Pats Little Shrike's Tail - Chapter 93

Chapter 93

On the day of Little New Year’s Eve in the North, Shan Ling talked to her parents on the phone, mailed all the items she had purchased, and reluctantly said her goodbyes.

As the youngest little bird in the family, Shan Ling was always well-loved.

This long trip was for the sake of accumulating good karma. Although they felt bad for their daughter, the villagers believed that children, once grown, couldn’t stay under their parents’ wings forever. Everyone hoped the children would go out, achieve something, and do what they wanted.

Shan Ling hung up the phone and sat on the balcony, looking at the night view outside the window.

Lights were on in every house, making the night feel particularly peaceful and secure.

The light of ten thousand homes.

People in this city didn’t really celebrate Little New Year’s Eve anymore. Perhaps due to the development of the times, some formerly festive holidays no longer held their original significance. Most people only remembered holidays because there was time off, making those without a day off and requiring normal work less noticeable.

Shen Qingyi finished her shower and told Shan Ling, who was still on the balcony: “Xiao Ling, the bathroom is free now.”

Shan Ling turned to look at her, then nodded and said: “Okay, but I need a little extra time today.”

Shen Qingyi was slightly puzzled but didn’t press the issue. Girls naturally take longer to shower; she sometimes unconsciously extended her time too, so she didn’t say anything.

Shan Ling took her change of clothes into the bathroom. She first washed herself clean, then took out a small plastic basin, filling it completely with warm water.

“You must take a bath on Little New Year’s Eve,” Shan Ling placed the small basin on the floor, tested the water temperature with her hand, decided it was just right, and stood up.

Then, in the blink of an eye, Shan Ling transformed into a small, plump bird, fluttering its wings and flying to the edge of the basin. It tested the water temperature with its little feet.

Perfect!

Shan Ling then spread its wings, jumped in, and used its fluffy feathers as a life jacket, floating on the steaming water’s surface.

The water in the basin was comfortably warm. Shan Ling felt very cozy soaking in it. Its little feet couldn’t reach the bottom, so it paddled leisurely like a duck, gliding from one end of the basin to the other, bumping into the edge, and returning.

According to the customs of her hometown, she had to take a bath today.

But Shen Qingyi’s home didn’t have enough space for a large bathtub, nor did it have a built-in one. So, Shan Ling cleverly took a small basin and transformed into a small bird.

This way, couldn’t I take a bath?

Shan Ling thought she was truly brilliant.

But while Shan Ling was happily paddling, Shen Qingyi suddenly knocked on the bathroom door.

“Xiao Ling, when you’re done showering, give me your dirty clothes. I’ll put them all in the washing machine.”

Shan Ling was startled. She floated motionless in the basin for a long moment, then opened her mouth and said: “I… I know. I’ll give them to you when I finish my bath.”

Shen Qingyi wondered at the door: “Bath? What bath?”

Her house didn’t have a bathtub. How could Shan Ling take a bath?

Shan Ling suddenly felt flustered. She dared not continue her bath as a bird. She fluttered her wings and flew up, but before she could land, she heard Shen Qingyi asking at the door: “What’s that sound? Did a bird get into the house? Why do I hear wings flapping?”

“No, no, nothing at all!” Shan Ling’s face turned pale with fear. She quickly transformed back into a human, but accidentally stepped on the edge of the basin, falling to the floor with the basin.

There was a loud “boom” that completely startled Shen Qingyi outside. She quickly opened the bathroom door and saw Shan Ling stark naked, clutching a basin for some reason, sitting on the floor with a pale face.

Shen Qingyi quickly grabbed a towel, draped it over Shan Ling’s shoulders, and asked with concern: “What happened? Did you fall?”

Shan Ling hugged the basin tightly, refusing to let go, and said with a green-tinged face: “It hurts…”

“Hurts?” Shen Qingyi quickly asked: “Did you hurt yourself somewhere? Where does it hurt?”

Shan Ling looked back at her, her face turning red then white, and said: “My butt hurts… Wuwuwu…”

Shen Qingyi paused slightly, took the plastic basin out of her arms, and helped her stand up, but Shan Ling seemed to be badly hurt and yelped with pain with every step.

Left with no choice, Shen Qingyi simply picked her up and carried her to the bed in the bedroom.

As soon as her butt touched the bed, Shan Ling buried herself in Shen Qingyi’s arms, crying: “My butt hurts.”

Shen Qingyi’s face was also slightly flushed. She hugged her and asked: “Did you slip and fall on your butt in the bathroom?”

Shan Ling nodded. She buried her little head in Shen Qingyi’s arms and explained muffledly: “I missed my step, and the floor was too slippery, so I fell right down.”

She felt like her butt was smashed into several pieces now. It hurt so much.

Shen Qingyi didn’t feel right checking her bottom directly. She found underwear and a nightgown for Shan Ling, helped her put them on, and then said: “Does it hurt badly? Should we go to the hospital?”

Shan Ling said weakly: “But I don’t have medical insurance.”

Shen Qingyi paused, then said helplessly: “We’ll worry about that when we get there.”

So, past 10 PM, Shen Qingyi put a floor-length down jacket on Shan Ling, fuzzy socks, and slippers, and took her to the nearest hospital.

Because of the pain in her butt, Shan Ling couldn’t sit in the car at all. She could only kneel on the back seat, holding onto the seat back, looking miserable.

They arrived at the hospital and took an X-ray. Shan Ling felt a little better now, but not as much as when she was at home. She still couldn’t sit and could only stand while listening to the doctor’s diagnosis.

“No bone damage,” the doctor said, looking at the film: “But it’s a nasty fall. As the saying goes, it takes a hundred days to heal a muscle or bone injury. While you won’t need a hundred days, you won’t be better in ten days or half a month. I’ll prescribe some medicine for you. Go home and rest for ten days or so.”

Ten days?

Shan Ling was stunned. She looked at the doctor and asked: “Can I still go traveling?”

The doctor looked up at her and smiled: “What do you think?”

Shan Ling thought she could still argue, but Shen Qingyi stopped her and told Shan Ling: “Listen to the doctor. Rest well at home for half a month first. There will be plenty of time to go out and play later.”

“But…” Shan Ling was still reluctant. Why was she so careless, falling on her butt on Little New Year’s Eve?

Now, things were bad. She had been looking forward to traveling during the New Year holiday, but now she could only lie at home and go nowhere.

And looking at her condition, Shan Ling even suspected she wouldn’t be able to sit and would have to lie prone on the bed every day.

The doctor prescribed medicine, gave instructions on how to use it, and then allowed Shen Qingyi and Shan Ling to leave.

Shan Ling, limping, looked sickly. Shen Qingyi helped her and, seeing her condition, said: “Can you walk easily? Or should I carry you?”

Shan Ling initially wanted to refuse, but realized she really couldn’t walk well, so she said tearfully: “Okay then. Thank you.”

Shen Qingyi carried her on her back and walked towards the parking lot.

“Be careful when you shower in the future, or what will we do if you fall like this again?” Shen Qingyi walked through the night around 2 AM, carrying the person on her back.

There were still quite a few people out at night in the big city, at least in the hospital.

Various people in the lobby looked utterly exhausted. Shan Ling lay on Shen Qingyi’s back, feeling how difficult life was for those people.

“What were you doing in the bathroom just now?” Shen Qingyi recalled the sound of a small bird flapping its wings in the bathroom before Shan Ling fell. That sound was very distinct, and since Shen Qingyi had raised birds before, she was familiar with the sound and wouldn’t easily mistake it.

“Nothing, just showering,” Shan Ling said glumly. She wasn’t lying; she was showering.

Just showering while transformed into a small bird.

Shen Qingyi frowned slightly, her eyes flickering for a moment. Then she nodded and said: “It’s this late now. Are you hungry? Should we see if there’s anywhere selling food on the way.”

Shan Ling didn’t have an appetite, but considering that Shen Qingyi had stayed up with her until this hour, she said: “I’m not hungry, but we can look for something to eat.”

“Okay, I remember a 24-hour porridge shop nearby. We can get two bowls of porridge.”

“Good.”

Since Shan Ling couldn’t sit, Shen Qingyi didn’t go directly to the porridge shop. She drove the car there first.

Shen Qingyi took a thick cushion from the trunk, placed it on the car seat, carefully helped Shan Ling sit down, and fastened her seatbelt. Only then did she take her to the porridge shop.

After buying the porridge, Shen Qingyi packed it and brought it back to the car. The two each had a bowl.

Shan Ling liked to drink porridge. It should be said that she liked anything that contained grain.

Even though she wasn’t in a good mood today, remembering that she shouldn’t waste food, she drank all the porridge.

With the warm porridge in her stomach, Shan Ling felt that even her butt seemed a little better. She said regretfully to Shen Qingyi: “Yiyi, I can’t go out with you anymore. Why don’t you invite other friends out? I can’t delay your rest.”

Shen Qingyi didn’t mind. She was naturally a homebody, and due to certain issues, she didn’t want friends and was reluctant to interact with people.

Her motivation for wanting to travel this time was mainly because Shan Ling hadn’t traveled before, plus she wanted to spend more time with Shan Ling.

Now, it seemed they would just have to stay home together.

“It’s no big deal. I don’t like going out anyway,” Shen Qingyi said: “But for 15 days of vacation, you can think about what we should do. We can’t just watch TV dramas all day, right?”

“You’re going to stay home with me?” Shan Ling asked in surprise.

Shen Qingyi found it amusing: “Why are you so surprised? I want to be with you. Is that a problem?”

As she said this, Shen Qingyi’s heart was beating rapidly. She used a joking tone to say what she wanted to say, wondering if Shan Ling understood.

However, Shen Qingyi still preferred not to let Shan Ling know her feelings. Whether Shan Ling rejected or accepted her, it would be a change for both of them.

If Shan Ling didn’t accept her, Shan Ling might quit soon, and she would never see her again.

If Shan Ling accepted her, Shan Ling would discover her secret, and no matter how reasonable Shan Ling was, she probably couldn’t accept a partner like her.

Therefore, Shen Qingyi regretted saying such ambiguous words.

If she wasn’t planning on being with Shan Ling, it was better not to flirt with her like this.

Shan Ling was a very innocent girl. Shen Qingyi shouldn’t treat her this way.

Having settled these thoughts, Shen Qingyi packed up the empty takeout containers and told Shan Ling: “Let’s go home.”

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