Chapter 349: Chapter 288: Little Carp Awakens

Little Zhenzhen shot into her arms like a little cannonball.

Sang Luo nearly got knocked over and said with a chiding laugh, “A few months apart, and you’re still just as energetic!”

Little Zhenzhen snuggled its head against her, whining sweetly, “Mommy hasn’t visited in so long. I missed Mommy so much!”

“Oh? Did you miss Mommy more, or the little jerky Mommy makes?”

Sang Luo took out two strips of spicy, savory meat jerky and fed them to it. Little Zhenzhen held the jerky with its two little paws, CRUNCHING away loudly. It mumbled with a full mouth, “Missed Mommy… and missed the jerky too, hehe!”

Sang Luo chuckled.

She looked at the dusty little Phoenix chick on Little Zhenzhen’s head, which was nearly being shaken dizzy by its big sister. She carefully took the little chick down and cupped it in her palm. It was only the size of her hand, its body covered in a new, thin layer of yellowish-gray fuzz. A few long, slightly messy feathers sprouted from its tail. It felt soft in her palm, making one want to cherish and protect it.

It was the little Phoenix’s first time seeing Sang Luo since hatching, but the instinctual closeness of their bloodline allowed it to recognize her as its mother immediately. It let out a clear chirp, “CHIRP~ Mommy!”

“Hehe~ You can really talk! As expected of an Emperor Beast chick, so smart.” Sang Luo kissed its fluffy little body, which had the faint, pleasant scent of sun-warmed feathers. “Mommy has been waiting so long for you and your brother to be born. Huh, where’s the other one?”

Fei Yuan grabbed the other poor, ignored chubby chick. Looking at how the single, silly feather on its head had also been burned off, he sighed. “A few days have passed, and it’s gotten even uglier. Is this really my kid?”

’Hmph! Now that he has both a son and a daughter, he’s no longer desperate for children and has started being picky!’ Sang Luo took the other chubby chick into her arms as well, saying unhappily, “If you think it’s ugly, then don’t keep it. I’ll let someone else raise it.”

Si Ye, who had just walked over, heard this. He was about to chime in and say he’d raise it, but then he remembered the nearly incinerated pavilion and decisively shut his mouth.

Fei Yuan laughed. “No matter how ugly, they’re still my children. With a father as good-looking as me, they’ll grow up to be a handsome male and beautiful female.”

“Look at you, getting all smug!”

Now that he had children, Fei Yuan was glowing with joy. Though his words called them ugly, his eyes were incredibly gentle. He scooped both chicks into his arms, wishing he could carry them with him everywhere.

“Which one is the older one? And the younger? This chubbier one should be the male chick, right?” Sang Luo tried her best to tell the two Phoenix chicks apart. Their color was completely different from their eggshells. Both chicks looked about the same as Little Zhenzhen did when it was first born—all dusty gray. The only difference was that one was a little fatter and the other a little thinner.

She guessed the thinner one was the younger, the one that had been malnourished in the womb.

’Fei Yuan probably looked just as ugly-cute when he was first born… To think that such a tiny chick could one day grow into such an enormous and beautiful divine Fire Phoenix was truly a stunning surprise!’

Fei Yuan nodded. “Yes, the chubbier one is the little male, the older brother. This slightly thinner one is the younger, a little female. But the younger one actually hatched first. Her older brother is too lazy; he hatched a few minutes after his sister.”

Sang Luo looked at the two chicks, then back at Fei Yuan. ’I might not be able to tell much else,’ she thought, ’but these two pairs of beautiful phoenix eyes are just like their father’s. I can’t imagine how beautiful they’ll be when they grow up and get a new coat of feathers.’

Fei Yuan’s face looked a bit thinner than it had in previous days, making the lines of his brows and eyes appear sharper.

Sang Luo stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. “You’ve worked hard, Ah Yuan.”

His eyes softened. Hearing her say that made everything worthwhile.

’Besides, compared to her, who had carried a single child for several years, his bit of hardship was nothing at all.’

“Luoluo, what about me?” Si Ye sidled up, sounding a little jealous.

Sang Luo gave his handsome face a smooch too. “You’ve worked hard taking care of the children too, Ah Ye!”

’Little Zhenzhen was the rowdiest and most difficult of all the kids—one of them was like having three!’

Si Ye beamed, taking her hand. With his other hand, he took Little Zhenzhen from her arms.

“Have you eaten? I just finished cooking. We’re about to eat with the kids.”

Fei Yuan said, “Nope, we were just waiting to come here and freeload.”

Si Ye replied, “I didn’t make your portion!”

“Ah, then give me my son’s portion.”

The little chubby chick gave its father a vicious peck on the hand!

’I’m still on formula!’

’Shameless, stinky dad!’

After everyone had eaten their fill, Fei Yuan prepared formula for the two little ones. After feeding them, he carried them to their crib to sleep.

Sang Luo saw the little eggshell beds in the crib and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Is this…”

’The four pieces of eggshell were perfectly intact. If you put them together, they’d look just like two new eggs!’

Fei Yuan must have carefully collected the eggshells after the two chicks hatched.

“They just hatched, so they’re still unfamiliar with the outside world. They like to sleep nestled in their eggshells—it makes them feel secure, so I brought them back,” Fei Yuan said. “A bird beast only gets one eggshell in its lifetime, so it has a special meaning. I’ll keep them, and I can give them to the chicks when they’re older.”

“Mm,” Sang Luo’s gaze softened as she watched the two little Phoenixes sleeping peacefully, curled up in their eggshells. “It’s a shame I couldn’t be here to watch the chicks hatch. It feels like such a pity.”

“What’s there to regret? We can just have another clutch, and you can watch them hatch next time.”

“In your dreams!”

Before bed, Sang Luo sent a message to Lou Xianyue.

“Ah Ze, I’m coming to the South Sea to see you and the child tomorrow!”

He replied quickly.

“Okay. I’ll tidy up. Are you coming in the morning or at noon? I’ll make a meal and wait for you.”

The happiness in his tone was unconcealable.

She had originally promised to go three months ago, but it kept getting delayed. Sang Luo felt a little guilty, but seeing that he didn’t seem to mind, she smiled and replied, “I’m going to sleep in, so I’ll head over around noon.”

“Okay. I’ll be waiting.”

In reality, Sang Luo went over first thing in the morning.

Lou Xianyue had just finished feeding the baby when a pair of arms wrapped tightly around his waist from behind. A head rested against his back, and a soft, sweet voice asked, “Ah Ze, did you miss me?”

“How could I not…”

Lou Xianyue turned and hugged Sang Luo, stooping to kiss her on the forehead.

“I was held up by some other things these past few days, so I couldn’t come sooner, but I never forgot. You said you had something important to tell me… The Little Carp has awakened!”

Sang Luo glimpsed a small, pink-and-blue fishtail through the slats of a nearby crib. There was also a small baby bottle hanging on the side, and Little Blue Eucalyptus had been weaned long ago.

’So this was the “important thing” he mentioned!’

Sang Luo hurried over. The moment she got a clear look at their little Mermaid daughter, her heart felt like it had been struck, and her whole world seemed to fill with pink bubbles.

’So beautiful! So adorable!’

The baby was as perfect as a jade carving, with curly, light-pink hair. Her clear, round, aqua-blue eyes blinked up at her. Her pupils were vertical slits, like translucent cat’s eye gems. She had long, thick, curled eyelashes, chubby and tender pink cheeks, and a plump fishtail that faded from blue to pink. She was the very image of a little Mermaid Princess straight out of a fairy tale.

Seeing her infatuated expression, Lou Xianyue couldn’t help but smile. “Mm, it seems Little An is about to lose favor.”

Sang Luo said, “Both children are beautiful. They take after you!”

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