Chapter 8

Because of the incident with the stranger, Ahuang and the chief had been staying at home for a few days, behaving themselves. Dapang still maintained his usual style of not coming out unless called. As for Zhengtan, he agreed to shoot a cat food advertisement for Xiaoguo and was taken to the "Ming Ming Such" pet center by Jiaoba and Jiama to take photos for two days.

The first advertisement was not the video ad Zhengtan had imagined, but a picture story format.

Zhengtan had overlooked one thing: at this time, the development of online videos was not as explosive as it would be ten years later. Many people did not see a bright future for online videos, even predicting that they would have no hope at all.

However, Xiaoguo did not think so. When discussing the contract with Jiaoba, he said, "The charm of the internet lies in its ability to transform the mundane into the magical through technological innovation." This statement made Zhengtan respect him even more. As someone who had lived through it, Zhengtan knew better than anyone what the internet would become in ten years.

Compared to other merchants' single ad images, Xiaoguo's picture story format would be more appealing, even to those without pets, at least increasing brand awareness.

With Zhengtan, shooting such story images did not require much effort, and no cat food was even used, which made Xiaoguo very happy. Getting cats to make the desired expressions was difficult, and the limitations of the era meant that merchants did not spend much effort on this type of advertisement.

Xiaoguo would post such picture story ads on a pet forum online, and at the same time, they would be published in a print magazine. Another reason Xiaoguo was eager to have Zhengtan shoot the ad was that a friend of his had recently started a pet magazine, published monthly, and Xiaoguo was happy to take advantage of this opportunity.

Before Zhengtan came to the pet center, Xiaoguo had tried other cats, including some expensive breeds, but the shooting process and results were... so frustrating that it made him stomachache.

However, after Zhengtan came, the shooting went smoothly. Every movement and every glance required no extra effort, so Xiaoguo's stomachache was gone, and he saved on cat food. He quickly pulled Jiaoba to sign the contract.

Since "Pet Love" magazine was a monthly publication, Zhengtan only needed to go once a month, which was not a big deal for him. Shooting this ad was not just for a little extra money; Zhengtan also approached it with a playful attitude. The funniest part was that at the end of the story image, a small line read, "Actor: blackC."

Labeling the pet's name was a habit of Xiaoguo's, and "blackC" was Jiaoba's idea. He did not directly use Zhengtan's real name, which was a way to protect Zhengtan.

When asked about the reason for "blackC," Jiaoba explained: "black" means black, and "C" in the periodic table represents "carbon," so...

For the first cat food ad, Xiaoguo transferred 1,000 yuan to Zhengtan's card, which Jiama said was much more than expected. 1,000 yuan was not much to the former Zhengtan, but now it was a significant sum.

Jiaoba also got Zhengtan a bank card specifically for storing ad fees. Not just Zhengtan, but Jiaoyuan and Guyouzi also had their own bank cards, where they stored their New Year's money, exam rewards, and withdrew pocket money. However, Jiaoba kept the cards to prevent them from misusing them. This was Jiaoba's unique educational method.

However, Zhengtan was always puzzled as to why Jiaoba applied this method to a cat.

Sometimes Zhengtan did not understand what Associate Professor Jia was thinking, but after more than three months of interaction, Zhengtan had a certain understanding of Jiaoba. At least he could be sure that Jiaoba would not harm him. Perhaps it was because people in research were more open to extraordinary events.

If outsiders knew how Associate Professor Jia interacted with his cat, they would be shocked. Even Jiama, Jiaoyuan, and Guyouzi did not know how Zhengtan and Jiaoba interacted.

After shooting the ad, Zhengtan had nothing to do and stayed at home for two days. Unable to stay idle, he went out for a walk. This time, he did not find any suspicious people. He went to the big lawn and saw the guinea pig again. A little girl, not much older than Guyouzi, and her mother were watching the furry guinea pig move on the grass. Zhengtan decided to stay away from that mother and daughter to avoid attracting that person again.

One day, Zhengtan came back from a walk and sensed a strange presence before he even entered the house.

Guests?

The atmosphere in the living room was not good, too silent. Jiama was cooking in the kitchen but seemed distracted. Jiaoba and the guest were sitting on the sofa smoking, not saying a word.

The guest was about Jiaoba's age, looking in poor spirits, with a sense of depression and red bloodshot eyes, as if he had been up for several nights. Jiaoba called him "Yuanzi," indicating a good relationship. However, Zhengtan did not understand why both were so unusually silent and even a bit heavy-hearted.

When guests came, and it was inconvenient for the children to be present, Jiama would bring out a small table with a Chinese chess pattern, letting Jiaoyuan and Guyouzi eat in a small room. Adult topics were not suitable for children to hear.

Seeing this, Zhengtan became even more curious. What topics were not suitable for the children to hear?

Zhengtan jumped onto his dedicated chair, lay down to rest, and tried to understand the situation.

Jiaoba just glanced up at Zhengtan's actions, said nothing, and tacitly approved.

No matter how silent they were before, after three glasses of wine, the tight-lipped mouths opened.

From the tearful conversation between the two men, Zhengtan got a general understanding.

Professor Yuan, Jiaoba's Ph.D. advisor during his graduate studies and the father of this "Yuanzi," had lung cancer, stage four, and his current condition was very poor, with an estimated two months left.

When Jiaoba graduated from Nanhua University, Professor Yuan went abroad. Since Professor Yuan was not around, Jiaoba did not stay at Nanhua University but returned to his hometown in Jinghan Province to teach at Chuhua University.

Nanhua University, the leading university in the southern coastal region of China, held the same status as Chuhua University in the central region.

Jiama, Jiaoba, and this "Yuanzi" had a good relationship when they were at Nanhua University, and naturally, they had a good relationship with Professor Yuan. Hearing the news about Professor Yuan today, both were very sad.

"Yuanzi" did not follow in his father's footsteps; he had no interest in research, or rather, he had never focused on his studies, just like the former Zhengtan, a wastrel.

Zhengtan did not know what "Yuanzi" had experienced after graduation or how much he had been affected by his father's illness. From their conversation, it seemed that "Yuanzi" had changed a lot. As Jiaoba had said, "a prodigal son returns."

They say a prodigal son's return is priceless, but often, a prodigal son prefers to remain a prodigal, as the cost of returning is enormous. He would rather never return to avoid paying that price.

"So, if Feihang hadn't told me you came to Chuhua City, were you planning to bear it alone? Were you going to hide it from everyone for life?!" Jiaoba's eyes were red, his voice not loud but trembling, clearly unable to control his emotions.

Jiama had not said a word, sitting beside and wiping her tears.

"The old man... doesn't want too many people to know. He's no longer receiving any treatment and just wants to rest quietly in his hometown," Yuanzi sniffed, saying.

Back then, Jiaoba was Professor Yuan's ace student. Who in the life sciences department of Nanhua University did not envy Professor Yuan for having such a student? With his son's lack of effort, Professor Yuan treated Jiaoba like a son. Jiaoba's current achievements were all due to Professor Yuan's guidance. However, after Professor Yuan went abroad, they only occasionally communicated through chat software or email, and it seemed that Professor Yuan always had various matters to attend to. Last week, Jiaoba received an email from the old man saying he would not be using the computer for a long time. Now it seemed that the old man was truly planning not to tell anyone else.

After a moment of silence, Jiaoba steadied his emotions and asked, "What brings you to Chuhua City this time? Feihang said you came to investigate. Investigate what? If you need any help, just say so."

Yuanzi rubbed his face with his palm and said, "I'm planning to start a biotech company. Not a small-scale one."

Jiaoba nodded, "Chuhua City is indeed a good place. There are too many new companies in the southern coastal region, and companies established by domestic and international parties have risen one after another. The Pearl of East China, Mingzhu City, is dominated by Southern Genomics, and the capital has Huada Genomics. Major bases have formed interest groups, and it's not impossible to get involved, but it would be very difficult. In comparison, the competition in the central region is much smaller, and the development pace is faster. I can help you here."

Zhengtan did not fully understand what Jiaoba and Yuanzi were discussing, not knowing what the company they were planning to start would do. After listening for a while, he went to Jiaoyuan's room.

A few days later, Zhengtan was called to Jiaoba's room and told that the four members of the Jiao family were going to Northeast China.

Professor Yuan's hometown was in Northeast China. Given the situation, Zhengtan understood Jiaoba's decision, but... if he stayed alone at home?!

Jiaoba asked for Zhengtan's opinion. If Zhengtan wanted to go along, Jiaoba would borrow a car and drive to Northeast China, which would be more convenient for Zhengtan.

Zhengtan thought for a moment and shook his head. If they were going south, he would definitely go, as he wanted to know if the other version of himself still existed. But this time, they were going north, so he decided to stay.

Zhengtan did not want to be sent to the pet center for boarding or to stay at someone else's house, so Jiaoba left him a key.

Before the family left, they took turns reminding Zhengtan, summarizing with, "When you're alone at home, be good and don't open the door to strangers."

Zhengtan: "..." Do they really think I'm a kid?

Jiaoyuan and Guyouzi left with many backward glances, piling their snacks on the sofa, afraid their cat would go hungry.

After the four Jiao family members left, Zhengtan looked at the empty house and suddenly felt the old house seemed much larger.

How boring...

Zhengtan rolled from one end of the sofa to the other in the living room, then rolled back and hung upside down from the edge of the sofa, looking at the inverted view.

Finally, Zhengtan's gaze fell on the calendar in the living room. Jiaoba said they would be gone for a week. Today was Wednesday, and he had to wait until next Wednesday...

Wednesday?!

Zhengtan flipped over.

Every Wednesday was the day Dongyuan Supermarket received new goods. The delivery truck would arrive in the afternoon, around 4 or 5 PM, and leave around 6 or 7 PM.

It was 4:30 PM now.

Zhengtan put the key Jiaoba left around his neck and went out the door.

Thus, less than three hours after being told to "be good at home," Zhengtan decided to go on a trip.

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Thank you to Chen Mo, Van, Dan Dan Lan Yue Guang, and Lazyorange for your support! Thank you to those who voted for "Moonlit Night"! Thank you for your recommendations and support!

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