Future Pet Shop

"Bin! I’m so disappointed in you. Why didn’t you come to Sokovia this time!" After spending a few days in Los Angeles, Shen Yibin arrived at the final stop of the appreciation tour: Disneyland Paris. He was reunited with Sylvie, whose first words to him were a complaint.

"Hah’Er has been a little tired lately. I’ll be a guest at your Royal Palace next time we’re free," Shen Yibin replied with a smile. In truth, he knew Sylvie wasn’t being serious. Sokovia was a small country, after all. Even with Sylvie’s energetic promotion, the *Panda Hero* box office there couldn’t compare to a major market like France. Shen Yibin hadn’t even gone to London or Berlin on this trip, let alone Sylvie’s home country.

"Then it’s a deal! Next time you have a moment, you have to bring Hah’Er and the others to Sokovia!" Sylvie was just using this as an opportunity to secure a promise from him. She was about to graduate from university and was gradually shouldering the responsibilities of a princess. Her life wasn’t easy, and it was difficult for her to travel around freely like before. Because of that, she could only hope Shen Yibin and the others would come to Sokovia to visit her.

"Yeah, I’ll bring all of them next time!" Shen Yibin had learned about her current situation during their previous chats and couldn’t help but feel a little sympathetic, so he agreed without a second thought.

"In that case, I’ll forgive you for now. Come here, Hah’Er, let me give you a hug! Have you missed me?" Sylvie let Shen Yibin off the hook and crouched down to pick Hah’Er up. But Hah’Er had gotten a bit chubbier recently, and she didn’t have Shen Yibin’s incredible strength. There was no way she could lift him.

"Nnngh!" Hah’Er was overjoyed to see Sylvie too. He happily nuzzled his big head against her shoulder. Maphario also popped out of his pocket, stood on Hah’Er’s shoulder, and chittered at Sylvie.

"I’ll take you to try some of Paris’s finest food!" After their affectionate reunion, Sylvie stood up and led Hah’Er to her car. Paris has always been famous for its cuisine, home to many top-tier restaurants with long histories that were inaccessible without a certain status. Shen Yibin might not have been able to get in if he tried on his own, but with Sylvie, it was no problem at all. Foreigners really go for that whole nobility thing, and as a princess, Sylvie naturally had the clout to have any restaurant close its doors to serve only her party.

After tasting France’s famous escargot, foie gras, and truffles, Shen Yibin couldn’t stop praising them. There was a good reason French haute cuisine had enjoyed a global reputation for so many years. He also learned a great deal from the dishes, which significantly helped improve his own cooking skills.

For the next few days, Shen Yibin spent his days with Hah’Er participating in various activities at Disneyland Paris. At night, he followed Sylvie to world-renowned restaurants to taste authentic French cuisine. Hah’Er was also quite interested in these delicacies, and by the time they left Paris, he seemed to have gained a bit more weight.

"Sigh... Hah’Er, if you keep this up, I won’t be able to carry you anymore!" Shen Yibin joked as he carried Hah’Er onto the plane.

"Huh?" Hah’Er patted his belly, seemingly not noticing anything different, and turned to look at Shen Yibin in confusion.

"SQUEAK! SQUEAK!" Before Shen Yibin could even reply, Maphario popped out of the pocket. It held the pocket open with its two little paws and chittered away for a while. It seemed that because Hah’Er’s belly had gotten bigger, the pocket Maphario lived in had become quite a bit smaller. This made Hah’Er a little embarrassed, and he hung his head shyly.

"Alright, when we get back, you’re going to exercise with me every day. This time, I’m not pulling you on a skateboard. You can just run slowly behind me!" ’I guess we can’t go to the park for a while. We can just run slowly along the riverbank near the manor, on the river flats. A lap around the estate is a pretty long distance.’

"Nnngh! Nnngh!" Hah’Er nodded vigorously and patted his belly again. ’Have I really gotten a little fat lately?’ he seemed to wonder.

"Sigh. When you first got here, you pushed me to do push-ups every day. Now it’s my turn to push you!" Shen Yibin recalled when Hah’Er had first arrived; the memory was as clear as if it were yesterday.

After a flight of over ten hours, the plane landed back at the airport in Shanghai. Shen Yibin rested in Shanghai for a night and prepared to return to Yunzhong City the next day. ’Calculating the time,’ he thought, ’it’s about time to sell Marc.’

"Bin, I’ve already sent the calculated profit share to your account. Check it when you get back." It had been a bittersweet time for Director Kong. The pain came from constantly having to fly all over the world for promotions and appreciation events. The pleasure came from *Panda Hero*’s skyrocketing box office. Judging by the film’s growth rate, it was only a matter of time before he surpassed Cameron to become the director of the world’s highest-grossing film.

"Okay. Don’t work too hard, and make sure you don’t wear yourself out. After a little while, you should go to Yunzhong City and check on your manor. I reckon the main structure should be finished by now, so you can start looking into how you want to decorate it!" Shen Yibin urged.

"Of course I’m going! I’ve already finished my Monkey Wine, and I was hoping to bum some more off you!" Director Kong replied with a chuckle. "I should be free in about half a month. I’ll bring a few designers over to take a look then."

"Great. I’ll be waiting for you in Yunzhong City, then!" Shen Yibin shook hands with Director Kong, then led Hah’Er slowly into the security line. Half an hour later, the flight to Yunzhong City took off without a hitch. He dozed off for a while on the plane, and before he knew it, they were landing at the Yunzhong City airport.

"Thanks for the gift, Boss!" Xia Shixuan took the gift from Bin, opened the car door to help Hah’Er get in, then got back into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

"Is the shop still a madhouse?" ’If it is, I really don’t dare go back.’

"It’s much better now. At least it’s not affecting our normal business hours anymore. Still, you should probably just stay at the manor. You can go home and rest after I get off work!" Xia Shixuan said with a shrug. "Oh, right, the Totem Pole over at the manor is finished. Do you want to go see it now?"

"Huh? It’s already done? They sure work fast!" Shen Yibin immediately perked up. "Of course I want to go see it!" ’I wonder what the finished Totem Pole will look like? And I wonder what stage Marc and Mr. Long Sheng have ’gotten to’ by now.’

So the car made a turn, got on the city’s beltway, and headed for the manor by the Yunshui River.