Pampered Little Snake, Give Me a Kiss - Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Eavesdropping

The human voices outside were noisy and chaotic.

Qianqian couldn’t understand a thing. She twitched her tail irritably and remained hidden deep within her stone hide, refusing to show her face. Anyway, as long as she didn’t go out, these humans had no way of—

Before the thought could even land, her entire “world” was lifted into the air. Soon, a person emitting a faint gray light appeared before her—a stranger who looked like no good news.

In the very first instant the person reached out, Qianqian lunged and bit down hard!

“Ah—!” Xiao Ya cried out in surprise!

Hearing the commotion, Song Keling immediately hurried out of the bathroom. Seeing the scene, her face darkened instantly. She strode forward, took back the little snake that was still latched onto the glove, and reclaimed the stone hide with her other hand.

Su Yili, who had come out to watch, looked horrified. “Xiao Ya, are you okay?”

“I’m fine, I’m fine.” Xiao Ya looked down at her thick glove; there was a bit of wet venom on it, but it hadn’t been punctured. Still shaken, she said, “Luckily I wore thick gloves. This little snake’s fangs are too short to bite through. But she’s so fierce!”

The snake looked so docile and beautiful, she hadn’t expected her to be so aggressive or so fast. It had scared her nearly into dropping the stone.

Seeing her friend was unharmed, Su Yili checked Song Keling’s expression. While using the bathroom, she had discovered the faucet wasn’t running and called Song Keling to take a look. Who would have thought that in just three or four minutes, this would happen?

Song Keling’s expression was cold, though she didn’t vent her emotions. She said to Xiao Ya, “Senior, take off the glove and check your hand.”

Xiao Ya kept insisting she was fine, but she took off the glove and inspected her hand thoroughly. There wasn’t a single scratch. She let out a sigh of relief.

Song Keling saw it too. “Since you’re fine and you’ve seen the snake, please leave, Seniors.”

Hearing her coldly group her into “Seniors,” Su Yili knew things were bad. Song Keling was angry. The situation was complicated; it was best to take Xiao Ya and leave immediately.

Xiao Ya, however, didn’t realize the gravity. “I didn’t even get a chance to look at it properly. I got bitten as soon as I picked it up.”

Song Keling questioned her immediately: “Did I tell you that you could pick it up?”

Xiao Ya froze.

Su Yili secretly tugged at Xiao Ya’s sleeve, signaling her. “Xiao Ya, stop. Let’s go.”

But Xiao Ya didn’t leave; she was getting a bit defensive. She said to Song Keling, “You said you’d be busy later. I was trying to save you time by taking care of the safety measures myself to take a look. What’s the big deal? She bit me, but she only hit the glove. I’m fine, aren’t I?”

Song Keling replied, “You are fine, but my snake is not. She just ate two days ago. You lunged at her and scared her; what if she regurgitates her food? And with the material of your glove, what if you snapped her fangs while trying to pull her off?”

Xiao Ya stared, wide-eyed, unable to believe Song Keling was speaking to her this way.

Song Keling didn’t care about many things, but she wasn’t without standards. She had a good temperament, but she wasn’t without a temper. Her patience had run out. She said coldly, “Seniors, please leave.”

Utterly offended, Xiao Ya was about to threaten to report her to the dorm supervisor, but before she could speak, Su Yili cut her off with a sharp reprimand. Su Yili apologized to Song Keling and dragged her friend out of the dorm.

Once outside, Xiao Ya realized she had messed up. She glanced at Su Yili’s sour face and whispered, “Susu…”

Su Yili glanced at her, sighed, and said nothing.

Inside the dorm, Song Keling put the stone hide back in the enclosure. She used long tweezers to gently open the snake’s mouth to check for damage to her fangs or oral cavity. The little snake only cooperated for two seconds before twisting her head away, refusing to let her look.

Seeing no major issues, Song Keling put her back and observed her state. Qianqian immediately crawled into the hide, vanishing in an instant.

Song Keling’s brow remained furrowed. She watched for a long while before finally leaving the dorm for the lab.

Once the door closed, Qianqian poked her tiny head out from the hide. She realized her unilateral “cold war” was useless. This human had no idea what she had done wrong—hanging out with others, stuffing her with bad-tasting things, and now bringing a villain to catch her.

Her only disadvantage was that she couldn’t understand human speech. Those people had chattered so much, and she hadn’t understood a word. If only I could understand…

Qianqian curled up in the hide and fell asleep with a hint of melancholy. She didn’t know that as she slept, her beautiful white scales emitted a faint, dim glow—not obvious, like a lamp covered by a cloth. As the sun set and the room fell into darkness, that glow acted like a tiny, dim floor lamp “stuck” inside the winding stone tunnels.

Xu Xinlei set up her filming equipment, waiting for the right moment for Song Keling to return. When Song Keling came back and saw her roommate, she remembered their deal. But after the unpleasantness earlier, she said, “We’ll see. If she’s not willing to be filmed, we’ll try another day.”

Seeing she was in a bad mood, Xu Xinlei nodded obediently.

A few hours of sleep had been enough. When the two walked in, Qianqian was playing—her tail was hooked onto a corner of the hide, and her whole body was suspended in the air. It looked like she was doing a pull-up, using only the strength of her tail.

When the lights came on, she saw the human return, followed by another person whose aura was a murky gray-green. Looking back and forth, the one with the pure white light was still the most pleasing to the eye.

Qianqian opened her mouth wide in a tiny yawn and slithered out slowly. She heard someone say, “Wow, she’s out!”

Qianqian froze, then lifted her head and neck slightly, looking toward the source of the sound in confusion. Strange. What did I just hear?!

“Wow…” Xu Xinlei’s voice was very soft. She approached with her phone, murmuring in admiration, “This snake is so beautiful.”

Seeing the human get closer with a rectangular object, Qianqian slowly backed away, coiling her body. Her forebody unconsciously arched into several S-shapes.

Song Keling watched from the side. Seeing this posture, she warned her roommate, “Move the phone back; she’s about to strike.”

“Oh, right.” Xu Xinlei zoomed in and quickly backed away.

The filming went smoothly. Qianqian had suffered a bit earlier that afternoon and didn’t want to attack recklessly. Fortunately, that person left soon after, saying a string of words to the human.

Xie-xie… (Thank you)

Was that the human’s name?

Soon, Qianqian realized that wasn’t the human’s name, because the object on the desk started ringing. Song Keling saw the caller was Senior Su Yili. She didn’t really want to pick up, but she needed to make things clear.

When the call connected, the voice on the other end said, “Xiao-xue-mei (Little Junior).”

Ah, that pronunciation.

Qianqian pricked up her ears to eavesdrop while recalling she had heard that sound before. Now it seemed “Xie-xie” wasn’t the human’s name; “Xiao-xue-mei” was.

“I want to apologize again on behalf of my friend. She meant well but did something stupid… Little Junior, you know I also…”

Song Keling: “I know.”

Su Yili: “Then, you’re not angry anymore? Can I treat you to dinner tomorrow?”

“I’m very busy tomorrow. No time.”

“The day after? Never mind, let’s talk after you’re done being busy.” Su Yili smoothed things over with a laugh. “Can’t delay a future scientist.”

The voice wasn’t on speaker, so it was quite faint. Qianqian couldn’t hear clearly, so she silently crawled out of the hide and moved closer to the human on the phone, her crimson pupils looking up curiously.

Song Keling didn’t notice. She lowered her eyes and declined the Senior’s kindness. “Senior, you shouldn’t waste your time on me. I’ve thought about it, and I don’t have time for a relationship right now.”

Su Yili’s smile vanished. “You really are angry.”

Song Keling didn’t deny it.

Su Yili analyzed gently: “It’s unlikely you’re this upset just over Xiao Ya’s offense tonight. So, are you angry because I tried to arrange for someone else to keep your snake without your consent?”

Song Keling said, “I just think we aren’t a good match.”

“In what way?”

Song Keling: “I don’t like being restricted. I like my freedom—freedom to control my own time and space.”

“I never intended to restrict you. I said that even if we’re together, you can do your own thing. I fully respect and support that. We just need to have a meal or a short date when you’re free.”

“That would be too unfair to you, Senior.”

“I don’t feel it’s unfair. We’re both adults. Does adult love have to mean being stuck together 24/7? I’m not a child, and neither are you.”

Song Keling’s lashes didn’t even flicker. Her mind was made up. She said firmly, “If it’s just meeting for a meal after work, we can do that as friends. I’m sorry; I have many shortcomings. You can find someone much better and more suitable for you.”

Su Yili was silent for a moment, then forced a light tone. “Fine then~ What else can I do but listen to my Little Junior? Still friends?”

“Mhm.”

“Then dinner after your project is done?”

“That works.”

With the problem resolved, Song Keling’s posture relaxed. It was then that she saw Qianqian curious pressed against the transparent wall, tilting her head and flicking her tongue. This look was adorable—much cuter than when she was hiding or being aggressive.

Song Keling smiled slightly and tapped the box. Qianqian moved a bit closer.

“Alright, see you then.”

Hearing the relaxation and the slight smile in Song Keling’s final words, Su Yili thought she had indeed pushed too hard. Pursuing someone required a balance of tension and release; today’s attempt had failed. She would try again in a different way once the influence of this event faded.

After hanging up, Song Keling poked the glass and laughed at the beautiful little creature. “Qianqian, why are you leaning in? It’s not like you can understand.”

Qianqian slowly lowered her body.

Whatever they said, she seemed to understand it, but not entirely. However, she knew what “Qianqian” was.

It was her name. This good-looking human always called her that.

Qianqian fastidiously and primly lifted her thin tail slightly. The name is okay. Barely acceptable.

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