Little Duckling - Chapter 4

Yan Lu changed her clothes, grabbed her phone, and snatched the car keys from the shoe cabinet by the door before rushing out.

Sensing that this likely concerned her, Jian Xin instinctively tried to follow. But her small, orange-yellow webbed feet had barely pattered halfway to the door when Yan Lu slammed it shut, trapping her inside.

The little duck tilted her head, standing before the dark brown front door and quacking a few times.

“Quack quack quack quack?”

I might be involved! Are you sure you don’t want to take me along?

The duck’s thoughts remained unintelligible to human ears.

No matter. There’s always a solution for every problem.

If humans lock up a duck, the duck will find her own way out!

She couldn’t help but ponder a question.

Is it really right for a door to confine me like this?

In her dreams, whether beautiful or nightmarish, she had always been in a state of constant flux, never lingering in one place for long.

Dreams, after all, are inherently illogical.

For Jian Xin, skipping classes or work was routine. In extreme situations, she’d even resort to parkour.

If this was truly a dream, how could a mere door possibly stop her?

咚!

A sudden, ethereal chime echoed through the silent night, startling Jian Xin.

After a moment of stunned stillness, she instinctively ducked her head, turned, and glanced toward the source of the sound.

嘎~

The little duck sighed in relief.

It was just the old-fashioned grandfather clock in the living room striking the hour!

Her family used to have one of these clocks. It chimed on the hour, every hour. The recent chime marked 4:00 AM.

Since graduating from college, she hadn’t visited home much. A few years ago, the house was renovated, and the old clock was discarded along with the outdated decor.

Having not heard that sound in so long, she’d been genuinely startled.

She used to be much less easily frightened. It must be the stress from all that overtime at work!

If she hadn’t been working those ridiculous hours every day, she wouldn’t have needed to drink so much and end up in this bizarre lucid dream.

Well, complaining won’t get me anywhere. I should focus on finding a way out of this house. Maybe waking up will end this dream.

The little duck nodded to herself, feeling a surge of determination.

She glanced back at the front door, then, with her wings tucked behind her, puffed out her chest and began to patrol the house like a tiny schoolteacher.

Let’s call this place Yan Lu’s house, for now.

For such a popular author, Yan Lu’s house wasn’t as grand as Jian Xin had imagined—two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and a study with a small balcony.

There were plenty of windows, but each room had security bars, and the balcony was enclosed. As a small duck, she had no chance of sneaking out while the owner was away.

Jian Xin circled the house, eventually returning to the front door. She flapped her wings and leaped upward several times, trying to reach the doorknob.

Ducks truly lived up to their winged reputation, jumping higher than she’d expected. But her tiny body was still too short; the doorknob remained frustratingly out of reach.

She tilted her head back, her intelligent, beady eyes fixed on the doorknob for a moment. Suddenly, an idea struck her!

Having worked like a horse for so long, her instincts for action were still sharp.

Jian Xin glanced around, then began backing away step by step until her rear bumped against the wall. Straightening up, she vigorously flapped her small wings, whump-whump-whump, and charged toward the shoe cabinet!

To be fair, while a duck’s feet weren’t particularly useful—sometimes even making it difficult to walk steadily—its wings were something else entirely. Flapping them made her feel lighter, as if she could take flight at any moment. It was exhilarating, almost impossible to stop!

Perhaps it was the body’s natural instinct, but after this short sprint, Jian Xin successfully took flight just before crashing into the door!

Her small wings, puff-puff-puff-puff, carried her round little body up to the shoe cabinet!

In the next moment, the duck executed an emergency chest brake, barely managing to stop. The impact sent decorations on the cabinet tumbling and crashing to the floor with a loud clatter-clatter-clatter.

Jian Xin stood up, shaking her slightly dazed head from the fall. She lowered her head and apologized to the mess on the floor with a series of “Quack, quack! My bad, my bad! It wasn’t intentional!”

But then she thought, It’s just a dream, after all. I’ve been so proper my whole life—why should I still be so orderly even in my dreams?

This thought immediately put her at ease. Spreading her wings, she used the height of the shoe cabinet to leap onto the doorknob.

The doorknob was flush against the door, and though the duck was small, she couldn’t get a foothold.

Despite Jian Xin’s frantic flapping, desperately trying to stay put, her large belly eventually pressed against the cool door, and with a “Quack!” she slid down.

No way! I can’t even get my claws on the knob to open the door!

Jian Xin glared at the door and stomped her foot. Mentally giving herself a pep talk, she retreated again and repeated the maneuver.

After several failed attempts, she couldn’t help but let out two frustrated “Quack, quack!”

As the quacks faded, a faint sound that didn’t belong to the night suddenly came from behind her.

The little duck turned timidly.

Behind it stood a large Corgi, head cocked, tongue lolling—staring at the duck, and then at the mess scattered across the doorway.

The duck froze, neck stiff, backing up until it could retreat no further.

Why do dogs in dreams feel so oppressively real…?

Jian Xin took a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut.

The dream has to end!

The dream has to end!!

The dream has to end!!!

Jian Xin, don’t be afraid. As an adult, you need to be rational.

There are no ghosts or spirits in this world, no soul transfers, and certainly no dreams you can’t wake up from!

Just relax. A human, even if they worked like a beast of burden their entire life, could never truly become a duck!

Breathe deeply. Stay calm.

When you open your eyes again, you’ll be home!

Don’t forget, Director Niu’s assignment is due on Monday. No rest for you tomorrow, ha ha ha!

Alright, alright, you can open your eyes now. Time to bravely face the cruel reality of working overtime on the weekend!

With a long exhale, Jian Xin slowly cracked open her eyelids.

The unfamiliar living room remained before her, and the chaotic mess she had made still littered the floor.

Even Xin Xin, the Corgi, continued to pant with her pink tongue lolling out, her dark, shiny eyes fixed on Jian Xin.

Ha ha, ha ha, ha ha ha!

The Trisolarans hadn’t appeared, physics still existed, yet her worldview seemed to have collapsed ahead of time!

After a rapid but not necessarily rational analysis, Jian Xin concluded that three possibilities existed:

First, she was in a lucid dream, but something was holding her captive.

Second, she had been hit by a car and her soul had transmigrated into a duck.

Third, she had gone completely mad. Ha ha ha ha!

Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!

The world had finally descended into a madness beyond her comprehension!

Perhaps overwhelmed by her mental state, the little duck couldn’t help but let out a series of wild “quack-quack” laughs.

The laughter, initially self-mocking, inadvertently sounded like a challenge, stirring a strange competitive urge deep within the Corgi’s heart.

Xin Xin: Woof!

Jian Xin: “Gah?”

What, what, what, what does it want?!

Xin Xin: “Woof!”

The Corgi barked again, wagging its fluffy, upright tail. Its four short legs suddenly straightened, and it darted toward the duck with a rapid tap-tap-tap.

Jian Xin was terrified by the sudden lunge. Her mind flooded with images of the Corgi drooling as it gnawed on the duck, completely eclipsing her earlier sorrow.

In an instant, she flapped her unfamiliar wings and leaped sideways, narrowly avoiding the dog. Then she fled for her life!

Five o’clock struck.

A panicked duck, driven by a series of sharp bangs, stumbled and darted wildly around the room, pursued relentlessly by a Corgi.

Before today, Jian Xin would never have imagined that the vitality she thought had vanished with her youth could ever miraculously return.

If ducks could track WeChat steps, she would have topped the leaderboard in her friends’ circle today!

But if she had a choice, she would rather not have this kind of vitality at all! Aaaaaah!!!

Yan Lu had just finished writing a chapter update and was about to coax her ducks to sleep before settling in herself when her cousin called.

The young woman had accidentally hit someone with her car. With all their relatives out of town, she was alone at the hospital, terrified and sobbing uncontrollably while watching over the injured man. Yan Lu couldn’t bear to leave her alone.

By the time Yan Lu drove to the hospital late that night, the injured man had just been wheeled out of surgery and into a regular ward.

The good news: he was alive, and his fractures weren’t severe; he was expected to make a full recovery.

The bad news: the patient showed signs of intracranial bleeding and remained unconscious. Although the doctors assured them it wasn’t critical, they couldn’t rule out potential long-term complications, such as a small chance of cognitive impairment.

Yao Wenqian, fresh out of college for just over a year, had never faced such a daunting situation. Terrified, she refused to leave the hospital, clutching her nearly dead phone as she anxiously guarded the ward.

When she learned Yan Lu had arrived, she rushed downstairs to meet her. The moment they met at the elevator, Yao Wenqian, her eyes rimmed with red, began pouring out her distress.

Faced with this situation, Yan Lu could only offer comfort: “At least he’s alive. We’ll discuss compensation after he wakes up. We need to determine who’s at fault first. We won’t let them take advantage of us.”

Yao Wenqian nodded, then suddenly remembered something. She poked Yan Lu’s hand with her index finger and bit her lip. “Um, Cousin, could you… not tell my parents about this?”

“You want to handle this yourself?”

“My grandmother fell a few days ago and has been in intensive care ever since. The family is already spending a lot of money. I can’t ask them to send more to help me,” Yao Wenqian said, her voice growing softer. “I can take on more freelance writing. I want to try and resolve this myself…”

“Forget it,” Yan Lu sighed. “If things get too tough, I’m here for you. Don’t try to shoulder everything alone.”

“Thank you, Cousin. Just promise you won’t tell my parents…” Yao Wenqian murmured as she led Yan Lu into the hospital room. “The person I hit was a girl. She looked clean and tidy. If I’m polite, she shouldn’t try to hold this over me for life, right?”

“Not necessarily,” Yan Lu replied. “Didn’t you say she reeked of alcohol? Don’t be too accommodating. Pay what’s owed, but not a penny more.”

“Ah?” Yao Wenqian’s anxiety surged again.

By the bedside light, Yan Lu glanced at the person lying in the hospital bed.

Her footsteps, which had been approaching the bed, suddenly halted.

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze.

After a long pause, she finally took a deep breath.

Yao Wenqian: “Cousin? What’s wrong?”

Yan Lu frowned. “Have you contacted their family?”

Yao Wenqian: “This person only had a phone on them, but I can’t unlock it. I don’t know who to contact…”

Yan Lu: “Where’s the phone?”

Yao Wenqian hurriedly pulled a phone with a large crack in the screen from her bag and handed it to Yan Lu.

Yan Lu took the phone and glanced at it. The screen still lit up.

After a moment’s thought, she tried entering a password, and the lock screen instantly opened.

Yan Lu couldn’t help but freeze in surprise.

Yao Wenqian’s eyes widened instantly. “Cousin! You, you, you… how did you…? Why can you…?”

“An old acquaintance,” Yan Lu said, flipping through the contacts. She couldn’t resist muttering, “Is she brainless? After all these years, she still hasn’t changed her password.”

Was this woman who had dumped her years ago really planning to use her birthday as her password for life?