"Xiaoxue, I'm sorry, I really can't take you with me. Go back, the Great Snow Mountain is your home..."
Zhuang Rui's voice choked with sobs, and tears streamed down his face uncontrollably. He hugged the snow leopard and cried like a child.
Zhuang Rui could feel the snow leopard's lingering affection for him; just as his heart was being torn apart.
Chapter 760 The Pain of Parting (Continued)
At the mountain pass of the small village, all was quiet except for the two golden eagles that circled and flew in the blue sky, occasionally letting out clear calls. The dozens of villagers who came to see them off did not speak; it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Since ancient times, the saying "parting is always painful" has been used to describe the emotions between people, but it is also very applicable at this moment. Although they had only spent two days together, the snow leopard's loyalty and its usual cute and adorable demeanor made it hard for Zhuang Rui to give it up.
Clinging to the snow leopard's neck, Zhuang Rui cried like a child. The snow leopard kept tilting its head and gently licking Zhuang Rui's face with its tongue.
A careful observer might notice that the snow leopard's sharp eyes seemed to have become somewhat cloudy. After Zhuang Rui stood up, two thin lines of tears silently flowed from the snow leopard's eyes.
"Waaaaah...waaaah..."
From the whimpering sound emanating from the snow leopard's throat, everyone could hear the deep reluctance it felt for Zhuang Rui to leave.
Several hospital nurses who accompanied the group, as well as the twin sisters from Tsinghua University, had tears welling up in their eyes and couldn't help but shed tears upon witnessing this scene.
"Little Snow, protect your home, protect the Great Snow Mountain, I... will come back to see you someday..."
Zhuang Rui wiped away his tears, let go of her hand, stood up, and turned to walk towards the mountain pass without looking back. He didn't want to turn back because he knew that if he looked back even once more, he wouldn't be able to resist taking the snow leopard back with him.
"Waaaaah... Ouch..."
Knowing that its new friend was about to leave it and the snow leopard, the snow leopard lay slightly on the ground, its front paws pawing anxiously at the earth in front of it.
Although the snow leopard wanted to follow, Zhuang Rui's words told it to return to the snowy mountains, leaving the newly adult snow leopard unsure of what to do.
With its unique animalistic intelligence and sensitivity, the snow leopard seemed to sense that it would never see Zhuang Rui again. It kept whimpering, and large tears rolled down its cheeks.
Hearing the voice behind him, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but let the tears he had just stopped flow down his cheeks again. A man doesn't easily shed tears, only when he is truly heartbroken.
There was no scheming or backstabbing when interacting with the snow leopard, and he didn't have to worry about it going against his will. The pure and simple affection he felt for it was something Zhuang Rui found hard to let go of.
Zhuang Rui believed that if he simply turned around and waved, the snow leopard would follow.
However, Zhuang Rui couldn't guarantee that Xiao Xue would like its new life. He was afraid that this cute little guy would die of depression in the high-rise buildings, so it would be better to leave it in the snowy mountains and let it continue to roam freely in the forest.
Those who accompanied Zhuang Rui down the mountain fell silent and followed behind him as they walked out of the mountain.
The bond between Zhuang Rui and the snow leopard is perfectly normal in the eyes of Tibetans; humans and animals can live in harmony. But for the students from Tsinghua University, it was more of a shock.
The previous scene overturned many of their previous understandings, giving these students in the ivory tower a deeper understanding of life. On this earth, humans are not the only beings with emotions.
"Look, look! The leopard is catching up..."
After walking for more than half an hour, a student's words broke the silence of the group. Almost everyone turned around to look, but Zhuang Rui seemed not to hear and continued walking.
In fact, Zhuang Rui already knew that Xiao Xue was following behind them. Not only that, but the two golden eagles were also circling in the sky above their heads, occasionally letting out cries, as if pointing the way for the group.
Peng Fei also turned to look at the snow leopard that had followed them. He knew that Zhuang Rui must be feeling conflicted at this moment. He quickly walked a few steps to Zhuang Rui's side and whispered, "Brother Zhuang, how about... how about we take that leopard back?"
"We already have these two big guys at home, so we don't need a snow leopard, do we?"
Seeing that Zhuang Rui remained silent, Peng Fei encouraged him a few more times. Ever since he saw the leopard yesterday, he had been captivated by it. It was even more intelligent than an ordinary dog. The snow leopard's lingering affection for Zhuang Rui today also deeply moved Peng Fei.
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui slowed his pace, looked at Peng Fei, and suddenly asked, "Peng Fei, have you ever been to prison?"
"I've been there, what's wrong, Brother Zhuang?"
Peng Fei has personally arrested countless drug dealers. Of course, he has been to prisons, and sometimes he still needs their help during preliminary hearings.
Are prisoners in jail free?
Zhuang Rui continued.
"Prisoner, free?"
Peng Fei curled his lip and said, "If you want freedom, why are you a prisoner? Prison is alright, at least there's a place to exercise and you can do some work. But a detention center is terrible. It's such a small place, with at least a dozen people crammed in. You could suffocate from the stuffiness..."
At this point, Peng Fei understood what Zhuang Rui meant and quickly added, "Brother Zhuang, this is different. We're taking the snow leopard with us, not locking it up..."
However, Peng Fei's voice grew softer and softer, and he became less and less confident as he spoke. The obedience that the snow leopard was showing was only towards Zhuang Rui. If Zhuang Rui were not around, and something happened, it would be a matter of life and death.
On the other hand, even keeping a dog in the city requires all sorts of permits and licenses. If Zhuang Rui wanted to keep a leopard in the city center, no matter how strong his connections were, he would probably still face criticism.
After hearing Peng Fei's words, Zhuang Rui did not refute them, but simply said, "What's the difference? How big is a courtyard house? If a snow leopard were to break out of its shell, it could probably run back and forth in just over ten seconds. Do you think it would be happy?"
If Zhuang Rui had a castle like Ezkena, he might consider bringing the snow leopard out of the mountains, but for the snow leopard, a courtyard house would be a cage.
Even those who are indoctrinated with laws and regulations from birth cannot endure the torment of prison, let alone a snow leopard that has always been free.
Because they brought several students with them, Zhuang Rui and the others took much longer to leave the mountain than they had to leave. They didn't arrive outside the mountain until sunset.
Beyond the mountains lay a vast, flat grassland, with no continuous mountain ranges except for a few small hills. In the distance, towering snow-capped mountains reflected a dazzling light under the setting sun, making Zhuang Rui involuntarily recall the days he spent living on the snow-capped mountains.
When they entered the mountains, Zhuang Rui and the car that the hospital brought were guarded by several people from the hospital's security department. They had been camping there for the past few days, which was almost like a vacation for the Tibetans.
Upon seeing Zhuang Rui and his group emerge from afar, the security guards immediately began packing up the tents. When Zhuang Rui and the others reached the front of the car, the security guards came forward to help the doctors and nurses pick up their medical equipment.
"What...what is that?"
Suddenly, a security guard pointed to a hilltop where the group had come from and exclaimed in surprise.
"Awoo... Awoo awoo," a low and slightly hoarse roar echoed from the hillside. At that moment, the entire grassland became silent. Even the chirping of summer mosquitoes disappeared. Only this tragic and desolate sound lingered on the grassland for a long time.
No one had ever imagined that a leopard could roar so powerfully. This caused panic among the security guards who had never seen a snow leopard before. Some of them ran to the car to grab their guns.
"Xiaoxue, go back, go back, the Great Snow Mountain is your home!" Just as the snow leopard roared, Zhuang Rui finally couldn't hold back anymore. He turned around and looked at the snow leopard standing four or five hundred meters away from him, and shouted loudly. Tears had already blurred Zhuang Rui's eyes.
Whether or not Zhuang Rui heard him, the snow leopard's roar continued, prompting the white lion and snow mastiff to roar as well. At that moment, only the roars of a few wild beasts echoed across the vast grassland.
The two armed security guards were already stunned, focused only on the snow leopard in the distance. They didn't notice that besides the white lion that had followed them, there was now a snow-white Tibetan mastiff.
"Xiaoxue, this might be the last time..."
Zhuang Rui muttered to himself, gathering the spiritual energy in his eyes, and looked at the snow leopard hundreds of meters away. He no longer hesitated to use his spiritual energy, pouring it all into the snow leopard's body.
The snow leopard trembled violently the moment the spiritual energy entered its body, and its roar stopped abruptly. However, the whimpering in its throat never ceased, as if it knew that Zhuang Rui was saying goodbye to it in this way.
"Gah...gagga..."
Two large eagles, their bodies shimmering with golden light in the setting sun, were flying very low, only a dozen meters above Zhuang Rui's head, constantly calling out as they bid farewell to their human friend and their fledgling.
The golden feather in Zhuang Rui's arms was also chirping, its big, shiny black eyes fixed on the golden eagle in the sky. It was perched on Zhuang Rui's shoulder, flapping its wings that had not yet grown feathers.
"Go back now, my friend. I'll bring Jin Yu to visit you again sometime..."
Zhuang Rui waved to the sky. His feelings for the two golden eagles were not as deep as those for the snow leopard, but the unwavering bond between the two eagles had once deeply moved him.
Many people, including students and doctors, were filming this touching scene with video cameras or digital cameras.
At the same time, they also became deeply curious about Zhuang Rui, wondering what kind of charm this ordinary-looking young man possessed that could make snow leopards on land and birds of prey in the sky come to see him off.
Zhuang Rui lowered his head and said softly, "Goodbye, friends..."
Reaching out to stroke the golden feather perched on his shoulder, Zhuang Rui opened the car door, closed his eyes, and two streams of tears flowed down his cheeks.
Chapter 761 Returning Home (Part 1)
Under the setting sun, the snow leopard standing atop the mountain, its graceful and wildly beautiful body, remained etched in everyone's memory for a long time.
As the car drove away, the lone figure gradually disappeared from everyone's sight. Only in the sky remained a pair of golden eagles, following the car as it traveled.
However, after the sun set, the two golden eagles let out clear calls to bid farewell to Zhuang Rui.
Looking out at the vast, dark grassland, Zhuang Rui's excited yet melancholic mood slowly returned to normal. This trip to the snow-capped mountains had purified Zhuang Rui's heart considerably, and reduced many of his obsessions.
At least he didn't force the snow leopard away based on his own preferences, but rationally let the big cat stay on the snowy mountain.
"Hey, Zhang Qian, it's me. It's nothing. I've been in the mountains for the past few days and just came out today..."
"I'm fine, Brother Zhuang, he's fine too, he's doing great. He should be able to go back the day after tomorrow. Let's talk about it when we get home. Oh, I see, I'll tell him right away..."
Peng Fei turned on his phone while driving. There was no signal at all in the mountains these past few days, so Zhuang Rui and Peng Fei had both turned their phones off to save battery.
As soon as Peng Fei turned on his phone, his wife called. He and Zhang Qian had already obtained their marriage certificate, and their wedding photos were taken with Zhuang Rui. However, Peng Fei's wife wasn't pregnant, so there was no need to rush. They planned to hold the wedding when the weather cooled down.
"Brother Zhuang, please turn on the phone quickly! Your wife and Aunt Zhuang are so worried! Hurry, hurry..."
Actually, even without Peng Fei saying it, Zhuang Rui took out his phone when he saw him making a call. When he was in the mountains, with so many animals around, Zhuang Rui didn't miss home much. But now that he's left the mountains, he really misses his wife.
"Chirp chirp... Chirp chirp..."
Seeing the phone in Zhuang Rui's hand, the little guy jumped out of his backpack, pecking at the metal phone with his sharp beak, his eyes full of curiosity.
"Hehe, go play with White Lion. White Lion, Xue'er, you mustn't bully Golden Feather..."
Zhuang Rui smiled, picked up the little guy, and placed him on the white lion sitting in the back seat. The white lion was used to riding in a car, but Xue'er wasn't, so Zhuang Rui would probably have to use his spiritual energy to soothe it.
Mentioning Xue'er reminded Zhuang Rui of the little creature on the snow mountain, and his heart ached. He hoped that when he came back next time, the snow leopard would have found its mate and given birth to a litter of cubs.
However, Zhuang Rui's thoughts were quickly drawn to his phone. As soon as he turned it on, thirty or forty messages came in, and the phone screen was flashing, indicating that messages were coming in.
"Brother, are you having too much fun to remember home? Come back soon, I have good news for you..."
This was sent by Huangfu Yun.
"Boss Zhuang, if you don't like our little shop, could you at least give me a phone number?"
This is Zhao Hanxuan's tone in Xuanrui Zhai.
In addition, there were messages from Qin Xuanbing. The first few were fairly normal, but the later messages sounded a bit anxious, probably because Zhuang Rui hadn't contacted her for several days.
"Beep beep, beep beep..."
Just as Zhuang Rui was browsing through the messages, a new message came in. Zhuang Rui glanced at the name and saw it was from Ouyang Jun, so he casually clicked on it.
"You brat, I'm a dad now, and you haven't even shown your face or been able to reach me by phone. Do you want a beating?"
Looking at Ouyang Jun's information, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but laugh. Among the Ouyang brothers, Ouyang Lei was a bit older and they didn't have much in common. The other two were working in other places and they didn't interact much. If he had to say who he was closest to, it would be Ouyang Jun.
"Congratulations, I'll be back soon, let's meet in person," Zhuang Rui replied to Ouyang Jun with a smile. Just as he pressed send, his phone rang. This time it was a call, not a message.
"Xuanbing, I was just thinking of calling you..."
Zhuang Rui picked up his phone, pressed the answer button, and listened to his wife's voice on the phone, feeling a little like he was in another world.