Future Pet Shop

"If you can find the materials, I’ll make it for you!" After they’d had their fill of joking and eating, Shen Yibin rested on the sofa for a bit before taking the animals back to the construction site. Once there, Wen Yuan took Marc, Bald Qiang, and the others up the elevator to continue carving the Totem Pole, while Shen Yibin, Hah’Er, and Maphario got back to work in the garden.

He hadn’t been busy for long when his phone rang. He pulled it out and saw it was Director Kong. "Hello, Director Kong. What city are you busy in now?"

"Jingguan City. It’s one of the top ten box office markets in the country, and it’s the hometown of pandas, so of course, we have to give it special attention," Director Kong said with a chuckle. "Man, the fans here are so passionate. We’re sure to have great results after the release. The only thing is, they’re a little disappointed that Hah’Er didn’t come."

"We already went to Jingguan City last time. He sort of met them during the Strawberry Music Festival." ’The timing is a little off. If it were a few months later, when the female pandas at the Sichuan Giant Panda Base go into heat, Hah’Er would definitely have to go there anyway. A meet-and-greet then would be no problem. But as for now...’ Shen Yibin didn’t want to work Hah’Er so hard.

After chatting for a bit longer, Director Kong got down to business. "Bin, *Panda Hero* is having its official global premiere next weekend. I’ll need you to bring Hah’Er to Shanghai two days early." The time for the movie’s official release was already here.

’Time really flies,’ Shen Yibin mused. ’Christmas is right around the corner.’ "Okay. If you hadn’t called, I probably would have called you! I hope the movie does well!" ’After all, Hah’Er gets a cut of the global box office and merchandise sales. His future lifestyle depends on it.’

’At the very least, *Panda Hero* has to break *Wolf Warriors 2*’s domestic box office record, right? Oh, right. Director Kong’s ambition doesn’t stop there. His target is the all-time global box office chart; he couldn’t care less about some domestic record.’

"Great, I’ll be waiting for you in Shanghai. By the way, Hah’Er hasn’t gotten any fatter recently, has he?" After a few more pleasantries, during which Shen Yibin showed Director Kong the construction progress on the manor, Director Kong suddenly asked this just as they were about to hang up.

"Uh, no. We’ve been out exercising a few times recently, so he’s keeping his shape pretty well." Shen Yibin broke into a cold sweat. ’Hah’Er, looks like you’ll never shake that ’foodie’ label. Huh? Why did Director Kong suddenly ask that? It doesn’t seem like casual small talk. Is there something else?’ "Is something up?"

"Oh, it’s nothing major. A sponsor had a custom tuxedo made for Hah’Er, and I was worried he wouldn’t be able to fit into it, so I wanted to ask in advance. By the way, your size hasn’t changed either, right? There’s a tux for you, too. You’ll need it for the premiere," Director Kong explained.

"Nope, not at all! I exercise every day, so I couldn’t get fat even if I tried!" ’Between his morning and evening workouts in the park and practicing Swordsmanship with Xiaoliu, Shen Yibin’s days weren’t exactly easy.’

After confirming everything was in order, Director Kong hung up. Shen Yibin walked over, patted Hah’Er on the head, and said, "Your movie is finally coming out next week. We’ll go to Shanghai, and we can see Cheeky while we’re there." ’As the singers of the theme song, Sun Qian and Cheeky would definitely be at the premiere, too.’

’Huh, since that’s the case, couldn’t I help with the promotion, too?’ Looking at the towering Totem Pole, Shen Yibin suddenly had an idea. ’What if I have them carve Hah’Er’s statue first? I could take a few pictures and post them on Weibo. Wouldn’t that be another great way to generate some hype?’ For the sake of Hah’Er’s future well-being, Shen Yibin set his sights on the Totem Pole.

’That would mean changing the design of the Totem Pole.’ Hah’Er’s original spot wasn’t below Marc’s. After studying the Totem Pole for a moment, Shen Yibin sprang into action. He called Wen Yuan and asked him to lower the elevator. Then, Shen Yibin took Hah’Er and Maphario up, found the model, pointed at Hah’Er at the very bottom, then pointed at Cheeky below Marc, and gestured to explain his plan. "How about we swap these two? Also, let’s add some clothes to Hah’Er." Shen Yibin pulled out his phone and found a still from the movie showing Hah’Er in his armor.

"KIK~ KIK~" Marc tilted his head, looking at Shen Yibin, seemingly confused by his request. But it was okay. Wen Yuan was there. He quickly grasped Shen Yibin’s intent. Looking at the model Totem Pole, he took out a sketchbook and pencil and quickly sketched out the effect Shen Yibin wanted. The new version actually looked a bit better.

"Yes, exactly like that! What do you think if we change it to this?" Shen Yibin took a look. According to the new design, Hah’Er had cut in line, squeezed between Marc and Cheeky. The rest hadn’t changed much. He held the drawing out to Marc and asked, "If this works for you, let’s go with it!"

This time, Marc finally understood. He didn’t object, just nodded in agreement. He squawked twice at Bald Qiang, seeming to tell the couple to get started.

"Alright, let’s get started." The elevator slowly descended. Marc flew down and began to sketch the lines for Hah’Er’s figure. As soon as he finished the first section, the Bald Qiang couple pounced on it and started gnawing away. Once the entire outline was sketched, Marc flew back up to continue sculpting his own wings, while Bald Qiang stayed below to chew out Hah’Er’s rough shape.

For the next few days, the group focused all their energy on Hah’Er’s statue. They worked on it tirelessly all day long. Shen Yibin often hung around on the elevator to lend a hand. He couldn’t do the detailed work, but he could handle some of the rough labor. After five days of hard work, Hah’Er’s form was finally revealed to everyone. A chubby panda wearing armor appeared above the clouds, looking exceptionally cute.

In the remaining few days, they started on Cheeky’s statue. Once again, Marc sketched the lines while the Bald Qiang couple, Shen Yibin, and Wen Yuan handled the rough processing. Marc then did the fine-tuning. By the time Shen Yibin was ready to leave for Shanghai, Cheeky’s statue also had its basic shape.

Meanwhile, the Heaven-Reaching Tree seedlings had gradually grown bigger. Judging by their current progress, all four saplings were very healthy. Maphario had already separated them and transplanted them to a shady spot.

"Great. It looks like they won’t need your meticulous care for the next few days, so come to Shanghai with us!" Shen Yibin boarded the flight to Shanghai with Hah’Er and Maphario. The premiere was about to begin!