With a history spanning over a century, Galaxy Group now boasts countless industries, abundant capital, and a promising future.
That's what Fan Lingrou used to think.
She had seen Liu Yinhe bring her beloved cat to the company, holding it on four leashes in each hand, calling it "little darling" and "my sweetheart."
She once thought that since Liu Yinhe loved his cat so much, the Yinhe Group would surely last a long time.
Only now did Fan Lingrou understand how things had developed to this point. All those negative rumors were true.
—Liu Yinhe has snapped off the tail of a cat that accidentally frightened him, broken the legs of a disobedient cat, casually thrown a sick cat from the lab into a decomposition machine, falsified the cat's morbidity rate, and now he's changing the score of a competition that should have been fair and just.
"What are you laughing at?" Liu Yinhe exclaimed in surprise, "You don't want your year-end bonus? Let me tell you this, if this matter isn't resolved properly, you can forget about the profit sharing I promised you! You can stay in the director position for the rest of your life, you old woman!"
"…………" Fan Lingrou laughed in anger. The pent-up frustration from not sleeping for days surged into her mind at this moment. She grabbed the vase next to her and smashed it against the wall behind Liu Yinhe.
"Go to hell with Liu Yinhe! I don't care about your money. Your company went bankrupt and you're still giving out dividends. Go to hell! I'm done!"
***
"Galaxy Group's stock price has hit the daily limit down for five consecutive days, and the myth of the pet kingdom may be about to collapse..." Zhenzhen, wrapped in a thick coat, leaned against the wall looking at her phone. Luya approached with a broom and suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Wen Zheng! Yu Jin!"
This was Wen Zheng's first time visiting Xiaoyuan's Home. Looking around, he found the environment to be quite nice.
Since Dahei withdrew from the competition, over thirty cats have been adopted from Xiaoyuan's Home. The adoptive families have all been verified by Luya and Zhenzhen to be reliable and trustworthy.
But today is the weekend, and the number of people who have made appointments to see the cats has exceeded eighty. Zhenzhen and Luya are too busy to handle it all, so they asked Wenzheng and Yu Jin, with whom they had exchanged numbers, for help.
Since the day they parted ways, Bei Sining has never appeared in front of Wen Zheng again, seemingly deciding to shrink back and behave like a cat.
Wen Zheng didn't bother to expose him for the time being. He was busy doing live broadcasts for a few days, having farewell dinners with his colleagues, and going on several city sightseeing trips with Yu Jin.
So he was basically never home every night, only cooking for Dahei without adding any salt.
They said, "I mistook you for a cat spirit before, I'm sorry, from now on I'll raise you as a normal cat. You can't eat chocolate or cake, and you can't eat salt either, haha."
Big Black: "…………"
Big Black was powerless to resist.
As seen in the Weibo video, Xiaoyuan's home is a suburban bungalow with a fenced-off yard to prevent the cats from escaping.
The environment was terrible when it was most crowded, but after dozens of cats were taken away, it became much more spacious. Now that it's winter, cat hair isn't flying everywhere, and the cats are curled up in a ball sunbathing, which is quite cute.
Of course, this was Yu Jin's feeling. Wen Zheng didn't find it cute at all. He took each step very carefully, afraid of accidentally stepping on one or two animals.
There's a glass wall inside, and next to the cat tree is a small coffee table where Zhenzhen and Luya usually run errands.
The four sat down, and Zhenzhen poured them water. Before taking the documents, Luya shared some gossip: "Did you hear that Dahei's scores were really changed? It was only revealed yesterday!"
Following Fan Lingrou, several more middle-level managers left Galaxy Group, causing a temporary handover of group affairs and numerous loopholes.
Liu Yinhe shouted backstage that their cat had to be number one, and everyone present heard it. Keeping it a secret was unrealistic to begin with. It's just that two days ago, some unknown person somehow obtained a video recording, and we still can't find out who leaked it.
The police also discovered evidence of the score tampering, and Galaxy Group will face a lawsuit.
The most terrifying thing is that after the public relations department was basically paralyzed, Liu Yinhe's own cat abuse was spread by word of mouth.
Despite the lack of evidence, the power of public opinion cannot be underestimated, especially with the constant appearance of both genuine and false witnesses. Liu Yinhe was overwhelmed with these matters, and the group was essentially paralyzed.
Wen Zheng took a sip of tea and said casually, "He brought it on himself."
Yu Jin smiled with narrowed eyes, took the tea and said thank you. Luya laughed at him, "You're quite clever too. You acted so vividly in front of the camera that day... People who didn't know better would have thought something had happened to you. Did you know someone was filming?"
Yu Jin said embarrassedly, "Really, no, it's just that our volunteer group leader did threaten me, telling me that if I threw away any more towels, I would have to pay compensation."
The three of them: "…………"
Ignoring Yu Jin, who is always plagued by bad luck, Wen Zheng helps Zhenzhen look at the data, while Luya and Yu Jin go to clean up and give the cats a check-up.
What followed was a constant flurry of activity. Guests came in waves, and Wen Zheng and Yu Jin were so busy they didn't even have time to drink a sip of water. Luckily, the two of them came to lend a hand; otherwise, the two young girls alone wouldn't have been able to do it so meticulously.
By 5 p.m., most of the guests had finally left, and there were more than 50 fewer cats. Xiaoyuan's Home was noticeably less crowded.
"Phew..." Zhenzhen hugged Xiaoyuan and waved its paw: "Most of it's done."
She asked again, "Wen Zheng, why don't you go back first? Da Hei is still at home, it's getting late."
Winters get dark early, and it was indeed dark by now. Wen Zheng was about to nod when another group of people arrived, so he stayed put for the time being.
The girl in the lead was a little girl, about seven or eight years old, wearing a white fur cloak, followed by her family.
"Kitty...I want a kitty..." Her voice was extremely beautiful, ethereal and deep, so beautiful that it was almost unbearable to hear her speak. Wen Zheng and the others were slightly surprised.
Zhenzhen suddenly recognized her: "Little...little lark!"
Author's Note: Dahei: Alone in my empty room? Low oil and no salt? (Shocked)
Chapter 71
Xiao Bailing is a celebrity, and she and Wen Zheng are actually colleagues.
She's eight years old, in second grade, a singer, and her voice hasn't changed yet. This young child already has millions of fans and has appeared on various galas.
Her parents initially discovered her singing talent and started creating profiles for her on various karaoke apps. As they managed it, it became increasingly popular, and she signed with a management company. She also has her own live streaming room on Aimao Live, making her a more prominent figure than other streamers.
Wen Zheng only pays attention to things in the gaming section, and the name Xiao Bailing is only vaguely familiar to him. If Yanghe, who frequents the music section, were here, he would recognize her in a second.
After Zhenzhen gave a brief introduction, Wen Zheng and Yu Jin got a general idea of what was going on. They exchanged a few polite words and then let her go look at the cats.
"You two mentioned you've owned cats, so show us your identification and the documents you agreed to bring." Wen Zheng's attitude was neutral, but that was his usual style; those unfamiliar with him might think he was unhappy.
Sure enough, the parents' expressions changed, and the middle-aged woman muttered a couple of things: "Like they're treating us like royalty, what kind of service is this..."
Zhenzhen and Luya were still immersed in the excitement of meeting celebrities, but hearing this was like a bucket of cold water being poured on them.
But they were soft-hearted and had never even haggled over a price in their entire lives. After thinking it over for a long time, they swallowed their words back.
Wen Zheng seemed not to hear, and finished checking the documents according to the previous procedure. He handed the completed document to Yu Jin, checked off the adoption form, and said coldly, "There is also a house floor plan and a handwritten commitment letter."
"What floor plan? What handwritten plan?" Little Nightingale's mother was already impatient, and the man chimed in with dissatisfaction, "It's just getting a cat, why are you making such a fuss?"
Wen Zheng then raised his head and looked directly at the ordinary middle-aged couple. His eyes held a chilling look that they couldn't understand. After a while, he said, "The materials are incomplete. They are not eligible to adopt."
The woman flinched for a moment, about to say something, when the little lark's sweet, melodious voice rang out: "Kitty... I want this one."
She held a chubby Garfield toy, looked innocently at her mother, then at Wen Zheng, her bright black eyes sparkling, and said, "Brother... is handsome too, I like brother."
As soon as the words were spoken, the parents' attitude underwent a complete 180-degree change.
"Okay, if you like it, I'll buy it! Hey buddy, don't rush, let's write the commitment letter now, the floor plan, the floor plan... can it be electronic? I'll have my family send it over!"
Wen Zheng's eyelids twitched. He silently withdrew his hand from the grasp of his doting mother and pulled Yu Jin towards him, pushing him forward.
Are his hands really that nice to touch?
However, these parents were truly bizarre. Ever since Little Nightingale showed interest in Wen Zheng, they suddenly became incredibly enthusiastic. People with thick skin find everything easy; in just ten minutes, they had extracted all of Wen Zheng's information from Zhenzhen, whose combat power was zero.
"Hey! You're the owner of that champion cat! And a streamer too, I know!"
Although Dahei is not the champion, it is directly called the champion cat online, and "Zheng Ge" is now a hot internet celebrity.
Little Nightingale, holding Garfield in her arms, tugged at Wen Zheng's clothes with great interest: "I've seen the video, I like it, and I want to play."
After saying that, she turned to look at her mother and said, "Mom, I want to play."
They always unconditionally fulfill their daughter's requests, whatever she says goes, except for playing holographic games, which Little Nightingale's mother hasn't agreed to. It's not that they can't afford holographic glasses—there's a green mode for children—it's just that they've heard that playing these games can stunt a child's growth, so they've never given permission.
But they couldn't resist their daughter's persistence. Her little voice was so sweet that it melted their hearts, and they gave in, saying, "Okay, okay, this time when we go back, this older brother will take you to play."
Wen Zheng: "…………"
That face is so big.
Wen Zheng had limited patience and originally wanted Yu Jin to take his place and leave first. However, when he turned around, he saw that Yu Jin's expression was not right and he was looking at Xiao Bailing with a slight frown.
That was definitely not a friendly look; it was three parts mockery and four parts disgust, and it shouldn't have appeared during a video call with a child.
He paused for a moment.
"You're off work, right? Come on, let's have dinner together! It's on me! It's Xinghai Restaurant up ahead, not far, just a short walk away! Come on, Lingling, put your boobs in the box—" Bailing's mother greeted them warmly, putting her arms around Zhenzhen and Luya. The two girls couldn't refuse and kept turning their heads to look. Bailing's father then turned back and pushed Yu Jin.
After all, they were adopters through legitimate channels; their application materials were in order, their home was spacious, and their two previous cats were healthy and fed high-quality cat food. Xiaoyuan's family had no reason to refuse adoption, especially after the woman's flowery words, as if their relationship was already as close as half-brothers, and that not sharing a meal together would be a terrible sin.
After considering it for a while, Wen Zheng decided to go along.
Although Dahei was still waiting at home, the two girls couldn't keep things under control, and Yu Jin seemed a bit off right now.
Cats won't starve if they eat a little later, but people can't be so carefree.
Especially today, the way Yu Jin looked at Xiao Bailing made him uncomfortable.
"Brother." Little Nightingale handed the suitcase containing Garfield to her father, then turned and grabbed Wen Zheng's sleeve, following him with small steps. Even at eight years old, she still speaks in syllables, one word at a time. In Wen Zheng's memory, Chen Xiaochen was already quite talkative at that age.
"Take me to play, brother. I like you. Please take me to play when we get back, okay?" Little Nightingale suddenly smiled sweetly.
For her, this was like a weapon she wouldn't use easily, because she was so cute that even Wen Zheng couldn't resist the child's coquettishness.
He hadn't originally intended to pay attention to the self-absorbed couple, but after being bombarded with smiles by the little lark three times, he could only nod in agreement.
Having achieved her goal, the little lark smiled sweetly for a while and then leaned against Wen Zheng's forearm.
This meal cost quite a bit of money, but Xinghai Restaurant is a well-known food destination in the area, so the price-performance ratio is still very good.
As they ate, Zhenzhen and Luya became quite engrossed. They usually didn't have the spare money to come here, but today they got their money's worth.
Wen Zheng ate quite a bit, but Yu Jin, who was always in his peripheral vision, barely touched his chopsticks.
Thinking of Dahei, who was alone in his empty room, Wen Zheng originally planned to pack some seafood to take home, but later gave up.
It was almost nine o'clock when I got home. As soon as I opened the door, the smart home system was working diligently as usual. After Wen Zheng slapped it off, it announced a second message: "The oven in the kitchen is in use. Please be aware of the time and take precautions against fire."
"?" Wen Zheng wondered if he had broken the smart home assistant. However, the aroma that wafted into his nose quickly told him that it was true! His oven was baking something!
Worried that Dahei might accidentally touch some button it shouldn't, Wen Zheng rushed into the kitchen. Dahei was lying on the countertop, its tail drooping down, swishing idly.
And that pink little nose was sniffing the aroma of roasted meat spreading in the air.
"...Did you bake it yourself?" Wen Zheng waited a while before asking it. Dahei yawned, turned its head, and pointed at the inner wall of the kitchen counter, refusing to look at him.
Faced with the large black cat, Wen Zheng couldn't bring himself to scold it. He sighed, picked it up, and put it on the dining table.
"I'm sorry I came back late, but we'll be able to eat soon."
The boxed pork cutlets were originally planned for dinner tonight, and were left to thaw on the kitchen shelf. Now they've been moved into the oven, sizzling. Wen Zheng took a picture and suddenly found it a little funny. This guy really doesn't skimp on himself; he knows he'll bake pork cutlets when he's hungry.