Liu Qingzhang picked up a lost, whimpering little snake in a corner of the amusement park.
The moment the little snake saw him, it panicked and threw itself into his arms. “Mr. Liu, I heard the broadcast saying the amusement park is closing…”
But Bai Ying didn’t know where he was or where the amusement park’s entrance was. He only knew that Liu Qingzhang had told him to wait in place, so he stayed there anxiously.
“It’s okay. You can stay here as long as you want,” Liu Qingzhang said as he reached out and wiped away a crystalline teardrop from the corner of Bai Ying’s eye.
It was like a rare pearl, beautiful, but Liu Qingzhang would rather not see it.
At least, not because of a reason like this.
Bai Ying was clearly still feeling guilty about rejecting Lu Changjun. He was a little snake who wasn’t good at refusing others and couldn’t bear to see anyone upset. He huddled in Liu Qingzhang’s arms, burying his head in his shoulder, his voice muffled. “Mr. Liu, I don’t know what to do.”
Liu Qingzhang patted his back and comforted him in a low voice. “You’ve done very well so far, little snake. Don’t wrong yourself just because you’re soft-hearted toward others.”
Bai Ying lifted his face to look at him, his eyes still misty with tears.
It wasn’t like that… Bai Ying thought. If he hadn’t been so obtuse and had been a bit more perceptive, maybe he could have noticed Xiao Lu’s feelings for him earlier. Maybe he could have found a better way to handle their relationship. Instead, he had been so startled by the sudden confession that he fled in panic, hurting Xiao Lu’s feelings. In the future, they probably couldn’t even be friends anymore.
Bai Ying didn’t voice these thoughts, not wanting to worry Liu Qingzhang.
But how could Liu Qingzhang not see it? Emotional matters were just too complicated. As a great demon who had never formed an intimate bond with any person or yao, Liu Qingzhang couldn’t offer any good advice. He simply wanted to wipe away the tears from the little snake’s eyes, to make the little snake stop being sad, to make the little snake happy again.
He asked, “Do you want to keep playing?”
Bai Ying looked dazed. “Hasn’t the park already closed?”
“It has closed,” Liu Qingzhang said. “So now, this is an amusement park that belongs only to you.”
Liu Qingzhang took Bai Ying’s hand and led him back onto the right path. The amusement park, now devoid of other visitors, was still brightly lit. The lights outlined the contours of the rides and the distant castle. Even the food carts parked along the roadside, now without their vendors, glowed with colorful lights. Bai Ying stood in the central plaza of the amusement park and felt, in a daze, as if he had stepped into a magnificent dream world.
The tourists and staff had all left, but Liu Qingzhang had left everything else behind.
At first, Bai Ying didn’t quite grasp what an “amusement park just for him” really meant. He approached a food cart by the roadside and peered inside hesitantly. Not long ago, he had bought ice cream here. The six flavors of ice cream were still in the freezer, and the cones were stacked to the side. Apart from the absence of the vendor, the ice cream stall seemed like it was still open for business.
“Want some ice cream?” Liu Qingzhang asked him.
Bai Ying turned back with the big squirrel in his arms, uncertain. “Can I scoop it myself?”
“Of course,” Liu Qingzhang told him. “Tonight, you can do anything you want here.”
Bai Ying set the big squirrel down in an empty spot on the cart, grabbed a cone, and picked up the round ice cream scoop. He clumsily scooped out a round ball of vanilla ice cream and plopped it upside down into the cone. Recalling the vendor’s movements, he used the scoop to smooth out the uneven edges.
He turned the cone around once, satisfied with his first attempt, and finally smiled. He handed the cone to Liu Qingzhang. “Mr. Liu, here, for you!”
Liu Qingzhang was momentarily stunned. He hadn’t expected the little snake’s handmade cone to be for him.
“Thank you, little snake.” He took it and, to give face, immediately took a bite. An unfamiliar sweetness spread in his mouth. The great demon, who hadn’t eaten mortal food in ages, had only rediscovered the taste of human delicacies after meeting this little snake.
Bai Ying tried making one for himself.
He didn’t have the vendor’s skill and couldn’t stably make a three-scoop cone, but he still yearned to taste all six flavors at once. Now the amusement park was his, and so was the ice cream cart. Bai Ying scooped a bit of each flavor into the cone, eventually piling up a six-color ice cream that didn’t look very appealing.
But Bai Ying loved it. He happily ate it bite by bite.
After finishing that, he hugged the squirrel and ran to the waffle maker. His first attempt as a little snake resulted in a pitch-black mystery object.
Bai Ying stared at the charcoal waffle in silence.
Liu Qingzhang asked uncertainly, “Should I eat this one too?”
“Better not!” Bai Ying quickly grabbed Liu Qingzhang.
For a weak little white snake like him, the greatest achievement in his yao life shouldn’t be poisoning a big snake with dark cuisine!
Bai Ying and Liu Qingzhang studied tutorials on their phones for a while. In the end, Liu Qingzhang took over, frying up a waffle that could be sold without issue.
Liu Qingzhang cut the waffle into four pieces, took a square paper bowl from the stall, and placed the triangular pieces inside. He sliced a few strawberries and blueberries, added them to the bowl, and sprinkled on some powdered sugar. The sweet-and-sour berry waffle was ready!
“Wow—” Bai Ying clapped enthusiastically.
The four pieces were divided into three portions: one for the little snake, one for the big squirrel, and two for the big snake, who had the biggest appetite. Of course, since the big squirrel was actually a plush toy, its share ended up in the big snake’s stomach too.
Bai Ying ran through all the food carts.
He was like the child in a fairy tale who stumbled into a candy house, where he could pluck chocolate or candy with a casual grab. There was no wicked witch here, only a big snake who was omnipotent to the little snake. Bai Ying ate everything he had wanted to try earlier but hadn’t. If his stomach couldn’t hold it all, it didn’t matter—he could take just one bite, and the big snake would handle the rest.
Some foods were ready-made, others required making them himself. At that moment, Bai Ying took the place of the original vendors, picking up the utensils and feeling like he was playing an ultra-realistic simulation management game. If he couldn’t make something, it didn’t matter—the big snake knew everything. He only needed to watch a tutorial once, and he could do it perfectly.
The little snake really couldn’t eat anymore and turned his gaze to the rides that seemed still operational.
“Can I still ride the roller coaster now?” Bai Ying asked Liu Qingzhang.
“Of course.” Liu Qingzhang had Bai Ying watch the control room, where someone was still operating. “It’s people from the Zhong Family. You could even ride in your original form.”
Bai Ying didn’t want to transform back now, but he wanted to ride hugging the big squirrel, which he had really wanted to do before. But that would be too dangerous, and Bai Ying didn’t want to cause trouble for the staff, so he had regretfully left the squirrel on the ground.
Meeting Bai Ying’s expectant gaze, Liu Qingzhang assured him that he would protect both Bai Ying and his squirrel.
The little snake and big snake boarded the roller coaster together. Bai Ying and the squirrel sat in the front row, with Liu Qingzhang right behind Bai Ying. Riding the roller coaster at night felt slightly different from daytime. As it sped along, the track lights formed a ribbon of light, and the wind, as fierce as ever, blew Bai Ying’s hair back, making the big squirrel’s fur dance wildly.
Bai Ying let out shrieks in mid-air. During the day, he hadn’t dared to scream much, but… now this was the little snake’s amusement park. The little snake could do whatever he wanted!
Liu Qingzhang sat casually with his arms crossed, leaning back against the seat without even gripping the safety bar in front of him. His gaze stayed fixed on Bai Ying.
After getting off this time, Bai Ying’s legs were a bit soft again, but he bravely held the squirrel in one arm and pulled Liu Qingzhang with the other to ride the rapids ride they hadn’t gotten to during the day. After putting on a transparent raincoat for himself, Bai Ying grabbed a child-sized rain cape for the big squirrel and finally took the largest adult raincoat, looking at Liu Qingzhang eagerly.
Liu Qingzhang didn’t actually need a raincoat at all—if he didn’t want it, not a single drop of water could touch him.
But Liu Qingzhang still opened his arms, letting Bai Ying drape the raincoat over him.
As Bai Ying carefully fastened the buckles, Liu Qingzhang looked down and saw his long, thick eyelashes like little brushes, and his soft white cheeks.
After zipping it up and securing the last buckle, Bai Ying looked up at him, his eyes shimmering like rippling water. Liu Qingzhang’s heart stirred; suddenly, he very much wanted to pull Bai Ying tightly into his arms.
“All set!” Bai Ying released the raincoat and cheerfully turned around, hugging the big squirrel as he hopped into the boat.
Liu Qingzhang stood there for a moment, frowning slightly and pressing his hand to his chest at the inexplicable flutter. A few seconds later, he hurried after Bai Ying and sat beside him.
Someone from the Zhong Family in the control room started the equipment. The boat was slowly pulled by chains to the highest point of the watercourse, then plunged down sharply!
“Ah!” The little snake hugged the squirrel tightly and shouted at the top of his lungs.
The rapids ride wasn’t as steep as the roller coaster and didn’t loop 360 degrees, but plunging into the water and splashing waves created a different kind of thrill as the water crashed down!
By the time they disembarked at the end, even with the raincoats, Bai Ying and the big squirrel were a bit damp from the splashes.
Someone brought a hairdryer. Bai Ying set it to max and dried the squirrel’s fur first. As he debated whether to dry his own clothes or just change, Liu Qingzhang suggested, “Want to transform back to your original form?”
“Yes!” Bai Ying grabbed Liu Qingzhang’s hand and shook it. “Together!”
Liu Qingzhang transformed into a four-meter-long black python and placed the little white snake on top of his head.
Then he carried the little white snake straight into the ghost house!
Bai Ying: “Hiss hiss!”
The timid yet playful little snake coiled itself into a ball on the big snake’s head, peeking out with its beady eyes despite its fear. The ghost house now had no costumed actors, only machine-operated mechanisms, and Liu Qingzhang had specifically had the scariest ones removed.
Ghosts made of white cloth floated in the air, their edges occasionally brushing over the little white snake. The snake would frantically bury its head into its coils at the touch, only lifting it again once the fabric had passed.
It didn’t need to crawl itself; the big snake had plotted the best route.
Liu Qingzhang took Bai Ying to areas he hadn’t reached during the day. The amusement park’s ghost house consisted of several themed zones. During the day, the little snake had accidentally entered the scariest one, the Horror Hospital, and ended up so frightened that he had to be carried out. Now, Liu Qingzhang took him to the “Ghost Castle,” marked in the park guide as most suitable for children.
In the center of the castle, pale white light simulated moonlight falling from above. In the middle of a dance hall built from bones, the Ghost Bride danced gracefully. Thin wires connected her limbs to the ceiling, making her footless dance seem extraordinarily light. Her wooden body was draped in layers of snow-white gauze forming a dance skirt, along with a veil covering her face down to her ankles, all rippling like water with her movements.
Beauty diluted the horror. As the black python glided through the dance hall, the little snake on its head watched entranced.
Outside the ghost house exit was the souvenir shop.
In the most prominent glass display case sat a dance skirt, the same style as the Ghost Bride’s inside. The price tag was blank—this was a non-sale item, used only for display and not for purchase.
But if Liu Qingzhang wanted it, he could have it.
The big snake spoke human words and asked the little snake, “Want to try it on?”
The little snake was baffled. “Hiss?”
Huh? Me?
