The black bear was furious.
Is this for you? You dare to eat it!
Hahaha, look at that little black bear next to it. It’s completely stunned.
Little black bear: If another fish is thrown down in a moment, should I eat it or not?
The bears in the zoo seemed to have a clear hierarchy, most likely formed over time.
They stood in a horizontal row.
The black bear at the front, waving its paw, was obviously much larger than the others.
“Don’t fight, don’t fight. There’s enough for everyone.”
Wen Youning spoke while throwing fish down.
The zoo’s food supply seemed good.
Just by looking at how sleek and well-fed these bears were, one could tell.
But then again who would refuse a delicious extra serving of fresh fish?
“Roar!” The black bear let go of the brown bear it was fighting over food with and grabbed a fish for itself.
Eating fish seemed no different from eating soft cotton candy for the black bear.
The fish bones weren’t as hard as they would be after cooking.
With a single bite, the bear stuffed its mouth full of fish and bones.
The fish had just been scooped from the garden pond and placed in a box lined with ice to keep it fresh.
Eating a cold, fresh fish on a hot day was as satisfying as eating an ice pop under the sun.
The black bear held the fish between its front paws, taking one bite after another.
There was enough fish for everyone, so there was no conflict.
Each bear focused on eating its own share.
For a moment, the earlier growls were replaced by the sounds of chewing.
Wen Youning took off her gloves and leaned against the railing in front of her, looking down.
“They’re eating so happily.”
Qian Nuo arrived, bringing along a man in a zookeeper’s uniform.
“Hello, you must be Teacher Wen.”
“Hello,” Wen Youning responded.
“This is Chen Feng, the administrator and keeper of Xionglin (Bear Ridge),” Qian Nuo said with a smile.
“I told him that we wanted to ask the black bears some questions, and he got curious, so he came with me.”
Then, she leaned in close to Wen Youning and whispered, “Mainly, he’s worried we might harm the bears.”
She rolled her eyes, feeling it was unnecessary.
“He’s a bit, uh, skeptical about the whole ‘reading animal thoughts’ thing. He’s afraid something might happen.
After all, these are captive bears, not as fierce as wild ones.
But… if we’re talking about who should be more worried in a close-up conversation, I think he’s got it backward.”
The real danger was the bears, not them.
After all, these were black bears. Even through a glass barrier, seeing one lunge at you could make your heart stop.
Chen Feng glanced at the fish box before stepping forward and leaning against the railing.
“Have you already started questioning them? Do you need to go inside? The bears’ resting area is quieter.”
The zoo had indoor and outdoor enclosures for visitors to observe the bears.
But the resting area was private territory, strictly off-limits to guests.
Wen Youning said, “No need to trouble yourself.
A simple chat here is fine.”
“Roar, grr…”
A brown bear, chewing its fish, tilted its head upward, glancing at them.
‘Talk, talk…’
The black bear agilely moved closer and gently pushed it aside with its paw.
‘Move over!’
‘Let the bear talk!’
The brown bear stumbled backward into a cooling pool in front of it.
It stood up, shook its head, smacked its lips only to realize that half of its fish was gone.
“Roar!”
Fish!
Without a second thought, it dove into the pool, searching for the half-eaten fish tail.
The guilty black bear patted its belly, looking innocent and honest as it called out to Wen Youning.
“Roar!”
“Alright, I’ll ask you.”
Wen Youning said, “Have you noticed any unfamiliar people in Xionglin recently? At night, inside the enclosure.
Tourists don’t count.”
There were surveillance cameras in the visitor areas, and the egg thief had clearly avoided them.
Chen Feng: “…?”
“Sorry to interrupt,” Chen Feng said politely, smiling.
“This is Xionglin.
Even though these bears are raised in a zoo, their instincts aren’t gone.
We occasionally release live prey for them to practice hunting, so…”
Even if a thief or criminal broke into the zoo, they wouldn’t be dumb enough to run into Xionglin.
Bears might look clumsy and cute, but a single swipe of their paw could crush a human’s skull.
Even if, by some miracle, the zoo’s bears were as tame as kittens,
being surrounded by so many black bears each taking a bite would still be fatal.
Who would be crazy enough to risk their life running into a bear enclosure?
“ROAR!”
Chen Feng was still explaining when something dark flashed in the corner of his eye.
Before he could react, something cold and wet smacked him right in the face.
Frowning, he peeled it off.
It was a small piece of fish tail.
“…?”
He looked down straight into the glaring eyes of an angry black bear.
Seeing him look down, the black bear took a step forward, raising its voice in a loud growl.
” ROAR!”
Did I ask you to speak?! Shut up!!
If you’re sorry, then don’t do it again!
Hahaha, first the brown bear stole its fish, then the zookeeper stole its conversation.
Poor bear!
Qian Nuo suppressed her laughter and handed Chen Feng a tissue.
Chen Feng accepted it, wiping his face absentmindedly.
He had fed these bears for so long that he could more or less guess what the black bear meant.
Especially now, when its emotions were so obvious.
“It seems to like you quite a bit,” Chen Feng remarked.
Bears had good memories.
They often remembered familiar visitors.
Chen Feng figured the black bear had a strong impression of her, probably because of food.
The black bear, having scolded Chen Feng, licked its nose and turned back.
‘You talk.’
Chen Feng: “?”
Look at you, acting all important.
Wen Youning cleared her throat and rephrased her question.
“Have you smelled the scent of bird eggs?”
If she asked about mute swan eggs directly, the bear might not understand.
But if she mentioned “bird eggs,” it would likely get it.
Wild black bears sometimes raided nests for eggs, after all.
The black bear tilted its head, its half-moon-shaped ears twitching.
It chewed on its paw, eyes unblinking, seemingly deep in thought.
The brown bear, meanwhile, had rescued its half-eaten fish from the water.
It lay on the shore, casually kicking its back legs in the sun as it ate.
Silence filled the air.
Chen Feng held his breath, waiting for an answer.
But standing with his back to the sun for so long, he felt nothing but heat.
His initial doubts only deepened.
“Alright, alright, there’s no one hiding in Xionglin,” Chen Feng finally said, fanning himself with his hand.
“As for your swan eggs, maybe ask another staff member.”
There was no way a thief had passed through here.
Just then, the long-silent black bear suddenly got up.
It licked its paws, turned, and ran toward the back of the enclosure.
“Hey… where’s the black bear going?” Qian Nuo asked.
“Let’s wait and see,” Wen Youning replied, unsure.
A moment later, the black bear came running back on three legs, holding something carefully in its front paw.
Then, it stood up, running clumsily on its hind legs.
Raising its paw high, it presented its treasure.
“ROAR!”
‘Bird egg!’
‘I give it to you!’
!!!
Wait, could it be ?!
That really looks like a mute swan egg! They found it!
The black bear obediently held the goose egg and ran over with small, careful steps.
Qian Nuo was a step behind but quickly followed, “Are we going straight down? Brother Chen, you’ve been dealing with the black bear for so long.
You must have developed some feelings for it.
Do you dare to directly wrestle with the black bear?”
Chen Feng: “…”
I just work here to earn a stable salary, and now you want me to risk my life?
“That’s a black bear, not a cat or dog.
Even cats and dogs can suddenly turn and bite you, let alone a black bear.”
Chen Feng was speechless.
Could they at least show some respect for the black bear?
Could they at least acknowledge the lethal power of a black bear?
A wild beast that mimics human walking to lower their guard before pouncing and eating them.
Smart, highly intelligent, and extremely aggressive.
Chen Feng had been dealing with black bears for many years and knew better than anyone how ferocious they were beneath their seemingly clumsy and honest exterior.
While calling to arrange for all the bears in the bear ridge to be lured indoors, he tried to persuade Wen You Ning, “We’re still not sure if it’s a goose egg.
Don’t rush.
Besides, we don’t even know how long the egg has been down there, so there’s no need to hurry.”
An unhatched goose egg is essentially a dead egg.
Even if it were cracked and picked up, it wouldn’t matter much.
So why couldn’t they just wait a little longer until the bears were moved inside?
Wen You Ning followed the directional signs hanging in the staff passage, walking briskly.
“If we get the egg into the incubator in time, there’s still a chance it might hatch.”
Chen Feng: “Huh?”
“What?” Qian Nuo quickened her pace.
“Is that true, Teacher Wen? Can it really hatch?”
At that moment, she didn’t even have time to question how Wen You Ning knew that.
Her mind was solely focused on one thing this egg could still be saved!
When she realized the egg had been lost, Qian Nuo felt so guilty that her heart clenched.
It was her negligence at work.
Even though she desperately hoped to retrieve the egg, she understood deep down that a goose egg left outside its nest for so long was likely dead.
She had already prepared to resign in guilt once the situation was resolved, but unexpectedly, there was still hope.
[Did I just hear that correctly?! Is there really a chance for it to hatch?!]
[Crying… If Teacher Wen says it can hatch, I believe her.]
[Uh, I don’t mean to be rude, but if you understand how goose egg incubation works, you’d know this egg has almost no chance of survival.]
[Trusting the streamer is fine, but don’t be blindly optimistic.]
…
Chen Feng sighed as he looked at Qian Nuo’s tearful eyes.
“She’s just trying to comfort you.
Don’t believe everything so easily.”
But Qian Nuo wasn’t listening.
To her, Wen You Ning was like an all-knowing deity whatever she said was true!
There were two iron doors in the corridor leading to the small exit.
From the heavy, muffled sound when opening them, it was clear they weren’t light.
Fortunately, Chen Feng was there.
As the highest authority in Bear Ridge, he had clearance to open all these doors.
“Don’t open the door just yet.
Xiao Nuo, put the key down.”
Chen Feng hadn’t been paying close attention, and Qian Nuo had already unlocked the first door.
“We’re going in anyway.
What difference does it make if we go in sooner or later?” Qian Nuo waved dismissively.
“The door takes time to open.
We might as well go in and wait.”
The empty hallway was suddenly filled with the sharp crackling of static from a walkie-talkie, followed by a colleague’s urgent voice: “Brother Chen! We have a problem! Ri Yue is standing guard by the small door and won’t leave, not even for fresh meat!”