After returning from the cemetery, both great-grandparents took a short rest before going to visit old friends. They had quite a number of old friends in Qi'an City. A gathering was in order since they had come all this way.
Great-grandfather Fang had wanted to spend more time with Fang Zhao but didn't want to impose and bother his great-grandson. He knew that if the two of them stayed here, Fang Zhao would surely spare no effort to look after them. Besides, Fang Zhao would be leaving Yanzhou and heading to Huangzhou tomorrow morning, so he needed ample rest. Great-grandfather Fang would let Fang Zhao spend some time in Yanbei's retirement facility after he graduated from his advanced studies instead.
Great-grandfather Fang was satisfied after taking a few more photographs. He took quite a few more this time around so he could flaunt them within his circle of friends.
Fang Zhao got Yan Biao to drive the two elders around.
During his quarantine period on Whale Island, Fang Zhao had given Zuo Yu and Yan Biao some time off. Both of them had spent Memorial Day back with their families, so they didn't need additional leave upon returning to Yanzhou.
Zuo Yu was sorting out things.
"Boss, should these gaming helmets be placed in the cabinet or…" Zuo Yu looked towards Fang Zhao with a slightly awkward expression.
There were three new gaming helmets. The first had been given by Fiery Bird when he had been at Fiery Bird's Yanzhou Branch the previous day. It was considered a late New Year's gift. It was a limited edition, so it had some collector's value.
The second was a present given to Fang Zhao by everyone in Silver Wing Media's professional gaming team. This was a prize they had won for a challenge match last year. There were only two of these helmets worldwide. The only one in Yanzhou belonged to Fang Zhao. On it were the autographs of everyone in the team sending their regards.
The third gaming helmet was a gift that many of Fang Zhao's gaming fans had chipped in to buy. It had been sent directly to Silver Wing, and Fang Zhao had received it when he had gone to the company. Accompanying the helmet was a handwritten letter which contained the fans' hope of seeing Fang Zhao return to competitive gaming. It was signed by over a hundred fans. This was only the paper copy. In the email version, the number of signatures had hit more than 10,000 and was still increasing.
Curly Hair had been fixated on this third gaming helmet ever since Fang Zhao had brought it home. Now, Curly Hair wanted to bite this helmet and hide it in his own little storage space. This put Zuo Yu in a difficult spot. Curly Hair's storage space really wasn't big, and it wasn't convenient to store things there. Furthermore, it wouldn't be good if this sort of commemorative edition gaming helmet was scratched or damaged. Thus, Zuo Yu hadn't let Curly Hair bite and drag it away, so Curly Hair was now staring at Zuo Yu and baring his fangs.
Fang Zhao saw the situation and said, "Place it in the cabinet." At the same time, he flashed Curly Hair a warning glance.
Curly Hair whimpered.
"That's right. This sort of precious gift should be placed in the cabinet where it can be displayed and be safely guarded against theft. If any item on the display cabinet is removed, it will show on your personal terminal." Zuo Yu pointed at its electronic screen. The screen displayed the number of items in the cabinet as well as the temperature and humidity levels.
After carefully placing the gaming helmet in the display cabinet, Zuo Yu turned his head and realized that Curly Hair was lying at the side with his head raised, staring at the display cabinet.
Why did it seem like… this dog's eyes were glowing even brighter when staring at this gaming helmet than when looking at a bone?
Could his belly be filled just by staring this way?
Zuo Yu scratched his head. He just couldn't understand it. Perhaps that dog had a hobby for collecting stuff?
Little did Zuo Yu know that in Curly Hair's heart, those three gaming helmets belonged to Curly Hair himself. Fang Zhao rarely touched games when he was home. Besides, Fang Zhao's greatest love was still music, and he didn't really like games. In this case, these things would naturally belong to Curly Hair.
Curly Hair only stopped staring at the display cabinet after Zuo Yu left. He wagged his tail as he started to game!
There was still a spare for the gaming helmet that had been brought to HuangArt. Curly Hair spent the whole night playing a new game that Fang Zhao had let him play.
In the morning, Curly Hair was pulled back into reality by a tug on his ears from Fang Zhao. Fang Zhao wasn't going to let him play without rest.
There were still lessons and assignments at HuangArt so Fang Zhao left Yanzhou for Huangzhou after breakfast. Before leaving, Fang Zhao filled up the feeding machine for the aquarium before knocking on the glass wall. "Watch the house properly."
In the aquarium, the "ears" of the soft and flabby "rabbit" were moving in sync with the weak current of the water.
On the same night after Fang Zhao had left, two figures appeared outside Fang Zhao's door.
One of them with fiddling with some sort of apparatus and made a hand gesture.
Beep!
The door was unlocked.
However, the two of them didn't enter immediately and instead looked at the signboard hung above the door——
"Ferocious beasts inside, please keep away unless invited?"
The two exchanged glances and snickered silently before entering quickly.
After confirming that the interior surveillance and alarm systems were disabled, the two unloaded their equipment.
"Easy peasy," the skinnier and more agile of the two said with slight disdain.
"An old building at the top floor. It's not very noticeable," the shorter and stubbier man said as he surveyed the surroundings carefully.
Fang Zhao had purchased this apartment from Xue Jing some time back. Perhaps back then when he had just bought the place, this building's installations could still be considered top-notch. But as the years went by, this place also became an older building. Its hardware installations were already starting to be outdated and had many loopholes that weren't difficult for "professionals" to exploit.
"So Fang Zhao stays here? It doesn't feel like it matches his status." The other person had taken out a miniature camera and was starting to take photos of the interior.
Some of the older buildings in the area had already undergone reconstruction. They had been remodeled to be taller and more beautiful. The building that Fang Zhao stayed in really paled in comparison. It would have been more understandable if a second or third grade celebrity was staying here. However, this place seemed a little unsuitable given the popularity and attention Fang Zhao received.
"It's also good that he stays here. Otherwise, our assignment would be much more difficult."
"Alright, let's start. You take the photographs and I will do the searching."
"What's there to worry about? Fang Zhao has already gone to Huangzhou. There won't be anyone to bother us. Nobody would know even if we spend a night here."
One of them was a professional thief, while the other was an unsavory entertainment reporter. Both of them had some reputation within their own circles as infamy was also a form of fame. The two had collaborated many times and had taken up an assignment from an employer. All they had to do was search Fang Zhao's residence in the night and dig out some of Fang Zhao's secrets. It would be even better if they could find news that could shock the entire world.
"We still have to be cautious. Who knows what other mechanisms might be in place inside."
"Are you talking about the 'ferocious beasts'?" The skinny fellow chortled.
The other person couldn't help but burst out in laughter when he remembered the warning sign above the door. "This Fang Zhao is really humorous."
"Though, that dog really bites people and has great service ability. Aren't Muzhou people extremely proud when talking about dogs? Even if they weren't willing to talk about dogs, they'd still have to admit that that dog is expensive. Fang Zhao really cherishes that dog and brings it everywhere he goes."
"You don't say! I would bring it everywhere I went if I were the owner too! Mind you, it is worth two hundred million!"
After the jokes, the two of them made use of the lighting from an illumination device to roughly scan the ornaments and decorations.
"Isn't Fang Zhao supposed to be very rich? This place feels just so-so."
The place was neither luxurious nor pompous. It even seemed a little simple. The two of them had visited many luxurious residences, and Fang Zhao's furnishings appeared quite poor for a person of his level.
"These sorts of people are the scary ones. You can't tell exactly what sort of person they are and you can't see their preferences."
"Fang Zhao is just a talented celebrity… Should he be called an artist now? Why would such a young artist be targeted?" The ones who had employed them weren't the savory sort. What had Fang Zhao, who dabbled in the artistic circles, done to capture their attention?
Had he gotten in the way of someone?
Whatever. All they cared about was getting the payment for completing this assignment.
Fang Zhao had already brought the dog away, so they didn't have to worry about running into it.
"It wasn't obvious with a quick glance, but when you look carefully, this place has quite a bunch of valuable items!"
The professional thief's eyes were glowing as they swept over an autographed special edition guitar, globally limited edition gaming helmets, an aquarium and others. All of these… would be coming with him later!
"Is this that hybrid sea slug that is valued at eighty million?"
"Currently, it's the entire earth's most expensive pet sea slug. Half of its genes are extraterrestrial. It is said that it lights up if you knock on the glass." The other man that had been taking photos now came to the aquarium and tapped on the glass with his finger.
No response.
"Not lighting up?"
"Could it be that I'm doing it wrongly? I remember Fang Zhao knocking on the glass this way once in a live broadcast."
"Perhaps it was all just hype to make the value of this sea slug rise."
After he knocked on the glass a few more times, the sea slug in the aquarium still didn't light up.
The skinny guy was unresigned, so he unlocked the lid of the aquarium and used an apparatus to poke it. There was still no response.
"It was hype without a doubt. It's so dull and lifeless. Definitely not worth eighty million."
As they knew that Fang Zhao wouldn't be coming back and no one came here most of the time, the two weren't in a hurry. They chatted leisurely.
"This reminds me of that movie that came out recently. The science fiction movie about a sea slug."
"Oh, are you talking about the one that was hotly discussed online? The one where the sea slug would open up the lid of its aquarium and climb out when his owner was away?"
"Yes yes yes, it's rather meaningful. After watching that movie, every time I see sea slugs inside sealed aquariums, I can't help but wonder whether sea slugs can really open their lids and climb out."
"Tsk, now I know you have never kept a sea slug before. You even believe that? Science fiction is always based on fantasy. Those are all things that can never happen. But this is really big. I have never seen a choppy-haired variety this big."
"If cooked, it would be enough for a whole meal."
The atmosphere suddenly became silent.
The two met each other's gazes in that silence.
"Would it be too much of a waste to eat it? Perhaps we should just fish it up before we leave. It can be sold for quite a bit."
"It's too conspicuous. Researchers can't make use of it, and not many people who own pets would dare buy it. There is only one such sea slug in the entire world. How about… we just cook it? I saw a pot and all sorts of condiments in the kitchen earlier." The entertainment reporter licked his lips. He loved eating sea slugs, and the one before him was a variety he had never tasted before.
"Having an eighty million hot pot in the home of a mega star?" The skinny fellow's eyes lit up.
Exciting!
"Let's leave Fang Zhao some leftover broth. I wonder how Fang Zhao will react when he returns. I guess he'll explode?"
Hehehe.
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became!