Chapter 642: A Big Meal

Zhang Zian let Ting Ting and Zhuang know he was leaving. “I need to head back to the shop. If you plan to adopt a cat, please come over tomorrow, or anytime that works for you, as long as you keep showing up for the month trial.”

They discussed in low voices before they said, “We’ll be here tomorrow.”

“Don’t forget to bring your lease if you’re renting, or your property ownership certificate if you own a house. We won’t make copies, we’ll only take down the address.” Zhang Zian emphasized. “Bring your ID as well. We need it to confirm that the names match the ones on the lease or the ownership certificate.”

Ting Ting and Zhuang nodded, said goodbye, and headed home to prepare.

Some of the others left as well, while some returned to the restaurant to finish their meals. Some people joined the crowd forming in the street.

Almost every Love Lovely Pet employee was dispatched. They were catching pets all over the city, in multiple vehicles, and were asking various people to give the animals back. Some animals were successfully retrieved, but not many.

Zhang Zian stood outside to watch for a while. The self-righteous girl was still arguing with the Love Lovely Pets employees, both parties threatening to expose the other on Weibo. He saw that Old Time Tea and Famous on the platform of the second floor of the shop. Then he signaled the Li couple, returned to the shop, and closed the door.

Famous and Old Time Tea were waiting inside. Zhang Zian saw the poodle puppy on Famous’ back right away, as well as the extremely weak female poodle.

The female dog struggled to open its eyes, but when it did, it glared at him.

“What’s going on?” He took off the dogs’ collars and checked on the female poodle. He wasn’t a professional vet, but with the knowledge he had gathered over the years, he was able to deal with minor injuries and diseases. After a quick examination, he didn’t find any obvious injuries. It was weak because it was starving, and it had been staying in the cold for a long time. It needed to warm up.

“Try to save it first, the others can wait,” Old Time Tea said.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Okay.” Zhang Zian took the female poodle to the heater and wrapped its body in a towel.

There was still some beef and potato stew from when he made it for Old Time Tea and Famous earlier today. He went to the kitchen and took the leftovers out of the fridge.

Since the poodle had been starving for a long time, its stomach was probably weak. Eating food that was hard to digest could lead to serious issues. He took out the beef and potatoes, then mixed the broth with rice and microwaved it for a while. Soon, a pot of nutritious and easily digestible beef congee was ready.

He took the beef congee downstairs. All the puppies in the shop all tilted their heads towards the great smell. Even the weak poodle seemed to be energized by the smell.

The poodle puppy lingered around the female. It was reluctant to leave its mother’s warmth, but was curious about the world. It smelled the beef congee and licked its lips.

Zhang Zian put the beef congee next to the female’s mouth. It opened its eyes, but didn’t lift its head. He took a spoon, scooped some of the broth, and brought it to its mouth.

Out of instinct, the female poodle swallowed the beef congee greedily.

One mouthful, two mouthfuls, three mouthfuls.

As it digested the beef congee, the female poodle’s body warmed up and regained some strength. It changed its position from lying on its side to lying on its stomach so that it was easier to eat. Now, it was able to stick its head into the pot and eat on its own.

Gratitude and affection soon replaced the anger in its eyes. It had seen too many bad people in its life, and started to believe that no one was good.

The puppy followed the smell and stumbled to the pot. It gazed at the beef congee and licked its lips, but didn’t try to eat it.

The female poodle noticed, and stretched out a front paw to push the pot closer to the puppy. It whimpered, as if it was telling the puppy to have some.

The puppy wanted to have some, as it was very hungry. Zhang Wanguo wanted to sell it as a Teacup Puppy, so he never allowed it to be well fed. He wanted it to be malnourished.

Zhang Zian had noticed earlier that the puppy was much smaller than the average poodle puppies, but bigger than a real Teacup Puppy. It was small and weak. The pot he used for the beef congee was a bit tall, so it couldn’t reach the rim. It started circling the pot anxiously.

He stood up to get a dish. When he came back, he saw that the female poodle had sat the puppy on its front paws so that it could reach the food. It waited quietly until the puppy was full.

“Are they mother and child?” Zhang Zian asked.

Famous nodded.

“No wonder.” Zhang Zian had assumed so earlier. Only a mother’s love could make the hungry poodle do that.

As Zhang Zian didn’t want them to eat too much at once, he didn’t serve them a big portion of the beef congee. They finished eating quickly, and licked the bottom of the pot clean.

The two poodles had never once in their lives had enough food to eat. They thought that the pot of beef congee was all the food they would get. So, when Zhang Zian brought another pot of food, they were too afraid to eat, until he pushed the pot in front of them.

The puppy only had a few mouthfuls before Zhang Zian pulled it aside. He couldn’t let it overeat. The mother finished the rest of the yolk congee, its belly full.

He took away the empty pot while the mother and puppy cuddled. The mother was gently licking the puppy’s fur.

They were so dirty and filthy, that Fina had been pouting in disgust for a while. Zhang Zian planned to give them a bath shortly.

Before that, he needed to figure out what exactly happened in Love Lovely Pet Breeding Base.