Future Pet Shop

Chapter 323: Chapter 323: Finally Upgraded

’I can’t sleep anyway, so I might as well get this taken care of tonight. I wonder what new permissions I’ll get after upgrading?’ With that thought, Shen Yibin opened his chat app and typed a message. "Are you there? I want to buy this panda hamster now."

’It’s already midnight. The staff at the Future Pet Shop have probably clocked out for the day, right?’ The thought only occurred to Shen Yibin after he sent the message. He sighed and was about to go read some novels online instead.

But the Future Pet Shop’s dedication was beyond his expectations. Before he even opened a new webpage, a reply arrived. "Are you buying this for yourself, or for your panda? You do not have the permission to buy it for yourself."

"I’m buying it for my panda," Shen Yibin quickly corrected himself. He was also a little surprised. ’Does the Future Pet Shop have someone on duty twenty-four hours a day?’

"Very well. Click this QR code to complete the payment." The Future Pet Shop agreed readily, immediately sending a QR code for Shen Yibin to scan. After scanning it, he was taken to the payment interface. Shen Yibin entered his pin and transferred 83,583.50 to the Future Pet Shop.

"Payment received. This panda hamster now belongs to your panda." ’Huh? Why does that sound so awkward?’ Before Shen Yibin could ask, another message arrived. "Your commission of 8,358.35 has been transferred to your bank account. Combined with your previous commission of 44,949.55, your total accumulated commission has now reached 53,307.90, meeting the criteria for promotion to Level 2 Business Partner. Do you wish to be promoted?"

’The day has finally come!’ Shen Yibin excitedly slapped his hand on the bed, which made a muffled THUMP. On the small bed beside him, Hah’Er’s ears twitched, but he just rolled over and went back to sleep. Maphario, however, opened its eyes and poked its head up. The little guy was somewhat nocturnal and a much lighter sleeper than Hah’Er, so it had woken up instantly.

"SQUEAK! SQUEAK!" Maphario let out two soft chirps, as if asking what was going on.

"It’s nothing, it’s nothing, go back to sleep!" Shen Yibin quickly reassured it. Maphario was about to do just that, but it stopped when it saw Hah’Er. Shen Yibin could vaguely make out that the look Maphario gave Hah’Er seemed much warmer and more affectionate. ’Maybe this is the change that comes with an official purchase?’ he wondered.

After some effort, he finally coaxed Maphario back to sleep. Only then did he remember he still wasn’t clear on the benefits of upgrading. He quickly asked, "Um, excuse me, what changes will the upgrade bring? Besides being able to purchase two pets, what other benefits are there?"

"After upgrading, you will receive greater support from us and obtain higher permissions. However, the specific terms will only be revealed after you upgrade." Clearly, the Future Pet Shop had no intention of telling Shen Yibin beforehand, replying in its usual ice-cold tone.

’Oh well, it’s always been like this.’ Shen Yibin hadn’t held out much hope in the first place, so he wasn’t too disappointed by the refusal. He immediately sent the request to upgrade. "Then please raise my partnership level!"

"Understood. Please click the link below to proceed." The Future Pet Shop sent a URL. When Shen Yibin opened it, a wall of densely packed text appeared, looking like a contract that made his head spin. He couldn’t very well ask his lawyer, Zhang Danxuan, to review it, and he couldn’t make heads or tails of it himself. So, just like he did when registering for any online service, he quickly scrolled to the bottom, checked the "I have read and agree" box, and hit submit.

"Congratulations, Mr. Shen Yibin, on becoming a Level 2 Business Partner. Click the link below to view your new permissions." A flash of light emanated from the screen, and another webpage appeared before Shen Yibin.

’Let’s see what we’ve got.’ This time, Shen Yibin read with extreme focus. ’First, the commission rate has increased! It’s gone from ten percent for a Level 3 Partner to twenty-five percent! That’s more than double! At this rate, if the next pet sells for 100,000, I’ll get 25,000. That should be enough to cover my travel, food, and lodging expenses while searching for pets, right?’

’This is great! Let’s see what’s next.’ Shen Yibin chuckled to himself and scrolled down to the next item on the webpage. Second, promotion to Level 2 Business Partner was proof that the customer possessed a certain degree of capability, thus permitting said customer to purchase a second pet from the Future Pet Shop for personal ownership.

’Right, I already knew about this one.’ Shen Yibin felt a slight pang of regret. ’It’s a shame this rule came a little too late. If it hadn’t, Maphario would probably be my own pet right now.’

’Damn it, I knew it couldn’t all be good news!’ Shen Yibin’s mood instantly soured when he saw the third item. It read: Upon upgrading, the sales period for each pet will be shortened to two months. The customer must find a suitable owner for the pet provided by the Future Pet Shop within this two-month period, or face a penalty.

The Future Pet Shop didn’t specify what kind of penalty he would face, but ’judging by its track record, it’s definitely not going to be anything good,’ he thought.

’Well, I’ve managed to pull through before, so this probably won’t be a problem either.’ Finding an owner for Cheeky in the beginning had been incredibly hard. He had only run into Sun Qian by chance right before the deadline, and even then, Shen Yibin had to lend her money so she could afford to buy Cheeky.

But after that, things had gotten progressively smoother. Sakai Kaori had sought out Egg on her own initiative. It hadn’t taken much effort from Shen Yibin for Hong Mian to buy Shi Gaofei. Maphario was an even clearer case, having been meant for Hah’Er from the start. ’If my luck holds and things keep going this smoothly, a two-month deadline shouldn’t be a major problem.’

’Alright, when I wake up tomorrow, I’ll get them to send over the sixth pet... er, I mean, send over a new pill so I can go find the sixth pet. The timing is perfect, since Hah’Er doesn’t have any filming scheduled, I’ll have time to take him with me.’

’I hope this next one is in the country.’ Shen Yibin didn’t expect to be as lucky as he was with Maphario, finding him right around Yunzhong City, but he prayed he wouldn’t have to go all the way to Africa like he did for Shi Gaofei. ’I’ll be happy as long as it’s domestic. At least the paperwork for Hah’Er won’t be such a pain, and I can save on travel expenses, right?’

Shen Yibin continued to scroll down. The other terms and conditions weren’t particularly important, until the very last one finally caught his eye.

’Hm? A Pet Mall? What’s this? Can’t I just buy pets by contacting customer service? Why have they suddenly rolled out a Pet Mall now?’