Pet King

are accustomed to using paper notes and did not want to spend extra money to hire people.
There were only WeChat and Alipay QR codes available.

He suddenly hesitated.
There was an inexplicable sense of disobedience in his heart from watching other people’s lives through the glass screen.

His mother, who was talking to the customer, turned her eyes and saw him standing outside the door.
She pleasantly gestured for him to hurry in.

His hesitation was instantly defeated.
It was as if he could not resist and subconsciously pushed open the door.

“You are back? Are you tired from traveling on the train? Go upstairs and go take a break.” His mother smiled and looked at him from head to toe.
It was not the professional smile given when facing customers.
It was the smile that said, “I have a customer here.
I can’t talk more now.”

“Go upstairs.
I will cook in a while.” His father held a small shovel to clean up the pet droppings.
He stood up, stretched himself, and hit his own back.

He could see it clearly.
The white hair on his mother’s head, their overworked and chapped hands, and the wrinkles of the father’s forehead.
There was also their familiar voices and joyful eyes…

So real, so…nostalgic.

“I am not tired.”

He pushed the suitcase to the corner and rolled up his sleeves to pick up the shovel.
“Let me do it.”

“No, no, you go upstairs and rest!” His father waved him off and hid the small shovel behind him.

“I am not tired…” he argued.

“If you are not tired, go to a corner and rest anyway.
You don’t know how to do it, and you will only make a bigger mess.” His father guided him to the recliner.

He couldn’t argue with his father and so he had to sit awkwardly in the chair.
This was because his parents hadn’t let him get involved in the daily affairs of the pet shop and only let him concentrate on his studies.

However, he felt awkward when he sat in a chair.
It might’ve been because two old people were busy and he was a young man who sat like a grandfather and watched the show.

His eyes looked at the cat tree, which was empty.
Usually, the cats in the showcase would be released at the end of the business day so that they could be active and move around.

He didn’t know what he had expected to see on the cat tree.

The sides of the recliner were also very empty.
If one have a dog, it was better to have a bigger dog, like in an old-fashioned western American film.
A classic cowboy, after retiring, brought an old dog to wander around the world.

“Upcoming news…”

The television was on and broadcasting local news.
The sound was rather quiet.
When there were no guests in the store, his parents did not have much to talk about and watched the shows to relieve boredom.

He got up and walked over to the TV.
He looked at the news but did not stand in front of the TV, as if he were used to leaving some space out front for others.

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“Then I will go upstairs first.”

He wasn’t much help downstairs anyway.
It was better to quickly put away his luggage and then help to wash vegetables and cook.

He picked up his suitcase and went to the second floor.

The second floor was quiet.
The meows and barks from the first floor seemed to be miles away.

Anyway, he would only stay at home for seven days.
He hadn’t brought back too many things.
He placed his change of clothes in the closet in his bedroom, set the laptop on the desk in the living room, and opened it.
This was so that, if he wanted to turn on the laptop, he simply had to press the button.

But why was it necessary to do this? He thought about it and closed it once more.

Whoosh!

It got windy.

The open windows rattled in the wind.

He closed the window without locking it at first.
This was so that if anyone was left outside, they could just open it from the outside and come in.

He couldn’t help but laugh, and then he returned to his senses.
Who, besides a thief, came in from the window?

Soon it would be dark.
In order to avoid forgetting to lock the window at night and openly inviting thieves, it would be better for him to close it now.

After finishing up with his things, he went to the bathroom to wash his face.
He raised his hand and tried to knock on the door, but after thinking about it, with his parents downstairs, there was no one in the bathroom.
He pushed it open and looked down at the bathtub…

Bathtub cleaning was too cumbersome, and so the bathtub was not used very often.
At this time, there was some debris in it, but there was not a drop of water.

After washing his face, he returned to the living room, pulled a chair over, and scanned the entire second floor.

He had a feeling that… He seemed to have lost something very precious, but he couldn’t remember what it was.

He felt as though he were missing something in his heart.

The dinner was very sumptuous.
The food was too much for the family of three.
He couldn’t finish his food, but his parents kept urging him to eat more.

“Mom, the second floor of the house… Has it changed?” He took a bite of his meal and asked vaguely.

“Changed?”

His parents looked at each other and shook their heads.
“No.
What do you mean?”

“Nothing.
Just asking.”

He scooped the rest of the rice into his mouth and soon finished it.
“Come, let me wash the bowls.”

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After dinner, his parents sat on the second-floor sofa to watch TV.

He packed up the dishes, dried his hands, and sat down on the sofa with them.

His mother moved to his side.
Full of anticipation, she passed him a note.

“What is this?”

On the note was a string of phone numbers.

“The girl that Auntie Liu wants to introduce to you.
It is easier to talk by adding her as a friend via text, although it is best to chat face-to-face,” his mother said.
Afraid he would be angry, she hurriedly added, “Don’t feel too burdened by this.
Just take it as going out for a while, making a friend… I heard that this girl’s family is very well-to-do.
Her standards are rather high as well.
If nothing works out, it is fine.
We can find someone else.”

Before Zhang Zian came home, he had been mentally prepared for this.
He didn’t say much.
He merely nodded and added her number.

He sent the friend request.
The other party soon accepted it.

He first looked at her profile picture and her circle of friends.
They were all photos of the scenery.
He couldn’t see any details about her life.
So he typed: “Hello, I was introduced by Auntie Liu.
Did she mention me to you?”

The reply from the other party came very quickly: “Let’s meet up and talk tomorrow at 10 a.m.
at the foggy hidden teahouse.
What do you think?”

Zhang Zian stared at it in silence.

In his heart, the first impression that this girl gave him was good.
She was clear, did not drag her feet, and could make her own decisions.
However, if the man decided for her, she may be slightly dissatisfied in her heart…

But what was this about the foggy teahouse? When had the hidden hill opened a teahouse? It hadn’t been here the last time he was home.

Well, tomorrow was the 11th.
The city would be full of people, and there would be long lines everywhere.
Every shop would have a queue.
Perhaps there would not be so many people in the suburbs of the hidden fog.

So he replied, “OK, see you tomorrow.”

The other party did not speak again.

He put down his phone.

“How was it?” His mother pretended to watch TV, but she was always peeking at his face.

“I will meet her at eleven o’clock tomorrow morning,” he replied.

“Good! Great! Sleep a little more tomorrow morning.
I will wake you up,” His mother happily said as she skinned an apple.

His father didn’t say anything, but he took a sip of his tea and heaved a sigh of relief.

The family of three sat on the sofa and watched a variety show that was not very educational.
They burst out laughing from time to time.

He even laughed so hard that he started tearing up.

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