Animal Detective

Chapter 545: Chapter 448: This Isn’t a Wild Elephant, Is It?

Pan Wenhai was on high alert.

He cautioned, "Shen Xin, you should still be careful."

He could tell this mother elephant was treating Shen Xin differently.

But no matter how different her attitude, she was still a wild elephant.

If she went berserk, with no chains to hold her back, who could possibly stop her?

"It’s fine."

Shen Xin waved at Pan Wenhai, signaling for him to stand further back, then slowly approached the mother elephant.

When the icon finally appeared, Shen Xin felt a great sense of relief.

’With a high favorability rating, the only one who’d still dare to attack me is that oaf, Tiger Stripes.’

Looking the mother elephant straight in the eye, Shen Xin gently reached out and touched her trunk.

"Easy now. Don’t worry, we’ll help you find your baby."

Shen Xin soothed.

The icon had appeared, but the favorability effect probably hadn’t kicked in yet.

She might not understand his words.

But emotions could be conveyed.

Shen Xin had always believed that the animals he interacted with understood him not just because of the favorability rating, but also because they could sense his emotions.

As expected.

The mother elephant let out a cry. Compared to before, her call was no longer so urgent; it was much calmer.

"Stand up first."

Shen Xin moved a little closer, gesturing for her to stand up.

The mother elephant actually understood. She slowly rose to her feet, then curled her trunk and gave Shen Xin a little push toward her.

She had probably just touched him lightly, but to Shen Xin, it felt like being pushed by an irresistible force.

"Be gentle."

Shen Xin cautioned her, stroking her trunk. "Don’t be anxious. We’ll find your baby, but you have to give us time."

As he stroked and soothed her, her agitation gradually subsided.

Perhaps in her mind, with her baby lost, she had thought to ask humans for help.

And because of his high favorability, Shen Xin was the only human she was willing to trust.

In the distance, Tan Qingming and the others slowly approached.

"Director, why isn’t the elephant attacking him?" an employee asked, confused.

"It’s a wild elephant! They’re extremely aggressive and wary of humans."

"For one to be so close to a person... it’s just unimaginable."

"It even knelt down."

"Who knows," Tan Qingming said, his eyes glued to the scene.

He was just as baffled. He couldn’t figure it out either.

And he still had no idea how Shen Xin had managed to cut through the iron chains with an angle grinder earlier.

"Director Tan, did you guys bring anything to eat?"

Just then, Shen Xin called out loudly.

Food was still the best way to increase favorability.

Tan Qingming hurriedly nodded. On the way here, they had specifically brought fruits like bananas and apples.

These were all things elephants loved to eat.

When they brought them over, Shen Xin went to get them, but as soon as he moved, the mother elephant immediately followed.

She was already sticking to him like glue.

Shen Xin didn’t overthink it. First, he’d get her fed.

The mother elephant had probably been starving. Eating would help her stay calm.

He held out an apple, but she wouldn’t take it, only letting out two soft calls.

Shen Xin could pretty much guess what she was trying to say. ’Something along the lines of, "I can’t eat now, find my baby first."’

"Don’t worry, we’ll find him. But you need to eat something first."

Shen Xin reached out and patted her chin.

She hesitated slightly, then opened her mouth.

A cavernous maw.

Shen Xin tossed apples into her mouth.

One was barely a morsel.

He threw in five or six in one go before she closed her mouth and started to chew.

CRUNCH CRUNCH. It was like she was eating jelly beans. In a few moments, they were down her gullet, and she opened her mouth for more.

Seeing the mother elephant finally eating, Tan Qingming didn’t have time to wonder how Shen Xin had managed it. He quickly ordered his staff to find more food nearby—wild bananas, elephant grass, anything.

The two bags of fruit he’d brought weren’t nearly enough.

Sure enough, after eating a couple of bunches of bananas, the mother elephant’s appetite returned. She raised her trunk and opened her mouth, indicating she wanted more.

Her baby certainly needed to be found, but since she’d entrusted the task to someone else, it seemed it was time for a meal.

Tan Qingming walked forward holding a pile of wild bananas.

But as he got within seven or eight meters, the mother elephant suddenly became agitated. She let out a loud trumpet at him and took a step forward, looking like she was about to charge.

Tan Qingming’s face paled. He hastily dropped the wild bananas on the ground and backed away quickly.

Only then did the mother elephant desist.

Tan Qingming looked understandably dejected. ’Is this what you call preferential treatment?’ he thought.

"Director Tan, don’t come any closer for now. I’ll lead her to the grassy area over there to avoid blocking traffic."

Shen Xin pointed to the nearby grass, signaling for them to pile the collected food there.

"Oh, and water. See if you can get a large barrel, a basin or something. By the way, is there a small river nearby?"

’She can’t just eat; she needs to drink, too.’

’And with all these injuries, she’ll need treatment.’

Tan Qingming nodded hurriedly, calling his men and the assisting police officers to pile the things on the distant grass.

Shen Xin didn’t even need to call her; as soon as he started walking, the mother elephant followed.

She curled her trunk around the wild bananas on the ground and began to eat.

After she finished eating, Shen Xin led her to the grassy area.

Tan Qingming didn’t know how Shen Xin managed it, but for now, this was the best possible situation.

The only problem was that it was already five or six o’clock. It would be dark soon, and he didn’t know what they would do then.

Shen Xin glanced back at the feeding mother elephant.

’She’s fine, of course. She can make her bed anywhere out in the open.’

’The problem is, I can’t just stay here and watch her forever.’

After thinking for a moment, Shen Xin said, "Guo Suo, how about we take her to your police station first? Or you could find a place for me to take her."

Guo Zhaoyue was a bit hesitant.

Bringing her into town posed too many unpredictable risks.

He asked Tan Qingming what he thought.

Tan Qingming had a headache as well. He’d never encountered a situation like this.

In any case, he also felt bringing her into town was a bad idea.

"Shen Xin, how about we just leave her here," Tan Qingming said.

"There are fewer people here. It’s more controllable."

Since the two of them said so, Shen Xin didn’t say any more.

Actually, Shen Xin himself felt that as long as he was there, there shouldn’t be a problem.

’We could find a secluded spot on the outskirts of town, secure her there for now, and then figure out how to get her to the rescue center tomorrow.’

There was no small river nearby. Pan Wenhai and the others borrowed a large basin and filled it with water.

Shen Xin waved at the mother elephant, and she walked over. Seeing the water, she immediately extended her trunk to drink.

Only then did Shen Xin notice that elephants don’t drink water with their trunks.

She sucks water into her trunk, and then delivers it to her mouth to drink.

"Director Tan, do elephants not drink with their mouths because they can’t get low enough to the ground?" Shen Xin called out curiously to Tan Qingming.

’It seems like it’d be a lot of effort for an elephant to splay itself out on the ground.’

’But it can kneel, so it seems like it should be able to drink directly from its mouth.’

Tan Qingming replied reflexively, "That’s because they have a piece of cartilage at the back of their nasal passage that acts like a valve. It prevents water from getting into their lungs when they suck it up."

"And if they tried to suck with their mouths, which are relatively short, they’d easily choke, so..."

At that, Tan Qingming abruptly stopped talking and looked at Shen Xin, somewhat speechless.

’Isn’t this situation pretty urgent? And this is what you’re concerned about?’

Shen Xin smiled. "Well, we’re just waiting around, so I thought I’d ask. By the way, do they sleep standing up or lying down?"

Tan Qingming figured he had a point.

The current situation was, at least, under control.

Since they were just waiting around, he sat down on the grass as well. "Adult elephants sleep standing up. They rarely lie down because they’re so heavy that their own body weight would put pressure on their hearts."

"This is also why, when rescuing them, they must be hoisted up after being anesthetized."

"And they sleep for a very short time. A wild elephant only sleeps for two or three hours a day."

"Take Asian elephants, for example. They need to eat two hundred kilograms of food a day, so they have to spend a lot of time foraging every day, usually more than sixteen hours."

Shen Xin was amazed and turned to look at the mother elephant.

’Doesn’t that mean this girl is awake for twenty hours a day?’

’And now she’s starting to get a bit clingy.’

’She can handle sleeping just two hours a day, but I sure can’t.’

Just then, Ding Yuwei called, asking about the case, how it was progressing, and if he needed help.

"No need. We nabbed them all. It’s a wrap."

As he spoke, Shen Xin quickly asked Ding Yuwei to switch to a video call, then aimed the camera at himself and the mother elephant. "Look what this is."

On the video call, Ding Yuwei was startled to see the mother elephant next to Shen Xin and exclaimed, "Oh my God!"

Then she asked where Shen Xin had run off to, and if he was at a zoo.

"What zoo? She’s completely wild," Shen Xin said.

Ding Yuwei obviously didn’t know how aggressive wild elephants could be.

But she knew what Shen Xin was capable of.

’He could handle a tiger, so an elephant probably wasn’t a big deal.’

"Since the suspects are caught, get some proper rest. Our mission here hasn’t even started yet. Don’t get distracted by fun and games," Ding Yuwei reminded him.

She thought Shen Xin had just stumbled upon a wild elephant and was watching the spectacle.

Shen Xin didn’t explain further, and after a few more words, he ended the call.

He promptly recorded a video and posted it to his social media.

It immediately blew up with comments from a few people.

Doniya: Shen Xin, did you go to the zoo? Is the mission over?

Yang Zeran: You’re really on a paid vacation now.

His dad also gave him a like.

Not far away, Tan Qingming also received a call.

It was the support team from Mengle, asking about the situation. They estimated it would take them another two hours to arrive.

The person on the phone then reminded Tan Qingming that it was getting dark, and he absolutely must not approach the elephant rashly.

Wild elephants are more aggressive at night.

Hearing the person on the other end ask about the current situation, Tan Qingming thought for a moment, started a video call with them, and then aimed the camera at Shen Xin and the mother elephant.

Tan Qingming said, "Director He, see for yourself. This is the situation right now."

The mother elephant was leisurely eating grass, while Shen Xin was taking selfies with her.

The person on the other end of the video saw the situation clearly, their eyes nearly popping out of their head.

’It’s a wild elephant! How could it let someone get close enough for a photoshoot?’

"Hey, that’s not right. Could it be that this isn’t a wild elephant?"

Seeing the mother elephant acting as if nothing was amiss, Director He suddenly thought of a possibility.

Could this mother elephant not be wild, but rather one raised in captivity by some organization?

Otherwise, how could it allow a human to get so close?

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