Judging from Hah'Er's reaction, the dish Shen Yibin cooked this time was indeed a bit better than the last. Hah'Er polished off the entire bowl of twice-cooked pork until it was sparkling clean. Of course, this didn't rule out the possibility that Hah'Er was just starving, having only had fruit and snacks to tide him over since the morning.
However, after they finished eating and he had cleaned up the kitchen, Shen Yibin opened his phone to check the data. His and Hah'Er's affinity level was still stuck at 79 points, with no change at all.
'Sigh, I knew it wouldn't be this easy.' Shen Yibin put down his phone, frustrated. 'There's still a little time. I'll have to work hard these next two days! If there's still no change tomorrow, I'm closing the shop for the day to properly practice my cooking.'
Even though his shop had just opened and it wasn't a good time to be so inconsistent with his hours, he had no choice. If he couldn't raise the affinity level to 80 or higher and meet the purchasing requirement, Shen Yibin would be picking up the soap in prison by the time Hah'Er was exposed. Compared to that, his current business was hardly a priority.
"Hah'Er! Come on, let's go downstairs and exercise!" 'I've had him cooped up in the bedroom all day; it's about time I let him out for some air. I wonder when I'll finally be able to take this little guy outside without having to hide.'
"Nn! Nn!" Hah'Er responded excitedly. It seemed he was really feeling stir-crazy. His short little legs scurried a couple of times before he padded over to Shen Yibin and hugged his calf.
"Sigh, it'll be okay in a few days. You won't have to hide in the bedroom all the time!" Seeing the little guy's excitement, Shen Yibin's heart ached for him. He patted his head and led him downstairs, with Hah'Er still clinging to his leg.
The two of them exercised for a while. The pets in the cages seemed a bit envious and started MEOWING and WOOFING, as if they also wanted to come out and stretch their legs.
'They were so well-behaved when Hah'Er was feeding them earlier. It should be fine to let them out with Hah'Er watching them, right?' Shen Yibin scanned the shop's doors and windows. Seeing that they were all shut tight and secure, he lifted Hah'Er down from his back. "Hah'Er, what do you say? Should we let them out to play with you for a while?"
"Nn! Nn!" Hah'Er tilted his chin and thought for a moment, then nodded his head frantically, as if afraid Shen Yibin would refuse. It looked like he wanted to play with them too.
"Okay, you know how to open the cages anyway, so go ahead and do it yourself!" Shen Yibin climbed onto the sofa and reclined. He had gotten up at the crack of dawn to get things done, and he was indeed a bit tired.
Hah'Er's eyes darted from Shen Yibin to the pet cages, as if hesitating whether to give Shen Yibin a massage first or to let the pets out first.
"I'll be fine after lying down for a bit. You go play with them!" 'Even though I'm tired, I can't bear to make Hah'Er stay here with me. Better to let him go play and be happy for a while.'
"Nn!" Hah'Er understood what he meant. He moved his four chubby paws and waddled over to the pet cages. First, he made a few "nn nn" sounds, as if saying something to them, then opened the cages one by one.
The Chihuahua, Golden Retriever, Siamese Cat, and Russian Blue didn't just bolt out of the cages and run around wildly. Instead, they stood obediently at the edge of their open doors, like soldiers awaiting Hah'Er's command.
'Holy shit, no way. These guys can understand Hah'Er? Hey, you aren't even the same species! Can Hah'Er really understand so many "foreign" languages?' Shen Yibin was completely floored. 'So besides his culinary skills, Hah'Er has this trick up his sleeve too. He's truly a multi-talented individual from the 22nd century... oh, wait, a multi-talented *bear*!'
"Nn! Nn!" Hah'Er gave a few more commands. The Chihuahua came out first and stood at the very front, then the Siamese Cat, the Russian Blue... and the Golden Retriever stood at the end. The pets lined up in a single row according to their size, from smallest to largest! The Russian Blue in the middle stood in the wrong place, so Hah'Er immediately snorted, then went forward and lifted it into the correct position.
"Nn~" Hah'Er's large head nodded slightly, seeming quite satisfied with their reaction. He then led them in circles in the empty space in the middle of the shop, just like when Shen Yibin ran drills during his freshman year military training.
'Hmm? Military training? I think my old military training uniform is still at the bottom of a chest somewhere!' An idea struck Shen Yibin. Forgetting his exhaustion, he immediately dashed back upstairs, retrieved the military cap, and came back down to put it on Hah'Er.
'Uh, it looks a little small, huh?' Hah'Er wasn't big, but his head wasn't small. The military cap barely managed to hang on his head.
"Private Hah'Er, in light of your excellent performance in preliminary training, you are hereby promoted to Squad Leader!" Shen Yibin spouted this nonsense and raised his right hand in a military salute. 'I was just thinking this little guy could at least be a squad leader, but I never thought he actually had it in him. This is going to save me so much trouble!'
"Nn!" Hah'Er wobbled to his feet on his two hind legs and, copying Shen Yibin, raised his right paw above his black eye patch, as if returning the salute.
'Aaaaaah, no, I can't take it! I absolutely cannot miss this photo! If I posted this on Weibo, it would get millions of shares, no problem! The military might even come looking for this little guy to be their mascot!' Shen Yibin was once again completely overwhelmed by his cuteness. 'He truly is a powerful being, able to conquer the world just by being adorable. You fall for it when you least expect it!'
After a few laps, Hah'Er let them move about freely in the room. The Chihuahua, Golden Retriever, Siamese Cat, and the others finally had their free time and started playing joyfully around the room.
Meanwhile, Hah'Er watched them from the side. Whenever one of them was about to cause trouble, he would let out a huff as a reminder, then waddle over and lift them back from slightly dangerous places like the table or the coffee table to prevent them from knocking over teacups and hurting themselves.
"Nn! Nn!" Hah'Er reached out a paw and patted the Chihuahua's head, then took a piece of dog food from a basket and handed it over, as if praising it for its earlier performance. Among all the animals, this one was the most well-behaved and gave Hah'Er the least trouble.
Seeing that there was food, the other animals all crowded around. Hah'Er would either pat their heads and give them a piece, or huff a couple of times as if criticizing what they did wrong earlier before handing over the food. The animals would hang their heads and respond with a few noises, as if admitting their mistakes.
To avoid dirtying the floor, Hah'Er didn't forget to make them return to their cages before eating. By this time, it was about time to rest. Shen Yibin helped Hah'Er close the cages, said goodbye to the pets, and went back to the second floor, dragging along Hah'Er who was tightly hugging his calf again.
'Sigh, I really hope I can raise the affinity level tomorrow. Then I can take you out to play sooner.'