Dragon, Truly Shameless (Yuri Futa, Farming) - Chapter 4

Shen Qingming had thought she was definitely going to die this time, but unexpectedly, she was still alive. Not only alive, but also brought to a strange place.

She vaguely remembered being bitten by the tiger, carried away, and then passing out. When she woke up, she found herself lying here. Her body felt heavy, so tired that she couldn’t even lift her hand. Her eyelids were heavy, unable to open, and even a slight movement would cause unbearable pain from the wounds on her body. Although painful, it also made her understand a fact: she could still feel pain, which meant she was indeed alive.

The environment she was in was very quiet. She could hear birds chirping from a distance. There was no wind, so she guessed it was some kind of cave. Could it be that the tiger had brought her back to its lair? But since waking up, she hadn’t heard any tiger’s growls. She tried to open her eyes, but her eyelids felt as if they were filled with lead, so heavy that it was difficult to even open them a crack, let alone fully. After trying for a while, she didn’t succeed and instead felt even more exhausted.

The dizzying sensation was unbearable. At this moment, faint footsteps sounded, approaching from outside. Her heart tightened instantly. Had the tiger returned? The footsteps came closer and closer, and she nervously tensed her body, her eyes tightly closed. However, what brushed against her was not the expected rough fur, but a cool and smooth sensation, like scales?

What was this? Before she could figure it out, that strange touch disappeared, replaced by warm and smooth skin, and a faint, cool fragrance.

She felt herself being lifted up, and then something touched her lips, wet and continuously flowing into her slightly parted mouth, carrying a sweet taste.

The liquid moistened her dry lips and relieved the parched and stinging throat. She couldn’t help but swallow it in large gulps. The sweet taste made her feel unusually happy, like sugar, yet even more satisfying than sugar. As the liquid went down, a warm current flowed through her limbs and veins. Her numb body gradually regained sensation, the pain faded, and her previously very dizzy head also felt much better.

She tried to open her eyes again. Her eyelashes fluttered like the wings of a fledgling bird. After several attempts, she finally slowly opened her eyes. The blurry vision gradually became clear, and what appeared before her was indeed a cave. She was lying on a flat stone slab, with a blanket underneath her – or rather, an animal skin. She was lying on the animal skin, and another animal skin covered her body. However, what shocked her at this moment was not this strange cave, but the person sitting not far away… a human?

A young woman who looked not much older than her sat on a stone stool, wearing black and white brocade robes with flowing gold cloud patterns embroidered on them, reflecting a faint soft light that shimmered and flowed as her wide sleeves moved, looking at first glance like flowing clouds. The woman’s hair was not tied up but casually draped down. Her thick, black hair flowed from her head, cascading onto the stone slab in winding strands, looking to Shen Qingming like a long waterfall of ink, and the woman was like a fairy beneath the waterfall.

The woman was holding something and examining it with a very serious expression. Out of curiosity, Shen Qingming raised her eyes to look, but when she saw what it was, her face instantly flushed crimson.

It was her… *dudou* (a traditional Chinese undergarment) and underpants.

Only then did Shen Qingming realize that she felt a chill on her body. She was completely naked. Because it was the height of summer and she was in this windless cave with animal skins underneath and covering her, she hadn’t felt anything amiss. Discovering her nakedness, she hurriedly shrank back under the fur blanket, revealing two dark eyes as she looked at the woman not far away, unsure whether to call out to her or drive her away.

The woman seemed to have noticed that she had woken up and turned her head. Only then did Shen Qingming get a clear look at the woman’s face, and she couldn’t help but be stunned.

The woman had an extraordinary air about her. She was exquisitely beautiful, with skin as white as snow, a nose as straight as a hanging gall bladder, and eyes like peach blossoms, her dark pupils as clear as autumn water or polished glass. Her slanted, upward-sweeping willow eyebrows carried a hint of heroic spirit, yet her rounded features softened this into a unique and delicate beauty. Her thin lips were slightly pursed, and her exquisite features seemed to have been meticulously carved, unlike ordinary people, possessing a natural and otherworldly elegance.

Perhaps it was the dim light of the cave, but she noticed that the woman’s eyes seemed to have an unusual light. An orange-red glow floated in her pupils, flickering like glass lanterns. Upon closer inspection, her pupils were not round but vertical, and they appeared particularly clear because of the orange-red light within them.

Within the dim cave, the woman’s eyes were like a solitary lamp, burning on its own. The woman’s gaze was also exceptionally calm, devoid of any emotion, calmly disregarding everything, including her.

Being stared at by such eyes, Shen Qingming felt an invisible pressure on her shoulders. She instinctively lowered her head; that gaze actually made her involuntarily want to submit. However, this feeling was only fleeting, like clouds and mist blown away by a gust of wind from outside the cave. When she looked up at the woman again, the orange-red glow was gone, and the woman’s eyes had become very peaceful, even revealing a hint of innocence.

Could she have seen things? Just then, another sharp pain struck her head, and she covered it, inadvertently falling off the bed.

“Mmm.”

“Careful.”

A clear, cold voice reached her ears, accompanied by a sudden increase in the cool fragrance. The expected pain didn’t come; she fell into a soft embrace.

Shen Qingming didn’t understand at all why the woman who had been far away at the cave entrance was beside her in just a moment and had even hugged her. But that wasn’t important. At this moment, her attention was entirely on the woman.

This was the first time in her life she had been held, and by a girl. Shen Qingming’s whole body stiffened. She didn’t have time to worry about being naked and just blankly let the girl carry her back to the bed.

The girl seemed to be quite strong, actually picking her up horizontally and gently placing her on the stone slab bed without even touching her wounds.

Pulling the covers back over her, the young woman frowned and asked, “Your injuries haven’t healed yet. Don’t move around recklessly. Do you feel any discomfort now?”

Her voice was still cold, but her actions were different from her cold voice, revealing careful consideration in every movement. Seeing that the girl had no intention of dressing her, even though they were both girls, Shen Qingming was not an open person. Just being in the same room as a stranger girl was enough to make her nervous, let alone being exposed.

“I, my clothes,” she said softly.

“You have scratches all over your body. It’s not good to wear clothes,” the girl said again. “Sigh, that Ah Hu is really something, scratching you into a spotted dog.”

Spotted dog? Shen Qingming was puzzled by her strange word. However, noticing the second half of the sentence, Ah Hu? Could it be…? Immediately, a tiger’s roar from outside the cave confirmed her guess.

A large, striped tiger walked in from outside the cave, its mouth still stained with bl00d, carrying a half-eaten deer in its jaws. When it saw the young woman, it actually pounced directly at her.

Shen Qingming froze instantly. Her already pale little face became as white as paper. She tried to warn the girl, but her body wouldn’t obey. Just as she thought this beautiful girl was about to die in the tiger’s mouth, the next scene that unfolded before her eyes was completely unbelievable.

The tiger did pounce on the girl, but the girl didn’t dodge. Instead, she turned around unhurriedly, and then Shen Qingming saw the tiger jump into the girl’s arms, rubbing its head against her repeatedly. The girl’s eyebrows and eyes softened, and she seemed to be smiling as she grabbed the tiger’s head and rubbed it vigorously. The majestic tiger then lay down on the ground and rolled onto its back, exposing its belly.

“Go, go, go, you’re too dirty. Wash up and come back,” the girl pushed the tiger, which was acting spoiled and refusing to leave. The tiger kept making “aowu aowu” sounds, completely different from its appearance when it hunted Shen Qingming. If it weren’t for its huge size and clear stripes, its behavior and eyes would have resembled those of a kitten.

The tiger “aowued” a few more times, finally reluctantly leaving in the face of the girl’s resolute attitude. The girl returned to her side, and only then did Shen Qingming recover from her shock.

The girl looked apologetic. “I’m sorry. This is my pet. It must have scratched you that day while playing. It wasn’t intentional. I hope you won’t hold it against it.” Although she said she was sorry, the girl didn’t show the slightest bit of the attitude that an apology should have. It was more like she was certain that Shen Qingming would forgive her.

In fact, Shen Qingming didn’t have the choice not to forgive. Her person was here, she was injured, and this girl was accompanied by wild beasts. “Th, thank you,” she said timidly, instead giving thanks. She also didn’t dare to talk much with this girl. Having suffered countless contemptuous looks since childhood, she didn’t know how to interact with others. The only thing she could be thankful for was perhaps that this was a girl, not a boy, otherwise, she was afraid she would be even more embarrassed.

Seeing her muttering something softly to herself that she couldn’t quite hear, and then shrinking into the corner like a frightened bird, the girl was also confused. She pondered, unable to understand what she had done to scare this little girl so much. Was she that terrifying?

“Um, my name is Long Qing. I’m a hunter in these mountains,” she introduced herself very seriously. At first glance, her words seemed fine, but putting these words on a young girl was very strange. But she looked sincere, as if she didn’t think there was anything wrong with it.

Shen Qingming remained curled up, her eyes slightly raised, peeking over cautiously. Self-abasement and helplessness floated in them. After a long while, she nodded to Long Qing again without speaking.

“Are you mute?” Long Qing frowned and asked directly.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing her words, the little girl curled up even tighter. She keenly noticed that the clarity in the little girl’s eyes instantly dissipated, turning ashen gray.

Long Qing realized that her words had probably made the little girl misunderstand and hurriedly changed her tone. “I mean, can’t you speak? What’s your name?”

Hearing her words, Shen Qingming relaxed slightly. After a long while, a voice as faint as a mosquito’s hum quietly sounded, “Ugly, ugly freak.”

Long Qing almost spat out a mouthful of water, thinking she had misheard. Ugly freak? Her brows furrowed sharply. Had Ah Hu caught a little idiot?

“Tsk, that’s really unpleasant. I’m asking for the young lady’s given name, not a nickname others gave you.”

Was there a difference between them? Shen Qingming really wanted to ask, but she held back and buried her face even deeper. From childhood to adulthood, the people of the old Shen family called her Xiao Shen, and most people simply called her an ugly freak. When a person’s given name is never used in their entire life, is there a difference between the given name and the nickname? Perhaps the nickname was what truly represented her.

However, this woman didn’t seem to be mocking her. She secretly glanced at the woman again, let out a breath of stale air, and said, “Shen Qingming.”

“Oh, Qingming, that’s quite a nice name, like a cup of tea.” This name sounded cultured, much better than something like Dazhuang (Big Strong), Gou Dan (Dog’s Egg), or Caogen (Grass Root).

“My father said it was taken from ‘The vast blue sky has no bottom, the sun and moon shine on the golden and silver terraces,’ but because I was a girl, Qingming was changed from Qingming (青冥, azure sky) to Qingming (清茗, clear tea),” Shen Qingming added, her tone very calm, making it impossible to discern her thoughts. The only thing her biological father had left her was her name, but this name had been prepared for a boy. The feelings involved were probably only understood by the person concerned.

Long Qing tilted her head. She didn’t seem to understand the connection, but she didn’t care. She grinned and chuckled softly, “Nice to meet you. I’m sorry that Ah Hu injured you, but since you’re injured and unable to move around, why don’t you rest here and recover if you don’t mind?”

“Thank you,” Shen Qingming raised her head slightly, her lips moving. “Um, my younger brother…” When she was taken away by the tiger, she didn’t know what had happened to Shen Jinbao. If something had happened to Shen Jinbao, she couldn’t imagine what the old Shen family would be like.

“That boy?”

Shen Qingming nodded.

“That boy has already been taken back by the villagers.”

Letting out another breath of stale air, if one listened closely, one could almost hear a sigh of relief.

Long Qing turned around, raising an eyebrow at her. This thin little girl was clearly different from most girls. According to Ah Hu, this little girl often went into the mountains to cut grass, often working from dawn till dusk. Despite doing so much work, she was terribly skinny. She had heard that the whole village had gone into the mountains to look for that boy, but no one had come to look for this little girl.

“So, the boy went back, and no one came to look for you in the meantime. Don’t you feel sad?”

How could she not feel sad? But… what could she do, all alone and without support? Shen Qingming’s wooden face twitched slightly. Without making a sound, she hugged herself tighter, a very painful yet helpless gesture.

What a resilient fellow.

Long Qing waved her hand. “Forget it. I really don’t understand you humans. Since Ah Hu injured you this time, you should stay here and recover. Once you’re healed, you can go back. I’m going out for a bit. You should rest well.”

After saying this, Long Qing went out. Still in a daze, Shen Qingming failed to notice the hidden meaning in her words “you humans.”

For her, having a place to stay was already a great stroke of luck. Being injured meant she couldn’t work and still needed to eat. If she went back, she would probably only be disliked. Long Qing was certainly strange, but compared to the old Shen family, she would rather stay with a stranger. As for why, Shen Qingming didn’t understand.