Beauty Snake - Chapter 65

Chapter 65: “If All Goes as Expected, This Should be our Last Meeting.”

“Hey, wake up—” A flirtatious female voice rang in her ear, and someone poked her face none too gently. Ji Yunfei frowned slightly and rolled over.

“Tsk—where did this sleep goddess come from…” Seeing that she wouldn’t wake up, the voice clicked its tongue and walked away to tinker with something. The harsh clatter of pots and pans colliding jarred against Ji Yunfei’s eardrums.

“……” Drowsiness masked all other emotions. She didn’t speak; she simply furrowed her brows and pressed her hands tightly over her ears.

Creak— The sound of a wooden door being pushed open filtered through her “layers of defense” and reached her ears.

“Sister—” The pots and pans were set down heavily. Light, brisk footsteps accompanied by that excited female voice echoed beside Ji Yunfei.

“Don’t be so restless; don’t wake her up.” Another female voice spoke. It was like spring sunlight piercing through a thin mist—warm, gentle, and seeping into the lungs and heart in delicate strands. The tenderness in that voice was like a mountain breeze kissing a petal, carrying a faint, numbing lingering. Every word was a feather lifted by the breeze, landing lightly in the heart, making one’s soul itch with softness.

Ji Yunfei’s ears twitched slightly. Her furrowed brow relaxed, and she slowly opened her eyes. Although her back was to the two people talking, she recognized the owner of the second voice—the “Snake Beauty.”

With that thought, her consciousness snapped back. She looked around and, sure enough, it was that familiar little wooden hut.

“……” Fine, fine. I was just thinking about this person not long ago, and here she is, showing up at my door.

She rolled her eyes and decided to stay still to see what the two behind her would do next.

But before she could close her eyes again, a teasing voice came from behind: “Still pretending to sleep? Do you want to stay with me for a bit longer that badly?”

“Hmm?” The end of the sentence tilted upward, quite alluring.

Realizing she had been caught, Ji Yunfei did a “carp skip” and sat up, her eyes meeting the person currently brewing tea at the table.

It was those same familiar green pupils…

“I’ve lost count of how many times you’ve stared at me like a dunderhead…” The Snake Beauty crinkled her eyes, teasing Ji Yunfei as usual.

At the comment, Ji Yunfei realized she had spaced out again. Her eyes shifted guiltily as she prepared to speak, but she was interrupted: “Alright, sit down first. Taste this tea I just brewed.”

“Oh… oh… okay…” At the invitation, Ji Yunfei nodded, climbed off the bed, and sat down across from her.

As she picked up the cup, the fragrance of tea met her, making her feel as if she were in a tea mountain shrouded in clouds. She took a small sip; a slight bitterness bloomed on the tip of her tongue, which instantly transformed into a sweet, mouth-watering aftertaste.

Even though Ji Yunfei only knew the basics of tea tasting, she could tell this was a rare, high-quality brew.

“Let me introduce you. This is my sister, A-Wan.” The person opposite set down her cup and introduced the young girl sitting beside her.

Only then did Ji Yunfei remember there was another person present. She turned to look at the girl who had suddenly gone silent a while ago.

The girl wore her hair in “Chun-Li” style buns and had bright, clear eyes; she looked to be no more than fifteen or sixteen. She wore a pale pink robe, and beneath it, a golden snake tail tapped rhythmically against the floor.

However, the girl’s true personality was far from as obedient as she looked. Seeing Ji Yunfei look at her, she crossed her arms and huffed: “Ji Yunfei? I know you. My sister can’t go ten sentences without mentioning you in nine of them…”

“Ah… haha… is that so…” Ji Yunfei rubbed her head, trying to hide her awkwardness.

Seeing her like this, the girl’s expression became even more disdainful as she muttered: “Tsk, I thought she was someone special, but she’s not much…”

“How is she worth my sister being so… mmpf—!” Before she could finish, the girl was silenced, her mouth seemingly covered by an invisible force.

“That’s enough, A-Wan. Your Sister Ji and I have things to talk about. Didn’t Mother want you to find her? Go on.” The Snake Beauty maintained a faint smile, but her words held a deep meaning.

“Uoo-yu-aa-uoo… (You’re lying… clearly…)” A-Wan continued to mutter incoherently. Before Ji Yunfei could think further, the girl was “politely” escorted out.

“Now it’s just the two of us. We can enjoy some rare time alone.”

“What ‘time alone’? Don’t say it so ambiguously; it leads to misunderstandings. I have a partner now, so watch your wording.” Ji Yunfei crossed her arms and leaned back against the bamboo chair, her expression neutral.

“If there’s something, say it quickly. Dreaming drains a lot of energy. If I can’t stay focused tomorrow, are you going to pay me for it?”

“Do you know what you look like right now…?” The person opposite didn’t get straight to the point as Ji Yunfei wished, but instead asked a question back.

“Huh…? Like what?” Confused by the shift, Ji Yunfei followed her lead.

“A kitten with its fur standing on end.”

“You! I’m done talking to you. Let me go back.” Ji Yunfei bit her lower lip and made a move to get up.

“Alright, I won’t tease you. Business.” The Snake Beauty took a small sip of tea, lowered her eyes, and spoke slowly: “If all goes as expected, this should be our last meeting.”

“The last time…?” Hearing this, Ji Yunfei was confused, and she felt a secret, subtle pang of reluctance.

Although this person was full of mischief, she had never actually harmed her. Being friends was actually quite nice; why was she suddenly saying it was the last time?

“Yes.” The Snake Beauty nodded, looking into her eyes with a gaze full of regret and longing. “You’ve found your happiness, so I have no reason to keep ‘harassing’ you every other day.”

“Tsk, so you know entering my dreams is harassment…” Meeting the Snake Beauty’s gaze, Ji Yunfei instinctively looked away, muttering under her breath before pursing her lips. “Then… what will you do after this?”

“Me? I’ll go back to the deep mountains and old forests to continue my cultivation. Why? Are you going to miss me? Well, I suppose my charm is quite great…”

“Oh, please. I ask two questions and you expand them into all this nonsense. I’ll be happy to have some peace and quiet once you’re gone.”

“But… are you really not coming back?”

“I knew you couldn’t bear to let me go, and yet you won’t admit it.” The Snake Beauty laughed into her hand, her mood exceptionally good. She tapped her index finger rhythmically on the table. “Don’t worry. As I said before, I will be by your side.”

“I can sense when you are in danger. In a moment of crisis, the scale on your neck will emit a signal that only I can perceive, and I will appear before you.”

“However, I hope the day never comes where that scale is put to use. That is why today should be our last meeting.”

Upon hearing this, Ji Yunfei instinctively touched the snake scale at her neck, her eyes full of confusion. She took a deep breath and asked tentatively: “Why… why do you care so much about me? Or rather, why did you pick me?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt she was being too blunt, so she waved her hand: “No… I… if it’s offensive or you don’t want to say, it’s fine…”

“Silly, there’s nothing that can’t be said.” The person opposite smiled instead of getting angry. She refilled the empty cups and spoke softly: “I know you must be wondering why I didn’t find someone else and picked you specifically.”

“The details might be too long-winded, so I’ll summarize. It’s a bit of a cliché Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio story.”

“Back then, I was just a small snake over two hundred years old who hadn’t yet taken human form. I was injured by a wicked person while exploring and was on the verge of death. Just when I was despairing, with no one to turn to, someone appeared and saved me from the fire.”

Hearing this, images from a previous vision appeared in Ji Yunfei’s mind: the tiny black snake with weak life signs, the soaring flames, the rolling heat waves, and the village being burned to ash.

“The person who saved you… was it…”

“It was your past life. To be precise, your past-past-past life.”

“So you came to find me to repay the favor?”

“Yes.”

Ji Yunfei knit her brows. “But she is her, and I am me. There’s no need to lump us together, right?”

The person opposite shook her head, lowering her eyes to hide an undetectable loneliness: “It’s not like that. From beginning to end, you are the same person. You can understand it as each life being a reset of memories.”

“According to you, I should have had two other previous lives. Why didn’t you go find them to repay the favor?”

“……” The Snake Beauty fell silent. She lowered her head, the two strands of hair at her forehead obscuring her eyes and her expression.

The atmosphere suddenly fell into a strange, heavy silence. Seeing this, Ji Yunfei began to understand something in her heart. Her hands twisted together, and she became restless.

“I tried with the previous two lives, but the endings were… unsatisfactory.”

“I’m sorry…”

“It’s fine. My reaction was a bit too much. It’s all ancient history now. If you really feel sorry, then just take good care of yourself. I will protect you from nearby.”

“Okay… but, I still have to say thank you. For myself, and for those past lives…” Ji Yunfei pursed her lips, leaned forward, and proactively took the other’s hand.

“We’ve known each other so long, and I still don’t know what to call you. I’m always calling you ‘Snake Beauty.’ Since this is our last meeting, let me get to know you formally?”

“I…” The person opposite opened her mouth but stopped after one word. After a moment of hesitation, she reached out and pointed at the snake scale on Ji Yunfei’s neck.

Following the gesture, Ji Yunfei felt a wave of warmth from her neck. She looked down and picked up the scale; a golden number “1” was engraved on it.

“Just call me A-Yi (Number One).” As she spoke, she pursed her lips, appearing slightly less confident than usual.

“Okay, A-Yi.” Ji Yunfei smiled, quickly getting used to the name.

“Time is running out. Anything else you want to ask? Or… do you want to see someone you miss…?”

“Can I?” Ji Yunfei’s eyes lit up, her heart racing with excitement.

“Yes, anyone.”

“Then… I want to see my Snake-babies… I still remember you secretly leading them away. Even though they went voluntarily, I won’t forgive that so easily.” Mentioning the babies that fled to Snake Mountain overnight, Ji Yunfei felt both helpless and amused.

“Of course you can.” Xie Yin, under the name A-Yi, paused and looked up: “But you can’t let them see you.”

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