Chapter 703: Chapter 562: One-Eared Cat

“This mangrove area is quite large, isn’t it?”

Bored, the assistant started chatting with two students in the group.

“The mangrove area used to be much bigger. Local people would take wooden boats here to fish. Later, everyone went to plant rubber trees, and the wetlands gradually degraded. The wetland park in the provincial capital also has mangroves, but they’re so small you can’t really call them that, and they’ve even set up some sort of transparent boat there, developing a boat tour of the mangroves.”

Previously, the locals also wanted to develop mangrove tourism here, but it didn’t go through. Too many tourists can cause various issues, the biggest being garbage pollution, which would damage the natural environment here.

Now, fishing isn’t really allowed in the mangroves. Each area has specific people assigned to be responsible for it, and they are in charge of patrolling the wetland’s environment, collecting garbage, and the like.

As they were chatting, they heard the sound of water, and everyone’s spirits lifted as they all stared intently at the dark water ahead.

Two minutes later, a hovercraft paddled over.

Rowing the boat were two kids: the girl a bit older, maybe eleven or twelve, and the boy at most seven or eight.

Between them were two kittens playing around, while at the front of the boat, a big cat missing an ear sat regally.

Chen Ying didn’t know why the word “regal” came to mind to describe a cat, but it seemed the most fitting.

The big cat was very alert, and as soon as the assistant moved slightly, it cast its gaze toward them immediately.

After thinking it over, Chen Ying turned on the camp lantern.

After all, the other side consisted of two children, whereas they were four adult men, and they didn’t want to scare them.

As expected, the moment the light came on, the two kids stopped cautiously, holding the paddles in front of their chests, nervously watching Chen Ying emerge from the tent.

“Hey kids, what are you doing out here in the middle of the night?”

The assistant also came out and asked them in the local dialect.

The two kids looked at the two big men, their expressions growing even more anxious, and the little girl bit her lip, ready to turn back.

“Don’t be scared, we’re a scientific survey team here to study the ecology and animal behavior of the mangroves.”

Speaking, Chen Ying signaled the assistant to contact the local liaison so they wouldn’t be mistaken for bad guys. Being close to the border, it’s good for the kids to be cautious.

Perhaps Chen Ying didn’t seem like a bad guy, and the other two people emerging from the tent had clear eyes, so the two kids ultimately didn’t leave, but neither did they come closer.

Chen Ying didn’t say much more, focusing instead on examining the cats.

From a distance, they had assumed they were house cats, but now under the camp lantern, it was clear they were leopard cats, perhaps even the fishing cats they had been arduously seeking.

“Little girl, your cat looks a bit different from regular cats. Do you know what breed it is?”

The little girl eyed them warily for a long while before reluctantly speaking, “My brother and I saved it from the field, it’s our family’s cat.”

With her words, Chen Ying understood. This was a wild leopard cat (or fishing cat) the little girl had rescued and was raising as a pet. In rural areas, there isn’t a clear concept of domestication; the line between penned and wild is simply whether or not a human feeds them.

Regardless of being house or wild cats, their movements are free. They have no luxurious cat mansions, but they have natural cat climbing frames, with all the woods being their playground.

“Little girl, does your cat eat fish?” The first student asked, trying to glean information.

“You’re so silly. If cats don’t eat fish, what do they eat?” The little boy couldn’t help but retort, “Cats here eat fish, even the dogs eat fish.”

The second student turned his head, laughing silently, shoulders shaking.

After chatting a bit, there was more movement in the woods, this time a small patrol boat, with fresh paint.

The siblings recognized the uncle steering the boat. Seeing him, they sighed in relief but also hung their heads in embarrassment.

The uncle, relieved to see the siblings safe, scolded them in the local dialect, docked beside the bank, greeted Chen Ying’s crew, and checked their documents before visibly relaxing.

“Yan Han, go home with your sister. You have school tomorrow. If the teacher calls your parents again, I won’t plead on your behalf when your mom scolds you.”

As the siblings began to paddle away, Chen Ying hurriedly stopped them.

“Little sister, may I see your cat?”

The uncle frowned, looked at the assistant as if to speak, but the assistant held him back, conversed in local dialect, and eventually, the uncle waved for the siblings to come over.

The big cat was very calm, aside from positioning the children under its protection, it didn’t appear panicked.

Chen Ying reached out and rubbed the cat’s head. “Good, you’re a good cat.”

“Good kitty, can I see your paws?” Chen Ying gently asked, as if negotiating with the cat, rather than forcefully handling it.

The uncle looked at Chen Ying like an idiot, but the little girl took it very seriously, watching intently as Chen Ying examined the cat.

“Hmm, these paws…” Chen Ying frowned slightly. It could be a fishing cat yet somehow didn’t seem right, but the paws did differ from a normal leopard cat’s.

Looking up to speak, Chen Ying was startled by how close the little girl had gotten.

The little girl blushed, taking half a step back, pressing her lips together.

“Here, see how your cat’s paws are a bit different from a normal cat’s?”

Chen Ying smiled, called the siblings closer, shone the flashlight so they could see the cat’s paws clearly.

“Do you see? The cat’s claws can’t fully retract into the sheaths, and they look narrow, with webbing between the toes. This structure helps them swim in the water, so they must be very skilled at catching fish, right?”

“Yes, Yunyun is great at catching fish. When my mom was having my little sister, Yunyun would catch fish every day to make soup for her to nourish her body.”

Little boy Yan Han’s words made his sister and the uncle smile awkwardly.

Not being able to fish in the wetlands is a principle, and Yan Han’s words hinted at them exploiting policy loopholes.

“Really? Yunyun is that great? But you can’t eat the fish Yunyun caught, okay? Yunyun works hard to catch those fish to help your mom raise the baby, but if Yunyun also has to take care of feeding you, it will get very, very tired.”

Yan Han suddenly understood, “I was wondering why Yunyun didn’t want to play after fishing these days. No wonder, it’s because it was tired.”

He crouched, hugging Yunyun apologetically, “Yunyun, don’t catch fish for my mom anymore, my dad will take good care of her and my little sister. You just need to take care of yourself and the two kittens.”

Chen Ying watched, amused, as he snuggled with the big cat, then checked with the little girl and the cat itself before taking photos of them and drawing a tiny bit of blood for testing.

An hour later, the siblings left with the three cats, and section manager Yan Wenyan stayed behind to help.

Asking him to stay was Chen Ying’s idea, something they realized they’d overlooked, but it isn’t too late to make up for it now.

Indeed, with Yan Wenyan’s help, after changing observation points, they spotted several groups of animals coming to drink and hunt within an hour.

Just as Chen Ying’s team was about to pack up and head back to camp, they saw One-Ear Yunyun leading its two cubs to the water’s edge.