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

  When everyone heard what Aunt Li said, they gazed at her and Zhang Zian in shock.

  “What did you say?” Ting Ting wanted to make sure she had heard it correctly. “He brought all the cats here? Doesn’t he own a pet shop?”


  Aunt Li nodded. “Yes, he owns a pet shop, but he also brought the cats here. There’s no conflict.”


  During the self-righteous girl’s speech, Aunt Li had overheard their argument in the kitchen, and grew worried that they might fight. She didn’t understand what was worth fighting about. The rich bought expensive cats, and the poor adopted or rescued cats. Why did there have to be a right way or a wrong way? It was the competitiveness of young people, one always had to convince the other. It was always a matter of right and wrong, there wasn’t a middle ground.

  She didn’t find it conflicting, but all the young people here did. He sold animals for a living, why would he bring them over to be adopted? Didn’t that ruin his business?

  While everyone gazed at him, Zhang Zian spoke, “I’ve told you more than once, I support adoption. Why does no one believe me? Do I have to repeat myself?”


  The self-righteous girl’s mouth opened in surprise. She assumed earlier that Zhang Zian words were just that, but she didn’t realize that he actually supported adoption.

  “You’re really not joking?” she questioned.

  “No, why would I joke about this?” Aunt Li saw that they didn’t believe him, so she went to the second floor and came back down with a litter box, displaying the label.

  “This litter box is from Amazing Fate Pet Shop,” she said. “Master Zhang gave it to us, he didn’t charge us.”


  The chubby girl finally finished all the food on the table, and burped loudly. She pointed at Zhang Zian and said, “I think I’ve heard about it in Snowy’s broadcast, but since you have an average face, I forgot about you.”


  “You’re telling me?” Zhang Zian couldn’t tolerate this. “You have an average face!”


  The chubby girl didn’t mind that at all. She rubbed her round belly and said, “I have the video on my phone. If you don’t believe, I can show it to you. I remember Snowy mentioning that he brought the cats here for temporary boarding. Oh, right. Snowy is a famous broadcast host. She’s gorgeous. I highly recommend her broadcast channel, Eat, Drink and Be Merry at Binhai City.”


  The chubby girl’s straightforwardness made everybody laugh.

  “The cats don’t belong to me,” Zhang Zian clarified. “The cats belong to a pet clinic up north, where they were abandoned by their owners. The clinic had to treat and take care of them, which was a heavy burden. That’s why I brought them over here. If someone could adopt them, that’d be great. Apart from the seven cats, there are a few dogs. If you’re interested, you should apply for adoption.”


  Pet clinics and hospitals were great sources for pet adoptions, but not many people knew about it. The abandoned pets were in desperate need of new homes. The animals were very healthy, some of them were even neutered. They were often the best options for adoption, much better than the fancy—and fishy—animals advertised on Weibo.

  Ting Ting was a bit confused, so she asked, “Who should I give the application to? What are the conditions for adoption?”


  Everybody was listening carefully.

  After hearing the ridiculous stories about adoption agencies, they were concerned about the procedures set forth by the owner, who was considered to be a key player in the corrupted pet business.

  “You should file your application with Dr. Sun, as the cats technically belong to her and her clinic. However, she’s back home for the Spring Festival.” Zhang Zian murmured. “So, I’ll take them. I was there when she wrote the adoption procedures, after all.”


  When Sun Xiaomeng first wrote the adoption procedures, the requirements were a bit strict. She sent them to Zhang Zian for feedback, then revised according to his opinions, setting the bar for adoption a bit lower.

  Zhang Zian continued, “First of all, you don’t need to take a picture of your ID, nor provide an Income Statement. It’d be best if you owned property, so you should bring your property ownership certificate. If you’re renting, that’s fine as long as you can prove that there isn’t a ‘ No Pets Allowed’ clause in the terms of your lease. Not too demanding, right?”


  Ting Ting and Zhuang nodded. The condition was reasonable and acceptable.

  “Second, we need reliable contact information. We won’t physically come to your home, but we’ll do frequent remote visits through QQ or Wechat video. The visits aren’t for forever, they’ll last from six months to a year. Still not too much to ask, right?” Zhang Zian said, playing with his fingers.

  Ting Ting and Zhuang nodded again.

  Zhang Zian slightly raised his voice before saying, “The third condition may be the most challenging. Before taking the cats home, you’ll need to come to the restaurant and take care of them for a month. Either of you will do, but at least one of you must show up here each day, and take care of the seven cats. You’ll need to spend at least two hours, one in the morning and one in the evening, here each day. If you don’t show up for whatever reason, you’ll be disqualified, proving that you’re not ready to own a pet.”


  This condition had never been heard of, so the audience started discussing.

  The last one was Zhang Zian’s idea, and replaced the deposit condition. He believed that if the person was able to come and take care of the seven cats for a month, rain or shine, it proved that he or she was serious about adopting and was willing to take care of them. He or she would also learn the right ways to care for pets, making them ready to own a pet long-term.

  “Is that all?” Zhuang asked tentatively.

  “That’s it. Only three conditions. Are you okay with them?” Zhang Zian asked.

  Zhuang and Ting Ting looked at each other. They saw excitement and confidence in the each other’s eyes.

  They held each other’s hands under the table, and replied at the same time. “We…”


  The rest of the sentence was drowned out by the sudden noise that came from outside.