「An hour later.」
Tu Xiao'an heard footsteps outside. Soon, he saw two familiar figures. His sister, Tu Xiaoyue, was helping their mother walk in through the main gate. Their mom's face was a sickly, deathly pale.
"Mom, the doctor said you're suffering from exhaustion because you haven't been resting. You just finished an IV drip, so you are absolutely not allowed to do anything today. Just lie in bed and rest!"
Once inside, Tu Xiaoyue looked at her sickly mother, her heart aching.
"I'm fine. It's already noon. I'll make you lunch!"
Tu Xiaoyue's brows knitted. She looked at Wen Qiu and said, "Mom, your only job for the next few days is to rest. I'm not working right now anyway, so I can just focus on taking care of you at home!"
"Oh, you. I already said I'm fine, there's no need to 'take care' of me. You just had to quit your job the other day. What a waste!"
Tu Xiaoyue just smiled and helped her mother to her bed. "Mom, please don't worry. Once you're feeling better, I'll just go find another job."
As she said this, Tu Xiaoyue left the room. But the smile on her face was replaced by worry.
'It's not that I don't want to work. But without a job, how will I make money to support the family?'
'Mom isn't well, and doctor's visits cost money.'
'My little brother is gone. Now it's up to me to hold this family together.'
Tu Xiaoyue let out a soft sigh and went to the kitchen to prepare lunch.
From a corner, a small, silver-white snake with glimmering eyes watched. 'So that's it. Sis took Mom to the doctor!'
Tu Xiao'an's heart trembled. His mother's coughing fits from last night echoed in his ears, and he recalled the weary look on her face just moments ago. His heart felt as if it were being squeezed by a pair of Formless hands. The pain was so intense it was hard to breathe.
'I'm her son. I knew she wasn't well, but I couldn't do a single thing to help.'
'And her falling ill this time... isn't it because she had to bury her own child? I'm the one to blame.'
'I never should have been so reckless, trying to catch that rumored Vampire Snake. I threw my own life away.'
'But alas, there are no second chances in this world.'
Watching his sister get ready to cook in the kitchen, Tu Xiao'an quietly slithered toward their mother's room.
His mother, Wen Qiu, was lying on the bed with her eyes closed. Sunlight streamed through the window, landing softly on her gray-white hair and making her look exceptionally old. The wrinkles on her forehead were a testament to the many years of hardship she had endured.
'Mom, you have to take care of yourself. Your son has been unfilial; I can't be by your side to look after you. Please, take care of your health. One day, I'll return to your side, out in the open, and take good care of you!'
Having quietly slithered into the room, Tu Xiao'an found something to hide behind and made a silent vow.
'Right now, I just want to stay by my mother's side and protect her. Even if there's nothing I can do, as long as she's okay, that's all that matters to me.'
'No, that's not right. It's not that I can't do anything. I already have a plan.'
For some reason, just being in his mother's room made Tu Xiao'an feel incredibly at ease. It was like a boat finding its oars, filling him with a sense of purpose.
'When a House Snake stays, the family prospers. I, this Snake, will be the one to bring this shattered family back to life.'
Half an hour later, Tu Xiaoyue came in with a tray of food. She found her mother sleeping soundly and couldn't bear to wake her.
'I'll just let Mom sleep for a few hours. She hasn't had a single good night's sleep since my little brother passed away.'
Tu Xiaoyue sighed and muttered to herself. Just as she was about to take the food back out, she caught sight of a thin tail in her peripheral vision.
She shifted her position to get a better look. A small, entirely silver-white snake was coiled on the floor. It was strikingly beautiful.
'A House Snake.'
Tu Xiaoyue nearly cried out in alarm. She quickly clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide as she stared in a daze.
'This is the second time I've seen this beautiful little snake. First in the bathroom last night, and now in Mom's room.'
'Could it really be a House Snake? Is it silently watching over our family, like an unsung hero?'
'Only someone born and raised in Bai Town would have such a ridiculous thought. Anyone else would hurry to get rid of a snake if they found one in their room.'
Tu Xiao'an remained perfectly still, his heart feeling incredibly full. But then, his gaze met a pair of eyes, and he froze on the spot.
'Crap, my sister found me again!'
'Run!'
Feeling a pang of guilt, Tu Xiao'an shot off like a lightning bolt. He slithered away like a thief with a guilty conscience and vanished in a flash.
'It ran away again?' Tu Xiaoyue was at a loss for words. 'What a timid little House Snake. Why does it always run away when it sees me?' She found its reaction surprisingly amusing.
Suddenly, a question popped into her head. 'Why was the snake in Mom's room? What was it trying to do?'
'Mom said House Snakes don't harm people, and that if you see one, you should try not to disturb it.'
'If you startle it and it runs away, it brings misfortune to the family.'
'Oh well. I'll just pretend I didn't see it.'
Having fled in a panic, Tu Xiao'an didn't see his sister follow him out. A moment later, she left their mother's room and returned to her own, though he didn't know what for.
Driven by curiosity, Tu Xiao'an secretly slithered up to his sister's door. It wasn't shut, just pushed to.
He saw Tu Xiaoyue sitting on the edge of her bed, flipping through her wallet. A faint worry creased her brow as she muttered to herself, "It's all gone. I've spent almost all our money recently. Mom still has medical bills, and we need money for daily expenses, too."
"What am I going to do?"
Tu Xiaoyue was deeply troubled. She was desperate to get back to work, but she couldn't bear the thought of leaving her mother home alone.
After putting her wallet down, Tu Xiaoyue picked up a photo frame. In the photo was a handsome, smiling young man holding a basketball, his grin full of sunshine and confidence.
"Little brother, I miss you."
Tu Xiaoyue stared intently at the photo. As she looked, her expression turned into a kind of angry reproach. "How could you be so cruel? How could you just leave Mom for me to take care of all by myself? Little brother, you're so selfish."
As she spoke, a single tear traced a path down her lovely face, a truly heart-wrenching sight.
'Sis, I'm so sorry.'
Behind the door, the little snake had this one thought before quietly slithering away. Seeing his sister like that made Tu Xiao'an's heart ache. He slithered into the backyard. There was no time for sorrow; he had to start thinking.
'The family's financial situation is terrible. We need money. It's obvious my sister has no savings left, and she can't even go back to work.'
'The biggest problem we're facing is money.'
'Even as a snake, I have to shoulder this family's burden.'
He shot off toward the old forest on the mountain behind their house. In his previous life, he had been a Snake Catcher, making a living off snakes.
Now it was even more direct. He had become a snake himself, and he was still planning to use snakes to support his family.