IBFAIBPMSH Chapter 5

The living room is extremely quiet, with only one person and one bird staring at each other in silence.

Bai Gaoxing feels sympathy for this nominal owner and no longer has the urge to find nighttime entertainment. Instead, he flutters and jumps to Li Pu’s side, patting him with his wings in a symbolic gesture of comfort.

How to say it, it’s not easy.

Li Pu shows a trace of surprise. Having never seriously raised a pet before, he is a bit taken aback by the parrot’s initiative. After a long pause, he tentatively extends his fingers to touch the fluffy head.

Bai Gaoxing squints his eyes and let Li Pu pet him, even adjusting his posture to enjoy the petting.

Another hour passes in the blink of an eye, and it is already nine o'clock in the evening. Bai Gaoxing feels the warm touch on his head suddenly disappear. When he looks up, Li Pu has stood up from the sofa.

Is he going to get something... like a can of beer? A plate of crayfish? Bai Gaoxing is looking forward to it. But to his surprise, Li Pu only goes to the dining table to bring over the rice bowl and water bowl, placing them on the coffee table.

"Dabai, come here," Li Pu says, extending his hand.

Bai Gaoxing isn’t sure what the man wants, so he slowly walks over to him, trying not to hurt him. But then, he is also placed on the coffee table.

After setting this up, Li Pu goes to the balcony to draw the curtains and fetch a glass of water. When he comes back, he has a trash can in his hand.

Could he be taking out the trash in the middle of the night? Before Bai Gaoxing can complete his guess, the trash can is placed under his butt.

?? What is this for?

Turning around, Bai Gaoxing hears Li Pu say, "Dabai, don’t run around at night. It’s best to go to the toilet here."

"Good night."

Then, Bai Gaoxing watches as Li Pu’s figure moves farther away and disappears around the corner. The lights in the living room go out. There is a click, and the sound of a door closing. From this angle, Bai Gaoxing sees a sliver of light from the bedroom door being closed.

After a while, Bai Gaoxing suddenly comes back to his senses and can't believe it.

No, it’s only nine o'clock! What kind of schedule is this for an old cadre? Why isn’t he being put in a cage? And what does this trash can mean? Is “go here” really what he thinks it is?

For a moment, Bai Gaoxing doesn’t know whether to be more upset about the early bedtime or the trash can.

But ultimately, it is impossible to fall asleep at this time, especially since he has already slept for several hours in the afternoon. Bai Gaoxing adjusts to the darkness for a while and then jumps back to the sofa with the help of the neon light outside the window.

He notices that the TV remote control is on the sofa. Bai Gaoxing smoothly finds the remote control, turns on the TV, and immediately presses the mute button as soon as the screen lights up. He watches the silent TV with interest.

It’s true that after being bored for a long time, even the flashy ads are captivating.

As he watches, Bai Gaoxing gains a deeper understanding of Li Pu's popularity—this is the nth advertisement he has seen featuring Li Pu's face. The internet says he became famous at a young age and had a smooth star career, probably because he was blessed with talent.

It’s a pity he’s a bit depressed.

After an unknown period of time, Bai Gaoxing begins to doze off. Before falling asleep, he glances subconsciously at Li Pu’s room. He probably went to bed early.

Little does he know that Li Pu has not fallen asleep for a long time after returning to his room. Tossing and turning, he turns on his mobiLi Pune again, opens a forum for raising parrots, and can’t help but buy a few things online.

...

Thus ends Bai Gaoxing's first day as a parrot.

When he wakes up the next morning, he is woken by another bird.

To be precise, it is a group of birds.

At first, Bai Gaoxing doesn’t realize it is the birds making the noise. He thinks it is the early risers cursing in the street, making a ruckus that shakes the whole neighborhood.

Later, a few robust and beautiful magpies land on the balcony railing and begin mocking him.

“I’m eating your food. What are you going to do about it? Bite me?”

“Yeah, that’s right!”

“Little scoundrel locked in a cage, I’m happy to eat your bugs!”

“Yeah, that’s right!”

The insults are already harsh, but the next moment, furious and vulgar shouting comes from downstairs:

“F*** you, come down here if you have the guts! I’ll smash your head! You b*d!”

“Dare to eat my stuff, and you won’t live long!”

“I f**!!!”

It’s almost at the level of needing to be censored.

Bai Gaoxing tilts his head and watches for a while before finally realizing that the initial sounds come from the magpies.

Wow! He can understand birds talking!

He hadn’t expected such a cheat after becoming a parrot. Bai Gaoxing readily accepts it—being a bird himself, it makes sense that he can understand other birds.

Bai Gaoxing flaps his wings, maneuvers through the curtains, walks to the balcony, and peers out at the large magpies outside the tightly closed glass.

"...Hi?" He takes the initiative to greet them.

The large magpie looks at him with disdain. "Tsk, another beggar under the hands of humans."

Bai Gaoxing remains unfazed and replies, "And what about you, a thief who steals other people’s food? A robber?"

The large magpie is fuming and about to continue its curses when a voice from downstairs shouts, "Get out! Get out of the way! Don’t come here!"

Bai Gaoxing clearly hears the voice; this time, it’s a person shouting. It seems that even the birds mirror their owners’ personalities.

The magpies scatter one by one.

Bai Gaoxing looks downstairs. Li Pu’s apartment is on one of the higher floors, around the seventh or eighth. From his vantage point, he can’t see who is shouting below. All he can see is a small park with lush plants and a small square with a fountain not far away, with many people strolling about.

"…"

The commotion stirs Bai Gaoxing’s desire to go outside.

Being trapped in the house, unable to access the internet, and with minimal information, he knows only that he is in Jiangcheng and living in the home of the world’s most famous movie star. He needs more useful information.

If he can get outside, he might find a way to return.

But how can he get out? Bai Gaoxing flies back to the living room from the balcony and lands on the coffee table to peck at some bird food.

He waits from seven to eight o’clock but doesn’t hear anyone stirring in the bedroom. He wonders how Li Pu can sleep so early. Amused, he decides to explore the territory.

This is his new home, after all. It isn’t too much to explore it, right?

Bai Gaoxing flaps his wings and explores the floor, inspecting one room after another.

Li Pu’s house is enormous. With the number of doors, there are at least four bedrooms. The balcony has a large floor-to-ceiling window, and he can even see a sparkling swimming pool outside. The house is oriented north and south, allowing ample light. Even with the other doors closed, the lighting is excellent—except for the living and dining rooms, all other doors are closed. Bai Gaoxing wonders if Li Pu is worried about him wandering into those rooms or if he just has this habit.

The dining table is cleaned up, shattering his hopes of finding leftovers. It seems Li Pu is quite the clean freak. Bai Gaoxing takes a distant look at the dining table, disappointed, and goes over to the refrigerator.

Hmm… that’s not going to work either.

The refrigerator is very tall, and without a foothold, it is clear that he can’t open it now.

Bai Gaoxing thinks for a moment and decides to practice flying since he has nothing else to do.

The furniture looks several times bigger to him now. Standing on the back of the sofa is like standing on a small high-rise building. Fortunately, he doesn’t have a fear of heights.

Bai Gaoxing focuses on the empty floor and begins flapping his wings.

His broad, beautiful wings are full of feathers, and they tend to shed with excessive movement. He is relieved that only some feathers from his chest have been plucked and his flight feathers remain intact.

Despite inheriting the memory of the original parrot, Bai Gaoxing finds using the body awkward. The large wings feel unwieldy, and his claws often reach for things instinctively. He worries about crashing into walls if he can’t stop in time. After several attempts, he crashes halfway through but fortunately doesn’t hit any walls, though he feels dizzy.

Bai Gaoxing is exhausted.

He spreads his wings and collapses on the floor, his fluffy chest heaving. He still doesn’t give up on practicing. What if, he thinks, I go outside and encounter stray cats or dogs? He’d need to be able to escape.

This time, Bai Gaoxing pushes aside all distractions, flaps his wings harder, and focuses intently on the door in the distance.

It’s a long way from where he is to the door, and his goal is to fly back and forth smoothly.

Suddenly, Bai Gaoxing takes off, flying determinedly towards the door. As he approaches, he’s about to succeed when he hears a "click"—the door begins to open from the outside.

Someone’s coming in?! Who could it be?!

Panicked, Bai Gaoxing’s wings flap uncontrollably, losing rhythm, and he ends up colliding with the person entering.

"...Gah."

There’s a faint, intoxicating fragrance from the newcomer that Bai Gaoxing finds pleasant but overwhelming. He is momentarily intoxicated by the scent before sneezing three times in quick succession.

Achoo! The perfume must be too strong.

"Dabai?"

Li Pu doesn’t expect Dabai to come fluttering towards him and looks somewhat astonished. In just one day, Dabai has become so affectionate… He hurriedly catches the falling parrot, feeling a soft spot in his heart.

Bai Gaoxing continues sneezing, shaking his head.

With tears in his eyes, he looks at Li Pu, noting his sweaty forehead and damp clothes from his morning exercise. Had Li Pu really been out exercising the whole time, leaving him alone at home? That’s a bit much.

He feels extremely frustrated.

Bai Gaoxing glances at Li Pu's hand, which is empty, and feels even more depressed.

He doesn’t even bring back any breakfast.

"Sneezy!"

Noticing the parrot’s repeated sneezing, Li Pu quickly places Dabai on top of the cage, looks down at himself, and tries to recall what he might have touched during his run.

Fortunately, Dabai’s sneezing stops, and he stares up at Li Pu with his dark eyes.

Li Pu refills the bird food and then goes to take a shower.

Bai Gaoxing scratches his itchy nose with his paw, picks up a few melon seeds from the porcelain bowl, and waits for Li Pu to return.

Soon, the bathroom door opens.

A faint scent of shampoo wafts in as Li Pu, towel in hand, emerges in a thin bathrobe that’s damp. The belt around his waist is loosely tied, revealing parts of his chest and waist.

Li Pu has a well-maintained physique, with well-defined abdominal muscles and an attractive, muscular line that is neither too thin nor exaggerated, clearly maintained through regular exercise.

He looks refined, but it turns out he has muscles.

“~～～” Bai Gaoxing tilts his head, and a whistle escapes.

Li Pu pauses mid-wipe of his hair.

The author has something to say:

~There was originally a musical note here, but I can’t type that either.

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