Pet King

The cat was not willing to come over?

Zhang Zian had answered truthfully, but the four young people felt baffled by what he’d said and didn’t know how to reply.

Wei Kang was worried that they would get into a conflict the first time they met due to their differences, so he immediately changed the topic. “Well, cats are all pretty stoic. You guys know that as well. Why don’t we have a round of introductions… Gao Ke, you go first.”

Gao Ke was that male student with a strong and buff body.

Now that the temperature had gradually gotten warmer, he had already started to wear sleeveless shirts, showing off his muscles unknowingly. He smiled. “I’m Gao Ke. I’m in my third year of my Master’s course. I like to go to the gym and play video games. I have been looking forward to this trip for a while, since I wanted to see if Egypt was really like what Assassin’s Creed: Origins showed. If possible, I want to do a leap of faith also! Haha!”

Wei Kang complained, “If you had as much passion for studying as you do for gaming, your studies wouldn’t be as treacherous as they are now. With the way you’re going, you’re going to end up delaying your graduation.”

Gao Ke stuck out his tongue.

The fatty pointed at Gao Ke, explaining to Zhang Zian, “Don’t listen to his lies. He likes to game, but his skills are horrible. He’s always using mods when playing single player, and he’s often the most burdensome one if we play multiplayer. If he asks you for a game, don’t accept it! Hey hey hey, don’t get physical with me!”

Halfway through, Gao Ke pretended to throw punches at him for exposing him.

The two of them played around for a while before the fatty introduced himself. “My name is Xiao Tianyu. I’m in my second year in my Master’s. I’m a male, and I like females. I’m 175cm tall, my weight is a secret, I’ve been single since birth, and I have lost hope for this superficial world. It would be great if I could bring back an Egyptian beauty from Egypt…”

Zhang Zian sighed inwardly. The tall, skinny bespectacled man followed closely after Xiao Tianyu, introducing himself too. “I’m Du Xuetao. I’m in the second year of my Master’s. I… I don’t have any special hobbies.”

Xiao Tianyu put his arm around Du Xuetao’s shoulder, adding, “This is our level’s smartest man. His hobby is studying. Before meeting him, I really didn’t know that there were people out there that genuinely liked studying.”

Wei Kang interrupted unhappily, “What’s wrong with liking studying? A student’s greatest mission is to study. You should take a page out of Xuetao’s book.”

Du Xuetao seemed to be a bit of a nerd, and he was way too skinny. Zhang Zian couldn’t help but be worried that this man wouldn’t be able to stand the trials of a field trip.

Lastly, the freckled girl talked. She had already met some trouble conversing with Zhang Zian earlier, so she wasn’t too happy. “I’m He He, year one in my Master’s. Don’t you dare call me Hee Hee.”

They had finished their introductions and were getting interested in Zhang Zian, bombarding him with questions. Since he was the special consultant of their team, he definitely should have some really amazing skills.

Zhang Zian answered honestly, “Actually, I’m just a pet shop owner, selling cats and dogs, and all kinds of aquatic animals and plants. I didn’t major in biology in university either. I am very honoured and surprised to join the trip as your consultant, I have to thank Professor Weikang for his recommendation for that… Oh right, if you or your friends and family would like to buy a pet, you can come to my shop, I promise to give nothing but the best.”

The four youngsters looked at each other. Zhang Zian’s introduction was way too…commoner-like. He wasn’t not particularly accomplished academically, and he didn’t have any special jobs, so how had Wei Kang thought to pick him? Could there have been some under-the-table transaction there?

Since that was so, he most likely had come on the trip just because he had a native Egyptian cat.

He He pursed her lips unhappily at that, forgetting that she had gotten into the Master’s program because of her special identity as a female.

Even though the other three students didn’t say anything, they were clearly looking down on Zhang Zian.

Wei Kang frowned slightly. He had been paying attention to Zhang Zian, and he knows that other than the most usual identity of “shop owner”, he has a few others that would floor these four naive students lacking real life experience the moment he mentions it.

Zhang Zian hadn’t mentioned them himself, and Wei Kang was thinking about whether he should mention it for Zhang Zian. Right then, there was a knock on the office door, and a man in his mid-forties came in with a book in his hands, his dress and aura those of a professor at Binhai University too.

Weikang immediately rushed up to welcome him, introducing him to the rest of the people. “This is Mr. Luo, a professor of history at our school. I invited him here specially to teach you guys more about Egypt’s history for the next few days, so that you don’t get overwhelmed after reaching Egypt. You have to pay close attention! I’m joining in the class too!”

“Good evening, Mr. Luo.”

The four researchers greeted the teacher, while Zhang Zian merely nodded in acknowledgment.

Mr. Luo nodded in response. After going through the pleasantries with Wei Kang, he found a random chair to sit in and addressed the group, slightly ashamed. “I couldn’t really reject Professor Wei Kang’s invitation, but it is difficult for me to summarize and explain Egypt’s history clearly in just a few hours,” he said. “Egypt is the country with the longest history. It was the first country that humans made after all. How about this—since this is our first day, what questions do you have for me?”

Not waiting for the rest to speak up, He He started again with her sharp and crisp voice. “Mr. Luo, I have a question.”

“Please do, as long as it is about ancient Egypt,” Mr. Luo said.

He He gave a look to the three men and Zhang Zian and smugly stated, “Mr. Luo, I heard a rumor. It mentioned that at the start of the 1990s, Egyptian archeologist Dr. Masu and his colleagues dug out and opened a 4000-year-old coffin only to find a long-extinct species of cat guarding it. They said that the coffin belonged to the old pharoah Tchlabotsk the Fourth and was discovered eight meters below the Valley of the Kings.

“Professor Masu opened the stone door to the grave, entering with a lantern in his hands, only to find a big gray cat watching them with yellow-emerald eyes. It had the physique of a small leopard, and it hissed at them in an attempt to scare them away and tried to attack them with its teeth. Professor Masu and his colleagues successfully fought off the cat and managed to capture it to bring it back to the labs. But after it was brought back to the labs, its health took a sharp turn for the worse, and it died not a few hours later. Professor Masu had planned to do more research with the cat’s body.”

She took a breath and continued, “What I want to ask is, if the main aim of our trip is to find the tracks and evidence of Egyptian cats, then isn’t this cat the target of our trip? If so, why don’t we directly contact this Professor Masu and ask him for the details on this cat?”