Chapter 53

“Xiaoxiao?”

A pleasantly surprised voice reached Yin Xiaoxiao’s ears. Yin Xiaoxiao jerked his head around and immediately saw Lan Yiyi’s head poking out from the underbrush.

Yin Xiaoxiao immediately recalled that night that he fled from Lan Yiyi. Now, seeing Lan Yiyi again, he felt very awkward. “Hi! What a coincidence huh, Yiyi!”

The first second he saw Yin Xiaoxiao, Lan Yiyi felt pleasantly surprised. After that first second passed, he felt aggrieved and loving. “Xiaoxiao, why didn’t you tell me that you were leaving? If you’d said, I would have happily gone with you and I also could have looked after you! I went to find you just after you’d left, but unfortunately I couldn’t find you, so I was forced to return.”

“Ah, that, hehe.” Yin Xiaoxiao racked his brain in thought, trying to find a good justification for Lan Yiyi. If he spoke cruelly, Lan Yiyi would be quite heartbroken, but if he didn’t say anything then Lan Yiyi would annoy him a lot, which was out of the question.

“He went to look for me. Why were you following him?” Mo Laoda asked, unhappily before Yin Xiaoxiao could speak. As he spoke, he glanced at Yin Xiaoxiao.

Lan Yiyi stared blankly. He had only now discovered Mo Laoda’s existence. From the first glimpse that Lan Yiyi had of Mo Laoda, the key point he’d gathered ¹ , aside from the instinctual vigilance aroused by a Mo snake, was that, from Mo Laoda’s tone of voice, he was a love rival.

“This is?” Lan Yiyi’s eyes looked at Yin Xiaoxiao. Even if it might be true, he refused to accept that answer. Lan Yiyi still held hope enough to ask.

Yin Xiaoxiao, ahead, bore Lan Yiyi’s longing hopes and expectations. Behind, he bore Mo Laoda’s piercing gaze. In his heart, he struggled incessantly.

Mo Laoda didn’t speak. He wanted to let Yin Xiaoxiao confess their relationship to this Lan snake in front of him. This was different from being in the presence of his Dad and Pop, and was different from being in the presence of Hei Aban and Lu Xiaohuang. If Yin Xiaoxiao could, in the presence of the one who admired him, say that he was Mo Laoda’s, Mo Laoda could let go of some of the worries in his heart. Perhaps Mo Laoda unconsciously knew all along that Yin Xiaoxiao had been forced to say that he liked him, but Mo Laoda didn’t want to accept it as true. And now, Mo Laoda hoped that Yin Xiaoxiao could declare that he wanted to be together with him in front of his love rival. Even if Yin Xiaoxiao didn’t like him, at the very least he would promise to live together with him.

Time passed especially slowly. Lan Yiyi and Mo Laoda both held their breath, afraid that, with a loud breath, they would miss what Yin Xiaoxiao said.

Yin Xiaoxiao said, “…Mo Laoda and I live together.”

Although Yin Xiaoxiao didn’t say that Mo Laoda was his future partner and he also didn’t say that he liked Mo Laoda, Yin Xiaoxiao having said “Mo Laoda and I live together” was enough to make Mo Laoda sigh in relief. At the same time, it also made Lan Yiyi feel a fierce ache in his heart.

Lan Yiyi stared, completely blank. Yin Xiaoxiao had finished talking a while ago. Lan Yiyi still hadn’t said anything. Yin Xiaoxiao awkwardly smiled. “Then, that, if there’s nothing else then I’ll leave first.”

Yin Xiaoxiao’s tail swung down. He glanced at Lan Yiyi, and turned around to leave.

Before Mo Laoda left, he shot Lan Yiyi a smug smile.

A lone snake, Lan Yiyi foolishly stood there, motionless, until Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda’s silhouettes disappeared.

And Yin Xiaoxiao, who continued to travel with Mo Laoda, was  clearly in a somewhat gloomy mood. Mo Laoda couldn’t help but don a serious expression and move closer to ask, “Little Idiot, could it be that you hated to part with that Lan snake a moment ago?”

“Huh?” Yin Xiaoxiao left his gloomy mood and returned to himself, expression a little said. “No. But he’d been a good friend for ten years. Now with Lan Yiyi like this, I still feel very sad.”

“….Is it possible that you wanted to accept his courtship?” Mo Laoda silently sneered ² . If the Little Idiot dared to say that he did, he would carve the lesson into the Little Idiot’s soul ³ !

Yin Xiaoxiao rolled his eyes. “Of course not! Even though I sympathize for him and pity him, it’s impossible to agree to be his partner just because I sympathize for him and have pity on him! Becoming a partner is a very serious matter! How could I casually agree to it?!” Finished speaking, Yin Xiaoxiao was clearly distracted, then he reddened and slowly slithered away.

Mo Laoda’s face showed that he was at a loss. “???”

Mo Laoda gazed attentively at Yin Xiaoxiao’s retreating back for half a minute. Finally, he understood why Yin Xiaoxiao had abruptly reddened and slithered away. The corners of his mouth drew to the back of his head in a wide grin. This time it was Mo Laoda who slithered, skipping, beside Yi Xiaoxiao.

After several days, Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda finally returned to the protected area.

“KangKang! I’m back!”

“Xiaoxiao! I missed you a lot!”

“KangKang! I also missed you!”

…Mo Laoda set off, allowing Yin Xiaoxiao to go and talk with Ji Kang, to go hunting.

As soon as Mo Laoda left, Ji Kang and Yin Xiaoxiao then returned to normal.

“Cough cough, Xiaoxiao, how did your return home go?” Ji Kang’s voice was clearly marked with schadenfreude.

“Nothing good could be said about it!” Yin Xiaoxiao returned, stiffly.

Ji Kang hummed lightly with a touch of disbelief.

Yin Xiaoxiao ignored Ji Kang’s intent to gossip and rolled on the floor. “I say, do you or do you not have some unfinished business? It’s already been how many millenia and you’re still here.”  Yin Xiaoxiao’s heart had actually always held suspicions on this matter. Moreover, even if there had been some unfinished business, it had already been a few millennia and he still  hadn’t been able to let go.

Ji Kang was silent for a long time. Then, with a sigh, he said, “It’s not that I don’t not want to leave, it’s that I’m unable to leave.”

Yin Xiaoxiao tilted his head in puzzlement, indicating that he didn’t understand.

Ji Kang continued to speak, “This old tomb was made to trap a person’s soul so that the tomb’s occupant is unable to reincarnate as a human being.”

Yin Xiaoxiao was stupefied. No matter what Yin Xiaoxiao thought, he hadn’t expected this kind of answer. “Bu-but, this tomb was built by your younger brother, Ji Zhao, right? For what reason would he do something like this?”

Again, Ji Kang was silent for a spell, then he forced a smile and said, “God knows. Perhaps because Ji Zhao wanted to keep my body from decaying and my soul from leaving in order to find a way to resurrect the dead so I can live again. Or perhaps it was for some reason of which I do not know. Already I do not know how many years have passed just waiting for my soul to awaken in this tomb. Such a big grave room, only for me alone. I wanted to know why it was like this, but then nobody passed through to answer me.”

“Then how did you die at that time?” Yin Xiaoxiao couldn’t help but ask.

“The Guifang were a very mysterious ethnic group. Originally, I went into battle in place of Father King ⁴ to seize the ghost shark egg. Soon after, my body was hit by a curse from the Guifang. Even using all the power of the great Zhou, I was only able to delay my fate for around a few years.”

Yin Xiaoxiao “oh”’ed. This question seemed to have poked Ji Kang’s sore spot, so he didn’t continue asking. By chance, Mo Laoda had returned, dragging food. Yin Xiaoxiao said goodbye to Ji Kang and slipped away with a guilty conscience.

After a long time, Ji Kang’s mumbling came from within the protected area, “Ji Zhao, it’s already been a few millennia, you still haven’t looked for me?”

Mo Laoda slanted a glance, baffled, at Yin Xiaoxiao who seemed to be fleeing with a defeated attitude ⁵ , but didn’t speak. He cooked the hare, handed the cooked hare to Yin Xiaoxiao, then indifferently said, “Just a moment ago when I was hunting, I saw many beehives in the trees. Originally, there were a few birds’ nests in the trees. But after so many beehives, there aren’t any birds. It’s truly a pity.”

“Bee ⁶ ? Beehives?” Yin Xiaoxiao was excited. Beehives, then couldn’t he eat a little honey? All of a sudden, his diet might finally be enriched!

“Yes, yes.”

“Bring me there, bring me there!” Yin Xiaoxiao tossed the half-eaten hare to the side and slithered over to Mo Laoda. The eyes on his head twinkled like small stars. In a flash, Mo Laoda’s heart was pierced by an arrow ⁷ and he felt an itchy, tickling sensation ⁸ . He absolutely was unable to resist the power of Yin Xiaoxiao’s attack and was forced to agree to bring Yin Xiaoxiao to that place with the beehives.

Yin Xiaoxiao raised his head and looked at that beehive in the tree, saliva flowing from the corner of his mouth until hitting the sod. Expression wooden, Mo Laoda pulled away from Yin Xiaoxiao.

“Heitan Hetian! I want to eat honey!”

Mo Laoda thought for half the day ⁹ before figuring out that Yin Xiaoxiao wanted to eat that stuff that was collected by the bees. He thought silently, then said, “Give me a drop of your saliva (venom).”

“…How do I give that?” Yin Xiaoxiao never knew that his saliva could possibly be given to another snake.

Mo Laoda stared at Yin Xiaoxiao for a while, then asked, “Isn’t there some ¹⁰ in your mouth right now?”

Yin Xiaoxiao nodded.

Mo Laoda slithered forward a few paces. “Open your mouth.”

Yin Xiaoxiao did as told.

Mo Laoda’s head stretched forward, snake tongue stretching into Yin Xiaoxiao’s mouth and withdrew a wad of venom from Yin Xiaoxiao’s mouth.

Yin Xiaoxiao with his mouth open: “….”

Mo Laoda climbed the tree and spat ¹¹ . Yin Xiaoxiao’s venom into the beehive, waited a few minutes, then swatted the beehive out of the tree with his tail. He climbed down the tree, used his mouth to bite open the beehive, then said to Yin Xiaoxiao, “Come here.”

Already having regained his composure, Yin Xiaoxiao slithered over and looked at the beehive. Well,  all the bees in the beehive had died, envenomed. Yin Xiaoxiao’s expression was suddenly 囧[afn_note]an emoticon denoting embarrassment[/efn_note].

“…Outside there must still be the bees from this beehive. Is there a contingency plan for when they return?” Yin Xiaoxiao asked, face now very 囧囧.

As before, Mo Laoda’s face was wooden. “It’s alright, those kinds of small things dare not oppose us vipers.”

Yin Xiaoxiao: “…” Hey, hey! Then why didn’t you just immediately swat down the beehive just now? Also, why demand to take my venom?!

Mo Laoda seemed to see through Yin Xiaoxiao’s thoughts and said, “Even though small things dare not oppose us, they’ll still swarm us and continuously buzz. That’s very bothersome to a snake.”

Silently, Yin Xiaoxiao lowered his head and began to eat honey.

Mo Laoda watched Yin Xiaoxiao eat honey, and silently sighed in his heart. His Little Idiot really was difficult to provide for!

T/N:

Footnotes

<ol>added for clarity 吐糟着: refers to finding an “in-point” in another’s words or actions that can be used to criticize them 刻骨铭心: describing something as unforgettable 父王: how princes and princesses referred to their father 落荒而逃: an idiom used to describe fleeing from battle after having lost 蜂: can also mean wasp 心脏瞬间被射中了一箭: figuratively pierced by an arrow; the visual is like the cute and lovable version of the Harsh Word Impact Trope 酥痒酥痒: can be used to describe the kind of butterflies in stomach feeling of attraction/desire idiom meaning a very long time added for clarity 送进: sent into; but since this is being used to describe the venom in Mo Laoda’s mouth, “spat” seems like an more concise word to use</ol>