I have a wildlife zoo

Chapter 43: 43 Suspicious Characters

Although the red panda has 'panda' in its name and its size is similar to that of a cat, their postures and behaviors are quite different.

If a cat were to escape, it would directly leap from the table to a far distance, shooting off like an arrow released from a bowstring.

The red panda doesn't have such explosive power; it needs to step onto a stool and descend gradually. Not very fast, but incredibly smooth, like sliding down a slide with a "whoosh," giving off a sense of flowing clouds and streaming water.

Fang Ye bent down and found Chestnut hiding behind the leg of the table, peeking out at him, while Red Bean hid behind Chestnut, cautiously poking her head out over Chestnut's shoulder.

[Red Panda: Chestnut

Sex: Male

Age: 1 year

Mood: Observant/Cautious]

[Red Panda: Red Bean

Sex: Female

Age: 1 year

Mood: Scared/Tense]

"Ah, red pandas are just so cute!"

A smile couldn't help but bloom on Fang Ye's face as he sighed and took out two pieces of bamboo, shaking them, "Come here, cuties, check this out! Fresh, tender bamboo!"

The umbrella bamboo was purchased from the system, a bunch for 10 green leaf coins, super cheap.

Although tempted by food, both red pandas had no intention of coming over, considering the strange fellow across them very suspicious.

In this case, the only solution was to activate the "Affable" skill.

Once the skill was activated, Fang Ye immediately appeared friendly in the eyes of the two red pandas, which then bravely and confidently ran over to him.

Red Bean was at his feet, looking up at him eagerly with those little eyes that seemed to plead: how about some bamboo?

Chestnut was even more direct, hugging his leg as if to say, take me under your wing, boss!

Eat bamboo, eat bamboo!

Fang Ye smiled and gave each red panda a stick, and while they were busy eating, he took the opportunity to pet them.

He used to feel an irresistible urge to touch the lovely red pandas at the zoo, and now he finally got the chance to do so.

Cheeks, ears, and especially their fluffy tails.

Red pandas are about 50-60cm in body length, with tails almost as long as their bodies, featuring alternating black and chestnut rings, resembling a thick scarf.

Touching them felt blissful.

"You cuties, you'll have to rough it out here for the next couple of days," said Fang Ye while petting them.

The two red pandas seemed too engrossed in enjoying their meal to understand his words.

After leaving the room, Fang Ye sent a message in the work group: "Our zoo has got two new red pandas! I've temporarily placed them in room 402, everyone please be cautious!"

His main concern was to prevent someone from unknowingly opening the door and letting the red pandas escape.

Lan Li: "Eh, really?"

Meng Shi: "Red pandas? What do they look like?"

Animal Keeper He Yifei: "Red pandas are also known as firefoxes, they resemble cats but are a bit chubbier!"

Fang Ye posted the two photos he had taken of the red pandas eating bamboo.

Lan Li: "So cute! I really want to pet them!"

Meng Shi: "They look quite fun."

Lin Ying: "Ahhh, red pandas, my favorite animal! Can I go see them?"

Fang Ye: "Let's call it a day today, the two little guys just arrived, let's give them some time to rest, I'll take you there for a physical checkup tomorrow."

Lin Ying: "Hehe, I'm going to take the chance to pet them a lot during the checkup."

...

The zoo was changing imperceptibly.

Construction of the tiger exhibit was more than half complete; the massive central lake had been dug, and the rocks had been hoisted into their appropriate places.

Outside the red panda exhibit, a stand of bamboo had been planted, with the water channel for the stream finished and a very distinctive bamboo fence being constructed.

The grass plaza where the peafowl would roost and the small paddock for the alpacas were simplest to build and were already finished, and perches had also been installed in Monkey Mountain.

In the past few days, the veteran animal keepers, during their duties of making feed, feeding the animals, and cleaning the enclosures, always had one or two new keepers observing and learning from them.

Due to Fang Ye's requirement for keeping an animal care log, the new keepers would reflect on what they saw and heard throughout the day, recording their observations and feelings in detail after work. This process of reflection and review was a good way to reinforce the knowledge they had learned.

When the veteran keepers saw the new keepers' detailed care logs, their originally perfunctory attitude became serious; it was a mutually beneficial process.

In the security booth at the zoo entrance, where Lei Zhi used to be alone, there was now Wang Jun, standing with his back ramrod straight, keeping a meticulous watch on the gates.

Lei Zhi, who was accustomed to checking his phone when he was alone, felt too embarrassed to do so with someone else around.

He fished out a bear-shaped biscuit from the pile on the table and bit it into pieces with a "crunch, crunch," passing the time.

"Hey, buddy, want one?"

"Thanks, but no."

Lei Zhi gave an awkward smile and continued to nibble on the biscuit listlessly.

Linhai Zoo's security had always been excellent.

After all, there weren't many visitors each day, and being so poor that the keepers' wages had to be subsidized by the city, which thief would be insane enough to come here to steal?

Jump the fence to skip a 10 green leaf coin ticket after an hour long bus ride?

Unthinkable.

If a visitor caused a disturbance, all the keepers had to do was call and Lei Zhi would show up to stand his ground, mainly serving that purpose.

Occasionally, he also doubled as a courier, delivering packages to their final destination.

Two visitors passed by.

Lei Zhi glanced at them without much interest, his mind on the plot of the novel he had read the night before.

However, Wang Jun's gaze suddenly sharpened.

After the two visitors had entered, he nudged Lei Zhi with his elbow, "Brother Lei, something was off about those two just now."

Startled, Lei Zhi asked in a low voice, "What's up? What did you notice?"

Narrowing his eyes and watching the two figures, Wang Jun explained, "When I was looking at them, they never dared to meet my eyes directly; they kept darting to the side, and I found it very suspicious."

"Both of them were avoiding your gaze?"

"Yeah."

As Lei Zhi listened, he too began to feel that the pair were quite suspicious.

With a security booth like theirs at the entrance, it stood out like an empty cup on an empty table; although not much of a sight, most people would take a glance at it subconsciously.

Not looking doesn't necessarily prove anything; perhaps they genuinely didn't notice.

But when two visitors come in at the same time and neither looks Wang Jun's way, choosing instead to look off to the side, that starts to feel wrong.

Especially as Wang Jun was a recent military retiree, still carrying an air of military discipline about him—with posture upright and gaze piercing, an invisible aura of righteousness emanated from him. Their reluctance to meet his eye might indicate they were up to no good.

Wang Jun then suggested, "Brother Lei, should I follow them to see what they're up to?"

Lei Zhi didn't dare to neglect the situation, "Hold on, I'll call the zoo director first."

He quickly dialed Fang Ye's number, and soon it was picked up.

"Hello, Director?"

"Yes, what's the matter?"

"While on duty at the entrance, Wang Jun noticed two people that seemed a bit off..."

After Lei Zhi explained the suspicious aspects of the two individuals, he asked, "Director, should we have Wang Jun follow them to take a look?"

"Thanks for the heads-up. I'll observe from here for now, call you guys immediately if there's any problem."