"Some men are like Wu Dalang—cowardly, weak, and with no ambition. Life with a loser like that has no joy or surprises. Some men are like Wu Erlang—clueless about romance, all brute strength. His head’s full of heroism; he’s silly, naive, and overestimates himself. My Lord Ximen, where are you? Day and night, I call for you..." When the music started, Shen Yibin was floored once again.

’Seriously, all you aunties and ladies,’ he thought, ’why are the songs you pick always so ridiculously catchy? It looks like I’m really out of the loop. I’ve never even heard a song this wild before. You’re the real fashionistas, always on the cutting edge of trends.’

Sylvie obviously didn’t understand the allusions in the song. She just followed the rhythm of the music and Egg’s movements, dancing with a powerful sense of rhythm. ’What if I filmed this,’ Shen Yibin wondered, ’posted it on a Sokovian website, and then translated the lyrics into their language? Would Sylvie’s perfect image in the eyes of the Sokovian people shatter instantly?’

’I’d probably be beaten to death for doing that, right? Not to mention, Alfred alone would probably never let me hear the end of it. So, I’d better just forget about it.’ Shen Yibin regretfully abandoned the idea. ’I’ll just keep this dark piece of the princess’s history saved on my hard drive. Something like this is best enjoyed in private; it’s definitely not fit for public consumption.’

The dance Egg had choreographed was vastly different from their usual routines. The difficulty hadn’t increased by much, but its entertainment value was significantly higher. Even people who usually scorned square dancing gathered around curiously to watch their moves. It had practically become the new favorite pastime for the idlers on Baiyun Street.

And so, the young man also pretended to be a curious onlooker and squeezed into the crowd. Forcing himself to endure the boredom, he watched until their practice ended before quietly returning to his car.

"Egg, say goodbye to the aunties. We’re heading back now." The dance was over, and Shen Yibin came out of the coffee shop with Hah’Er, ready to head home with Egg.

"Huh? Where’d Egg go?" He had just turned to say a few words to Mrs. Wang, but Egg was already gone. Fortunately, before Shen Yibin could pull out his phone, Sylvie spotted it. "Over there! It just ran to the planter." She pointed to the planter, where Egg was perched on the edge, digging its paws into the flowers.

"Did you find something good again?" Shen Yibin asked, leaning in curiously. ’The last two days, it brought me a handful of change after dancing. Looks like it found something big today, huh?’

"GAH!" After rummaging around in the flowers for a moment, Egg ran back and held out its paws. In them, besides a few coins, was a small jade pendant, about an inch square. It was still flecked with dirt, as if Egg had just dug it up.

"Did you just find this in the planter?" Shen Yibin asked, picking up the jade pendant. Egg nodded repeatedly, as if proudly presenting its accomplishment.

"Good job." Shen Yibin patted Egg’s belly, then found Mrs. Wang. "Mrs. Wang, could you please ask around and see if someone lost something again?"

’It must have been dropped just today, right? If it were there the last couple of days, Egg would’ve found it already.’ However, after asking everyone, they still couldn’t find the pendant’s owner. "I don’t know, maybe the owner already left. Just leave it with me for now, I’ll ask again tomorrow," Mrs. Wang said, taking the pendant and examining it. "But this thing... the jade quality and the carving both look pretty average. It’s probably not worth much. No great loss for whoever dropped it."

"Alright then. We’ll be heading back," Shen Yibin said, feeling a bit relieved. He then slowly walked back toward the shop with Hah’Er and Egg.

Meanwhile, Boss Song became even more certain of Egg’s extraordinary nature. Needless to say, he was the one who had the young man hide that jade pendant. He began to wonder, ’What’s the best way to get my hands on Egg?’

Early the next morning, not long after Shen Yibin had opened the shop, a customer walked in. He first stood by the pet cages, listening absentmindedly to Sun Qian’s descriptions, but his eyes kept darting toward Egg. After a moment, he feigned a casual tone and asked, "What kind of animal is that one? It looks pretty cute."

"That’s a Japanese Raccoon Cat, which is actually a raccoon dog. It’s in the canid family and has a relatively gentle temperament..." Sun Qian, not sensing anything was amiss, continued with the explanation Shen Yibin had taught her.

"Oh? That sounds pretty interesting. In that case, is this Raccoon Cat also for sale?" the customer asked, suppressing his excitement as he walked over to Shen Yibin.

"Yes, it’s for sale. But this one’s special—we can only sell it if it acknowledges you," Shen Yibin said with a nod. "We hope our pets can find the right owners; it’s a good thing for everyone involved." At his side, Sylvie glumly put down her backpack. ’Does this mean we can’t go out to play again today?’ she thought.

"And how do I get its acknowledgment?" The customer was baffled by this condition. In his mind, as long as he could pay the price, he should be able to buy it. Why all the fuss? He asked, slightly impatiently, "Just name your price. If it’s right, we can talk about the rest."

"One hundred eighty-eight thousand, eight hundred eighty-eight yuan and eighty-eight cents. The price is non-negotiable. And you still need its approval," Shen Yibin reiterated.

"One hundred and eighty thousand?" The customer’s jaw dropped, the number clearly far beyond his expectations. He couldn’t help but blurt out, "This is highway robbery!"

"Well, that’s the price. If you think it’s too expensive, you’re welcome to look at our other pets. They’re more affordable." ’It’s not like I want to sell it for that much,’ Shen Yibin thought. ’Unfortunately, I don’t have the authority to set the price.’

"You can just keep it for yourself, then." The customer shook his head and strode out of the shop. He walked down the street, rounded two corners, and got into the car of Boss Song from the jade shop, where he recounted everything that had just happened.

"One hundred and eighty-eight thousand?" Boss Song was momentarily surprised, but he quickly composed himself. ’Shen Yibin used that Raccoon Cat to turn fifty thousand yuan into over a million at my shop,’ he thought. ’For a treasure like that, one hundred and eighty-eight thousand isn’t expensive at all.’

’But why is he selling it? Is there a catch? Could this be a trap someone’s setting for me?’ People in his line of work couldn’t help but overthink things. Boss Song was reminded of the old story about selling a common cat by using an antique cat bowl. ’Are they pulling the same stunt? But that raw jade stone was definitely from my own shop... there’s no faking that.’

"Boss, they’re coming out." While he was lost in thought, the young man who had posed as a customer tapped his shoulder. Boss Song looked in the direction he pointed and saw Shen Yibin getting into a car with the Raccoon Cat.

"Follow them. Let’s see where they’re going," Boss Song said, starting his car and tailing them.