I raise furry animals and fly them to my motherland.

Chapter 187 The Director's Call
Fox Sibao's round belly growled, and its black grape-like eyes looked pitifully at the vegetable basket in Xu Ying's hand.

[Who's trying to steal some food?]
The fox leader raised his head, but his ears twitched involuntarily. [This young master is merely here to inspect the safety of the vegetable garden!]
While saying this, it secretly hooked the tip of its tail onto a fallen tomato.

Fox Three-Three was elegantly licking its paws when it suddenly noticed its reflection in the bucket: [Oh dear, the sandstorm today has messed up my fur!]
It immediately began to groom the downy fur around its ears with its paws.

Fox Xiao Wu hopped right to Xu Ying's feet and rubbed affectionately against her boots: [Sister Xu, you look so pretty today~]
Its big, watery eyes were fixed on the spinach in the basket.

"I need to treat myself today."

Xu Ying smiled, bent down, and patted the heads of the five little foxes one by one before putting the vegetables into the basket.

She deliberately went around to a corner, took out a bunch of lamb skewers from a small refrigerator, and bought them directly from a fellow villager in Dongqing Village who raised sheep. The portions were generous, the quality was good, and the price was reasonable.

Fox Sibao's nose twitched immediately, and saliva dripped onto the ground with a "plop".

Fox Erniu quickly covered its mouth with his paw: "Mind your manners!"

In the makeshift kitchen of the rescue station, Xu Ying deftly prepared the ingredients.

Five little foxes sat neatly on the windowsill, watching.

When the cleaver made a crisp sound on the cutting board, Little Fox shrank back in fear and was disdainfully swept away by Boss Fox's tail.

"That Liu Kai guy, he must be starving by now, planting trees."

Xu Ying's lips curled into a sly smile.

The moment the garlic started to sizzle and release its aroma, Fox Si Bao couldn't help but let out a "woof," only to have his mouth covered by Fox Er Niu's paw.

As Xu Ying packed the stir-fried garlic spinach into a thermos, she deliberately left a small bowl of spinach without garlic on the windowsill: "Would some of you little gluttons like to try some?"

Garlic contains compounds such as disulfides, which may cause hemolytic anemia in pets such as cats and dogs. Foxes are canines, and their body structure is similar to that of dogs, so Xu Ying could only let the fox cubs smell the garlic.

The five balls of fur immediately huddled together.

The eldest fox, feigning composure, strolled over: [Since you're so sincerely requesting this...]
Before he could finish speaking, he was shoved aside by Fox Four.

The old fox was furious and his fur bristled: [Sibao, you big gluttonous fox!]
Fox Sibao couldn't hear anything; his head was already buried in the bowl.

The other four little ones quickly gathered around.

The five little foxes licked the bowl until it shone brightly.

The desert evening breeze carried dry heat as Xu Ying carried a sumptuous dinner toward the tree planting area.

Behind them followed a string of little tails—Fox Boss walked at the front with his head held high, Fox Two Bulls vigilantly surveyed the surroundings, Fox Three Three occasionally stopped to tidy his fur that had been ruffled by the wind, Fox Four Bao's nose kept following the aroma of the food box, and Fox Little Five followed closely behind Xu Ying's trouser leg.

From afar, Xu Ying could see Liu Kai bending over and digging a hole.

Hearing footsteps, he didn't even look up, his tone sarcastic: "The stationmaster's here to check the progress again?"

"I'm not here to inspect."

As soon as Xu Ying finished speaking, Hu Sibao darted to Liu Kai's feet and stared longingly at the food box.

When Liu Kai looked up, he saw five little foxes surrounding Xu Ying.

Fox Boss sat upright on Xu Ying's left shoulder, looking like he was "this is my territory"; Fox Erniu squatted on the right like a little guard; Fox Sansan was still admiring himself; Fox Sibao was already anxiously pacing around; and Fox Xiaowu took the opportunity to sneak into Xu Ying's coat pocket.

"Is this for me?" Liu Kai stared longingly at the food box.

Xu Ying smiled but did not answer, unfolded the folding chair and sat down.

When she opened the food box, five pairs of fox eyes and one pair of human eyes lit up at the same time.

The aroma of lamb skewers made Fox Sibao stand on its hind legs, its front paws gripping Xu Ying's knees.

"Gudong"

—This time, six swallows rang out at once. When Xu Ying took her first bite of mutton, the aroma of fat wafted out, making her feel both fragrant and numbing.

Fox Si let out a "woof" and collapsed to the ground. The eldest fox slapped it with its tail in disgust: [Disgraceful!]
But she couldn't help but secretly swallow her saliva.

"Um, Station Chief Xu."

Liu Kai was practically drooling with envy and pleaded, "Can't you give me a piece?"

"Oh?" Xu Ying said slowly, "I remember someone saying that growing vegetables here is a pipe dream?"

Liu Kai's face flushed bright red.

These were the stupid things he said three months ago when he first came to Xu Ying's rescue station. Later, he even bet with Xu Ying that her vegetable garden wouldn't survive for more than a month.

As a result, a modern indoor farm was built right next to Xu Ying's rescue station, and she didn't even have to pay for it herself. I'm so envious.

"Isn't it okay that I was wrong?"

Liu Kai watched longingly as Xu Ying picked up a piece of spinach with her chopsticks, "Your spinach looks really good."

Xu Ying put the spinach in her mouth and chewed it exaggeratedly: "Mmm, it's so tender and sweet, completely unlike what some people say about 'vegetables grown in the desert being bitter and astringent'."

Liu Kai's shoulders slumped; he was so hungry he could cry!
He dragged himself back to his backpack, pulled out a hard, dry naan bread, and pitifully took a bite.

Crumbs of naan bread fell down in a flurry, and he swallowed them along with the sand.

Xu Ying glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, secretly amused, but deliberately slowed down her eating.

She picked up a slice of tomato, letting the syrup glisten in the sunlight: "This tomato is a new variety improved by Professor Feng's company; it's especially sweet."

"It's a pity that some people look down on what a whimsical person like me is planting in the desert."

Liu Kai simply couldn't resist the temptation of the delicious food and had lost all his strength and ability.

He suddenly strode over, squatted down in front of Xu Ying, and clasped his hands together, saying, "Station Chief Xu, Mr. Xu, I sincerely admit my mistake."

"It's my ignorance that's the problem. Please don't hold it against me. Considering how hard I've worked planting these trees, please treat me to a meal! I beg you!"

"As the saying goes, if you want a horse to run, you have to feed it. If I'm well-fed, I can plant trees faster, right?"

Xu Ying stroked his chin, pretending to be deep in thought: "That makes sense. In that case, I'll charge you fifty yuan for a meal, and you can eat out to improve your life."

Liu Kai: ...

What a pit!

How heartless!
"I've transferred fifty yuan to you. When will I be able to eat it?"

Liu Kai held his phone, his eyes filled with humility and longing.

Xu Ying got up, stretched, and prepared a meal for Liu Kai that included both meat and vegetables.

Liu Kai ate the food as soon as he got it, as if he hadn't eaten a hot meal in ages, his speed was astonishing.

Liu Kai owes Xu Ying two thousand trees, so every weekend he has to come to Xu Ying's place to plant trees, effectively becoming the second employee of the 032 Rescue Station.

It also cured him of his habit of speaking ill of Xu Ying, and he is now very well-behaved towards Xu Ying.

He could pay to eat at Xu Ying's place every week, and the delicious food made up for his resentment.

One week later, Xu Ying received a call from the production team of the "Rules of Survival in the Desert" program.

"Hello, is this Station Master Xu?"

"I am Shao Zhihao, the director of 'Rules of Survival in the Desert'."

"We're calling today to inform you..."