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墨書 Inktalez
In the past, due to work, Song Pearl would also stay overnight in the staff dormitory on the mountain. The clean dormitory that Ani just mentioned was where she used to live.
However, after getting married, no matter how busy she was or how late she got off work, she would always go home and had never stayed overnight at the company. Now that the Resort was about to change ownership, she thought it would be nice to stay there one more time, a place where she had once invested her heart and soul!
Ani was very happy to see Song Pearl agree. She moved a stool from her room for Song Pearl to sit on and said, "Wait a moment, I’ll go prepare dinner."
Song Pearl sat at the entrance of the dormitory. This staff dormitory area had hardly anyone staying overnight except for those on duty. Sometimes, some playful tourists would stay here out of curiosity about the mountain.
The yard in the dormitory area was enclosed by a fence and looked clean and refreshing. Through the fence, she could see birds flitting past the treetops outside; occasionally, a few would fly into the yard briefly before flying out again.
She took out her phone and called Qing Wenyu to inform him that she would be staying at the Ecological Aquaculture Farm tonight before putting her phone away to focus on watching Ani cook.
"You’re quite good at cooking; your knife skills are impressive!" Song Pearl praised Ani as she watched her chop vegetables.
"Yeah, I’ve liked playing with knives since I could hold one. I've cut my hands several times. So whenever my mom sees me with a knife, she makes me chop vegetables. The dishes I cook at home definitely have my blood in them..." Ani laughed.
Can this kind of food still be eaten? That sounds pretty disgusting! Song Pearl silently observed; she couldn't help with anything.
"Are you scared staying here?" Song Pearl asked.
The keepers they had previously hired were reluctant to stay in the mountain dormitory because living here meant cohabiting with wild animals. They would be afraid at night, so Song Pearl had no choice but to stop hiring professionals and instead recruited people from nearby villages who loved animals and farming and trained them herself...
"What’s there to be scared of?" Ani looked up, her ponytail falling over her shoulder, her smiling eyes meeting Song Pearl's. "I’m here to take care of them; how could I be afraid?"
Just as she was about to lower her head to continue chopping vegetables, her eyes caught sight of something below the fence.
"Look, that cat is back again!" She pointed.
In the corner of the wall, a completely snow-white cat lazily squatted there. When Song Pearl looked over, it was still closing its eyes. Upon noticing Song Pearl staring at it, it opened its eyes and met her gaze.
The look in its eyes was eerie and cold. After staring at it for a while, Song Pearl felt a chill run through her body and quickly looked away.
Is that the cat?
Wasn't the incident with that cat just a dream? Is the cat that Tian Yue raised this one?
Song Pearl lowered her head to find her phone and dialed Tian Yue's number.
"Mom, is the cat you raised still at home?" she asked as soon as the call connected.
"Oh, that cat? I haven't seen it since I got up this morning. It probably knocked over a teacup and is hiding to avoid getting scolded. Why do you ask?" Tian Yue replied with a laugh.
"Oh, I just suddenly remembered to ask," Song Pearl said before hanging up.
"Are you two coming over for dinner? What’s going on with that child?" While trimming the flowers, Tian Yue wondered when she heard silence on the other end of the line and picked up her scissors.
"Come here, come here..." Ani squatted down to call the cat.
"You’re cooking right now. It has bacteria on it!" Song Pearl reminded Ani. "It scratched me earlier; keep your distance from it!"
"It won’t hurt me. It must have just been startled; it didn’t mean to harm me." Ani hugged the cat tightly, unable to let go. "Look how noble it looks, like a princess."
She then kissed White Cat's forehead.
However, another image flashed in Song Pearl's mind. She instinctively looked at Ani's forehead, where a clear paw print appeared.
Song Pearl rubbed her eyes and looked closely again; Ani's forehead was smooth and had nothing on it. It must have just been her illusion.
She tentatively reached out her hand towards the cat in Ani's arms. The cat, very well-behaved, remained still, but as soon as her hand touched it, it suddenly jumped out of Ani's embrace and lunged straight at Song Pearl's face.
"Meow."
Song Pearl raised her hands and firmly caught the attacking White Cat, locking eyes with it once again.
The cat must have been uncomfortable being held by Song Pearl, yet there was no fear in its gaze; instead, it displayed a proud disdain.
"Meow."
It suddenly meowed again.
"Sister, you hurt it!" Ani exclaimed, startled by Song Pearl's earlier action. It took her a moment to regain her senses before taking the cat from Song Pearl's hands.
"It likes to attack people; keep your distance from it," Song Pearl said lightly, suddenly not wanting to stay any longer.
"I'm going to check over there; I'm not eating here anymore," she told Ani.
"Are you angry? This cat doesn't have any germs!" Ani hurriedly put down the cat to wash her hands.
"No, I have some things to do; I won't disturb you," Song Pearl said with a gentle smile at Ani, assuring her, "I will definitely come back to eat the dishes you make in a few days."
"Alright then!" Ani said disappointedly as she saw Song Pearl out the door. "Be careful on your way down the mountain," she called out.
Song Pearl waved goodbye to her with a smile.
Once upon a time, she would get lost on the mountain, but ever since she had the spirit, she had never lost her way again.
Unknowingly, she walked to Snake Garden. Now that snake was kept here all alone; perhaps that's why it often tried to escape? This Snake Garden couldn't hold it because it was a serpent spirit of the mountain...
Song Pearl shook her head at the thought, realizing that these were all fabrications born from her injured brain; after all, how could there be snake demons in the world?
Just like there has never been a Fish Demon.
She strolled closer to the Snake Garden, only to find that there were no staff members on duty at the entrance. She frowned slightly; all the animals in this mountain were ones she had introduced and bred herself. Even now, she couldn't bear to send them away or sell them.
She always felt that there was still hope, but she hadn't yet decided whether to actively pursue it.
Although she also sensed that if she didn't take action soon, this Ecological Aquaculture Farm would fall into chaos.
The light had already dimmed, and with no visitors at the Snake Garden, it appeared even more desolate under the night sky.
"Is anyone there?" Song Pearl's voice echoed in the empty Snake Garden. No one answered.
She had no choice but to head straight to the breeding area.
The lights were on in the direction of the Snake Warehouse. Inside, the Snake Warehouse was empty; on the ground were oval-shaped pools where a few snakes, about the thickness of her fingers, lay listlessly. Next to them, a Wire Cage contained a large Orochimaru and two Cobras.
"Is this all the snakes you have?"
Song Pearl clenched her fists. This couldn't be right. It hadn't been long since she last visited; how could the once-bustling Snake Garden have only these four or five snakes left?
"President Song, what brings you here?"
After calling out several times, a man finally ran over. He tried to smile with his honest face, but it only made his expression more awkward.
"This is all we have. Ever since you brought that Orochimaru in, the other snakes have gradually escaped... It's my mistake. I couldn't catch them no matter how hard I tried... Fortunately, there are no visitors right now..."
"They escaped?" Song Pearl looked at this simple man in disbelief. "You should be the most experienced breeder among the Keepers. Do you really believe they just ran away?"
"Well... it really ran away," the man said, nervously rubbing his hands. "Actually, it's better that it ran away than being sold off by someone..."
"Sold off?" Song Pearl narrowed her eyes. "Why would they sell it?"
"Of course, it's because you didn't manage it well!" The man seemed to muster his courage and took a deep breath. He looked directly at Song Pearl, his tone serious. "They are about to be destroyed; it's a pity not to take care of the rare animals at the Ecological Aquaculture Farm. Did you see any wild geese, Sika Deer, Ostriches, or Peacocks when you went up the mountain?"
"How is that possible?" Song Pearl shook her head. "Those people wouldn't do that!"
"They don't want to do it, but someone is buying them at the foot of the mountain, and the price is very tempting. It's quite normal for the Ecological Aquaculture Farm to lose one or two and have seven or eight die..."
The man sighed.
"What about those snakes?"
In that case, Song Pearl thought, those snakes could have either escaped or been sold.
At this difficult time, there was no help in times of need, only adding insult to injury.
Everyone was busy lining their own pockets; did she still need to persist in protecting this Ecological Aquaculture Farm?
"Let them be sold then!" She sighed in frustration. "If you can catch those escaped snakes, just sell them too; consider it a bonus from me."
She turned away dejectedly.
"No, as long as there is still one snake left, I will guard this place," the man shook his head, speaking firmly to Song Pearl's back. "This has my hard work in it. These wildlife that can end up on the dining table are what you initially invested your efforts in researching and breeding. If we continue to operate it, we will definitely make money in the future."
"Thank you!" Song Pearl turned back. "Thank you for your encouragement. You are as kind as your cousin; if this really gets developed and can't be preserved, I can introduce you to other Ecological Aquaculture Farms for work."
"She's not my cousin," the man said with his head down. "She is my wife."
"Your wife?" Song Pearl looked at him in disbelief. She was shocked when she heard they were cousins before, thinking the age difference was too great, but now she was even more astonished.
"You must be over forty, right?" Song Pearl asked. "That girl is only eighteen or nineteen, and she's not unattractive. Is it because of a shared interest that they got together?"
"No, actually she's a fool," the man said slowly.
"A fool?" How could that be? The lively, cheerful girl who could cook was a fool? Who would believe that!
"Really, President Song, there's something wrong with her mind. She looks normal, but she can hurt people at any moment. Her parents don't dare let her play with other kids. At home, she often gets tied up for causing trouble..."
"She has been sent to a mental hospital and to school, but after injuring someone badly, she was sent back home. Her parents couldn't keep her anymore, so they threw her to her grandparents..."
"The grandparents are too old to take care of her. She eats a lot and they can't support her, so they introduced her to me... Actually, I calculated that I was destined to be a monk; I never expected to get a wife..."
The man smiled, looking very happy.
"After I brought Ani to the mountains, her condition surprisingly hasn't relapsed. So, I want to stay here forever..." (To be continued...)
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