Dragon, Truly Shameless (Yuri Futa, Farming) - Chapter 20
Today marked Shen Qingming’s first full month living in the cave. As autumn deepened and everything withered, the season entered its mid-point.
The deep autumn forest was filled with bright yellow hues, stretching as far as the eye could see. The fallen leaves, only a finger’s width in early autumn, now formed a thick, soft layer underfoot. Most of the wild fruits had already fallen, emitting a fermented fruit scent as they rotted. Every day, walking through the forest felt like strolling through a fruit winery.
This month was probably the happiest Shen Qingming had ever been in her life. There were no endless farm chores, no overt or subtle disdain, only meticulous care and concern. Eating and sleeping well, her body finally had a chance to recuperate. Her skin had lightened, and her face showed some color. Although still gaunt and frail, at least she no longer looked like the terrifying figure who had one foot in the grave.
Long Qing rose early today, first fetching water from the back of the mountain and washing her face. Upon returning, she found the little girl already awake and dressing. The gaunt little body was half-hidden beneath her gown, revealing one narrow shoulder, an indescribable sight. She put down the bamboo tube and walked straight over, pulling open the girl’s clothes without a word!
A sudden chill spread across her chest as her body was exposed to the air and to a pair of burning eyes. Shen Qingming’s movements froze mid-dress.
Long Qing’s hand brushed against her warm skin, causing a slight tickle. Each time it passed a spot, it lingered for a moment, as if tracing something! Shen Qingming didn’t know whether to grab it or not. The cool, jade-like fingers moved around her chest, raising goosebumps. Shen Qingming felt both ticklish and shy, a faint blush spreading across her sallow little face.
“Long, Ms. Long…” She shrank her neck, timidly looking at Long Qing, not understanding what Long Qing was doing.
“The injuries have almost healed, no scars left. It seems this month of recuperation was effective.” Long Qing withdrew her hand, a subtle hint of romance in her slightly lowered eyes. So she was checking the wounds… Shen Qingming sighed in relief and whispered her thanks, only to hear Long Qing seriously add, “But you’re still too thin, not good-looking, and the feel isn’t good either.”
Shen Qingming instinctively grabbed the blanket and wrapped herself tightly, her small face instantly flushing crimson.
“Pfft!” Long Qing was amused by her reaction again, teasing, “We’ve been together for a month now, why are you still so shy?”
“No, no, I, you.” Shen Qingming’s face grew even redder, unable to voice the bitterness in her heart. Was this shyness? Being inexplicably stripped naked, then having her body critiqued, and then being called shy in return. This young lady was truly wicked!
“Haha, I won’t tease you anymore. Get up quickly. Do you want me to dress you?” Long Qing took the clothes and draped them over her. Although it was a question, she was already reaching into the blanket.
Shen Qingming felt utterly mortified, desperately clutching the blanket and urgently saying, “I can dress myself. Ms. Long, please go outside for a moment, I’ll be ready soon.”
“Are you sure?”
“Ms. Long, please go out.” Shen Qingming was on the verge of tears.
“Alright, but hurry up, okay?” Seeing her genuinely overwhelmed with shyness, Long Qing had no choice but to give up, exiting somewhat reluctantly.
Shen Qingming dressed at lightning speed, afraid Long Qing might suddenly return.
Life with Long Qing was undoubtedly easy and happy, yet also shy. The awkwardness she felt around Long Qing hadn’t lessened with time; instead, it intensified. Just being slightly close to Long Qing made her feel constrained, and her heart felt diseased, constantly pounding in her chest as if trying to escape.
For example, just now, or… now.
Shen Qingming sat on the tiger’s back, her shoulders hunched, her waist slightly bent, and her legs tightly clamped around the tiger’s belly, afraid that any jolt would send her tumbling into the embrace behind her. Such a cramped posture was inevitably uncomfortable, but even more uncomfortable was the pounding in her chest, her heart incessantly thumping against her ribcage as if it wanted to leap out.
Shen Qingming wiped away the sweat beading on her forehead, her body tensing even further.
“Why is the girl like a piece of wood? Relax. Ah Hu is very obedient; he won’t bite.” A gentle voice came from behind her, warm breath caressing her ear, hot and ticklish, failing to relax Shen Qingming; instead, she became even stiffer.
“No need, this is fine.” She grabbed the fur on Ah Hu’s back. The tiger’s fur was soft, yet it made her feel as if she were sitting on pins and needles.
Long Qing sighed. Catching her off guard, she pulled her back. The little girl let out a gasp and then fell firmly into her arms.
“Ms. Long.” Shen Qingming felt the warmth she had barely managed to suppress on her face surge again. Yet, the culprit calmly asked, “Are you that nervous being with me? Do I look like I’d eat people?”
Eat people, no, but she was about to die of embarrassment. Shen Qingming’s heart pounded furiously, her small face completely crimson again, even her ears were not spared.
“Your heart is beating so fast, and why is your face so red? Are you perhaps feverish?” She seemed completely oblivious to Shen Qingming’s discomfort, still asking seriously, and even touched her forehead to check her temperature.
“No, I don’t have a fever. Perhaps I should walk myself.” Shen Qingming wished she could dig a hole with her gaze and bury herself in it, so she wouldn’t have to endure such deadly embarrassment.
“With your slender arms and legs, you’d be walking until the year of the monkey! Today is for sightseeing and relaxing. Relax. I’ll take you to a good place later.”
“But…”
“No ‘buts’. Ah Hu, let’s go.”
At the command, Ah Hu bolted. Shen Qingming lost her balance and almost fell off, instinctively wrapping her arms around Long Qing’s waist. After realizing what she’d done, she quickly released her grip, burying her small face hard into Long Qing’s chest.
Long Qing’s lips curved into an upward arc, and one hand subtly protected the girl in her embrace.
The little girl hadn’t rested this past month, not because she wasn’t allowed to, but because she simply didn’t rest. She was always busy, either washing clothes, chopping firewood, or cultivating a vegetable patch. How could she gain weight with such constant labor? Moreover, the little girl was too distant with her, always very reserved. Therefore, she specifically brought her out today, both for rest and in hopes of them getting to know each other better and being more natural with each other.
Half an hour later, Ah Hu stopped at the foot of a mountain.
Long Qing and Shen Qingming dismounted from the tiger’s back and walked towards the base of the mountain.
This was already deep in the mountains, with dense, sky-obscuring forests. The presence of the mountain range seemed to abruptly cleave the continuous forest, revealing a relatively open vista.
Shen Qingming was a little afraid and stayed close to Long Qing. She looked ahead; the mountain range rose like a giant from the ground. At its base, fallen leaves still whirled, while the mountainside only had sparse moss. Near the summit, it was covered in white snow. The scenery of all four seasons seemed to be simultaneously present on one mountain. The sunny side of the mountain was illuminated, clearly showing the mountain’s dark greenish-black color, contrasting with the white snow, resembling a winding black dragon. If she wasn’t mistaken, this mountain should be Black Dragon Mountain. The people of Black Dragon Town all knew Black Dragon Mountain; it was said to be a sacred mountain with mountain spirits, the dwelling place of the Black Dragon King. Seeing Long Qing walk directly towards Black Dragon Mountain, she quickly pulled her back.
“What’s wrong?” Long Qing turned around, but saw the little girl looking nervously at her surroundings. “Ms. Long, is this Black Dragon Mountain?”
Long Qing raised an eyebrow and nodded, “The little girl knows quite a lot. Yes, this is Black Dragon Mountain. Come, while it’s still early, let’s go up the mountain.”
“No, no, no.”
“Eh?”
Long Qing was pulled so hard she stumbled, taking a few steps to regain her balance. Shen Qingming tugged on her sleeve, shook her head, and then clasped her hands together towards Black Dragon Mountain, seemingly worshipping something.
Long Qing rubbed her forehead. Human beliefs were truly strange.
“Ms. Long, Black Dragon Mountain is where the Dragon King resides. We would disturb him if we went up.”
“What Dragon King? I told you there isn’t one. Come up with me, there’s a good place up there.”
“Ms. Long, have you been up there?” Shen Qingming keenly caught the key point in her words. Indeed, Long Qing nodded. “I’ve lived in these mountains for a long time; I know them very well. There’s no Dragon King here. Even if there were, if we don’t disturb him, does that mean there are no other animals on this mountain? Would they not disturb the Dragon King?”
As she spoke, Long Qing suddenly picked up a stone and threw it towards a thicket at the foot of the mountain. The stone whistled as it landed in the bushes, immediately followed by several clucking sounds as several pheasants flapped their wings and took flight, their multicolored feathers particularly conspicuous in the sunlight.
“This…” Shen Qingming opened her mouth, but said nothing.
“Let’s go. The Dragon King won’t blame us,” Long Qing took Shen Qingming’s hand, her action so natural that she didn’t even notice it herself.
Ah Hu was already excitedly climbing upward, scrambling and leaping in the mountainous terrain, always most fitting for a tiger’s nature. He truly enjoyed this feeling. Long Qing, unwilling to be outdone, wanted to chase after him. After a few steps, she realized the little girl was lagging far behind, so she turned back.
Shen Qingming was a little embarrassed, but Long Qing had already taken her hand and led her upward. Shen Qingming was stunned, her cheeks flushing again.
Long Qing’s hand was distinctly jointed, fair and slender, her fingers very long. Each one was flawless, ending in neatly trimmed, pink nails, beautiful like fine jade. Shen Qingming’s gaze lingered on that hand, her mind blank, she was led along in a daze until her foot tripped on something, and her body suddenly lunged forward.
She expected to fall hard, but then heard an urgent “Careful.” Then she landed in a warm embrace. Her cheek rested on a soft area, soft as cotton, sinking into it. Long Qing’s cool scent enveloped her, invading her senses and eroding her rationality. She instinctively snuggled closer, finding the body holding her stiffen, and simultaneously, the heartbeat beneath the clothes skipped a beat, then sped up.
“Why are you so distracted while climbing, are you tired?” Long Qing felt a tickle in her chest, a bit uncomfortable, but still steadied the little girl.
“No, not tired, thank you, Ms. Long,” Shen Qingming backed away slightly, mumbling her thanks.
Long Qing was startled. Her retreat made Long Qing even more uncomfortable, so she smiled and said, “Then you’ll have to concentrate now.” Had the girl deliberately snuggled her just now?
“Mmm.”
To keep herself focused, Shen Qingming walked ahead this time, concentrating on her steps.
Black Dragon Mountain was very tall; they naturally couldn’t climb to the summit. In fact, they stopped after climbing just a section. Shen Qingming followed Long Qing winding through the mountain until Long Qing suddenly seemed to discover something, darting away. A moment later, she ran back, holding a cluster of flowers.
The flowers were pale yellow, with long, slender petals surrounding a central stamen, looking like a small sun at first glance. Long Qing held the flower out to her, smiling very foolishly, “Pretty, right? How about I give it to you?”
Shen Qingming exclaimed “Ah” in surprise, not understanding what this was about.
“You don’t like it?” Long Qing saw that while she showed surprise, there wasn’t much joy, and the smile on her face froze.
“Why suddenly give me flowers?” She looked at the daisy. Had she brought her out to climb the mountain just to give her flowers? And… chrysanthemums. She didn’t know whether to accept it or not. She probably should; they were both young women, exchanging flowers shouldn’t be rude.
Just as she was about to take it, Long Qing pulled it back.
“I just wanted to give you a gift. Don’t young women all like flowers? Why don’t you like it?” Long Qing stroked the petals of the little daisy. Actually, she liked it quite a lot. Why was the Bean Sprout unmoved? Thinking of something, she muttered to herself, “Do you dislike this daisy? Then wait.”
“Eh?”
Shen Qingming’s outstretched hand hung in mid-air as she watched the figure disappear in an instant.
This time, Long Qing was gone for longer. When she returned, she held a bouquet of flowers. Long Qing quickly walked to her, smiling, and presented one cluster. “How about this peony?”
“…”
“And this rose? Its color is vibrant red, and its fragrance isn’t cloying.”
“…”
“If you think they wither too quickly, then this one.” Long Qing, as if presenting a treasure, took out a cluster of flowers from her embrace. The petals were even longer and thinner than the daisy’s, twisting and turning, and their vibrant red color was more unforgettable than that of the hibiscus or rose. She held the flower cluster out to Shen Qingming. “Manjusaka!”
“…”
“Still don’t like it? This Manjusaka blooms for ten thousand years, never fading, always so beautiful. You can look at it every day, every month, every year.” Long Qing was discouraged when the girl remained unmoved even by the Manjusaka. The Manjusaka was her ultimate move; this flower was also known as the eternal flower. Manjusaka bloomed for ten thousand years, and it was the purest vivid red. Why didn’t the girl like it?
Shen Qingming finally snapped out of her daze. Seeing Long Qing’s dejected expression, she quickly nodded, “No, I like it. Is this Manjusaka?” In truth, she didn’t understand flowers; she had barely had enough to eat in the past, so she naturally had no leisure to appreciate flowers. But what young woman didn’t like beauty? This flower was indeed beautiful.
“Mm, then how about I put it on you?” Long Qing’s dejection vanished, and she eagerly held the Manjusaka. She had heard of the custom of girls wearing silk flowers. The little girl hadn’t worn any hair ornaments since she arrived. Long Qing didn’t have gold or silver jewelry, so she would make do with fresh flowers; it should look good.
Shen Qingming hadn’t expected Long Qing to actually want to put a flower on her, and she suddenly felt a little nervous. Looking at the vivid flower bud and then at Long Qing’s close, gentle smile, she suddenly felt that Long Qing was the one who truly suited this flower. “How about you wear it?”
“Me wear it?” Long Qing was momentarily stunned. Shen Qingming had already snatched the flower and was tiptoeing to find a suitable spot on her head.
Her expression was very serious, deftly supporting the end of the flower so as not to damage the delicate petals. Hidden behind the flower was a pair of clear eyes. As the distance closed, her pupils widened. In Long Qing’s eyes, the flower seemed to sink into those unfathomable depths, beautiful as an ephemeral Epiphyllum. The girl’s breath wafted onto her face, light and shallow. Just as she was about to put it on, she suddenly shivered violently and snatched the flower away.
“Never mind. Manjusaka really isn’t quite right. I’ll give you something else another day.” She put the flower back into her embrace, and as she turned her head away, ripples appeared in her eyes.
“Ah, oh, thank you, Ms. Long,” Shen Qingming was startled and instinctively thanked her.
The atmosphere suddenly became very strange.
They were indeed too foolish.
Long Qing patted her face. Seeing that the little girl had relaxed a lot due to this incident, she took her hand and walked towards one side of the mountain. Shen Qingming followed her until they stopped on a flat area.
Long Qing stepped aside, gesturing proudly at the view before them. It was then that Shen Qingming truly saw everything. A gust of wind howled past, scattering her loosely tied hair. Her dark strands danced, and a few broken hairs flew down into the canyon with the wind, disappearing into a riot of colors.
Before them was an unobstructed cliff.
The deep autumn forest had many colors not seen in other seasons: red maple forests, orange apricot groves, or evergreen pine forests. Standing here, the thousand miles of forest, vibrant with color, seemed as if all the colorful clouds in the sky had fallen into her eyes. Shen Qingming’s eyes widened slightly. Looking at such a sight, she felt a myriad of emotions.
“It’s very beautiful, isn’t it? You’re so busy with household chores all day that you haven’t even seen the colors around you,” Long Qing said, gazing out at the valley with a hint of emotion. It was as if she were speaking to Shen Qingming, and also to herself.
Shen Qingming lowered her head upon hearing this, forcibly suppressing the tears welling in her eyes. When she looked up again, she already wore a radiant smile. “Yes, it really is beautiful.”
Long Qing was stunned again. She suddenly felt that the girl’s smiling face was even more brilliant and colorful than this mountain forest.
“Hey, Bean Sprout.”
Suddenly called by name, Shen Qingming instinctively stood up straight, returning to her reserved demeanor.
The girl’s shy little face reminded Long Qing of spring peach blossoms. Although it was deep autumn, a time when everything withered, she saw a peach blossom blooming before her.
“Ms. Long?” The timid question still reached her ears. Long Qing scratched her head, a little annoyed. “What was your name again?” Their parting had been rushed, and she hadn’t taken the girl’s name to heart. She only knew her as a Bean Sprout, a little girl. Her name simply slipped her mind for a moment.
“Shen Qingming.”
“Oh… ‘Qingming’ vast and bottomless, sun and moon shine on gold and silver platforms.”
Long Qing remembered, muttering to herself.
“What’s wrong?”
Long Qing cleared her throat, “We’ve been together for a month now, and I think we’ve gotten along quite well. Since we’re going to continue living together, calling me ‘Ms. Long, Ms. Long’ will inevitably feel a bit distant. My name is Long Qing, so from now on, you can call me Long, oh no, call me Qing. I’ll still call you ‘little girl,’ how about that?”
“Then…” The little girl seemed to have some difficulty. She hesitated for a moment, then, amidst Long Qing’s eager anticipation, softly uttered, “A-Qing.”
Long Qing almost jumped in surprise. She glared at the little girl, “Why are you calling me A-Qing?” This address was even more awkward than “Ms. Long.” Indeed, it really wasn’t working.
“Isn’t calling you ‘Long’ even stranger? Or ‘A-Long’?” The girl’s agile eyes flowed with innocent ripples.
Long Qing slapped her forehead. Alright, it was all this terrible name’s fault. Why did her mother have to give her such a name?
“Then call me… call me A-Qing.”
She stammered, a simple address, yet it made her beautiful face flush red.
“A-Qing~”
What Shen Qingming saw was the seemingly mature and generous lady’s figure fleeing in disarray.
Indeed, it still wasn’t quite right.
Author’s Note:
Please give me some pearls (rewards)! This story is too cold; it has no popularity! Stories without explicit scenes really have almost no popularity. But this story is really a slow burn, so I can’t accumulate popularity by relying on explicit scenes (ಥ_ಥ). It’s too difficult.
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