Mei Ying sounded surprised, but her tone quickly turned impressed.

"Xiao Yang, it seems word of your skills has truly spread to other provinces and reached the ears of fellow experts."

"Lu Gangsheng is one of the country’s renowned experts on large felines. For him to invite you in an official capacity, sending a formal letter... do you know what that means?"

"It means your abilities have received the full recognition of an authority in the field!"

"This isn’t a simple ’come take a look.’ He’s inviting you as an expert on his own level."

"You flatter me, Sister Mei," Yang Qi said humbly. "It’s mainly because Director Lu happened to be there when I visited the Provincial Capital Red Star Zoo last time. We exchanged contact information afterward."

"This time, he probably couldn’t think of any other solution and just reached out to me to give it a shot. You could call it an invitation from an acquaintance."

"That’s not it at all."

Mei Ying countered, her tone serious, "An invitation from an acquaintance and an invitation via formal letter are completely different. An acquaintance helping out is a personal favor. A formal letter is an official, professional recognition."

"This shows your professional abilities are more than enough to support such a formal status."

"Xiao Yang, this is a great thing. You have to take it seriously. Do a good job tomorrow and make our Donghua Zoo proud!"

Mei Ying followed up with another round of praise and reminders, telling Yang Qi to be careful on his trip.

Yang Qi agreed with a smile.

After hanging up with Mei Ying, Yang Qi sent a message to Jiang Kai to explain the situation.

Jiang Kai replied that it was no problem and told Yang Qi not to worry, saying he would arrange for others to temporarily cover Yang Qi’s duties.

Yang Qi thanked him.

He glanced at the time. The zoo’s closing announcement had just begun to play, reminding visitors to leave.

Seeing this, Yang Qi didn’t head back to his dorm but turned and walked toward the Giant Panda Hall.

He said hello to Hu Jing.

Yang Qi took the staff passageway and entered Tuantuan’s spacious indoor enclosure.

The black-and-white furball was sprawled lazily on a sturdy log, its belly pressed against the wood and its four limbs dangling freely, swinging leisurely.

Hearing the sound, the giant panda slowly turned its head. When it saw Yang Qi, the beady eyes within its black patches clearly brightened, and a friendly grunt rumbled in its throat.

’You’re here.’

"Yeah, I’m here."

Yang Qi used his Basic Spirit Communication Technique and responded with a smile, walking closer to the base of the log. "How are you feeling today?"

’Alright, just a little bored.’

Tuantuan twitched its round ears, letting out a soft whine.

’Come on, let’s go for a stroll.’

He’d even learned the word "stroll" from Yang Qi.

"Hold on a minute."

Yang Qi patiently explained, "There are still a lot of visitors leaving outside, so it’s crowded. We’ll wait until everyone’s gone and it’s safe before we go out."

Hearing this, Tuantuan wasn’t impatient. It grunted in acknowledgment and deftly scrambled down from the log.

Despite its chubbiness, its movements were surprisingly agile.

After climbing down, it plopped its bottom on the soft-matted floor and patted the empty space beside it, gesturing for Yang Qi.

’Then we’ll wait.’

’Two-legged Beast, you sit too.’

"Thanks."

Yang Qi didn’t stand on ceremony, sitting down on a clean rock next to Tuantuan.

Sitting with this national treasure, watching its endearingly clumsy appearance, he couldn’t help but feel his mood relax.

"Oh, right, Tuantuan. There’s something I need to tell you."

Yang Qi remembered his trip the next day and said, "I have to go out tomorrow. I might not be able to get back in time to go for a stroll with you in the evening."

’It’s fine.’

Tuantuan waved a chubby paw calmly, showing its understanding.

Then, as if it thought of something, its beady eyes blinked, and it asked with a hint of curiosity and anticipation.

’Going out? Are you going to find some yummy food?’

"...Yes."

Yang Qi replied, his expression unchanging.

’Then you be careful.’

Tuantuan’s face grew serious, its concern obvious.

’It’s dangerous out there. You have to protect yourself.’

’Don’t let anyone bully you.’

Listening to this giant panda—which usually did nothing but eat and sleep and seemed so adorably simple—show such sincere concern for him, Yang Qi felt a warmth spread through his heart.

"Okay, I’ll be careful."

Yang Qi responded softly, reaching out to stroke Tuantuan’s big, fluffy head, which felt wonderful to the touch.

The concern of a giant panda... who else gets to experience that?

...

After waiting a little longer, Yang Qi estimated that most of the visitors had left. He got up and led Tuantuan out of the enclosure and onto the now-empty park path.

The black-and-white furball walked beside Yang Qi at a leisurely pace, with its characteristic pigeon-toed gait.

It would occasionally stop to sniff the plants along the path with its nose or look up curiously at the birds returning to their nests, looking endearingly clumsy.

After a long walk around the park, Tuantuan was clearly in a much better mood.

As usual, Yang Qi took out two "special" apples and handed them to the panda.

Tuantuan took them with its paws and began to munch on them, CRUNCH CRUNCH, so satisfied that its eyes narrowed into slits.

Watching it happily finish its snack and waddle back to its enclosure on its own, Yang Qi shook his head with a smile and turned to head back to his dorm.

First, he went to the backyard and set up the Demon Extermination Array.

Next, he went into the kitchen and cooked a pot of Spirit Rice Porridge.

Soon, the fragrant aroma of the porridge filled the air.

Yang Qi served a warm bowl of Spirit Rice Porridge to each of his furry kids, and ladled out a bowl for himself as well.

After dinner, Yang Qi relaxed on the living room sofa, casually picking up a book on animal behaviorism recommended by Song Chunfang to flip through.

Just then, his phone, which was on the coffee table, started to ring.

Yang Qi picked it up and saw the caller ID: "Deng Lei."

"Hello, Captain Deng," Yang Qi said as he answered the call.

"Advisor Yang, good evening! Hope I’m not disturbing you?" came Deng Lei’s cheerful voice.

"Not at all, I just finished dinner and was reading a book. What’s up, Captain Deng?" Yang Qi replied with a chuckle.

The two exchanged a few pleasantries before Deng Lei got down to business.