In the following days, Shi Jinzhe and Shehe explored the nearby attractions, and one day before Qixi Festival, they went to another city to experience the Snake King Festival.

The quaint old town attracted many tourists from other places who came to broaden their horizons. The snake elements that could be seen everywhere really appealed to Shehe. The noise of people that she usually found noisy now sounded lively to her ears, and it was not unbearable.

The cultural and tourism department is very good at promotion; they arranged a molten iron flower performance on the evening of the first day.

It was a bit humid and hot outside. Sher stood on the edge of the crowd, and Shi Jinzhe used his body to separate her from the crowd, turning slightly to ask, "Can you see clearly? Should we move a little closer?"

"No need, just enjoying the atmosphere." Shekh held a small fan and waved his wrist gently.

A not-too-cool breeze made her hair bounce, and Shi Jinzhe helped her gather her hair a few times, pulling it into a bunch and lifting it up to reveal the back of Sheh's neck.

Shekh turned his neck left and right, looking for a breeze. "You should comb your hair; it'll keep you cool this way."

"Then I'll do a proper one for you." On a whim, Shi Jinzhe stood behind Shehe and began to braid a few strands of hair from both sides.

As the sparkler performance began, Sheikh was completely absorbed in it. His neck relaxed, and his hands, which had been tense as if his head were about to snap, began to sway slightly.

Shi Jin folded his hands and straightened them several times, but within two seconds, Shekh's head began to move back and forth with his strength.

"Take it easy."

"Oh," Shekh replied dismissively, barely lasting three seconds.

"...I'm combing your hair from behind, not playing the flute in front of you, so keep your head still."

"You can hurry up."

"Just a few more seconds, it'll be over soon."

Shi Jin folded the rubber band off his wrist and braided it a few times. With a flick of his fingers, two purple roses suddenly appeared from his fingertips. The dark green stems lost their thorns under his control and were then used as decorations to secure his hair. They were inserted horizontally into his low bun, with buds and stems peeking out from one end.

He said with satisfaction, "My skills are getting better and better."

"Give me your phone so I can take a look." Shekh touched it; it was a little loose, but it felt okay.

Shi Jinzhe opened his phone to take a picture, first taking one for her, and then showing it to Shehe from the front.

Sher stared at herself in the mirror for a long time. She used deep purple roses, one bud and one fully bloomed, as hairpins in her hair. But because the color was close to her black hair, it did not look out of place.

She tilted her head to the side and said, "It's alright, you can kiss me once."

"Okay, thank you for the tip." Shi Jinzhe leaned down and touched her cheek, then used his phone to record a video of iron flower performance, and watched the performance with Shehe.

After watching the iron flower performance, they sampled fish noodles and beef ball soup at a small shop.

Every ten miles has its own dialect. This region is different not only in language, but also in culture, customs and food. Even foods with the same name can be prepared slightly differently in different cities. They tried everything before returning to the hotel.

After washing up, Shi Jinzhe told three bedtime stories and set his alarm for 4 a.m. before turning off the lights.

Shekh asked, "So early?"

She's not very sleepy right now, and feels that getting up at four o'clock is worse than not sleeping at all—it's such an awkward time, and she doesn't want to move.

"The street patrol starts very early. If you get up at seven or eight o'clock and go over there, the activity will be over by then. If you're sleepy, you can come back to sleep."

"Okay." Shekh hugged his pillow, closed his eyes, and tried to sleep.

Five minutes later, her voice came from the bedroom, "Time is running out, I can't sleep."

As soon as she closed her eyes, she wondered if she would see many people parading snakes through the streets tomorrow.

People who come to this Snake King Festival must be unafraid of snakes, right?

Shouldn't she get one too?

But what if attracting snakes also attracts other snakes?

Will we be able to see the statue at the Snake King Temple tomorrow? I heard that the Snake King will be there, and it seems to be a real snake.

It seems that some of the snakes that participate in the parade are released by ignorant humans after the event. What if they get hurt by people?

Unable to contain his curiosity and questions, Shekh was somewhat excited, not sleepy at all, and even felt full of energy.

Shi Jinzhe pulled away the pillow that was in the way and lay down himself. His movements were smooth and practiced. "Shall I tell you another bedtime story?"

"I don't want to hear that anymore, let's do something else."

"There aren't many things you can do late at night. If you put it that way, I'll start thinking in that direction."

“It’s fine to lie in broad daylight.” After Shekh finished speaking, he noticed that the position he was lying in had shifted slightly downwards, the collar of his pajamas had been rubbed up, and the hand that was resting on his waist and hips had also moved downwards.

When she reached for the mole on her back, she ran her fingertip up her spine, found it, and scratched it a few times with her nail, saying, "But I'm afraid you won't have the energy to go out and play tomorrow."

"...Did you do this on purpose?"

What do you mean he's listless? He's clearly worried that Shehe won't get enough rest in this hot weather, since she's out all day and about.

Traveling isn't about completing a task. There's no need to force yourself to go somewhere when you're not well-rested just to keep up with the schedule. Otherwise, you won't enjoy the trip or get any rest.

The attraction is right there; you can't run away if you don't have long legs. He and Shekh have plenty of time. If they don't want to get up early tomorrow, he can do something else. But this festival only comes once a year, and they need to get up at three o'clock. If they can't properly experience the atmosphere here, they'll have to wait until next year.

Between the lips and tongue, he deliberately said, "If you really don't want to sleep with me, then you'll have plenty of energy, a lot."

Shech sensed a certain concern in the two-word pause and decided to refine what he was about to say.

"Actually, I'm concerned about you. I'm worried you won't have a good time."

"My heart is already with you, so don't worry about me. Just turn off your body. Once you're done, I'm done having fun."

“But I feel like it’s you right now…” Shekh thought for a long time before saying two words with his face, which had lost some of its calmness due to emotion.

"Play me."

"...You're making me sound like a jerk."

Shi Jinzhe gave her an alternative explanation: "It's because you can't sleep that I'm trying to please you and make you happy."

"You can stop if you don't want to."

"I think I just installed it."

In the dark room, Sheikh was about to say something more when his lips were suddenly smeared with some slippery liquid, and he forgot the words he had just thought of.

"I forgot my lines."

Shi Jinzhe lowered his head and kissed her again, "Stop thinking about it, let's get down to business."

The night sky was high in the sky, and the alarm clock that had been set off was of no use at all, because sporadic firecrackers started to sound in the middle of the night.

Around 3 a.m., or almost 4 a.m., more red firecrackers started popping and crackling, creating a festive atmosphere.