Chapter 105: Giving You a Big Rooster

As soon as she opened the stairwell door, she saw Zhao Ping’an holding a stick, with three live chickens dangling from it.

When he saw An Nan, he immediately broke into a grin. “Idol!”

An Nan looked at his unusual getup in surprise. “You didn’t go out looking for gasoline today?”

Zhao Ping’an replied, “I did. I just got home not long ago. As soon as I came back, I saw cockroaches and rats everywhere in the building.”

An Nan nodded. “Tell me about it, it’s like a sudden infestation. How’s your place?”

Zhao Ping’an blinked. “Not a single cockroach.”

An Nan was astonished. “Not even one?”

She’d already sealed off her drains, but still found two cockroaches sneaking in from who knows where. Yet Zhao Ping’an’s place didn’t have a single one?

Zhao Ping’an lifted the chickens in his hand. “Here, the heroes of our household.”

When he got back from looking for fuel, he’d walked in to find his mother fiercely beating rats with a stick. All their chickens had been let out, scrambling over each other to snatch up cockroaches.

An Nan looked at the chickens tied to the stick and suddenly understood. “They ate all the cockroaches?”

Zhao Ping’an nodded with a big smile.

An Nan said, “I always thought chickens just ate feed, maybe some soft little bugs at most… They eat cockroaches that big too?”

Zhao Ping’an replied, “Chickens are omnivores. Cockroaches are nothing— they’ll even eat centipedes!”

Suddenly, An Nan found the fried chicken in her space a lot less appetizing…

How could such a delicious bird eat just about anything?

Zhao Ping’an raised the stick. “I specifically picked out the best eaters! Here, Idol, pick whichever one you like.”

An Nan asked, “For me?”

Zhao Ping’an nodded. “Of course! If you keep a chicken at home, you won’t have to worry about bug infestations anymore!”

That was true.

They say if you spot a single cockroach at home, it means there are already thousands of cockroach eggs hidden in unseen corners.

This really was the right time to keep a chicken around to catch bugs.

After all, both she and Fugui hated cockroaches— they needed something unafraid of bugs to guard the house.

An Nan looked down and locked eyes with one of the little roosters.

Back at the floating market, when she’d seen that box of chicks, they’d all been fluffy yellow babies.

Now, just over a month later, the chicks were already starting to look like real roosters.

Though still small, their down had turned to feathers, and a little red comb had begun to grow.

At this stage, it was in an awkward phase— no longer cute like a chick, but not yet majestic like a grown rooster, just a bit odd-looking.

But this chicken had real spirit. Even though its feet were tied and it was hanging upside down, it still stared at her with a proud, defiant look.

An Nan immediately took a liking to it. “This one! I’ll take it.”

Zhao Ping’an was taken aback. “Idol, you’ve got a good eye— these are all hens except for that one rooster!”

He double-checked, “You’re sure you want him? Roosters don’t lay eggs. If you raise a hen, once she’s grown, you’ll get fresh eggs every day.”

An Nan waved her hand. “This one’s fine! I just feel a connection.”

She had no shortage of fresh eggs in her space— she didn’t need an egg-layer.

Zhao Ping’an smiled. “Alright, then. Roosters eat a lot— he’ll wipe out every last cockroach in your place!”

An Nan helped him untie the chicken and looked it over in her hands, growing more satisfied the more she looked.

What a spirited little thing, eyes bright and full of life!

She turned to Zhao Ping’an. “Wait here a sec, I’ll go get something for you.”

Zhao Ping’an quickly shook his head.

“No need to trade— this one’s a gift. I’ve eaten so many of your skewers already! Besides, Peipei’s getting one too. It’s a tough time, we should look out for each other!”

As he spoke, he went over to knock on Chu Peipei’s door.

An Nan thought for a moment, went back to 1402, set the rooster down in the living room, and took out some rat poison and realgar powder from her space.

When she came back out, Chu Peipei had just opened her door.

Zhao Ping’an was muttering, “What took you so long, I came to—”

Halfway through, his eyes went wide. “Chu Peipei?!”

An Nan heard his shout and looked over in surprise, but Zhao Ping’an was blocking the doorway, so she could only vaguely see a round head.

…Huh? A round head??

What’s going on? Did a man get into Chu Peipei’s place?

She immediately went on alert. “What’s happening?!”

Zhao Ping’an stepped aside, and An Nan instantly saw who was standing across the hall.

“Chu Peipei?!”

Chu Peipei, who used to have shoulder-length hair, now had a shiny, round, bald head.

Her once-black hair was all gone. It wasn’t shaved as clean as a monk or nun, but it was cropped close, like a guy with a buzz cut.

Chu Peipei looked puzzled. “Why are you both yelling my name so loud?”

Zhao Ping’an stammered, “You, you… We were only apart for a little while, and you…?”

Chu Peipei pointed at her head. “You mean this?”

Seeing An Nan also staring at her, she smiled and explained, “It’s getting hotter and hotter, and long hair makes it hard for me to cool off. Plus, I’m sweating more, and my hair’s always greasy and sticky. Washing it wastes too much water.

Who knows how long this extreme heat will last? We have to save water. So I figured, might as well shave it all off and be done with it!”

An Nan nodded. “Makes sense.”

She’d cut her hair short in her previous life too, though not quite as short as Chu Peipei’s.

With limited water, hair really was a burden. All greasy and tangled—better to just cut it off and stay fresh.

Seeing Zhao Ping’an still standing there dumbfounded, Chu Peipei punched him in the chest.

“What? You think I look that ugly with short hair?”

Zhao Ping’an shook his head. “Not at all, I’m just not used to it.”

Actually, Chu Peipei had good features, and with her head shaved, she looked even more dashing—like a handsome tomboy.

Chu Peipei’s gaze shifted to the stick in his hand, and the two chickens tied to it. “What’s this…?”

Just as she spoke, a big cockroach flew out of her room and landed on her shoulder.

The two hens instantly perked up, flapping their wings and stretching their necks toward it.

Following their gaze, Chu Peipei spotted the cockroach on her shoulder.

She calmly reached up, pinched it, and held it out to one of the chickens.

Zhao Ping’an: ???

An Nan: !!!!!!

She… just… barehanded… grabbed… a cockroach?!

Chu Peipei didn’t notice their shocked expressions, still focused on feeding the chicken. As soon as the cockroach was near, both chickens craned their necks, fighting to snatch it.

“Little guys, you like cockroaches? My place is full of them, eat as much as you want.”

An Nan: …

No wonder the whole building was in chaos and she still had the mood to shave her head.

Turns out, she just ignored the big bugs completely!

Zhao Ping’an’s mouth twitched. “You’re not afraid of cockroaches?”

Chu Peipei replied, “Those little things? What’s there to be afraid of?”

She frowned. “But there are so many, it’s annoying. They’re everywhere in my place—I’m really worried they’ll contaminate my food.”

Zhao Ping’an lifted the stick in his hand. “Pick one!”"