Strange Life of a Cat
Chapter 340 - Chapter 340 Chapter 333 Holding the Fort

Chapter 340: Chapter 333: Holding the Fort Chapter 340: Chapter 333: Holding the Fort Because of this disaster, there was a pervading heavy atmosphere throughout the nation.

Some of Mr. Jiao’s students were from that area, and although it wasn’t the worst-hit region, Mr. Jiao still gave one of those students leave to go home and ease their mind.

Many departments within the school organized fundraising efforts, as students from various faculties had families living in the affected area.

Zheng Tan had been staying in mostly, since going out meant being inundated with discussions about the earthquake, endless newspaper headlines, each day’s news, the school’s morning broadcasts, campus donation drives…

Back then, Zheng Tan hadn’t paid much attention to such matters, but having lived through this experience, he now realized that reality was much direr than he had imagined.

As he scrolled through the web pages, there was a post with photos taken by volunteers on-site. Children with their foreheads wrapped in bandages stared blankly at the rubble and ruins, and men older than Mr. Jiao, strong as iron, knelt on the ground and cried their hearts out…

During this period, Zheng Tan incidentally ran into Jin, out for a stroll and ending up here with his sunglasses on. Jin said they had planned to rush to the disaster area immediately but were dissuaded by their agent. The danger was one aspect, and the first 72 hours should be left to professional rescue teams and experienced volunteers. If celebrities like them went, they might not only be unhelpful but could even cause significant trouble.

As some online volunteers said, they went to the disaster area full of passion, only to find themselves inexperienced and sometimes even unnecessary. Anyone who has seen a major disaster relief scene would feel their own insignificance. However, they could learn and help as much as possible.

A week later, many entertainment websites turned black and white to mourn the victims of the disaster.

The official website of the Pet Center, where Xiao Guo worked, also switched to black and white, and Xiao Guo posted a letter on the homepage. The letter stated that their studio would cease operations for a month, meaning no new advertisements or videos would be released during this time, and Xiao Guo himself would take some of the staff to the disaster area.

This was not Xiao Guo’s own decision, but as he held an important position within the “Green Wing” organization, and as “Green Wing” intended to send aid and relief supplies, it was only right for them to contribute. The person originally assigned the task wasn’t Xiao Guo, as he was truly busy, but that person had made excuses and backed out after hearing through certain channels that the number of rescuers who had perished was much higher than reported. With aftershocks still occurring, it remained quite dangerous; clearly, life was more important than adding a halo to one’s image.

As everyone else passed the responsibility around and wasted time, Xiao Guo, after learning of this, spoke briefly with several executives and then returned to take care of business at the Pet Center. The following day after the meeting, he left for the disaster area with his team.

Zheng Tan checked the Pet Center’s official website daily, which was filled with messages from many people. Next to the homepage was a donation record, displaying fictional names but detailing every contribution, with all funds destined to be donated to the people in the disaster area.

Many customers of the Pet Center were wealthy, and while some had already made donations through other channels, they contributed generously here as well. Zheng Tan recognized some familiar IDs and could associate them with their owners; he had previously found many of these people unpleasant, with bad temperaments and ostentation, but it seemed they weren’t entirely as they appeared. From their messages, it was clear some had even volunteered and posted photos, with one so disguised in his volunteer garb that he was unrecognizable as a billionaire.

Zheng Tan also made a donation, handing his card to Mr. Jiao, who had hisown trustworthy channels for contributions. After making the donation, Zheng Tan’s savings had halved. The donation made during the New Year had not been a significant portion of his savings, but this time it was different.

After returning the card Mr. Jiao had given back to him and locking it away in his drawer, Zheng Tan decided that once this situation was resolved, he would need to work hard.

While following the disaster relief efforts, Zheng Tan also searched for other types of information. There was a lot of online debate about various signs appearing before the earthquake and some people claiming to have predicted it, while others dismissed these claims as nonsense. The arguing continued unabated until someone fed up with the quarreling lashed out at both parties. With such a disaster having occurred, was there really a need to add to the chaos? Instead of wasting time arguing online, why not do something solid to actually help people? Assuming the roles of armchair critics, some seemed to think themselves as indispensable as onions.

There were many such posts, and Zheng Tan, having read them, still couldn’t be sure which were genuine and which were fabricated, nor could he determine how much of it was influenced by him. In the end, some people had just muddled through.

If Liu Ba had indeed informed many people and if even one-fifth of the situations described in these posts were caused by Liu Ba, then it was a job well done, saving quite a few lives.

Still, it was uncertain whether there would be follow-up investigations into the matter.

To avoid unforeseeable troubles, Zheng Tan decided he would not use his mobile phone for some time and had even hidden away the SIM card.

With the Pet Center not assigning any tasks for nearly a month and Xiao Guo’s team absent, Zheng Tan hadn’t visited, but instead, the Pet Center made a call his way. Charlie made the call directly to Mr. Jiao’s phone, prompting Mr. Jiao to skip going to the clinic after dinner that day and take Zheng Tan to the Pet Center instead.

The cats from the studio and those adopted by the Pet Center were not kept together. The nests for cats frequently featured in commercials, such as the American Shorthair “Prince,” were located in the studio. Xiao Guo did this to allow them to become more familiar with the studio’s atmosphere, because after all, cats tend to not adapt well in unfamiliar surroundings.

Since the expansion and renovation of the studio, it now resembles a cat’s playground, with numerous climbing ladders and walkways for the cats from the corner of the walls to the ceiling. As Xiao Guo said, cats also have temperaments and emotions. When they’re in a good mood, their eyes shine brighter during a shoot.

Now, Xiao Guo, along with others, had gone to the disaster area, and according to the information posted on the official website’s homepage, they wouldn’t be back for at least half a month. Only a week had passed, so he was unlikely to return so soon.

Xiao Guo indeed had not come back, and when Zheng Tan entered the studio, there were hardly any people around, only Charlie and another staff member.

The other staff member had previously gone to the disaster zone with Xiao Guo. During an aftershock, they were accidentally injured and in poor health, so Xiao Guo sent them back. A few members from the “Green Wing” association had accompanied him, but after returning to Chuhua City, they had gone their separate ways. This staff member had then returned to the Pet Center, and it was Charlie who had gone to pick them up.

Accompanying the staff member back to the Pet Center was also a cat.

It looked to be about two months old, with fur similar to Ah Huang’s, a typical domestic cat, except that this little yellow cat had lost its front limbs. According to the staff member, it was injured during the earthquake and had been amputated after being rescued. Initially, they thought the kitten, with its low immunity and having gone through an accident and surgery, wouldn’t survive. Against all odds, it actually did recover. After the leg amputation had caused inflammation and swelling, although it had received treatment for several days and had gotten better, it still looked listless. Charlie and the employee took turns caring for it every day.

Speaking of rescuing cats, most of the people Xiao Guo took with him ended up helping with human rescue efforts. Although most of them were veterinarians, they were more reliable than the inexperienced young volunteers, able to change dressings, provide simple treatments, and care for the injured. Aside from major surgeries, they were truly helpful with the rest.

This kitten had been brought to the place where Xiao Guo and his team were resting by a volunteer. A search and rescue dog named “Zaizai” had found the kitten, and after Zaizai pulled it out, the kitten was immediately transferred to the hands of a volunteer. After all, the search and rescue dogs had a lot more work to do, and not many people were concerned about what would happen to the kitten. Human lives were the top priority.

The volunteers didn’t know what to do either. The kitten’s two front limbs were so badly injured that they seemed beyond saving, and they couldn’t understand how the cat managed to survive. The volunteers were even scolded by their team leader for bringing the kitten back, given the overwhelming human casualties. Who would save a cat? Moreover, although there were medically trained individuals among them, none were veterinarians and they lacked experience. They could only provide basic care, but once they learned about Xiao Guo’s team, they immediately brought the kitten to them.

A veterinarian under Xiao Guo had performed an amputation on the cat. Fortunately, they had some veterinary medications and tools with them. Although the conditions were far from those at the Pet Center and there was a high risk of infection, they had no other choice. The fact that the cat had survived was fortunate.

At this point, there was actually no need for Zheng Tan’s help. However, since the arrival of the kitten, there had been some troubles, as the cat often cried out. Its cries would set off a chain reaction, as there was another cat in the place that tended to meow frequently. However, it would quiet down when the other cats didn’t make any noise. It had even meowed during commercials before and only calmed down after Zheng Tan gave it a little punishment.

Now, because of the kitten’s cries, this other cat’s commotion escalated, agitating other cats one by one. They couldn’t be soothed, and Charlie began to wonder if the cats could sense fear, with the fear spreading from the kitten to the others, leading to the current situation. He called Xiao Guo to report the matter. Xiao Guo didn’t say much, just instructed Charlie to find Zheng Tan. With Zheng Tan, they would settle down.

In fact, within the Pet Center, not only Zheng Tan could pacify the situation; Li Yuanba and Huasheng Tang could as well.

Li Yuanba?

He had indeed managed to pacify before, and he did it quite well, which is why Xiao Guo let Li Yuanba stay here. Unfortunately, Li Yuanba now disregarded everyone, even ignoring Xiao Guo’s authority, spending his days cooped up in Xiao Guo’s resting room. He even refused the weekly routine check-ups. The last time Xiao Guo tried to forcibly take Li Yuanba to the examination room, Li Yuanba almost lashed out at Xiao Guo. It was Yanzi, Li Yuanba’s true owner and Xiao Guo’s wife, who came to calm him down.

They had been worried that Li Yuanba was getting old and starting to weaken. But after observing him, it seemed that wasn’t the case as he was just as feisty as ever when scratching people. So they put the matter aside, especially since Yanzi had to care for their child and couldn’t come over every day, leaving the studio staff even less inclined to handle Li Yuanba.

Huasheng Tang?

That was even less likely. Xiao Guo had tried before, only to find Huasheng Tang to be quite unforgiving to the others, resulting in the beaten cat being jumpy for a month and noticeably thinner. Since then, Xiao Guo had no more expectations for Huasheng Tang to keep the peace.

So, there was the scene of Charlie calling Mr. Jiao to bring over Zheng Tan.

Maintaining order was easy for Zheng Tan, but after hearing about it, he thought of Li Yuanba’s situation and made a point of checking in Xiao Guo’s resting room. Li Yuanba was lying on his side on the couch, seemingly normal at first glance, but Zheng Tan inexplicably thought back to the first time he met Li Yuanba. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (NovelFire.net) with your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.NovelFire.net.)

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.