Chapter 81: LullabyÂ
“Aowu!” Papa, it’s story time! The White Dumpling burrowed under the quilt and lay down properly.
“Okay, let me tell a story to the two tiger babies.” Lin Xia smiled, grabbing the storybook and sitting between the Big Dumpling and the White Dumpling, taking advantage of Tang Yinlang verbally.
“Ao!” The Big Dumpling was not convinced. He immediately reverted to his original size, pressing down on Lin Xia unexpectedly. His deep blue eyes stared straight at Lin Xia.
Ao! Two tiger babies?
“I was wrong!” Lin Xia couldn’t push the heavy Big White Tiger off, so he had to beg for mercy.
“Ao!” The Big White Tiger got off Lin Xia, wagged his tail, and narrowed his eyes happily. He seemed very satisfied with Lin Xia’s performance.
“Aowu!” Babi is so big! The White Dumpling jumped up excitedly, circling the Big White Tiger. In his eyes, the Big White Tiger was huge, majestic, and domineeringâsimply his ideal image.
“Ao!” The Big White Tiger nuzzled the cute White Dumpling with his “massive” head, feeling smug inside because of the White Dumpling’s adoring and envious gaze.
“Alright, I’m going to tell the story.” Lin Xia found a spot on the Big White Tiger’s body and leaned back comfortably.
The Big White Tiger’s fur was soft and warm, like a high-end cushion. Not only was it soft, but it was also self-heating.
“Aowu!” Okay, An’an is ready! The White Dumpling climbed onto the Big White Tiger, leaned next to Lin Xia, and poked his head out to look at the storybook. Although he couldn’t read, he could look at the illustrations.
“The story today is Little Gecko Borrows a Tail…” â
One day, a little gecko was catching mosquitoes in the corner of a wall when a snake bit his tail. The little gecko ran away in a panic. With a strong tug, his tail snapped off. How ugly it was without a tail! The little gecko was extremely sad.
…
“Aowu!” Must protect An’an’s tail! The White Dumpling was scared by the little gecko’s story and hurriedly clamped his tail tight.
“Don’t worry, your tail won’t be bitten off that easily.” Lin Xia stroked the White Dumpling’s tail, laughing.
“Aowu!” Then what happened! The White Dumpling wiggled his round butt, trying to bury his tail in the Big White Tiger’s long fur.
“Then… the little gecko…” The story continued until the White Dumpling fell asleep lying on the Big White Tiger.
Lin Xia lifted the White Dumpling down and placed him on the innermost side of the bed. Then, reaching around the Big White Tiger, he placed the storybook on the bedside table.
“I’m turning off the lights?” After the intense exercise last night and a busy day today, Lin Xia was already sleepy. He yawned, his eyes shimmering with tears.
“Ao!” The Big White Tiger nodded.
Lin Xia turned off the light, gave the White Dumpling his customary kiss, and then lay down dutifully between the Big White Tiger and the White Dumpling.
“Ao!” Darling, goodnight! The Big White Tiger said the shameful goodnight phrase. He couldn’t say these words usually, but when he was a Big White Tiger and Lin Xia couldn’t understand him, he could say them to his heart’s content.
“Goodnight!” Lin Xia reached out and hugged the Big White Tiger, cuddling this automatic heat source to sleep…
At 1:00 AM, Lin Xia groggily got up to help the White Dumpling pee. The White Dumpling was still at the bed-wetting age. Lin Xia had to wake him to pee every night, or he would wet the bedâespecially tonight, since the White Dumpling had drunk a lot of beverages.
When he got up and turned his head, he saw a white lump at the head of the bed. Lin Xia shivered, feeling a chill down his spine, and retreated several steps.
Lin Xia steadied his mind. looking closely, he discovered the white lump was moving, and then… a small warm light turned on.
“Scared me to death! Why aren’t you sleeping? Insomnia?” The faint warm light illuminated the corner of the bed, shining directly on the white lump. With the light, Lin Xia realized the white lump was the shrunken version of the Big White Tiger.
“Ao!” The Big Dumpling nodded, admitting he had insomnia.
Being pressed tightly against a sleeping Lin Xiaâhow could a virile adult tiger resist the temptation? The Big White Tiger’s blood was boiling, and he couldn’t calm down for a long time. So, the Big White Tiger turned into human form, went to the bathroom to solve his physiological problem, and when he came back, his mind was wide awake. Thus, unable to sleep, he turned back into his beast form and lay at the head of the bed. If he slept in human form, his body would be pressed tight against Lin Xia…
“That sounds rough…” Lin Xia used to suffer from insomnia often. During the time he wandered alone after leaving the Cheng family, he lived in fear every day, afraid of being found by them. Whenever night fell, lying in the motel unable to sleep, he tried all sorts of ways to fall asleep, but in the end, he could only keep his eyes open until dawn.
However, his worry had been superfluous. Firstly, because his vigilance was high; he tried his best to hide his tracks. He didn’t take trains but rode buses that didn’t require ID registration, and he stayed in small motels that didn’t check IDs. Secondly, for some reason, the Cheng family didn’t look for him, though Lin Xia didn’t know that point…
Insomnia for a Big White Tiger… just thinking about it seemed painful. Lin Xia felt sorry for the Big White Tiger and made him a cup of milk. He heard milk helped with sleep. Lin Xia didn’t know if it was true, but there was no better option right now.
The Big Dumpling looked at the milk with disdain. This cup of milk was made with the White Dumpling’s milk powder; it was clearly something for cubs. Although he disdained it, the Big Dumpling still gulped it down.
Lin Xia took the White Dumpling to the second-floor bathroom and made a “shhh” sound. The White Dumpling was dazed, but hearing the sound, he peed out of habit. Lin Xia waited for him to finish, wiped him clean with tissue, and took him back to continue sleeping.
“Ao!” The Big Dumpling finished the milk, licked the milk mustache off the corner of his mouth, and looked at Lin Xia with burning eyes.
“What am I going to do with you, insomniac Big White Tiger?” Lin Xia thought of methods silently; he wanted to help Tang Yinlang fall asleep.
“Sing you a lullaby?” A lightbulb went off in Lin Xia’s head.
“Ao?” Lullaby? The Big Dumpling folded his ears in a conditioned reflex, remembering the terror of being dominated by lullabies in his childhood.
Tang Yinlang’s father, Song Yi, was tone-deaf, but he loved to sing. When Tang Yinlang was still a child and couldn’t “resist,” a lullaby before bed was mandatory… Song Yi’s tune could run from their courtyard to hundreds of miles away. One could imagine how much “poisoning” little Tang Yinlang had suffered.
“…” What is that reaction?! Seeing the Big Dumpling’s response, Lin Xia wanted to punch the tiger.
“Ao!” Tang Yinlang was afraid Lin Xia would mind, so he proactively nuzzled him, asking Lin Xia to sing for him. Honestly, he hadn’t heard Lin Xia sing before.
Lin Xia understood his meaning. He prepared himself and cleared his throat. Afraid of waking the White Dumpling, Lin Xia deliberately lowered his voice.
“Sleep, sleep, my dear baby, Mama’s hands gently rock you. Rocking cradle, rock you to sleep quickly, The night is quiet, inside the quilt is so warm…” âĄ
Lin Xia’s voice was gentle and clear, like a murmuring stream in the mountains, cleansing the soul and making a restless heart involuntarily quiet down…
Amidst the melodious lullaby, the Big Dumpling’s eyelids grew heavier and heavier. In a trance, he seemed to return to his childhood, with the off-key Song Yi singing him a lullaby. After a while, the person singing changed to Lin Xia…
The Big Dumpling gradually entered dreamland, the corners of his mouth rising uncontrollably, as if having a sweet dream…
After the insomniac tiger fell asleep, Lin Xia gently turned off the light and slept on the outermost side.
“Goodnight!”
…
Spring returned to the earth, all things revived, and flowers bloomed in the warmth.
With the rise in temperature, the people of Jiang City began to take off their heavy coats and change into lighter jackets, no longer wrapping themselves up tightly.
The small street vendors returned as well, and the streets and alleys recovered their former bustle. Especially when the Chengguan (Urban Management) came, the vendors would drive their carts and flee in a swarmâthat scene was particularly lively.
As soon as the weather improved, the madams liked to go out. They would call up their best friends, bring their pets for a wash and styling, or buy some dog food, cat food, and pet toys.
Green Ivy Community was a gathering place for the wealthy. The community had some noble ladies who had married into “rich families”; they could live a beautiful life without working. Shopping every day, raising pets, chatting with sisters… They seemed to live a life others envied, but only they could understand the joys and sorrows within.
Mrs. Li and her group of best friends were regulars at the pet shop. Raising pets carried an element of showing off for them, so they placed great importance on their pets’ appearance. Of course, their pets were all expensive and beautiful breeds.
“Little Lin, long time no see!” Mrs. Li greeted Lin Xia while holding her Teddy dog (Poodle). She smiled ladylike-ly, not showing her teeth, very much in the style of a wealthy madam.
“Long time no see, Mrs. Li!” Lin Xia smiled and greeted her back. Mrs. Li was a regular customer and was quite generous with money. Although Mrs. Li always acted with a sense of superiority, she was a decent person.
“We came to get styling for our pets today.” Mrs. Li waved her hand, sticking out her pinky finger.
“Okay.” Whenever Mrs. Li and her clique came, it meant big business. Lin Xia was naturally very happy.
Lin Xia had Wang Ziyu and Mong Zheng carry the ladies’ pets inside. He served sunflower seeds and fruits to the ladies, letting them eat and chat.
When these ladies got together, it definitely wasn’t just for pet styling; chatting was the main event.
“Oh my, Shujun, you changed your ring?” A sharp-eyed lady discovered the diamond ring Li Shujun (Mrs. Li) was deliberately yet subtly displaying. This method of display was practiced; all noble ladies did it.
“Yes, my husband said he wanted to celebrate our fifteenth wedding anniversary, so he had a new pair of rings made.” Li Shujun touched the diamond ring on her other hand with fingers painted with red nail polish. Her tone was light, as if she was mentioning it casually.
“Shujun, you are so lucky to have such a doting husband!” The other women spoke enviously, though it was unknown if they were sincere or fake. But Li Shujun clearly enjoyed it, giggling incessantly.
Lin Xia paused while trimming the Teddy’s fur. He could hear the ladies’ voices and trembling laughter from far away. Sometimes, a sudden burst of laughter made his hand shake.
Although the ladies mostly chatted about gossip and showing off, Lin Xia heard “ring.” He and Tang Yinlang didn’t have rings yet, but according to Tang Yinlang, they would get married later, so there would be rings too.
Just thinking about it made him look forward to it…
Author’s note: “Ao!” Darling, goodnight! The Big White Tiger said the shameful goodnight phrase. He couldn’t say these words usually, but when he was a Big White Tiger and Lin Xia couldn’t understand him, he could say them to his heart’s content. White Dumpling: “Aowu!” Papa, Babi said ‘Darling, goodnight’! Lin Xia: “Oh ho?!” Big White Tiger: “?!!!!!”
â From Little Gecko Borrows a Tail ⥠From Lullaby (Brahms’ Lullaby/Schubert’s Lullaby lyrics variant)
Fixed a bug: Since the practicing veterinarian license can only be taken after graduation, Lin Xia needs to have graduated from university. So I changed Lin Xia to be a university graduate. Goodnight~
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