Chapter 450: Chapter 230: Two-legged Beast, You Lied to Me

[’This place is too small.’]

The thought carried a tone of dissatisfaction.

[’No mountains, no forests.’]

"This is just a temporary place."

Yang Qi explained patiently, "In a few days, we’ll move you somewhere bigger. Oh, and there’s fresh meat over there. You can have some if you’re hungry."

As he spoke, Yang Qi pointed to several large chunks of fresh meat in a feeding trough in the corner.

The male leopard’s nose twitched. It had clearly smelled the meat, and the feeling of hunger washed over it again.

It’s common to be hungry after waking up from anesthesia.

The male leopard hesitated for a moment, then slowly and warily paced over, lowered its head to sniff the chunks of meat, and then tentatively took a bite.

’It tastes good, same as what I ate before.’

It looked up at Yang Qi behind the observation window, a muffled whimper rumbling in its throat as if to confirm that everything was really okay, before lowering its head and beginning to eat ravenously.

While eating, it would still look up and glance around uneasily.

In the monitoring room, Tong Xiaoyue and the veterinarians all breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the leopard begin to eat.

Being willing to eat is the first step toward adapting well.

"That’s great, it’s started eating."

Tong Xiaoyue’s face lit up. "Xiao Yang, you really have a way with them. It seems like it can actually ’understand’ what you’re saying."

"We’ve only established a bit of initial trust."

Yang Qi replied humbly, his eyes still fixed on the enclosure. "Teacher Tong, I only have one day; I’m heading back to Donghua tonight. We have to make the most of it. I’d like to move Hua Hua over this afternoon for a face-to-face meeting, separated by the fence."

"This afternoon? Isn’t that too soon? It just woke up and hasn’t adapted to the environment yet," Tong Xiaoyue said, worried.

"That’s precisely why," Yang Qi explained. "It just woke up and is in the initial phase of exploring and adapting. If we introduce a female leopard now, and handle it correctly, we can divert its fear and hostility away from the feeling of being caged. It could shift its focus to socializing with its own kind."

"Besides," Yang Qi continued, "they’ll just be meeting and smelling each other through the fence. There’s no direct contact, so the risk is manageable. We need to gauge their first impression of each other as soon as possible."

"If the first impression is very bad, or they show strong aggression, then subsequent interventions may need to be longer and more complex, and we might even have to consider abandoning this plan."

"The sooner we know the outcome, the sooner we can make other arrangements."

Tong Xiaoyue thought for a moment and felt it made sense.

With a "communication expert" like Yang Qi on-site to manage the risks, it might be worth a try.

"Alright, we’ll do it your way. I’ll arrange to have Hua Hua transferred over immediately."

...

Around three in the afternoon, on Yang Qi’s advice and with the careful handling of several senior keepers, Red Star Zoo’s female leopard, Hua Hua, was moved to the adjacent enclosure.

Hua Hua was clearly a bit confused by the sudden move, but with her relatively docile personality, she didn’t resist fiercely. She just paced in her new enclosure, familiarizing herself with the environment and occasionally letting out a low, questioning growl.

Meanwhile, the male leopard, who had just finished his meat and was lying down to rest, was immediately drawn by the commotion next door.

He stood up, ears perked, nose twitching forcefully, catching the unfamiliar scent of his own kind—a female—on the air.

The male leopard’s eyes filled with wariness and curiosity. He slowly paced to the wire mesh fence bordering the next enclosure and peered through the double-layered barrier.

Next door, Hua Hua also seemed to notice she was being watched. She stopped, turned around, and her eyes met the male leopard’s through the fence.

Their eyes met.

The air was quiet for a few seconds.

Hua Hua tilted her head, her amber eyes sizing up the creature opposite her—larger and more robust than herself, with fur that bore the marks of the wild but was still glossy, and eyes that were sharp and full of untamed power.

A very soft, inquisitive purr rumbled in her throat.

The male leopard also quietly sized up Hua Hua, his gaze sweeping from her magnificent fur and well-proportioned figure to her lively eyes, his nostrils flaring rapidly.

He didn’t let out a threatening growl; only the tip of his tail twitched almost imperceptibly.

Yang Qi stood at an observation point in the corridor between the two enclosures, sensing the emotional fluctuations of the two leopards.

Hua Hua’s emotions: Curiosity, slight wariness, but no fear or hostility.

The male leopard’s emotions: Wariness, assessment, and also no hostility.

The instinctive interest in a "pretty member of the opposite sex" seemed to override the rejection of an "intruder" in a new environment.

’This could work...’ Yang Qi thought, his nerves settling.

He immediately used the Basic Spirit Communication Technique to introduce them, "That’s the very pretty female leopard I told you about. Her name is Hua Hua. What do you think?"

The male leopard didn’t respond immediately, its gaze still fixed on Hua Hua.

Just then, Hua Hua, perhaps feeling she had been stared at for too long and growing a bit demure, gracefully turned, walked to a perch on the other side of the enclosure, and lay down. But she kept her head turned sideways, her ears still pointed toward the fence.

The male leopard watched Hua Hua’s retreating back and let out a low, deep rumble that wasn’t particularly fierce, as if talking to himself or saying hello.

Yang Qi seized the opportunity and whispered to the keeper beside him, "We can try placing some of their favorite treats on both sides of the fence at the same time—like bloody chunks of meat or organs. A little far from the fence, so they can eat separately but still be aware of each other’s presence."

The keeper immediately did as he was told.

Soon, a small piece of fresh beef heart was placed in each enclosure, about three meters from the fence.

Hua Hua was the first to get up. She padded over, lowered her head, and began to eat, looking up at the other side of the fence after every few bites.

The male leopard hesitated for a moment, then also walked to the piece of meat on his side and started eating, he too occasionally glanced up at the other side.

The two leopards ate in parallel, separated by the fence.

Although there was no interaction, the atmosphere was peaceful, even harmonious.

In the monitoring room, Tong Xiaoyue and the other staff members stared in astonishment.

"He’s not actually growling?"

"And they’re eating together?"

"Hua Hua doesn’t seem to be afraid of him?"

"The male leopard isn’t being aggressive either..."

"Wow..."

"..."

Tong Xiaoyue let out a breath of relief, looked at Yang Qi, and said with emotion, "Xiao Yang, it looks like this is working out well."

"Yes, the first impression is very good on both sides."

Yang Qi smiled as well. "At least they don’t reject each other; they’re even a little curious. This is a very good start. But this is just the initial contact through the fence."

"The next few days are crucial. We need to give them opportunities to see each other through the fence and eat in parallel like this every day, so they can gradually get used to each other’s scent and presence and build a positive association."

Saying this, he looked at Tong Xiaoyue and added, "Teacher Tong, I’ll leave the follow-up to you. My advice is not to let the two leopards meet for too long each time. It’s best to keep it between half an hour and an hour to maintain the novelty and avoid creating stress from prolonged eye contact or proximity."

"Try to feed them at the same time and in the same place to create a ’good things happen when we’re together’ association."

Tong Xiaoyue nodded and said, "We will closely monitor their emotions and behavior. If either one shows sustained agitation, fear, or aggressive tendencies, we’ll pause the contact."

"Once they are very comfortable with each other through the fence, maybe even approaching it to sniff each other and make friendly noises, then we’ll try opening a small gate to allow for closer contact."

Yang Qi nodded.

After a moment’s thought, he added, "Regarding the male leopard, try to have the same keeper interact with him consistently."

Tong Xiaoyue naturally agreed.

...

「Evening.」

Yang Qi observed another "meeting" between the two leopards through the fence.

The atmosphere was still peaceful, even more relaxed than in the afternoon.

Hua Hua would occasionally let out a soft purr in the male leopard’s direction.

Although the male leopard remained composed, the time he spent watching Hua Hua had noticeably increased.

Seeing this, Yang Qi felt relieved.

At least this "leopard matchmaking" was off to a good start. The future looked promising.

That night, Tong Xiaoyue hosted a banquet to thank Yang Qi. The Zoo Director, Guo Xiaoyun, the Head of Animal Management, Zhao Mingfeng, and other senior executives also attended.

During the dinner, there was, naturally, a great deal of praise and gratitude.

As the meal was drawing to a close, Guo Xiaoyun suddenly asked with a smile,

"Advisor Yang, will you be attending the annual conference next week?"

The question was asked very skillfully.

An uninformed person would just think it was the zoo’s own annual conference.

But those in the know knew it was a gathering for all the zoos in the entire East China region!

That’s right.

Guo Xiaoyun wanted to poach him!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.