Chapter 29: The Beautiful Snake

Gu Ye had a restless night.

In a moment of weakness, he had allowed Jiang Yue into his room, thinking they would sleep in separate beds and get through the night peacefully. The next day, he planned to go to the health team to get some insect repellent and spray it in every corner of the room.

What he didn’t expect was how poorly Jiang Yue slept!

She tossed and turned countless times throughout the night. It wasn’t just the turning; she was also talking in her sleep, mumbling nonsense that he couldn’t understand.

Finally, around dawn, she seemed to quiet down. Gu Ye was just starting to doze off when suddenly he heard a loud “clang” that woke him up. He looked over and saw that Jiang Yue had fallen to the floor.

Gu Ye hesitated for just a couple of seconds, wondering if he should help her, but before he could act, Jiang Yue sat up by herself.

But what really left him speechless was that, in her dazed state, Jiang Yue tried to get up but crawled in the wrong direction—toward him! She wrapped her arms and legs around him like an octopus, making it impossible for him to push her off or untangle her. The more he tried, the more she clung to him, even letting out a soft cry as if he had wronged her in some way.

Gu Ye was deeply suspicious that Jiang Yue was doing this on purpose!

In the end, Gu Ye couldn’t separate himself from Jiang Yue. She had him firmly ensnared, and they both ended up falling asleep like that.

Gu Ye had a nightmare. In the dream, a snake coiled around him, tightening its grip until he could barely breathe. Just as he was about to strike at the snake’s weak point, he suddenly locked eyes with it. To his shock, the snake’s face was Jiang Yue’s.

Gu Ye jolted awake in a panic.

In the darkness, Gu Ye lay with his eyes wide open, his chest rising and falling rapidly. He couldn’t remember the last time he had dreamed.

Before, his dreams had always been about the battlefield—gunfire, explosions, and rivers of blood. He had seen comrades in the same trench blown to pieces by artillery.

After returning from the battlefield, he had nightmares for a long time, waking up in a cold sweat every night. Over time, he became numb and stopped dreaming altogether.

But tonight, he had experienced such a strange dream.

In the dream, he had been tangled in a snake, and outside the dream, Jiang Yue’s hand rested on his waist, with one of her long, pale legs draped over his.

The cool fragrance of her body filled his nostrils, and Gu Ye could feel the softness of her body in certain places. Moreover, she was wearing a skirt, and as she moved in her sleep, the hem of the skirt was rising higher, nearly up to his chest…

Gu Ye instantly felt a surge of heat inside him, his blood beginning to boil.

When the morning came, Jiang Yue woke up feeling refreshed. She had slept soundly and had a pleasant dream, in which she was cuddling with a handsome man. Although she couldn’t clearly see his face, just the sight of his physique was enough to make one drool.

Moreover, the man smelled just as good as Gu Ye.

Jiang Yue thought that it was probably because she had shared the room with Gu Ye the night before. The room was filled with his scent, and that must have been why she had such a dream.

Hearing the sound of water outside, Jiang Yue happily put on her shoes and went out. She saw Gu Ye, covered in steam, his hair still damp. The wellside was wet, and Jiang Yue couldn’t help but ask curiously: “Gu Ye, why are you taking a bath so early in the morning? And you took a cold shower? That’s really bad for your health!”

Gu Ye, his face dark, walked past Jiang Yue without acknowledging her, acting as if he hadn’t seen her.

“Gu Ye?” Jiang Yue called out, waving her hand in front of his eyes.

“Gu Ye, why are you so angry this early in the morning?” Jiang Yue wasn’t ready to give up and caught up with him, asking in confusion: “Did I disturb your sleep last night with my snoring or grinding my teeth?”

Gu Ye paused his steps, and then Jiang Yue muttered to herself: “No way! I sleep really well, I don’t snore or grind my teeth!”

Gu Ye thought to himself: “…” With the way Jiang Yue slept, she had the nerve to say she slept well?

Jiang Yue didn’t notice that Gu Ye’s expression had turned even darker. After all, it wasn’t the first time he had given her the cold shoulder, so she was used to it. Now, she had a serious question to ask him.

“Gu Ye, I need to talk to you about something. Don’t you think Ningning’s bed is a little uncomfortable?”

“What’s wrong with it?” This time, Gu Ye finally responded to Jiang Yue, though his tone sounded a little strange.

Jiang Yue rubbed her neck and stretched her shoulders. “I think the bed board is too hard, and the bed’s too small. After just one night, half my face, shoulder, and neck are all numb. It’s really uncomfortable! Ningning is still growing, she can’t sleep on such a hard bed!”

After Jiang Yue spoke, she noticed Gu Ye staring at her with a strange look in his eyes.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Jiang Yue didn’t think that just sharing a room for one night would make Gu Ye fall in love with her, but the way he was staring at her so intently made her heart race uncontrollably.

“Hmph!” Gu Ye couldn’t bring himself to say another word to Jiang Yue. He turned around and walked away in large strides. She had used him as a pillow all night, and now she had the nerve to complain that he made her uncomfortable?

A row of question marks slowly appeared above Jiang Yue’s head. What did that “hmph” mean? And why did he look so angry? She had only mentioned that Ningning’s bed wasn’t comfortable, not that Ningning was bad. Why was he so upset with her?

Forget it. Since he helped her deal with the cockroach last night, she wouldn’t hold it against him.

Gu Ye returned to his room to change clothes and came out. Jiang Yue had also come out of the kitchen, holding a plate of flatbreads.

“Gu Ye, I made a lot of flatbreads. Aren’t you going to have some?” Jiang Yue looked at Gu Ye, who was neatly dressed in his green military uniform, the buttons of his shirt fastened perfectly. She couldn’t help but swallow.

This was too much! Gu Ye looked handsome when he left his shirt open, but now, with all the buttons fastened, he looked even more handsome.

Especially with the top button fastened right beneath his Adam’s apple, it gave off a very chastely seductive vibe.

The aroma of the flatbreads filled the air. Gu Ye, who was about to leave with his gear strapped on, was momentarily distracted by the smell and stopped in his tracks.

Jiang Yue immediately broke into a smile. “Come sit and eat!”

“No need, I’m in a hurry!” Gu Ye glanced at Jiang Yue, and then his eyes suddenly widened. He quickly turned his gaze away, grabbed a piece of the flatbread from the plate, and turned to walk away in large strides.

Jiang Yue’s smile froze on her face. Why did it feel like Gu Ye had looked at her with such a strange expression just now? It almost seemed like he was… afraid of her?

But that couldn’t be right! Gu Ye was strong enough to crush her with one hand!

Jiang Yue couldn’t figure it out, so she decided not to think too much about it. She looked down and saw that Gu Ye had left her two pieces of flatbread. She picked one up and took a bite. It was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with a savory, salty taste mixed with the aroma of green onion oil. It was delicious.

Jiang Yue had made these flatbreads the night before. She had kept them in a basin and stored them in well water overnight, so she could cook them quickly in the morning. It only took about three minutes to cook them.

Otherwise, if she had to make them fresh in the morning, she would have to knead the dough and make the flaky oil, which would take at least half an hour.

It would be great if they had a refrigerator. That way, she could buy more vegetables and store them, always having something fresh to eat whenever she wanted.

But it was only the seventh or eighth year since the war, and having an electric fan at home was already considered a luxury. It would be many more years before refrigerators became common.

Jiang Yue had woken up early today, around six o’clock. She figured she needed to hurry to the market to buy meat, or she’d miss her chance if she got there too late.

So, after changing her clothes and grabbing her basket, she went out. Her home was at the far end of the residential area, and to leave, she had to pass the rows of houses in front. When she passed Li Hongying’s house, Jiang Yue glanced at it. The door was tightly shut, but she didn’t think much of it and just walked past.

When Jiang Yue arrived at the market, there were already many people there. This time, she knew the ropes and immediately ran to stand in line at the pork stall.

The line was long, and Jiang Yue thought to herself that she would have to come even earlier tomorrow.

Just then, she heard someone calling her. “Jiang Yue, come here, I’ve saved your place in line!”