All My Colleagues Are Animals 29 p1

Chapter 29 p1

The three dishes and one soup were soon ready.

The dining room was lit with a warm yellow light, and the dishes on the table were exquisitely arranged, their aroma rich.

Ye Qingyu turned to look at her beautiful boss and saw her playing with a fork. She couldn’t help but ask, “Does Boss Pei want to eat with a fork?”

Pei the Red Panda paused slightly and put down her self-directed “Tears Behind Iron Bars.”

“I’ll use chopsticks.”

As Ye Qingyu was dishing out the rice, she helped set the chopsticks.

With the rice served, the two finally sat down at the dining table.

Pei the Red Panda first lowered her head and took a bite of rice.

Rice had a fairly high sugar content, which the red panda quite liked.

“Boss Pei, would you like to try the bamboo shoots?” Ye Qingyu asked.

Pei the Red Panda’s ears twitched. Hearing the words “bamboo shoots,” every strand of her fur wanted to refuse.

“I…”

She opened her mouth to answer, but the words died on her lips.

Looking up unintentionally, she saw that the young woman’s gaze across from her was as clear as water, with a hint of expectation rippling outwards.

Her gaze moved down. Ye Qingyu’s fair fingertips were slightly red. She didn’t know if she had burned them while cooking or carrying the dishes.

…It’s hard work for a human to wash and cook for a red panda.

Pei the Red Panda squeezed her chopsticks, her heart tightening slightly.

Forget it. I’ll dote on Ye Qingyu and eat some.

Even if cooked bamboo shoots were really a bit strange for a red panda.

She took a silent deep breath, trying hard to mentally prepare herself, and finally mustered the courage to brave mountains of knives and seas of fire.

She extended her chopsticks, picked up a thin bamboo shoot, and took a small bite.

Crunch.

The juice was rich and fragrant, crisp and refreshing—a taste the red panda had never experienced before.

Pei the Red Panda paused, her lashes trembling slightly.

She was still for a few seconds, then took another bite, savoring it carefully.

Her peach blossom eyes slowly lit up, like a spring forest at first bloom.

At this moment, Pei the Red Panda decided to pardon Ye Qingyu and the bamboo shoots, releasing them both from the little panda prison.

Carefully observing Pei Rong’s expression, Ye Qingyu breathed a sigh of relief and curved her lips into a smile.

It seems she likes it.

“This is also delicious. Have a try,” she said, pushing another dish over.

Soon, Pei the Red Panda’s chopsticks were dancing across the dining table, a blur that was hard to follow with the naked eye.

…

Full of food and rice, Pei the Red Panda’s belly was round.

She was slumped in her chair, so full she couldn’t move.

Although there was no fruit at all in this meal, every single dish had been endlessly flavorful.

While Ye Qingyu was putting the dishes into the dishwasher, Pei Rong transformed into a red panda, raised her furry paws, and contentedly rubbed her own belly.

The kitchen door was made of frosted glass, so only a hazy outline of the outside could be seen.

After finishing up in the kitchen, Ye Qingyu unintentionally glanced over and suddenly noticed that at the spot where her beautiful boss had been sitting, there seemed to be a reddish-brown ball of fluff… rubbing its own belly?

And its large tail even swung up and down slowly.

Her breath hitched, and her eyes widened unconsciously.

Swoosh—

She immediately pushed open the kitchen door, only to see her beautiful boss sitting securely in her chair, her hand rubbing her stomach.

Ye Qingyu gripped the edge of the kitchen door, dazed for a moment.

Do I really think of Boss Pei as a red panda in my heart? How could I have such a realistic hallucination?

“Ye Qingyu, my stomach is so full,” her beautiful boss said, turning her head to look, looking very pitiful.

Ye Qingyu’s gaze managed to focus. She sighed softly and banished the supernatural hallucination from her materialistic brain.

“Then let’s go for a walk outside to digest.”

“Mmm.”

Pei the Red Panda was so full that even walking was a bit difficult.

Now, downstairs in the residential complex, it was only with Ye Qingyu holding her wrist and gently leading her forward that she could slowly follow.

I really want to transform into a red panda and just hang on Ye the Little Tree. I wouldn’t even have to move my paws to travel everywhere, and I could even swing my big tail in the air.

Pei the Red Panda thought wistfully.

But, when would be the right time to let Ye Qingyu know she was actually a red panda, in a way that wouldn’t scare her and would also absolutely ensure her own safety?

After all, the last time she had inadvertently let a human know her original form, she had been sent to the zoo, and, and then…

Pei the Red Panda’s heart trembled. A nightmarish memory suddenly surfaced, and the color instantly drained from her face.

Feeling the woman’s steps suddenly falter, Ye Qingyu stopped and looked back to see Pei Rong’s pale face.

Her heart tightened, and she quickly asked with concern, “Boss Pei, is your stomach hurting from being too full? I’ll take you to the hospital.”

Pei Rong pursed her lips and looked at the young woman’s clear eyes, which held only sincere nervousness and concern.

This is the human I picked out from a crowd at first sight. She will surely be different…

With this thought, she said, a little fragile, “Let me lean on you for a bit.”

Before Ye Qingyu could react, a warm weight landed on her shoulder.

The woman was leaning softly against her, not too closely, so the spring evening breeze gently drifted through the gap between them, like a tangible outline.

The tips of her ears felt inexplicably hot, and her heart began to pound.

Ye Qingyu unconsciously held her breath, not blinking, standing straight like a lush and tall little pine tree.

She smelled the clear, floral scent from the young woman’s neck, which seemed even more fragrant than the surrounding spring flowers.

Pei the Red Panda could actually find a sense of security in a dangerous human. Her unease dissipated in the gradually enveloping night, and she slowly calmed down.

She blinked her slightly misty peach blossom eyes and tilted her head up to see the young woman’s gentle and delectable face—just the way Pei the Red Panda liked.

She bit her lip and suddenly asked softly, “Ye Qingyu, what do you think of zoos?”

Ye Qingyu was slightly stunned. The topic was very sudden.

But her beautiful boss was looking at her with a burning gaze, clearly caring a great deal about the answer.

She tried her best to ignore their seemingly intimate posture and, after careful thought, answered seriously:

“From a human perspective, zoos allow people to see or interact with animals they usually wouldn’t, so they’re a common form of entertainment.”

Pei the Red Panda’s ears twitched slightly, and a certain sullenness appeared in her peach blossom eyes.

Her pink lips half-parted, the tips of her sharp canines itching, wanting to bite the fair neck so close to her.

“From a small animal’s perspective…”

Ye Qingyu continued, “If they are indeed struggling to survive in the wild, or are seriously injured, then being able to enter a conscientious zoo and receive good care is not a bad thing.”

“But for many animals, they are locked up in all sorts of cages by humans as exhibits, their wild nature and freedom restrained. Especially some unscrupulous zoos, which have no awareness of animal welfare at all.”

She remembered visiting a zoo as a child and seeing a majestic beast like a white tiger locked in a small room, anxiously pacing back and forth, repeating stereotypical behaviors.

She had also seen many small animals being forcibly petted by tourists, terrified and with no way to escape.

From then on, she had never been willing to go to a zoo again.

Listening to the human speak softly of these things, Pei the Red Panda’s brow relaxed, and she gradually quieted down.

After a pause, her peach blossom eyes were deep and dark as she asked in a low voice, “Then… what about animal performances?”

Ye Qingyu said without thinking, “I’m quite against them. Nowadays, with more progressive thinking, everyone is gradually and consciously starting to boycott animal performances.”

“…Oh.” Pei the Red Panda nuzzled the human’s shoulder and answered sullenly.

Boss Pei is a small animal lover, even going so far as to self-fund a non-profit magazine for them. She must care a great deal about this issue.

Ye Qingyu didn’t know how to answer without stepping on a landmine and could only answer truthfully according to her own thoughts.

Suddenly, the words Pei Rong had once said echoed in her mind: “Ye Qingyu, don’t just randomly get into other people’s cars. They might take you to the zoo.”

Ye Qingyu was stunned for a moment, and a thought seemed to flash through her mind.

But it was like a spark, and she couldn’t catch it in time.

She could only look down at the reddish-brown, fluffy head on her shoulder. From the droopy, long curls, the lowered thick lashes, and the slightly quickened breath on her skin, she could feel the woman’s trembling mood.

As if their minds were connected, she could touch her pain from a distance.

Her fingertips twitched. Her left hand rose into the air and, after a long hesitation, she gently placed it on the woman’s head.

Pei the Red Panda’s eyelashes trembled.

A pressure suddenly landed on her head, gentle and slow, careful, and extremely comforting.

It disappeared after just a few strokes.

Worried that her beautiful boss didn’t want to be petted on the head, Ye Qingyu tried to comfort her a couple of times, then restrainedly pulled her hand back.

But she felt the young miss move and say unhappily, “Ye Qingyu, I still want my head petted.”

Just like when she usually sent a WeChat message ordering her to pet the plush toy.

Ye Qingyu’s breath paused slightly, and going with the flow, she placed her hand back.

As if she were comforting a lost, fluffy little beast that had been found covered in wounds, she carefully smoothed its fur from the top of its head to the back.

The prickly barbs in her heart seemed to soften with this, and the stinging pain gradually faded.

Pei the Red Panda squinted her eyes and relaxed, enjoying the human’s petting.

As expected, direct contact with this hand is much more comfortable for a little panda than the telepathic stroking of the plush toy…

“Meow~”

A cat’s meow suddenly came from somewhere.

Pei the Red Panda, who was about to melt into a puddle from being petted, immediately perked up her ears and looked warily to the side.

Sure enough, she saw the little black cat nestled in its owner’s arms, meowing smugly—

“Didn’t you say you raised a human? How come you’re still being petted by a human?”

A dangerous warning immediately appeared in Pei the Red Panda’s peach blossom eyes.

Stupid cat. She is rewarding the human with pets. This is fundamentally different from the black cat’s coquettish, rolling-around clinginess.

The weight on her shoulder suddenly disappeared. Ye Qingyu was stunned and turned her head to see the security guard passing by, holding her cat.

The tips of her ears grew hot. She felt inexplicably guilty and at a loss.

She clearly hadn’t done anything, just comforted her downcast boss.

The security guard had an “I’m sorry to interrupt” expression and quickly left with her still-meowing little cat.

The evening breeze blew, and the leaves rustled, seeming especially quiet.

The previous atmosphere dissipated with the wind, leaving only the coolness of the night. The two of them, by unspoken agreement, did not mention the previous topic again.

Pei Rong held out her wrist to Ye Qingyu, her eyes filled with a sleepy moisture. “Ye Qingyu, take me to the subway station. I want to go back and sleep.”

Night had already fallen, and the streetlights in the residential complex were on.

Only a dark orange afterglow of the sunset remained on the horizon.

Ye Qingyu gently held Pei Rong’s wrist and escorted the woman all the way back to the studio.

For some strange reason, she was worried that if she let her beautiful boss take the subway back alone, she might be caught by bad people and taken to the zoo.