Chapter 13
Just now, not knowing how to comfort Yan Yan, Si Jingce had resorted to kissing the little bird. Who could’ve guessed that would lead to Yan Yan making a new request?
He hesitated as he looked down at the plump little fluffball in his palm. The fluffy pearl bird had already closed his eyes and was sweetly tilting his head, asking for another kiss.
Si Jingce was silent for a moment, then leaned down again and kissed the other side of the little bird’s blushing cheek.
Yan Yan’s heart suddenly began beating rapidly.
His human was really kissing him!
He quickly grabbed Si Jingce’s finger and positioned it properly, then rubbed his head against it.
Top of the head too!
With complicated feelings, Si Jingce kissed him again.
Heehee—
The little bird couldn’t help but giggle.
Even though his last owner had never kissed him, he’d still seen how normal humans and pets interacted!
A human who didn’t kiss their pet wasn’t a good owner!
Yan Yan pointed here and there, completely unreserved.
Si Jingce: …
He had no choice but to kiss the bird thoroughly. By the time his lips and mouth were full of grassy, feathery bird scent, the pearl bird in his palm finally looked barely satisfied.
Coaxing a bird really took a lot of effort.
Si Jingce let out a breath of relief.
He flicked the little bird’s now ruffled feathers. “So, can we talk now?”
Yan Yan tucked his wings in uncomfortably.
Crap, he was about to get scolded.
Even though Si Jingce had said the trip to the flower-and-bird market was just for fun, everything about today made it look like he wanted to bring another bird home.
And he… had messed up those plans.
He quickly shut his eyes and braced for a scolding.
But Si Jingce just poked his head. “Sometimes I really don’t know what’s going on in your little brain.”
“You crashed into the bag so hard. Does it still hurt?”
Weren’t we going to talk about consequences…?
Yan Yan let out a soft “chirp” and stepped forward.
He lifted his wing. Then lifted his leg.
“Chirp chirp!”
It’s all better now!
“You can’t do that again.” Si Jingce pressed his lips together and said seriously, “If you’re unhappy about something, express it in a gentler way instead of randomly slamming into the backpack or wall.”
“There’s a major communication gap between us because of the language barrier. To fix that, sometimes you can use the pet communicator.”
He paused slightly. “Or just… touch me more.”
“Chirp?”
Yan Yan tilted his head, pressing it against Si Jingce’s palm.
Like this?
Si Jingce said, “Any kind of touch is okay, but you have to touch skin—preferably not through clothes.”
Yan Yan: …
Maybe it was that weird white pearl bird’s influence, but suddenly all kinds of indecent images popped into his head.
Si Jingce froze. “…What are you thinking?”
Yan Yan jumped, “Chirp chirp chirp!”
Nothing!!
He was terrified—thought for a second that Si Jingce had developed telepathy.
Si Jingce went quiet.
“Of course, I was also wrong.” He awkwardly steered the topic back. “I’m not a very good caretaker. I’ve just been relying on what I know about other pearl birds to guess how to take care of you. I forgot every bird is different.”
“I assumed you’d want a companion, so I brought you to the market without thinking.”
And let him get picked on by other birds.
Si Jingce asked, “So let me ask now—do you want another pearl bird to keep you company?”
Yan Yan shook his head immediately.
Even though, sure, pearl birds did huddle together in the winter to stay warm…
He was selfish.
He didn’t want another bird stealing even a little of his human’s attention.
Si Jingce, for once, smiled. Looking at the tan pearl bird, he reached out and gently rubbed his cheeks.
The internet still had plenty to say about people only keeping one pearl bird. But as long as Yan Yan didn’t want another, Si Jingce could ignore them all.
“So to apologize,” he placed Yan Yan down and prepared to fulfill his promise, “you can ask me for anything right now.”
Yan Yan looked at him, cautiously stretched out one leg.
Since he said so…
Birdie had a lot of requests.
He glanced at the small snack trolley by the sofa.
It was Si Jingce’s personal stash, full of drinks and chips…
“No.” The moment he realized what Yan Yan was thinking, Si Jingce rejected him immediately. “You’re not allowed to eat human food.”
“Anything except junk food, I’ll agree to.”
Yan Yan deflated.
Just now he’d said anything.
Reluctantly, he withdrew his gaze, flew over to the pet communicator, and found the button for “want.”
He tried to bite the button, but it wouldn’t budge. So he leaned his body forward and pushed it instead.
Pushing it with a series of “click-clicks,” he ran a few steps ahead.
“Chirp!”
Come on!
He led Si Jingce to the study first.
It was now evening, and the golden sunset filtered through the window, tinting the whole study orange-red.
This was where Si Jingce worked. But for a while now, the man hadn’t let him in.
Yan Yan looked up at the figurine display cabinet he loved so much and tapped the button.
“Want!”
“Chirp chirp chirp!”
I want access to my study privileges again!
Not a big deal. Si Jingce nodded. “Alright.”
Next, Yan Yan pushed the button toward Si Jingce’s bedroom.
He’d barged in here after getting scared by a horror game, and now he had a permanent place here.
There was a lovely birdcage on the windowsill, bathed in sunlight daily.
Warm as it was, it still didn’t compare to one particular place.
Si Jingce watched as the bird flew to the nightstand, unsure of his intentions.
Then he saw Yan Yan take one step. Look at him.
Another step. Look again.
When he didn’t react, Yan Yan glided straight into the soft comforter.
Wahoo! Birdie’s here!
The bed was huge, but the bird was tiny. Once he jumped in, he vanished inside, leaving only a small lump under the covers wiggling around.
After rolling around, he popped his head out. “Chirp…”
I want to sleep on this big, comfy bed too.
For Yan Yan, this bed was the equivalent of waking up on a 200-square-meter mattress every morning.
Si Jingce frowned and didn’t respond right away.
The internet wasn’t short on stories of people letting their birds sleep beside them—only to roll over and crush them in their sleep.
He opened his mouth to reject him but then saw the little bird peeking out from the blanket, staring at him pitifully.
Yan Yan: qvq.
Really can’t?
The refusal made it halfway before being swallowed. Si Jingce reluctantly said, “Fine, you can sleep on the big bed too.”
He gestured beside his pillow. “But only this spot.”
Even a small area like that was huge for a pearl bird.
Yan Yan cheered, “Chirp!”
Yay!
Then he flopped around the bed without restraint.
But something was missing.
Si Jingce stared for a moment before walking to the closet and pulling out a coral fleece blanket.
The bed was nice, but it still wasn’t warm enough for Yan Yan. He’d recently seen a tutorial on making a hamster nest. Time to put it to use.
Frowning, he reread the tutorial, then awkwardly found the necessary tools.
When he came back, Yan Yan had taken over the fleece and had flattened himself out like a pancake.
“Off for a bit.” Si Jingce moved him onto the bed. “I need to make something.”
The little bird tilted his head, then watched as the man began cutting the perfectly good fleece into an uneven square.
Yan Yan: ?!
Si Jingce picked up the fabric piece and clicked his tongue before setting it down.
More cutting. Another even uglier piece.
He gave up and started drawing lines and cutting properly.
Next step: threading the pieces together.
Si Jingce picked up a needle and thread.
Threading was hard for him. He squinted, trying to poke the thread through the tiny eye, but it kept slipping out.
Even after finally getting it in, one slip of the hand and it was out again.
Yan Yan watched like a supervisor, yawning.
After a while, the thread frayed. Si Jingce clipped the end with scissors and tried again.
But the more he cut, the shorter the thread got. Bits of it scattered all over the bed.
Seeing this last bit almost gone, Si Jingce set it down and looked at Yan Yan.
Yan Yan had been watching him the whole time.
“This thread’s bad. It keeps fraying.” Si Jingce tried to play it off. “Give me ten more minutes. I’ll get it in.”
Yan Yan: …
Give him ten more minutes, and this chick would be too sleepy to function.
Lcberg was notorious for his poor eyesight—this really was tough for him.
Yan Yan couldn’t take it anymore. He hopped over, grabbed the thread in his beak.
He aimed it carefully at the needle’s eye, then hopped to the other side and pulled it through.
“Chirp chirp!” The little bird puffed his chest proudly.
Threaded!
Si Jingce: “…Amazing.”
Following the tutorial step-by-step, Si Jingce stitched the pieces together. The makeshift little nest was finally done.
The stitches were messy, but it’d do for now. He’d order a proper one later.
He placed the nest beside his pillow. The more he looked, the more pleased he felt.
“Want to try it?”
Hearing that, Yan Yan darted inside—
Not bad at all.
Coral fleece was cozy. The outside looked ugly, but the inside was perfect.
He could stay here tonight!
The sky had already darkened. Time to sleep.
As Si Jingce turned to switch off the lights, Yan Yan flew to his hand and closed his eyes, tilting his head.
{Goodnight kiss!}
The sweet voice brushed against Si Jingce’s ear. He turned his head slightly, trying to shake off the ticklish feeling.
“Time for bed.” He kissed Yan Yan’s head. “Goodnight, Yan Yan.”
Heehee! Mission accomplished!
Yan Yan gently pecked Si Jingce’s hand and zipped back to his nest.
Si Jingce smiled and reached to turn off the lights.
Having a little animal by your pillow was a strange but pleasant feeling. When Si Jingce turned over, he could see the little pearl bird quietly resting inside.
He looked away and dimmed his phone brightness to scroll a few videos before sleeping.
Still thinking about the DIY project, he saved a few more tutorials.
Soon his feed was filled with craft videos.
Refresh—suddenly a video analyzing the Journey to the West drama popped up. Si Jingce got pulled in and watched for ten minutes.
Monotonous robotic voiceover aside, the video was unexpectedly interesting.
It reached the part where the Jade Emperor descended to retrieve the Green Ox Demon.
Standing on the clouds, the immortal waved his sleeve: “Ox, come home now.”
The demon knelt in fear, prostrated, and returned to its true form.
Just as Si Jingce finished the clip and was about to put down his phone, he felt something tiny run across the top of his head.
He silently turned on the front camera.
In the camera, Yan Yan was nestled in his hair, illuminated by the faint phone light.
The little bird had his beak open in shock, mind still stuck on the Green Ox Demon turning back into its original form.
It was like a whole new world had opened.
So… animals really could turn into people?!
