Chapter 642 - 532: Kung Fu Panda

Chapter 642: Chapter 532: Kung Fu Panda

"Not bad at all."

Ma Tao’s eyes lit up.

Giant pandas are bears, after all—large animals and living fossils that have evolved over many, many years. They definitely have a certain level of intelligence.

So when they get along with their keepers, that initial chemistry is important.

When the zoo recruits keepers, one of the requirements is to see if they click with the giant pandas.

And now, after seeing Shen Xin, Meng Lan wasn’t resistant or hostile. Instead, he seemed curious. This wasn’t just because of his naturally friendly personality; they must have clicked.

’That makes sense,’ Ma Tao thought.

Meng Lan was the zoo’s pretty boy, while Shen Xin and Ding Yuwei—one young and handsome, the other beautiful—were like a picture-perfect couple.

’Maybe it’s just a case of birds of a feather flocking together.’

But unexpectedly, after just a few glances at Shen Xin, Meng Lan started to approach him.

Having just turned three, he was lively and full of energy. He moved like a whirlwind, closing the distance in just a few quick steps.

His eyes were still fixed on Shen Xin.

Since it was their first time meeting, Ma Tao was worried about an accident. He took a couple of steps forward to stand in front of Meng Lan, trying to draw the panda’s attention to himself.

But to his surprise, Meng Lan just sidestepped him, craning his neck to get a better look at Shen Xin.

Ma Tao moved to block him again.

Annoyed, Meng Lan simply nudged him aside with a paw.

It was then that Ma Tao realized something was off. Meng Lan seemed exceptionally interested in Shen Xin.

Then Meng Lan shuffled forward again.

He walked right up to Shen Xin and began sniffing him.

"How strange," Ma Tao marveled.

Normally, even when new keepers clicked with a panda, it still took some time for them to get familiar with each other.

But here was Shen Xin, and on their very first meeting, the giant panda was approaching him on his own initiative.

The next moment, Meng Lan reached out with his paws and wrapped them around Shen Xin’s legs in a hug.

He was already three years old, and his body was nearly the size of a full-grown adult panda.

Weighing close to two hundred pounds, he was nearly half a man’s height just sitting there.

So this "loving embrace" was actually pretty startling.

In any case, Meng Lan’s sudden move gave Ma Tao a fright. He rushed forward, chiding the panda and trying to get him to let go.

This was no laughing matter.

Shen Xin, however, thought it was fine.

He could feel that Meng Lan wasn’t using much force; it was just a normal hug.

But when Ma Tao tried to intervene, Meng Lan refused to let go.

Gasps rose from the crowd outside the enclosure, every camera lens pointed in their direction.

"Brother Ma, it’s okay," Shen Xin said, stopping him.

It was better when Ma Tao wasn’t pulling. The moment he did, Meng Lan started to struggle, and his grip actually tightened.

Ma Tao let go.

Mainly, it was because Meng Lan had swatted at him with annoyance, as if to say, ’Stay out of this.’

"This..." Ma Tao stood by nervously.

In any case, he was ready to jump in if things went south.

But Meng Lan made no further moves. He just clung to Shen Xin’s leg like a giant teddy bear.

He kept his head tilted up, staring unblinkingly at Shen Xin.

Shen Xin looked down, and his heart melted at the sight.

Then, just as he’d expected, a goodwill icon appeared above the panda’s head.

And just like with Yuexiao, because Meng Lan was intelligent enough, the goodwill meter immediately jumped up two bars.

He had talked with Ma Tao about panda intelligence before.

Ma Tao’s opinion was that pandas definitely have a certain level of intelligence. As for why they look so clumsy and dumb, it might just be that they can’t be bothered to think.

He said that according to scientific research, a long-term diet of low-energy food like bamboo has conditioned the panda’s brain to operate in a low-power mode.

Captive pandas, on the other hand, have a much better diet and are therefore more willing to use their brains.

In any case, the general consensus at the breeding center is that a panda’s intelligence varies from one individual to the next.

Some are very smart, while others are a bit slow.

But even an average one is probably about as smart as a dog.

They’ve done tests, like getting food out of a puzzle cage, and the pandas’ reasoning and problem-solving skills proved to be quite high.

Ma Tao even shared an anecdote.

He told a story about a panda named Oreo—nicknamed Fat O’Neal—who was famous for his "16:9 widescreen face" and for being a "Raging Flower in a Sea of Feces." From the time he was a cub, his intelligence was off the charts.

The classic viral moment of a panda getting its head stuck while trying to escape? That was this guy.

Then one time, he and another panda, Xiaoqiao, were together when a tourist threw an apple into their enclosure.

Xiaoqiao absolutely loves apples.

But just as she was about to take a bite, Oreo, who was beside her, slapped the apple right out of her paw.

He didn’t eat it himself, and it wasn’t out of jealousy. It was as if he knew that it wasn’t their food and that they shouldn’t eat things thrown by tourists.

It just goes to show that some individual pandas have remarkably high intelligence.

Shen Xin didn’t hold back, reaching out to stroke the panda’s big, round head.

’Wow, I’ve got to admit, the real deal feels incredible.’

This simple act had everyone outside the enclosure staring in envy.

One little girl pointed into the enclosure and said to her mother, "Mommy, I want to pet the panda, too."

Her mother ignored her, thinking, ’I wish I could pet it, too.’

Inside the enclosure, Shen Xin began to stroke the panda, even giving his ears a curious little knead. Meng Lan didn’t resist at all, just kept his big, round eyes fixed on Shen Xin, studying him with curiosity.

"Yuwei, come try it. His fur feels amazing," Shen Xin said, beckoning Ding Yuwei over.

’This is a rare opportunity.’

Ding Yuwei glanced at Ma Tao, then couldn’t resist reaching out to touch the panda herself.

Meng Lan didn’t show much interest in her. He just kept rubbing his nose all over Shen Xin, as if he absolutely loved his scent.

Seeing this, Ma Tao let out a quiet sigh of relief. "I really didn’t expect this," he said, surprised. "For him to like you so much right from the start."

Shen Xin just smiled and gently pried Meng Lan’s paws off his leg.

They came loose easily.

His paws were free, but he immediately started rubbing his head against Shen Xin’s body again.

He was like a giant furball, rubbing and rolling all over him.

He was even making little bleating sounds, like a sheep. Then he covered his head with his front paws and shook it back and forth.

He seemed incredibly excited. After a few more little cries, he even started nibbling on his own paw while shaking his head.

Shen Xin quickly asked Ma Tao what this behavior meant.

"He’s happy," Ma Tao said, a hint of astonishment in his eyes.

Meng Lan is a playful panda who likes interacting with his keepers and will sometimes act cute to get attention.

When he’s really happy, he’ll roll all over the ground and do funny things like chew on his own paw.

But this was his first time ever meeting Shen Xin.

Even for a friendly panda, this level of affection was unheard of.

Shen Xin understood. He then asked how he should play with him.

Ma Tao thought for a moment. "Just treat him like a big dog," he said. "Give him some scratches, pet his head. He likes that kind of interaction."

Shen Xin got it. He immediately crouched down and gave the panda’s head, chin, and belly a thorough petting session.

’This coat of "genuine leather" is so fluffy. He must feel great to hug.’

The moment Shen Xin opened his arms, the panda understood instantly. He spread his own arms wide and threw himself into Shen Xin’s embrace.

He weighed just shy of two hundred pounds now, which was by no means light.

He threw himself with enough force to knock Shen Xin right over.

Another wave of gasps erupted from the crowd outside.

"Holy cow."

Shen Xin broke into a cold sweat. ’And he’s not even a fully grown adult yet.’

Shen Xin sat up, still holding Meng Lan. The panda didn’t let go, nuzzling into Shen Xin’s chest and rubbing his head against him while letting out happy little yelps.

Ma Tao had another jolt of alarm when Meng Lan tackled Shen Xin.

But seeing the panda’s reaction, he realized all his worrying had been for nothing.

Meng Lan’s primary keeper was a man surnamed Xu.

But Meng Lan had never been this affectionate or joyful, not even with Old Xu.

Meanwhile, outside the enclosure, many of the tourists’ eyes were glued to the scene, watching the adorable panda snuggling in Shen Xin’s arms.

"Who’s that? A new keeper?"

"Why is Meng Lan so attached to him?"

"Exactly! Look how close they are. The panda won’t let him go."

"I’m so jealous. I wish I could get a hug like that."

Just then, Meng Lan seemed to remember something. He scrambled out of Shen Xin’s lap and trotted over to his climbing structure.

It was a forked tree trunk. He nimbly climbed up, placed one foot on each fork, and showed off a perfect split for Shen Xin.

’A real-life Kung Fu Panda.’

This sent the tourists outside the enclosure into an even greater frenzy.

This was Meng Lan’s signature trick. He usually only performed it in the mornings, right after he came out for his daily stroll.

In the afternoons, he was usually fast asleep and never in this good of a mood.

’This alone was worth the price of admission.’

Delighted by the show, Shen Xin played along, applauding and cheering.

This made Meng Lan even more excited. He shifted his position in the tree, propping himself up with one arm and one leg, craning his neck and calling out.

Even Ma Tao was stunned. "I’ve really never seen Meng Lan this worked up before," he said in disbelief.

After finishing his "kung fu" demonstration, Meng Lan nimbly scrambled back down and immediately returned to hugging Shen Xin’s leg, as if to say, ’See? Aren’t I awesome?’

"Officer Shen, this Meng Lan and you..." Ma Tao clicked his tongue in wonder.

He had been worried that dropping two new people in so suddenly would cause problems, but now it seemed there was no issue at all.

For the rest of their time there, Meng Lan stubbornly clung to Shen Xin.

When his regular keeper, Xu Haisheng, arrived and saw Meng Lan rolling around playfully in front of Shen Xin, he was completely dumbfounded.

"Old Xu, looks like you’ve got some competition," Ma Tao said, clapping Xu Haisheng on the shoulder with a grin.

Xu Haisheng had worked at the zoo for many years. He was a conservation keeper who had cared for every single panda in the entire zoo and knew them all inside and out.

He waved his hand. "What competition? I’m just happy to see him like this. I’ve never seen Meng Lan so happy before. Isn’t he a police officer, though?"

Ma Tao shrugged. "Who knows why."

In any case, it was clear that having Shen Xin guest-star as a keeper wasn’t going to be a problem at all.

Shen Xin wanted to go see the other pandas, but Meng Lan was so attached to him that he never got the chance.

He was still stuck to Shen Xin’s side right up until the zoo closed.

’The goodwill meter even shot up another two bars.’

’He’s a smart one, so it’s not surprising his goodwill rose so quickly.’

The only problem was that Shen Xin’s target was Walnut, not Meng Lan.

It wasn’t until Meng Lan had finally played himself out and returned to his den to rest that Shen Xin was able to slip away.

He went to check on Walnut again.

As always, the panda didn’t even give Shen Xin a second glance.

’Nothing for it, then. I’ll just have to put in more effort on my end.’

The zoo opened at 7:30 a.m., so the staff had to be there before 7:00 to prepare for the day.

After handing out the gifts he’d brought in the car to the other keepers, Shen Xin returned to his hotel to rest.

He made his customary video call to the team in Wudu to check on their progress.

Yang Zeran still hadn’t gotten off work. He stretched and said, "Don’t even ask. It feels like this footage is endless."

Then he asked how things were going on Shen Xin’s end.

Shen Xin chuckled. "What do you think? I just finished playing with a giant panda. Seriously, they’re unbelievably cute. I’ll send you a video in a bit."

Yang Zeran grumbled resentfully under his breath.

’My eyes are killing me from staring at this screen, and what’s Shen Xin doing? Staying in a luxury hotel, getting chauffeured everywhere, playing with a national treasure, and he’s even got his girlfriend with him.’

’The difference in our assignments is just too damn big.’

Shen Xin didn’t rub it in any further, just reminded him to get off work on time and get some rest.

"This case is years old, so there’s no need to rush. You guys should just clock out on time and take it slow. It’s probably going to take me a while over here anyway."

’Given the situation with Walnut, this is going to be a long haul.’