Chapter 61 Speak Louder, Is This Something to Be Honored?

The next day, Xie Mianmian returned home listlessly, with the setting sun behind her.

During class, she racked her brains trying to remember what her elder brother had said the day before, and diligently wrote and drew on the paper.

When she picked up her pen with satisfaction, she found that the paper was covered in circles and ink stains, because the child didn't know how to write many words.

Unexpectedly, the Grand Tutor saw it and said that she did not cherish her writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone. The child felt wronged, but she had nowhere to say it and silently suffered the loss of not being able to read.

Xie Mianmian got off the carriage and found that Old Master Gao from next door had also just returned. He was holding a birdcage in one hand and looking at her kindly.

"I recently acquired a new parrot named Pirate. Would you like to take a look, young friend?"

"Yes!" Xie Mianmian immediately perked up at the mention of something new, and she happily dragged the nanny along to go.

The Gao family is a family of military officers. Old Master Gao retired from the battlefield and is now eighty-five years old. Every day, he happily carries his birdcage out for morning tea.

They arrived at Grandpa Gao's small garden, which was filled with exotic flowers and plants, as well as all kinds of birdcages, each containing different species of birds.

They were chattering away, it was so lively!

Grandpa Gao went into the house and brought out a birdcage, which was mysteriously covered with a black cloth.

This familiar scene made Xie Mianmian feel a little dazed. Could a little golden eagle be coming out of there?

"Young friend, take a good look." Old Master Gao lifted the cage cloth.

The birds inside fluttered a few times and then spoke, "May your happiness be as vast as the Eastern Sea and your longevity as enduring as the Southern Mountain!"

This is an extremely gorgeous parrot, very large, with a bright vermilion head that extends all the way down its back.

The upper part of the wings is grass green, then gradually transitions to turquoise blue.

Xie Mianmian was stunned when she saw such a magnificent bird for the first time.

However, it seemed that one of its eyes was blind, so Grandpa Gao made a one-eyed patch for it.

"Back when I was fighting pirates, I encountered a pirate who wore a one-eyed patch." Old Master Gao's eyes were misty as he recalled the past. "Let's not talk about the past. Seeing that he was wearing a one-eyed patch, I named him Pirate."

"Well, apart from the eyes, isn't my parrot quite good-looking?" Old Master Gao chuckled, stroking his white beard.

"It looks great!" Xie Mianmian nodded vigorously.

"And it can even speak human language! Don't you find that amazing, young friend?"

"Wow!" She had always been able to understand animal speech, but this was the first time she had ever actually heard an animal speak human language, and the child didn't even realize it.

Seeing Xie Mianmian's startled expression, Old Master Gao smiled and turned back to the storeroom. "Young friend, take the bird for a walk first. I'll go find some of its favorite food for you to feed."

Okay.

The child stared fascinated at the parrot's feathers, his hands itching to touch them.

You say, how can there be such wonderful colors in this world, and all of them on one bird? The shapes of the feathers are also beautiful, arranged in a neat and orderly manner, with distinct layers.

The child really wanted to touch it to see if it felt like silk.

The parrot suddenly flapped its wings and said, "Mianmian, on the day of the Third Prince's wedding, someone will damage the portraits of the Emperor and Empress and then frame your family for it."

Xie Mianmian was startled.

"Pirate, do you know who did this?" The child scratched his head. Surely the Lin family wouldn't ruin their own wedding banquet.

The parrot stopped talking, folded its wings, gripped the wooden stick in the cage, and moved back and forth nimbly, as if pacing.

Then its voice changed, becoming somewhat low.

"The Xie family is too powerful, it's no fun anymore." The parrot repeated this sentence over and over.

Xie Mianmian could tell that the parrot must have heard the words somewhere and then imitated them.

The child stared in surprise, mouth agape. "If the Xie family is too powerful, it's no fun anymore?"

Just then, Grandpa Gao returned. Seeing Xie Mianmian still looking amazed by the parrot, he shook his head with amusement.

A child's world can always be filled so easily.

"Young friend, you'd better hold your chin up."

He handed the plate to Xie Mianmian, which contained plump sunflower seeds, peanuts, and some plant seeds that the child didn't recognize.

Xie Mianmian took the plate and said to Grandpa Gao with a serious expression, "Grandpa Gao, Mianmian wants to ask you a question."

Seeing the child suddenly become serious, Old Master Gao felt something was wrong and had a bad feeling. Could it be that the child had taken a fancy to his pirate?

But I can't bear to part with her. If she lies on the ground kicking her legs and making a fuss, I won't give her the pirate.

If the child cries, then there's nothing you can do but give it to her.

"Hey, young friend, go ahead and speak."

Grandpa Gao thought he had made all sorts of mental preparations, but who would have thought that Xie Mianmian would ask such a question.

"Did you get this parrot legitimately?" the child asked, puzzled.

Grandpa Gao: !?

He glared and raised an eyebrow, then flicked his sleeves behind him. "What... what do you mean by that?"

Old Master Gao had accumulated considerable power and influence, and most members of the Gao family dared not speak when they saw him in such an angry state.

But he was usually very kind to children, and the children weren't afraid of him. "Tell Mianmian, Grandpa Gao, where do pirates come from?"

Who exactly said those words to the pirate, only to have it copied by him?

Grandpa Gao realized that his bluffing tactic was no longer effective. He looked at Xie Mianmian suspiciously, wondering how the child knew there was a problem.

For a moment, they stared at each other, speechless.

"Alright, I'll speak!" he suddenly declared loudly, as if he had nothing to lose.

The general's loud voice was no joke; the child was jolted awake by it and his mind became much clearer.

Xie Mianmian covered her ears, "Could you speak a little quieter? Grandpa Gao probably doesn't want others to know either, right?"

The dignified and tall old man bent down and whispered a few words in the child's ear.

"What? You stole this?"

The children's voices were too loud, so Old Master Gao quickly looked around. Fortunately, he had already dismissed the servants.

"Keep your voice down, is this something to be proud of?" It was Grandpa Gao's turn to instruct the child.

"Besides, I found this; how can that be called stealing?"