The Parrot's Sorrow

Wen Xishu was very confident in his luck. After all, he had Luck Value this round and had rolled the maximum "Mad Dice" of 666.

A "Heavenly Hand" opening. This momentum clearly indicated a game for the lucky, and a quick clear of Tower of Desire's Level Six Completion was within reach today.

Could such great fortune still lead to a loss?

Dice roll: 2, 2.

"It seems your luck isn't good. You drink first," Tang Rui said, tapping the cup lightly with her index finger, her gaze fixed on Wen Xishu.

Wen Xishu remained silent.

Hmm, starting off at a disadvantage is good. It fits my style. Lose one round to show weakness, then go on a killing spree.

As the wine poured into the cup, Wen Xishu saw the originally wine-red liquid suddenly gain a subtle sheen.

"So pretty..." Tang Rui couldn't help but say.

It was the first time she had seen such a magical reaction. The dim red had become vibrant.

Wen Xishu said softly:

"After I finish drinking, you can ask me one question, and I promise to answer truthfully."

Tang Rui let out an "oh." Truths seemed uninteresting, but playing with this stranger who had suddenly appeared might be interesting.

There was something about Wen Xishu that gave her a sense of kinship.

"Is happiness telling the truth?"

"It depends on who you're telling it to. If it's to me, you might receive an unprecedented surprise," Wen Xishu said seriously.

Tang Rui dismissed his words as nonsense, not realizing this was a major turning point in fate.

Wen Xishu drank the wine in the cup directly.

[You have consumed wine influenced by the wine cup. From this moment on, you will tell the absolute truth to any question asked by the other person holding the wine cup.]

This was the first piece of information, and originally the only piece. This meant the Truth Serum Wine Cups' function had begun to take effect.

But interestingly, Wen Xishu received a second piece of information.

[Under the effect of Eerie Sequence 99 - Mixed Feelings, the Truth Serum Wine Cups have begun to change slightly. The other person holding the wine cup will gain an additional truth-listening experience.]

Wen Xishu was slightly surprised.

Eerie Sequence 99 - Mixed Feelings. Tang Rui indeed harbored an Eerie Sequence within her.

However, unlike Jack, whose mutation happened suddenly one day, Tang Rui was awakening gradually. At least at this moment, Tang Rui's sequence could resonate slightly with his own.

Meanwhile, Tang Rui received no notifications. These prompts were only visible to Bunker people holding the black wristwatch.

However, Tang Rui did feel the magical power of the wine cup.

She had a feeling that no matter how sensitive the topic or what level of secret she asked about, the other person would tell the truth.

This was dangerous, as the effect might apply to her as well, but it was also very alluring.

Once someone drank from the Truth Serum Wine Cups, the other person would automatically be influenced by the cup and participate in the game.

"Do you... like any girls?"

It was a very cliché truth-telling question, but as an icebreaker, it was suitable. Tang Rui thought she would ask more hidden questions next.

"No," Wen Xishu answered decisively.

He loved these kinds of questions; a simple yes or no was all that was needed.

But at this moment, Tang Rui saw some images.

The city in the image was a place that felt both familiar and strange to Tang Rui. It resembled Jiangcheng, yet it didn't.

The city scene flashed by. The next instant, everything was engulfed in flames. A child, about twelve or thirteen years old, stood outside the fire, holding an unconnected phone, talking to himself.

"Just love yourself. Don't be deceived by them again, and don't easily trust anyone. Do what you love, and experience all the novelty and excitement in this world."

After saying these words, the child made the call – an emergency call.

Tang Rui vaguely guessed that the child was the person drinking with her. Looking at the child's back, she inexplicably felt a sense of loneliness.

She suddenly had the urge to ask more, to the point that she overlooked asking about the wine cup itself.

"What did you experience..."

"Silence. This is the second question. Roll the dice first," Wen Xishu interrupted Tang Rui.

Wen Xishu could feel what Tang Rui had seen.

He realized the danger of the wine cup, but this way, he could obtain all the information through it.

However, Wen Xishu's joy didn't last long.

The dice roll was 1, 5. That added up to six points, meaning it was his turn to drink again.

"My luck is good, you..."

Tang Rui suddenly stopped. She seemed to have become smarter, realizing that asking such a broad and general question was unwise, as the other person could give a vague answer.

So, she changed her question:

"In the past, did anyone love you?"

Wen Xishu shook his head.

"No one."

His expression shifted from calm and composed to serious, or perhaps he didn't know what expression to wear, so he settled for a blank face, which made him appear very serious.

Tang Rui hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping herself. She already knew the rule of the wine cups: only the truth could be spoken. This man genuinely believed he had never been loved.

But the scenes she saw were so heartwarming.

This was the happiness she had always dreamed of.

"Xiao Shu, Xiao Shu, look, look! What's this? Mom bought you a ROG handheld! Are you happy?"

The woman's face seemed obscured by mist, yet her brilliant smile was still visible.

These heartwarming scenes were not isolated incidents.

"Xiao Shu, Xiao Shu, sorry to disturb you at school, but lunch was delicious today. Happy birthday! Let's go to the amusement park after school."

Although the woman's sunny smile was hidden by the mist, Tang Rui still felt deeply moved.

She had begged for such a scene countless times.

In the scene, the woman stood at the classroom door, waving at the boy in front of his teacher and classmates. She held a bento box, the kind only seen in anime.

So, even when busy with studies, parents remembered their child's birthday.

Tang Rui was confused. With a mother like that, why did he say he had never been loved?

She was already feeling the effects of the wine and couldn't be bothered to ask about the wine cups' secrets:

"Continue."

The dice rolled a four and a four, still an even number.

This time, Wen Xishu realized the seriousness of the situation. If the next roll was also an even number, he would have to find a way to change the game.

Tang Rui had never experienced such a "truth or dare" game before; it was novel, like experiencing someone else's life.

Wen Xishu's memories filled her with longing and envy.

"Then... have there been moments when you felt happy?"

She asked a similar question, wanting to see more such scenes.

"Not at all."

Wen Xishu wanted to say that, but he couldn't. The Truth Serum Wine Cups only allowed the truth to be spoken, and at this moment, the words that came out were:

"There have been."

Tang Rui saw a scene unfold.

"Son, come here. You're about to leave us to go to middle school, which means you're growing up. From now on, Dad is setting your level to one. Do you remember the games we used to play?" The man's face was also obscured by mist.

He gently hugged the child in his arms, nuzzling the child's face with his beard. Although the man's face was shrouded in mist, Tang Rui felt...

that the man's eyes must have been incredibly gentle. This was the fatherly love she had never experienced. In her life, her father had been a silent accomplice.

"I remember," the boy said.

"Very good. You need to keep leveling up, understand? All the questions in your new school are monsters. You need to learn knowledge, increase your level, and defeat the monsters. In society later on, there will be even more monsters waiting for you to challenge." The man gently patted the child's back.

"You will become the man of the house, capable of handling things on your own."

The little boy said, "Are teachers and classmates also monsters?"

"They are not. They are high-level NPCs. As long as Xiao Shu masters knowledge, they will help him. They will follow you, just like in the game, when you become strong enough, people will always want to join your party."

"What about Mom and Dad? Are they also high-level NPCs?" the boy asked.

The man shook his head.

"To others, Mom and Dad might be powerful NPCs, but whether you are poor or rich in the future, whether you are successful or not..."

"From the moment you were born, we have been in your party, and we will never change."

Tang Rui actually shed tears. She cried silently. If she had just one such conversation with her parents in twenty years... perhaps her life would have turned out differently.

"Continue."

Wen Xishu's voice had grown a little cold; the resurfacing of bad memories had subtly shifted his emotions.

Fortunately, this time... the dice finally landed on an odd number. Four, five.

A total of nine points.

Tang Rui was forthright, raising her wine cup and draining it. She knew her own secrets would also be exposed.

"Ask."

"In your past, something very unfortunate happened. When the music from the music box played, what did that person with the greasy voice do to you?"

Wen Xishu's first question struck Tang Rui like an arrow, piercing her directly.

Tang Rui's hands were trembling.

Although her first instinct should have been to question Wen Xishu on how he knew these things, as those memories flooded back, her mind buzzed and she became flustered.

Wen Xishu knew this question would likely plunge the other person into extreme emotions.

And so it was.

No, don't do this, I don't want to answer, I don't want to answer…

He saw Tang Rui's Mental Barrage. But the Truth Serum Wine Cups forced Tang Rui to speak the truth:

"I was abused by that person…"

The words were brief. It was as if Wen Xishu also didn't want to use detailed language to speak the truth. But Tang Rui's Eerie Sequence: Mixed Feelings greatly supplemented this sentence.

Those unbearable past events surged forward.

"Who do you think we cooked this whole table of food for?"

"Who do you think we worked so hard to earn money for?"

"Who do you think we humbled ourselves to beg others, just to get you into a good school?"

"You're unhappy? What's the point of being happy now, you need to work hard! Work hard! Do you see the mocking faces of other people's children? Do you see them! I'm losing face! Do you know how well children your age scored?"

"You need to work hard! Work hard! I've already found the best teacher in Jiangcheng City. They said that no matter how stupid you are, they can make you a top student!"

"No crying, no crying! You think you're tired, we're even more tired! Do you know how hard work is! We're doing all this tiring work for you!"

"We're all doing this for your own good!"

Each sentence was a scene, and when the girl spoke of being abused, all these voices layered upon each other, all these scenes stacked up, filling every inch of Wen Xishu's vision.

To the point that the echoes of "Who is it for," "Who is it for," "Who is it for" frequently appeared in Wen Xishu's ears.

What he saw was a child who wasn't particularly good at studying, being forced to study under the high-intensity pressure of her parents, filled with immense guilt.

The memories continued—

"Then I'll trouble you, Professor Yan. You can discipline her however you see fit, whether it's hitting or scolding, as long as this child can win awards!"

The woman smiled at a plump man. The man also smiled and looked at the girl beside him:

"Don't worry, look at her, she's just like a beautiful little bird. She will fly very high with me."

Stop! Hurry and stop!

Tang Rui's Mental Barrage appeared, but the effect of the Truth Serum Wine Cups was too potent.

Wen Xishu watched the scenes shift, saw the plump man's slap land on the girl's face.

"How can you not even understand such a simple problem? Are you mentally retarded?"

"Do you know, if you're too stupid, your mom and dad might abandon you. If you want to go back to them, you can only win awards!"

"Certificates of honor obtained through academics are the contracts for your parents' love! Children without certificates don't deserve their parents' love at all!"

"Your parents have done so much for you, do you know how difficult it is?"

The plump man's words, like heavy hammers, struck the girl's spine.

"I'm sorry… I definitely, definitely will study hard, I will make my mom and dad love me."

No wonder…

Wen Xishu suddenly understood. No wonder this girl was so obsessed with the illusory past in her memories.

That sentence, "From the moment you were born, we have been on your team, and we will never change," whether true or false, was something the girl had desperately longed for.

Wen Xishu seemed to understand what kind of family the girl lived in.

But he still underestimated Tang Rui's experiences.

"Hello, Little Rui's mother. It's like this, your child has already won seventh place in the math competition. This is an extraordinary achievement. I spent a lot of time on it. I've sent the certificate of honor, did you receive it?"

"Thank you, thank you so much, I received it, I received it! You are truly amazing, my husband and I have gained so much face recently!"

"Don't thank me yet, she really doesn't want to study at all, she's too resistant to learning, I can't teach her anymore. She's even slandering me, slandering me for doing things that harm children. Sigh, to avoid studying, she'll make up any lie now. How could I possibly do such a thing!"

But on the other end of the phone, the woman's voice became stern:

"This unpromising thing, Professor Yan, you've been troubled. Please don't take it to heart with the child. You are such a highly respected person, as long as she can win awards, we will only be grateful to you! Rest assured, we absolutely trust you, and we will help you clarify!"

The call ended.

When the plump man handed the receiver to the girl, letting her hear the busy signal after the call was hung up…

The man's smile was greasy and disgusting.

Bang!

The scenes suddenly shattered. It turned out that Tang Rui, who had long been in tears, had slammed the Truth Serum Wine Cups onto the table!

"Let's have more! Drink! We won't go home until we're drunk!"

Wen Xishu nodded calmly:

"Okay, continue."

He didn't even realize it himself, the absence of mockery in his tone.

Wen Xishu, having experienced misfortune himself, and even carrying immense guilt after his transmigration, had always adopted a mocking attitude towards others' misfortunes.

But this time, he put aside that mockery and teasing.

The dice clattered against the dice cup. Under the influence of alcohol, Tang Rui began to get heated.

Tearing open old wounds was naturally resisted at first, because of the pain. But once the pain arrived, it seemed to bring a sense of self-destruction.

The roll was six, three. Nine points. Wen Xishu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Tang Rui didn't waste any words. She picked up the cup and drained it again, very decisively.

"Ask away!"

Wen Xishu said:

"Second thing, tell me the second thing that you feel is as bad as this."

Another sharp question, like a blade.

Her delicate fingernails, pressed too hard against the wine table, made a cracking sound. Tang Rui's initial reaction was anger, which then turned into helplessness:

"I had a dream when I was a student, but it was destroyed. I actually... really liked singing."

The singer in the bar was still crooning a gentle tune; the voice was pleasant.

"My voice used to be much better than these bar singers."

Wen Xishu suddenly remembered Ji Boda saying something—

She loved to sing, and although her voice wasn't particularly good, Wen Renjing still invited her to sing together in an open-air park, attracting quite a few tourists who applauded.

Now it seemed Tang Rui's voice wasn't bad from the start.

"But my parents made it so I could never sing again."

"I'm supposed to be a good girl who studies hard and passes the civil service exam," Tang Rui said, almost through gritted teeth.

The hatred in her eyes had not faded to this day.

If there was anything that could compare to the devastation of her childhood, it was probably the shattering of her dreams in her youth.

Under the effect of her mixed feelings, Wen Xishu saw Tang Rui's past again.

"Look at this, Tang! What kind of nonsense is your daughter writing in her diary!"

"This is why her studies have declined! She won awards in junior high!"

"And now! She's not studying, she's playing with music! Look at her grades!"

"Singing? Is that something a decent person does! Look at Xiao Lei next door, he's not studying either, he wants to play soccer, does that add points to the college entrance exam?"

"You're not allowed to learn it! If you keep this up, I'll send you to Teacher Yan!"

A barrage of memories flooded back.

Told since childhood to develop the habit of writing a diary, Tang Rui had always obeyed. Because she desperately wanted her parents to love her.

All along, she had tried her best to do everything that would please her parents.

Writing a diary was no different.

It was just that she didn't know that her parents weren't having her write a diary to improve her writing skills. They just wanted to know... what she did at school every day.

When her recent grades plummeted, her parents would check her diary to find out the reason.

Wen Xishu let out a silent, dry chuckle.

He also wrote a diary, but it was the complete opposite of Tang Rui's. A completely different experience.

Yet, he suddenly felt that he and Tang Rui were so similar.

The effect of the Truth Serum Wine Cups hadn't worn off yet. Because the greatest pain had yet to appear.

Although forced by her parents to give up music, the girl in her memories had never truly compromised.

She would still sing quietly in her spare time, and hum her favorite songs when she felt troubled.

Until one morning, she woke up as usual and tried to speak, when she felt a sharp pain in her throat.

The original ethereal quality was gone, replaced by a disgusting hoarseness. Her vocal cords vibrated, like rusted metal grinding together.

In an instant, mist welled up in the girl's eyes.

Silence, like a tidal wave, washed over her, coating her soul in a layer of salt.

Plink. The sound of tears falling on dust was so loud, tears began to stream down the girl's face, drop by drop.

The man and woman stood opposite the girl, like two dark walls, or like two silent statues.

"Good girl, Mom is doing this for your own good. Don't worry, that medicine only hurts your throat, not your brain. You just focus on studying, get into a good university, find a good job, and everyone in the neighborhood will envy us!"

"What's the use of a girl learning those things? It's better to find a good job and then marry into a good family."

"Don't cry! Why are you crying? It's not like you can't sing anymore!"

"What do you mean I'm controlling your life? You were born to me, do you know how hard it was for me to carry you? Do you know who I'm doing all this for?"

"Go study! Otherwise, I'll send you to Teacher Yan!"

The name "Teacher Yan" seemed to be the deepest terror in the girl's heart. She had once written that memory in her diary.

But one day, that diary page was torn out. She didn't know who tore it, and she searched for a long time but couldn't find it.

It was just that from then on, whenever she tried to resist her parents' arrangements, they would say: "If you don't behave, we'll send you to Teacher Yan."

It was like a spell, making the young Tang Rui more and more like a parrot.

The parrot had often gazed from afar at the Children's Palace in Jiangcheng City, where many children were happily drawing, singing, and dancing.

But she couldn't go in, even though it wasn't far. Perhaps the chirping of the birds there was full of the scent of the forest.

And she was a parrot.

Parrots couldn't make bird sounds; that wasn't a good parrot. A good parrot should mimic speech, saying whatever its keeper said...

(Don't panic, there's another big chapter coming. These two chapters are close to twelve thousand characters. But allow me to patch something up first to prevent reports. Not long ago, chapter 43 was reported, and some content was removed during review. The tone of today's chapter is quite serious. The material for this story comes from an experience a friend who teaches musical instruments in Sichuan told me about in 2019, concerning her own experiences with tutoring and being harmed by a teacher during her student days. Coincidentally, this past summer, another friend I've known for many years, someone I often eat with, suddenly confided in me late one night. Because her parents were pressuring her to get married, but she didn't want to be intimate with the opposite sex, she sought me out to talk. It turned out that during her middle school years, something similar had happened. This event shocked me for a long time because it happened so close to home.

Actually, a previous chapter in the book hinted at the age Tang Rui experienced this, and it was reported by a reader. That section was eventually removed by the review process.

But all the eerie things in fiction are not as terrifying as reality. The distortions in the Tower of Desire are far more exaggerated than those in the Tower of Deception. If you don't write about it, does that mean these things don't happen in reality? Whether to write about it or not isn't the key; the key is the author's attitude towards these events. As long as it's a form of resistance, that's enough. Therefore, I ask readers to be lenient. I really don't want the story to be cut off, affecting the reader's experience.)