Jealousy

The problem seemed to be far more troublesome than Lou Yuzhu had initially thought. "Tao Tao won't stay like this forever, right?"

She could accept Tao Tao as a pet, but she couldn't accept being bound to her this way. This would mean that she couldn't date anymore, and her life would include a partner she didn't even love. On top of that, if she rejected Tao Tao's advances, she'd have to deal with the emotional fallout and possibly even threats to Tao Tao's own life.

It was suffocating.

Fu Ye tried to ease her worries. "What's there to be afraid of? She's still young, isn't she? Her feelings aren't set in stone yet. Right now, she just depends on you. Once she has her own social circle, you might have trouble even getting her to come home."

Parrot people could go through rebellious phases too. They might sulk, argue with their owners, and, being social creatures, gradually lower their dependence on their owners once they got to know others of their kind.

It was similar to humans having close friends and casual acquaintances.

With Fu Ye's confident reassurance, Lou Yuzhu finally felt a little relieved. Without it, she'd still feel as though a thousand-pound weight were pressing down on her shoulders.

After their meal, Fu Ye decided to follow Lou Yuzhu home to check things out. After all, she admitted that part of this mess was her own oversight.

The two women found themselves standing outside Lou Yuzhu's apartment, staring at the door in silence.

"Open it already…" Fu Ye nudged Lou Yuzhu with her elbow. "What are you so afraid of? Tao Tao isn't going to eat you."

It wasn't really fear—it was just that Lou Yuzhu had mixed feelings about the whole situation. She had grown up a straight woman who liked handsome men, and now she was being treated as a same-sex partner by a parrot. It wasn't that she was scared; it just felt… bizarre.

"Tao Tao…" Memories of last night flashed in Lou Yuzhu's mind, making her ears heat up. "She… she kissed me. Kissed me on the lips. My first kiss is gone!"

"In a couple of weeks, she'll be able to fully control her transformation. Once that happens, you can send her to school, and she'll stop doing stuff like that," Fu Ye replied, barely suppressing a laugh.

Tao Tao hadn't understood what a kiss was. She had only wanted to feed the person she liked, completely unaware that she had stolen her owner's first kiss. It was no different from a human lovingly stroking their pet bird's head, throat, or wings—it was just an affectionate gesture.

The door creaked open as Lou Yuzhu hesitantly stepped inside. She wasn't sure whether Tao Tao was currently in her bird form or her human form, so she tiptoed cautiously into her own home, feeling like a thief.

Before she could spot Tao Tao, the sound of flapping wings reached her ears. The parrot flew down from the perch by the window and rushed to the door to greet her.

The moment Tao Tao saw the bouquet of roses in Lou Yuzhu's arms, her gaze froze. Suddenly, the little bird let out a loud, piercing "caw, caw!" and began flying in agitated circles above their heads, her cries so sharp they almost pierced the eardrum.

This was the first time Fu Ye had ever seen such a temperamental parrot. "I think she thinks I'm the one who gave you the flowers," she remarked.

Lou Yuzhu quickly set the bouquet down on the table. Tao Tao swooped down from the ceiling and landed a short distance from the roses, about twenty centimeters away. She fluffed up her feathers, glaring at the flowers as though they were some kind of monstrous foe.

"She's always like this," Lou Yuzhu muttered, exasperated. "She's ridiculously possessive. Last month, I bought a throw pillow to sleep with, and she wouldn't let me keep it—she tore all the stuffing out."

Fu Ye chuckled, grabbing a handful of seeds and holding them out to Tao Tao. "From what I've observed, she's still used to a life where it's just the two of you. Over the next two weeks, you should talk to her more about going to school. She can understand you if you explain it nicely. If she develops separation anxiety, though, it might not be suitable for her to enroll… Ow!"

Fu Ye suddenly sucked in a sharp breath. Instead of eating the seeds, Tao Tao had clamped down on her hand, biting hard enough to draw blood.

This wasn't the playful nibbling she often did with Lou Yuzhu—this was a deliberate, vicious bite, leaving Fu Ye's hand bleeding profusely.

"Tao Tao!" Lou Yuzhu shouted sternly, truly angry this time.

She reached out to grab the bird, but Tao Tao fluttered away in panic, leaving behind a few scattered green feathers on the table.

Tao Tao retreated to her nest, letting out distressed chirps as she preened her feathers, ruffling and smoothing them in an agitated manner. Her cries were filled with both anger and sorrow.

As if her frustration wasn't enough, she jumped out of the nest and began violently flapping her wings against the bars of her square cage, slamming herself into it repeatedly until she was visibly dizzy. Tiny feathers floated through the air, covering the cage like snow.

Fu Ye clicked her tongue, clearly not wanting to overstay her welcome. "I'll head out for now. You should play some games with her and cheer her up. Don't let her hurt her wings, or she'll end up disabled."

Tao Tao was as fiery as a chili pepper.

Once Fu Ye left, Lou Yuzhu stared at the feathers scattered across the table. She felt a mix of anger and guilt. She hadn't meant to hurt Tao Tao—she'd only tried to stop her from biting people.

Seeing Tao Tao acting so stressed out now, Lou Yuzhu's heart ached. She approached the cage, squatting down and speaking in a gentle voice. "Tao Tao, do you not like Sister Fu Ye? She's a very good friend of mine."

Even now, Lou Yuzhu couldn't fully accept being treated as a partner by a bird. Tao Tao's reaction wasn't because she disliked Fu Ye, but because she didn't like the bouquet of roses.

Parrots could have conversations with their owners. They didn't always understand the exact words, but they could sense the emotions behind them.

In the past, whenever Lou Yuzhu spoke to Tao Tao in this soft, coaxing tone, Tao Tao would be overjoyed, cuddling up to her affectionately.

Now, however, Tao Tao had her back to Lou Yuzhu. Her tiny body quivered, her feathers puffed up defensively. The little bird trembled all over, visibly upset.

Lou Yuzhu slowly reached out, gently stroking the messy feathers on Tao Tao's back, running her finger from the top of her head to the tip of her tail. "Good girl, Tao Tao. You can't bite people, okay? I was wrong too—I shouldn't have yelled at you."

She carefully picked Tao Tao up and held her close, lightly patting her. Her thumb and forefinger worked to smooth out the bird's disheveled feathers. After a long while, the little bird finally calmed down, her puffed-up feathers gradually relaxing.

As Lou Yuzhu meticulously groomed Tao Tao's feathers with her fingertips, the parrot let out soft, contented chirps. She even rolled over onto her back, exposing her fluffy belly, completely at ease.

It seemed she had forgiven Lou Yuzhu. Relieved, Lou Yuzhu set Tao Tao down and refilled her food bowl, adding a few imported strawberries as a treat to make up for upsetting her.

She gathered the fallen feathers from the table and placed them in a box. She'd been collecting them to make a plush toy for Tao Tao. But now, she wondered—would Taotao still like toys once she started school?

Later, after taking a bath and changing into her pajamas, Lou Yuzhu sent Fu Ye a message:

[Fu, how's your hand?]

Tao Tao had never been this aggressive before. When Lou Yuzhu's parents had visited, Tao Tao had behaved so gently.

Fu Ye quickly replied:

[It's nothing. I raise dozens of parrots—I get bitten all the time.]

A second later, Fu Ye sent a link with the title:

[Shenying Academy.]

The academy was widely known in Shen City, though everyone assumed it was just some private school. It offered a three-year program but didn't enroll ordinary students.

Fu Ye explained:

[There are two semesters per year. In the first semester, they learn the equivalent of grades 1–6. In the second semester, they cover middle school material. By the second year, they specialize in specific fields. If they pass their exams, they graduate in the third year. If not, they have to repeat or drop out. The third year includes advanced subjects like law, pharmacology, biology, arts, and foreign languages. It's basically like our college entrance exam system.]

She added:

[For orphaned parrot people or those born in the research base, tuition, living expenses, and housing are all covered by government funding. But those with guardians aren't eligible for free education—unless their guardians abandon them. Also, human-parrot hybrids need to pay tuition.]

Lou Yuzhu found this fascinating:

[Wait, humans can have babies with parrot people? Isn't there reproductive isolation? Also, can parrot people attend regular schools?]

Fu Ye replied:

[No, they can't. Regular schools aren't suitable—they don't understand the teaching style. As for hybrids, heterosexual couples can have babies, while lesbian couples can lay unfertilized white eggs. Male couples can't have babies or eggs at all.]

The term 'white eggs' referred to infertile eggs, which female parrot people would lay as part of an irreversible biological process.

Lou Yuzhu was intrigued by the biology lesson. By this logic, Tao Tao could go to school, gain knowledge, and eventually become independent. Perhaps, in the process, she might even meet someone she truly loved, start a family, and live a happy, fulfilling life.

That would be ideal…

With a general plan in mind, Lou Yuzhu felt a sense of relief. She tied up her long, wet hair and clipped it behind her head as she stood up from the bathtub.

Droplets of water glistened on her pale skin as she turned—and froze. Perched on the clothes rack was Tao Tao, who had somehow flown into the bathroom without her noticing.

Lou Yuzhu panicked, her cheeks flushing crimson. She crossed her arms over her chest. In the past, Tao Tao had done this often, but now that Lou Yuzhu knew she could transform into a human, she couldn't treat her as just a bird anymore.

The little parrot tilted her head, observing Lou Yuzhu's flustered actions. Then, as if mimicking her, Tao Tao lifted her tiny claws and scratched at the feathers on her chest, ruffling them up.

Realizing what Tao Tao was doing, Lou Yuzhu became both embarrassed and annoyed. She splashed a handful of water in Taotao's direction to chase her out.

After hastily putting on her nightgown, Lou Yuzhu left the bathroom, still blushing. She had planned to ask her colleagues about the potential job transfer, but out of habit, she glanced at Tao Tao's cage.

The food she'd placed earlier remained untouched. Tao Tao hadn't eaten a bite.

It was mealtime, so this was unusual. Worried that Tao Tao might be sick, Lou Yuzhu searched the entire apartment, calling out, "Tao Tao, where did you fly off to?"

She checked the living room, then the bedroom, but there was no sign of her anywhere. Just as she began to suspect that Tao Tao might have flown out, her eyes caught sight of a strand of platinum hair stuck in the wardrobe door.

She froze, standing there for several seconds, taking deep breaths.

Slowly, she opened the wardrobe.

Inside, a woman sat amidst a pile of clothes, rummaging through them. Hearing the door open, she looked up at Lou Yuzhu.

Parrot people were highly intelligent. Last night, Lou Yuzhu had dressed Tao Tao, and she had remembered that she needed to wear clothes in this form.

Compared to last night, Lou Yuzhu felt much calmer now. She crouched down and asked, "Why haven't you eaten anything?"

As she spoke, she pulled out the white T-shirt Tao Tao had worn before and helped her put it on.

This was a phrase Tao Tao understood. Lou Yuzhu had said it many times before.

"Can't… eat…" Tao Tao replied hoarsely. Some of the words were slurred, but her pronunciation was mostly correct.

Lou Yuzhu led her out of the wardrobe, assuming she might have injured herself while slamming into the cage earlier. She turned Tao Tao around, checking her over. "Why can't you eat? Are you feeling unwell? Hmm?"

Taotao struggled to reply, her voice strained. "You… you don't… like me… can't eat. Don't like Tao Tao… can't eat…"

If Lou Yuzhu didn't like her, she wouldn't eat.