Free Web NovelChapter 633: Chapter 633: I Will Not Be Anyone’s Substitute
"Swoosh!" A black shadow swiftly darted across the river.
"Thud!" A large blade pierced straight between those two emerald-green eyes, faster than anyone could react.
With a splash, a tail as thick as a bowl’s rim shot out from beneath the river in pain, sending up massive sprays of water, dousing both Qin Feng and Liu Ji head to toe.
The snake’s tail thrashed high in the air, and moments later, "slap," it fell limply, hitting the river surface with another splash, thoroughly drenching Qin Feng and Liu Ji.
Qin Yao pulled out the knife and reached out to grab what was in the grass. It was a pale white snake over six meters long, its thickest part as large as an adult’s thigh.
Seeing Qin Yao’s eyes light up in surprise, as she slung the snake over her shoulder and signaled Liu Ji to start walking, Qin Feng finally realized what had happened and gasped sharply.
This woman, she’s amazingly strong!
No, this big river is just perilous. Qin Feng quickly caught up with the couple’s pace.
Liu Ji, fascinated by the beautiful white snake skin, negotiated with Qin Yao as they walked, "Wife, let’s keep this snake skin. It’s so big; we could make several snake leather clothes, perfect for cooling off in the summer."
Besides, wearing this snake skin would surely dazzle those noble kids in the Capital City!
Qin Yao glanced back at the excited Liu Ji. She couldn’t quite imagine others in snake leather, but seeing this shimmering white snake skin on Liu Ji seemed quite fitting.
In appreciation for his discovery of this creature today, Qin Yao arched her eyebrows, "I’ll skin the snake neatly later. You can handle it simply, and when we reach the Capital City we can find a tailor to make some clothes."
Liu Ji was overjoyed, "Alright!" Enthusiastically following her, he helped to carry the snake’s body.
At the camp, everyone saw the three figures approaching from afar. As they got closer, they realized Qin Yao had a large white snake draped on her.
Under the firelight, the woman carrying the auspicious white snake approached slowly, the long snake tail leaving a trail on the ground, imposing and majestic.
She tossed the snake onto the ground, its enormous body fully revealed, and the large snake head looked eerie and sinister under the flickering firelight, nearly scaring Uncle Qi and others into kneeling.
Yet Qin Yao’s family’s reaction was entirely different.
They didn’t care about any auspicious signs, Da Lang, Second Lang, Sanlang, and Si Niang only thought their mother was amazing, their eyes starry and secretly licking their lips.
Yin Le and Ah Wang exchanged a glance, both as excited as anything, immediately stepping forward to examine the unlucky snake; it wouldn’t fit in one pot, for sure.
Ah Wang admired his master with newfound respect, realizing that his master seemed to have a knack for ’triggering random events.’ Whenever he ventured into the bushes alone, he’d either encounter robbers or various dangerous beasts.
"Boss..." Uncle Qi looked at the Qin family dealing with the snake in fear, asking Qin Feng anxiously, "Isn’t that white snake considered auspicious? What they’re doing isn’t right, is it?"
Qin Feng glanced at Qin Yao, skinning the snake while humming, smiled lightly, and calmly asked:
"Where are those dates I brought from home? If we can’t catch fish or snake, it doesn’t matter; it’s all meat anyway."
Uncle Qi was shocked: Qin Feng, you’re not the same boss I knew!
But it didn’t stop him from eagerly helping to find the big bag of dates, dry food that could also be snacked on, though recently there’d been too much going on, and they hadn’t had a chance to eat them.
Qin Feng brought a bag of dates over to Qin Yao’s group, and also returned with a snake tail. Though Uncle Qi and the others spoke of the auspicious white snake not being edible, they didn’t delay in setting up the pot.
Eating something auspicious might grant longevity, right? The guards eagerly rubbed their hands.
In response to Liu Ji’s affectionate calls of "brother-in-law, please," Qin Feng happily sat by Qin Yao’s big pot, holding the wooden bowl and spoon handed over by Da Lang and Second Lang, and couldn’t help but excitedly join Sanlang and Si Niang in tapping along. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
Qin Yao gave him a glare, and he immediately resumed a serious demeanor.
Ah Wang, manning the stove, inhaled the aroma from the air gently and nodded at Yin Le.
Yin Le stood and approached the pot, ceremoniously smiling at everyone, "I’m going to lift the lid now!"
Everyone held their breath in anticipation.
As the wooden lid lifted, a pot of boiling, milky-white thick snake soup came into view, with a few dates floating on top. The already starving group instantly had their appetites whetted.
No words were necessary; the family instinctively looked at Qin Yao.
She picked up the wooden ladle that Liu Ji handed over, first serving herself a bowl of snake soup, then serving the remaining four kids and Yin Le a bowl each.
"Darling, darling~" Liu Ji earnestly presented his bowl, and Qin Yao had to serve him a bowl as well.
Turning around, she watched Qin Feng staring at her with expectation and served him a bowl too.
Ah Wang directly offered his bowl, "Madam, serve me too." The family should be whole; no one should be left out!
Qin Yao smiled faintly, filling his bowl, now everyone was satisfied and expectantly began tasting the snake soup.
The old snake simmered on high heat had all its essence melt into the water, with wild ginger added to lift the flavor, and a few dates thrown in to simmer again on low for two quarters of an hour. The soup was fresh, sweet, and rich, the meat tender and melt-in-your-mouth, needing just a pinch of salt for taste, delicious enough to swoon over.
In the camp, no one spoke as everyone was immersed in the delightful flavors of the snake soup, and soon the large pot was scraped clean.
After being fed and quenched, everyone took a short rest before heading into a dream.
Qin Yao was on night watch, letting Ah Wang go rest. Perhaps having eaten too much, she wasn’t sleepy yet, leaning against the wheel of the cart, admiring the boundless starry sky.
It was her first time seeing such a vast starry sky here, like an opulent dome encompassing little humans underneath it all.
Qin Feng walked over, sword by his side, and Qin Yao, reluctant to leave the beautiful night sky, didn’t turn around upon hearing the sound of his sword.
Qin Feng paused behind her and said, "The starry sky in Wang City is even more beautiful, but the best one is in the desert. The stars there seem bigger, appearing so close like you could reach out and pluck them."
"You’ve been to the desert?" Qin Yao asked curiously.
Qin Feng: "Merchants travel everywhere, but despite its beauty, the desert can be deadly. You’d better not go."
Qin Yao remained noncommittal, finally willing to turn and glance at him, "Did you need something?"
"I have something for you," Qin Feng smiled, handing her a rectangular wooden box.
"What is it?"
"The golden hairpin I promised to buy you when we were on the mountain," he had kept his word. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
Qin Yao opened the box, revealing a Cloud Pattern Plain Gold Hairpin, elegant and sophisticated, made of solid gold!
She smiled happily for a moment, but then closed the box and returned it to him.
"I refuse to be a stand-in for anyone," she said.
With those words, she was swallowed by the night, leaving without a trace.
Qin Feng stood there with the box, stunned, his eyes gradually reddening...
After a while, he finally moved on.
