Little Duckling - Chapter 10

“Oh, trying something new?” Yan Lu remarked.

Jian Xin had lived twenty-eight years as a complete landlubber. She never imagined that someone who felt insecure even walking by a river could experience the joy of swimming in a duck’s body.

Childish! This is utterly childish!

By the time she realized this, she had already chased Yan Lu’s hand, which was pouring water down on her, around the bathtub several times.

Well, childish it is then…

After all, “mature and steady” and “hardworking and reliable” were just labels used by laborers to slightly increase their perceived value. Now that she had become a duck, why bother clinging to such notions?

Since she couldn’t return to her human form for the time being, she might as well embrace her new reality and do whatever she pleased!

With this thought, Jian Xin completely let go of her inhibitions and began to leisurely float around the bathtub.

However, this carefree childishness didn’t last long.

Just as the little duck was enjoying herself, her owner, who had been watching from the side, scooped her out of the water, placed her on the sink, and started blow-drying her.

The warm air made Jian Xin squint.

The hairdryer roared loudly, and Yan Lu was saying something beside her, but Jian Xin couldn’t make out the words over the noise.

“Cauliflower, Mommy has to go out for a while and won’t be back until later. Be good with Xin Xin and don’t make a mess of the house again, okay?”

Jian Xin tilted her head, craning her neck to look at Yan Lu.

“Quack—” Can’t you take me with you?

Yan Lu ruffled the duck’s wing, carefully blowing each damp feather dry. “If you promise to behave, I won’t put you in your cage today.”

Jian Xin instantly puffed out her chest, straightened her posture, and stood at attention.

“Quack! Quack quack quack quack—”

I want to go with you! Please, take me!

No one in this world is more worried about the person you’re going to see than I am!

“Standing so straight? Then I’ll take that as a yes,” Yan Lu said, gently stroking the duck’s head. “The food in your bowl might be stale. I’ll give you some fresh before I leave. Try to eat a little. Tomorrow you can have something different.”

Jian Xin: “……”

She wanted to speak, but held back, then wanted to speak again. After much deliberation, she could only sigh.

In the end, Yan Lu left alone, without the dog or the duck.

It made sense, really. Who would bring their pets to visit a patient in the hospital?

Even if I had one, the hospital probably wouldn’t let me in anyway…

Sigh, this is so frustrating.

The little duckling gazed up at the tall entrance door once more, lost in deep thought.

Why had she ended up here in the first place, and how could she ever escape?

The first time she arrived, it was because she’d been in a car accident and fell into a coma. She returned to her body after waking up from a nap.

The second time, she came here after falling asleep again. Returning… well, she’d slept, but her soul hadn’t yet found its way back.

It was already past one in the afternoon. If her body on the hospital bed remained unconscious, wouldn’t they drag her to the operating room for a second round of resuscitation?

Just as Jian Xin was deep in thought, she suddenly heard a dog panting behind her.

The sound was so close, almost right next to her ear.

She could even feel the dog’s hot breath, puffing against the back of her head with each pant.

Right, I threw my weight around earlier today, she thought. This dog probably made a mental note and is just waiting for Yan Lu to leave so it can “teach” this rebellious duck a lesson…

Jian Xin shuddered at the thought.

She turned around shakily, but before she could even stammer out, “What do you want?” the furry behemoth had pinned her firmly to the ground with its stubby legs!

“Quack—!” Sisters! Is this really necessary?!

The terrified duck flapped her tiny wings, struggling with all her might—but the dog simply pressed half its body down on her.

“Quack-ah-ah!” Jian Xin was about to lose it!

We’re roommates! Can’t we just talk things out instead of resorting to violence? This is so uncivilized!

The Corgi’s black nose pressed against Jian Xin’s slender white neck, its pink tongue licking her rapidly, sending shivers down her spine and causing her feathers to bristle.

Ahhhhh!

A dog shouldn’t—no, it shouldn’t—bully a duck it sees every day!

The dog’s tongue was wet and slightly warm, leaving Jian Xin feeling utterly uncomfortable.

She couldn’t bear the humiliation of being bullied by a dog. She squeezed her eyes shut, praying for it to end quickly.

But the wet sensation grew increasingly strange.

It wasn’t just on her neck anymore; it had spread to her face and head… carrying a faint medicinal scent.

Wait, wait a minute?

Why would a dog’s saliva smell like medicine?

Jian Xin’s eyes snapped open in shock.

Pale blue curtains, white bedsheets, and the heavy bandages wrapped around her body…

Yao Wenqian, holding a warm, damp towel, had just finished wiping Jian Xin’s face and was now rinsing the towel in a steaming basin of water nearby.

She was back?

This was far too sudden!

“Ugh…” Her head felt dizzy. Had she slept too long?

“You’re awake?” Yao Wenqian put down the towel and turned to ask. “Are you hungry? Want something to eat?”

Jian Xin nodded instinctively, her mind still foggy and her gaze blank, as if her soul hadn’t fully returned yet.

Yao Wenqian helped her sit up, quickly set up a bedside table, and brought over a thermal lunchbox.

Inside were mung bean porridge and a side of pickled mustard greens.

“Thank you for your hard work,” Jian Xin said, her interest in the food minimal. She asked out of curiosity, “What time is it now?”

Yao Wenqian glanced down at her phone. “It’s almost two o’clock.”

Jian Xin remained silent.

Yao Wenqian picked up a spoon and fed Jian Xin a mouthful of congee. “You really can sleep!”

“Mmm…” Jian Xin mumbled.

If she had a choice, she wouldn’t want to be such a heavy sleeper.

The past two days had been filled with bizarre events that would have been mentally overwhelming for any normal person.

Though she was now awake, her mind still felt foggy. Even after being fed an entire meal, she hadn’t fully recovered.

Seeing Jian Xin’s distracted expression, Yao Wenqian assumed she was deeply worried about her work being disrupted by her injury and hospitalization. She quickly offered reassurance: “Hey, I’m really sorry for causing this. But don’t worry, my cousin and I have discussed it, and we’ll take full responsibility for this—you’ll get every penny of compensation you deserve!”

Jian Xin let out a soft “Ah,” snapping back to reality. “I wasn’t thinking about that.”

“Huh?” Yao Wenqian paused, quickly shifting her approach to comfort. “You’re thinking about recovering, aren’t you? Don’t worry, don’t worry! The doctor said your injuries aren’t severe—they didn’t even need to use a steel plate!”

“Ten days, about ten days until you can be discharged! Full recovery in two to three months!” As she spoke, her enthusiasm grew, a smile breaking through her earlier restraint. “Thank goodness I braked in time! You suddenly appeared, then wham! you went flying so far! My soul practically flew with you! It’s a miracle you weren’t more seriously hurt…”

Realizing she might have touched a nerve, Yao Wenqian bit her lip, puffed out her cheeks, and silently lowered her lashes.

Jian Xin: “It’s okay. Hey—you don’t need to feel so guilty. I was drunk that day too…”

Yao Wenqian nodded. “That’s true. I hadn’t been drinking or driving while fatigued. There was no crosswalk or traffic light at the accident site—given the circumstances, I couldn’t possibly be held fully responsible.”

“It’s my cousin,” Yao Wenqian said, glancing sincerely at Jian Xin. “She recognized you. Although they had some history, they were quite close back then. Seeing you in such a state, she couldn’t bring herself to be completely heartless.”

“Speaking of which,” Yao Wenqian continued, “regardless of any past grievances between you and my cousin, you should thank her this time! Because she recognized you, she voluntarily covered a significant portion of the expenses. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have hesitated to argue about who was at fault.”

She added with blunt honesty, “If I had to bear full responsibility, I simply couldn’t afford it!”

Jian Xin: “……”

Not my sister. I was giving you an out, and you had to turn around and slap me with it?

This conversation was clearly going nowhere.

Jian Xin sighed, leaned back slightly, and quietly drifted into a daze.

Her head throbbed, and her eyelids felt heavy.

But the thought of closing her eyes and waking up back in that duck’s body kept her from even resting them.

Noticing Jian Xin’s boredom, Yao Wenqian silently propped up her phone and started playing a recently popular drama.

The drama was titled Fallen Jade Branch, and its female lead was Lin Xiyu, a rising star who had become a sensation in the past two years.

But that wasn’t the main point.

The real kicker was that the drama was adapted from a novel, and its original author, by sheer coincidence, was the renowned Yan Lu Er Qi—Jian Xin’s ex-girlfriend, Yan Lu.

Jian Xin: “You, you’re…”

Yao Wenqian: “It’s really good!”

Jian Xin: “Is it…?”

Yao Wenqian: “Just watch! You’ll see! I can put my work aside and watch with you!”

Jian Xin took a deep breath, gazing at Yao Wenqian’s eager and expectant eyes. For a long moment, she couldn’t think of a reason to refuse.

And so, she found herself sitting on the hospital bed, watching a drama adapted from her ex-girlfriend’s novel with her ex’s cousin.

When Yan Lu arrived at the hospital, laughter echoed from the tightly closed hospital room.

Two girls, their voices neither loud nor disruptive, were watching the drama, their conversation interspersed with lines that were all too familiar to her.

As Yan Lu pushed open the door, the dialogue continued to play, and Yao Wenqian was still laughing.

But the patient on the bed had instantly switched to a blank expression.

“Cousin! You’re here so early!” Yao Wenqian looked up and waved at Yan Lu, her face beaming. “I’m watching your drama with Sister Jian Xin!”

“Your drama?” Jian Xin feigned ignorance, her expression slightly surprised.

“Yeah, my novel,” Yan Lu said casually as she walked to the bedside, setting down her bag. “Looks like you don’t like it much.”

“Well, it’s just…”

“She loves it!” Yao Wenqian interjected. “She was laughing so loudly just now!”

Jian Xin opened her mouth awkwardly, the unfinished “it’s just okay” stuck in her throat. When she finally spoke again, the sentence had changed: “The female lead is quite pretty.”

Yao Wenqian: “Right? Right? She’s so clever!”

“Mm,” Jian Xin nodded in agreement.

“Oh, changing your tastes?” Yan Lu remarked, settling into a chair beside the bed.

“…?” What does she mean by “changing tastes”?

Why does this woman always speak with such veiled barbs?

Couldn’t she show even a tenth of the tenderness she reserves for her ducks and dogs to a pitiful car accident victim?