Daily Life in the Pet Shop Ch. 166

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This cat had been living on the streets for a long time—it didn't like bathing. It hadn't had a proper wash in over a month, its fur was a tangled mess, and it had several visible wounds. How the hell did Tian Yanming think it looked pretty?

"Boss, I want to adopt this cat. Can I?"

Tian Yanming opened the cage and reached in to pet the cat. The little thing barely acknowledged him, tucking its front paws under itself and gazing at him calmly.

"This cat doesn't belong to the shop. It's a stray. If you want to take it home, you'll have to ask if it agrees. If it does, then you can take it." Fang Yi said casually.

"What's its name?" Tian Yanming asked.

"It doesn't have one."

"Xiao Bei, come with me."

Tian Yanming softened his voice, speaking to the cat in the gentlest tone possible. As he spoke, he reached inside to smooth down its fur.

The cat remained unbothered, watching them with indifferent eyes. The only time its gaze changed was when it looked at Fang Yi. Other than that, it acted like it hadn't even heard Tian Yanming's words.

"I don't think it wants to go with you." Fang Yi explained.

The truth was, these strays were really wild. They didn't like being around people at all. The only reason they even came to the pet shop was because of Naima.

Tian Yanming listened to Fang Yi's words, then turned to look at him, hesitating as if he wanted to say something but couldn't quite find the words. Finally, he spoke, "I want to take this cat home. I'll stay here a bit longer, and won't be leaving with you guys."

"Okay," Fang Yi nodded, taking the sound engineer with him as they toured the entire second floor. He eventually settled on a dog with a leg injury. Fang Yi was surprised that the sound engineer had chosen this little dog.

The dog had been brought in by a kind-hearted girl, and it had been at the clinic for two days. Its leg was injured and still under treatment. The wound wasn't healed, so the dog couldn't take a bath, and its fur was matted and dirty, hiding the original color. Despite its rough appearance, the dog had a lively and friendly personality.

"You need to think carefully. This dog's leg might not heal completely. Even if it does, it won't walk as smoothly as before." Animals with special conditions like this, Fang Yi usually wasn't comfortable letting anyone adopt them, even though the dog's situation wasn't too severe.

"It's fine, I want this one. Can I take it?" The sound engineer carefully played with the dog for a while, and the dog, feeling his warmth, tried to stand and play with him.

"Not yet," Fang Yi said. The sound engineer was insistent, and Fang Yi couldn't help but admire his sincerity. After a moment, he decided to ask Hai Yang about his character. If he was good enough, he'd let him adopt the dog. But not now. "This dog was just brought in, and its wounds are still healing. It needs to stay here for a few more days. Once it's healed, I'll give you a call."

"Thank you." The sound engineer's view of Fang Yi had completely changed after hearing this. Though he wasn't very professional, Fang Yi was a decent person after all.

When they went back, they found Tian Yanming still standing in front of the cage. Without Fang Yi around, the little wild cat had become extremely cautious. It wouldn't even let Tian Yanming touch it, crouching low and growling at him. Its fur stood on end.

"Calm down." Fang Yi extended his hand to soothe the little wild cat. He tried to comfort it for a while, but it still didn't ease up. It kept growling at Tian Yanming.

"Move back a little. Go to a place where it can't see you," Fang Yi instructed, asking Tian Yanming to step out of the cat's sight. After a bit more calming, the wild cat finally allowed him to pet its head and lay quietly in its bed.

"This cat's mother is a wild cat that doesn't like interacting with people. It probably took after her, and doesn't like being around people either. The fact that it's letting me treat its injuries is already a huge favor, so it's unlikely it will want to go home with you. Maybe try a different one." As they headed downstairs, Fang Yi explained to Tian Yanming. These kittens had been raised under his watch, but they didn't interact much with him, let alone with strangers.

"But I really want to take it home," Tian Yanming said firmly. He then shared a story from his past, "When I was young, my family had a cat that looked almost identical to this one. They had the same kind of eyes. That cat was a stray, just like this one. I found it and brought it home. It took a year to tame, but we became very close. Later, when I went away to college, it grew old. I never had a chance to say goodbye... My mom told me that on the day it passed, it was staring at the door, waiting for me to come home, but I didn't make it in time..."

Tian Yanming's voice choked up for a moment, then he continued, "I was wondering... can I come visit it often? Maybe if I talk to it more, it'll warm up to me. I really want to take it home."

"Sure, it's not really my cat anyway. As long as you can convince it, I have no problem. If you really manage to get it on your side, then it'll be considered a cat from my shop. Once you adopt it, we'll visit your place." After hearing Tian Yanming's words, Fang Yi felt relieved.

He decided to have Naima come tomorrow to try and convince the little stray cat to go back with Tian Yanming. It wasn't good for it to keep roaming outside. If they were willing to take care of it, it'd be much better. Plus, looking at Tian Yanming, he seemed like someone who would spoil the cat. If the cat agreed to go home with him, Fang Yi would make sure to let Tian Yanming know in advance.

Wild cats could be pretty stubborn, so even if it agreed to go back with him, he couldn't keep it locked up. If it wanted to go out and play, he couldn't stop it.

"Thank you, I'll be coming by often to check on it. Hope I don't bother you." Tian Yanming said politely to Fang Yi.

"No need to thank me, but you should hurry up. Once its injuries heal, I won't be able to keep it locked up anymore." The cage the little wild cat lived in was easy to open, and once Fang Yi told the cat that its injuries were healed, it would open the cage and run out on its own.

"Alright, I'll push my things aside and come over every day. Hope it's not a bother." Tian Yanming glanced at the cat, then turned back to Fang Yi. He felt a bit embarrassed saying this, knowing he'd be coming to someone else's place every day. People would get annoyed, but for the cat, he had to be shameless.

For all these years, that cat had been the biggest regret in his heart.

All credit goes to the original author
Feel free to pinpoint us if there are any grammar error or typos
Please don't use Guazi's translation to re-translate in other languages

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