Making Things Right

Would there be a next time for them?

Xing Yue hadn't come prepared last night, and she couldn't exactly carry that thing around with her. She'd been tipsy on the way to the hotel and hadn't realized until things got underway.

They could have done without it. The fluid on a snake's tongue had cleansing properties; she'd only used it to spice things up.

The hotel room happened to have supplies they could buy by scanning a code, so Xing Yue bought some. She'd always held back because Bu Yao was young and rarely tried anything new. Who would have thought Bu Yao would turn out to be allergic to latex the first time they used it? That ruled out every kind of finger cot.

Xing Yue was at a loss for words. She picked up a strawberry from the porcelain bowl beside her and bit off half its tip. Red juice lingered on her finger. It felt cool, yet she flinched as though she'd been burned.

What am I supposed to do now...?

Xing Yue sank into the bathtub, soaking her dark hair. She wanted to clear her head, but her phone chimed with another friend request.

Less than thirty seconds later, Bu Yao had sent another one.

Even if Miss Bu's temper had improved, the way she kept pushing to be added still betrayed a stubborn streak. If Xing Yue didn't accept, Bu Yao would probably keep sending requests.

But blocking her now would be a rotten thing to do. Xing Yue had willingly gone to the hotel with Bu Yao last night, carried away in the moment. Now that Bu Yao had had an allergic reaction, blocking her without a word would be impossible to justify.

After a brief struggle with herself, Xing Yue tapped the green Accept button.

As soon as they connected, Bu Yao sent a picture. Near the base of her tail, several spotted red marks stood out among the tiny scales, stark against the smooth, curved ones around them. They were slightly swollen. One look was enough to tell something was wrong.

It was only a picture, but Xing Yue could almost see Bu Yao cradling her ailing tail and holding it up to her, saying plaintively, "See? I wasn't lying. It really is an allergy."

Xing Yue: [Send me your address. I'll order medicine for you online.]

Bu Yao: [Come over yourself.]

Xing Yue: [NO.]

Her refusal was swift and firm. Two minutes passed without another reply from Bu Yao.

Miss Bu was probably angry. Xing Yue wasn't going to press her for the address; Bo Wuxue should know it.

She was about to message the Bluestone Snake when Bu Yao, perhaps holding back her temper, actually gave in. She stopped asking Xing Yue to come over and sent only her location.

Xing Yue stared at the pin in shock for several seconds. Was Bu Yao really letting her off that easily?

In the past, whenever Bu Yao wanted her to do something, she wouldn't stop until she got her way. It was as if the whole world had to obey Miss Bu. She seemed to use her mouth for nothing but insults and orders.

Xing Yue wasn't used to this Bu Yao. The sudden concession left her with a faint, oddly complicated sense of guilt.

After ordering the medicine, she couldn't help sending a few instructions: [Use a cotton swab to put the ointment on your tail, then spread it with your finger. Don't scoop it out with your bare hand, or you'll contaminate it for next time.]

Bu Yao: [Okay~ Will there be a next time for us?]

Only then did Xing Yue realize how her words could be taken. She'd made it sound as though she was hinting they might meet up again.

Looking at the little tilde on her screen, she could tell Bu Yao seemed to be in a good mood.

And that little Fire Snake was trying to flirt with her.

Xing Yue smiled to herself and replied: [What do you think?]

A snake's tail weighed down one side of the soft silk comforter and poked out from the other. Its little red tip, like a flicker of flame, turned and curled across the bed.

Bu Yao was still out of her depth. Xing Yue had tossed the question back to her, and now she clutched her phone, so nervous her heart was pounding out of rhythm.

Then Xing Yue promptly poured cold water on her hopes.

[I had a little to drink last night and got carried away. We can be friends.]

Bu Yao stared at the second sentence. It felt like a cruel joke. Did Xing Yue sleep with her friends too?

She burrowed beneath the covers, coiled her tail, and hugged it, feeling a little miserable.

Soon, a servant knocked and entered with a glass of warm water and several pills on a tray. "Miss, it's time."

Bu Yao stayed under the covers. "Leave them there."

The servant didn't move. She relayed Madam Bu's instructions: "Madam said I must make sure you take your medicine before I leave."

The temperature in the room seemed to plunge. Bu Yao threw back the covers, snatched the tray, and hurled it straight into the servant's face. The glass shattered on the floor, scattering pills among the shards.

The servant collapsed to the floor, stunned and trembling.

Bu Yao's face was cold with anger. She fought to contain the fury about to erupt and finally said, her voice ringing out, "Get out."

The servant didn't dare say another word. Bent over, she scrambled out of the room.

Once outside, she patted her chest, still shaken, and muttered as she walked, "No wonder she takes a whole cabinet of pills. She really is seriously ill."

The Bu Family's longtime butler overheard the new servant muttering. He grabbed her and dragged her toward the back courtyard. "Have you got a death wish? Watch your mouth, or the master and madam will kill you!"

The young maid forced a grin and quickly changed the subject. "Uncle Li, what exactly is wrong with the young miss? If you don't tell me, how am I supposed to know? What if I make another mistake?"

Madam Bu prepared all those pills. The maid only knew that the cupboards in Madam Bu's room were full of bottles and jars of medicine for the young miss. She had no idea what the medicines were or what they treated.

Butler Li looked troubled and couldn't explain it clearly either. "It's a strange illness. I think they call it lovesickness, some kind of mental disorder. Just don't upset the young miss. Do whatever she tells you. In this family, she comes first. Madam Bu and the master come after her. Don't get that order wrong."

That illness was why the young miss had divorced ten years ago. In her marriage, Xing Yue's negative emotions had produced a false kind of feedback.

Put simply, Bu Yao might order Xing Yue to help her put on her shoes in public. Even if Xing Yue said she didn't want to and became angry, Bu Yao's illness made her misread those feelings. She believed Xing Yue liked doing it, wanted to do it, loved her, and enjoyed spoiling her.

No matter what Xing Yue did or said, no matter how strongly she resisted, Bu Yao saw it as a test and proof that their bond was deepening.

Thinking of how much the young miss had changed after the divorce, Uncle Li felt a pang. He had watched her grow up, after all.

Even though Fire Snakes were the only snakes in the world with tear glands, most went their whole lives without shedding a tear. After Xing Yue left, Bu Yao may have been unable to accept that the wife she'd always believed loved her didn't love her at all. She cried so much she nearly ruined her eyes. For the first year after the divorce, she cried every day.

Madam Bu couldn't bear to see it. "Change for the better. Become someone exceptional, and Yueyue will come back."

No one liked a girl who was hot-tempered, demanding, and spoiled like a princess. People liked women who were gentle, sweet, and accomplished.

Because of those words from Madam Bu, Bu Yao dropped out in her first year of university, took the entrance exams again, got into the most difficult law school, and became a lawyer. It was as though that were the only way to prove she was an exceptional woman.

She was changing for the better, but Xing Yue still hadn't come back. She had even moved, changed jobs, and deleted her WeChat account, afraid Bu Yao might find her...

After her bath, Bu Yao found that the takeout she'd ordered had arrived and began eating voraciously.

Different kinds of snakes mated for different lengths of time, but it usually lasted several hours at least. Afterward, male or female, with an opposite-sex or same-sex partner, they all needed to replenish a great deal of energy.

Xing Yue had spent a full twenty-three hours entwined with Bu Yao last night. Bu Yao was probably eating now too.

As she ate, Xing Yue called Bo Wuxue to vent. "Can you believe this? Bu Yao's twenty-eight and she still goes around flicking her tail like that. If she hadn't seduced me, I wouldn't have fallen for it."

Bo Wuxue laughed so hard Xing Yue could hear her pounding the table through the phone. "She seduced you, and you just couldn't resist?"

Xing Yue's eyes flickered. Feeling a little guilty, she changed the subject. "Speaking of which, wasn't she studying finance at university? How did she end up becoming a lawyer?"

The Bu Family had such a vast business, and Bu Yao was their only child. She'd been raised as the heir since she was little. For the family to support her decision not to go into business showed just how dearly they loved her.

Among all the prominent families, no daughter had more freedom than Bu Yao.

Bo Wuxue clicked her tongue. "Because of you, of course!"

At that, the feast spread before Xing Yue lost all appeal. Her fingers tightened around her knife and fork, and a chill ran through her.

Of course. Miss Bu had come back for revenge.