There's a chat group for pets in my neighborhood.

Lu Fang quickly adapted to his new job.

Compared to my previous job at the pet hospital, working at Hello Pet Shop is much simpler.

It's nothing more than cleaning, taking care of the foster cats and dogs, and tidying up the shelves; Lu Fang is already very familiar with these tasks.

A short while later, Qin Zhuyan appeared at the shop entrance.

"Not bad, Xiao Fang, you're here so early today."

She was carrying two plastic bags filled with fresh chicken breast and pumpkin, clearly bought from the nearby market early that morning.

"Since I didn't have anything to do at home, I came over early."

Lu Fang was quite enthusiastic about this hard-won job, and he eagerly took the two bags from Qin Zhuyan's hands.

"Manager, why are you buying this so early in the morning?" He peeked into the bag.

Qin Zhuyan wore a smart shirt and overalls today, with her hair in a high ponytail, exuding youthful energy and making it impossible to tell that she was almost thirty years old.

She rolled up her shirt sleeves, gesturing for Lu Fang to place the bag on the table beside her, and said while processing the pumpkin:

"Today is your third official day at work, so you should have a general idea of ​​what's going on in our store."

"Our store's revenue mainly comes from two sources: pet boarding and pet grooming."

"Forget about pet grooming, you probably don't know much about it anyway, so you'll need to quickly get the hang of pet boarding."

"The sales volume of pet supplies isn't large, so you can just do it as is."

As Qin Zhuyan spoke, her hands didn't stop. She put the diced pumpkin and chicken breast into the blender and ground them into a fine paste.

She wiped her hands, took a small notebook out of her pocket, and handed it to Lu Fang.

"This minced meat is for Pudding."

Qin Zhuyan wiped her hands, turned and went into the inner room, and came out a short while later pushing a small cart.

A large golden retriever was lying on the stroller. Its face was a little pale, and it was obvious that it was an old dog.

"pudding!"

As Lu Fang gazed at the familiar golden retriever in the stroller, memories flooded back. Pudding seemed to recognize Lu Fang as well, and tried to raise its head as a greeting.

"You two know each other?" Qin Zhuyan asked, somewhat surprised, upon seeing this scene.

"I've met him twice in the neighborhood." Lu Fang dared not say that he had worked at Meiji Pet Hospital. If Qin Zhuyan found out that he always used things from the store for stray cats and dogs outside, she might fire him too.

Although he gave Qin Zhuyan a few perfunctory words, Pudding and Lu Fang were old acquaintances.

After all, Pudding suffered from severe arthritis, and he was the one who performed both surgeries. Unfortunately, it was delayed for a while, and Pudding still lost the ability to move its hind legs. During its hospitalization, Pudding was kept in a cage. If Lu Fang hadn't been strong enough to move it out to bask in the sun, it would probably have developed bedsores long ago.

Later, Dean Cui complained that Pudding was taking up too much space, so he found an excuse to have its owner take it back. How did it end up here?

"So you've seen Pudding before." Qin Zhuyan didn't suspect Lu Fang, but said to herself, "Its owner went abroad and it's being fostered here for three months."

"The pet shops in the neighborhood wouldn't take it because it was too much trouble, so they brought it to me."

She pushed Pudding to the sunniest spot in the shop, squatted down, and carefully wiped away the secretions and drool from the corners of its eyes with a wet tissue. Pudding seemed to enjoy it, squinting its eyes slightly and wagging its tail gently.

"Older dogs have sensitive stomachs and can't eat dog food. This puree made from pumpkin and chicken breast is perfect for them," Qin Zhuyan rambled on, spooning the cooled puree onto Pudding's lips. The morning sunlight cast a beautiful silhouette on her, and every strand of her hair shimmered with golden light.

Lu Fang didn't expect that someone could actually do this. For an elderly dog ​​like Pudding, most Hello Pet Shops would be lucky if they could even turn it over, let alone make it a separate dog meal.

"After feeding, turn it over. Lying in the same position all the time can easily cause bedsores."

After feeding her all the chicken breast and pumpkin puree, Qin Zhuyan stood up and gestured for Lu Fang to come and help.

He took a few steps closer, picked up Pudding, and gently changed her position.

Pudding weighed a full seventy pounds. Even Lu Fang found it difficult to carry, so it was hard to imagine how the petite Qin Zhuyan managed to lift and turn Pudding over by herself before he arrived.

"Well done."

After doing all this, Qin Zhuyan gave him a thumbs up: "Our shop has a total of five boarding pets, both cats and dogs. I have written all the precautions in a notebook. Please check them. These are all living creatures, so you can't make any mistakes. I will check them."

Her voice was soft, yet it carried a certain tenacious vitality that left no room for doubt.

"I guarantee I will complete the mission." Lu Fang stood up straight and gave a proper military salute, which Qin Zhuyan found somewhat amusing.

"Oh, by the way, your package arrived. I picked it up for you. It should be the toy you bought yesterday."

"So fast!" Lu Fang rushed to the door and tore open the box. Inside was the mouse toy he had ordered yesterday.

I have to say, it's really ugly. God knows why those kids like it so much.

He took the five little mice and walked to the pet supply counter by the door. After looking at them from left to right, he decided to move the little yellow duck that occupied the most conspicuous position aside and replace it with the little mice he had bought. Then he nodded in satisfaction.

Qin Zhuyan stood behind and watched this scene, then sighed helplessly.

Lu Fang thinks everything about it is great, but his aesthetic sense is just too strange.

How could anyone possibly sell something like this? If she saw it in her room in the middle of the night, she'd probably be so scared she'd call the police.

Well, let him mess around for a few days. Once he realizes he can't sell them, he'll naturally put the little mouse away.

The morning passed quickly, and there weren't many customers in the shop.

Lu Fang was happy to have some free time. Apart from helping Pudding turn over every two hours, he spent the rest of his time staring at the group chat on his phone.

Everyone chatted casually, but Brother Tanuki was investigating a case of stray cats stealing protection money and didn't have time to post anything else.

The Border Collie walking its dog was soliciting customers in the group chat; it was clearly looking for a bone.

The dog with legs 1.8 meters long got into a fight with another dog in the group chat. Apparently, it almost got mated when it went to play in the square last night.

The culprit was another dog named Don't Turn Your Ass On Me.

Judging from the name, Lu Fang thinks it's most likely a teddy bear.

Amidst the two dogs' casual argument, Lu Fang tagged "I have a renovation plan."

I have a renovation plan: "Dude, my owner took me to the Hello Pet Shop behind the house for a bath, is that toy still there?"

Lu Fang's eyes lit up.

A customer has come in!