Life in Stone Desert

Early morning, in the master bedroom of a residence in the south of Stone Desert City.

"Young Master, wake up..."

The girl in an elegant light green dress tugged at the blanket with both hands, her slender waist slightly taut as she leaned forward. Her delicate little face was full of helplessness.

Pouting, the girl in green called to him softly, her fair, tender hands gently pulling at the blanket. Her efforts and calls seemed to finally rouse the bleary-eyed youth somewhat.

"Mm... Qingling..."

Amid the clear calls of the girl in green, the youth's hazy eyes slowly opened, a sliver of light slipping through his eyelids. Then he lazily muttered and casually grabbed the girl's wrist, giving it a light tug.

With a startled cry, the girl who had come to wake him was pulled straight into the blankets, hugged tightly like a doll and pinned beneath him.

"Young, Young Master, Young Master..."

Qingling, the girl in green, wriggled but failed to break free from his embrace. She called out nervously, but all she heard by her ear was his steady breathing, without the slightest response.

As if possessed, she did not continue disturbing him. Tilting her little head, she quietly watched his sleeping profile with bright eyes. The corners of her lips unconsciously curved upward, and before she knew it, she was staring at him in a daze.

The sun rose early and swiftly in Stone Desert City. The light outside grew brighter, and rays of sunlight streamed through the open door, spilling across the floor and making the entire room quite bright.

"Qingling, Qingling... Strange, it's clearly this time already. That girl Qingling has always been punctual, and that brat isn't here either..."

Voices drifted in from the courtyard outside the room, calls drawing closer. It seemed someone had come looking for them. Qingling only snapped out of it when she heard the commotion, and as she instinctively turned her head, a pair of long, exquisitely shapely legs stepped through the doorway.

"Ah~~~~"

A scream rang throughout the courtyard, and the once-peaceful room instantly erupted into chaos.

After being awakened by the noise, Yan Qingshan's morning temper flared. Rubbing his sore eyes, he roared rudely, "What are you making such a racket for? Are you even going to let people sleep?"

"You, you, you... How could you... how could you do something like this..."

A woman's voice came from the doorway. Pointing at the two disheveled people on the bed, she stammered, unable to form a complete sentence. These two had gone too far. How long had they known each other before getting together? Qingling was still a child!

"What do you mean, 'you'? Don't you know this is my room? Breaking into someone's home without permission—do you have any manners at all? Get out, now."

What greeted her was an even louder roar. Startled by the shout, the girl instinctively stepped back and stumbled out of the room.

"Seriously... I finally dealt with that."

The moment the woman left, Yan Qingshan immediately dropped the act. Holding his head, his face was full of frustration. When he had first awakened, he really had been in a foul mood, his morning temper severe. But after shouting, he had realized what had happened.

In this awkward situation, he could only grit his teeth and forcefully drive her away. Otherwise, who knew what things might turn into?

"Young Master, please don't be angry. Sister Xuelan didn't mean it."

A timid voice sounded beside him. Qingling, the girl in green, had been pinned beneath him on the bed and held like a doll. Her clothes were wrinkled, and some places had even come slightly undone, revealing a different kind of allure.

"Help me get up first. What's going on today? Don't I usually tell you to wake me later? And why did that woman come so early?"

Yan Qingshan lazily sat up. He was in a terrible mood, so naturally his tone was not pleasant. Qingling silently helped him rise and dress with her soft, tender little hands, kneeling by the bed as she carefully straightened his clothes.

"Young Master, you arranged to meet Sister Xuelan this morning. Yesterday, you even reminded Qingling that she had to wake you on time, otherwise..."

As Qingling spoke, her little face grew burning hot. Her lips pursed, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks, and she said in a voice so soft it was nearly inaudible, "You said Qingling's bottom would suffer..."

A man's urges were not at their strongest at night, but early in the morning just after waking. Yan Qingshan was a hot-blooded young man, and he had just been hugging a soft little beauty while having a pleasant dream. Hearing those highly suggestive words, he immediately reacted.

His head lowered instinctively, and his gaze involuntarily swept over her. The tiny eleven-year-old snake girl already had the budding curves of a petite and exquisite figure.

Perhaps because she had been living well lately and getting proper nutrition, her figure had become increasingly defined. Not exactly a childlike face... but she was still extremely alluring.

Even the coldest, calmest man could have impulsive moments. Hearing Qingling's words, Yan Qingshan subconsciously shifted his gaze downward, landing on the place the girl had just mentioned.

"Young Master!"

Qingling seemed to sense his gaze. As if she did not think the temptation was enough, she obediently lowered herself, bracing her hands and feet against the bed.

"You little girl are learning bad habits too!"

Yan Qingshan bent down and firmly flicked her delicate nose, followed by two sharp smacks. "A small punishment as a warning. If you fail your task again next time, Young Master will punish you too."

After saying that, Yan Qingshan fled the room as swiftly as the wind. He would never admit that he had still failed to resist the temptation and reached out.

Who could blame him when this little girl was so tempting? Compared to Xiao Yi Xian's gentleness, the little snake girl Qingling was utterly tolerant and obedient toward him, practically treating him as her entire world.

"Young Master, Qingling thinks your punishment... isn't bad either..."

Qingling turned and lay facedown on the bedding Yan Qingshan had slept in. Hugging the blankets as she returned beneath them, she breathed in the scent he had left behind and narrowed her eyes like a little cat.

As Yan Qingshan walked along the road, recalling how smoothly everything had gone these past few days, even he found it incredibly surprising. The girl in his room who called him Young Master was the very target he had come to Stone Desert City to find.

Aside from Xiao Yi Xian, she was another person with extraordinary potential in the Jia Ma Empire: the mixed-blood snake girl with the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, whom Xiao Yan had named Qing Lin.

That was right, Qingling was Qing Lin. However, Yan Qingshan felt that the name Qing Lin was truly awful. Xiao Yan's talent for naming things was simply impossible to describe. Colorful scales became Cai Lin, green scales became Qing Lin—seriously...

Since he thought Qing Lin was not a good name, what did green scales mean? Was it not simply a reminder of the girl's identity as a snake woman?

So he gave her the homophonic name Qingling. It sounded similar, but carried a different meaning: a happy girl who loved the color green and whose voice was like a wind chime—a beautiful blessing.

Like Xiao Yi Xian, Qingling was a sensitive girl who needed care. However, Qingling was even more pitiable by comparison. Xiao Yi Xian merely lacked friends, but no one rejected or hated her. On the contrary, many people had a favorable impression of her.

But Qingling, because of her identity as a mixed-blood snake woman, had endured cold stares and disgust since childhood. Few people had ever been willing to approach her. Even among the handful of friends she had, whenever they saw the snake scales on her wrist, they would unconsciously reveal looks of revulsion. Being so sensitive, she had very little sense of security.

Yan Qingshan was the first person who had not shown even the slightest disgust toward her. Qingshan Town, where his original body had lived, was extremely far from the Tagore Desert. Snake people meant nothing to him at all.

As for the current Yan Qingshan, beast-girl types were something one could only see in anime. Now that he had met one in person—and such a cute, obedient young girl at that—he barely had time to like her. How could he possibly feel any disgust?

Because Yan Qingshan made her feel warmth, Qingling had been easily coaxed over by him. She had even taken the initiative to ask to become his maid rather than his little sister. Yan Qingshan had resisted a little at first, but after being so thoroughly satisfied by the attentive care of his adorable maid, he stopped bringing up the matter of being siblings.

With such a thoughtful and considerate maid who was so good at caring for people, he would have been a complete fool to refuse. After getting used to Qingling serving him these past few days, his temper had actually grown worse, and he had even begun to put on airs like a young master.

Take his sleeping in and morning temper earlier, for instance. Those had never happened back in Qingshan Town. Should he say it was all because Qingling was too gentle?

Of course, part of it was because he had exhausted himself with relentless daily training. Still, compared with the days when he had soaked in medicinal baths day and night while cultivating bitterly in Qingshan Town, he really had become somewhat decadent now.

"Young Master, Sister Xuelan is waiting for you!"

Qingling's voice came from behind him. At some point, she had already tidied Yan Qingshan's messy bed and come out. She stepped before him, straightened his collar, smoothed the creases in his clothes, then smiled sweetly and blinked at him.

After pinching Qingling's cheek, Yan Qingshan slowly headed toward the reception hall. Qingling, meanwhile, entered the kitchen to prepare tea and pastries for the two of them. Then she remembered that Young Master had only just woken up, so she also needed to prepare breakfast and washing supplies. She hurried off, bustling about.

Yan Qingshan crossed the threshold into the reception hall. On a cushioned chair beside the tea table sat a slender, lovely figure, her arms crossed and long legs folded. The moment she saw him enter, her eyes shot him an angry glare.

Bang~~~

The moment Yan Qingshan reached the other side, the woman erupted. She sprang to her feet, planted one foot on the tea table, pointed at Yan Qingshan, and shouted, "You little brat, you bastard! Didn't you say you would take good care of Qingling? Is this how you take care of her? Qingling is only eleven. How could you..."

"Qingling is my maid. What I do to her does not require your approval. She herself does not feel wronged, so there is no need for you to speak up."

Yan Qingshan calmly sat down in another cushioned chair opposite the girl. Leaning back, he smiled coolly. "Also, let me remind you: everything in this place belongs to me. If you damage anything, you will have to compensate me.

"I spent ten thousand on this house. The other furnishings are worth about the same. Take this tea table, for example. Both its workmanship and materials are the finest in Stone Desert City. This one table alone would probably cover your family's food and living expenses for several months.

"Are you sure you won't put your foot down? Or are you planning to keep showing off your figure?"