Chapter 656: Brown Sugar and Hawthorn

"After work, after work!"

At the Monkey Pavilion, Lu Jiamu glanced at the drizzling sky and blew a whistle towards the activity area, calling out, "Chirp~"

The monkeys, upon hearing the command, joyfully shouted and ran towards the open back room of the pavilion.

Some monkeys leaped on tree branches, some swung on ropes, some swam out of the water, some jumped on rocks, some ran on the lawn, displaying their agility.

Some monkeys squatted in place, calling out to familiar companions, waiting for them to come before leaving together.

Clinging to the tree trunk, their claws moved smoothly as they descended as if sliding down a smooth iron pole. They then leaped to the wall of the back room and landed gracefully on the ground.

Some monkeys, eager to reach the ground, jumped from a height of two to three meters, landing forcefully on the grass. Rolling on the ground, they hurried into the back room, looking as if their bottoms were on fire.

One by one, the monkeys descended from the trees like dumplings, flowing into the back room like water.

Unfortunately, such an amusing scene could only be seen when the zoo was closed.

Lan Li stirred the pot, adding dried red chili and star anise, continuing to sauté.

Under high heat, the rice field duck absorbed the natural essence, and its well-exercised meat gradually took on an enticing brown color, resembling the beautiful fur of a fox.

A splash of soy sauce for color, the cap of a beer bottle was pried open, and the light yellow, malty aroma of the beer flowed into the pot. White steam rose from the pot.

Lan Li then added fresh red and green chili slices and scallions into the pot, stirring to ensure the duck meat was immersed in the sauce.

She gently fanned the aroma towards her and showed a blissful expression. "Hmm, it smells so good!"

Covering the pot and reducing the heat, she washed her hands and turned around with a sweet smile. "It should be ready in about 20 minutes!"

Fang Ye picked up Hua Hua and cleared a space for Lan Li to sit, saying, "I can already smell the fragrance!"

Hua Hua tilted his head, frowned, shook his head, and walked away in a leisurely manner.

After a while, the beer duck was ready!

Lan Li uncovered the pot, and a rich aroma of duck meat wafted out. After thickening the sauce slightly, she plated the dish.

The golden-brown and shiny duck meat, paired with the vibrant red and green chili, looked appetizing.

While Lan Li was finishing the dish, Fang Ye took out bowls and chopsticks, scooping up steaming white rice from the rice cooker.

Sitting at the dining table in the living room, they exchanged smiles.

Picking up a piece of duck meat, Fang Ye tasted it and gave a thumbs up. "Mmm, delicious!"

On a rainy day with a pleasant temperature, enjoying a delicious beer duck and fragrant white rice with a loved one, watching the drizzling rain outside, was relaxing and enjoyable.

After a busy day, taking the time to enjoy life's pleasures was truly fulfilling.

However, in the hustle and bustle of city life, people rarely had the time to relax and savor such moments of leisure.

...

In the early morning, Fang Ye opened the window, taking a deep breath of the fresh post-rain air, smiling. "Lovely!"

After breakfast with Lan Li, they prepared to visit Red Bean and the two cubs.

They arrived at the Red Panda Pavilion!

In the back room, Red Bean was leisurely walking on the perch.

As the cubs grew older, they didn't need to be by their mother's side all the time, and they spent more time outside. Otherwise, staying in the nest box all the time would be stifling.

The back room's door was open, and every day, Red Bean would go out to the activity area, even allowing Chestnut to come over for friendly interactions.

Unlike when she was close to giving birth, she would retreat into hiding when Chestnut approached.

Seeing Fang Ye, Red Bean ran over happily and hugged his leg.

"Director, did you bring me an apple?"

Fang Ye patted Red Bean's head and smiled. "You look lively!"

In the nesting box, the two cubs were lying on the grassy nest, sound asleep!

When they were born, each weighed around 120-130 grams, resembling small mice. Now, at one month old, they weighed around 250 grams, doubling in weight, showing rapid growth.

Not only did their weight increase, but the color of their fur also started to change.

The fur on their limbs turned black, their backs remained light gray, their heads and tails turned brown.

Red fur was not yet prominent, unlike the beautiful reddish-brown fur of adult red pandas.

Fang Ye smiled, gently poking the cubs.

Curled up, their noses, paws, and tails pressed together, resembling round little balls, sleeping soundly.

Seeing they were still asleep and unmoving, he gently scratched them.

The two cubs had already been named. This one was called Brown Sugar, and the other, with an angry expression, was named Hawthorn.

Hawthorn was sweet and sour, delicious but could make one's face scrunch up from the sourness.

Brown Sugar opened its eyes drowsily, mouth slightly open, looking sleepy and not fully awake!

Red Panda cubs could slightly open their eyes around three weeks old, and in another three days, they could fully open their eyes.

Seeing Fang Ye, the watery black eyes of Brown Sugar blinked, and it slowly moved its body.

Raising its bottom, taking a wobbly step with its hind leg, it tilted to the side and lay back on the hay.

Fang Ye chuckled, beckoning with his finger. "Come here, come here!"

Staring blankly at him, Brown Sugar stuck out its pink tongue and continued to crawl forward.

"So obedient!"

After feeding Brown Sugar with the protective potion, Fang Ye put it down. 

Hawthorn, on the other hand, pouted, looking unhappy, as if woken up from sleep, displaying a grumpy expression.

Every time Fang Ye saw Hawthorn's unique facial expressions, he couldn't help but smile!

After giving it a bit of the protective potion, he set it down.

Brown Sugar lingered by the bamboo, looking somewhat unsatisfied, nibbling on a bamboo leaf.

Bamboo was Red Bean's food!

At this age, the cubs' teeth had not yet grown, so they imitated their parents by playing with and gnawing on the bamboo, but they weren't actually eating it.

They would be able to eat bamboo leaves at around two months old.