Chapter 62 If you ask again, I'll tell you even in my pocket.
Grandpa Gao has recently developed a bird obsession and wants a colorful crow. He's been searching all over the flower and bird markets in Beijing, but he hasn't found a single bird that he can fall in love with at first sight.
I've heard that crows flock to the eastern outskirts of the city, where there are several large pits specifically used to dispose of the waste of high-ranking officials and nobles.
Grandpa Gao hid behind a tree and waited excitedly for several days. Finally, he got his wish and saw a perfectly healthy crow.
The bird was perched in his trap, pecking at its prey. Old Master Gao stared intently at it, silently counting down in his mind: three, two…
"Splash!" Someone pushed a cart full of waste and dumped it all into the ash pit.
"Caw caw!" The crow was startled and flew away.
Grandpa Gao looked up at the wings that shimmered in the sunlight with iridescent colors and stomped his foot angrily.
Heh heh heh, it seems I've been away from the court and the people for too long; they've all forgotten me, the god who can stop children from crying at night, kill and drink blood...
Divine bird!
Grandpa Gao gazed at the parrot in the ash pit, his eyes filled with amazement and longing.
"I took advantage of that person's temporary absence to pick up the pirate." The old man cleared his throat a few times. "Anyway, it was already dead by then, so I didn't want to waste its beautiful feathers."
Xie Mianmian's eyes widened. "How come the pirate is still alive? Does Grandpa Gao know witchcraft?"
Grandpa Gao waved a melon seed in front of the pirate, and it excitedly swayed along with it. "Young friend, do you know how it got its eyes injured?"
He sighed. "Someone pierced its brain through its left eye with a silver needle. Generally speaking, it's impossible to save it."
Xie Mianmian watched as the pirate happily munched on sunflower seeds.
"When I brought it back to my residence, I found that it was still breathing, but barely audible. After a few days of care, the pirate miraculously came back to life."
Hearing about the parrot's difficult past, the child felt sorry for it and offered it a handful of melon seeds.
"Pirates are just like me back in the day, having survived so many dangers and perils."
Recalling the bloodshed and carnage of the battlefield, the deaths on the battlefield, tears slowly welled up in Old Master Gao's slightly cloudy eyes.
"So, young friend, you must never say to others that I am a thief, understand?"
My lifelong reputation is ruined.
Xie Mianmian nodded as the chick nodded, wiping her eyes. "It's so good that the pirate met you. Who on earth would want to hurt such a cute parrot?"
Grandpa Gao took a peanut, gently pinched it open with both hands, and poured the peanut, still wrapped in its red skin, into the child's palm.
"Those who can burn waste in the ash pit are probably nobles in the city. There are too many people. If a plaque falls down on the street, it could kill several royal relatives. I can't find out who they are."
Hearing the pirate pecking at the birdcage, he chuckled and peeled another peanut for the parrot.
"It's just that such a beautiful bird is really rare, and someone has even taught it to say birthday wishes. It's obviously a gift for a distinguished person to celebrate their birthday. But I don't know why that person doesn't like such a beautiful bird and even wants to kill it."
"People are so cold-hearted," Old Master Gao shook his head.
Xie Mianmian ate peanuts, her little head turning a few times. She figured it out; that person must have spoken to the pirates, and they were afraid it would leak out, so they...
The child nervously tugged at the old man's sleeve, "Grandpa Gao, you can't let anyone find out about the pirate. That man is so scary. It would be terrible if he found out."
Grandpa Gao patted the child's head and said, "I know."
Before leaving, Xie Mianmian clung to the birdcage, leaned close to the pirate, and carefully gave him some instructions, "Pirate, never say what you just said in front of others, understand? You must live well!"
The pirate, with his beady eyes, simply shouted, "May your fortune be as vast as the Eastern Sea! May your longevity be as enduring as the Southern Mountains!"
After eating and drinking her fill, Xie Mianmian bid farewell to Old Master Gao and returned to the Xie residence.
As they passed through the lobby, the child noticed his father talking to someone.
"Thank you, Governor. I have completed the task you entrusted to me."
The person's voice sounded very familiar; Xie Mianmian seemed to have heard it somewhere before.
A voice flashed through the child's mind, "I missed you so much, give Grandpa a stick of incense first."
Ah, it was something she had heard in the side room of Yueya Garden back then.
The only difference is that his voice was oily and greasy back then; now he speaks so seriously.
Xie Mianmian hid behind the door, secretly peeking inside to look at the person.
He was a neatly dressed middle-aged man with a slightly plump face that made his face appear round, but his eyes were surprisingly clear.
It's hard for a child to associate that sleazy, greasy old man with the respectable person in front of them.
Xie Mianmian pouted and said, "The adult world is really complicated. It's just like a child wearing clothes, layer upon layer."
The ear-pulling and verbal abuse that Zhang's wife inflicted on him back then is still vivid in my mind.
Xie Mianmian shrugged, covered her mouth, and chuckled secretly.
"What are you doing hiding here? School has been over for so long, why haven't you come back yet? Where have you been running around?"
Behind me, Xie Mingyi, who had appeared out of nowhere, started rambling on and on.
The child turned to look at his second sister, his lips still curled into a smirk.
"What did you overhear here?"
Xie Mingyi was puzzled. How could her father talk about business with someone and then have something funny to say? It was strange.
Xie Mianmian tried hard to suppress her smile, but to no avail, and pursed her lips.
Oh dear, how can I tell my second sister about this? This is their family matter; it's not good to tell others.
The child twirled his two index fingers in circles, and every now and then he would lift his eyelids to steal a glance at Xie Mingyi.
He seemed to be saying, "Don't ask me, or I'll tell you."
Xie Mingyi covered her face with a handkerchief, her voice filled with sadness, "Mianmian has grown up now and has learned to keep things from her second sister."
"Second sister, don't cry. Mianmian will tell you everything, but please don't tell anyone else."
If there are two things in the world that Xie Mianmian cannot look at directly, one is dessert, which makes her want to eat it after just one glance, and the other is a beautiful woman shedding tears.
The child pulled Xie Mingyi aside, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in her ear.
Xie Mingyi frowned as she heard the whole story. She was wrong; she shouldn't have been so curious.
She felt a ticklish sensation, as if ants were crawling all over her, so she clung to the door frame and peeked inside.
In the front hall, Xie's father was talking when he noticed a pair of curious eyes peeking out from behind the door. It was Xie Mingyi, who was always the most polite person in the family.
He looked down and saw another small head that had just appeared.
Father Xie shook his head helplessly, which startled Vice Envoy Zhang, who was standing next to him. "Governor Xie, has your subordinate done something inappropriate?"
"No." It's just that my daughter is naughty. Oh well, as long as they're happy.
Xie Mingyi saw the person inside clearly and exclaimed like a child, "You really can't judge a book by its cover!"
Besides the incident with the Third Prince, it was also discovered that the man who always appeared to be a devoted husband in front of others was actually having an affair.
Xie Mingyi sighed, "Men are all the same."
As for her two brothers?
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