The little cub Xi Qing's stomach rumbled. He came over awkwardly and said coldly, "I was the one who dug up the Red Earth Fruit."
Si Yan nodded. "Yes, you dug it up. You can eat it."
Xi Qing pursed his lips and awkwardly began to eat the Red Earth Fruit. A strange, tingling discomfort settled in his heart.
After finishing the Red Earth Fruit, Si Yan went to clean the stone pot.
Bei Ji sat next to Xi Qing, intending to persuade him, but Xi Qing angrily turned away and ignored him. Bei Ji felt a bit helpless.
The sky had turned pitch black. Yet, as always, the two cubs prepared to sleep in the corner of the cave. When Si Yan finished her chores and returned to see them in the corner, her heart tightened.
"You two cubs, not listening again, are you? You always manage to make me angry!" Si Yan strode forward. "Isn't it cold sleeping on the ground? Won't you catch a cold?! You have perfectly good beds but choose the ground. What are you thinking!"
Bei Ji and Xi Qing looked up at her from the ground. Though the bad female was angry, they didn't feel like they were about to be beaten, nor did they feel any discomfort from her words.
Si Yan squatted down, picked up little Bei Ji, and placed the soft, cute little one on the bed. Then, she patiently went to pick up Xi Qing.
Xi Qing shuddered and suddenly started to struggle fiercely, refusing to get on the bed at all costs.
"Bad female, I won't sleep on the bed! If I freeze to death, it has nothing to do with you!"
Ugh, this was infuriating! She really wanted to smack the cub.
Si Yan let Xi Qing sleep on the ground and stopped bothering with him.
After getting into bed, she tucked Bei Ji in and said, "No noise now, go to sleep."
Snake Beastmen have excellent eyesight; they can see clearly even at night without any light.
Bei Ji turned his head to look at Si Yan lying beside him. He sniffed; she smelled so nice. The bed was also very soft. He had never slept so comfortably before.
A warm feeling spread from the depths of his heart. This unfamiliar sensation wasn't unpleasant; on the contrary, it was quite comfortable.
Bei Ji couldn't fall asleep. He occasionally secretly opened his eyes to peek at her.
This was his mother, his very own mother!
Even if his current mother was deceiving him, even if she was going to sell him the next day, at this moment, he still felt happy.
Little Bei Ji's tiny hand clutched Si Yan's clothes tightly, as if he feared she would run away.
Si Yan sighed in resignation but let him hold on.
She was always the type to sleep even if the sky were falling, and she soon fell into a deep slumber.
Once Si Yan was asleep, Bei Ji quietly wiggled into her embrace and shamelessly nuzzled against her.
Xi Qing glared bitterly at Bei Ji. Bei Ji had betrayed him, taking it upon himself to get close to the bad female! This made him very angry!
He turned over in a huff, his back to them.
In the middle of the night, Si Yan woke up. She discreetly went out to relieve herself. Upon returning, she observed Xi Qing in the cave by the moonlight.
What she didn't know was that the two snake cubs were light sleepers. Having had to rely on themselves since they were young, they had already woken up when she got up.
Si Yan stared at Xi Qing absently for a while. Xi Qing became extremely tense under her gaze.
It's the middle of the night, and the bad female is looking at him like that... What on earth does she want to do?!
Suddenly, Si Yan chuckled out loud.
These two cubs... well, they're a bit naughty, especially Xi Qing, who's prickly like a hedgehog.
But they're quite adorable when they're asleep.
Si Yan's laughter confused Xi Qing.
He continued to feign sleep, not daring to move a muscle.
Si Yan bent down gently and carefully picked Xi Qing up from the ground.
Feeling Si Yan's movements, Xi Qing's heart pounded erratically.
Is she going to throw me away? Does she hate me so much that she has to discard me? Just as I thought... no one wants me, no one likes me. Even my own mother dislikes me.
A desolate sorrow filled Xi Qing's heart.
On the bed, Bei Ji also grew somewhat anxious. The bad female suddenly laughed in the middle of the night and then suddenly picked up Xi Qing.
Could she suddenly go mad again and throw Xi Qing away, or sell him?
Si Yan remained very careful and gentle. Xi Qing felt himself being gently placed down; Si Yan had put him on the bed.
Realizing he was on the bed, Xi Qing was shocked, his mind going blank.
He... he he... She put me on the bed? She didn't throw me away; she put me on the bed??? No, this isn't right! I haven't bathed; I'm covered in mud, all dirty. The bed is so clean, how can I be on it?!
Xi Qing's thoughts twisted into a tangled knot.
Soon after, he felt a wave of warmth and softness. Then he saw the female lie down beside him.
He was lying between Bei Ji and the female.
The bad female actually let him sleep in the bed, and so close to her!
Xi Qing was so shocked he dared not move.
「The next morning.」
Si Yan was the last to wake. When she got up, both cubs were gone.
Those two villainous cubs, they really are quite naughty.
Si Yan told herself to be patient. She searched around and soon found Bei Ji, who looked a bit pale. "Bei Ji, where's Xi Qing?"
Bei Ji looked up, his little face pale. "Third Brother went to bathe in the river."
Si Yan was slightly taken aback.
Last night, Xi Qing had adamantly refused to let her bathe him in warm water. Yet, first thing this morning, he went to bathe in the cold river. She couldn't understand what the cub was thinking.
He really was quite contrary.
Noticing Bei Ji's pallor, Si Yan quickly knelt and asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Mother…" Bei Ji's eyes drooped slightly.
"Bei Ji, what's wrong?" Si Yan grew anxious. "Don't scare your mother."
Bei Ji shook his head, looking both pitiful and adorable. "Mother, I'm fine. My stomach just hurts."
"Why does your stomach hurt?" Si Yan asked urgently. "Tell me exactly how it hurts."
Bei Ji felt miserable. After Si Yan pestered him for a while, he said, "Mother, I think I'm going to die. After I die, will you forget Bei Ji?"
This truly terrified Si Yan. "You can't say such things! Why would you say that?!"
After hesitating for a while, Bei Ji finally made up his mind. He took Si Yan's hand. "Mother, come with me."
He led Si Yan to where he had just relieved himself. Si Yan crouched down doubtfully to look at his excrement.
Bei Ji watched Si Yan inspect his waste. He hadn't expected this female to be so unfazed by his excrement, not even finding it disgusting.
The bad female had changed; she truly had. He wondered if Xi Qing would notice her change. If he could experience a mother's warmth in his lifetime, he would be content.
"Mother, my poop... it has worms in it…" Bei Ji said, his voice filled with distress. "I have worms. I'm going to die."
Si Yan suddenly understood. Since the Beastmen here consumed raw meat and drank raw water, parasitic infections were likely common.
Si Yan took his hand. "Don't be afraid, let's go find the Witch Doctor."
Bei Ji shook his head. "It's no use going to the Witch Doctor. Male Beastmen who reach Green Crystal strength aren't afraid of worm sickness. But if they get it too early, before becoming Green Crystal Beastmen, they often die, especially cubs."
This was common knowledge on the Beast World continent.
Bei Ji said sadly, "Mother, I really think I'm going to die."
Just then, Xi Qing returned from his bath. He was clean, his hair falling to cover half his face, giving him a cool, aloof appearance.
Seeing the distressed Bei Ji, Xi Qing rushed over, pushed Bei Ji behind him, and roared angrily at Si Yan, "You're bullying Bei Ji again! I won't let you, bad female!"
Bei Ji tugged on Xi Qing's arm. "Third Brother, Mother didn't bully me. It's me... I have the worm sickness."
Xi Qing was startled. "Don't scare me! I'll take you to the Witch Doctor right now!"
Si Yan thought for a moment. "I'll go with you."
Xi Qing still didn't trust Si Yan and shot her a cold look.
Si Yan led Xi Qing and Bei Ji towards the center of the Yanxiang Tribe. Many Beastmen turned to look at the family of three as they passed.
"Who is that female? She smells like Si Yan."
"She cleaned herself up."
"Her skin looks a bit whiter, but she's still very thin. She looks so frail, as if she could die at any moment. And she's still very ugly."
Despite her ugliness, there were only seventeen females in the entire tribe. Previously, no one had wanted to approach Si Yan. This was because she had a cold-blooded serpent Beastman for a mate, and she herself was incredibly dirty, ugly, and ill-tempered.
Now that she had cleaned herself up, despite still being ugly, she held a certain appeal.
Some males felt their hearts stir, eager to act.
Si Yan and the two cubs went to see the Yanxiang Tribe's Witch Doctor.
The Yanxiang Tribe's Witch Doctor was an elderly female named Mei Wen, a deer Beastwoman who had come from outside the tribe.
When Mei Wen saw Si Yan's family approach, she put down the mortar and pestle she was using for her herbs and asked, "What is it?"
Si Yan said, "Witch Doctor, my cub has the worm sickness. We've come to ask for medicine."
Mei Wen looked at Si Yan and her cubs. Beastmen recognized each other by scent, so Mei Wen already knew it was Si Yan.
She said regretfully, "Go back. The worm sickness... I can't treat that."
Si Yan pleaded urgently, "Isn't there anything you can do? As long as you can cure my child, beast hides are not a problem."
Xi Qing and Bei Ji looked up at her. Their family only had two beast hides, the ones they got from selling Dongchi and Nan Mo. And she said beast hides weren't a problem?