Chapter 692 - 574: Walnut: Please Call Me Domineering CEO

Chapter 692: Chapter 574: Walnut: Please Call Me Domineering CEO

A wife wasn’t a pancake, of course. You couldn’t just eat one.

But Shen Xin was finding it a bit difficult to make Walnut understand the concept of a "wife."

The man and bear sat nestled together, watching Meng Lan frolic for a while. Shen Xin couldn’t be bothered to keep arguing with Walnut about how "delicious" a wife was, so he took him to see Meng Meng instead.

Seeing is believing. It was time for a practical demonstration.

The two pandas followed one after the other, strolling over to the Asian Games Hall.

Meng Meng was back in her old spot in the Asian Games Hall.

When they reached the entrance, Meng Lan tugged on Shen Xin’s pant leg and shook his head.

’I don’t wanna.’

He was scared of his mom.

"You need to observe," Shen Xin said, grabbing his ear and dragging him inside.

’What a great learning opportunity.’

Captive-bred giant pandas needed to watch instructional videos to learn the theory precisely because they lacked these kinds of learning opportunities.

Once dragged inside, Meng Lan immediately turned and hid in a corner.

Shen Xin couldn’t be bothered with him and went to greet Meng Meng.

They had spent a fair bit of time together before, so Meng Meng had a good impression of him. She put down her bamboo and turned her head to look over.

As for her rebellious son, Meng Lan, she naturally pretended not to see him.

And as for Walnut, she didn’t seem to feel he was invading her territory and didn’t even give him a second glance.

Walnut had a similar reaction. Following behind Shen Xin, he completely ignored the great beauty right in front of him.

Shen Xin dragged Walnut forward. "Walnut, this is your wife. Go on, say hi."

Walnut plopped down on his butt and refused to move.

’Don’t know her.’

Exasperated, Shen Xin grabbed him under the arms and dragged him over to Meng Meng’s side.

’I’m not eating that.’

Walnut still thought Shen Xin wanted him to eat Meng Meng’s bamboo shoots.

"Who said anything about being polite?" Shen Xin grumbled, giving him a light smack.

’It’s springtime! Where are your urges?’

Meng Meng really did have a good temper. After Walnut was moved closer, she kindly scooted over, as if to say, ’Well, you’re here now, so make yourself at home.’

Shen Xin squatted down and turned Walnut’s head, forcing him to look at Meng Meng.

"Walnut, look how pretty Meng Meng is! So white and black, she looks just like you."

Walnut remained unmoved. He actually picked up a bamboo shoot from the ground and tried to eat it.

Annoyed, Shen Xin snatched the bamboo shoot away and dragged him closer to Meng Meng. "Take a sniff! The scent of the opposite sex! Don’t you feel any primal urges at all?"

’Isn’t this stuff supposed to be hardwired into his DNA?’

Walnut’s nose twitched.

’Stinks.’

So angry he could spit, Shen Xin gave him another smack. ’What do you know about stinky!’

Seeing Shen Xin’s frantic efforts, Ma Tao, who had followed them, couldn’t bear to watch any longer. "Shen Xin," he said, "this sort of thing depends on both parties. It’s also a matter of timing."

"The breeding season may be from March to May, but they’re only truly in heat for two or three days."

"It’s not like you can just stick them together and expect them to go into heat."

He even cracked a joke. "Shen Xin, if you manage to solve the panda’s breeding problem, every panda researcher in the country will owe you a huge debt of gratitude."

"If we didn’t have to worry about pandas going into heat and breeding, their population would boom. Maybe one day, everyone could be issued their own pet panda to raise."

Shen Xin sighed. He looked at the demure Meng Meng, then at the completely uninterested Walnut, and felt a headache coming on.

In the end, all he could do was take Ma Tao’s advice: let them get familiar with each other first and spend some time together.

Maybe a spark would ignite.

Shen Xin was on vacation anyway, so he decided to stay in Anjing and continue his zookeeping duties.

It was a way to relax, in its own right.

He also saw it as one last chance to spend time with Walnut.

Once Walnut was released back into the wild, it wouldn’t be so easy to see him again.

Walnut didn’t mind. He was very obedient to Shen Xin, doing whatever he was told.

As for Meng Meng, her good nature meant she didn’t mind Walnut being in her enclosure.

When she thought of it, she would even offer Walnut a bamboo shoot.

After the zoo closed for the day, it was time for the usual program.

Meng Lan waddled excitedly over to the enclosure wall to peek over.

The area outside the wall was packed with people.

It had become one of Anjing Zoo’s signature attractions; there were even police officers from the local station outside to maintain order.

Meng Lan was in particularly high spirits today. Hearing the cheers, he even waved an arm in response.

Shen Xin watched for a little while before going to sit with Walnut in the breeze.

’Would you stop talking?’

Perhaps Shen Xin’s nagging was interrupting Walnut’s contemplation of life, because the panda turned his head and grumbled at him in dissatisfaction.

"Well, well, listen to you. Getting an attitude now, are we?" Shen Xin said, giving him a light smack.

’I’ve always had one.’

Walnut let out a bellow.

"Who are you trying to scare?" Shen Xin wasn’t intimidated by his sheep-like bleat. He continued to lecture, "Walnut, I’m doing this for your own good. If you want to be free, you need a wife."

"And I’m serving this one to you on a silver platter! When you’re back in the wild, hmph, if you want a wife, you’ll have to fight for one."

Giant pandas have a promiscuous mating system.

In other words, during the breeding season, a single male will mate with multiple females, and vice versa.

To earn the right to mate first, the males have to fight to determine a winner.

"With all that blubber on you, and having never properly worked out, you’ll probably lose the fight and end up just like Teddy—unable to even find a wife."

Exasperated again, Shen Xin tugged on Walnut’s ear.

"How old are you? You’re almost twelve and you still don’t have a wife. How can you even sleep at night?"

Walnut dodged away resentfully.

But Shen Xin’s next words struck a chord.

Shen Xin droned on, saying that as long as he got a wife—as long as he won over Meng Meng—he could gain his freedom and return to the wild.

For the first time, Walnut connected the ideas of "wife" and "freedom."

Freedom was something Walnut understood.

He sat up, his small eyes wide in the night breeze, and began to seriously ponder the connection between the two.

Wife, freedom?

Freedom, wife?

After a long moment, it clicked for Walnut.

’To get freedom, I first need a wife.’

With this thought, Walnut turned and climbed down from the rockery, making a beeline for the Asian Games Hall.

"Where are you going?"

Shen Xin fumed as he followed.

’What’s this? Can’t handle a little criticism?’

To his surprise, Walnut went straight to Meng Meng’s enclosure. Reaching the gate, he turned and barked at the approaching Shen Xin.

’Open the gate.’

"Ask nicely," Shen Xin said, walking up to open the gate.

The moment the gate was open, Walnut charged inside and went straight for Meng Meng.

Meng Meng was quietly munching on bamboo in the middle of a large pile when Walnut... pounced.

He startled her, and she flinched away to dodge.

’Wife, freedom!’

Walnut, his "animal instincts" flaring, immediately pinned Meng Meng down.

The reason Anjing Zoo coveted his genes was precisely because of his large, powerful build.

Meng Meng found herself pinned in a corner.

She let out an urgent cry, as if to say, ’What are you doing?’

Walnut, having no concept of gentleness, pounced again, pressing Meng Meng beneath him.

"Holy crap!"

Shen Xin’s eyes flew wide. ’Has he... had an epiphany? Is he feeling the call of spring?’

’But this is so sudden!’

’He could have at least given some warning! Across the entire country, pandas that could mate naturally were a rarity—you could count them on one hand.’

’Every instance is precious research data that needs to be recorded.’

Shen Xin quickly pulled out his phone to call Ma Tao and tell him to hurry back.

He had to drag Meng Lan back, too.

’This is a prime opportunity for observation and learning!’

Meanwhile, Meng Meng had begun to struggle and resist.

Compared to a novice like Walnut, Meng Meng was quite experienced, and with natural mating, no less.

But at this moment, she felt Walnut was being far too hasty.

Walnut didn’t care. With his superior strength, he repeatedly dragged the struggling Meng Meng back.

Nearby, Shen Xin couldn’t help but mutter at him, telling him to show some finesse.

’What are you, some kind of domineering CEO? Trying to force the issue?’