My work efficiency is still too low. Even though Top can help me share some of the work, my job would be much easier if I could increase my productivity a little.
So I set my sights on Top's gang. Since Top could be tamed, I figured those monkeys wouldn't refuse to cooperate with me if I gave them a little something.
I had no one to talk to, and regardless of whether Top could understand me or not, I told it my thoughts. I considered it a friend, so telling it was only natural.
I also told this old friend that if it agreed, I shouldn't talk, and sure enough, Top didn't say a word except for squeaking. It really is my old friend.
With Top's support, I began to contact the monkey troop and tried to train them to obey me.
After spending several months together, and with Top occasionally taking some food from me to give the monkeys special treats, these monkeys were able to thrive.
The monkeys are no longer afraid of me; some of my regular customers are even bold enough to jump on me like Top.
However, this would annoy Top, and Top would chase the monkeys away. He wouldn't allow the monkeys to get too close to me, probably because he was afraid of losing favor.
My idea is simple: I now possess something that is most irresistibly attractive to monkeys.
I heated a small piece of brown sugar until it melted into a tub of syrup, and then approached the monkeys at the restaurant. Most of these monkeys had received favors from me before, and they were curious to see if I had brought any treats with me.
A few curious monkeys would gather around me, begging for some food. At this point, I would take out the sugar water I had prepared beforehand. Because the opening of the bamboo tube was small, the monkeys could only lick a little bit of the sugar water from my hand at a time.
Seeing the other monkeys licking it, they couldn't resist their curiosity and joined in. Soon, this sweet treat won the hearts of many monkeys.
However, if I want them to obey me unconditionally, I have to be like the shepherd boy, always carrying a bottle of salt water. Sheep love salt, so salt becomes their fatal temptation.
Now I also need to use sugar to control the behavior of these monkeys. I can't give them too much at once; I just need to give them a little treat each time.
The monkeys, not satisfied with their food, will crave my sugar water like an addiction. This helps me build a closer relationship with them more quickly and makes them trust me more.
When I was training the monkeys, I noticed that Top seemed a bit sullen.
Although it didn't react strongly when it saw me feeding the monkeys with a bamboo tube, I could tell that Top was very unhappy about it, and sometimes it would even refuse the sugar water I offered it.
I knew it was its jealousy at play, and I shook my head with a smile. Fortunately, Top's personality was relatively docile; if it were any other monkey, it probably would have already started a big fight.
This is inevitable, just like the dog you keep at home. It's with you every day, and you'll share any good food with it right away.
But if one day you suddenly bring home a second dog, all the peace will be broken.
This means that a portion of its original portion will be taken away and fed to another dog. This sense of loss will make the animal feel very unhappy, and may even lead to a fight.
Looks like I need to calm my Top down, or this kind monkey is bound to develop a mental illness.
After I fed the monkeys sugar water each time, I would call Top aside and then smilingly slip a small piece of brown sugar into his hand.
At this moment, I feel like a treacherous minister in ancient times, who spares no expense to bribe his subordinates in order to achieve his own goals.
This trick worked! The saying "no comparison, no harm" is true.
When Top was able to get a small piece of brown sugar from my hand each time, a long-lost smile reappeared on his face.
It's like a corrupt official who's received a huge sum of money and is grinning from ear to ear.
Now, it gets even more excited to see me than it does to see its own father. After all, the sugar water those monkeys eat is diluted; it's nowhere near as delicious as the brown sugar block in my hand.
After some clever bribery, those monkeys have completely submitted to me. In particular, Top, whom I bribed with "heavy money," has proven to be of great use to me.
I started teaching these monkeys some simple things, like getting them to bring me wild fruits or other things, and then I would give them brown sugar water to drink.
Perhaps I lack the talent for animal taming; those monkeys weren't as clever as Top, and they had no idea what I wanted them to do.
Every time I take out food and offer it to them, I intend for them to return it to me. Then I feed them brown sugar water, hoping to instill in them a sense of exchange.
But when the monkeys got food, they didn't immediately hand it to me. Instead, they quickly devoured it all and then stared longingly at my bamboo tube.
As for things that aren't food, well, sorry, they're even less interested. The moment I offer it to them, they'll immediately throw it away and continue staring at my bamboo tube.
After several training sessions, I was left both amused and exasperated. How could there be such a huge difference between these monkeys?
That day, I was training the monkeys as usual. Unsurprisingly, although they trusted me, it was almost impossible to get them to obey my commands and do as I said.
Some of the monkeys, seeing that I wasn't going to feed them, became impatient and scattered, refusing to come back no matter how much I called out to them.
Just then, Top arrived, and his domineering presence as the monkey king still held sway. Top merely shrieked a few times, and the monkeys that had already left immediately turned back.
At that moment, Top came to my side in front of a bunch of monkeys and actually extended his hand.
At first, I didn't realize what was going on and thought Top was asking me for some sugar water. So I handed him the sugar water, but he didn't take it. Instead, he stared at the stick in my hand and gestured to me.
I was a little suspicious, so I handed Top the wooden stick I used to train the monkeys. Top took the stick and walked step by step to the group of monkeys.
My heart skipped a beat. Could it be Top's jealousy? Was he now trying to discipline those monkeys with a stick?
That won't do. With that intimidation, all the trust I'd built up with the monkey over the past few days has collapsed.
Just as I was about to do something to stop Top's violence, one of Top's actions stunned me. What was it doing?
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