Chapter 45

Having accomplished her objective, the High Priestess delivered her final words and, with commendable discretion, pulled her hood back up before departing the third-floor private room.

With the High Priestess gone, what faced Shen Jiujiu now was nothing less than a pure family affair.

…Wasn’t it?

The Benefactor and Mother were, without question, the two people dearest to Jiujiu in all the world.

Shen Jiujiu glanced at the Benefactor tucked against his left wing, then at Mother on his right. After a moment’s thought, he shuffled forward on his tail feathers to the center of the table and plopped down with a decisive thud.

His actions made it clear: there was no ranking between them, no precedence at all.

A soft chirp escaped Shen Jiujiu, laced with conflict and distress.

Couldn’t Little Bird be spared this agonizing choice between the two?

He wasn’t anywhere near old enough to decide something like who he should live with.

Yet the reality was stark. If Shen Jiujiu couldn’t transform back into Shen Xinian, then as a helpless little bird in need of care, he would inevitably have to choose—either leave the Capital with Mother or stay here with the Benefactor.

Xie Jingtang prodded the top of Shen Jiujiu’s head with her fingertip.

He twisted around to face her, meeting her gaze head-on. In her eyes, he read that familiar mix of exasperation and disappointment—the look of someone hating iron for not being steel, wondering how her little chick could side with an outsider.

Suddenly, it hit him like a bolt of inspiration as he recalled the pep talk he’d given her from behind the screen. His eyes lit up in a flash.

Was Mother perhaps—?

Unable to stomach her son’s utterly undignified birdish antics any longer, Xie Jingtang pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve and draped it over the quivering bird dumpling smack in the middle of the table.

Out of sight, out of mind.

With Little Bird’s fluttering heart thus contained, Xie Jingtang rose to her feet and offered Pei Du a deep, respectful bow.

Pei Du’s eyelid twitched. It took every ounce of his self-control to suppress the impulse to stand and return the gesture.

In truth, whether it stemmed from his life-saving debt to Shen Xinian or the mentor’s affection he held for Shen Jiujiu, Pei Du fully deserved such a bow.

But…

For the moment, he set aside that strange twinge in his chest and accepted it.

Xie Jingtang performed the curtsy with poise and grace, then resumed her seat as naturally as if nothing had happened. Straight to the point, she asked, “If I may be so bold, Lord Pei—what are your current thoughts and plans regarding my family’s Xinian?”

Pei Du blinked, momentarily taken aback.

Thoughts… plans?

Pei Du was exceptionally perceptive, his intellect sharp enough to border on the uncanny. Unlike the practiced eye for character that Xie Jingtang had honed through years of trade, Pei Du delved deep into the human heart itself.

In the span of a few breaths, her single question spun through a dozen interpretations in his mind.

He recalled her furious outburst from behind the screen just moments ago.

Warming the bed…?

Shifting perspectives and considering her position as a mother, sudden understanding dawned in Pei Du’s eyes.

Rather than blurt out a hasty clarification that might embarrass Shen Jiujiu or Xie Jingtang due to their misunderstanding, he weighed his words carefully before admitting frankly, “I was poisoned in my youth, leaving me with a chronic affliction. At night, I struggle to find sleep, and when the headaches strike, the torment is excruciating.”

Shen Jiujiu had been waiting patiently under his handkerchief cover, letting the two adults finish their talk.

He hadn’t yet shared the details of the Benefactor’s condition or his own role in easing it with Mother. Though rumors of Pei Du’s headaches circulated widely in the Capital, they remained his private matter—his alone to disclose.

Still, from his time spent with Pei Du, Little Bird knew the Benefactor would explain.

This was the first Shen Jiujiu had heard that the headaches stemmed from poisoning!!!

Poison!!!

With a vigorous flap of his wing, he flung the handkerchief aside and launched himself at Pei Du, chirping loudly all the way.

Pei Du was ready for him. He scooped up the little bird in both hands and smoothed his ruffled feathers with practiced ease.

“Chirp chirp chirp chirp!”

Pei Du gently pinched the tip of a wing. “The headaches aren’t fatal for now, but they do shorten one’s lifespan. In the long run, they can twist the temper, too.”

“Chirp chirp chirp chirp chirp—chirp! Chirp! Chirp!”

Shen Jiujiu pecked fiercely at Pei Du’s finger, demanding the full story on the poisoning.

Pei Du pinched his beak shut, muting the outburst. “Jiujiu is like a miracle cure for me. If Madam Xie would consent to letting him stay by my side, I vow to cherish and nurture him with all I have. He won’t suffer the slightest grievance or hardship.”

Shen Jiujiu wrenched his beak free and persisted. “Chirp chirp chirp chirp!!!”

Pei Du leaned in close and murmured, “I’ll tell you everything when we get home, all right?”

Shen Jiujiu considered it, then reluctantly nodded.

“Chirp chirp.”

Fine. But don’t forget.

Xie Jingtang, who had watched her son strike a deal to “talk about it at home” with the man: “…”

Ha.

Of course.

With her taste in men, it was no surprise she’d raised a gullible fool who could be led around by the nose.

She raised a hand to her lips and coughed lightly.

The feather on Shen Jiujiu’s head shot straight up. He snapped to attention, body rigid.

Remembering the promise he’d made to Mother, the Little Bird Dumpling waddled unsteadily back to the table’s center on clipped wings. He flopped onto his back, flat as a board, tilted his head, and seized the handkerchief in his beak to drape it over himself once more.

For the first time, Pei Du’s subtle maneuver on the little bird had backfired spectacularly. He curled his fingers and narrowed his eyes ever so slightly.

Xie Jingtang slipped back into her elder’s demeanor, offering a warm smile. “Lord Pei is one of the greatest scholars of our era. For either Xinian or Jiujiu to receive your guidance would be the highest honor imaginable.”

“But…”

A trace of regret crossed her features.

“For Xinian to come and go from Pei Mansion as your student—that would delight us all.”

“Jiujiu’s situation, however, is different. He may appear as nothing more than a little bird now, but in truth… Your offer to teach him is most kind. Yet keeping him so intimately by your pillow—it’s hardly conducive to your future marriage and heirs, or to harmony in your inner household.”

She stopped just short of spelling it out: You might tolerate sharing your bed with a bird for your ailment now, but once you take a wife and concubines, having a little bird—who is, at heart, a male—tucked in your quarters will breed resentment.

What then? If the Benefactor, seen as a mentor, grew distant or even hostile, how was Little Bird supposed to cope?

Shen Jiujiu had never considered this before. Pei Du’s household was indeed empty of women.

But Mother had a point.

The Benefactor’s past illness had prevented him from starting a family. Once the chronic headaches no longer plagued him, and with his thirtieth birthday approaching, taking a wife, filling his household, and siring heirs would be the most natural course.

Mother didn’t even need to ask—Shen Jiujiu knew he couldn’t bear it.

Yet as a little bird, he had no right to interfere. He couldn’t even voice the question.

Because Shen Jiujiu was merely a little bird.

And he shared no relationship with his benefactor beyond that of student and teacher.

Shen Jiujiu lay there under the handkerchief, appearing calm and composed on the surface, but in truth straining to perk up his ear holes and catch Pei Du’s reply. His wings were folded neatly in front of him, their tips twisting restlessly, while his talons clenched tight with tension.

Yet Pei Du’s response utterly surpassed every possibility that Xie Jingtang and Shen Jiujiu had brainstormed together earlier.

Lord Pei spoke with perfect calm: “I have no interest in women, nor will I marry or take concubines merely for the sake of heirs.”

Even someone as worldly as Xie Jingtang couldn’t help but have her pupils contract in shock, her gaze flicking instinctively toward the table.

No way?

A man like this swung that way too?

Had Xinian really struck gold?

Shen Jiujiu, who had flipped off the handkerchief and sat up at some point, widened his bird eyes and stared fixedly at Pei Du.

Benefactor—

Taking Xie Jingtang’s earlier misunderstanding into account, Pei Du apparently felt his words needed clarification and added, “Nor do I have a taste for men.”

Xie Jingtang: “…”

Uh.

The spark in Shen Jiujiu’s eyes flickered out, and he slowly lay back down.

Xie Jingtang tenderly tucked the handkerchief back over her son.

Watching their perfectly synchronized movements, Pei Du suddenly understood where Shen Jiujiu got all those clever quirks, wild flights of fancy, and eccentric behaviors in his daily life.

Determined to let her son be a well-informed lone bird, Xie Jingtang mustered her nerve and pressed on: “Lord Pei, does that mean…?”

“Romantic feelings are nothing but desire pulling the strings—the most useless and uncontrollable force in this world.”

“I have no need of it.”

Pei Du’s tone was even, laced with unshakable certainty and a touch of arrogance.

He reached out and gently pinched the wingtip peeking out from under the handkerchief, a faint smile curving his lips.

“Jiujiu is an unexpected delight I never saw coming.”

“If we can stay together until our final days, then this life will not have been wasted.”

Held by the wingtip by the man he adored, Shen Jiujiu let out a sigh of utter defeat, puffing the handkerchief into a small bubble above him.

But this little bird craved a sweet romance!!

Woo.

Forget it—he was already just a little bird. What was he even dreaming of?

Cuddling up and sleeping side by side with his benefactor for life would be reward enough for any bird’s existence.

With that, Shen Jiujiu wriggled out from under the handkerchief and thunked his head decisively into Pei Du’s palm.

Fine!

Little Bird and Benefactor—cuddles for life!