Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

  At the second store, Xiao Zhuang’s cat adoption process started off well. He expressed his interest in adopting and then the person in charge instructed him to complete a simple adoption procedure.

  This “simple” procedure shocked Xiao Zhuang, who hadn’t experienced much of the outside world.

  Xiao Zhuang mockingly said, “Do you guys know the conditions required for an adoption?”


  He slowly held up his fingers and counted. “One, you need a copy of your ID and a submitted bank account statement. Then, you have to give them another picture of you holding up your ID. Bloody hell, when I saw that requirement, I felt like was in a police station!”


  “Two, you have to agree to house visits, and video calls from QQ or Wechat are not optional. Random surprise visits have to be accepted unconditionally. When I read this condition, I felt like I was a criminal on bail!” Xiao Zhuang was so agitated his spit flew everywhere as he spoke.

  He looked at Ting Ting. “For her, I could force myself to accept the first condition but the second one? What if I wasn’t home when they made a surprise visit? To let Ting Ting handle them alone… Honestly, I’d be worried. These days, any kind of person can exist. What if we accidentally let someone dangerous into our house?”


  “It’s not like that, you can’t think of them that way!” The unfamiliar young lady emphasized, “It’s only because people don’t know how to cherish an adopted pet since it comes at no cost. There have been cases where pets have been abused after they were adopted and this prompted such strict rules and regulations on adoptions!”


  “I completely support the argument that people don’t know how to cherish anything that comes without a cost.” Zhang Zian nodded his head in agreement.

  The unfamiliar young lady fiercely glared at him.

  “Isn’t the condition too much?” A plump young lady nearby couldn’t help but to speak up. “A tough girl like me wouldn’t be afraid of house visits, but to take a picture with my ID? I’m sorry, I really can’t accept that. What if they use that picture of mine to get a loan? Isn’t there a number of online banks now where you can easily get tens of thousands dollars worth of loans approved with just a picture of you and your ID? I’m actually really interested in adopting a cat too, but if this is the case then I think I’m fine. I’d rather just buy one with my own money,”


  “You’re just supporting the growth of the industry for black-hearted pet dealers! And just because all of you are afraid of the troubles, afraid of this and afraid of that! It’s leading to a number of pets being abandoned, abused, and left with no home to return to!” The young lady confronted everyone she saw. If anyone even slightly questioned adoption practices, she didn’t hesitate to confront them.

  The plump young lady was as she described herself to be. She was truly a tough girl. She immediately snapped back, “Don’t try to use morals against me, I’m not a saint and I don’t want to be one. I’m only doing whatever I can to give away love and kindness. But if by doing so brings me unwanted troubles, then it can stay far away from me!”


  “Huh, the title hypocritical and fake pet lover is just for people like you!” The unfamiliar young lady sarcastically replied.

  “Holier-than-thou adoption b*tch!” The plump young lady said with no restraint.

  The unfamiliar young lady’s face was flushed red with anger. “Who are you calling a adoption b*tch?” Her lips moved a few times, but she was still unable to let out the last words.

  “I didn’t mention exactly who, anyone who thinks it’s them can gladly accept the title.” The plump young lady lowered her head, and finished off the last mouthful of rice in her bowl before she raised her voice and shouted, “Lady, more rice!”


  The customers there were mostly young ladies and the restaurant’s food portions were quite large, so most of the time there was leftovers that caused unnecessary waste. Because of that, the old Li couple had recently reduced the portions of their dishes. Today however, they’d run into a big eater. It was already her second time requesting for more rice.

  Aunt Li dropped off a new bowl of freshly steamed rice. The plump young lady started stuffing herself while muttering, “Snowy’s recommendations are always great,” as if the previous clash with the pretentious young lady hadn’t affected her mood at all.

  The clash between the ladies had silenced all the guys who were there. It was only after their fight came to an end that Xiao Zhuang carefully continued. “I wasn’t finished with what I was saying. So, after hearing the first two conditions, I was ready to give up on the plan, but I didn’t want to just turn around and leave like with Agency A. Keeping on with the principle of finishing what I started, I forced myself to continue listening, but the more I heard the more shocked I was.”


  Other than a picture of him holding up his own ID, and accepting periodic surprise home visits, their third condition was to provide proof of one’s stable income and property deed within Binhai City. But since he was still a university student and was only able to work during his extra time after classes, his family had their own house but he wasn’t the owner. Where was he supposed to get proof of a stable income and a copy of his property deed? It was here that he finally understood that adopting a pet was completely not an option for him.

  “They need a copy of your property deed and income statement? Are you sure this is for adopting a pet, and not for a blind date?” One other male customer spoke up after remaining silent for so long.

  “Even a blind date wouldn’t require an income statement, right? If that was the case, we could still exaggerate a little more. That should be for a credit card application at least,” another male diner said with certainty.

  Xiao Zhuang shrugged his shoulders. “If there is a single lie in what I just said, may the heavens strike me down with lightning.”


  Ting Ting ruthlessly pinched him, not letting him spout out such serious promises so casually.

  The young lady quickly tried to explain, “That’s to ensure that the adopted pets have a stable home. Constantly moving around isn’t good for pets, it’s considered abuse!”


  “I’m a low-income foreign worker, not a local from Binhai. I rent a room here and move around often. When my landlord decides to raise my rent, why wouldn’t I move to a cheaper location? Based on what you’re saying, my life is worse than a dog’s!” said another male customer near the front as he pointed to himself. Considering how he was dressed, he was being too modest.

  Although the young lady didn’t directly reply to his question, the look of contempt from her eyes was enough to guess her answer. Low-income foreign workers didn’t deserve human rights.

  “It’s not over yet.” Xiao Zhuang started to get more enthusiastic as he went on. “The fourth condition, although not as harsh as the previous ones, is the one I can’t understand the most.”


  “Oh, tell us.” Everyone’s curiosity was piqued.

  Xiao Zhuang cleared his throat, and said, “The fourth condition was that after the adoption, the cat food that we use to feed it must not be lower than 400 yuan a pack and it had to be imported. Otherwise, it would be considered abuse and the adoption organization would have to retrieve the pet. I was stumped! The staff clearly explained to me that the cat was a stray and used to live a very sad, starving life. Now that I wanted to adopt it, I can at least promise that it wouldn’t starve anymore, yet if I didn’t feed it expensive cat food it was considered some form of abuse?”


  After listening to this, Zhang Zian confidently laughed. “Did Agency B also designate a specific brand and where to get it from?”


  “How did you know that?” Xiao Zhuang asked in surprise.

  “It’s very simple.” Zhang Zian gave the young lady a sideways glance. “Because besides black-hearted chains of pet dealers, there are also black-hearted pet adoption organizations as well. If I’m correct, this agency’s true identity would be an authorized distributor for that brand of cat food.