Chapter 53
Looking at the nest of baby snakes turning their heads to look at him pitifully, Shu Jintian felt very remorseful. He found the softest and smallest hide and spread them on a seashell to act as their nest.
Shu Jintian placed the little nest at the foot of their bed then quietly sighed. He lifted his head to look at Shu Hanyu, then ordered, “It’s done. Hanyu, put them in ba.”
Recalling how crude Shu Hanyu had been to the little snakes, Shu Jintian then unhappily added, “Hanyu, put them gentler; don’t be so rough. They’re your children ah! Even pets wouldn’t be kicked like this ah!”
Hearing this, Shu Hanyu expressionlessly let out a soft snort then stalked towards the little snakes. At an angle Shu Jintian could not see, he glared at the little snakes in warning.
The nest of young, finger-width snakes were immediately frightened, trembling as they hung their highly raised heads and timidly lumping their bodies up. The dozen or so emerald green little Spiritual Snakes were curling tightly into a ball, and whose body was where couldn’t be differentiated, so much that some couldn’t even find their own bodies. It made one worry whether they would accidentally tie themselves up in an undoable knot.
When Shu Hanyu saw the snakelets’ reactions, he became satisfied. He fished up the snakelets from the ground, and changed his expression once he turned around. Shu Hanyu smiled warmly at Shu Jintian, then placed the young snakes in the snake nest Shu Jintian had just made.
“Done. They’re very easy to raise. Tiantian doesn’t have to worry. You should quickly go to bed and warm up ba. You’re already shaking from the cold.” With a pained heart, Shu Hanyu gathered Shu Jintian up, then put him in bed, helping him take off the thick and heavy fur overcoat.
“Mn. What about you? Not coming in?” Shu Jintian saw that Shu Hanyu had no intention of coming in and asked casually. After taking off his clothes, Shu Jintian trembled from the cold and hurriedly wrapped himself up in the blanket.
Shu Hanyu knelt on the bed, caressing Shu Jintian’s head before kissing his warm lips and saying softly, “No. I found some good things to eat when you were sleeping just now, and I’m going to make them for you now. You must be hungry too ba. It’ll be done very soon.”
“Mn, okay!” Shu Jintian replied quietly. Looking at Shu Hanyu’s naked body, Shu Jintian couldn’t help but shudder, feeling as if his body had gotten even colder.
Shu Jintian asked in concern, “It’s such a snowy day; aren’t you cold? How about wearing a shirt before going out?”
Shu Hanyu smiled happily. As he thought, Tiantian still cared about him the most. Those little snakes would not steal Tiantian’s attention.
Shu Hanyu’s cool head gently rubbed against Shu Jintian’s forehead as he placated, “It’s fine. I’ve always lived like this. I’m used to it already.”
“Oh!”
That’s true, the big snake is a wild animal, not a human. However, didn’t snakes need to hibernate during winter? Did the big snake have to? Usually, Shu Hanyu’s body would be unmoving and his eyes shut while relaxing on the bed. Each time, Shu Jintian thought he was asleep, but as long as he shifted a little, Shu Hanyu would open his eyes. He really didn’t know whether he slept or not.
“Hanyu, do you hibernate during winter? Hibernate means sleeping until the weather is warm,” Shu Jintian asked curiously.
Shu Jintian was a little moved. Watching Shu Hanyu casually yet earnestly reply to him, his heart suddenly swelled and ached.
“Why didn’t you tell me? I didn’t even know you were sleepy. Hurry up and come in to sleep ba. I don’t need to incubate anymore, so I can cook my own food.”
“Don’t make trouble Tiantian. You rest well and wait for the food to be done. I’ll go make a fire.” Shu Hanyu pressed down Shu Jintian who was about to get up, then opened the bed curtains and left.
Shu Jintian pushed aside the curtains that had naturally fallen and watched Shu Hanyu’s retreating back, unable to help feeling baffled. Shu Hanyu’s figure had long disappeared from the cave, yet he could not withdraw his gaze for a long time.
Shu Hanyu soon carried over a pot of food,and the fresh and fragrant scent wafted into the bed. Compared to the meaty smell of the previous meal, this one made one’s sense of smell especially keen.
Shu Jintian’s nose was like a dog as he sniffed and he immediately sat up while bundled up in the blankets, poking his head out of the bed to look.
“It’s done. Tiantian, put on a shirt before coming to eat ba.” Shu Hanyu brought the soup to the side of the bed, and in passing, picked up the overcoat he had left outside.
“Wow~ It’s seafood soup. It smells so nice ah~ It must definitely be tasty. Hanyu, your skill is really improving. Your skill in boiling soup is even better than mine.’
The soup by the bed emitted steam, and felt warm upon touching his face, and was both fragrant and comfy.
Shu Jintian could no longer bother with the cold and hastily put on the clothes Shu Hanyu offered, then scooped up a small bowl of soup and placed them on the wooden block and blew on it before sipping.
The fish meat was delicate and smooth, and combined with the soup’s salty taste spreading in his mouth, it made him unable to resist digging in. The soup contained a mix of bluish and whitish unknown marine algae, which were either crunchy or silky soft. The taste was rich, and even though it was just one dish, Shu Jintian didn’t feel that it was dull.
Actually, their caves still had several sun-dried seaweed, but Shu Jintian never had the chance to cook it. Then, the weather became colder, and Shu Jintian became much more reluctant to touch water and look into how to eat the marine algae. Now, since even cooking was handed over to Shu Hanyu, the dried seaweed in the cave was thus disinterestedly shelved aside in a corner.
The piping hot soup entered his stomach and made Shu Jintian feel warm all over. A pot of soup that wasn’t small in amount had completely entered Shu Jintian’s stomach.
Shu Jintian ate and drank his fill until his stomach bulged, and he contentedly laid in bed to aid digestion.
Since the female ate with satisfaction, Shu Hanyu also felt incomparably fulfilled. He worked hard without complaint, disposing of the food remnants, then climbed into bed.
Shu Jintian turned his head to look at Shu Hanyu, then suddenly lifted the blankets and covered Shu Hanyu as well.
The cold air from Shu Hanyu’s body instantly invaded the comfortably warm covers. Shu Jintian immediately shivered from the cold, but he still felt warm in his heart.
“Let’s keep warm together. You should also have a good sleep. I’ll cook food for myself next time; you don’t have to keep worrying about me.” Shu Jintian looked at Shu Hanyu with a smile.
Shu Hanyu was stunned and laid his body down, taking a good while before he could react. He looked at Shu Jintian in disapproval.
“No, Tiantian will get cold. I should go out ba!” Saying that, Shu Hanyu made to leave, but was embraced by a warm and soft body.
Having just laid eggs, though Shu Jintian had nearly completely recovered, he didn’t really exercise much after the birth, so his body still had a somewhat soft sensation.
It was just a touch, yet Shu Hanyu was no longer willing to leave the warm embrace anymore. To Shu Hanyu, Shu Jintian was like a poisonous poppy; there was a fatal seduction, but with a single touch, it was hard to give up.
Shu Jintian felt as if he was hugging an ice block. It was so cold he couldn’t refrain from a shiver, a layer of goosebumps appearing all over.
“No, I want to hug you to sleep. It’ll be fine when I hug you until you’re warm. Aren’t you sleepy? Then hurry up and sleep ba!” Shu Jintian’s body had stiffened from the cold, but he still pulled Shu Hanyu’s arm over and rested his head on it. He found the most comfortable posture to sleep in while hugging Shu Hanyu, then lifted his head to speak to Shu Hanyu with a smile.
Shu Jintian raised his head while looking at Shu Hanyu with a smile; his moist and warm breath fluttering on Shu Hanyu’s throat and jaw, making Shu Hanyu’s heartbeat quicken.
The female’s originally handsome visage had become a little round due to giving birth, but he was not visibly fat. On the contrary, it added a bit of gentleness.
The female in his embrace was so warm, and really was comfy to hug. He clearly knew this would make Shu Jintian cold, but Shu Hanyu was still unwilling to push him away.
Shu Hanyu let out a helpless sigh, softly saying, “Okay, let’s sleep hugging.”
But he’ll still make Tiantian’s food! Shu Hanyu hugged the soft, warm, and fragrant female, his grave expression gentling.
Shu Jintian liked eating fish recently, so Shu Hanyu went to the blue water and found many more sea algae and fish for his next meal. Because they had eleven snakelets, Shu Hanyu especially caught some small fries and loaded them into the rattan net bag Shu Jintian had weaved, bringing it back together.
It was still a pot of seafood soup, but Shu Hanyu also added a roast sweet potato so that Shu Jintian could have more flavour.
Now that Shu Jintian no longer needed to incubate, he couldn’t stay cooped up in bed. He was now wearing several layers of animal hide clothing, and his whole body was practically bundled up into becoming a clumsy little bear. He sat on a wooden bench with spread animal hide, weaving rough vine clothing into summer wear.
But the temperature in the cave was still a little lower than in the bed. When Shu Jintian stayed there for a long time, he was somewhat unable to adapt to the overly low temperature, and could only stingily take some charcoal fire to burn in the cave, finally heating up the temperature inside the cave.
“It’s done. Tiantian, come eat ba!” Shu Hanyu arranged the food on a stone he just found and brought back, calling Shu Jintian over to drink soup. Then he took out the fries in the rattan bag, crouched beside the young snake nest and tossed it in strip by strip, leading to a crowd of little snakes wildly fighting over them.
Shu Jintian’s lips twitched while watching. Was this considered feeding the small after feeding the big? But why did he think of the word ‘feed’? It wasn’t like he was raising a pet; something must have gotten mixed in ah!
Shu Jintian’s mind was in turmoil, the corners of his lips twitching incessantly.
Watching as Shu Hanyu fed the little snakes, Shu Jintian also became interested, pat pat pat as he ran over and crouched down beside the snakelet nest. He watched with interest as Shu Hanyu fed them, and couldn’t help feeling his hand itch; he also wanted to try and feed them.
“Ai! Hanyu, give me a fish ba! I wanna try and feed them.”
Seeing their female father arrive, the nest of little green snakes immediately became stirred up, each raising their heads high and sticking out their forked tongues to ‘ss’ at Shu Jintian. If it weren’t for the fact that Shu Hanyu was still there, perhaps they would have long thrown themselves over.
Shu Jintian looked at the nest of little snakes that were like wolves and tigers and felt his courage quake again, his resolve to feed them becoming a little hesitant.
When Shu Hanyu heard that the female also wanted to feed the snakelets, he unhappily lowered his head and looked at the nest of rampant little snakes, giving them a warning glare.
The snakelets that had received the piercing eyes wilted like flowers, shrinking up and squeezing together as they stared anxiously at their gentle and soft female father.
It was still female father who was the best. He was gentle, and his body was also warm. Why was it that their female father did not take the initiative to come to them ne? Always wanting them to risk their lives and rush over before they could get close to female father. It must be that male father did not allow female father to come close to them; male father was truly so tyrannical.
When the young snakes thought this way, their gazes towards female father became even more wronged. Their emerald green with some minor veins beast eyes were opened wide, saturated with glistening sparkes as if they were about to cry.
How could Shu Jintian bear being aggrievedly stared at by his own children? His heart that was initially a little reluctant to feed them instantly turned resolute as he threw caution to the wind, saying to Shu Hanyu, “Hanyu, give me the fish!”