Chapter 15.1

Mu Ling slept deeply through the night, waking only when the little wolf began licking her awake the next morning.

Somehow, the cub had escaped from her embrace and made its way to her head. Its plump little paws first clung to her hair, chewing until a large patch was soaked. Then it climbed higher, finally settling like a furry hat right on Mu Ling’s forehead.

Mu Ling felt as if her skull was being pressed down. She opened her eyes groggily to find herself face-to-face with a scruffy little wolf face.

Sighing, she reached out and scooped the mischievous creature back into her arms, then lowered her head to check its wound.

The injury hadn’t reopened, suggesting the cub had behaved itself during the night.

Thinking Mu Ling wanted to play, the cub licked her hand and nuzzled its small head into her neck.

Ticklish, Mu Ling sat up laughing and rubbed the cub’s forehead. “Yesterday you were at death’s door, and today you’re so lively. Ah, the vitality of youth!”

As she said this, Mu Ling instinctively turned her head towards another cage where Qilin, the tiger, was staring at her coldly. She smiled nervously and said, “Our Qilin is young too. Eight years old is still young for a tiger, right?”

Qilin couldn’t understand human speech, but seeing Mu Ling addressing it, the tiger swished its tail and slowly raised its upper body, watching her intently.

Mu Ling asked gently, “Are you hungry? It must be 8:30 already. Time for breakfast.”

She put the wolf cub on the ground, intending to go outside to prepare food.

However, as soon as she stepped out of the cage, the cub inside started whining and whimpering, trying to squeeze through the gaps in the iron cage.

Alarmed, Mu Ling feared it might reopen its wound and had to let it out.

Once free, the cub immediately circled around Mu Ling’s feet.

Resigned, Mu Ling walked towards the exit. “Alright, alright, you can come along, you little clingy thing.”

There was no one outside the veterinary station. Mu Ling went straight to the corner and opened Qilin’s food box.

Recently, Qilin had been staying in the infirmary, so its food was moved to the vet station.

As Mu Ling prepared Qilin’s breakfast, the wolf cub wagged its tail beside her, sniffing the box eagerly, clearly wanting to eat too. Mu Ling tossed it a strip of meat to gnaw on, then carried Qilin’s food inside.

Qilin was already waiting. As it ate, Mu Ling poured water for it, then stroked its head and gave it a kiss. “You eat first. I’ll come back later to change your dressing.”

When Mu Ling went outside, she saw the wolf cub still sitting on the ground, struggling with the meat strip.

Ignoring it, she left the vet station, closing the door behind her.

Young animals’ food differs from adult predators’. Unsure about the cub food stock in the pantry, Mu Ling planned to ask Brother Wei or Brother Xiang.

Just as she reached the parking lot, she saw Brother Wei charging an off-road vehicle. Mu Ling called out, “Brother Wei, do we have anything the wolf cub can eat?”

Wei Li looked up at her voice, then froze, staring behind Mu Ling. “We do, but Director, is it okay to let it roam freely like this?”

Mu Ling turned around and was stunned. The little rascal had followed her out, still carrying its prized meat strip in its mouth. Hadn’t she closed the door?

Mu Ling didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She crouched down to pat the cub’s head and said to Wei Li, “It probably won’t run off. Brother Wei, could you please prepare some breakfast for the little wolf?”

Wei Li nodded, glancing again at the cub before heading to the food storage.

When Wei Li returned, he was carrying a feeding bowl containing shredded meat soaked in sheep’s milk.

The cub was still wary of Wei Li. The moment he approached, it tucked its tail and backed away, growling a soft “awoo” in protest.

Wei Li had to stop awkwardly and hand the bowl to Mu Ling.

Mu Ling was also at a loss. She put the bowl on the ground, and the cub immediately ran over, wolfing down the food.

The cub ate standing in front of Mu Ling, effectively entrusting its back to her. In nature, animals only expose their backs to their closest kin.

Wei Li watched enviously from the side and grumbled, “Director, did you really just howl a couple of times and the cub became so attached to you? Can I try howling too?”

Although Wei Li had worked at the zoo for two years, he rarely got close to the animals. Wild animals are very cautious; even when Wei Li went into the mountains to feed them, they would only come out to eat after he left.

Mu Ling wasn’t sure either. “The cub probably still holds a grudge against you. Howling might not work. Animals are actually very simple. Yesterday, you and Brother Xiang scared it badly, then I appeared and chased you away. The cub instinctively felt I had saved it, so it’s especially attached to me. If I had approached it under normal circumstances, it might not have been so friendly. I just got lucky; it doesn’t have much to do with howling.”

Wei Li felt the director was being too modest. “Being able to earn the complete trust of a cub you just met shows that you really have a special talent, Director.”

“Oh, stop it,” Mu Ling waved her hand, appearing humble while internally preening.

Mu Ling now understood why big bosses like employees with sweet tongues. Who doesn’t love being praised? She absolutely adored it!

Wei Li, unaware that his stream of compliments was gradually causing his director to lose herself, suggested, “Director, since the cub is here, why don’t you take some videos of it?”

Mu Ling thought this was a good idea. Their zoo was so big, they couldn’t rely solely on Qilin as their star attraction. Given the opportunity, they should definitely cultivate more pillars of support. A growth series would be perfect. The wolf was still a cub, so she could first post a video asking netizens to help name it. Then, when “Qingjiao” wasn’t watching so closely, she could secretly film more videos of the growing cub. Just imagine, “This is the wolf you named, the one you watched grow up—how could you not come to Bi Ke Zoo to see it for yourself?”