Chapter 83: The Abandoned Panda Cub..

“The milk is warm now. If you’re not getting up, I’m going to drink it myself.”

Xie Hui walked to the bedside and deliberately lowered his voice to say that, intending to tease the cub.

Who would’ve thought that the word “milk” seemed to flip a switch—just a moment ago, the cub was snoring in his sleep, still wrapped in a little blanket. But as soon as he heard that word, he began scrambling toward the edge of the bed at lightning speed.

Xie Hui caught him with one hand just before he fell off the bed and gave his ears a rough ruffle with a helpless tone.

“You’re already dumb enough. If you fall on your head, won’t you get even dumber?”

If it weren’t for the fact that he was supposed to be scolding the cub, Xie Hui would’ve been genuinely curious: how did this little guy manage to go from sleeping to almost falling off the bed, and still keep the blanket wrapped around him as he landed in Xie Hui’s arms?

The freshly-awakened cub rubbed his dark circles with his paws, leaned into Xie Hui’s chest, and started nuzzling him with his head, letting out soft, pitiful noises in a practiced display of affection.

Xie Hui carried him out. The milk had indeed been warmed and was already poured into his designated little bowl.

“Be careful. Don’t spill too much. Once it’s spilled, you can’t drink it anymore, understand?”

With a habitual reminder, Xie Hui turned and went to the kitchen to bring out his own breakfast.

Perhaps because he was still very young, this cub didn’t show much personality yet. But one trait stood out clearly: he was a glutton. Even back when his eyes were still closed, that trait had already been obvious.

The cub drank the milk quickly. When he finished, he stared longingly at the few drops spilled on the table. He shifted his paw halfway over, but as if suddenly remembering Xie Hui’s earlier warning, he silently drew it back.

Then, with all four paws scrambling at once and his little tail swaying behind him, he darted over to Xie Hui and started tugging on his pant leg with his paw.

Xie Hui, clearly used to this, scooped him up with one hand and nestled him in his lap as he continued eating.

Every time he took a bite, the cub in his arms let out a soft, aggrieved whimper.

Xie Hui glanced down at him, and for some reason, was suddenly reminded of something that little girl had once said in the previous world:

“Give me a bite.”

The cub’s greedy little expression really was pitiful. Xie Hui couldn’t help feeling a bit guilty as he was stared at with those watery eyes. It made eating difficult.

So… Xie Hui reached out his left hand and covered the cub’s eyes. With his right hand still holding the chopsticks, his guilt vanished, and he resumed eating heartily.

The cub was still too small. Even when he grew a bit, his diet would still be similar to that of a panda—human food wasn’t even an option.

Xie Hui knew his thoughts weren’t exactly kind, but he couldn’t help imagining inviting a few of the original host’s friends over for hot pot and letting the cub sit on the side, drooling as he watched.

After finishing his meal, Xie Hui was met with a rare tantrum from the cub. Sitting there with his little paws tucked in, he practically had the word “angry” written across his chubby belly that Xie Hui loved to nuzzle.

“Aww, an angry little cub probably doesn’t want snacks, huh?”

That single sentence made the sulking panda immediately scramble over. After a short running start, he leapt straight into Xie Hui’s arms, wrapping his two paws around Xie Hui’s wrist and whining non-stop.

“Does the angry cub want snacks?”

Xie Hui gently rubbed his fluffy head while asking the question with a smile. Seeing him nod so seriously, he cleared his throat and asked with mock sincerity:

“Would a cub who gets snacks still be angry?”

As he spoke, he waved a little bamboo shoot-shaped snack in front of the cub’s face—clearly trying to tempt him into caving.

“Yiya, mmm, yayaya.”

It was obvious that the cub was seriously trying to communicate. When he realized Xie Hui didn’t understand, he started shaking his head vigorously, ears and all, like a furry little rattle-drum.

“As long as you’re not angry anymore.”

This cub had loved that specific kind of snack since he was little. He’d get bored with most snacks after a few days, but this one had been a constant favorite from the first time Xie Hui bought it. Even now, his eyes still lit up whenever he saw it.

The crisp crunching sounds as the cub chewed on the snack were surprisingly soothing to listen to. Just then, Xie Hui’s phone rang—it was his assistant calling to say the movers had arrived at the door.

“Let’s go. Want to help me move?”

The cub paused mid-bite, stunned by Xie Hui’s question. Only then did Xie Hui realize he might need to phrase things more clearly, so the cub could understand.

“How about moving to a place with even more snacks?”

Seeing him nod, Xie Hui scooped him up and placed him in the stroller. Although the cub had agreed, Xie Hui suspected it was only because he’d heard the word “snack.”

The cub wasn’t as obedient in the stroller as he had been in the beginning. At first, while Xie Hui was directing the movers, he didn’t notice. But later, when he crouched down to get in the car, he found himself locking eyes with the cub, who was hiding behind the sunshade.

Through the shade, the cub tilted his head innocently.

When they heard the family was moving, the staff member who had previously been responsible for communicating with Xie Hui specially came by for a visit, bringing another staffer and lots of diagnostic equipment.

The new home was a three-story villa. The second floor had a spacious balcony, and the yard had a large swimming pool.

Xie Hui arrived at the new place at the same time as the staff. Once inside, the staff put on shoe covers. One glance at the round little cub was enough to see he’d been well taken care of.

Judging how a non-human cub was doing was easy—just look at the sheen of their fur.

This cub was clearly a panda, but had been raised into a soft, rotund little ball. Not fat exactly, just adorably plump and well-fed.

One look, and it was clear he’d been eating well.

“Mr. Xie, are you planning to plant anything in the greenbelt here?”

The visit was meant to check for any environmental hazards to the cub. After inspecting the house, the staff member had a few concerns and began asking questions.

“Yes, that’s the plan.”

Xie Hui nodded while holding the cub. It would feel too empty to leave such a big yard completely bare.

“My personal suggestion is that you plant some bamboo. Your cub can eat it too. Cubs can be pretty mischievous, and if you plant other kinds of greenery, there’s a good chance they’ll get destroyed.”

The soil seemed well-suited for bamboo, and since the cub was a panda, the recommendation made sense.

“Mr. Xie, I also suggest replacing the wooden table on the balcony. The lacquer on it doesn’t meet safety standards for cubs. If I’m not mistaken, you plan to let the cub sunbathe here?”

It was a bright, open balcony with great lighting. Xie Hui, visiting the house in person for the first time, nodded at the staffer’s observation.

“Yes, I chose this house mainly because of the big balcony.”

“Mr. Xie, as your cub gets older, you’ll need to extend his sunbathing time too.”

The phrase “sunbathing” instantly perked up the cub in Xie Hui’s arms—his little tail started wagging with delight.

“Mm, I’ll keep that in mind,” Xie Hui replied.

The staff rarely encountered such a cooperative parent, so they ended up speaking at length, carefully explaining every little detail that might be overlooked by most guardians.

Xie Hui carried the cub and personally walked the staff member to the door. After returning to the living room and just sitting down, he suddenly remembered something that had been mentioned earlier, and quickly called his assistant to replace the table on the second-floor balcony.

He also canceled the flower order he had previously placed and had them all replaced with bamboo—though he wasn’t sure whether it would survive.

Xie Hui had already told his assistant that the sunbathing spot on the second floor needed to be nicely decorated.

For non-human cubs in their early developmental stage, sun-drying their fur was an extremely important task. In the past, people didn’t realize this, and would just dry the cubs off with a blow dryer after giving them a bath.

It wasn’t until the cubs turned around three years old and began losing fur that the issue became apparent. A particularly tragic case involved a cub whose juvenile form was a Samoyed—it ended up completely bald, even its tail.

Only after extensive research did people discover that exposing cubs to direct sunlight after a bath was essential to prevent early-onset baldness.

While balding didn’t affect their physical health, it could seriously impact their mental well-being.

If there happened to be no sunlight, letting them air-dry in the wind was a barely acceptable substitute. Media outlets often featured footage of orphanage playgrounds packed with neat rows of cubs lying flat, obediently sunbathing their fur.

Xie Hui looked down at his own cub, whose coat was obviously fuller and healthier than the others’, and gently kissed his ear.

He genuinely hadn’t expected that before he even had a chance to worry about his own receding hairline, he’d have to start worrying about whether this cub would go bald.

The fur was not only beautiful, it felt wonderful to touch, and with how round and chubby the cub was, it was hard not to find him adorable. Taking care of him never felt like a hassle.

All Xie Hui had to do was make sure the cub got a proper bath—he never had to worry about the sun-drying part. This little guy was good at looking after himself. Xie Hui had even seen him once stretching out his front paws deliberately while sunbathing, just so the sunlight could reach and dry even his armpits.

Even though the cub didn’t help with the move, Xie Hui figured that with all the commotion, he must have gotten at least a little dirty, so he gave him a bath.

Then he pulled out the cub’s old mat from the suitcase, spread it on the floor, and placed the wet, bedraggled little one on it.

“Be a good boy and dry your fur. Tonight, I’ll let you watch cartoons. I’m going to make you some solid food, okay?”

Xie Hui held out his right hand in a fist, and the cub did his best to curl his damp little paw into a fist and bumped it against his.

“Yiya~”