All the way, Pica felt like he was listening to a thousand ducks quacking beside him. You ask where the thousand ducks came from? Let me tell you, a philosopher once said: One woman equals 500 ducks. Even if I had nothing to do, I wouldn’t raise so many ducks, especially since I have a lot to do.
Pica didn’t agree with that before, and he still doesn’t. Two women arguing is not like a thousand ducks quacking; it’s more like the roar of a hundred airplanes, the sound of a hundred trains crossing tracks, the noise of a hundred trucks starting up, and the honking of a hundred cars—all ringing in his ears. Yet, Pica dared not show his annoyance.
He’d rather train under a hundred billion times gravity than listen to women argue. Suddenly, he saw a notice board up ahead, surrounded by a crowd. He hoped to use this to divert the attention of the two beauties and turned back to say, “Hey, what do you think they’re looking at over there?”
“Mind your own business! Can’t you see we’re busy?” Selina glared at Pica, her eyes full of many meanings.
Lucia also said flatly, “Go look for yourself.”
Hey, that’s not how the script goes! Screenwriter, come out; I promise I won’t kill you. Pica stared blankly at the two women still bickering. They started out fine, having a friendly Q&A and chatting like good friends. But they ended up arguing over an unknown makeup product, probably famous in Chronopolis. No matter how Pica tried to intervene, he couldn’t stop them, so he eventually gave up. Sometimes, men shouldn’t challenge women’s persistence lightly.
Pica spread his hands helplessly and said, “Fine, I’ll go by myself then.” He turned and walked towards the notice board, but no matter how he squeezed, he couldn’t get through the crowd. Afraid to use force, he noticed a little girl holding a lollipop, staring blankly at the people gathered.
Pica squatted down and patted the girl’s head, asking, “Little girl, do you want to see what’s on the notice board too?”
Seeing a stranger pat her head, the little girl instinctively stepped back, hiding her lollipop behind her back, looking at Pica as if he were a thief. Pica nearly fell over, thinking to himself: Little girl, it’s not that serious. I’m not a thief. If I wanted your lollipop, I would have taken it already. You don’t need to guard it. Really, why am I arguing with a little girl?
“Little girl, I’m not going to take your lollipop,” Pica said, trying to look as gentle as possible.
The little girl tilted her head and asked, “Really?”
“Really, more real than pearls.”
“What’s a pearl? Is it tasty?” The little girl’s eyes sparkled as if pearls were something delicious.
Pica nearly slipped and fell, supporting himself with one hand on the ground. Shaking his head, he said, “Pearls are ornaments, not edible.”
“Oh.” The little girl pouted, her cute face looking like it could be pinched and water would come out.
Pointing towards the notice board, Pica asked, “Little girl, do you want to see what’s written on that board?”
The little girl blinked and seriously said, “No, Daddy told me to wait for him here. He’ll be out soon.”
“Aren’t you silly? You can just fly up and see,” came Selina’s voice from behind, full of resentment.
Pica snapped his fingers. “Right, why didn’t I think of that? Thanks!” He turned to see Lucia and Selina behind him, looking at him oddly. From their eyes, Pica seemed to see a scene where a strange uncle lured a little girl with a lollipop, saying, “Little girl, want to see some goldfish?” Then the girl followed the uncle, and the next day there was a news report about a man who kidnapped a little girl, asking citizens to report him.
Standing up hurriedly, Pica said, “It’s not like that. Listen to me.”
“We didn’t say anything. Why are you in such a rush to explain?” Lucia folded her arms, not looking at him. She walked over to the little girl, gently patting her head, and asked softly, “Little girl, did this strange uncle do anything bad?”
The little girl shook her head and said softly, “No, the strange uncle didn’t do anything bad.”
Lucia and Selina glanced at Pica and nodded, indicating he did okay this time. Then Lucia asked, “Why are you here alone? Where are your parents?”
“Daddy is inside reading what’s on the board. He’ll be out soon.”
“Qiao’er.” A familiar voice called to the little girl, who immediately ran into the arms of a man, hugging him affectionately and laughing like a silver bell. “Daddy, you need to shave; your stubble tickles.”
“Oh, isn’t this Fei Li? You have a daughter?” Pica asked, surprised to see the man.
Fei Li nodded at Pica, Lucia, and Selina, greeting them curtly. “Here.”
“By the way, Fei Li, what’s written on the board? Why are so many people reading it?” Pica asked, approaching Fei Li.
Fei Li glanced at Pica and said briefly, “Celebration, events, prizes.” The three simple words conveyed everything, making Pica nod knowingly.
“Damn, can’t you say more? Will you die if you talk more?” Pica was frustrated by Fei Li’s brevity.
Qiao’er jumped down from Fei Li’s arms, kicked Pica in the calf, and said, “Bad uncle, don’t bully Daddy.” She then pouted and glared at Pica, making the two women behind her laugh heartily.
Fei Li gently scolded Qiao’er, “Qiao’er, you shouldn’t do that,” while hugging her with eyes full of love.
Seeing Fei Li, Pica couldn’t help but think of his own father, who always had a tough exterior but a soft heart. Every time he was punished, his father would sneak in at night to apply medicine to his wounds. Pica wondered when he could finally collect the Dragon Balls. He had missed many opportunities to gather them because he didn’t want to disrupt history.
Seeing Pica’s melancholic expression, Qiao’er escaped from her father’s arms, tugged on Pica’s shirt, and asked softly, “Uncle, are you hurt?”
Seeing the little girl comforting him, Pica picked her up, pressed his finger to her forehead, and playfully said, “Yes, you hurt me. Now I’m going to eat you, rawr!”
Qiao’er burst into laughter, her voice seemingly able to heal. Her laughter lifted Pica’s spirits.
Fei Li, watching Qiao’er play with Pica, said, “Pica, come have dinner at my place.”
“Alright, if you insist. Qiao’er, is it okay if I come to your house for dinner?” Pica asked.
“Yes!”
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