Ta Xue immediately curled up happily in a corner of the sofa, his eyes glued to the screen. Every so often, the comical plot would make him roll around on the sofa, letting out a delighted whimper.

Leopard watched Ta Xue curiously, then glanced at the cat on TV being run ragged by a mouse. He tilted his head, seemingly unable to comprehend.

He sidled up next to Xiaojiu and whimpered softly.

"WOOF?"

’Sister Jiu, is Brother Xue a cat?’

’He looks a bit like one, but not quite.’

"MEOW~"

Xiaojiu’s emerald eyes opened a crack. She glanced at Ta Xue on the sofa and responded lazily.

’Of course he’s not a cat.’

’He’s a clouded leopard. A... hmm, a very fierce predator.’

’He’s still small now. When he grows up, his build will be about the same as yours.’

’Hmm... maybe a little bigger than you, leaner and more powerful.’

An ordinary clouded leopard is a bit smaller than a German Shepherd, but Caiyun was on the larger side.

Xiaojiu happened to have met Caiyun before.

"WHINE~"

’Oh, I see.’

Leopard’s eyes widened in surprise. When he looked at Ta Xue again, his disdain for the "little cat" was replaced with curiosity for the "future predator."

Although Hu Zi didn’t join the discussion, he had also pricked up his ears to listen carefully.

Upon hearing this, a flicker of understanding and interest appeared in his steady gaze as he looked at Ta Xue.

"MEOW MEOW~"

’What about me? What about me?’

Overlord also squeezed his way over to Xiaojiu’s side, meowing urgently.

’Boss, can I grow up to be bigger than these two big guys?’

He gestured toward Hu Zi and Leopard.

Xiaojiu let out an exasperated "MEOW" and raised a paw to swat Overlord on the head.

’You’re not going to get much bigger.’

’You’re a cat, not a leopard.’

’You need to accept what you are.’

"MEOWW~"

’Noooo!’

Overlord’s inner drama queen emerged. He "screamed tragically" and flopped to the ground, rolling around as if life was no longer worth living.

But after just a couple of rolls, he shot back up, his emerald eyes burning with fighting spirit.

’I’m sure I can still get bigger!’

’I’m going to eat more and grow bigger than that yellow dog!’

...

He was in the middle of his spirited cries when he suddenly twitched his nose. His eyes lit up, and he spun around and dashed to the kitchen. He began circling the steaming rice cooker, meowing with excitement.

’Good food!’

’The good food’s ready!’

’That’s the smell!’

...

At almost the same time, Hu Zi and Leopard also caught the unique and alluring aroma of Spirit Rice as it wafted through the air.

Their noses began to twitch uncontrollably, and their gazes snapped in unison toward the kitchen.

"WOOF~"

’Sister Jiu, what’s that delicious smell?’

’It smells so unique!’

Leopard couldn’t help but ask Xiaojiu in a low voice, swallowing hard.

"MEOW~"

’Let’s just say you won’t be disappointed.’

Xiaojiu elegantly licked her paw, giving a profound and mysterious answer.

"WOOF WOOF~"

’Really?’

Leopard’s eyes grew even brighter, and his tail began to wag involuntarily. He swallowed hard again.

Soon, the Spirit Rice Porridge was cooked and then cooled to a suitable temperature.

Yang Qi took out their special food bowls and served a portion for each of the little guys, including the newcomers, Hu Zi and Leopard.

Overlord, who had been waiting impatiently, buried his head in his bowl and ate, purring loudly.

Leopard took a cautious taste. The next second, his eyes went wide. He immediately began to wolf it down, whimpering with excitement.

’Delicious! This is so delicious!’

’How can this porridge be so fragrant and tasty?’

’Brother Hu, hurry up and eat! Don’t just space out!’

Hu Zi sniffed it for a moment, then also buried his head and started to eat. He ate the porridge just as quickly, his tail beginning to wag gently and rhythmically.

"WHINE~"

’It’s so good.’

...

Hu Zi and Leopard were already well-trained and highly obedient. After forming the contract, their bond with Yang Qi deepened, creating a closeness and understanding that stemmed from their very souls.

Yang Qi didn’t need to spend extra time on any complicated "new home adaptation training." The intelligent and steady Bai Wan and the high-ranking Xiaojiu naturally guided them in getting used to the house rules, the daily schedule, and the unique atmosphere of this "Beast Taming Sect - Zoo Branch."

In just three days, Hu Zi and Leopard had completely integrated into their new home.

They got along well with Bai Wan, maintained a proper respect for Xiaojiu, and their initial wariness of Ta Xue, the little clouded leopard, turned into curiosity and protectiveness.

They even learned to deal with Overlord, who was always bouncing around and trying to challenge their authority, by either ignoring him or gently batting him away with a paw.

This was a tactic they learned from Bai Wan.

...

That morning, Yang Qi once again took Ta Xue to the border of the back mountain. After watching the little one’s figure disappear into the bushes, he turned and headed back.

He had just returned to the Zoo when his phone rang. The caller ID showed Jiang Kai.

"Xiao Yang, are you free right now? Come to the second-floor conference room in the office building." Jiang Kai’s voice came through the receiver.

’The conference room?’

Yang Qi was puzzled. Usually, when Jiang Kai wanted to see him, it was either directly in his office or over the phone. They rarely used the conference room. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"Okay, Minister Jiang, I’ll be right there."

After hanging up, Yang Qi changed direction and headed toward the office building in the zoo’s administrative area.

He went up to the second floor and quickly found the room with a "Conference Room" sign.

Yang Qi knocked on the door.

"Come in," Jiang Kai’s voice came from inside.

Yang Qi pushed the door open and walked in.

The conference room was brightly lit, and several people were already seated around a long, oval table.

Besides Jiang Kai at the head of the table, there was also Cheng Xiaoou, two of the Zoo’s senior veterinarians, and several staff members from the Giant Panda Hall, including Hu Jing.

Everyone had a notebook or tablet open in front of them; they were clearly in the middle of a meeting.

"Xiao Yang is here. Have a seat."

Cheng Xiaoou smiled when she saw Yang Qi and pointed to an empty seat at the end of the long table.

"Director Cheng, Minister Jiang."

Yang Qi nodded a greeting, sat down in the empty seat, and listened quietly as they continued their discussion.

After listening for a while, Yang Qi understood the topic of the meeting.

It revolved around one of the zoo’s "top four stars": the giant panda, Tuantuan.

Tuantuan was the bona fide "darling" of the Donghua Wildlife Park.

But now, this darling was facing a bit of a "first-world problem."

He was too lazy!

"The physical exam report shows that several of Tuantuan’s key indicators, especially data related to blood lipids and weight, are approaching or have even slightly exceeded the health warning threshold."

An older, bespectacled veterinarian said, "The main reason is a severe lack of exercise. His energy intake is greater than his expenditure."

Hu Jing, sitting opposite, had a look of complete helplessness and exasperation. "Director Cheng, Minister Jiang, everyone, I’ve tried everything. I’ve tried hiding his food in slightly more concealed places, hoping he’d look for it himself and get a bit more activity."

"And the result? Tuantuan would rather starve!"

"When he gets hungry, he just sits there and cries. He sounds so pitifully loud! Anyone who didn’t know better would think we were abusing a national treasure. He just refuses to take a few extra steps to search for it."

She paused, then continued her complaint, "And those enrichment toys, like the climbing frames, hanging balls... he can’t even be bothered to look at them. At most, he’ll sniff them, and once he realizes it’s not food, he immediately turns and walks away."

"His whole day is a cycle of ’eat, sleep, and wait for the next meal.’ At this rate, of course his numbers are going to be too high."

The conference room fell silent for a moment.

Another, younger veterinarian added, "We also considered adjusting his diet and reducing the proportion of high-energy foods, but as everyone knows, Tuantuan is extremely picky. If we change it too much, he might just refuse to eat altogether, and that would be an even bigger problem."

A staff member next to him asked, "What about forcing him to exercise more? Like making him move around at set times?"

"We’ve tried that. It was very ineffective."

Hu Jing shook her head. "Tuantuan will either shuffle a few steps and lie down, or he’ll just throw a tantrum and refuse to move. Forcing him could easily cause a stress reaction, which would do more harm than good."

They discussed back and forth, but every solution they proposed either had limited effectiveness or potential side effects. They couldn’t find a safe and effective method.

Jiang Kai had been listening the whole time. His gaze swept over their faces before finally landing on Yang Qi, who had been listening quietly.

He cleared his throat and said, "Xiao Yang, you’ve been listening for a while. What are your thoughts on Tuantuan’s situation? Or, do you have any ideas?"

Instantly, all eyes in the room focused on Yang Qi.

Cheng Xiaoou’s eyes were filled with anticipation, and the others looked on with either curiosity or expectation.

Yang Qi’s "Druid" nickname, while a joke, was backed by results.

’Maybe he really does have a solution?’