Chapter 114: Listen to Mom
As they chatted away, Li Qing Xue had already brought Dragon Brother to the water’s edge.
The river flowed beautifully, splashing water in a way that sounded downright melodious.
“My mom always told me not to play near the water when I was little, but it seems fine now,” Li Qing Xue said, quite pleased with herself.
She handed Dragon Brother a handful of pebbles. “Here, toss these stones away, and while you’re at it, throw away your worries too!”
Dragon Brother chuckled but didn’t refuse, knowing this was Li Qing Xue’s way of trying to cheer him up.
He picked up a few stones and tossed them like skipping rocks.
They skipped across the water’s surface, creating little ripples before sinking to the bottom.
Watching Dragon Brother skip stones was rather entertaining.
Li Qing Xue grabbed a stone and tried her hand as well, but, well… her stone didn’t skip, it just went splat! Straight to the bottom!
Seeing her clumsiness, Dragon Brother couldn’t hold back his laughter.
“What are you laughing at? Next time, I’ll make a ton of ripples!”
With that, she picked up another stone and this time took a deep breath, as if charging up her power.
You could see she was really trying to throw hard.
But alas, with a loud “Plop!” the stone sank!
The surrounding area fell silent for a moment.
Li Qing Xue sneakily glanced at Dragon Brother and found him staring back at her. She immediately puffed up her cheeks and said, “I’ll definitely do better next time!”
Honestly, her stubbornness was kinda cute. It was that very spirit that kept her youthfully vibrant—always pursuing freedom and perfection.
But let’s be real. With the way Li Qing Xue was throwing stones, she’d toss them all and still wouldn’t grasp the art of skipping rocks.
“You’re doing it all wrong. To skip stones, you need to tilt your body sideways, like this,” Dragon Brother explained, demonstrating with his own stone.
“Throw it like this, and make it spin, use some finesse!”
Li Qing Xue watched his moves and tried to mimic him.
But the moment she threw, Dragon Brother’s fur stood on end!
She clearly overshot her strength, leaning too far forward…
In a panic, Dragon Brother jumped forward and grabbed her shoulders, pulling her back.
He definitely remembered Li Qing Xue had just said she couldn’t swim!
This time, he was too hasty and pulled a bit too hard.
He realized only then how light she really was!
By the riverside, Dragon Brother froze for a second before letting out a relieved sigh, panting heavily.
And Li Qing Xue, now totally submissive, was sprawled on him, too scared to move—or maybe just in shock.
After catching his breath, he wasn’t tired, per se, but his heart was racing from the scare!
“Get up! Even if you’re light as a feather, think about the human cushion’s feelings!”
“You’re so clumsy but love to play. If you can’t swim, stay away from the water next time! If I hadn’t acted quickly, I’d probably be lighting incense for you here next year, begging for riches!”
This time, instead of arguing back, Li Qing Xue’s eyes turned slightly red.
“Mama was right; you really shouldn’t play by the river…”
Seeing her like this made Dragon Brother chuckle once more.
Before, Li Qing Xue was vibrant and confident, with a hint of sass.
Now, she resembled a frightened little kitten. Her trembling lashes paired with those slightly teary eyes made her look like a fragile little creature—one gentle poke, and tears could fall at any moment.
With Dragon Brother laughing, Li Qing Xue could feel the rise and fall of his chest beneath her.
“What are you laughing at? I’m about to have a panic attack here, and you’re laughing!” she instinctively pinched him at the waist.
“Ouch! Do you girls all love pinching people?”
Dragon Brother’s teasing made her hold back tears she was about to shed, not even realizing she’d done that.
She huffed and stood up from him. “Who told you to laugh at me?”
Dragon Brother got up too, “Well, I’m your hero!”
Li Qing Xue paused for a moment and then playfully rubbed his waist. “Then I’ll give you a massage.”
“Let’s go.”
They took a few steps, then Li Qing Xue suddenly stopped.
“What now?”
“My little flower basket!” she pointed to a basket by the water, ready to retrieve it.
“Wait! You stay there; I’ll get it.”
“Take your time,” she replied, practically blushing.
Clearly, she was truly scared.
“Alright, let’s go back.”
Once back to their original spot, Dragon Brother grabbed a bottle of drink and munched on some pastries.
He hadn’t had much of an appetite at lunch, but now he was feeling hunger pangs.
After a while, watching Dragon Brother happily munch away, Li Qing Xue helped him peel some fruit. “Thanks!”
“No need to thank me. If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have come to the river, and now you know—some dangers can’t just be shrugged off by guts. Be more careful next time!”
She genuinely wanted to thank him. After all, he was the one who helped her in the end.
But hearing that, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him. “Whatever, just say thanks—I’ll bring you some more tomorrow if you like it.”
She hugged her knees, lost in thoughts, staring blankly at the river.
“Hey, don’t dwell on bad stuff. Aren’t you fine now? You need to eat more; you’re way too light.”
At his words, her fair ears turned crimson.
The fear of almost falling into the river was quickly replaced by the feeling of being a human cushion.
Was that considered a hug?
As she thought this, her breaths quickened, and her cheeks felt increasingly warm. She kept fanning herself with her hands.
“This… this isn’t good.”
“Huh?” Dragon Brother looked at her, puzzled. What part wasn’t good?
“You alright?”
“I—I’m going home.” Li Qing Xue hung her head, her hair cascading down so one couldn’t see her face.
After packing up and leaving the fruit for Dragon Brother, she hurried away.
“Hey, that pink thing….”
Before he could finish, Li Qing Xue’s face turned beet red, biting her lip, half-embarrassed and half-mad. “Y-You saw that? You bad guy!”
And with that, she tugged on her skirt, unceremoniously hurrying off!
Dragon Brother was left holding a pink hair tie, scratching his head in confusion. “If you don’t want it, then don’t! Why am I the bad guy?”
【I’ll just say one word—(Rise!)—I’m totally back on my feet today! Phew~~~】
