Peninsula: I run a bed and breakfast on Jeju Island

The morning light slowly seeped into the courtyard from under the eaves.

After quickly washing up, Li Ran picked up her water bottle and headed towards the tomato greenhouse.

The tomato seedlings weren't very tall, but they stood in neat rows, with a little dew still clinging to their leaves.

He stopped and watered a few plants whose leaves were slightly curled.

Water dripped finely from the spout of the kettle, falling onto the soil with a soft "shush" sound.

He had specifically searched online beforehand and found that the temperature is lower in the morning, water evaporates more slowly, and the roots have enough time to absorb water.

So he usually waters the plants in the morning.

When he reached the innermost row of the shed, he suddenly paused.

He looked up and glanced at the sloppy dove nest.

He bought a bird's nest online, but the doves didn't seem to like it and ignored it.

They still lived in that simple bird's nest.

He blinked and leaned a little closer.

Two more eggs appeared in the nest.

It is pure white and much smaller than an egg.

Those two big doves have disappeared somewhere.

Anyway, I didn't see them anywhere in the vicinity.

He stared at the egg for a while, then subconsciously softened his movements.

The soft rustling of the wind blowing through the plastic sheeting could be heard outside.

He turned his attention away from the bird eggs.

After watering the plants, Li Ran went to prepare breakfast.

When Choi Jin-ri emerged from the house, still half asleep, breakfast was already laid out on the dining table.

Fried eggs, steamed buns, fried dough sticks, millet and pumpkin porridge...

She took a bite of the steamed bun.

Li Ran glanced at her and then said, "You can go outside and take a look later."

"What's wrong?" Choi Jin-ri blinked.

"Those two doves have laid eggs."

"I thought they had already gone down. They've been huddled in the nest the whole time."

She took a bite of the fried egg and then asked, "How many did you put in?"

"Two. They feel quite small. Smaller than an egg." Li Ran gestured with her fingers to indicate their size.

Choi Jin-ri glanced at it and her interest was piqued. "Then I'll go take a look later."

"Where's the great spotted dove?"

Li Ran shook her head. "I don't know. They were gone when I checked just now; there were only two eggs left."

Perhaps out of curiosity about what do dove eggs actually look like, Choi Jin-ri quickened her eating pace.

Li Ran also subconsciously ate faster.

……

The shed was quiet, with only the sound of the wind blowing through the plastic and the faint chirping of birds in the distance.

She stared curiously at the eggs in the bird's nest and casually asked, "When did it lay them?"

"I didn't put it in, how would I know?" Li Ran shrugged.

Choi Jin-ri gave him a light, disdainful look.

Li Ran scratched her brow. "I don't remember it being here yesterday. It must have been last night or early this morning, right?"

She nodded, then looked up at the location of the bird's nest.

"Won't this place... be exposed to the wind?"

Li Ran glanced in the direction of her gaze.

"Maybe?"

She patted the dust off her clothes.

"Should we block it?"

"I was just thinking about that too." Li Ran nodded. "Just make a simple barrier, don't let it get too close, otherwise the great spotted doves might not come back to incubate their eggs."

Choi Jin-ri glanced in the direction of the bird's nest. "Are there any more planks?"

"There used to be a large plank, but I sawed it up." He smiled somewhat embarrassedly.

"However, there are a few smaller ones in the storage room."

"Sometimes I really want to go to the storage room and take a look. To see this 'Doraemon's pocket'," she said with a laugh.

"I didn't stop you." He pouted.

The storage room is in a corner of the yard.

As soon as the door was opened, there was a faint smell of wood.

The contents were a bit messy, but it was roughly organized.

She stepped inside first.

"How big do you want?" she asked, turning around.

He thought for a moment, "About this wide."

He made a gesture.

Choi Jin-ri rummaged through several pieces and picked out one that was about the same size.

"Is this okay?" She held up the wooden board to show Li Ran.

He glanced at it, nodded, and said, "Okay."

He took the plank and found some more wooden strips and nails.

The two returned to the shed.

They put the things on the ground.

"You hold me up, I'll stabilize it," Li Ran said.

"Okay." Choi Jin-ri nodded.

She placed the plank on that side, tilting it slightly outwards to avoid the location of the nest.

Li Ran squatted down, took a nail, aligned it with the wooden strip, and began to fix it in place.

"A little more to the left."

She shifted slightly.

"so?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

The sound of the wood clashing was very soft, as if it were suppressed by the air inside the shed.

Their hands occasionally touched, but they quickly separated.

The rhythm was surprisingly smooth.

One baffle was quickly secured, and another one was added on the other side.

It's not airtight, but it's windproof enough.

Li Ran stood up and glanced at the whole scene.

"That's about it."

Choi Jin-ri also took two steps back and looked around.

"It looks alright."

She clapped her hands, and when she looked up, her hair was slightly ruffled by the wind.

She casually gathered them together.

"I hope it won't be scared when it comes back?"

"Probably not," Li Ran said. "We haven't moved."

She nodded.

The two stood there for a while, looking at the two tiny eggs.

"Ding-dong~"

"Buzz buzz buzz~"

Choi Jin-ri's phone vibrated again.

Li Ran had lost count of how many times this had happened.

He scratched his brow, observed Choi Jin-ri's expression, and said, "Why don't you take it?"

"Of course, you don't have to answer," he quickly added.

Choi Jin-ri glanced at him, gently bit her lip, and looked down at her phone.

"Feed".

She put the phone to her ear.

The voice on the other end of the phone was very soft; at least Li Ran couldn't hear what was being said.

All I could see was her toes shuffling on the ground, occasionally nodding and making a few "hmm" sounds.

"...Okay. I understand."

She hung up the phone and put it back in her pocket.

Li Ran looked away and scratched her eyebrows, afraid that she would think she was eavesdropping.

Choi Jin-ri pursed her lips, glanced at him, and then turned her gaze back to the two dove eggs.

Li Ran didn't ask what was said on the phone; she simply bent down to pick up the hammer and the remaining wooden strips from the ground and dusted them off.

"Could you take me to see the cherry blossoms tomorrow or the day after?" Choi Jin-ri suddenly asked.

Li Ran was slightly taken aback.

"I'm afraid I won't make it to the peak cherry blossom season. But it would be nice to at least see them beforehand."

Seemingly noticing the surprise in his eyes, she added, "The company just notified me that I should go back."

Li Ran suddenly regretted letting Cui Zhenli answer the phone earlier.

"Uh..." He scratched his eyebrow, "How many days have we been staying? Didn't we book for a month?"

She gently shook her head.

"Then I'll refund your room fee. After all, you didn't stay the full stay."

"No need." She shook her head even more firmly.

"Just keep it as a keepsake."

"I might come back in a while."

"Really?" He subconsciously confirmed it again.

"real."

Li Ran subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't know why he was like this.