"Hah'Er, be good now. Relax and let me take a look." Bai Yanni gently held Hah'Er's left leg and carefully parted the fur below its knee. She was even more gentle and attentive than if she were taking care of her own boyfriend. Nearby, Shen Dalong and the other two officers were green with envy. 'Damn it, that's a panda! How many people ever get the chance to touch one?'
"It's okay, this will be over soon. When they're done with the inspection, I'll take you out shopping!" Shen Yibin comforted him from the side. 'The poor thing was probably scared by all this at the beginning,' he thought. 'I have to make it up to him. He's been cooped up at home for days and must be going stir-crazy. Besides, I don't have to worry about people seeing him now, so I might as well take him out for a walk.'
"I say, Shen, is it really a good idea to take a panda out shopping right now?" Hearing this, Shen Dalong started to sweat. He was a veteran police officer with over a decade of experience and had worked security for celebrity events before. He'd been through hell and back dealing with their crazy fans. Could any of those celebrities even compare to a panda in popularity? If Hah'Er went out on the street, he would cause a massive traffic jam in an instant.
"Uh, but I can't just keep Hah'Er at home all the time, can I? That wouldn't be good for his physical or mental health. What if he gets sick from being cooped up?" Shen Yibin shot back, effectively turning the tables. 'Didn't you just say you could help me with my problems?'
"If you ask me, we should just send this panda back to the Giant Panda Base. You wouldn't have these kinds of problems there. Plus, he could live and play with other pandas. They have better facilities and more professional staff. It would save you a lot of trouble, wouldn't it?" Shen Dalong urged earnestly.
'Send Hah'Er to the Giant Panda Base? Are you sure they'll feed him twice-cooked pork there? What if he dies? Never mind whether I could bear to part with him—for that reason alone, I wouldn't dare send Hah'Er away.'
"Hmph! Hmph!" Before Shen Yibin could even reply, Hah'Er voiced his displeasure. He immediately sat up, hugged Shen Yibin's arm, and huffed angrily at Shen Dalong, clearly unhappy with the suggestion.
"Captain! How could you scare the panda like that!" Bai Yanni and the other two officers shouted almost in unison. Shen Dalong, who usually commanded great respect within the team, was immediately shut down. Apparently, a leader wasn't nearly as important as a panda.
"You saw the official document just now. Professor Wu wrote it very clearly. With the increasing success of giant panda breeding technology, we can predict that in the future, zoos and breeding centers alone will gradually become unable to support the giant panda population. At the same time, experiments to reintroduce giant pandas into the wild have not been going well. Therefore, finding a suitable new path for giant pandas is a problem that needs to be considered." Shen Yibin used the document as his shield. "So, my adopting Hah'Er isn't just a matter of personal preference. I'm cooperating with Professor Wu's key research project: 'The Feasibility Study of Raising Giant Pandas as Pets.' Think about it—if the experiment is a success, maybe you'll have the chance to adopt a giant panda in the future, too."
Yes, this was the research project led by Professor Wu Gui and the key point explained in the official document. Of course, for various reasons, the only participants in the experiment at present were this precious pair, Shen Yibin and Hah'Er.
"Does this experiment need any more volunteers? Can I sign up?" Bai Yanni immediately forgot all about searching for evidence and looked at Shen Yibin with eager eyes.
"I'm sorry, but the requirements for the experiment are extremely strict, so we aren't accepting any other volunteers besides me for the time being." 'Go ahead, try and find the Future Pet Shop in your own WeChat contacts if you're so great.'
"This is still just your side of the story and hasn't been officially confirmed. Bai, continue the inspection." Shen Dalong still didn't believe the official document was reliable.
"Found it! A crescent-shaped scar, about two and a half centimeters long. It's exactly what was described over the phone!" Before long, Bai Yanni had found another piece of evidence. The crowd quickly gathered around. Just as Professor Wu Gui had said, there was indeed a scar below Hah'Er's knee.
"I'll call the station and see if they've received the fax," Shen Dalong said after a long pause. He took out his phone, walked to the side, and dialed a number. About five minutes later, he returned with a stunned look on his face. "The station received the fax. They also reconfirmed it with multiple relevant government departments. It's all been verified; this is really happening. Also, colleagues from the forensics lab are on their way with DNA testing equipment. I believe it won't be long before we have a definitive conclusion."
It made sense when you thought about it. Escorting a giant panda to the police station for an examination was practically impossible, so they had to come here instead.
"It's great that this is getting sorted out. Am I free to move about now?" Shen Yibin could finally put his worries about the Future Pet Shop's abilities to rest, and his mood instantly lightened. After all this commotion, it was time to feed the other pets in the shop.
"You can, as long as you and this panda don't leave our sight, and you don't do anything that could have negative consequences for the panda," Shen Dalong replied. By now, Bai Yanni had finished photographing and saving the evidence.
"Okay, I'll just be downstairs. I won't go anywhere else. Hah'Er, come help me feed the others." Hah'Er was probably a little hungry too, but Shen Yibin couldn't very well fry up some twice-cooked pork for him in front of all these police officers. 'They'd definitely lose their minds if I did that.'
"Grunt! Grunt!" After being poked and prodded for so long, Hah'Er had been a bit listless. But upon hearing his master's call, he immediately perked up, leaping off the sofa with a THUD and startling the officers.
The next scene left them completely dumbfounded. Hah'Er skillfully pulled out various kinds of pet food from a basket and distributed them one by one to the Chihuahuas, Siamese Cats, and Golden Retrievers. At first, the officers were a little worried, afraid that the pets might hurt Hah'Er. But when they saw the animals holding up their bowls and waiting obediently, all that was left was jealousy. 'Damn it, why don't I ever get this lucky!'
"Excuse me, can I take a video?" Bai Yanni asked softly.
"Uh, sure, go ahead. But it's for your eyes only. Don't send it to anyone or post it online," Shen Yibin said. He had wanted to refuse at first, but then he thought, 'Since Hah'Er's status is completely legal now, what's there to worry about?'
SWOOSH. All four of them simultaneously pulled out their phones and started filming Hah'Er, Shen Dalong included. 'Sigh, it's a shame we can't post this online,' they thought. 'Otherwise, getting ten million views in a day would be a piece of cake.'
By the time Shen Yibin finished feeding the pets, Shen Dalong's phone rang. The DNA technicians who had rushed over from the police station had arrived.