Chapter 27: then title translation, then ===GLOSSARY=== with list of named entities appearing in these lines

Jiao Ba's university classmate nicknamed "Yuanzi" is actually named Yuan Zhiyi; besides Wei Leng's investment, another university classmate of Jiao Ba's who works in Chu Hua Shi named Fei Hang also invested a portion.

After Yuan Yezi passed away, Yuan Zhiyi also formally started his own business. Recently Yuan Zhiyi has been running abroad; many precision instruments must be sourced overseas, and Yuan Zhiyi went abroad to gain experience. Although Yuan Yezi is no longer around, his connections remain there, which also makes it easier for these young people just starting out in the industry.

Zheng Tan doesn't understand the professional knowledge, but he also knows those precision instruments are counted in units of ten thousand, and in US dollars, not RMB. Zheng Tan doesn't go to the lab often; each time he goes he just glances quickly, and the instruments inside are all labeled in English. Even if there is Chinese, it's only some notes or like marking ownership like a land demarcation.

Not long ago Zheng Tan also heard that the School of Life Sciences had invested another two million RMB to buy equipment, but when he went there yesterday to find Jiao Ba, he crouched outside and took a look, feeling no significant change.

No wonder Jiao Ba says he has no money; the project funds he obtained cannot be touched, only the savings accumulated over several years can be used, but they won't exceed two million, so buying precision instruments really doesn't get much.

That day, after Jiao Ba received a phone call, he told Zheng Tan that Xiao Guo's side had an urgent job.

Xiao Guo's jobs are all ad shoots; Zheng Tan doesn't mind, and the recent ones have mostly been story illustrations and videos, which aren't difficult for him. However, since it's an urgent job, the price definitely needs more negotiation. The negotiation will be handled by Jiao Ba; Zheng Tan just needs to provide labor, go over and strike a few poses, just a formality.

That afternoon after the phone call, Xiao Guo brought some supplements to the hospital, visited Jiao Ma, then Xiao Guo and Jiao Ba went to the hallway to discuss the ad, while Zheng Tan remained crouched in the bag being held by Jiao Ba.

"Kitten cat food?" Jiao Ba asked doubtfully.

"Well, my older brother has a client whose female cat gave birth to five kittens; the adult cat got hurt while playing outside and has been receiving treatment at my brother's place recently; the five kittens are also six weeks old, have grown teeth and been weaned, and the client said they would send the kittens away in two days, keeping only one. I checked, the five kittens are growing well, look very pretty, and have Siberian forest cat lineage, so I want to take this opportunity to shoot a kitten cat food ad." Xiao Guo explained.

Xiao Guo's older brother is a veterinarian; before the pet center was built, his pet hospital and Xiao Guo's own pet supplies store were separate, now they've merged into one, offering one-stop service, so he also knows some of his brother's clients. Originally Xiao Guo hadn't planned to shoot a kitten cat food ad so soon, after all, achieving the effect he wants in a kitten ad is not as easy as in an adult cat food ad, because kittens haven't received training and won't cooperate with you.

"Kitten cat food, what is Hei Tan supposed to do?" Jiao Ba wondered.

"I was thinking of letting the adult cat and the kittens shoot together, after all, if only the kittens were there, those little guys wouldn't obey; having an adult cat present can still restrain them a bit, and although the difficulty is great, it's still better than just letting the kittens loose."

"What do you mean?" Jiao Ba still didn't quite understand. First, our cat is a male; I've heard that in the wild male cats will kill kittens, and some house cats do too, which isn't very safe for the kittens. Second, Xiao Guo's shop only has a few cats, all relatively friendly and gentle, plus there are pedigreed cats, which are definitely better than our ill-tempered native cat.

"What I mean is, let Hei Tan go over for a trial first, see how it goes, then we'll talk; yesterday we tried several cats in our shop, none met my requirements, so that's why I thought of Hei Tan."

After hearing Xiao Guo's explanation, Jiao Ba nodded and didn't ask further details, then started discussing the price.

While Jiao Ba and Xiao Guo were negotiating the price, Zheng Tan, crouched in the bag, was not in a good mood. Besides the two Jiao family children, he doesn't really like kids, let alone those kitten cubs—it's annoying as hell!

After Jiao Ba and Xiao Guo agreed on the price, Xiao Guo left, planning to pick up Zheng Tan early tomorrow morning at the staff residential compound. If Zheng Tan accepts this job, the price will be what Jiao Ba negotiated. Xiao Guo's shop's kitten cat food is relatively expensive, but the quality is absolutely guaranteed; as long as it sells, they'll surely make a good profit. Therefore, the price negotiated this time is higher than in previous times.

Hearing the price quoted by Jiao Ba, Zheng Tan decided to just bear it; it's just shooting an ad, only a few hours.

"Hei Tan, I remember the money you invested in your card; who knows, you might become a major shareholder someday. Also, when shooting the ad, don't let yourself feel wronged—you're there to shoot the ad, not to take anger; worst case, we just don't shoot."

Zheng Tan snorted, indicating he understood. Jiao Ba's first sentence was obviously mostly a joke, and Zheng Tan didn't take it to heart; the second sentence was also what Zheng Tan himself thought, with no pressure. Anyway, he'll still sleep when it's time to sleep and eat when it's time to eat.

The next morning, Zheng Tan didn't go for a run; he crouched on the tall phoenix tree in the staff residential compound waiting. As before, so Xiao Guo each time he arrives on schedule doesn't need to go into the building, just looks up at the biggest phoenix tree.

Now the phoenix tree has lost many leaves; Xiao Guo just needs to look up and he can spot Zheng Tan.

After Xiao Guo saw Zheng Tan, his face again broke into that smile of seeing gold, he patted the black travel bag on his back, "Hei Tan, let's go, start work!"

Zheng Tan doesn't like those dedicated pet carriers, so whenever Xiao Guo comes to pick him up, he always takes that spacious travel bag or a slightly larger backpack.

Since the pet center isn't far from here, Xiao Guo rode his small electric vehicle over, placed the bag in the front basket of the e-bike, and Zheng Tan stayed inside the bag with his head sticking out to view the scenery.

Xiao Guo's 'Mingming Ruci' pet center is getting better and better, with support from old customers and the advertising effect of several months, more and more people know about it; after posting a few ads on some online forums, some people have contacted him to place wholesale orders, and over time they've become long-term clients.

They didn't enter through the pet center's main gate, but through a side door, which is close to Xiao Guo's ad-shooting studio, and there isn't much random foot traffic.

Regarding the black cat that the store manager brings in each time, treated like a god of wealth, several employees are already familiar with it; Xiao Guo's explanation to them is that this black cat has received specialized training, so it's very obedient, shoots ads quickly, and is hired at a high salary; when he first introduced it, Xiao Guo specifically emphasized the four words 'high salary hired,' to make the staff treat this black cat better. This is their store's god of wealth; the reason those cat cans sell so quickly is mainly due to the advertising effect, of course, the quality of the cat food produced by their own store is also guaranteed, and while boosting others, Xiao Guo doesn't forget to elevate himself as well.

Others had no doubt about the manager's explanation; they regarded this 'high-salary hired' black cat and the trained cats of the circus as similar beings. If Zheng Tan knew that these people mentally grouped him with those circus cats, who knows what mood he'd be in?

Zheng Tan, as usual, jumped off the electric vehicle and ran into the studio himself; it was still the usual people, the usual few cats squatting nearby watching, and Xiao Guo's own golden retriever, only the difference from usual was also quite obvious.

In a corner of the studio, an area had been cordoned off, about seven or eight square meters; the props originally piled there were moved to another side.

Inside the area enclosed by plastic boards, five fluffy kittens were playing; three had obvious tiger stripes, the other two were black-and-white spotted. Xiao Guo had said these five kittens have Siberian forest cat lineage, so compared to ordinary cats, their fur is a bit longer.

On a cat climbing frame beside the enclosed area, an adult American Shorthair cat sat, its two front legs resting on the frame's edge, watching the five kittens inside.

This American Shorthair cat is called 'Prince,' it's Xiao Guo's store cat; that flamboyant name was also coined by Xiao Guo, and the cat headshot on the store's self-produced cat cans is of it.

As for why this cat's image is used as the logo, the main reason is the breed's advantages. American Shorthairs have relatively full cheeks, their build is somewhat larger than many cats, their bones are thick, they look meaty, their backs are wide, appearing sturdy, unlike the garden cat—what people call the native cat—which looks thin; at first glance they seem quite dignified yet still friendly, their appearance gives them points that leave Zheng Tan far behind. That's why many pet food companies like to use American Shorthairs for their logo images.

Of course, if we compare intelligence, Zheng Tan would leave it several cities behind. But this can't be compared, after all Zheng Tan has always considered himself with a human psyche, there's no need to compete IQ with a cat.

Another reason not to use Zheng Tan's image as the logo is the black cat factor; after all, not everyone can accept black cats, many people still have a taboo about them.

So appearance is also important. However, regarding this, Zheng Tan can't change it, anyway he won't dye his fur.

At this moment, 'Prince' is staring straight at the five kittens inside, its paws twitching now and then, wanting to go down but seeming hesitant.

"Still the same as usual?" Xiao Guo, entering, asked a few employees.

"Same as usual," an employee said, "when 'Prince' enters, these kittens are treated like class enemies; the other cats in the shop behave the same way regardless of gender. But boss, you said Hei Tan has a bad temper, wouldn't it bite the kittens if let in?"

Zheng Tan, who had jumped onto a cat climbing frame, heard this and turned his head toward Xiao Guo.

They dare speak ill of the old man! Is my temper bad?! What's wrong with it!

While thinking that, Zheng Tan scratched deep claw marks into the cat climbing frame, scraping off all the plush; even 'Prince' not far away shifted in the opposite direction, afraid this ill-tempered black cat would lash out.

Seeing the claw marks on the frame, Xiao Guo's face twitched, a moment of hesitation, but he quickly suppressed it, calling a few employees to watch together; if any sign of biting the kittens appeared, several people would rush over to rescue the kittens.

Zheng Tan crouched on the high cat climbing frame, watching the five kittens inside. At six weeks old, the kittens have begun showing curiosity and nervousness; everything could become their teething tool, everything could become their toy—fur mice, scratching posts, yarn balls, etc., are what they like. When not playing with toys, they also play with their own tails or hind legs and front paws, treating these as imagined enemies to bite and scratch; Zheng Tan feels this behavior is like schizophrenia.

Looking down at the five kittens, Zheng Tan really didn't want to go down and join those little neurotics. However, since he came, he ought to at least put on a show; even if he doesn't want to do it, he should go through the motions—if this ad can't be filmed, there'll be another day.

So Zheng Tan, having prepared himself mentally, spotted an open patch inside and jumped down.

Upon Zheng Tan's sudden appearance, the five kittens that were each playing were startled; two arched their backs, fur puffed up, looking wary.

Outside the enclosure, Xiao Guo and several employees also watched tensely; if they saw the black cat showing signs of wanting to bite, they'd go down to stop it; Xiao Guo had temporarily left the five kittens, but he had given that client a guarantee.

After Zheng Tan jumped down, he also stayed still, knowing his every move was being watched by several people outside; he couldn't make any 'dangerous action' like extending claws or baring fangs, so he simply did nothing, stood in place, waiting for the kittens' rejection reaction, so he could extricate himself.

But what nobody expected was that the largest of the five kittens, whose fur had initially puffed up, gradually smoothed it down, lifted a paw and walked toward Zheng Tan. At first it was a tentative slow shuffle, then it sped up, tail raised.

Zheng Tan looked at the approaching tiger-striped kitten, for a moment not knowing how to react; it was so small, it seemed a lift of the hand could swat it away.

After that tiger-striped kitten came beside Zheng Tan, it lifted its tiny paw and tapped his forearm, tapped again, tapped again, then rolled over and lay on the ground playing with one of Zheng Tan's hands.

Zheng Tan twitched his whiskers, feeling like lifting a paw to flick this little speck aside.

Once one came, a second followed; soon the other four kittens also approached, some playing with Zheng Tan's palms and soles, some with his tail.

Zheng Tan felt he could no longer remain indifferent; he lifted his foot to step over the kittens beside his claws. After Zheng Tan moved, the five kittens followed in succession, the fastest big one even came up and flicked his tail twice.

But Zheng Tan is now impatient, wanting to shake off those little 'tails' behind him; as he quickened his steps, the five kittens behind began to cry, making it seem as if Zheng Tan had done something that provoked feline wrath and human resentment.

Thus this scene appeared: within the area enclosed by plastic boards, a black cat walked circles along the boards, with the five kittens trailing behind; when they couldn't keep up they started crying, and when the leading cat stopped they immediately caught up.

"Is this judging a cat by its looks?" an employee said. After all, none of the cats in our store have received such treatment, but this black cat is different.

Xiao Guo pointed at the black cat inside that was pulling its ears and spinning around, "Looks? Do you think the cats in our shop are better-looking, or that black cat is better-looking?"

That employee didn't speak.

Another employee then asked, "Then why don't the five kittens reject Hei Tan?"

"...... A cat's thoughts, don't guess." Xiao Guo thought for two minutes before managing to blurt out this sentence.

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Thanks to Sha Longlong, Ou Fei Mo Si, Qing Tian Shai Zhu Zhu, Mo Cha Jie Mo, Chun Bai Hui Yi, Wu Xin Yue, lazyorange, Ding Ning, 30xx, luoke000, sj56454564, Zhong Ji Feng Mi for their rewards! Thanks to Shi Ran(3), Ding Ning, Ou Cong Shan Li Lai(2), Qing Tian Shai Zhu Zhu(3) and two friends I couldn't find records of for their rating votes! Thanks everyone~

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