The next morning.
Zhang Zian hoped that the weather forecast, which was getting more and more accurate, would occasionally be wrong. However, the power of nature could not be changed by one's will. When he woke up in the morning and opened the curtains, he saw that it was cloudy outside. There was a hazy drizzle, and the pedestrians were holding colorful umbrellas, like moving mushrooms.
It was raining.
Even without considering the outbreak of insects, the rain would have a negative impact on the business of the pet shop and the aquarium. No one was willing to go shopping in the rain, so the employees could happily play with their phones.
Even if they knew there was no business, they still had to open for business as usual. It was a matter of professional ethics, just like how Pi used to update its novel every day even though it knew no one was reading it.
The employees arrived on time with umbrellas and started the daily cleaning work with him. After they finished, they went to find a place to rest.
Zhang Zian leaned against the door and looked at the passersby with boredom. He was thinking about the insect disaster.
Sun Xiaomeng drove by slowly, rolled down the window, and gestured to him. It was the end of the month. Transfer the money for vaccinating the injured stray cats to me. I'm waiting to pay the nurses' salaries.
Zhang Zian yawned and pretended not to see it. After all, he could earn a few more dollars with the money lying in Yu 'e Bao …
Masanori Suzuhara, who usually ran by the shop every morning, did not show up because of the bad weather, or maybe because it was almost the final exam.
The pupa larva in front of the shop next door had not changed for a few days. The dust outside the pupa had been washed away by the rain, and it was green.
"Good morning, Brother Store Manager!"
Little Celery, wearing a translucent children's raincoat, appeared at the door on time.
"Good morning, Little Celery. Do you want to come in and take shelter from the rain? There is a towel for you to wipe your face with. "Zhang Zian saw that her little face was wet and invited her into the shop.
Little Celery wanted to visit the hamster and the lop-eared rabbit, but she resisted the urge and shook her head. She wiped the rain off her face and said, "No, today is the final exam. I have to hurry up and read some books."
"Oh, the final exam … Little Celery is preparing for it very seriously."
Zhang Zian suddenly realized that it was already the end of June. After the exams, the elementary school students would be on vacation. He would not see Little Celery every morning on weekdays.
"Yes! I hope the essay I've prepared can be used in the language exam, "she said nervously.
"It doesn't matter if you don't need it. You have been preparing for the exam, and your writing skills have improved. I believe you can do well in the exam," he encouraged her.
"Yes! I'm leaving now. Bye, Brother Store Manager! " Little Celery waved her hand and stopped after a few steps. She said, "Oh, by the way, the teachers asked me to thank you, Brother Store Manager!"
"You're welcome. Hurry up and go to school. Be careful on the way."
Zhang Zian really wanted to say that there was no need for verbal thanks. If any of the teachers knew young and beautiful girls, they could introduce them to him …
Little Celery ran away and disappeared in the direction of Zhonghua Road Primary School. He was still leaning against the door in a daze.
At some point in time, Vladimir appeared next to him. He squatted at the door and stared thoughtfully at the curtain of rain.
It was rare that it didn't go out today.
In the past few days, the stray cats and stray dogs had abided by the armistice agreement, and the tense situation had eased. Other than going to the pet clinic to visit the injured stray cats, Vladimir didn't have much to do.
Due to the professional care of the pet clinic, Big Orange and the others were recovering very well. There were no signs of rabies, and they should be able to be discharged soon.
"I'm thinking …" Vladimir suddenly said, "Why Binhai City?"
"What?"
Zhang Zian woke up from his daze and didn't hear its question clearly.
It turned around and stared at the opposite side of the cashier counter, where the Holy Cat statue had been placed. There was still a white mark on the floor.
"I mean, why did the Holy Cat statue revive in Binhai City?" it said.
"This …"
Zhang Zian hadn't considered this question, and he didn't know why it suddenly asked this. However, it was raining to hit a child. He had nothing to do anyway, so he said casually, "Because the Holy Cat statue happened to be in Binhai City?"
"Then, what was the opportunity for the Holy Cat statue, which had been silent for so many years, to suddenly revive?" it asked.
According to the scattered information that it knew, as well as some information that it had learned from Pi, he guessed, "It should be the cat abuse incident … Before this, there was a cruel cat abuse incident in Binhai City. The huge resentment of the stray cat that died tragically before it died awakened the sleeping Holy Cat statue."
"Resentment …"
Vladimir thought for a moment, then shook its head. "The so-called resentment should be something as illusory as the soul, right? I don't think there is such an idealistic thing in the world. "
"Although resentment is illusory, it is not necessarily idealistic. After all, there are still many problems in the world that cannot be explained by current science … Or you can try to change it to another way of saying it. For example, resentment may be some kind of electromagnetic wave, transformed from the brain waves of the cat before it died, and then coincidentally received by the Holy Cat statue …"
Anyway, it was all speculation, and he didn't have to take responsibility if he was wrong. Zhang Zian simply let his thoughts run wild.
Vladimir listened very carefully, and suddenly changed the topic. "Caterpillars, do they have brains and wisdom?"
Zhang Zian was stunned by the question. He tried to keep up with its thoughts and said, "Brains … They should have, but the caterpillar's brain is very small, not enough to produce individual wisdom."
"So, caterpillars don't have wisdom?" it asked again.
"That's not necessarily true." Zhang Zian recalled a saying that he had heard before. "Although insects are too small to produce individual wisdom, they can form a certain degree of group wisdom. Each of them is like a brain cell, and the communication between them is like the electric current in the brain … For example, bee colonies and ant colonies are typical insects with group wisdom."
"Oh."
Vladimir nodded, trying to digest his explanation.
Zhang Zian thought that the conversation was over, but he didn't expect it to ask another strange question. "If the resentment of the stray cat before its tragic death revived the Holy Cat statue, then … the caterpillars that you killed with pesticides, if they have group wisdom, will they also have … some kind of resentment?"
He was usually eloquent and would argue even if it was unreasonable, but this time he was really dumbfounded by the question and had nothing to say.
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