Chapter 152 – It Didn’t Want to Be a Burden
Tu Ran leaned against a tree trunk and slowly sat down, removing her helmet to reveal a face devoid of color.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead, pulled out a nutrient solution from her bag, and took several large gulps. “I need to sleep for a while. Keep watch. Wake me if anything happens.”
“Okay, Boss, go ahead and sleep. Pangpang will keep watch,” Pangpang said obediently.
Tu Ran slowly closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
Pangpang looked at Tu Ran’s exhausted face and felt uneasy.
It was all its fault for being so heavy. If it were lighter, the boss wouldn’t be so worn out.
It needed to lose weight!
Pangpang made a silent vow.
It sat quietly beside Tu Ran, and with no one to talk to, it became bored and began to think about its specific weight loss plan.
Where should it start?
Eat less?
It immediately rejected that idea.
Such a weight loss method was unhealthy. It wanted to be a healthy Dang Hu bird and couldn’t rely on dieting.
So, more exercise?
Pangpang nodded to itself; that was a good idea.
From now on, when it guided the boss, it would run everywhere, using running as a way to lose weight.
Also, after eating, it shouldn’t go straight to sleep. It should run a few laps to digest the food before sleeping.
Having set up its weight loss plan, Pangpang looked back at Tu Ran.
Tu Ran was leaning her head against the tree trunk, her breathing very light.
Pangpang thought that sleeping like this looked uncomfortable.
It didn’t like sleeping while sitting.
Or rather, it didn’t like sitting at all; if it could lie down, it would never sit.
Moreover, the boss didn’t usually sleep like this.
Perhaps today, she was too tired and didn’t have time to adjust her sleeping position.
It immediately stood up, gently laid Tu Ran down, and thoughtfully placed her backpack under her head.
This made her much more comfortable.
Pangpang nodded in satisfaction.
Oh, right, it remembered the task the boss had given it before falling asleep.
To keep watch and wake the boss if danger approached.
Pangpang promptly got into position, looking around seriously with its small eyes wide open and alert.
It was determined not to miss any—hey? There were fish in the river?!
Pangpang dashed into the river.
The water wasn’t deep, reaching only its belly.
Zhu fish! All around were Zhu fish!
Pangpang looked around excitedly.
The Zhu fish here weren’t afraid of it and swam around it.
Pangpang’s mouth watered.
It was about to have a feast.
Pangpang immediately spotted a plump Zhu fish and aimed to catch it with a quick, precise strike.
Missed.
It wasn’t very skilled at catching fish.
Especially cunning Zhu fish.
It had never managed to catch any while wandering around in the past.
The Zhu fish seemed to sense that this large, clumsy bird was not a threat, and they swirled around it even more cheerfully.
It felt mocked.
Pangpang felt insulted.
It immediately regained its composure, using its long beak as a weapon, and aimed at the closest Zhu fish.
It missed by a hair, its beak brushing past the smooth body of the Zhu fish.
Pangpang didn’t get discouraged and continued trying.
After seven or eight attempts, it finally succeeded.
Its beak pierced through the tail of the Zhu fish, and Pangpang lifted it out of the water, splashing clear droplets as the fish thrashed.
The other Zhu fish scattered immediately upon witnessing this.
With the experience from earlier, Pangpang was now confident.
It didn’t eat the Zhu fish immediately but instead tossed it onto the shore.
It wanted to catch a few more fish and let the boss cook them when she woke up.
Zhu fish were highly nutritious. Eating them would surely replenish a lot of energy, much better than the glucose drinks and tasteless compressed biscuits the boss usually consumed.
Having succeeded once, Pangpang quickly caught a second, a third…
In total, it caught eight Zhu fish.
Since the Zhu fish here weren’t very large, it threw each one onto the shore.
Pangpang walked contentedly towards the shore.
The Zhu fish gasped for air, desperately flapping their tails in an attempt to jump back into the water.
But it was all in vain.
Pangpang grabbed the most active one and started nibbling.
Despite being Zhu fish, the taste was completely different from the deliciously roasted fish the boss had made.
After a few bites, Pangpang lost interest entirely.
It was not tasty!
It threw the fish on the ground.
It longed for the boss’s roasted Zhu fish.
But… it glanced at the sleeping Tu Ran. The boss was still asleep, and it couldn’t wake her up—that would be too inconsiderate.
But it wanted roasted fish.
What to do?
Pangpang wracked its brains for a solution.
How about it cooks the fish itself?
But it didn’t know how to start a fire.
It only knew that Fire-breathing Beasts could spit fire, but Fire-breathing Beasts didn’t live here.
The two-legged beast could make fire, but the two-legged beast was asleep.
Pangpang was distressed, its orange feathers drooping, looking like a drenched chicken.
After thinking for a long time, it decided to prepare everything itself and let the boss roast the fish when she woke up.
It thought this was a wise plan and began to implement it.
It gathered a pile of dry wood, cleaned out the fish’s innards, skewered them with sturdy sticks, and set them up on the wood.
Three hours later, with everything ready, it looked at its work with satisfaction and patted its belly.
Now, all that was left was for the boss to wake up.
It squatted in front of Tu Ran, staring unblinkingly at her closed eyes.
It silently chanted in its heart: Wake up, wake up, wake up…
When Tu Ran opened her eyes, she saw a round, plump bird head right in front of her, with dark, beady eyes fixed on her.
It instantly reminded her of her first waking moment in this world when the Gu Diao had pecked at her belly from the same angle and position.
“Ah!!” Tu Ran exclaimed, shoving the head away.
Pangpang was knocked aside by her sudden push, rolling twice before coming to a stop.
It glanced anxiously at the roasting rack to ensure it wasn’t disturbed and then sighed in relief.
It looked at Tu Ran with a hint of grievance. “Boss, why did you push Pangpang? Pangpang was just checking if you were awake.”
Tu Ran had already sat up, her mind gradually clearing as she took in her surroundings.
“Sorry, Pangpang,” she said, glancing at the time, “I didn’t sleep too long.”
“It’s been a long time! Pangpang is so hungry I’m almost skinny.”
Tu Ran gave it a look of exasperation, remembering the exhausting run with Pangpang on her back, and felt her anger rise. “You need to eat less from now on! Lose some weight!”
“Pangpang has already decided to lose weight, so don’t worry, boss,” Pangpang said, its thoughts entirely on the roasted fish. “Boss, let’s light the fire now so we can eat the roasted fish.”
Tu Ran followed its gaze and saw the Zhu fish already set up on a pile of branches.
Looking at the neatly arranged row of Zhu fish stuck in the ground, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
“You actually managed to catch fish?” She marveled, pulling out a lighter from her bag, crouching by the neatly arranged fish, and lighting the dry branches underneath.
“Of course! Pangpang is so agile; Pangpang is an agile fat bird.”
With the promise of soon enjoying roasted fish, Pangpang’s tail was already pointing straight up in excitement.
While the flames started to rise, Tu Ran gently rubbed its furry head.
