NOVEL NEXT 90. Teach Me, Oh Master
“Mom, look at this cute fish!”
Ling Ye pointed excitedly at the strange little fish in the tank.
Ling Ning looked at the fish, and for some reason, she felt an overwhelming urge to fry it in a pan.
The fish seemed to sense that someone was watching it. It turned its dead-fish eyes towards Ling Ning, giving her a disdainful look that somehow seemed all too human.
Ling Ning was instantly furious. A fish—A FISH—was looking down on her. She couldn’t explain how she understood that expression, but she knew, without a doubt, that this fish was mocking her.
“Boss, how much is this fish?”
Ling Ning turned and asked the pet shop owner with a smile.
“Oh, that fish?” The owner slowly walked out from behind the counter, gazing at the peculiar fish in the tank. His eyes held a hint of nostalgia.
“Its name is Salty Fish. It’s been in that tank ever since I took over the shop from my grandfather,” the owner said after a long silence.
“Uh…” Ling Ning looked at the elderly, white-haired shopkeeper. How long had this fish been alive? It hadn’t died yet, and it even had some bizarre growths. Didn’t they know that after the founding of the country, animals weren’t supposed to gain sentience?
“If you want it, I’ll give it to you.”
“Oh, no, I can’t take it for free. Please, name a price.”
“I said it’s free, and I won’t take any money for it,” the owner replied flatly, quickly packing the fish, tank and all, for her.
“Uh… Are you sure?”
“Just a heads up, this Salty Fish is quite picky.” The shopkeeper sighed in relief once Ling Ning took the fish.
“Huh?”
“It doesn’t like regular fish food. Instead, it prefers dog food. But not just any dog food—it only eats the flavors of ‘Monthly Ticket,’ ‘Recommendation,’ ‘Tips,’ and ‘Favorites.’ Absolutely do not feed it ‘Blade Flavor.’ Don’t ask me why.”
Ling Ning was stunned. A fish that liked eating dog food? How bizarre could it get?
With Salty Fish and the packets of dog food the shopkeeper had given her, Ling Ning slowly walked out of the pet shop. Originally, she’d only intended to buy the fish to fry it, but seeing her daughter holding it with such affection, she decided to let it stay as a pet instead.
Back in the pet shop, the owner and the husky in its cage both let out sighs of relief. The owner had long wanted to get rid of that fish. Not only did it look strange, but it would also fight the dogs for their food. It was unbelievable how that small fish could eat several dogs’ worth of dog food with its slender body. Absolutely ridiculous!
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Ling Ning looked up at the darkened sky. It seemed like it was about to rain, even though the forecast had said it wouldn’t rain until tomorrow. It just went to show—sometimes, weather forecasts couldn’t be trusted.
She glanced at her daughter, who was busy playing with the fish, and decided they probably wouldn’t feel like shopping anymore. Better to head home before the rain started pouring. Ling Ning quickly flagged down a taxi, and barely moments after they got in, the rain began to fall in torrents. She looked out at the downpour and mentally gave herself a pat on the back for being so quick-witted.
Coincidentally, the taxi driver turned out to be the same one who had taken them earlier. Sometimes, fate really was a funny thing.
Maybe because of the rain, the return trip was much smoother than the ride there, and they soon arrived at the entrance to their apartment complex.
By this time, the rain had only gotten heavier. Thunder rumbled, accompanied by flashes of lightning, and the wind whipped the trees back and forth. Even with an umbrella, it would’ve been impossible to stay dry in such heavy rain. By the time they got home, Ling Ning’s chest was already soaked, and Ling Ye was even worse off—she looked like she had just climbed out of a pool.
Ling Ning placed the fishbowl with Salty Fish on the table and turned to her daughter. “Ye Ye, go take a shower quickly. You’ll catch a cold if you stay like that.”
“What about you, Mom?”
“I’ll go after you.”
“Why don’t we just take a bath together? The bathroom here is a lot bigger than the one we had before. There’s plenty of space for both of us, and I don’t want to get sick while you catch a cold either.” Ling Ye said this with a completely serious expression.
“Hmm…” Ling Ning thought about it. It was her daughter, after all—there was nothing wrong with bathing together. Plus, the wet dress clinging to her skin was extremely uncomfortable. She nodded. “Alright then. You go fill the tub, and I’ll grab us some clean clothes.”
As Ling Ning walked into the bedroom, Ling Ye headed for the bathroom. Neither of them noticed Salty Fish waving its tiny tentacles, as if saying, “Teach me, oh master.”
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(—This is the boundary line of an indescribable bath scene—)
Ling Ye stepped out of the bathroom, her face glowing with happiness. There was nothing quite like putting on clean clothes after a warm bath. And she felt like she’d made great progress—she could finally look at her mom’s naked body without getting a nosebleed. That was a big step forward!
Luckily, there was still some food left in the fridge. Otherwise, dinner would have been instant noodles.
After they finished their meal, the thunder outside had quieted considerably, now just a faint rumble. Ling Ning opened her laptop and began writing. Even though her novel didn’t have many readers, there was one wealthy fan named “East Third Sprite” who consistently supported her, occasionally sending her a few hundred yuan as a tip.
She only got to keep half of that, but it still added up to a few thousand yuan each month—nothing to sneeze at. So, unless something urgent came up, Ling Ning wouldn’t miss an update. Even if it meant filling space, she’d make sure there was something for her readers.
After all this time, she had finally finished setting up the storyline. Next, things were about to go off the rails. Since there weren’t many people reading, she felt no need to cater to anyone’s preferences. She’d just write whatever she wanted—whatever came to mind.
As for her story outline, she didn’t even know which folder she’d thrown it into at this point. Given the current direction of the plot, there wasn’t much use for it anyway.
The benefit of not relying on an outline was that she could write freely. When inspiration struck, she could churn out a lot of content, but when it didn’t, she could barely write a hundred words in an hour.
Right now, though, Ling Ning was clearly inspired. Her slender fingers danced over the keyboard, almost fast enough to leave afterimages.
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Author’s Note:
Give some dog food to Salty Fish—it’s starving!