Pipi Ru and the Magic Chopsticks

Author: Zheng Yuanjie
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: Zheng Yuanjie, a legendary figure in Chinese literature, is renowned as the "King of Fairy Tales." His characters, such as Pippy, Lulu, Luo Ke, Shuke, and Beta, have influenced two generations of Chinese children. Among them, Pippy is the most iconic male protagonist in Zheng Yuanjie's fairy tales. Pippy Total Mobilization is the first collection of Pippy stories from the author's millions of works, linking other most popular stories from Zheng Yuanjie's fairy tales with the Pippy character as a thread, truly a "masterpiece of Zheng Yuanjie's fairy tales." This series maintains the author's consistent writing style, with light, humorous, and witty language, yet it is not lacking in depth, still sparkling with profound and mysterious thoughts between the lines. Each book adopts a mixed-illustration layout, enhancing the fun of the work while teaching through entertainment. This book is Pippy Total Mobilization: Orange Yellow Series—Pippy and the Magic Chopsticks.
Children, come and explore the fairy tale castle with Pippy! While eating, Pippy found that the chopsticks were talking to him. The chopsticks told Pippy that they could enlarge or shrink any object at will. Just then, the doorbell rang at Pippy's house—it was the robbers disguised as water meter readers coming to rob Pippy's home. However, Pippy had the magic chopsticks, and he used them to shrink the robbers, saving Lulu. This book also includes other exciting stories such as Wing Span, Red Tower Paradise, and New Biography of the Bull Demon King. Pippy and Lulu are twin siblings, with Pippy being the older brother. Both are six years old this year.
One evening, while having dinner, Mom took out a box of new chopsticks and said, "Today, let's use the new ones." Dad added, "The newspaper says that chopsticks should be replaced frequently, as they can accumulate germs over time." Pippy picked up a pair of new chopsticks and bit them with his teeth. Mom asked, "What are you doing?" Pippy replied, "I'm testing whether the chopsticks are sturdy." Lulu said, "If the chopsticks were made of candy, that would be great." Pippy noticed that this pair of new chopsticks felt different from the old ones when he bit them. He heard a strange sound coming from the chopsticks in his mouth.
Pippy took the chopsticks out of his mouth and placed them near his ear. The chopsticks spoke, "Don't make a sound. I am the only pair of magic chopsticks in the world. Don't bite me too hard. After dinner, I'll tell you about my powers alone." Pippy looked at the chopsticks closely. Dad asked, "What's wrong?" Pippy shook his head and said, "Nothing." During dinner, Pippy ate carefully, afraid of damaging the magic chopsticks. Mom asked, "Does the food taste bad?" Pippy replied, "It's delicious." Mom said, "Then why are you eating like you're taking medicine?" Pippy quickly started eating large bites.
After finishing dinner, while Mom wasn't looking, Pippy tucked the magic chopsticks into his waistband and took another pair out of the chopstick box to place on the table. Pippy went into the bathroom, locked the door, and pretended to be using the toilet. He whispered to the chopsticks, "What powers do you have?" The chopsticks replied, "On the surface, these two chopsticks look the same, but if you look closely, you'll notice that one is slightly thicker." Pippy examined them and indeed found a difference in thickness. The chopsticks said, "Hold the thicker chopstick at the base, aim it at an object, and gently squeeze the base. The object you aim at will grow infinitely until you release it." Pippy asked, "If I aim the thinner chopstick at someone, will they shrink?" The chopsticks said, "You're very smart."
Pippy wanted to try it, so he picked up the thicker chopstick and aimed it at the toilet. Just as he was about to squeeze the base, the magic chopsticks quickly said, "Don't do that—otherwise, the toilet will grow as big as this room!" At that moment, Pippy heard the doorbell outside the bathroom. Mom asked, "Who is it?" The person outside said it was the property management company checking the water meter. Mom opened the door. Suddenly, Pippy heard Mom shout, "What are you doing?" A man's voice replied, "Don't shout, or I'll kill your daughter!" Lulu screamed as someone covered her mouth. Pippy realized the robbers were disguised as property management workers. He opened the bathroom door slightly and saw two villains—one was strangling Lulu with a rope and holding a knife to her throat, while the other held a knife and demanded money from Pippy's father. Dad said, "First, let my daughter go!" The villain replied, "You won't get your daughter back unless you give me money." Lulu's face turned purple from holding her breath.
Pippy remembered the magic chopsticks in his hand. He decided to use them to shrink the villains. He extended one chopstick through the bathroom door and aimed it at the villain holding Lulu. Pippy squeezed the base of the chopstick hard. Suddenly, the villain's body grew immensely, his head reaching the ceiling, and Lulu was suspended in the air.
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