IBFAIBPMSH Chapter 12
- Seha Marilyn Llamas
- Dec 12, 2024
- 9 min read
After that, two consecutive rainy days arrive, and the plan to go out is ruined.
The previous idea of "going out to find a way back" completely dissipates—after seeing the endless real world from the treetops, Bai Gaoxing realizes his thinking has been too simplistic. In this situation, where he has no clue, even if he leaves Li Pu, he has nowhere to go.
Let’s stay here for now.
The closed life at home isn’t so unbearable. Perhaps he has become somewhat accustomed to it, but Bai Gaoxing actually thinks that such a peaceful, boring life is tolerable.
...It's just "okay."
After all, Li Pu has once again sunk into stifling solitude.
Bai Gaoxing pulls the food box with his claws. Seeing that there is enough food inside, he gets out of the cage and flies to the sofa behind the man’s shoulder.
The brief relaxation he felt before now seems like an illusion. Li Pu still sits in a corner of the sofa, seemingly watching the rain and the swaying tree shadows outside the window, but in reality, his eyes are empty and unfocused.
It rains heavily outside, the drops crackling against the glass, producing muffled sounds.
The overly gloomy weather adds a bit of gloom to the whole house, making Li Pu, who is only partially illuminated in the dim light, appear a bit melancholic.
His mental state is concerning.
Bai Gaoxing rubs his mouth; well, he is used to it.
Time to check in on him.
With that in mind, Bai Gaoxing pokes his head out and pecks at the man’s ear. After gaining his attention, he jumps onto the sofa, grabs the ignored TV remote, and turns on the switch.
"Good afternoon, everyone. Today's weather forecast is..."
The sudden sound adds some life to the deserted house. Li Pu is startled at first but then lowers his eyes to look at the white ball that seems to be clumsily comforting him. He takes the remote as Dabai wishes and changes to a program that he knows Dabai finds more appealing after considering his previous experiences.
Animal World.
Bai Gaoxing contently tucks his paws into his furry chest and watches attentively—it is worth it that he bit Li Pu's sleeve and shouted "no cartoons" many times before finally finding a long enough television program that wouldn’t feel tedious.
It just so happens that the show is now airing a survival record of large parrots in the tropical rainforest, which also features famous parrot species, making it worthwhile to listen to.
Unlike Bai Gaoxing, who quickly immerses himself in the TV world, Li Pu stares at his new pet for a while and becomes increasingly sure that he is being comforted.
It is a novel feeling—something the fish in the aquarium cannot provide.
After Dabai comes home, he has adapted more quickly than expected and becomes familiar with Li Pu. Although he is occasionally anxious, it is likely due to the so-called “depressed state,” and usually, he exhibits a much higher level of spirit than his peers.
Li Pu cannot help but recall the times when he is interrupted while sitting on the sofa deep in thought—this is likely Dabai expressing concern because he feels he is too quiet.
Well, Dabai's condition is getting better.
Li Pu reaches out and smooths the feathers on the parrot's head, then looks at the chest almost covered by fluff and feels relieved.
After that, he opens the drawer under the coffee table, takes out the laptop that has not been used for a long time, turns it on, and walks into the kitchen with a cup.
The aroma of coffee in the air grows stronger. The coffee brewed earlier is ready soon. After that, reading the script for a while is a good pastime.
Perhaps because the rainy weather makes one feel unmotivated, Li Pu moves slowly. Thus, he doesn’t notice that after he turns around, Bai Gaoxing, who has been watching television, quickly flies onto the laptop, his adorable bird face displaying a contemplative expression typically seen on humans.
Bai Gaoxing still remembers his adventurous behavior when he first arrived, directly checking information on this laptop. It is also thanks to Li Pu's infrequent use of the laptop and his lack of habit in looking at browsing history that Bai Gaoxing hasn’t been discovered.
Later, he couldn’t help but want to reveal his human identity, and although he failed, the browsing history still exists as evidence.
Now the only question is… to keep it or not?
To be honest, after his failed attempt to reveal himself, Bai Gaoxing hesitates to disclose his identity again. First, realizing he is just a parrot increases the difficulty of being convincing by several degrees due to his inherent language skills. Second, even if Li Pu finds out, what difference does it make? It would only add pressure on him.
Moreover… there is still that possibility—what if he can somehow convince him? Saying it out loud would only lead to unnecessary shock and perhaps some lasting consequences.
He had acted impulsively.
Bai Gaoxing scratches his head with his claws in frustration, but his body quickly makes a decision.
He uses his claws to control the cursor movement, clicks into the browsing history, finds the searches from a few days ago, and deletes them one by one.
These actions are indeed challenging for a parrot, but the tension of racing against time stimulates his potential, and Bai Gaoxing successfully completes the task of deleting the browsing history—just a second before Li Pu comes out with coffee.
Li Pu sees the parrot moving back and forth on the laptop keyboard and thinks it is attracted by the laptop's fluorescent light. He places the cup on the table, sits down, opens the document containing the script, and slowly begins to read it.
Bai Gaoxing stares at him for a while, then turns his gaze back to the TV program.
He cannot understand why Li Pu cannot sleep every night yet still drinks coffee.
Li Pu focuses on the laptop screen, his slender white fingers gripping the handle of the cup. This image of drinking coffee while looking at the laptop gives him the aura of a business elite. If it weren’t for the very casual pajamas, he could easily pass for a white-collar worker in a street café.
About an hour later, Bai Gaoxing forces his eyelids open and glances at Li Pu's progress.
He has only marked five pages on the script.
He turns his head to look at the sky outside the window. It is still dim, and the rain shows no signs of stopping.
Could it be that he really plans to read the script for an entire day?
Bai Gaoxing thinks it is scary and jumps onto the laptop to try to stop it. However, he overestimates his control over his claws. The business notebook is thin and light, and its shell is slippery. He cannot hook his claws properly, and he rolls down, accidentally kicking the mouse several times.
"Hey... no... wait..."
After a struggle, Bai Gaoxing falls backward onto the keyboard, panting with his wings spread.
From Li Pu’s perspective, it seems like his pet is demanding attention again. He gently flips the large white parrot over and ruffles the droopy feathers on its head.
Seeing the smile in the man’s eyes, Bai Gaoxing feels embarrassed and huffs, turning away. But as he turns, he notices that the script previously opened on the screen is gone, replaced by a trending topics interface that popped up from his random clicking, complete with current hot labels:
Today’s, fresh, and hot.
How long has it been since he last accessed the internet? Bai Gaoxing suddenly perks up, his attention immediately shifting.
At a glance, two of the first three trending topics are related to Li Pu.
Bai Gaoxing looks at Li Pu in surprise. He hadn't expected that in an industry where a day’s absence could lead to losing popularity, Li Pu could still be in the top three hot searches after staying at home for so long. Maybe it is the internet army his company has bought?
However, he cannot ask this question, so he can only guess casually.
With a click of the mouse, Li Pu clearly shows no intention of reading those topics. The three hot searches appear in Bai Gaoxing's view for only a couple of seconds before being replaced by some social news.
...Nothing interesting.
Bai Gaoxing glances at them and finds that they are all mundane news, lacking any key information. At most, he understands that this world is similar to his world before, and his perception hasn’t been affected.
"Look at something else." Bai Gaoxing jumps onto Li Pu's shoulder again, tightens his claws, and blinks his round eyes a few times. "Look at something else."
Li Pu leans forward slightly, smiling. "What do you want to see?"
How would I know!
Bai Gaoxing doesn’t expect Li Pu to be so hands-off. It feels too casual to let a parrot choose what page to see. Besides, if he actually types… that would scare the daylights out of him.
Thinking this, Bai Gaoxing still pretends to operate the laptop.
White light flashes as he frantically toggles between Alt+Tab and Win+R, almost hitting the shutdown button. After cycling through various chaotic shortcut keys, Bai Gaoxing finally clicks on the section he wants to see: hot searches about Li Pu.
Once he clicks in, Bai Gaoxing keeps an eye on Li Pu's expression to avoid any PTSD incidents.
According to industry norms, the more popular a person is in the entertainment sector, the more likely they are to receive all kinds of strange comments.
Unexpectedly, Li Pu does not show any opposition; instead, a hint of novelty flashes in his eyes. Clearly, he doesn't check his own hot searches very often.
Bai Gaoxing feels a bit hesitant. Has he opened the door to a new world for Li Pu? Or is the company originally restricting Li Pu from viewing these, and now he is violating company regulations?
After all, who would expect a parrot to read entertainment news?
Just as Bai Gaoxing thinks, Li Pu does not read his own news often, but it isn't because of company restrictions or any status that prevents him; rather, it is because he simply doesn’t care much.
For an actor, it is more beneficial to focus on the quality of one’s work than on external evaluations. Also, he hasn’t even taken management authority over his private accounts.
The platforms that are said to increase popularity—the social media accounts popular among young actors or idols—he has those accounts but has entrusted the most important ones to his agent, forgetting about the rest after setting them up.
He remembers... Dashu seemed to help him back up the password in his mobiLi Pune records.
After a brief thought, Li Pu starts looking at the laptop again.
Bai Gaoxing also focuses intently.
The first hot search is enough to reveal the murky depths of the entertainment industry. Amidst many cheers and praises, a few sarcastic comments stand out, particularly eye-catching and annoying.
"Dabai, what's wrong?" Li Pu notices that the parrot, which had been fine just moments ago, suddenly puffs up like a badminton. He uses his fingertips to comfort it a bit, then searches “What to do if a parrot suddenly puffs up” on his mobiLi Pune.
Bai Gaoxing notices that Li Pu doesn’t seem to have any particular reaction, so he relaxes, yawns, and casually shakes himself, allowing his fluffy feathers to settle back down.
Li Pu moves on to the second trending topic; this time it is a screenshot.
The deliberately enlarged picture is more eye-catching, accompanied by a title edited by the editor: After finishing the last movie, Actor Li Pu has been missing for nearly two weeks~ Fans can't wait.
Then, the enthusiastic comment section appears before Bai Gaoxing.
【How frustrating! Why doesn’t he just post a message! A selfie! A livestream! Just a word will do!】
【I’ve been waiting for so long; the last message was posted three months ago when the crew tagged him.】
【Wuwuwu, Teacher Liis simply a weirdo in the entertainment industry; I suspect he’s the only one in the circle not online during vacation, or does he not know how?】
【Please! If Li Pu could livestream, I would stand on my head and eat my keyboard! Didn’t they say several platforms have exclusive collaborations with him? Are they all fake?】
【Can’t he show a little sympathy for his fans!? Other places: New fans get a full feast! My place: just leftovers.】
【Those platforms aren’t working; it’s getting chilly; even the superstar can’t get any funds (deep thoughts.jpg)】
This... is much friendlier than the first hot search. The messages convey how much Li Pu doesn’t like to engage on public platforms. Bai Gaoxing looks at Li Pu incredulously. If this is considered hunger marketing, his fans would have starved to death long ago.
Li Pu’s expression is quite normal at that moment. He doesn’t exhibit the “sympathy” mentioned in the comments, nor does he feel any “guilt” as a star. Instead, he wears a thoughtful expression and continues scrolling down the page.
Just then, the mobiLi Pune lying on the coffee table suddenly rings, displaying Dashu as the caller.
Just then, the mobiLi Pune lying on the coffee table suddenly rings, displaying Dashu as the caller. Li Pu pauses for a moment, picks up the phone, and walks to a corner of the living room while answering. When he hears the voice from the other end say, "Brother Li, did you see the hot search today?" he subconsciously glances at Bai Gaoxing, who is perched on the laptop.
Then he replies coldly, "No."
Author's words:
Dabai: He saw it.
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