Pats Little Shrike's Tail - Chapter 129

Chapter 129

The peaceful days were unfolding slowly and openly, like the approaching spring.

The green plants on the balcony, which had withered in winter, were beginning to show new life. The tender green buds became plumper day by day, and soon they would bloom into vibrant flowers, swaying in the spring breeze.

The birds in the community also began to increase, playing and chirping in pairs. Occasionally, when Shan Ling encountered a lonely little bird, she would comfort it and tell it not to worry too much.

If it couldn’t find a suitable mate today, perhaps it would meet one tomorrow.

Love, after all, comes when it comes.

As the temperature gradually rose, more and more birds gathered on the balcony. Every morning, Shan Ling had to prepare more birdseed, otherwise it wouldn’t be enough to feed them all.

At 9 o’clock in the morning, the early birds had already eaten their fill and flown away. The remaining few stood on the anti-theft net outside, basking in the sun and chatting, chirping away, making the area exceptionally lively.

It was amidst this noise that Shen Qingyi woke up.

In the beginning, she would complain, but over time she stopped saying anything. Thanks to these noisy little creatures, however, Shen Qingyi’s body clock had greatly improved.

Before, on days when she wasn’t working, she would often sleep until the afternoon and then not go to bed until three or four in the morning.

Now, because of this biological alarm clock, Shen Qingyi never overslept.

The weather these days was excellent. Shen Qingyi opened the study window, enjoying the warm breeze blowing into the room, then turned to look at the Nüshu book spread out on her workbench.

The previously damaged book had now been taken apart by Shen Qingyi. The inner pages were too brittle, so Shen Qingyi and Professor Hu had agreed to preserve the essential pages and use other methods to replace the rest. This was a common method for repairing books, as it was too difficult to perfectly preserve a book that was hundreds of years old.

Professor Hu had also contacted several restoration experts, all of whom agreed with Shen Qingyi’s plan and looked forward to her final result.

When the wind blew into the room, it lifted the pages on the workbench, creating a crisp rustling sound.

Shen Qingyi pulled a transparent acrylic mat from the cabinet drawer next to her and placed it over the workbench, using a brass paperweight to hold it down. She planned to ventilate the study for half an hour before continuing her work.

She had told Professor Hu she would finish the restoration within a month, but Professor Hu told her not to rush. Book restoration was a delicate job, and he wouldn’t pressure Shen Qingyi.

Yet, Shen Qingyi still intended to complete it within a month. After all, it was almost March, and the café was scheduled to open in April. Counting the days, Shen Qingyi didn’t have much time.

Fortunately, she was skilled and knew how to manage her time efficiently.

Breakfast was a sandwich prepared by Shan Ling. The bread was wrapped around lettuce, egg, and chicken. Drinking the warm milk made Shen Qingyi’s stomach gradually wake up, and the sweet-smelling sandwich was also very delicious—Shen Qingyi loved it.

After finishing her milk, Shen Qingyi helped clear the dishes and said to Shan Ling, “I have to stay in the study today. I didn’t finish yesterday’s work, so I might be quite busy.”

“That’s okay,” Shan Ling said with a cheerful smile. “I plan to go out and find Nuo Nuo today. The weather is so nice, I was thinking of inviting her to go shopping this afternoon.”

Although it was a workday, the café was still undergoing renovation. That small stall was only there to prevent customers from making a wasted trip, and Shen Qingyi didn’t rely on selling instant coffee to make money. Hearing this, she said, “That works. You two can go stroll around Central Park. You’ve been at the shop for so long, haven’t you had a chance to properly look around yet?”

Shan Ling nodded, her eyes curving into a smile as she said to Shen Qingyi, “That’s what I was thinking. It’s rare to have the time. Once the shop reopens, it will definitely be very busy.”

Shen Qingyi smiled, carried the dishes to the kitchen, and said to Shan Ling, “Then wait for me to wash the dishes, and I’ll drive you to the shop.”

Shan Ling crisply answered “Okay” and went to the bedroom to choose her clothes for going out.

When Shen Qingyi finished washing the dishes and came out wiping her hands, she saw her phone on the table flash. She walked over, swiped the screen, and saw a message from someone whose avatar was a red cartoon fox.

Hu Ai: “I need the original book to help with the translation today. Is it convenient for me to come see you this morning?”

Shen Qingyi looked at the message, which had been sent ten minutes ago, and didn’t reply immediately. She just frowned slightly at the red little fox, extremely unwilling to have her come to her house.

The thought of Hu Ai possibly meeting Shan Ling at her house and having a chance to interact made Shen Qingyi very unhappy.

This feeling was probably jealousy, Shen Qingyi pondered, looking down.

Jealousy is jealousy; admitting it was no big deal. She simply didn’t want Hu Ai and the little canary to meet, for any reason.

Hearing the movement from the bedroom, Shen Qingyi quickly picked up her phone and sent a message: “Not free this morning.”

Hu Ai replied just as quickly: “That’s alright. Are you free this afternoon then?”

Shen Qingyi originally wanted to reply that she wasn’t free this afternoon either, but she remembered that when she accepted this job, she did tell Professor Hu she would be home during this time, and it was agreed from the start that Hu Ai would come over.

After much thought, Shen Qingyi still typed on the screen with dissatisfaction, replying: “The afternoon is fine, but please notify me one day in advance before coming over in the future, Miss Hu. Thank you.”

Shen Qingyi’s words must have been quite impolite, as Hu Ai didn’t reply for a long time. It wasn’t until Shen Qingyi and Shan Ling were in the car that the other party finally replied with two words: “Alright”.

Shen Qingyi inexplicably felt those two words sounded wronged.

“What’s wrong?” Shan Ling looked at Shen Qingyi, confused, and asked when she saw her looking at her phone, “Who messaged you?”

“No one, just an advertisement,” Shen Qingyi closed her phone and put it in her pocket, saying to Shan Ling, “Let’s go.”

Shan Ling didn’t ask further, nodded, and fastened her seatbelt.

Hu Ai put away her phone, tidied up the kitchen, took off her apron, and walked out.

She knew Shen Qingyi had issues with her because of Shan Ling, and she had heard Professor Hu mention her temper, but she didn’t expect that she had truly annoyed her.

Hu Ai ran her fingers through her long hair and looked at Professor Hu basking in the sun in the yard. After thinking for a moment, she grabbed a blanket and walked out, placing it over his lap.

“Ai Ai,” Professor Hu looked at his granddaughter and smiled, “It’s this late already; why aren’t you at work? Won’t you be late?”

“My colleagues aren’t in the office this morning, so there’s no point in me going that early,” Hu Ai said to Professor Hu, “I’m going to Miss Shen’s house this afternoon. I made a few errors in the translation and want to look at the original book. I made an appointment to meet her this afternoon.”

Professor Hu nodded, relaxing his body in the lounge chair and basking in the sun. He said to Hu Ai, “Shen Qingyi is a very capable person, but her personality is a bit cold. When you go to her house, you must be careful with your words and definitely don’t make her angry.”

“I know,” Hu Ai thought for a moment and asked, “Grandpa, do you think… is it possible for me to get along well with that little canary at Miss Shen’s house?”

Professor Hu was stunned when he heard this. He opened his squinted eyes, looked Hu Ai up and down, and said, “Out of the blue, why would you suddenly think about getting along with that little canary?”

Hu Ai lowered her eyes and slowly said, “Grandpa, you also know my background. I can’t go back to the village, and I don’t have many friends in the city. Since I rarely meet a girl my age, I really want to get along well with her.”

Professor Hu was silent for a while, then sighed slowly. He reached out and stroked Hu Ai’s red long hair, saying softly, “Ai Ai, you’ve been a smart and ambitious child since you were little. However, that little canary is very timid. If you want to be friends with her, you’ll need to do a lot of things.”

“I understand, but I want to try,” Hu Ai said. “Shan Ling is genuinely very cute. When she stops being afraid of me, maybe that’s when the two of us can coexist peacefully.”

Professor Hu seemed like he wanted to say something. He looked at her with hesitation but finally nodded: “Since you feel this way, then go ahead and do it. But don’t force her too much. Getting along well is always fine.”

“Thank you, Grandpa.” Hu Ai’s expression eased considerably. She had originally thought Professor Hu would object. After all, a fox and a little canary—it didn’t seem quite right no matter how you thought about it.

But Professor Hu didn’t stop her, which gave Hu Ai confidence.

It didn’t matter if Shan Ling was timid. As long as Hu Ai was bold enough, there wouldn’t be a big problem.

Shan Ling and Nuo Nuo strolled around Central Park several times. She had been in this city for half a year but had never really explored it properly.

The scenery in Central Park was beautiful, especially in the early spring season, where birds were hopping everywhere. They flew back and forth in the branches, chattering happily, comfortably enjoying the warmth after the cold winter.

Shan Ling really liked this place and even invited Nuo Nuo to go boating. However, neither of them knew how to swim, so they just flailed their four hands wildly in the boat, not knowing how to row at all. In the end, a kind person taught them a few tricks, and they finally looked somewhat competent.

At noon, Shan Ling and Nuo Nuo found a stone table and sat down, opening the lunch they had brought.

“I just made these sandwiches this morning,” Shan Ling placed the sandwiches and yogurt on the table and said to Nuo Nuo, “I’ll order some takeout too. What do you want to eat?”

“Order some fried chicken and a burger,” Nuo Nuo unwrapped a bottle of yogurt and drank it, commenting, “We had so much fun today. Should we go shopping this afternoon?”

“Sure~” Shan Ling handed her phone to Nuo Nuo and smiled at her, “See what flavor you want.”

Once Nuo Nuo took the phone, Shan Ling rested her chin on her hand, looking at the scenery by the bank. The gentle breeze blew on her face, and she happily squinted her eyes: “This is so comfortable. I wish every day could be like this.”

Nuo Nuo scrolled through the phone and laughed: “You wish! Haven’t you seen that our shop’s renovation is almost complete? Those renovation masters are so fast. It hasn’t even been a month, and I see everything inside is almost taking shape.”

“One more month at most,” Nuo Nuo said. “And we’ll be reopening!”

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