Chapter 28. He should like it, right?
Chestnut and Pudding were so inseparable after meeting that it would be too cruel not to let them play together, so Luo Qingyan and Situ Lu went to the pet park together.
“What a coincidence, I didn’t expect to meet you here.” Stepping out of the bustling crowd, Situ Lu spoke first, “My mom originally wanted me to bring Pudding home, but a few days ago when I was looking for a place for puppies to play, I saw that a new pet park had been built in Cuiyun, so I thought I’d take Pudding there to play.”
“Yes, what a coincidence.” Luo Qingyan’s gaze was fixed on Chestnut and Pudding, who were hopping around in front of her. “I was thinking that it would be nice to take Chestnut to a less crowded place to run around. Of course, a pet park would be the best, where she can play freely without a leash.”
"I heard that place is quite well-developed, with a large fenced-off area that includes lawns, flowers, trees, and plenty of recreational facilities, so a bunch of dogs don't have to crowd together. It's perfect for Pudding, so it won't bother other dogs."
Luo Qingyan chuckled: "That makes Pudding sound like a little devil. Keep your voice down, little dogs are smart, they can understand."
“It! Not only does it understand, it ignores everything. Saying it a thousand times is useless; it still does whatever it wants.” Situ Lu sighed helplessly. “Sometimes I really wonder if I’ve raised a beagle.”
"Haha, I suspect you're spreading rumors. Jack Russell is so smart, he could be a police dog! And Big Big Wolf is adorable too!"
"You called him the Great Demon King."
"That's a title used in the martial arts world, a respectful term!"
"Then the title of 'excavating fighter jet' must be well-deserved, right? It's terrifying!"
...
The two chatted for a while and ended up at the pet park.
There was a market today, and many people went there to play. The pet park wasn't too crowded. Situ Lu even found a spot with relatively few people and dogs so that Chestnut and Pudding could run and play freely.
The person played wildly with the dog for a while. The dog didn't feel tired, but the person needed to rest.
So the two of them took their two dogs to a rest area with tables and chairs, where there were many shops selling toys, drinks and snacks, making it much more lively.
Just a short while after sitting down, Situ Lu's phone rang. It was probably an important call, so the caller went to a quieter spot to answer it.
Luo Qingyan stayed where she was, watching over Chestnut and Pudding. None of the dogs here were on leashes, and if Pudding went and bothered other dogs, someone would have to stop it.
As Luo Qingyan watched, she noticed that Situ Lu's phone call was going on for quite a while, which meant it must be something important. Since Chestnut and Pudding were behaving themselves, she thought she could take this opportunity to call the little male fish. She probably wouldn't be able to go there today either, so she definitely needed to call and let him know, and also ask about his situation.
I acted on my thought immediately, took out my phone, dialed the number, and the call was quickly connected.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Luo Qingyan's voice was gentle. "How are you feeling today?"
"I'm watching a documentary, and I feel pretty good today." The little male merman answered the questions one by one, but that was all.
"Oh, what documentary were you watching?" Luo Qingyan was used to the little male merman's style of answering whatever he asked, so she continued to ask questions.
Little Male Mermaid: "Intangible Cultural Heritage Documentary".
"Intangible cultural heritage? Intangible cultural heritage! You've actually started watching this? That's too...too fast!" Luo Qingyan raised her voice in surprise, and she quickly raised her hand to cover her mouth.
Little Male Mermaid: "I watched it because it was recommended by the website. It's very good and helps you understand another side of humanity."
"Are you taking Chestnut out to play? There's a lot of noise over there." The little merman rarely took the initiative to ask a question.
Luo Qingyan: "Yes, there are many puppies in the petting zoo in the park. Chestnut and its good friends are playing together and having a great time."
Little Mermaid: "Oh, that's great."
Luo Qingyan: "Well, I called you to tell you that I won't be coming over today either. Grandma and Auntie are at the market, and I'm staying here to play with Li Zi. I'll probably get home quite late, so I won't be coming. Take care of yourself at home."
Little Mermaid: "Okay, will you come tomorrow?"
Luo Qingyan: "I'll try my best to go."
Little Mermaid: "You said the same thing yesterday,"
Luo Qingyan: "Uh... that's why I said I'd try my best, but unexpected things are inevitable."
"I bought some food..." Situ Lu didn't notice Luo Qingyan was on the phone at first, but when he saw it, he immediately shut his mouth and gently placed the tray on the table.
"Are you with someone?" The little merman's hearing was exceptional, and he naturally caught Situ Lu's voice.
Luo Qingyan: "A friend, the owner of Chestnut's friend, we played together at the pet park."
Little Mermaid: "Oh."
Luo Qingyan: "That's all for now, let's talk again later, bye!"
Little Mermaid: "Okay, bye-bye."
-
After hanging up the phone, Luo Qingyan discovered that Situ Lu had bought sugar water for humans and snacks for dogs.
“We’ve been playing for so long, and both the people and the dog are hungry. They should eat something.” Situ Lu handed a bowl of sweet soup to Luo Qingyan, a bowl to himself, and left the dog’s snacks. “We’ll eat first, and then they can eat.”
Luo Qingyan was a little dazed after making the call and didn't know what to say for a moment. The other person had clearly gone to make a call as well, but came back with so much food.
"Is it not to your liking?" Situ Lu asked softly. "If so, just tell me, and we'll change it to something else. I can eat two bowls; I won't waste any."
"It suits my taste," Luo Qingyan quickly replied with a smile. "I was a little surprised that such delicious food suddenly appeared in front of me."
"After I finished the call, I heard someone say that this dessert shop was pretty good, so I bought some to try."
"Okay, it does look pretty good." Luo Qingyan picked up a spoon and started eating the sweet soup.
The sweet soup is generously filled with ingredients: cassava, taro balls, red beans, peach gum, and lotus seeds. The colors are beautifully combined, making it very appetizing. It also tastes delicious, especially the sticky and chewy cassava and the chewy taro balls; you'll want to take a second bite after the first.
My little boy likes the tapioca pearls in bubble tea, saying they're fragrant and fun to chew, so he'll probably like tapioca syrup too!
As Luo Qingyan ate her sweet soup, she couldn't help but think of the little merman who loved food. It had been a while since they'd eaten together, and she'd thought they'd gradually gotten used to it, but...
According to her plan, the two should have grown closer, which would have given her a better chance of getting what she wanted. But for some reason, she felt like retreating. She wasn't intentionally using this push-and-pull tactic to attract him; it just happened unconsciously. She didn't know if this retreat was out of fear that she might fall for him while he remained unmoved, or out of fear of ending up with nothing.
Either one is terrible.
Chestnut and Pudding's barking pulled Luo Qingyan back from her reverie. Seeing their owner eating, the two puppies weren't about to sit quietly and play; they'd already played for a long time that afternoon, and eating was more important now.
"You two wait a bit." Situ Lu used gestures to soothe the two puppies. "If you don't want to play, sit quietly for a while and calm down, so you don't gobble down your food later."
However, the two puppies simply couldn't stay still; the aroma of the food was just too tempting.
“Puppies have an exceptionally keen sense of smell; it’s too much to ask of them.” Luo Qingyan looked at Chestnut and Pudding, wanting to put down her spoon and feed the two little ones first.
"As expected of the little tyrant!" Situ Lu put down his spoon for the sugar water first and went to get the dog's treats. "Come on, you two have had a good time playing, have some snacks!"
Luo Qingyan was also about to put down her spoon and feed the puppy some snacks.
“You eat slowly, I’ll watch them.” Situ Lu noticed Luo Qingyan’s actions. “We’ll switch later. They need to eat their snacks slowly, it will take some time.”
“Okay.” Luo Qingyan instantly understood Situ Lu’s intention; taking turns was fine. She then sped up her eating of the sweet soup. She couldn’t just eat slowly because someone told her to; it was politeness, and she had to be polite too. The sweet soup would lose its deliciousness if left too long.
A little while later, Luo Qingyan finished her sweet soup and picked up some snacks. Suddenly, she remembered something important and thought it was the perfect time to say it: "When we leave later, let Chestnut and Pudding go to the toy store over there and pick out a toy! It's only fair to reciprocate, thank you for the sweet soup and snacks."
Situ Lu understood Luo Qingyan's meaning and did not refuse: "Okay."
-
Today wasn't a sunny day to begin with, and with dark clouds expected to drift in later, it's definitely not a good time to stay any longer.
My grandma and aunt called, saying they were worried about the rain and were preparing to go home.
It was getting late, and Luo Qingyan had finished her sweet soup and snacks. So, after choosing toys with Chestnut and Pudding, she went to meet up with the others.
Since Luo Qingyan and Situ Lu were not at the same meeting point with their families, they reached a fork in the road and waved goodbye.
When she said goodbye, Luo Qingyan received a message on her phone, but she was busy saying goodbye to Situ Lu and rushing to meet up with her grandmother and aunt, so she didn't check the message immediately.
Then, as they approached the meeting point, her phone rang.
She took out her phone and saw that it was Xiao Nanyu calling. Fearing it might be an emergency, she quickly answered, "Hello, Xiaomei, what's up?"
"The power is out." The little merman's voice was relatively calm.
"Power outage? Wait a moment." Luo Qingyan immediately checked her text messages and WeChat, but found no power outage notification.
Luo Qingyan: "I didn't receive a power outage notice, so it's possible that the circuit breaker tripped. The electrical panel is located in the entryway; simply turn the circuit breaker back on."
Little Mermaid: "Power outage? Electrical box?"
"Sigh... I hadn't considered the possibility of a power outage before. These are all things I haven't told you about, and it's hard to explain them over the phone." Luo Qingyan sighed. An accident is an accident; you can't predict everything, and I never thought the little male merman could control water and do so many things.
Little Mermaid: "What should we do then?"
Luo Qingyan: "Let's use the spare light first! Isn't there a battery-operated nightlight in the bathroom? Besides, you have a shiny fishtail! That should be bright enough in the bathroom. Oh! Even though the bathroom window is small, make sure to close the blinds, otherwise it will be very noticeable from the outside."
Little Mermaid: "Oh."
Luo Qingyan sensed that the little male merman's tone wasn't very happy, so she added, "Aren't you afraid of the dark?"
Little Male Mermaid: "..."
Luo Qingyan: "You're so smart, you should understand what a power outage is all about, right?"
The little merman was silent for a moment before slowly saying, "Aren't you coming?"
Luo Qingyan suddenly realized something, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly. After a moment, she said, "Do you want me to come over?"
The little merman only reacted for a moment: "Hmm."
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