying the damp scent of earth and the fresh fragrance of grass.

Little Snake emerged from a hole, a plump field mouse clamped in her mouth. She crawled towards Ah Wan with her head held high and chest puffed out, gently placing it at her feet before obediently looking up. The tip of her tail constantly swished against the grass on the field ridge, making a faint rustling sound.

Ah Wan glanced at it and said lazily, “I’ve told you many times, I don’t eat this.”

Hearing this, Little Snake lowered her head, bit the field mouse, and swallowed it without hesitation. Then she obediently crawled into a bowl nearby.

The basin was filled with herbal water. It could wash the dirt off her body, rinse her mouth, and quickly heal any injuries she sustained.

Hunting inevitably led to injuries. Coupled with Little Snake’s delicate skin and scales that weren’t hard enough, she would often get small scratches. So, Ah Wan had prepared many herbs for her.

The little white snake had been fed well these past few months and had grown much larger. She was now as thick as two of Ah Wan’s fingers. She could barely turn around in the bowl, almost tying herself into a knot while twisting, and could only wriggle slowly at the bottom.

Ah Wan took out a huge bath towel and spread it over her lap, then reached in and scooped her out.

“Clumsy.”

Little Snake instinctively coiled around Ah Wan’s hand, resting her head near her knuckles. Her slender tail tightly wrapped around her wrist three and a half times.

Hearing the human call her clumsy, Little Snake fumed. She raised her head, gathered strength, and suddenly squirted a stream of herbal water out like a toy water gun.

Ah Wan skillfully dodged, then raised her hand and lightly flicked her on the top of her head, threatening, “Spit water again, and I’ll pinch your tail.”

“Snakey isn’t scared.”

Little Snake looked at the human with beady eyes, her pink tongue flickering in and out. Her scale-covered face clearly showed no expression, yet one could still discern a hint of being spoiled and fearless.

“Heh, not scared?” Ah Wan reached out and pressed the tip of her tail, moving upwards inch by inch. Her cold face held a pair of bright, burning eyes, her tone full of teasing, “Then what if I lift your scales?”

As her words fell, her rough fingertips stopped near that one unique scale.

Little Snake let out a panicked squeak, her tail unwinding loop by loop from her wrist, nervously protecting her soft, vulnerable spot. Stuttering: “Hah~ there… no, you can’t.”

“Can’t what?” Ah Wan pressed.

Little Snake couldn’t say it. She waved her tail, trying to flee, but Ah Wan grabbed her and pulled her back.

In the instant she was pulled, Little Snake transformed into a bare, fair-skinned girl, falling naked into Ah Wan’s embrace.

After a glance, Ah Wan wrapped her in the bath towel, leaving only a heart-stoppingly beautiful face exposed.

“Human?” Little Snake wrapped her arms around her neck, saying softly and seriously, “You can’t touch Snakey there.”

Hearing this, Ah Wan took a shallow breath. The color of her eyes gradually darkened, like the deep sea, seemingly capable of sucking a human in with a single glance, bottomless.

She gently rubbed the ankle of the girl in her arms, lowered her head to nuzzle the girl’s slightly flushed cheek. Her voice was dipped in honey, every spoken word seeming to spin threads of sugar.

“Is Human also not allowed?”

“Human is allowed.”

Little Snake replied without hesitation, as if following her own heart’s desire. But after speaking, she remembered the things Ah Wan had taught her before and instantly fell into extreme conflict. She dropped her gaze and muttered to herself, “Is Human allowed?”

Ah Wan couldn’t bear to see her struggle. She lowered her head, pressed her lips to her forehead, and patted her gently to coax her to sleep. “Don’t think anymore. Sleep first.”

Hunting consumed a lot of Little Snake’s energy; she always needed a good sleep afterward.

Ah Wan propped up her legs, holding her and swaying gently, like a cradle, letting her sleep very comfortably.

A fair, tender foot slipped out from under the bath towel. Little Snake slept quietly nestled in her arms, completely unaware.

Ah Wan held her foot, squeezed it gently, then wrapped it back up in the towel.

The book at hand lay open on the ground, its pages ruffled by the wind, stopping unsteadily on a certain page. There was a line of text that had been highlighted, particularly striking—

The White Jade Brocade Snake, one of the oldest snake species in our country. Because it often appeared in fields, dwellings, and near granaries, and fed on field mice and locusts, it was regarded by humans as an auspicious omen guarding grain, honored as a spirit snake, and offerings were made to it every year at the Awakening of Insects.

Now extinct.