Future Pet Shop

Chapter 233: Plan Two Fails

Xia Shixuan stared at her bicycle, utterly confused. She had no idea how her bike had gotten wrecked in such a short time. She’d forgotten to tell her family last night, and her dad had already taken the Phaeton when she woke up. She had rummaged through the garage and only found this bicycle after a long search. To think it would break so soon!

So how was she supposed to get home from work tonight? It wasn’t the bike she cared about; she was agonizing over how to get back. ’Should I call the family chauffeur to pick me up, or should I just grab a cab?’

GLUG, GLUG, GLUG. Shen Yibin chugged another bottle of mineral water before he could muster the strength to speak. Leaning back on the sofa, he painstakingly explained to Xia Shixuan, "I’m... I’m really sorry. Just now... just now Shi Gaofei chewed up both wheels. Once I’ve rested for a bit, I’ll find a place to get your bike fixed! We’ll just need to replace the two tires."

’Easier said than done.’ Xia Shixuan’s bike looked incredibly expensive, and finding original replacement tires was probably going to cost a fortune. ’Sigh, I knew it. Not a single pet from the Future Pet Shop is ever hassle-free!’ Shen Yibin thought, glaring at Shi Gaofei.

But Shi Gaofei didn’t seem to care in the slightest. Lying on the carpet, it tilted its head, looking back and forth between the bicycle and Shen Yibin, a smug look on its face.

After resting for half an hour, Shen Yibin had finally recovered. He left Hah’Er at the shop to watch Shi Gaofei, then hauled the bicycle into his car and drove all over Yunzhong City looking for a bike shop.

Fortunately, the specialty store for Xia Shixuan’s brand of bicycle wasn’t too far from Shen Yibin’s pet shop. He found the place before long, parked his car, and wheeled the bicycle out to an employee. "Do you have tires for this model? I need two."

"These tires are a puncture-proof model, and the material used for the outer tire is pretty special. Even an iron nail might not be able to pierce it. How on earth did you manage this?" The shop employee was astonished by the wretched state of the two tires.

"My pet chewed them up." ’Looks like Shi Gaofei’s teeth are even stronger than an iron nail.’

"You’ve got to be kidding me, right?" The employee started inspecting the tires as he spoke. When he saw the marks, he sucked in a sharp breath. "They really are teeth marks! What kind of pet do you have? Even a Tibetan Mastiff isn’t this strong, is it?"

’A Tibetan Mastiff might be fierce, but it’s not the undisputed king of Asia. That title belongs to Mr. Tattoo. And the honey badger is the king of Africa, on the same level as Mr. Tattoo. How could a Tibetan Mastiff even compare?’

Replacing the tires would take some time, so Shen Yibin wandered around the store out of boredom. The shop mainly sold specialty bicycles like mountain bikes, fixies, trials bikes, and street bikes, so it had attracted a lot of teenagers who loved outdoor activities. Among them were a few rollerbladers, who were performing difficult tricks near the entrance, drawing cheers from the crowd.

’Hey, I know how to rollerblade, too! I might not be as good as them, but I can definitely get around on them. Rollerblade wheels are solid... Pingtou shouldn’t be able to chew through those, right? If it won’t let me ride a bike, then keeping up with it on rollerblades shouldn’t be a problem, right?’

’This seems like a good plan. Let’s do it.’ Shen Yibin snapped his fingers. He quickly went over and coaxed the address of a rollerblade shop out of the teenagers. As soon as the bicycle tires were replaced, he got straight into his car and headed for the store.

"Hello, sir. What kind of rollerblades are you looking for?" a salesperson greeted him warmly as soon as he entered.

"Um, which model here has the sturdiest wheels?" Shen Yibin wasn’t an expert rollerblader and didn’t really know the difference between the various types. All he cared about was that Shi Gaofei couldn’t chew through them.

"Oh, this model is excellent. The wheels are made of..." After a moment of surprise, the clerk launched into a smooth sales pitch. ’It doesn’t matter how strange the customer’s request is, as long as I can sell the shoes.’

Shen Yibin tried them on and they did indeed feel exceptionally sturdy. He asked for a pair in his size and left with them in hand. ’With these, I won’t be scared even if Shi Gaofei wants to take me for a walk again tonight.’

Back at the shop, he stuffed the bicycle into the storage room, then took out the rollerblades and started practicing. Shen Yibin hadn’t used them in a long time, not since graduating from college. If he just jumped right into it, there was no telling what might happen, so it was better to get some practice in first. Hah’Er tilted its head, watching Shen Yibin, seeming to find the shoes particularly interesting. Shi Gaofei, however, lay silently on the floor, its thoughts a mystery.

’Sigh, if only Cheeky were still here.’ After skating for a while, Shen Yibin seemed to be getting the hang of it, but he felt a little wistful. If Cheeky were around, it probably would have started singing "Skateboard Shoes" by now. ’It’s a bit dull without any background music.’

After lunch, Shi Gaofei lay lazily on the carpet, sleeping. Sylvie and Xie Nannan were continuing their training with Xia Shixuan, Li Shiqing, and Gao Shu. Meanwhile, Shen Yibin was lying on the sofa, having Hah’Er sit on his legs to apply some pressure. His legs were incredibly sore from being "walked" by Shi Gaofei these past two days.

Sure enough, when it was time for dinner, Shi Gaofei once again presented the leash to Shen Yibin. This time, Shen Yibin was prepared. First, he GLUGGED down a can of Red Bull, then grabbed a few bottles of mineral water and headed out the door with Hah’Er and Sylvie. Xia Shixuan, curious, tagged along.

Once they reached the park, he switched to his rollerblades and leisurely followed behind Shi Gaofei. While rollerblades weren’t as effortless as a bicycle, they were still much better than running on his own two feet. Shen Yibin seemed to see a ray of hope, a way out of his sea of suffering.

PANT, PANT... Shi Gaofei ran ahead for a ways, panting, then abruptly stopped and bolted in the opposite direction.

If he had been wearing sneakers, Shen Yibin could have reacted in time. Or, if his rollerblading skills were just a little better, it wouldn’t have been a problem either. Unfortunately, all he could do was keep moving forward; slightly more difficult maneuvers like braking or turning were completely beyond him. And to top it all off, he was still holding the leash.

So, it was no surprise when Shen Yibin crashed to the ground. Luckily, he fell toward the lawn and not toward the lake, otherwise he would have been a drowned rat.

Shi Gaofei leisurely walked over to Shen Yibin’s side and bared its gleaming white teeth, as if mocking him.

’Damn it, this little guy is deliberately making sure I can’t take any shortcuts!’ Shen Yibin realized now that it was definitely intentional. His painstakingly devised Plan B was now dead in the water.

’Do I really have to run on my own two feet?’