"Don't all come closer together. Teacher Luo, come here, let me introduce you to someone."
Chen Ying held Mendun'er down with one hand and rubbed its head with the other, pushing it up with some force.
"Teacher Luo, he'll help you with the examination. Your stomach hurts—he's the one who can help you fix it."
Chen Ying explained seriously to the giant panda, then encouraged Teacher Luo to cautiously approach Mendun'er.
The giant panda instinctively bared its teeth at Teacher Luo, who immediately stopped in his tracks and gave Mendun'er time to get used to his scent.
"Come on, have a sniff." Chen Ying grabbed the loose skin on the back of Mendun'er's neck, signaling for it to slowly approach Teacher Luo. After sniffing him and circling around for a moment, Mendun'er finally accepted Teacher Luo's presence but kept pressing itself against Chen Ying.
"I have to stay here to take care of Leopard Sister. She has Little Cub now, right? Listen to me. Go get your check-up done, and Teacher Luo will bring you back afterward. I'll help you recover your health. Once you're better, you can go home. Sound good?"
The scent of a wild giant panda wasn't the most pleasant, but Chen Ying didn't mind at all as he kissed its forehead.
Amid Mendun'er's soft whining, Chen Ying motioned for Teacher Luo to guide it into the transshipment cage on its own.
"I've written the preliminary examination results here. I recommend taking it to get a CT scan immediately after arriving, to confirm whether the issue in its stomach is an obstruction or a tumor."
Teacher Luo nodded, clapping Chen Ying's shoulder—a moment of silent understanding.
This wasn't the time for small talk—there was no time to spare.
Tumor or obstruction, the giant panda Mendun'er already had abdominal effusion and needed urgent treatment. Every moment of delay mattered.
Before ten minutes had passed at the rescue station, the group hopped back in their vehicles and headed down the mountain.
On the way, they rendezvoused with another car providing support and altered their route midway, heading straight for the nearest giant panda research center.
It wasn't that they doubted Chen Ying's judgment, but the research center had rallied a medical team immediately after receiving the rescue station's call. They had also coordinated with the radiology department at the local hospital to reserve equipment for Mendun'er's examination.
In every respect, the research center's facilities offered better and more suitable conditions than the rescue station.
After sending Teacher Luo and the others off, Chen Ying returned to open the door to the animal shed. While massaging Leopard Sister's muscles to help her relax, he rambled on, explaining Mendun'er's situation.
Whether Leopard Sister could understand or not didn't matter; Chen Ying was doing his best.
Leopard Sister likely did not understand, but that was okay. She trusted Chen Ying wouldn't harm her friends.
Chen Ying massaged Leopard Sister's hind legs for quite some time, relieving much of the tension in the tight muscles.
Leopard Sister's injuries were healing quickly, but her earlier trauma had been severe—she had nearly lost her life. Though her wounds had closed, she still needed at least a few months to recover to her normal state.
The two little cubs were eating well and sleeping soundly, visibly growing plumper by the day. Fat and cuddly, holding them felt like hugging two soft stuffed toys.
Since Chen Ying was focused on taking care of Leopard Sister and Jinya in recent days, Meng Yan had been entrusted to Yin Li for care.
On mornings when he wasn't patrolling the mountains, Yin Li would also help by bringing the two little cubs out to the yard to bask in the sun.
Not yet a month old, the cubs were unsteady on their feet, often stumbling with every step they took. Their growing chubbiness meant they sometimes fell and rolled around for fun.
Yin Li adored the little cubs, filling his phone with countless photos and videos of them.
When Yin Li left to patrol the mountains and forests, Sister Dai would come by each afternoon to clean the animal shed and chop bamboo to prepare food for Meng Yan.
She didn't try to play with the little cubs recklessly. Instead, she kept her distance and continuously snapped photos of them and the beautiful Leopard Sister.
Jinya was not keen on interacting with anyone other than Chen Ying and Yin Li. Whenever Sister Dai visited, Jinya would hide in the animal shed atop the horizontal wooden beam built specifically for her, glaring alertly at the doorway.
That was actually a good thing. Wild animals should maintain a healthy amount of wariness toward humans; it prevents them from losing their lives too easily.
In recent years, the state had cracked down hard on poachers, but the lure of profit drove many to take the risk of hunting precious wildlife.
Preventing poachers from wreaking havoc remained one of Yin Li and his team's key priorities.
"In another half month, Jinya will be ready to return to the forest. Have you submitted the work log? Did the leaders give any other instructions—will she be released back to her original territory, or is there another plan?"
"Released to her original territory." Chen Ying scratched the little cub's chin as it rubbed its head affectionately against his fingers, its paws continuously batting at his hand.
"Jinya belongs in this forest. She didn't get injured fighting other animals of her species, and her sibling, her brother, is still in this area. He should be able to provide her with extra safety and protection."
"I've only read about this in books before—how sibling wildlife such as brothers and sisters or mothers and daughters sometimes overlap their territories. This is my first time witnessing it in real life."
Standing up, Yin Li grinned widely. "For some reason, I keep feeling like Jinya's going to have a hard time finding a boyfriend. Her older brother will have to approve first."
Chen Ying paused, then shook his head with a laugh.
"If Jinya's brother chooses this area as his territory, Jinya might have to take initiative if she wants to find a mate."
There was another possibility: Jinya's mate's territory and Jinya's brother's territory could overlap in the north and south parts of Jinya's own territory. That way, Jinya could still reproduce without disruptions, while receiving occasional care.
But wild animals are not humans; while this kind of familial care may happen occasionally, it's by no means guaranteed.
Checking the time, Chen Ying realized it was about time for Jinya's outdoor session.
While Yin Li fed the two cubs some meat broth indoors, Chen Ying released Jinya and prepared to take the big cat for a stroll through the nearby forest.
Jinya walked slowly alongside Chen Ying, brushing against his leg as she left the animal shed. She stretched in the yard, trotted around briefly, then spun in circles before breaking into a light sprint.
The pulling sensation in her hind leg muscles had diminished significantly. Her wound had healed nicely; the stitches had been removed without redness or swelling, and the surrounding fur had begun growing back into a thin layer.
She extended her hind legs and turned her head over to carefully lick the injured area, gently nibbling at it.
Chen Ying did not prevent her from touching the wound.
This level of licking wouldn't cause any harm. Once the muscle around Jinya's injured area entirely regained its tension, it would also mark her readiness to return to the wild.
The forest near the rescue station was safe, occasionally visited by small animals like rabbits, bamboo rats, and squirrels.
Jinya frolicked in the forest for a good while before triumphantly returning with a plump wild rabbit in her mouth.
"Ah, here, for you to eat."
Jinya's watery eyes gazed earnestly at Chen Ying as she placed the dead rabbit by his feet. Then, obediently sitting down beside him, she signaled him that he could eat it.
Chen Ying couldn't help but laugh as he picked up the rabbit and examined it, patting Jinya's head.
"Thank you for the offering, Jinya, but I can't eat it raw. How about we cook it for dinner—rabbit stew tonight?"
Jinya tilted her head, unable to fully comprehend. She glanced at the corner of the rescue station building visible through the trees, as though she suddenly understood something.
Before Chen Ying could call out to her, Jinya leaped and dashed back into the forest, vanishing from sight within moments.