Meng Xiaoni busied herself downstairs for a long time. When she saw that the customers were almost done eating, she ate something in a hurry before bringing a bowl of hot pot and a plate of watermelon upstairs.
Guifeng likes hot pot and fruit very much.
She opened the door, saw the scene inside, and froze.
The box beside the table had been torn apart, and packing peanuts were scattered all over the ground. In the centre of the mess was the pink wooden rocking horse. Guifeng’s claws grasped the pole, and he was looking at her, his head tilted to the side.
With that slight movement, the wooden rocking horse started to rock, causing Guifeng to sway back and forth.
A pink wooden horse and a pinkish peach-toned ruby parrot; a brand-new rocking chair and a feathery little bird.
The feathers trembled lightly, exquisite and delicate.
There’s nothing in the world that can be cuter and lovelier than this.
Meng Xiaoni’s heart felt like it had been shot by an angel’s arrow, and she felt a scream of delight about to burst forth.
But she did not let it out.
Because even though she was the one who’d bought it, there was almost a 100% chance that the “very old” and “male” Guifeng, would be not happy to receive a toy like this!
Meng Xiaoni stepped forward; relaxing her tone, she asked, “How could you just open my package as you like?”
Guifeng, with a few skilful moves, swayed the rocking chair as he stared at Meng Xiaoni. “I can read.”
Meng Xiaoni looked at Guifeng in shock.
Guifeng flew off the rocking chair and took light little steps over to the shipment details list that was on the side of the box. “Look at what’s written here.”
He spoke in a light tone, but to Meng Xiaoni’s ears, it sounded full of threat and warning.
Meng Xiaoni quickly put the food on the table; she swiftly picked up the shipment details list, the corner of which had been thoroughly chewed. Her face bore an expression of extreme calm, “Nothing. There’s nothing much to see.”
Guifing lifted his head to look at Meng Xiaoni and said in a low voice, “Parrot toy—pink wooden rocking horse.”
Meng Xiaoni crumpled the paper into a ball guiltily. “You must have read it wrongly.”
Guifeng continued, “A 5-star review with photos gives you a 5-yuan refund.”
Meng Xiaoni, “……”
Well alright; she couldn’t deny that this parrot before her was really literate.
How in the world could there be such a thing as a literate parrot?
Meng Xiaoni wanted to cry; at this moment, she felt like giving the seller a bad review. Why did they need to state the contents of the box so clearly on the outside?
She didn’t consider that no normal parrot in the world could read, let alone that it was a requirement of courier companies for sellers to display the contents of packages clearly.
Guifeng darted under the table; soon, his voice travelled out, “Gold Medal birdcage with built-in swing.”
Meng Xiaoni felt that this topic shouldn’t continue any further; she poked her head under the table, “Do you want to come out to eat first?”
It would be hard to find a more unnatural way to change the topic than this.
As a “parrot”, Guifeng unexpectedly let out a long sigh. “Haaah.”
“Miniature trolley, rattle ball…”
Guifeng looked at Meng Xiaoni. “Human, you’re really beyond my imagination.”
Meng Xiaoni returned Guifeng’s steady gaze. “Guifeng, you’re also really beyond my imagination.”
Guifeng moved away to the side.
Since everything has been discovered, Meng Xiaoni had nothing more to say.
She dragged out all the boxes from under the table, took the utility knife on the table and started cutting them open. “Well, I don’t know what you like. These are all toys that other parrot owners buy for their parrots.”
Only then did Guifeng reappear from under the table; he said emphatically, “I am a phoenix.”
Meng Xiaoni played along, “I’ve never kept a phoenix. Besides, do phoenixes not play with toys in their childhood?”
Guifeng, “How can I remember things from thousands of years ago?”
Meng Xiaoni took out the contents of the boxes one by one and replied, “Maybe the older you get, the more you’ll grow to like children’s toys?”
Guifeng, “……” What kind of strange logic is that?
Meng Xiaoni looked at all the cute and exquisite little toys and couldn’t bear to return them. “I just want to be a good owner to you, to let your days be a littler happier, and not boring.”
The past few days have been too action-packed for Guifeng—as one who was almost sent to a zoo or breeding centre, he was beginning to form doubts about the definition of the word “boring”.
Meng Xiaoni changed the subject again, “You’d better eat first, the soup is getting cold. The oil will solidify.”
After giving it some thought, she decided to keep all the purchases.
When the staff from the Forestry Bureau came in the afternoon, she could show the items to them, as proof of her sincerity in keeping the little parrot.
But Guifeng doesn’t like them…
What exactly would Guifeng like?
As Meng Xiaoni sorted through the purchases, she thought hard about the preferences that an intelligent parrot might have.
Perhaps, Guifeng is really a phoenix?
Meng Xiaoni had already seen many ghosts in her life; the possibility that she’d now picked up a phoenix didn’t really seem too out of the ordinary.
A phoenix that’d taken the form of a parrot… it’s too cute.
But why did he turn from a phoenix into a parrot?
The thoughts drifted from “not returning the goods” to “parrot” to “phoenix”, and gradually drifted further and further away.
Guifeng flew up to the table and looked at the bowl of hot pot that was full of ingredients. Everything inside had been cut into small pieces, as was the plate of watermelon cubes next to it. It seemed to have been done to make it easier for him to eat.
He turned his head to look at Meng Xiaoni.
Meng Xiaoni was sitting on the floor, sorting through her purchases without saying a word. Her hair was tied up in a casual ponytail; at the moment, there wasn’t much expression on her face—her eyes were downcast, and the corners of her lips were entirely relaxed.
This ordinary-looking girl, who bore extraordinary abilities, was expressing goodwill in her own way—even to a powerless little parrot that could be grasped with one hand.
Even though the way she expressed her goodwill was problematic, and had been utterly dismissed, she still kept being kind.
Guifeng retracted his gaze and started to eat.
With one person sorting things out and a bird eating, the room became extremely quiet. The faint sounds of activity that drifted up from downstairs, as well as the sounds generated by Meng Xiaoni packing and Guifeng eating, seemed to amplify the silence infinitely.
After a while, Guifeng spoke, “Keep them.”
Meng Xiaoni looked blankly at Guifeng. “Hmm?”
Guifeng lifted his head and reiterated, “It’s okay to keep those things. Maybe you might want to have a new bird someday.”
Meng Xiaoni, who’d already decided to keep the purchases, blinked. “Mm.”
She looked at Guifeng’s serious expression as he tried to comfort her, his beak stained with soup, and laughed. “It’s enough to just raise you. After all, you are one-of-a-kind.”
Guifeng stared at Meng Xiaoni for a moment, then continued to eat.
He has always been one-of-a-kind.
After the Dragon and Phoenix Wars, he’s the only phoenix left in this world.
Meng Xiaoni had been “recharged” by Guifeng’s cuteness; after packing everything away, she went back downstairs in a happy mood to help out.
Of course, there wasn’t much for her to help with in the afternoon.
Father Meng and Mother Meng took advantage of the lull period to share with Meng Xiaoni some of their experiences in running the eatery. This included where to source for fresh ingredients, which suppliers were cheaper, and even some gossip about their regulars.
Meng Xiaoni listened attentively and occasionally asked a few questions.
When there were no more customers in the store, the family of three sat at a table and chatted.
“Excuse me.”
The Meng family looked towards the entrance.
Presently, a man and a woman were standing at the door, both with smiles on their faces. They looked to be in their thirties; judging by their appearance and posture, they didn’t seem to be regulars of the eatery.
The man spoke first, “Hello, we are from the Forestry Bureau. Is this Miss Meng? We would like to take a look at the Bourke’s parrot.”
He looked at Meng Xiaoni as he asked.
All three of the Meng family stood up immediately.
Meng Xiaoni studied the pair and nodded, “Mm, I am Meng Xiaoni. Just call me Xiao Meng. These are my parents.”
Mother Meng smiled, “I’ll get some tea for you both, please, sit and talk.”
Father Meng also hurriedly stepped forward to welcome them in.
Father Meng and Mother Meng were too polite; as two Forestry Bureau staff walked in, they hurriedly declined with a smile, “Thank you, thank you, you’re too kind. We’ll just be taking a look at the parrot, we won’t stay long.”
Both parties exchanged some pleasantries; in the end, the staff could not win against Mother Meng’s hospitality, and they sat down, each holding a cup of tea.
Meng Xiaoni ran upstairs to fetch Guifeng from her room.
Just then, Guifeng was still eating.
When he saw Meng Xiaoni burst in, he stretched his wings and tilted his head. “They’re here?”
Meng Xiaoni nodded lightly and said in a low voice, “Yes. If you want to stay, just say a few words of refusal. Don’t be too clever, if you’re too clever you might also be taken away.”
Guifeng flew to Meng Xiaoni’s head and said arrogantly, “There is no one who can simply take me away as they wish.”
After those words, both girl and bird automatically recalled the day when he’d been taken away by the police—they both decided to avoid bringing it up.
Meng Xiaoni brought Guifeng downstairs.
As soon as the two staff downstairs saw Guifeng, they immediately got up from their seats, their eyes shining.
“So, this is Guifeng?”
“How beautiful!”
Guifeng was indeed extremely beautiful—soft pink feathers with not a single blemish, and a pair of lovely, round, red eyes. And because of his penchant for cleanliness, his beak and claws were all pristine.
Glossy and beautiful.
He really the very definition of a ‘beautiful parrot’.
One of the staff stepped forward, and attempted in a gentle voice, “Hello, Guifeng.”
Guifeng looked back, “Hello.”
This childish and crisp voice made both the staff even more excited. They edged forward, completely surrounding Meng Xiaoni, who’s head Guifeng was resting on.
“How old is Guifeng?”
“What does Guifeng usually eat? Its feathers are so beautifully groomed. I hope it’s not a picky eater.”
“Ah, I brought some millet with me.”
One of the staff took out a small bag of millet, poured some on his palm, and asked enthusiastically, “Guifeng, do you eat millet1?”
Meng Xiaoni and Guifeng both looked at the staff’s outstretched palm.
It was indeed millet, and unhulled millet at that.
This would be very suitable for a parrot, but definitely not suitable for Guifeng.
Meng Xiaoni wanted to say something, but then stopped.
Guifeng looked at the little pile of millet, “You’d better keep that for yourselves. Eat more.”
At this, both the staff started laughing heartily.
Meng Xiaoni swore that she could hear the implied meaning of Guifeng’s words, and it definitely wasn’t the literal meaning that the staff had understood.
Still…
The two staff who’d unknowingly underestimated Guifeng sighed, “It really is such a cute parrot.”
Meng Xiaoni, “……”
Well, probably.
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Footnotes:
1 Millet: 小米 xiaomi; The only food mentioned this chapter! The name “millet” refers to several different but related small-seeded grasses. Unhulled millet has a very tough shell and is typically sold as birdseed. Hulled millet is a staple in a third of the world, from Africa to Asia to Eastern Europe. Though technically a seed, millet functions like a whole grain, and you can cook with it like you would other whole grains, such as rice or quinoa. Naturally gluten-free, millet flour has also become increasingly popular as a flour substitute in gluten-free products. Millet is extremely popular in China, where it is eaten as a staple as well as made into snacks (pictured on right).