All My Colleagues Are Animals 49

Chapter 49

“I’m giving you a red panda keychain. Wear it to and from work from now on.”

Ye Qingyu looked at the little red panda keychain dangling from her waist. Her eyelashes fluttered, and a light softer and clearer than the warm spring sun gradually rippled in her slightly dimmed eyes.

Just now, thinking that Pei Rong was leaving today, her heart had been cold and empty.

But now, it was as if it had been suddenly filled by a whole little red panda, its warm fur lightly brushing against the tip of her heart.

Her emotions had been on a thrilling rollercoaster ride. In the midst of the rapid ups and downs, she couldn’t help but feel a rush of heat.

She raised her hands and lifted the furred boss from her lower back, holding her in front of her.

She lowered her head and planted a “smack” on the tip of one of her snow-white, bow-tie-like ears, and the soft ear bent for a moment under the pressure.

The feeling of the fur on her lips was delicate, as soft and glutinous as a cloud. She almost couldn’t help but bite, but fortunately, she managed to restrain herself.

Pei the Red Panda was caught off guard by the kiss.

Her paws clung to the fabric of the human’s chest, and it took a few seconds for her to react.

Not bad. The human I’m raising has learned to initiate cuddles with me.

She, a little panda, really knows how to train a human.

The large ear that had been “smacked” twitched with pleasure. She contentedly nuzzled her fluffy head. “Ye Qingyu, I’m going to go wash up.”

She hadn’t had time to think when she was kissed on the ear just now. Now, seeing that the furred boss wasn’t pursuing the matter, Ye Qingyu’s heart relaxed slightly, and she obediently carried her to the bathroom.

On the bathroom counter, a toothbrush had been squeezed with toothpaste and was lying flat on a cup of water—the human had already thoughtfully prepared everything.

A thought struck Pei the Red Panda, and she transformed into her human form.

Then she realized she didn’t have any slippers and had to step on the surface of the human’s slippers with her bare feet, her rounded toes curling.

This posture was difficult to maintain, and Ye Qingyu had no choice but to hold her beautiful boss in a full embrace.

They stumbled and swayed for two seconds before they steadied themselves.

Their chests were thus pressed tightly together, the full softness felt through the thin pajama fabric.

Ye Qingyu paused slightly.

The scenery she had inadvertently glimpsed last night suddenly surfaced in her mind. Her breath trembled, and the tips of her ears were quickly stained pink.

“I-I’m sorry. I’ll go get you some slippers…”

Ye Qingyu’s arms tensed, and she fumbled to sit Pei Rong on the clean bathroom counter, then turned and quickly left.

She stood in front of the bed and, as a self-punishment, pinched the flesh of her thigh, letting out a soft hiss of pain.

In the bathroom, Pei the Red Panda supported herself with both hands on the counter and swayed her long legs leisurely.

She didn’t understand why the human always turned as red as a shrimp and inexplicably apologized to her.

…

The second, painful yet happy day of cohabitation.

After breakfast, Ye Qingyu left with her little red panda keychain.

Usually, she would take the subway to work, but with her beautiful boss here today, she naturally chose to drive.

Nearing summer, the sunlight at eight in the morning was already a little glaring.

Pei the Red Panda wore the sunglasses Ye Qingyu handed her and held a glass box, eating apple slices with a crunch, crunch.

The journey was twenty minutes long, and she finished the fruit in ten minutes.

With nothing else to do, she looked around the car curiously.

“Ye Qingyu, what’s this?”

She had inadvertently touched a small package in a compartment.

Ye Qingyu glanced at it during a red light. “Mint candy.”

Hearing the word “candy,” Pei the Red Panda immediately unwrapped it and ate it.

It was cool and sweet, and it was hard not to get addicted.

“I want more,” she said.

“That was the only one. It was a freebie,” Ye Qingyu said in a soft, quiet voice. “Compared to fruit, eating candy directly is even worse for a red panda’s health.”

Pei the Red Panda’s peach blossom eyes drooped slightly.

Ye Qingyu didn’t need to look to know what kind of sullen expression her beautiful boss had.

After thinking for two seconds, she coaxed, “I’ll take you to buy some when we get home tonight.”

At this moment, she had no idea how much she would regret this soft-heartedness tonight.

…

The small building’s backyard was very spacious, with plenty of room to park an SUV in the shade.

The moment Pei the Red Panda got out of the car, she was surrounded by the burning gazes of the small animals, who were eager for gossip.

Nian Qiu said, “Sister Rong, how come you came to work with Ye Qingyu this morning?”

Shui Zhu’s ears twitched, and a realization flashed in her eyes. “Could it be that you’ve married into her family?”

With this thought, she took out her notebook to record the new inspiration derived from it—

《The Red Panda Matrilocal-Groom A Shows Her Feminine Might: The Human O Gives Birth to Three Little Panda Cubs in One Litter》

Bai Shuang stood quietly on the side, her gaze nonchalantly sweeping over Pei Rong’s neck and collarbone, only to find that it was completely clean, without any marks.

Her cool eyes narrowed slightly, and she unconsciously covered her collar, which was hiding a dark red bite mark on her collarbone.

“Little cat, I’m not being indulgent. Everyone is like this.”

That bad woman had actually deceived her.

And in response to everyone’s concern, Pei the Red Panda’s fingertips lightly tapped the cool sunglasses on her nose, and she answered the gossiping little beasts with an air of nonchalance:

“Ye Qingyu was injured. I was just taking care of her.”

Without the explosive gossip they had imagined, the small animals immediately lost interest. After asking about Ye Qingyu’s injury, they dispersed, relieved.

At 9 AM sharp, Velvet Bamboo Studio held a meeting.

Ye Qingyu sat on the sofa, her posture proper, watching her beautiful boss speak without a moment’s pause.

This little red panda had been rolling around on her large bed this morning, her fur all messy, and had clung to her pajamas, saying she was a plush keychain—

But now, those peach blossom eyes were flowing with charm, bewitching and alluring. As her red lips opened, she spoke unhurriedly.

Quite the mature superior’s demeanor.

The contradictory contrast made one’s heart itch.

“Since the first issue of the ‘Small Animal Survival Guide’ was released, a total of one thousand five hundred copies have been sold.”

Pei Rong half-leaned against the sofa. After speaking, her brow furrowed slightly, clearly not very satisfied with this.

“With the price set at only 1 yuan and a large amount spent on short-term promotion, this sales situation is far below expectations.”

“For our magazine, a high sales volume is crucial—after all, for every five hundred copies sold, perhaps only one is sold to a small animal.”

The moment she said this, everyone nodded.

Luo Bian sighed softly. “After all, the content of our magazine does not fit the mainstream. Humans won’t understand it, so they won’t recommend it to others; and small animals tend to be reclusive, with little interaction with society, so it’s hard for them to learn about things that aren’t popular.”

The small animals all looked a little worried.

Pei the Red Panda said, “That’s right. If the magazine itself doesn’t have rich and attractive content, sales cannot be guaranteed, and rescue is even more out of the question. So now, we urgently need to develop content that both humans and small animals will enjoy.”

Ye Qingyu had a thought. “Boss Pei mentioned in the last meeting that the magazine will further develop a small animal emotional column and a small animal comic column, right?”

Pei the Red Panda nodded. “The development of the emotional column relies on fan submissions, and we currently lack fans; as for the comics, Bai Shuang is still looking for an artist to collaborate with, and we haven’t found a suitable one yet.”

Ye Qingyu pursed her lips.

If she were at any other company, with her work ideal of slacking off until retirement, she would never take on extra work for herself.

But at this moment, she read the disappointment in her beautiful boss’s peach blossom eyes.

And she had long since understood from all the past details that the “Small Animal Survival Guide” was probably this little red panda’s dream.

And so, she said softly, “Can I give it a try?”

Pei Rong’s brow twitched slightly.

“I’ve been painting since I was little, and I’ve also done many watercolor paintings of red pandas, which Boss Pei has seen.”

“If everyone thinks my art style is suitable, you can let me try the comic column.”

The human’s gentle features held a steady and reliable composure. “Short, cute comics are popular on the market now, and I can draw those too.”

“Also, regarding the emotional column, I also have an immature idea.”

Ye Qingyu said, “Without a template, even if the magazine accumulates fans, it will be difficult to develop the small animal emotional column. We can first create a few emotional stories ourselves to stir up the fans’ emotions. If they are genuinely touched, they won’t be able to help but share their own stories.”

“As for how to create them, perhaps we can refer to our own experiences or the experiences of the small animals around us.”

As a human, Ye Qingyu was in no way a beneficiary of the “Small Animal Survival Guide.”

Yet for her to be so dedicated, to take the initiative to take on work, the little beasts couldn’t help but be moved.

Everyone looked at a few of Ye Qingyu’s paintings on her phone and all supported her in drawing the comics, and the matter was quickly settled.

As for the small animal emotional column…

Wu Shu’s jade-green eyes flickered, and she gritted her teeth.

“The human has already put in so much effort. What do we little beasts have to hide!”

“Why don’t we just write our own love stories,” Wu Shu said. “The most real stories are the easiest to touch a beast’s heart.”

Bai Shuang’s face was still calm and composed, but the tips of her ears were secretly a little red. “…We have to write our own experiences?”

The little beasts immediately said, “Sister Shuang, what are you hiding? You’ve been so happy recently, but you haven’t said a single word to us.”

Bai Shuang pursed her lips, so flustered that a pair of calico cat ears popped out from the top of her head.

Pei the Red Panda said calmly, “Follow the principle of voluntariness. Everyone can decide for themselves.”

She, a little panda, had no love life to speak of, so she probably wouldn’t have to write anything.

And with that, the meeting ended successfully.

***

Ye Qingyu sat at her desk and, out of habit, checked the bot’s submission inbox. No new submissions.

She couldn’t help but let out a silent sigh.

After all, it was a new magazine. She couldn’t be too hasty. She should focus on developing the other columns first.

She tried to brainstorm a comic in her head and quickly ran into a problem.

She stood up to go find her beautiful boss to discuss it, but saw that there was no red panda in the office.

Ye Qingyu, with practiced ease, went to the backyard and saw something in the distance, and her steps paused—

On the lawn under the scholar tree, a reddish-brown red panda was nestled on the rocking horse she had bought, its two fluffy paws clinging to the handles, swaying back and forth contentedly.

The swaying made the tips of its springy, large ears sway as well, which was extremely cute.

Ye Qingyu’s heart trembled at the sight.

She immediately decided that she had to have a rocking horse at home too.

Forgetting why she had come, she stood where she was, staring, and the corners of her lips unconsciously curled up.

But a few seconds later, her pupils constricted—the red panda fell.

The new wooden horse that Ye Qingyu had bought was lighter than the previous one, and it was very easy to rock, even more fun than a swing.

Pei the Red Panda was having a blast, her swaying becoming wider and wider.

Remembering the feeling of becoming a kung fu red panda in her dream last night, she unconsciously began to swing the wooden horse like a pirate ship.

Suddenly, a clear spring breeze blew by, pushing the wooden horse to its widest arc—

“Ying…”

The spring breeze passed, and the red panda and the horse fell over.

Pei the Red Panda tumbled from the rocking horse and fell into a soft, fluffy soup dumpling on the lawn.

Just as she was about to get up, she suddenly heard the sound of somewhat anxious footsteps from behind her.

It was Ye Qingyu.

Pei the Red Panda’s movements stiffened.

It’s over. If the human finds out she fell off a rocking horse, where would she, a little panda, hide her face!

Pei the Red Panda’s brain crashed for a few seconds, and in the end, she decided to adopt the strategy of pretending to be asleep.

She lay where she was, motionless.

A few seconds later, a human’s hand reached down and scooped her up, saying with a heartache and self-reproach, “It must be that this wooden horse is too light. It’s easy to fall off when you rock it.”

“…” Pei the Red Panda’s eyes were squeezed shut, looking as if she were in a deep sleep.

Ye Qingyu got no response. She looked down carefully and only then discovered that her beautiful boss was pretending to be asleep—

Look at those trembling lashes, that unevenly rising and falling fluffy belly. Wasn’t that just pretending to be asleep?

Moreover, she had just been rocking so vigorously.

Instantly understanding Pei the Red Panda’s thoughts, she couldn’t help but find it amusing.

After a moment’s thought, she deliberately said to herself:

“Huh, so she fell off by accident because she was asleep.”

“That’s right. If she were awake, how could Boss Pei possibly fall?”

After saying this, Ye Qingyu saw the large ears of the furred boss in her arms twitch slightly, changing from a perked-up state to a contentedly half-lowered one. She must have been satisfied.

Soon, Pei the Red Panda suddenly “woke up,” and looked at Ye Qingyu with “sleepy, hazy” eyes, raising a paw to rub them.

Then she proudly turned her fluffy head away. “Why are you holding me?”

Unfortunately, she had just fallen, and the fur on her head was a little messy, with a few blades of grass stuck in it.

Her spirit was gone, a completely disheveled little red panda.

Ye Qingyu tried hard to recall sad memories to avoid being amused by the little beast’s clumsy and cute performance and laughing out loud.

“Boss Pei, I came to discuss the comic with you.”

As she spoke, she secretly used her fingertips to brush away the grass from the fluffy head.

Hearing that it was business, Pei the Red Panda finally became a little more serious. “Go on.”

Ye Qingyu said, “I’m only good at recording when it comes to painting. In the red panda sketchbook I showed you before, each painting is a record of a dream, not something I imagined out of thin air.”

“So if I’m to draw the magazine’s comic, in order to ensure the content is lively and interesting, I might need to collaborate with a writer.”

She had thought about collaborating with Shui Zhu.

But painting, like writing, poured the creator’s sincere emotions into every stroke. And for now, she still couldn’t understand the plays in Shui Zhu’s great works, so she probably wouldn’t be able to perfectly present that R-rated content.

“Another option is for me to continue to record real life, that is… to draw you.”

Pei the Red Panda understood what she meant.

After a moment’s thought, she said, “Ye Qingyu, just draw you and me.”

If Ye Qingyu were to draw other small animals with such cute, delicate, and precious brushstrokes, she would actually be a little unhappy.

Anyway, when the magazine was released, no one in reality would know that that red panda was her, Pei the Red Panda.

Ye Qingyu smiled. “Okay.”

This was also the best choice in her heart.

“Then it’s settled.”

After speaking, Ye Qingyu was about to put down the little beast in her arms, but her collar was suddenly grabbed by its paws.

Before she could react, Pei the Red Panda’s exquisite and cute little fluffy face was already in front of hers.

Two “smacks,” wetly imprinted on her left and right cheeks.

The set of movements was as smooth as flowing water.

“Thank you, Ye Qingyu.”

Pei the Red Panda’s brown eyes were clear and translucent in the sunlight, as if overflowing with ripples, with an unprecedented solemnity and sincerity.

***

At 5 o’clock, she left work on time.

Ye Qingyu went downstairs and took her little red panda keychain from the scholar tree, placing it on the passenger seat.

“We have to buy candy before we go home.”

The little red panda keychain contentedly flicked its large, fluffy tail up and down, reminding the human.

Ye Qingyu’s hand, which was fastening her seatbelt, paused.

It wasn’t because of the candy, but the ordinary word “home” that suddenly made her feel dazed.

A particularly happy and stable feeling.

With Pei the Red Panda in the house, it seemed to have truly become a warm home.

She curled her lips slightly and rubbed the furred boss’s head. “I haven’t forgotten.”

Being rubbed, the furred boss squinted her eyes and, getting an inch, lazily demanded, “Buy two portions of candy.”

“Okay,” the human agreed.

Ye Qingyu returned to the driver’s seat and drove off.

The moment she left the courtyard, the little red panda keychain on the passenger seat transformed into a woman.

Just like yesterday, she first parked the car in the garage, then went to the large supermarket in the residential complex.

After buying some ingredients for dinner, Ye Qingyu took the little red panda to the candy section.

Pei the Red Panda tried a few at the tasting counter and was a little dissatisfied.

“Ye Qingyu, there’s no cool, refreshing taste.”

Ye Qingyu said, “Then let’s go choose by the checkout counter. The whole shelf there is full of mints.”

Pei the Red Panda nodded.

The two came to the checkout counter, and sure enough, the shelf was full of mints.

“Choose. See what flavor you like.”

The little red panda’s peach blossom eyes sparkled like stars, and she quickly picked up a tin of apple-flavored mints.

Ye Qingyu said, “You choose. I’ll go check out first.”

She had bought quite a few things today. She placed them on the conveyor belt and, after scanning them, put them in a bag one by one.

Over here, Pei the Red Panda had chosen one tin and was now in a dilemma.

There were so many flavors and styles that it was dazzling.

[Mint strawberry flavor, extremely cool, thin and soft and comfortable…]

She saw a pink box of candy, and her eyes moved slightly.

This one, then. The packaging is pretty.

She handed the two boxes of candy to the cashier, and they were quickly scanned.

While Ye Qingyu was giving her membership number, Pei the Red Panda pocketed the candy.

Returning home, Ye Qingyu began to wash the vegetables, and Pei the Red Panda volunteered to cook the rice for her.

Then, with nothing to do, she first opened the tin of apple-flavored candy and poured out two pieces.

“Ye Qingyu.”

Ye Qingyu turned her head and was fed two candies.

She didn’t like candy, but she gladly accepted the little red panda’s sharing.

Pei the Red Panda also had two herself. The coolness of the mint, accompanied by the sweet apple flavor, burst in her mouth, and she closed her eyes in comfort.

The strawberry-flavored one must be just as delicious.

In the midst of her busyness, Ye Qingyu saw that her beautiful boss’s pocket was bulging, with a pink corner peeking out.

It must be the other box of candy.

She smiled and reminded, “Don’t eat too much candy in one day. Your teeth will hurt.”

“Mhm, mhm.”

Dinner was all of the little red panda’s favorite dishes, and her belly was round after the meal.

Worried that her head would explode with fireworks again, she didn’t let the human rub her belly and obediently went for a walk with her.

After returning home, Pei the Red Panda was comfortably soaking in the bathtub when she suddenly remembered the strawberry-flavored candy she had forgotten in her jacket pocket.

She’s eyes suddenly flew open, and she immediately lost the mood to slowly soak.

She quickly finished her bath and dried her hair, and today, she was even faster than Ye Qingyu.

After tidying up, she sat on the edge of the bed, the pink candy she had taken from her jacket in her hand.

Her long nails tore off the plastic seal, and she eagerly opened the pink box and took out the contents.

An instruction manual, and ten small, pink, connected packets.

Pei the Red Panda pinched a small, pink packet and felt that this candy was thin and soft, and its shape was a little strange.

She couldn’t help but pick up the instruction manual to learn how to eat this candy.

She opened the first page and saw a line of bold black words:

[This product will help you reach climax after climax, and enjoy the ultimate pleasure of fireworks exploding in your head…]

Her peach blossom eyes widened.

Fireworks exploding in my head?!