Chapter 3
The bedside clock ticked steadily.
My heart pounded just as loudly.
“Y-you aren’t a pet snake? I put you in the enclosure, and I locked the bedroom door.”
“That enclosure cannot contain me. In fact, nothing can.”
The black snake spoke with perfect calm.
Moments ago, I’d even wondered if the lock on my door was broken.
I hadn’t expected such a spectacularly unscientific explanation.
“Then… are you Zhou Ci?” I asked tentatively.
“Yes.”
Good grief. I really had stolen the Zhou family’s ancient patriarch.
The comments hadn’t lied to me.
What was I supposed to do now?
I said nothing. Neither did Zhou Ci.
His golden slit pupils stared at me without moving, my reflection sharp within them. His tail slid secretly around my waist, making a faint rustle as his scales brushed my skin.
“I’m so sleepy, Zhou Ci. I want to go back to sleep. Could you let me go first?”
To my astonishment, I saw something like hurt on a snake’s face.
His voice sounded aggrieved too. “You held me while you slept every night before this.”
I explained patiently, “That was when I thought you were just an ordinary pet snake. I didn’t know you were a snake demon…”
“Ying Xu.” Zhou Ci cut me off, his tail tightening in displeasure. “I am a god, not a demon. All gods have a true form. Mine simply happens to be a snake.”
Before I could answer,
Zhou Ci lowered his head and drew close. “Ying Xu, kiss me. Give me a kiss, and I’ll release you.”
I kissed the black snake above one eye.
Sure enough, his tail loosened.
[Hold on, that was all it took to reduce Zhou Ci to an embryo? Bro, you’ve lived for thousands of years, not a handful!]
[All right, all right. This is blander than the diet meal I had for dinner.]
I looked at the bedside clock.
Two ten in the morning.
Did these commenters never sleep?
Maybe I’d grown used to sleeping with the little white snake in my arms.
After Zhou Ci left the bedroom,
I did manage to fall asleep,
but the quality of that sleep was terrible.
Over and over, I had the same hazy dream.
I dreamed that I’d fallen into a lake and drowned.
When I woke to find the space beside me empty, without a trace of the little white snake, the sense of unreality only intensified.
The comments were awake too.
[Zhou Ci soaked in cold water all night. I stayed up all night watching Zhou Ci soak in cold water. Bright futures ahead for both of us. :)]
[If all else fails, just go full obsessive captor on her, bro. I’m begging you.]
[He can’t bear to do that to her. *wry smile, hand to forehead*]
I went to the enclosure and found that Zhou Ci wasn’t inside.
Panicking, I searched everywhere for him.
As I approached the kitchen, a familiar voice came from behind me.
“Ying Xu, come have breakfast.”
[Holy crap, everyone, look! Zhou Ci—he, he, he, he—he’s fighting dirty!]
[Don’t panic, sis. Let me, a woman of vast experience, see what’s going on… HOLY CRAP!!!!!!]
I turned around—
and an extraordinarily striking face burst into my vision without warning.
How could anyone be that handsome?
To be precise, his upper body was human, while below the waist he had a long, thick snake tail.
Most importantly…
his upper body! Was completely bare!
Perfect abs, sharp V-lines…
[The heroine is speechless.]
[Zhou Ci, what other surprises have you been hiding from this emperor?]
[Zhou Ci: Behold my humble little scheme.]
[This man is devious.]