Tiger, I rejected the iron rice bowl.

"We can't be careless, that's a wild Siberian tiger!" Uncle Zhang's voice was visibly tense. Just as he finished speaking, the door slammed shut again, and the faint sound of it being locked could be heard. "Get him out of here quickly, he's quite frightening to look at!"

Tang Li shook her head helplessly, took the key, returned to the iron gate, bent down, and unlocked the padlock.

With a click, she pushed open the heavy iron gate, and the scent of grass and trees from the back mountain wafted towards her.

Wang Yuyu's eyes lit up, and he immediately rushed out on three legs. He opened his mouth to breathe in the free air, and the familiar mountain scent made him feel at ease, giving him a slight illusion of going home.

Tang Li also came out and looked around in the light from the wall.

There was a makeshift wooden hut built against the wall next to the back gate, with a waterproof tarpaulin on the roof, which looked fairly sturdy.

She couldn't help but laugh: "Goodness, the headmaster is raising you like a guardian tiger, even giving you a special little house."

She waved to Wang Yuyu, who was frolicking in the snow: "Stop playing around, you've got a secure job! Come and see your new home!"

At this moment, Wang Yuyu was rolling around in the snow, his tiger fur covered in snowflakes.

Upon hearing Tang Li's shout, he immediately got up from the snow, shook off the snow, and limped over.

Tang Li bent down, carefully brushed the snow off his fur, and frowned, feigning a scolding: "You're such a child! What are you doing playing in the snow, you big tiger! Look how dirty your fur is!"

Wang Yuyu enjoyed her care without a care in the world, nuzzling her head against her palm, thinking to herself, "Anyway, you're here to clean me up, what's there to be afraid of?"

After clearing away the snow, Tang Li led Wang Yuyu to the front of the cabin and pushed open the wooden door.

The room wasn't small; the floor was covered with thick layers of dry grass, and there was a water basin in the corner, providing shelter from the wind and warmth.

Tang Li nodded: "It's nice, quite spacious, and warm enough."

Wang Yu walked in, took a look around, sniffed the air, and nodded with satisfaction: "Much more comfortable than the caves in the mountains, and there's even dry grass to cushion it."

Seeing that he was satisfied, Tang Li smiled and said, "If you think it's good, then this will be your temporary residence from now on."

"It's getting late, I'm going back to get some sleep, I'll come see you again when it's light."

She yawned widely, reached out and touched the tiger's head, then turned to leave.

Wang Yu nodded silently and followed her all the way to the iron gate, watching her open it.

Tang Li turned around and waved to him: "Bye-bye, take good care of your injuries, I'll bring you something delicious when it gets light."

After saying that, he gently closed the iron gate.

Wang Yu stared at the tightly closed iron gate for two seconds before turning around and slowly walking back to the cabin, where she lay down on the soft hay and closed her eyes to rest.

Several hours passed, and dawn broke in the blink of an eye.

Wang Yuyu's stomach was the first to protest, its rumbling sound particularly clear in the quiet back mountain.

The silly roe deer he ate yesterday morning has long been completely digested by him.

He peered through the doorframe of the cabin at the iron gate, his amber eyes filled with confusion: "Why hasn't Tang Li come yet? She said she'd bring me food at dawn, could she have forgotten?"

He slowly stood up, pushed open the wooden door, and stepped out of the hut through the snow.

By this time, the sun had already risen above the mountains, and golden sunlight spilled onto the snow, reflecting a dazzling light, the warmth seeping into the body through the fur.

Wang Yuyu comfortably squinted her eyes, stretched out a big yawn, put her front paws on the ground, sticked out her buttocks, and made a slight "click" sound with her whole body, perfectly performing a set of standard yoga stretching movements.

After stretching its muscles, Wang Yu walked briskly to the iron gate, put its front paws on the side of the gate, glanced at the security camera on the gate, and then raised its paws to knock on the iron gate with a "bang, bang".

The tapping sound was rhythmic and loud, spreading with the morning breeze into the zoo.

He tapped on the camera while whining in a low voice, his tone urgent: "Tang Li! Tang Li! I'm hungry! Hurry up and bring me food!"

"Tang Li! Did you hear me? I'm going to starve to death if you don't come soon!"

"Tang Li..."

His anxious demeanor showed none of the imposing presence he once possessed as a mountain lord.

The loud noise immediately woke up Uncle Zhang, the security guard who had been stationed at the back gate all night. He hurriedly threw on his coat, cursing as he stormed out of the guardhouse: "Who is it! Knocking on and on so early in the morning, can't a person get a peaceful night's sleep?!"

But when he reached the monitor screen next to the iron gate and saw Wang Yu lying face down outside, his anger was instantly extinguished by fear, and his voice trembled as he said, "So, it was a secure job after all!"

"Are you hungry? I'll call Xiao Tang over right away, just a moment, just a moment!"

"Hurry up! I'm starving!"

Wang Yuyu nodded in satisfaction, retracted its paws and tucked them into its arms, obediently lay down on the snow, and impatiently swept the ground with the tip of its tail.

A dozen minutes later, Tang Li arrived with a dark expression, pushing a small cart full of things.

She walked to the iron gate, slammed it open with a loud bang, and glared angrily at Wang Yuyu, who was lying on the ground: "What are you banging on so early in the morning? Do you know you're keeping Uncle Zhang awake?"

She clenched her fist and lightly tapped Wang Yuyu's head, warning, "If you dare tap me like that again, I'll tap you twice as hard! Let's see if you can take it!"

Wang Yu narrowed her eyes slightly, shaking her head from side to side to avoid the knocking, but her nose keenly caught the strong smell of blood wafting from the cart.

He instantly perked up, immediately propped himself up and rushed forward, wishing he could just squeeze past Tang Li and pounce on the cart to eat.

Tang Li was prepared; she stretched out her leg to block his path, grabbed the back of his neck with her other hand, and pressed down firmly: "Don't go in! Stay outside obediently, I'll get it for you! Do you hear me?"

"I heard you! I heard you! Hurry up and get it, I'm starving!"

Wang Yuyu's gaze was fixed on the stroller, nodding repeatedly, drool dripping from the corner of her mouth.

Tang Li pointed to the open space outside the door, her face stern, and shouted, "Back up! Back up further away before you wait!"

Wang Yuyu gave an impatient snort, rolled her eyes, and muttered to herself, "Honestly, we've known each other for so long, and you still don't trust me at all."

"I, Wang Yuyu, am a tiger who keeps his word! If it weren't for this meal, who would bother to take your orders?"

Despite his complaints, he obediently stepped back more than two meters and squatted on the snow, staring at the cart with anticipation in his eyes.

Seeing that he had calmed down, Tang Li breathed a sigh of relief, turned around and took out two large bags of fresh raw meat from the cart, weighing a full twenty kilograms.