Chapter 4 — Little Snake Finds His Family

The mother's tail immediately swung vigorously, stirring up the water in the entire cave, causing the night pearls to roll all over the ground and clang against each other.

"So good! I like it! Ngan Triet, did you hear that? My sister said she liked it!"

Ngan Triet sucked in the seaweed and vaguely said "yes".

"Mom, go prepare a nest for me! Spread it right next to me! At night, I'll tell you stories! Tell stories about when you were little!"

“When I was little…”

"That's right, that's right! You were so cute when you were little! Famous throughout this sea! All the fish said..."

“Eh? Why don't you remember…”

Mom shook her head.

"It's okay! Anyway, it's extremely cute! Please wait!"

She rushed out again. The cave became quiet again. Ngan Triet slowly chewed the seaweed, swallowed it, then looked at me.

“You said it just now.”

He opened his mouth.

“Your biological mother is a snake?”

I nodded.

“She hatched soot from an egg?”

I nodded again. Ngan Triet was silent for a moment.

“So did she ever say where your egg came from?”

I think.

“It seems... she found it on the riverbank.”

Ngan Triet was silent again. Then he said:

“…So this time maybe mom really didn't pick it up by mistake.”

He turned around and swam back to his nest.

“That's right.”

He didn't turn around and speak.

"If mom said those two crabs are your snacks, then just eat them. Mom watching you eat what she found will be more fun than eating it yourself."

I lowered my head to look at the two crabs. They opened their dead fish's eyes and lay motionless on a pile of seaweed. I hesitated for a moment. Then open your mouth and take one in your mouth. Salty. But very fresh. Also quite delicious. I munched on crabs and curled up on the soft bundle of seaweed that my mother spread out. The night pearls on the top of the cave sparkle like stars. The sea outside flows quietly. Occasionally, a school of fish swims past the cave entrance, carrying a string of small bubbles. I remember two months ago, I was still chasing rabbits in the swamp. Then remember the cliff. Remember the feeling of suffocation when seawater poured into your mouth. Then I remembered that giant silver-white dragon head. Remember when she called me "child". Remember what she said:

“I've been looking for you for so many years.”

I lowered my head to look at the scale with spiral patterns below my left eye. …Stop. Don't think about it for now. I yawned, pulled the remaining crab over, and gnawed each piece cleanly. Then curl up into a circle of mosquito coils, lie in a soft bed of seaweed, and slowly close your eyes in the light of the night pearl. Outside, a mother's voice is heard calling from afar:

"Baby! Mommy is home! Mommy found a glowing sea snail for you! It's so beautiful in the nest at night..."

I don't open my eyes. The corners of the mouth curl up slightly. I lived in the swamp for sixteen years. No one has ever spread a nest for me. No one has ever found snacks for us. No one has ever... happily called me "son" like that. I buried my head in seaweed. Cool sea water. Seaweed is both soft and warm. I whispered in my heart:

"Okay, just do it for a few days and then figure it out."

5 I, a snake... No, a "dragon"... After living in the dragon's nest for the seventh day, I finally understood three things. The first thing is, my mother really considers me her biological child. Mother's body is so big, but every day she brings us small shrimps and crabs that we can eat. I don't know how much she has to squint to find fish so small that she can almost not see them. Sure certainly very difficult. I said:

“Mom, I can't eat anymore, you should eat.”

Mom looked at me while gnawing on the fish, her eyes curved into two crescent moons, her mouth vaguely saying:

"I'll just nibble on the tip of the tail. I'll save the fish belly for you. Tomorrow, warm it up and eat again."

I curled up in the seaweed next to her, watching her hold a fish bigger than her head, gnawing until her face was full of fish crumbs. An unspeakable feeling suddenly arose in my heart. I grew up in the swamp for sixteen years, and have always found my own food. No one has ever proactively left the best part of food for us. Unable to hunt for food, I can only eat some leftovers. The second thing is that big brother Ngan Triet is really very rude. He was born more than a hundred years before me. A dragon over a hundred years old is still just a teenager. This "young old dragon" makes fun of me every chance he gets. Seeing me eating a crab, biting the shell and making a cracking sound, he slowly swam by and said:

"Dear sister, when you eat and drink, you have to pay attention to how you look. When you eat like that, it looks like you're chewing on a rock."

Let's try to learn how to swim. Let's roll at the cave entrance and try it once. As soon as his tail swung, his whole body rotated seven or eight times in place, then stabbed his head straight into a pile of night pearls on the ground, sending three balls rolling deep into the cave. Mom hugged me and kept saying:

"Child! Are you okay? It's all because I didn't teach you carefully! Come on, I'll take you swimming!"

Ngan Triet stood next to him, chewing seaweed, and finally couldn't help but burst out laughing. When he smiles, he looks quite beautiful. The two small tips on the dragon's horn glow slightly. The third thing, and the most important thing... The spiral-patterned scale below my left eye was actually not scratched by a stray cat. Friday night, Mom went out to patrol the beach. She said there was a rock shark that didn't know the rules and was causing trouble on the coral reef, and she had to "talk sense" to it. Ngan Triet curled up in his bed, not knowing what he was doing. There's only one snake left in the cave, me... That's not right, a dragon. I swam to the big stone again and carefully observed the paintings. Besides the first six pictures there are many others. As time goes on, it becomes more and more blurred, as if it has been eroded by sea water over many years. Seventh picture: A giant silver-white dragon, with a small snake wrapped around its body. The dragon lowered his head to look at the little snake, his eyes filled with light. Eighth picture: A group of people whose faces cannot be seen clearly surround the dragon. The dragon pushed the little snake forward, while he turned around to meet the enemy. Ninth picture: The dragon disappears. The small snake curled up in a dark place, next to a large turtle. Big turtle. I remember the old turtle star who taught me how to appraise treasures. Before, he always said:

“Little Black Dragon, you have a very indescribable smell on your body.”

At that time I thought he was talking about the fishy smell of mud in the swamp. Now that I think about it, that old turtle lived at the bottom of the sea for more than a thousand years. What have you never seen before? While thinking, the water at the cave entrance suddenly shook strongly. Mom returned. When she swam in, her whole body carried a mixed smell of sea salt and anger, constantly scolding in her mouth:

"That tattered shark! What good is bullying a clownfish? If you have the guts, then target me!"

Then as soon as she raised her head and saw me curled up in the nest, her anger immediately disappeared. The familiar soft light shined in his eyes again.

“Con! Still Haven't you slept yet?"

She swam forward, the giant dragon head approached me, the tip of her nose gently rubbed against my body. Every time she rubbed me, she was extremely careful, afraid that using too much force would crush me.

“I brought you something.”