I raise furry animals and fly them to my motherland.

Chapter 305 Emerald in the Lizard
[I'm dying of laughter, I've captured 20 screenshots of Station Master Xu holding his breath like that]

[Marmot: Just let me die.jpg]

I could practically smell it through the screen; my mom asked me why I was holding my nose while watching TV.

The scene of Su Zhining dry heaving in the corner cracked me up.

Su Zhining stood in the corner with a look of disgust. Xu Ying waved the toothbrush in her hand: "Little Su, if you don't participate in the adventure of brushing the marmot's teeth, you'll have to draw another adventure challenge card."

Su Zhining's fingers trembled slightly as she reluctantly moved to the examination table, holding the toothbrush. The marmot gripped the edge of the table nervously, its dark eyes fixed on her.

"Relax your wrist and gently brush from the gums towards the tips of your teeth," Xu Ying patiently instructed from the side.

When the toothbrush first touched the marmot's large incisors, the little guy instinctively shrank its neck. But soon, it discovered that the human's touch was unexpectedly gentle—

"what?"

Su Zhining suddenly noticed that, with her movements, the marmot's originally yellowish incisors were becoming white and translucent at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The little guy squinted his eyes comfortably, his two front paws unconsciously holding the toothbrush handle, and he moved his head from side to side as if he were holding his favorite nut.

"Pfft!" Su Zhining couldn't help but burst out laughing. The marmot at this moment looked nothing like a "biological weapon"—

The fluffy bristles jiggled with each brushing motion, and the pink little tongue would occasionally peek out to lick the toothpaste foam, just like a child enjoying a spa treatment.

When the brush reached a particularly comfortable spot, the marmot even made a satisfied "gurgling" sound, and its round body unconsciously rubbed against Su Zhining's palm.

Su Zhining froze—even through the gloves, she could feel the marmot's furry belly rising and falling with its breath, and the warm temperature was transmitted to her fingertips through the latex gloves.

The little guy even nuzzled her wrist affectionately with his head, the soft fur brushing against her skin and bringing a subtle ticklish sensation.

"!"

She opened her eyes wide in surprise. The feeling of being completely trusted by the little animal was like a warm current, unexpectedly dispelling all her dislike.

"It seems..." Su Zhining's voice unconsciously softened, and her movements with the toothbrush became gentler. "It's not that bad."

Xu Ying leaned against the sterilizer, a knowing smile playing on her lips: "Hmm, I also think you're not so annoying after all."

"..." Su Zhining suddenly stopped, her face turning deathly pale. She slowly raised her head, her eyes filled with disbelief: "Xu Ying, what do you mean?! I'm naturally very likable!"

Xu Ying shrugged noncommittally.

Lu Jinyu's chosen adventure was to select one of three "horror boxes" containing unknown items, and then take all the items out of the box and take a one-minute photo together.

Lu Jinyu, relying on his own judgment, chose the terrifying box on the right.

"Now, challengers, please put your hand into the mystery box—"

The assistant director's voice trembled as if he was trying to suppress a laugh.

Lu Jinyu got goosebumps when he heard the assistant director's laughter.

He stood before the pitch-black, terrifying box, his Adam's apple bobbing involuntarily. The black cloth hanging from the box's opening completely concealed the interior, with only a faint rustling sound audible.

His fingers hovered over the box opening, and the hand speed that e-sports players are so proud of was trembling slightly at this moment.

"It's not some living thing, is it..." he muttered to himself, the tips of his ears beneath his red, tousled hair already turning slightly white. "My hand is still in the game, I don't want it to get injured!"

When his fingertips finally slipped into the box—the icy touch made him jerkly pull his hand back, only to hear the production crew booing him. Lu Jinyu gritted his teeth, his entire arm disappearing into the darkness.

An unknown fear spread through the box—something cold suddenly brushed against his wrist, a rustling scraping sound came from the bottom of the box, and he could vaguely feel the warmth of a living creature. Lu Jinyu's neck tensed instantly, and his fingers froze in mid-air.

"What is it?!"

Suddenly, a slippery creature spiraled up his forearm, the rubbing of its scales sending chills down Lu Jinyu's spine. He jerked his arm away—

A giant lizard, about the size of a palm, suddenly darted out like lightning.

A cool, slippery sensation rapidly rose up his arm, quickly settling on his shoulder. The emerald scales, set against Lu Jinyu's fiery red hair, were dazzlingly vibrant.

(Lizard illustration warning! Skip if you're scared~)

My phone flew out of my hand when I pulled it away just now.

Wow, this lizard is so green, like jade!

[Red and green clash terribly! The production team understands color theory.]

Lu Jinyu's shoulder had become an animal display stand.

Lu Jinyu sensed the presence of the swift lizard, which even extended its long tongue to touch Lu Jinyu's face.

Lu Jinyu was almost in tears! He didn't dare to move, as the program's cameramen were taking close-up shots of him.

His voice trembled: "Director, is the one minute up?"

Lu Jinyu finally breathed a sigh of relief when the assistant director finished the countdown; that minute felt like an eternity.

Xu Ying gently lifted the lizard's emerald green body, and the little creature lay obediently in her palm, sunlight refracting through its scales to create a jewel-like luster.

"This is a jaguar, which is widely distributed in Europe, but in my country it has only been found in Xizhou Province. It is a national 'three-protected' animal." She lightly touched the reticulated pattern on the lizard's back with her fingertip. "They are guardians of the grasslands. Every 7 locusts they eat can protect 1 square meter of grassland."

Xu Ying let it climb onto his shoulder. "Last year, when the forestry police raided a poaching den, they found it stuffed inside a mineral water bottle. The survival rate of illegally captured lizards in captivity is less than 20%," he said.

She gently stroked the lizard's scales, "They are extremely dependent on native vegetation, and it is very difficult for these rescued individuals to return to the wild."

The lizard seemed to understand and nuzzled her cheek. Xu Ying's eyes softened: "Now it's the science ambassador for the county primary school, and the children call it 'Emerald.' Remember, no wild animal should ever become our plaything."

Netizens couldn't help but feel regretful, but when Lu Jinyu heard that this lizard was actually a "little guardian of the grasslands," he suddenly felt that the bright green lizard wasn't so scary after all. He shook his head and said, "Humans are still scarier."

When it was Jia Yao's turn to draw the Adventure Challenge, he discovered that his Adventure Challenge card box was different from the ones of the first three teammates.

Jia Yao stared at the eye-catching red card box in front of him. The three big characters "Arctic Man" on the box surface shone brightly in the snow, and next to it was a polar bear wearing the same thermal underwear giving a thumbs up.

"What's going on?!"

Jia Yao's voice cracked, filled with despair.

Are the advertisers really that quick?!

The assistant director, suppressing a laugh, explained, "Your agent just negotiated an endorsement deal with a national brand!"

(End of this chapter)