Striving for Science C46

"What happened to the parrot?" Shen Chang'an, seeing Fei Ying suddenly collapse, worriedly prepared to go over and check on her.

"It's nothing." Liu Mao smiled, "Maybe it ae ate too much and it messed with its brain."

"Ate too much?" Shen Chang'an was a little worried. He still walked over to the parrot and carefully observed it. Seeing that it really didn't look sick, he felt relieved. He stroked the feathers on the parrot's head a few times, "Don't give it anything else to eat later."

Thinking about his own behavior of feeding the parrot from time to time, Shen Chang'an felt a little guilty. This parrot had gotten a lot fatter recently, and maybe, possibly, it was because of him.

Slipping back to the dining table, Shen Chang'an quickly drank a mouthful of milk to calm his nerves. Today was Saturday, so he didn't have to go to work. He hadn't even changed out of his soft, close-fitting pajamas, and was leisurely enjoying his delicious breakfast.

"Chang'an." Dao Nian took a sip of milk and put the cup back in place, "Move in and live with me."

"Huh?!" Shen Chang'an's knife clinked against the side of the plate, making a harsh sound. He put down his knife and fork and switched to his favorite chopsticks, "Are you inviting me to be your tenant?"

"You don't like the environment here?" Dao Nian frowned.

"I do like it." Shen Chang'an nodded, feeling a little hesitant. It was one thing to often come to Dao Nian's house to freeload meals and lodging, but it was another thing entirely to shamelessly move in directly. Ever since he had met Dao Nian, it was always Dao Nian who had put in more effort into this friendship, and there was very little he could do for Dao Nian.

He really liked it here, liked the scenery, liked the rooms, and most of all, liked the people in the house.

Uncle Zhao, who always made all kinds of delicious food, Brother Liu, who liked to worry, the enthusiastic Shen Tu and Yu Lei, the gardener who liked to collect beautiful flowers for him, and even the few security guards in the community, all made him feel extremely comfortable. Especially Dao Nian, although he was always too lazy to do anything, and if he could save a word, he would definitely not say two, being with him was the happiest time he had had since he was eight years old.

He didn't have to worry about criminals coming to retaliate against him, didn't have to worry about his martyr identity being exposed, and could let go of all his burdens and completely be himself.

But...

He wasn't without a home, and just living at a friend's house like this didn't make any sense no matter how he thought about it.

"I..." Shen Chang'an was interrupted by Dao Nian before he could finish speaking. Dao Nian rarely interrupted him, and for a moment, Shen Chang'an actually focused all his attention on what Dao Nian was about to say.

"I'm very happy when I'm with you." Dao Nian wanted to curl the corners of his lips into a smile, but this time he still failed. It was as if he was born unable to smile, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't produce the desired effect, "Can you stay with me for a while longer?"

Looking at Dao Nian's deep eyes, Shen Chang'an had already imagined countless emotions for Dao Nian in his mind, such as loneliness and hesitation. He even seemed to see that Dao Nian's tightly closed heart door had finally opened a crack for him. If he was unwilling to accept this crack, then the door would close tightly again.

"Then, then I'll move in for a while?" Shen Chang'an remembered that there was still a ghost at Uncle Zhang's place that needed him to feed, and that he hadn't found the reason why this ghost's fate had been changed, so he added, "But I still have to go back and check on the house occasionally."

"Okay." Dao Nian opened his half-closed eyes, "If you could always be with me…"

Boom!

Thunder rumbled, and a huge flash of light flickered outside the window. Shen Chang'an didn't hear what Dao Nian said, "Huh?"

"It's nothing." Dao Nian lowered his eyelids, hiding the sarcasm and indifference in his eyes towards the thunder, "I was saying, I'm very happy."

"I'm happy too." Shen Chang'an glanced out the window several times, "The weather lately is really strange. It's thundering one minute and raining the next. The typhoon said it was coming but then it dissipated. In the dead of winter, the thunder just strikes whenever it wants, and it doesn't even rain a few drops. Is it just messing around?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the rain started to fall with a patter. Shen Chang'an: "..."

As soon as breakfast was over, the elders of the bird clan rushed over. Walking in the front was Elder Kong, who was unsteady on his feet and pale-faced.

Shen Chang'an was sitting cross-legged, playing a game on his tablet while nestled on the sofa. Seeing that the group of people with unpleasant expressions from last night had come again, he got up, put on his slippers, and leaned over to whisper in Dao Nian's ear, "You guys talk, I'll go upstairs and sit for a while. When the rain stops, I'll take you out for a walk."

The bird clan elders saw how close Shen Chang'an and Dao Nian were, and suppressed their excited feelings, lowering their heads even further.

Dao Nian nodded slightly. After Shen Chang'an went upstairs, he moved his right index finger slightly, and the entire floor was surrounded by a barrier, preventing outsiders from seeing the true scene inside the barrier.

"Thank you for your help, Lord." The bird clan elders all knelt before Dao Nian. When they came last night, they thought that the Lord would no longer intervene in this matter. They didn't expect that the Lord not only helped them find the phoenix descendant, but also allowed the phoenix descendant to hatch.

In the entire world, besides the Lord, who else could make a phoenix descendant with a nearly severed life force hatch?

Thinking that they were still hating the Heavenly Dao for being ruthless not long ago, the bird clan elders felt ashamed, and their guilt grew even stronger.

"Thank you, Lord, for preserving the only phoenix descendant of our bird clan." Elder Kong and all the other elders kowtowed, this time with genuine sincerity. Even if it meant their deaths, they wouldn't hesitate.

Looking at these bird yaos prostrating themselves before him, Dao Nian said coldly, "It has nothing to do with me."

Hearing this, the bird clan elders looked up in surprise, realizing that the Lord didn't seem to be lying to them. Could it be... that someone else saved their bird clan?

"Who is this benefactor who preserved the only descendant of our bird clan?" Elder Kong bowed again to Dao Nian, "Our entire bird clan is willing to treat this benefactor as an honored guest, and would not dare to be the slightest bit negligent."

"Shen Chang'an."

Shen..." Elder Kong said in shock, "That person…"

"Lord, are you talking about the human who is qualified to stay by your side?"

Dao Nian ignored Elder Kong's question and continued, "Last night, not long after he brought back the phoenix egg, the little phoenix hatched. Whether you believe it or not is not important, just take it away."

These words were vague and unclear. To the bird clan, it sounded like Shen Chang'an brought back the phoenix egg, and then Lord Dao Nian found a way to hatch it.

Thinking about how they had recently been slandering this human behind his back, suspecting that he was a troublemaker sent by humans, scheming and using every means to seduce the Lord, they never expected that in the blink of an eye, he had become the benefactor of their bird clan. The bird clan elders were both ashamed and embarrassed, almost unable to lift their heads.

"From now on, Mr. Shen will be an honored guest of our clan. As long as Mr. Shen has any requests, our entire clan will do our best to fulfill them." Elder Kong bowed his head and knelt before Dao Nian, "We will remember this great kindness for generations to come."

They didn't suspect that Shen Chang'an had deliberately stolen the phoenix descendant. Even if they had many grievances against this human before, they understood in their hearts that a human could not possibly enter the bird clan's forbidden area, let alone take away the phoenix descendant silently.

If it weren't for Mr. Shen bringing back the phoenix egg, and also being highly favored by Lord Dao Nian, how could their bird clan's phoenix descendant have been preserved?

They had previously mocked Shen Chang'an daily for seducing Lord Dao Nian to gain benefits for humans. In the end, the ones who benefited were their bird clan, which had nothing to do with Shen Chang'an.

The more they thought about it, the more their faces burned. The bird clan felt that they owed Shen Chang'an a great debt of karma.

"Don't just stand there, take the little bird and leave."

The bird clan elders followed Liu Mao to the place where the little phoenix lived. They discovered that their bird clan's most precious little phoenix was living in a bird nest made of soft cloth, instead of a sycamore branch nest. They felt both heartache and dared not show any of it in front of the Lord. They only dared to carefully reach out to hold the tender phoenix.

"Chirp!"

The moment Elder Kong touched the little phoenix, it let out a earth-shattering scream, as if Elder Kong had needles piercing it. Elder Kong froze instantly. Peacocks were the closest to the phoenix bloodline. If the little phoenix didn't want him to get close, who else could take it away?

Elder Kong took a step back, letting the other elders try as well. But the little phoenix screamed even more miserably, as if it was being abused by countless people. In the end, it wailed until it was on the verge of death, still unwilling to leave with the bird clan elders.

The bird clan elders panicked. Why was the little phoenix unwilling to leave with them?

"The phoenix is unwilling to leave with us, please give us guidance, Lord." Elder Kong knelt before Dao Nian, his expression extremely humble. At this moment, he was just an old yao who had given up all his dignity for the future of the entire bird clan.

Dao Nian was also a little surprised. He frowned, suddenly remembering a few words Chang'an had said before this phoenix hatched.

After meeting the child of destiny, a phoenix or a divine dragon will hatch from inside, and from then on, they will reach the peak of life...

Could it be that this phoenix had already recognized Chang'an as its master before it even hatched?

But... does Chang'an, this master, know about it?

Facing the bird clan elders' trembling expressions, Dao Nian surprisingly felt a little pity for them: "It was able to hatch because it received another's opportunity. Before that kindness is repaid, perhaps you cannot take it away."

"The phoenix hatching is already going against the rules. If it doesn't have this benefactor's protection, I'm afraid that if it leaves this place, it will die under the laws of the Heavenly Dao." Dao Nian glanced out the window, "Actually, I also want to know how ruthless the laws are to the phoenix clan. Why don't you try taking it out and see?"

The bird clan elders: "..."

No, they didn't dare.

The room fell silent again. The bird elders looked at the little phoenix, so close yet impossible to take away, their hearts like riding a rollercoaster, constantly rising and falling, until finally, *thud*, they crashed to the bottom of the valley.

"May I ask, Lord, is the benefactor of our phoenix clan, Shen... Chang'an?" Elder Kong asked, his voice trembling, voicing the question everyone wanted to ask but dared not.

As you wish, it is indeed him.

Elder Kong thought, if he were to drag those two juniors from the Peacock clan who had offended Shen Chang'an over right now, and make them work like cows and horses for Shen Chang'an, would Shen Chang'an treat the little phoenix any better?

If they had known there would be a day like today, they would have done everything they could to curry favor with Shen Chang'an back then.

When Shen Chang'an came downstairs, he found that those guests hadn't left yet. Not only had they not left, but when they saw him come down, they all revealed eager gazes, as if in just one short hour, he had evolved from a nobody into a heartthrob.

He silently took a step back, turned his head to look at Dao Nian, a vaguely reliable guess forming in his mind.

Could it be that these people owed Dao Nian too much debt and wanted him to help say some good words?