Puppet Notes (Wearing Book) - 11

 

| PN | Lan Lou also Wants a Friend | 11

Trying to reason with troublesome kids is futile.

Qi Chao felt a burning anger inside. Lan Luo was still burying his face in Qi Chao's shoulder, unwilling to lift his head. 

It was clear how deeply his child had been hurt. Qi Chao clicked his tongue in annoyance, stood up while holding Lan Luo, and grabbed the smug chubby kid by his arm, ready to find his parents for a confrontation.

Things escalated quickly. Seeing the "bad guy" taking their friend somewhere, the troublesome kids started yelling in unison.

The shrill cries nearly pierced Qi Chao's eardrums.

Qi Chao's expression didn't change. Let them shout all they want; their screaming might attract the parents, saving him the trouble of looking for them.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before the chubby kid's grandmother arrived.

She appeared wealthy, with kind eyes and a scholarly air. Upon learning that it was her grandson who had misbehaved, she seemed a bit guilty but still raised her chin and said, "So what? Your child looks to be eleven or twelve. Is falling down such a big deal?"

"Look at these kids; the oldest is only eight. Your child is so much older; shouldn't he know to give way?"

Qi Chao laughed angrily, his voice low and laced with sarcasm. "Then you, being decades older than me, should know to give way to me too?"

Besides, these kids are eight.

His child is not even two. Who should give way to whom?

Qi Chao recalled that at the auction, the host had clearly stated that although the little puppet had been through three owners, his actual age was only a little over one and a half years old.

The old lady turned red with anger and started cursing Qi Chao.

"My child was playing quietly on the swing in the corner, and your grandchild came over and pulled him to the ground. Now you're cursing me?" Qi Chao didn't back down at all, his eyes full of defiance. He smirked with a roguish air. "Old lady, you are really unreasonable."

Qi Chao noticed the stiffness in Lan Luo's slender back and cursed inwardly. His child was indeed scared.

He patted the little puppet's back and whispered, "Don't be afraid, kiddo. Your dad has never lost an argument, and I’ll make sure they apologize to you." 

After a moment's thought, he added, "I've never lost a fight either."

As soon as he finished speaking, he felt the little puppet relax significantly. Qi Chao felt a bit relieved and turned his attention back to the confrontation.

Having battled unscrupulous bloggers and countless keyboard warriors for days and nights in the past, arguing with the old lady was a piece of cake for Qi Chao. He even held back a bit for the sake of her health.

What Qi Chao didn't realize was that the little puppet, who seemed to be pitifully hiding his face in his shoulder, was actually squinting his blue eyes, watching Qi Chao's heart like a beast observing its prey.

What a strange person, Lan Luo thought.

After being pulled off the swing, Lan Luo was furious, so much so that he could barely control his emotions and had to hide in Qi Chao's arms to conceal his murderous intent. 

But seeing Qi Chao's reaction gradually dissipated his darker feelings.

Lan Luo watched the rise and fall of the human's chest, his expression darkening. He couldn't understand why Qi Chao was so angry.

"Which parent wouldn't be upset if their child got hurt? Do you think your grandchild is the only precious one?" Qi Chao scoffed. "Old lady, in my eyes, my child is much more precious than yours."

More precious than a human child?

Lan Luo's eyelashes fluttered.

Something didn't seem right.

Even though his clothes covered his ball joints, Lan Luo was still not a human child.

Puppets could never be more precious than human children.

Qi Chao was wrong.

Lan Luo thought this, but his eyes brightened. He repeatedly recalled Qi Chao's words, feeling a burst of joy that made his blue eyes narrow into crescents.

Puppets had very low body temperatures, able to feel slight cold but never fearing the harshness of winter. Sitting in Qi Chao's arms, Lan Luo realized how warm humans were, like a big heater, radiating warmth.

His master was very kind.

Once his father comes back, Lan Luo thought happily, he could negotiate with him to let his master live a few more days.

As it neared six o'clock, more people gathered in the park, increasing the number of onlookers. 

Despite the pointing and murmuring from the crowd, Qi Chao remained fearless. The old lady, however, was thin-skinned and knew she was in the wrong. Eventually, she reluctantly made her grandson apologize to Lan Luo, bringing the matter to a close.

Lan Luo seemed to have calmed down and, no longer as scared as before, accepted the apology with a shy smile. Seeing the little puppet return to normal, Qi Chao felt relieved.

The old lady should be grateful that his precious puppet wasn't hurt.

Otherwise, Qi Chao definitely wouldn't have let the troublesome kid off so easily.

Although the incident was resolved, he didn't forget the scene where those kids mocked Lan Luo for having no friends.

After dinner, back at home, Qi Chao was determined to work hard. He went upstairs to draw designs for a little puppet.

Lan Luo had been watching animations on the first floor. When he saw Qi Chao heading to the study, he jumped off the sofa and followed him. 

Since the incident at the park, Lan Luo seemed to have become more attached to him.

Qi Chao was happy to accept this change and spoke gently, “Lan Luo, would you like to have a good brother to play with?”

“A brother?” Lan Luo looked a bit confused. “I have two brothers.”

Lan Luo was likely referring to the other puppets the Doctor had made. Qi Chao smiled and ruffled Lan Luo’s golden hair. “I don’t mean biological brothers, but having a good friend.”

He used the chubby boy from the park as an example. “A good friend is someone who can play and have fun with you, someone who will always stand by your side.”

Lan Luo didn't fully understand, but he knew Qi Chao was talking about the children from the park.

Human children have good friends.

So he wanted one too.

Seeing Lan Luo nod earnestly with eyes full of expectation, Qi Chao chuckled. “Since you want a friend, I’ll have to work harder!”

Originally, Qi Chao had thought about turning on an animation for Lan Luo, to keep him entertained while he worked in the study. But Lan Luo shook his head, clearly preferring to watch Qi Chao draw. His eyes were fixed on the drawing paper on the desk.

Qi Chao chuckled softly, moved a chair next to his own, and placed it where Lan Luo could easily see.

Lan Luo leaned over the desk like a curious cat, his eyes following Qi Chao’s every movement.

The charcoal lines outlined the puppet's body structure: front, back, and side views, each adorned with numerous proportion values. 

These were Qi Chao's reference proportion diagrams for the puppet. An expert could understand them at a glance, but they would be confusing for an amateur.

Though Lan Luo was a puppet, it didn't mean he could understand the diagrams. Seeing the confusion on the little puppet’s face, Qi Chao thought for a moment and then pulled out a sheet of paper. 

He started sketching on it, and in less than ten minutes, he had drawn a chibi version of a little figure using colored pencils.

Qi Chao had imagined the puppet's personality and expressions thousands of times in his mind and had discarded hundreds of drafts. By now, even a rough sketch could capture the highlights of his creation. 

On the paper, a chibi boy with short white hair and a half fox mask was happily squatting on the ground, smiling at a slowly crawling snail, revealing two sharp little tiger teeth.

Qi Chao placed the drawing in front of Lan Luo, smiling, “Don’t look at those other drawings, look at this.”

Lan Luo stared at the paper, nodding without knowing what to think. Qi Chao assumed the puppet was curious, smiled to himself, and resumed working on the new puppet's proportions.

The Q version puppet was meant to entertain the child, but to create a puppet with proportions similar to Lan Luo’s, he needed to continuously refine the details of each part. 

To be honest, Qi Chao had never made a life-size puppet before. The closer the puppet’s physique was to a human’s, the more meticulous the production had to be, increasing the difficulty and presenting him with a significant challenge.

This work continued into the evening until around eight or nine o'clock. Qi Chao looked up at the time and hurried to coax the little puppet to sleep. Once the child was asleep, he returned to the study.

【Host, hello.】

As soon as Qi Chao sat down, he heard the system's voice and smiled, “Welcome back. I didn’t expect you to return so timely.”

In his consciousness, the system flickered its green light and didn't mention that it had returned an hour ago but had been too scared to speak with the puppet around. 

As long as it didn’t admit its cowardice, no one would know how frightened it had been. The system quickly shifted the topic to earning points. 

【According to the Central Bureau’s evaluation, your design drafts meet the standards for listing. However, the points each design can exchange for depend on the level of completion.】

Qi Chao was somewhat surprised at how smoothly things had gone and had no objections to the system's standards. 

After all, being able to trade with the mall was already an unexpected bonus.

【You have a total of fifty-six unpublished design drafts from your previous life: thirty C-level items, fifteen B-level items, and eleven A-level items. Each level can be exchanged for fifty, eighty, and one hundred points, respectively,】 the system said. 【Do you confirm the transaction?】

"Confirmed." As soon as Qi Chao said this, he saw the prompt indicating the funds had been transferred to his account.

【After automatically deducting the system’s commission and converting the points to star coins, you receive seven hundred ninety-eight thousand star coins. Please check your account.】

Qi Chao was pleased with the speed of the transaction.

The system, which had never received so many points before, couldn't possibly delay. This amount would allow it to exchange for a substantial amount of high-grade energy liquid. Having benefited so greatly, the system's fondness for Qi Chao grew. 

Initially, the central bureau had no intention of engaging in business with craftsmen, but once the system revealed the dimensional number, the bureau immediately agreed. 

The system had put in minimal effort and gained a heap of points.

Now, the system viewed its host more favorably. Watching Qi Chao obliviously treating the demon as a treasure, the system felt both guilty and eager to assist him further. Just as it was about to subtly give a hint, the light brain on the desk chimed, displaying a familiar avatar. 

The system kept silent and observed.

[Doctor: Your message was only half-sent. Did something happen?]

[Doctor: Apologies, I was waiting for awhile without receiving the rest of your message. I was a bit worried.]

When Lan Luo fell from the swing, Qi Chao had been chatting with Lan Lou’s Father and had left a half completed sentence. Due to the subsequent busyness, he hadn't had the chance to check the light brain messages and complete his reply.

Seeing the two messages from the puppet master, Qi Chao felt a warmth in his heart. He couldn't help but speak to the still-present system, "Lan Luo's father is indeed just like him, kind and considerate."

The system: ...

The prepared hints that the system had been about to deliver stayed in its stomach.. 

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