On the way back, the hitchhiker was a middle-aged man who looked calm. He was not as talkative as Jamie, who would answer every question, but would not talk too much, nor would he take the initiative to ask questions. It was clear that he just wanted to be a quiet, beautiful driver.
Guo Dongyue put the birdcage on his lap, closed his eyes, and occasionally opened his eyes to observe the status of the two red-headed lovebirds. It was obvious that the two red-headed lovebirds were not used to the bumpy road, and they were not as calm as they were in the birdhouse.
"Please drive a little slower," Guo Dongyue reminded the driver.
"Meow! Drive faster! " Snowy Lionet continued to play the same trick, using the inertia when the car turned to rub against Fina, while Fina impatiently pushed it away with its claws.
Zhang Zian was happy to have some peace and quiet. Just as he was about to take a nap, his phone rang. It was a message from Wei Kang.
Wei Kang: I have taught a lot of students, and many of them are older than you. I can see that you have concerns. I don't know what you are worried about. Maybe you think that I want to use this opportunity to become famous, but I really just want to make some contributions to the academic community. If you agree to provide the genes of the original Egyptian cat, I promise that you will be the first author of the paper.
Zhang Zian did not reply immediately, but quietly thought.
He remembered a science news article he had read before.
In 1999, Dr. L. Lee Grismer published a paper about the Pingxiang gecko, a rare gecko that lived in Pingxiang, Guangxi, China. The scientist thought that publishing the paper could attract the attention of the local government, so that the rare gecko could be better protected.
What Grismer did not expect was that after his paper was published, the gecko with a strange appearance immediately became a popular exotic pet. International buyers raised the price of one gecko to 2000 US dollars. 2000 US dollars in 1999 was a very strong temptation in China, and it was only the price of one gecko.
Driven by the huge profits, the researchers quickly discovered that the gecko habitat mentioned in the paper "seemed to have been bombed, every rock had been turned over" … Nowadays, in Pingxiang, Guangxi, the Pingxiang gecko was hard to find due to overharvesting.
Zhang Zian thought of the man in the windbreaker from Wang Haige. That guy seemed to be selling rare pets. Also, there was the rich female that Guo Dongyue had mentioned, who was willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars to build a glass greenhouse for a smart grey parrot … Whether it was domestic or foreign tycoons, they were all crazy about rare pets.
What would happen if Wei Kang wrote in his thesis that he had found a primitive Egyptian cat in Binhai City and concluded the evolution of domestic cats?
Zhang Zian did not dare to imagine.
What was certain was that the door of the Amazing Fate Pet Shop would be broken. Uninvited guests from the public and the government would fill the entire shop. In order to get Fina, they would promise him a huge amount of money, or simply give him a certificate of merit and ask him to submit it to the state … Some people would even have bad ideas and use some terrible means to clear the obstacles.
Currently, there were indeed a few netizens who suspected that Fina was a primitive Egyptian cat, but they were only at the stage of "suspicion" and might forget about it after a while … If Wei Kang published his thesis as a professor at Binhai University, the situation would be unpredictable.
Zhang Zian really wanted to make some contributions to science, but the premise was that his life could not be disturbed, and his safety could not be threatened. Obviously, once Wei Kang's thesis was published, the peaceful days would be gone forever.
What about asking Wei Kang not to expose Fina's location? That was not realistic. Scientific papers had to be rigorous, and they had to be verifiable and repeatable, not empty talk. After Wei Kang's thesis was published, colleagues at home and abroad would inevitably come to him and ask him where he found the primitive Egyptian cat. Wei Kang had to answer truthfully, or he would be putting his academic reputation at risk. Never underestimate the desire of scientists to explore the truth.
The case of the Ping Xiang Tiger was not isolated. In fact, similar situations had happened several times. Every time scientists discovered a new species, the population of the species would soon collapse due to overhunting. Even if the origin of the new species was not specified, as long as the habits of the new species were described, people could infer the area where they lived.
Zhang Zian turned his head and looked at Fina. It was sitting on the seat next to him, looking at the scenery outside the window. From time to time, it raised its claws and pushed away Snowy Lionet that was sticking to it. Snowy Lionet was not discouraged at all. It circled around Fina and attacked from all angles, vowing to lick Fina's fur …
Sometimes Snowy Lionet went between Fina and Zhang Zian, and when Fina pushed it, it would lean on Zhang Zian. Every time this happened, Snowy Lionet would put on a sour face and stare at him with its big blue eyes.
He had to admit that Snowy Lionet's long fur felt really good, and its angry expression was also great. If he met someone who loved cats as much as his life, he would definitely stroke the cat to death …
After thinking about it again and again, he replied to Wei Kang.
Zhang Zian: Professor Wei, it's not that I don't want to be close to you, nor do I have doubts about your character. It's just that I'm worried about the future after the matter is exposed. I'm an ordinary person, and I just want to live a normal life. I don't want to live under the spotlight of the media all day long. So, I'm sorry, I can't agree to your request … Maybe I will agree one day, but at least not now.
After pressing the send button, he received Wei Kang's reply soon after.
Wei Kang: It seems that I was rude. I didn't take your opinion into consideration. What you said makes sense. If I were you, I probably wouldn't want to be the focus of the media either. I will reflect on myself and try to come up with a perfect plan. Before that, I won't make similar requests to you.
After reading the message, Zhang Zian was relieved. He felt that Wei Kang was quite reasonable. He wasn't a mad scientist like in movies, who would do anything for scientific research …
Knowing that Wei Kang wouldn't disturb him, he temporarily put down his worries and felt a lot more relaxed.
In fact, all the reasons above were only secondary. The most important thing was that he never treated Fina as a cat or a pet. Whether it was Galaxy, Fina, or Old Time Tea, he respected their opinions. If they wanted to follow him to the bird house, he would bring them. If they wanted to go back to the game and sleep, he wouldn't force them.
They weren't pets, they were elfins, existences that transcended time and space. They had their own will and wishes — from Snowy Lionet's experience, he understood this. They were companions of their owners, not subordinates. Because they liked and agreed with their owners, they followed their owners. Therefore, their owners had to repay them with the corresponding honesty and respect.
Huh?
He noticed that the scenery outside was a bit strange. It seemed that this was not the way he came.
"Um, are we going the wrong way?" he reminded the driver.
"Yes." The driver was also surprised. He checked the mobile phone that was used as a navigator.
"Yes." Guo Dongyue opened his eyes, "Let's not go back to the pet shop. I want to take these two parrots home first to see my mother's reaction, so that we don't do anything in vain …"
Zhang Zian immediately understood and nodded in agreement. He thought that Guo Dongyue was really careful. It was indeed necessary to let his mother see the parrots first.
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