Chapter 128: People of The Same Trade
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
It was the next day.
The nights were getting longer as winter approached.
Sunrise came later and later. It was difficult for people to get out of bed. Being in bed was the most comfortable place one could imagine to be: soft, warm, attractive.
The mean messages from Wang Haige BBS about Zhang Zian never being able to get a girlfriend really hurt his feelings. He had a nightmare that night. In his dream, he found a beautiful girlfriend. He couldn’t wait to have sex with her. As he pulled up her dress… f*ck! Her penis was even bigger than his!
He woke up, scared!
He then was scared a second time. Aunt Liu’s American Shorthair cat was sitting on his chest. No wonder he had a bad dream. Sending her off the bed, Zhang Zian glanced at Fina’s bed. Its princess bed was empty, and the door was open. It had to be walking around and inspecting its territory in the early morning.
"It should’ve closed the door when it got out. What does it have that long tail for…" He complained quietly as he got dressed.
After brushing his teeth, he went downstairs. Galaxy was up and running around the store. Old Time Tea must still be sleeping. It had been spending too much time watching TV and now was trying to catch up on its sleep.
He counted the pets. He had sold most of them. He planned to call the breeding base so they would send in the other half of his order.
Since his cats could do stunts, most customers came for cats. Even though the dogs were more expensive in his store, some people would still come for the good reputation. His dogs couldn’t do stunts, so they were not selling as well as the cats. The profit of selling dogs was also a lot lower than cats. That was just normal.
Nevertheless, he didn’t want to only sell cats. His store is a pet store. It is not a cat house. If customers thought that he was only selling cats, it might limit the store’s future.
As usual, he cleaned and sanitized the store, cleaned the dogs’ waste, opened the door to get some fresh air, and started the day’s operations.
Unexpectedly, the first customer came really early.
"Hello? Where is the owner?"
A girl with a ponytail knocked on the glass door even before Little Celery and Sun Xiaomeng came over.
Zhang Zian was about to get some breakfast from the street vendors across the road when he saw the girl at the door. Fina only ate fish and meat. Zhang Zian liked his breakfast the traditional way – full of carbs.
"I am the owner. Please come in." He let her in; his breakfast could wait.
Zhang Zian turned up the lights so it was easier for her to look at the pets.
Under the lights, this girl looked exceptionally sharp. She was not like other customers who came in with a confused face. Zhang Zian could tell this girl either knew a lot about pets or did her homework before coming.
Zhang Zian would remain quiet when facing these kinds of customers who knew what they wanted.
She glanced around the store, ignored the dogs in the display cabinet and focused on the cats that were playing on the floor.
This batch of pets was almost gone, only leaving an American Shorthair, a British Shorthair and a Persian cat.
Her eyes stayed on each cat for about two seconds, then she glanced over the entire store again. This time she saw Fina, who was laying on top of the cat tree, and Old Time Tea, who was wearing an old vest.
Old Time Tea was sleeping. Cats are light sleepers. One could tell that it was only half-asleep because its ears were slightly shaking. It might wake up at any time.
Fina watched her from up top. Its eyes were weird.
"Mr. Manager, that one…" She pointed at Fina.
"That one is not for sale," Zhang Zian interrupted her.
The girl’s eyebrows tightened. She was disappointed. She then looked at Old Time Tea carefully. Even if Old Time Tea was wearing a vest, she could tell it was a Dragon-Li. She immediately lost interest.
"Mr. Manager, are these cats all you have?" she asked.
Zhang Zian replied, "There will be a new batch coming in today. If you are not in a hurry, you could come back tomorrow."
"A new batch? What breeds are there in the new batch?"
"Is there a specific breed you are looking for?" he asked her without answering her question.
"How about a ragdoll?"
Zhang Zian paused and said, "Sorry, we don’t have it."
"Oh." The girl didn’t seem disappointed and continue to ask, "How about a Scottish Fold?"
"Sorry, don’t have that either."
The girl nodded. "So you only sell popular breeds, right?"
"That’s right." Zhang Zian reconsidered and said, "For now."
That was another reason why Zhang Zian didn’t want to limit himself to selling only cats. His cats and dogs came from the Pets’ Home Breeding Base. They offered too many different kinds of pets, from birds to fish. However, they only had some very common breeds. For example, they didn’t have newly popular breeds, like ragdolls.
"Well, that’s too bad. I will look somewhere else." The girl nodded and left.
"Goodbye," Zhang Zian said politely.
Fina watched the girl leave and said with confusion, "I could smell lots of cats on this girl."
Zhang Zian was also watching her leave. He smiled and said, "That’s because she is also in the pet industry."
"What do you mean?" Fina looked at him.
"I am just guessing. I think she either owns a pet shop or a cat house. The latter is more likely." Zhang Zian stretched and put the Bluetooth speaker on the steps at the entryway. He continued, "An old Chinese saying says ‘two of a trade seldom agree’. She might have heard about my shop so she came for a visit. She left because she found out that my store wouldn’t threaten her business."
"This is my spiritual palace," Fina said unhappily.
"Fine, fine. This is YOUR spiritual palace." Zhang Zian thought he was a forgiving person. He didn’t care for an argument with a cat. My name is on the title of this store. I’d rather get some exercise than argue with a cat.
…
Once Qing Jing was far away from the pet store, she pulled out her phone and started dialing.
"It’s me. I just went to Amazing Fate Pet Shop. I am coming back now."
"Yeah, the one that has been popular online."
"I asked the owner. They only have some normal breeds such as British Shorthairs and American Shorthairs. They don’t have Ragdolls and Scottish Folds."
"Him? I think he could tell I am in the industry. I don’t really care."
"No. I didn’t see the stunts. Don’t worry. As long as we keep the high-end market, he is not a problem."
"Only…Well, nothing." She was going to talk about that golden cat, but she stopped.
"Okay, goodbye."
Qing Jing hung up. She was relieved.