Chapter 1 — The Parrot Knows Too Much

My boss went on a business trip and gave me his pet parrot to take care of. Before leaving, I told him over and over: "Don't teach him to talk, he learns very quickly." I obediently nodded, my mouth agreed, but in my heart I began to think about something else. The house was so quiet, I suddenly had an idea to teach him to read ancient poetry. If you think like this, it doesn't count as teaching speaking, it's like bending the rules a little to relieve boredom. This parrot is truly a genius, in just three days he has memorized five or six lessons in a row. After that, every time I met someone, I would perform. All my neighbors praised me for teaching well. Listening to them made me feel happy. From the shipper, the guy delivering food to the person who comes to record the water meter, everyone who passes by is "culturally enlightened" by it. I was still very proud, thinking that if I waited for my boss to come home, I would definitely be complimented. Unexpectedly, on Saturday, the police knocked on the door. They asked me: "This parrot, besides you, does anyone else teach it to speak?" I was stunned, still trying to answer: "No, only I teach." The police did not say more, just quietly played a recording. At that moment, my back felt cold and my heart felt like it was falling straight into an abyss. My name is Hua Chieu, a lowly employee who works hard under Trinh Hao every day, living a "social life" so hard-working that he doesn't dare to breathe loudly. That day, boss Trinh Hao was on a business trip and conveniently sent me his pet parrot as if entrusting him with a fortune. It was an African gray parrot, with silky feathers and sparkling black eyes. Looking at it, one could tell it wasn't the right type. Trinh Hao hugged the birdcage, his serious expression was as if he was entrusting his own child. He looked at me, his voice full of responsibility: "Chieu Chieu, my family, my life is all in your hands." I laughed dryly, reaching out my hand to receive the birdcage. The cage is heavy, made of genuine pear wood, and when you hold it, you can smell money.

"Don't worry, General Trinh. I'll make sure to raise him to be white and plump." I say it in a formal way.

He shook his head again, his eyes became serious: "It doesn't matter if he's fat or not, the important thing is absolutely not to teach him to talk." I was stunned for a moment, a bit confused. "Why so?"

"He learns extremely quickly and remembers very well. There are some things that if you let him learn... it will be troublesome." He spoke vaguely, but his eyes were not joking.

In my heart I mumbled, what can a bird do? But my boss told me so I could only nod and agree.

“Okay, General Trinh, I guarantee I won't teach you a word.”

Only then did he feel secure in leaving. Suddenly having an extra bird in the house also means an extra responsibility. I named it Ly Bach, hoping it would have a poetic, quiet, elegant temperament. On the first day, Ly Bach was very "reasonable". Besides eating and drinking on time, most of the time it stands in the cage preening its fur, or tilts its head to look at me with bright eyes. The house was already quiet, but now it was even quieter to the point where you could clearly hear the sound of leaves falling outside the window. I live alone and am used to this silence. But for some reason, being stared at by those dark eyes, I found this silence starting to feel a bit creepy. On the second day, I couldn't stand it anymore. The house is too empty. I looked at Ly Bach and said: "Hey kid, I'm just talking to you, not teaching you, so it doesn't count as a violation, right?" Ly Bach tilted his head and did not react. Suddenly I had an idea. The boss just said not to teach him to "talk". So teach him to read ancient poetry... probably Doesn't count as "speaking", right? Ancient poetry is the quintessence of culture and art. The more I think about it, the more awesome this idea seems. I cleared my throat and began my "educational plan".

“The mountain is covered in white clothes.”

I read a sentence, and it immediately "cackled" along with it.

“The Yellow River enters the ocean current.”

It clicked again. Although the pronunciation is not standard, the rhythm is quite good. This bird... is really smart. I got excited and spent the whole afternoon teaching him the lesson "Dang Quan Tuoc Lau". On the third day, a miracle appeared. As soon as I woke up in the morning, I heard a stuttering sound in the cage.

“Bach… end…”

It's Ly Bach! It's actually reading poetry! I was so happy that I felt like I had just discovered a new land in the education industry. Over the next few days, I brought all the ancient poems I knew to teach him. Tinh Da Tu, Xuan Understand, Goose Bay... Ly Bach learns incredibly fast, and his pronunciation becomes clearer and clearer. In less than a week, he could read five or six Tang poems fluently. Its reputation quickly spread throughout the building. The first person to discover it was the shipper. That day he delivered the goods, and as soon as he opened the door, Ly Bach stood in the living room and said:

"The bright moonlight in front of the bed, I thought it was dew on the ground."

The shipper was startled and almost dropped the entire package.

“Sister, has your bird… become a sperm?”

I smiled complacently. “It's normal, natural talent.” After that, from the person delivering the food, the person recording the water meter to the ladies walking downstairs, everyone witnessed Ly Bach's talent. My neighbors all praised me for being good at teaching, saying I was cultured, raised birds, and also exuded a reading temperament. Hearing those words, my heart was as happy as celebrating. I still thought that when Trinh Hao returned and saw a "Ly Bach" who knew how to read Tang poetry, he would definitely reward me with a big red envelope. That day was the day before Trinh Hao returned. I was feeding Ly Bach and thinking about how I would "show off" my teaching results tomorrow to surprise my boss. The doorbell rang. I thought the food was coming, so I casually called out: "Come here." But when I opened the door, the smile on my face immediately froze. Outside the door were two men in police uniforms, with solemn faces. An older person pulled out his industry card. “Hello, we are from the city, came to find you to find out some of the situation.” My heart stopped for a beat. I live an upright life, I've never even run a red light.

“Comrade police, is it the wrong person?”

The other person shook his head, his eyes passed me, looking straight at the birdcage in the living room.

“Are you Hua Chieu?”

“I… I am.”

“Is this parrot yours?”

“It's from my boss, temporarily deposited at my place.”

He nodded, the young policeman next to him opened his notebook, preparing to take notes. The older man looked at me and asked a very strange question.

“This parrot, besides you, who else taught it to speak?”

I was stunned.

“No, I'm the only one who teaches.” I hastily added, “But I didn't teach him to talk, I only taught him ancient poetry.”

The police officer's expression did not change. He didn't say anything, just took out a tape recorder from his pocket and pressed the play button. After a short period of noise, a voice rang out. Clear. Strange.

“The skull must be broken, otherwise it will emerge quickly.”

“The ribs must be separated one by one, using the smallest bag to classify.”

“Nails have to be pulled out, teeth too.”

“So… they won't know who he is.”

The voice on the recorder was calm and cold, as if instructing a recipe. And my back... in that moment, was drenched in cold sweat. That sound still hasn't stopped, cold like an icy file, bit by bit scraping my nerves, making me want to go crazy.

“The mud under the third bridge in the park is the best.”

“Dig a little deeper, no one will think about it.”

“The checkered shirt on him is really ugly.”

“Burn it, along with his wallet and phone.”

“The smell is very strong, choking to the point of suffocation.”

The blood in my body seemed to freeze. In the living room, Ly Bach was still standing in the grooming cage, occasionally tilting his head to look at us. Those dark eyes, at this moment in my eyes, were like two bottomless abysses. The elderly police officer, surnamed Wang, turned off the recorder. The room fell into dead silence.

“Miss Hua.” His voice spoke, breaking the heavy atmosphere.

“Do you hear me clearly?”

I opened my mouth, but my throat was choked, I couldn't make any sound, I could only nod vigorously.

“That voice, are you familiar?”

I shook my head frantically. Not familiar. How could I get used to such a scary voice? It was clearly the whisper of the devil. Officer Wang and the young police officer surnamed Liu glanced at each other.

“Miss Hua, don't be nervous.” Luu Canh spoke up, his voice a bit more moderate.

“We just came to verify the situation.”

“This recording was recorded by people in the park downstairs.”

“The character in the recording… is your parrot.”

My head made a "humming" sound, like being hit with a sledgehammer. Parrot? Ly Bach? How is that possible! I taught him clearly, "Clear moonlight in front of the bed", "White feathers floating on blue water". Not gruesome things like crushing skulls and removing ribs.

“No way!” I finally found my voice again, so sharp that it startled even me.

“This is absolutely impossible!”

“My parrot only knows how to read poetry! You can ask your neighbors, ask the delivery guys, they've all heard it!"