"Can you say it again, please?" Chi Buyu said pitifully, peering through the blue-tinted glass tank.
Inside the tank, the water was crystal clear. Considering the size of the Brazilian turtle, the water level wasn't shallow anymore. A light tube was shining down from the top of the tank, casting a gel-like blue hue over the water.
Cui Xijin adjusted the angle of the light but didn't respond.
At that moment, the Brazilian turtle, having eaten its fill, slowly stirred the surface of the water, blocking Chi Buyu's gaze from across the tank. Cui Xijin breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, in the next second...
Chi Buyu raised her chin, her entire face peeking out from above the turtle, speaking as if she were blowing bubbles, "Say it again~"
...What kind of bizarre quirk did this person have? Why did she enjoy hearing others repeat themselves?
Thinking back to how Chi Buyu had ignored her earlier, Cui Xijin, in a moment of desperation, had blurted out, "Please help me," which led Chi Buyu to seize on her moment of weakness... Cui Xijin's brow twitched. Did she really have to say that again?
"Absolutely not."
Cui Xijin was merciless.
The Brazilian turtle was slowly crawling onto the terrace, lazily basking in the light. Chi Buyu sighed, lowering her lifted chin, her voice deflated, "Fine."
She sounded rather disappointed.
Cui Xijin adjusted the light, looking through the water's surface into Chi Buyu's eyes, and instinctively cleared her throat. Before she could speak, Chi Buyu suddenly poked at the turtle's shell through the glass tank and exclaimed, "How did you end up raising a little turtle?"
Cui Xijin furrowed her brow, confused about why she had cleared her throat earlier. She also didn't understand why Chi Buyu insisted on calling it a "little turtle."
A Brazilian turtle was just a Brazilian turtle, not a "little turtle."
But she couldn't be bothered to correct Chi Buyu's annoying habit. "Because raising a cat means dealing with fur, a dog requires walks, fish are likely to die easily, snakes are too creepy, and mice are noisy at night..."
After listing a few other options, Cui Xijin realized she was indeed a very picky person. Most pets that ordinary people loved had been thoroughly dismissed by her.
She waited for Chi Buyu to comment on her pickiness.
Yet Chi Buyu merely nodded and then blinked innocently, asking, "So between not raising anything and raising a turtle, you chose to raise a turtle."
She even had to say—raising a turtle.
And her turtle, at this moment, was lazily basking in the light. Cui Xijin glanced at it absentmindedly.
"Because turtles..."
?
Cui Xijin tiredly closed her eyes, even starting to self-deprecate by quoting Chen Wenran's nonsensical words, "Raising a Brazilian turtle is like liking someone; it can be without reason."
Chi Buyu sighed, "Such profound words."
"Where's the profundity?"
"It's very philosophical, like a master."
"..."
"Master Cui."
"..."
"Master Cui." She seemed determined to call out until she got a response, persistent and unyielding.
