I Advise You To Like Me As Soon As Possible

Chapter 3

<Translated By Crystal >

Though Fu Zheng looked awkward and embarrassed, in the end he held his tongue and poured tea for the two ladies who had been scuffling and Ning Wan. Ning Wan observed him as he poured the tea and lamented; was this Fu Zheng born with a golden spoon in his mouth? Had he never poured tea in his life? How could someone pour in such a stiff and clumsy manner? Was there something wrong with his cerebellum that affected his coordination?

But she soon gave up thinking about Fu Zheng and put her energy into the two parties before her. "Aunties, what happened? The New Year just passed, shouldn't everyone be celebrating? We're all neighbours together in a community, and it's said that faraway relatives aren't as good as neighbors. What can't be sat down and talked out? "
Now that the fighting had ended, though hate was still flashing in the eyes of the two middle-aged women, they had at least calmed down. One of them took the lead. "Lawyer Ning, tell me what you think of this. My name is Shi Xiaofang. I live in Room 1201, Building 10. Her name is Liu Guizhen. She lives next door to me, in 1202. We're indeed neighbors."

"Auntie Shi, having fate with each other isn't something you see every day.1 So if one has problems, let's all work together to communicate well. Why quarrel?"

Unlike how she had spoken to Fu Zheng previously when playing around, Ning Wan's voice was gentle, her expression focused, and her manner made others feel like opening their hearts to her.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to soothe Shi Xiaofang. Pointing angrily at Liu Guizhen, she hissed, "Lawyer Ning, my daughter just gave birth. I've been running around after her and the baby all day, every day. If it wasn't for this woman instigating, do you think I'd waste my time on her?"

The more she talked, the more furious Shi Xiaofang got. "Lawyer Ning, you're our community lawyer, so you're here to help us little people solve these legal problems, aren't you? I want to sue her! She's been disturbing everyone by raising chickens! Wasn't raising chickens in the neighbourhood recently banned? Isn't she affecting other folk by doing this? What if there's a chicken plague, or some other weird disease on this chicken that affects other people? Anyway, even if there isn't, there shouldn't be a chicken being raised in an apartment! Its shit stinks up..."

Not to be outdone, Liu Guizhen raised her own voice. "Don't slander my chicken! He's very well taken care of! He was vaccinated against the bird flu, and I have all the legal records! He's a perfectly safe chicken! There is absolutely no such chicken plague virus, and what really stinks is this bitch's empty talk! My chicken hardly smells at all, but her mouth sprays shit! I'm raising this chicken on the balcony, I ventilate and clean every day and shovel out the cage." Her eyes on Ning Wan, Liu Guizhen asked, "Lawyer Ning, my own family lives with this chicken. If I wasn't careful about hygiene, wouldn't we be the first to suffer?"

"Oh come on, even if this is a first-rate chicken with a pedigree and a full set of certificates, the fact that it starts crowing before dawn every morning isn't fucking fake!" As Shi Xiaofang was talking, she pulled her phone from her pocket. "Lawyer Ning, listen to this."

A loud crow rang out from the mobile phone. Shi Xiaofang turned it around to show a video. "I was afraid she'd say I found that recording online, so I took a video. Look, this is my balcony, and over there is Liu Guizhen's. That's where the crowing is coming from."

With some resentment, Shi Xiaofang said, "Lawyer Ning, tell me, am I supposed to put up with this? Look at the time! It's four o'clock in the morning! Four o'clock! This plagued chicken crows like that every day! My daughter can't even rest because of this goddamn chicken, and the little baby, who's just a month old, gets woken up at the ass crack of dawn. I'm here today to ask you to solve this matter. Liu Guizhen's chicken crowing disturbs others in the apartment. Can I sue her? How can one raise chickens in an apartment? "