Chapter 430: Charlotte’s Troubles

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

Lin Feng was wearing a prim and stiff police uniform just like the ones Xiao Liu and Xiao Wang were wearing, but he deserved to be called a star for he seemed a bit more handsome in uniform than ordinary police officers were. In addition to the fact that he had more distinct facial features, he was taller and wearing makeup, so Lin Feng’s skin was smoother, unlike the skin of real police officers who were exposed to the sun and rain. One could easily tell that he was an actor by the first glance.

Since he would be wearing a police cap later on, his hair didn’t need to be styled, so the makeup artist’s work was easy.

“So, Xiao Zhang, you run a pet shop, right? Is it very fun? You can play with the pets all day long, and you can touch them and hold them as you want. A fun and easy job it must be!” The female makeup artist said with admiration on her face.

The makeup artist checked over Lin Feng’s face for the last time, indicating that his makeup was finished, and that he could stand up.

She was a little older than Zhang Zian and amiably called him Xiao Zhang.

Her impression was also a common misunderstanding of the work of a pet shop, and Zhang Zian replied, “Well, it’s okay, it’s not as fun and easy as you would imagine. My hands cramp from cleaning the pets’ excrements, and I become extremely parched after talking to customers after an entire day, yet I can only close a few deals… but at least it is better than routine office work.”

Lin Feng looked into the mirror to put on the police cap properly, and said to him jokingly, “Count your blessings! People spend money to raise pets, but you can make money from raising pets! Stop complaining!”

“Exactly!” The makeup artist echoed him.

Zhang Zian smiled, “If you are envious, you can also raise pets that bring you money.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Not only were Lin Feng and the makeup artist interested now, but even the assistant next to them was curious. They all asked together, “What kind of pets can make money?”

“Yeah, don’t tell us to raise chickens and ducks and then sell the eggs…” said the makeup artist.

Lin Feng guessed, “Certainly you are talking about turtles… wait a minute, they are not pets, right?”

Zhang Zian replied solemnly, “You can raise mosquitoes. Not only do they cost you nothing, but they can also give you mosquito bites.”

Silence.

Then everyone burst into laughter!

They couldn’t hold back the laughter any longer. Lin Feng and the assistant laughed helplessly until they were nearly convulsing. The female makeup artist was squatting on the ground, clutching her stomach, and couldn’t find the strength to stand up.

“Ha ha! Raising mosquitoes for mosquito bites… Xiao Zhang, you are so funny…”

“Speaking of this, I hate shooting outdoor scenes in summer the most. Every year, mosquitoes give me dozens of bites. I wouldn’t even have to act anymore, I can just lie down and earn money!”

Someone knocked on the door of the dressing trailer before it was pushed open. Feng Xuan stretched his head in and asked wondrously, “What are you all laughing about? I can hear you from far away.”

In addition to Feng Xuan, there were several other actors and crew members curiously stretching their heads around the doorframe to inquire about the matter.

The makeup artist was a regular member of Feng Xuan’s crew and had followed him around to shoot several films. She took Feng Xuan by hand, vividly describing Zhang Zian’s joke, which brought another round of laughter.

With only one joke, Zhang Zian had left a deep and good impression on the crew members, who spread this joke to every member of the crew. Soon, everyone in the crew knew his joke.

At first, Feng Xuan was somewhat worried that it would take Zhang Zian, who had never participated in filmmaking, some time to integrate into the crew. From the current situation, his concern was unnecessary. With his unique sense of humor, Zhang Zian had blended in the crew and won the likes of a lot of people.

Many people in the crew had pets at home, and everyone else who, for the time being, couldn’t raise pets, liked kittens and puppies. They learned that the chief dog trainer was also a pet shop owner, so they came to ask him about any and all pet-related things.

The female makeup artist wiped away her tears of laughter and smiled, “I am raising a Sphynx cat, which I found at a pet shop when I went abroad with a crew to shoot a film. Many people don’t like the appearance of this kind of cat, but I like it, so I bought it.”

“A Sphynx cat…” Zhang Zian nodded, “The appearance of this cat breed is indeed unique.”

Sphynx cats, also known as Canadian hairless cats, were the products of genetic mutations, just like the Scottish Fold. Except for a very small part that was covered with sparse fluff, there was no fur anywhere else on their bodies. And there were many folds on their skin, very much like bulldogs, but they were not as fat as bulldogs.

The cuteness of a cat had very much to do with its soft hair. A big reason that people liked cats was that it was very comforting to stroke their fur, bringing pleasure to both the cats and humans. Whether they were long-haired or short-haired cats, they had their loyal fans— it felt good stroking long hair, and it was easier to clean short hair.

But how about a hairless cat? Whether at home or abroad, very few people could accept hairless cats.

Sphynx cats had big eyes, big ears, slender tails, wrinkled skin, and very little hair. They looked like aliens from another planet when they were staring at you.

Since it was not yet time to shoot, a lot of people were squeezing into the shed. All of them were attracted here by the loud laughter.

The female makeup artist fetched a chair for Feng Xuan and asked him to sit down. She pulled out her cell phone and showed everyone pictures of her Sphynx cat and said excitedly, “Although it has no hair, it is especially gentle. I particularly like holding it in my arms and putting makeup on it. I will apply foundation, eyeshadow, and blush on it, making it look like a beautiful little princess. And I will wipe it clean afterwards — this wouldn’t be possible if it were a cat with hair.”

Her cell phone was being passed around. Most people still couldn’t accept the appearance of this cat but had restrained their opinions out of courtesy. The female makeup artist apparently was used to people’s strange expressions when they saw her cat, so she did not mind.

When the cell phone was passed to Zhang Zian, he saw a photo album with hundreds of pictures of the hairless cat, to which various makeup looks had been applied and it showed astonished, angry, or amused expressions. Zhang Zian could not help but laugh. It was a perfect match between the female makeup artist and the hairless cat. If she were raising a long-haired or short-haired cat, it would have been very troublesome to bathe the cat every time she applied makeup. But he also felt sad for her future children, for he guessed that they won’t be able to escape from her makeup clutches …

One of the pictures was a snapshot where the hairless cat, wearing makeup, was passing by a full-length mirror. It was stunned when it saw its image in the mirror, so it raised a paw to cover its face—it could barely recognize itself. In the corner of the mirror reflected the image of the makeup artist holding her cell phone with a mischievous smile on her face.

This was the case for Sphynx cats. People who were fond of them loved them deeply, and people who hated them loathed them terribly. The attitudes about them were completely polarized.

However, this cat breed was very rare, and it was seldom seen in China. Zhang Zian was not optimistic about the sales prospects of this cat breed in China, so he did not intend to introduce it to his shop. Since Sphynx cats had no hair to resist the cold and keep themselves warm, they were very sensitive to temperature changes, and it was more suitable for them to live in places with little changes in temperature over the course of the four seasons. In a place like Binhai City where the summer was excruciatingly hot, and winter was extremely freezing, it was already difficult for humans to live, not to mention these fragile hairless cats …

Hairless cats were only suitable to be kept in an indoor environment. Of course, there were some advantages to having hairless cats. For example, they were seldom inflicted by ringworms or fleas.

Zhang Zian handed the phone back to the female makeup artist. She took the phone and smiled, “Xiao Zhang, you just mentioned mosquitoes. Do you know what I call this cat?”

“I have no idea.” Zhang Zian shook his head. Other people also had no idea.

“Ha-ha, I named it Charlotte. Do you understand what this means?” she shrewdly winked and smiled.

Charlotte?

Everybody tried to figure out what the name stood for. Even Feng Xuan joined in the fun and guessed a few times. She kept shaking her head, denying all their guesses.

“Don’t waste your energy. None of you will get it,” she laughed provocatively. “The name is very profound.”

Her words aroused a greater interest in everyone, and no one was willing to give up that easily.

Zhang Zian did not give his answer recklessly. He was pondering, trying to think in her perspective. Since she asked it that way, the name “Charlotte” was certainly related to a certain characteristic of the hairless cat. What was it?

He outlined the appearance of the hairless cat in his mind, and its related features emerged one by one.

After a moment, inspiration flashed in his mind, and he smiled/ “I know the answer.”

“Oh? Tell me then. If you really guess right, I’ll give you free makeup and dress you up as a cute girl, and I’ll make sure that no one can tell you are a man,” she teased him.

Zhang Zian looked at her and said, “Thank you, but I don’t need the makeup. However, I do think I have figured out the answer. When it comes to Charlotte, it will certainly make people think of the movie Charlotte’s Troubles.”

Apart from him, a lot of people had vaguely guessed that there may have been a link between the cat’s name and the name of this very popular movie, but they could not figure out what the link was.

“Go on,” she said.

“The hairless cat is very upset by the summer, and you named it Charlotte because it faces troubles in the summer, right?”

“Then tell me what bothers it in the summer?” she pursued asking him.

“It’s very simple. Because it has no hair, it is very annoyed when faced with mosquitoes in the summer and it helplessly receives many mosquito bites,” Zhang Zian gave the correct answer.

Upon hearing this remark, everyone suddenly realized that the meaning of the name was “the troubles of summer”, completely fitting to the characteristics of a hairless cat.

The female makeup artist was surprised by Zhang Zian yet admired him. Only a few of her besties knew where the name of her cat stemmed from. And whenever she revealed the answer, her friends would laugh so hard. No one had ever guessed it right. However, it was really eye-opening that Zhang Zian was able to get it in such a short time! If he did not have profound understanding of pets, how could he have gotten it right?

The conversation had started with mosquitoes and was back to mosquitoes again.