In the following days, Xia Yu started looking for his own cat owner. For some unknown reason, those interested in adopting him were either muscular men or greasy middle-aged women.
He had no choice but to adopt a cold and indifferent strategy, rejecting all of them.
Approaching four o’clock, another person arrived at the store to see the cats. This was an elderly woman, seemingly around fifty years old.
The old lady was well-dressed and appeared energetic. She walked around the backyard before coming to stand in front of Xia Yu.
The word “again” is used because this wasn’t her first visit.
Xia Yu had already seen her three times.
The shop assistant enthusiastically introduced Xia Yu to the elderly woman again.
Although Xia Yu couldn’t understand what they were saying, judging from the old lady’s expression, she seemed quite fond of him. Yet, in the end, she still didn’t buy him.
After the elderly woman left, the shop assistant placed Xia Yu into a cage, closed the door, and prepared to leave for the day.
It was still five minutes before four o’clock. Xia Yu lay in the cage eating cat food while lamenting the laziness of the people in District Two.
Can you believe the store closes before four o’clock?
He thought again about the old lady. She seemed decent enough. Although she didn’t give off a particularly pleasant vibe, she also didn’t seem repulsive.
It was a pity she didn’t plan to buy him.
After pondering for a while, Xia Yu felt a bit anxious.
He stood up, trying to figure out the reason for his anxiety.
Was he worried about not being sold?
Was he afraid of being given to a bad person?
No, although Xia Yu wanted to find an owner, he wasn’t in a hurry. As an intelligent cat, he could perfectly well support himself—for instance, by performing on the streets for money or charming a rich young lady into taking him home.
He had telepathy, which allowed him to determine whether a person had good or bad intentions.
The cage’s latch was simple—he could even escape by himself if he wanted.
If it wasn’t for that, then why was he feeling anxious?
He used reverse reasoning to think about what he had been thinking about before he felt this anxiety.
Soon, he pinpointed the cause.
His anxiety had appeared after he thought about the old lady.
Thinking through the matter again carefully, Xia Yu couldn’t find an answer.
If this were his own body, Xia Yu might have attributed the anxiety to physical discomfort or something similar. But this was a white cat’s body, which had an added advantage—telepathy.
The feelings he had previously experienced around that young couple and those muscular men were also results of his telepathy.
In other words, this anxiety wasn’t baseless—it meant something was about to happen.
What kind of trouble could an old lady possibly bring? Was she planning to buy him and then abuse him?
Abuse seemed unlikely, as Xia Yu hadn’t sensed any malice from her.
But he hadn’t sensed any particularly positive vibes either.
Maybe the old lady wasn’t here to buy a cat at all—perhaps she was scoping out the house, intending to take over the cat shop and drive all the cats out?
Then would they become a group of idol cats and save the pet store?
That sounded like an animated show’s plot—reality wouldn’t play out like that.
Back in his own body, Xia Yu kept thinking about it.
Forget the calmness and elegance—he was really envious of that telepathy ability. He couldn’t just let it disappear.
If only he could understand what those people were saying! Guessing all the time, who knows what might happen!
Even during his guzheng practice with Kong Hanyue, his mind was elsewhere, and he was scolded by Liu Ronglan several times.
After returning home, he anxiously waited in his room, watching the clock inch toward midnight when the game would reset.
But there was still an hour and a half until then.
He picked up a book, glanced at it, and put it down again. Xia Yu couldn’t calm his mood.
The only comfort was that the game hadn’t issued any warning indicating the white cat’s body was in danger.
The hour hand had reached eleven, the minute hand pointed at fifty-nine. He stared at the second hand, watching it slowly approach twelve.
When the second hand finally reached twelve, Xia Yu clicked on the third slot.
Darkness enveloped his vision, and then he was back inside the white cat’s body.
The cat shop was very quiet, with only the soft purring sounds of the cats echoing.
Using his night vision and the light leaking in from the supermarket across the window, Xia Yu could see his surroundings clearly.
Everything looked the same as during the day, but the anxious feeling remained, even stronger than before.
Was something about to happen?
He extended a paw and opened the latch on his cage, ready to escape at any moment.
At one o’clock, the wall clock chimed. A sound came from the backyard.
The back door opened, and a dark figure entered, using a flashlight to examine each cat.
It seemed like just an ordinary cat thief, but Xia Yu didn’t dare to underestimate the situation.
This was the peaceful District Two, but who knows—someone might think you’re cute and then send you straight to meet God.
Xia Yu’s muscles tensed, ready to flee, although he didn’t run immediately because he sensed no danger, and besides, he was a cat with great courage and skills.
What was the connection between this dark figure and the elderly woman from earlier?
When the thief reached him, Xia Yu got a clear look—it was the same old lady from the day.
She had dressed decently during the day, but now at night, she turned out to be a cat thief?
Seeing Xia Yu, the old lady became delighted. She picked him up and whispered a series of incomprehensible words.
If the old lady tried anything harmful, Xia Yu was ready to give her face a good scratching with his paws.
As a cat, Xia Yu was confident in his combat abilities, especially at night, which was a cat’s prime time.
However, just as he sensed earlier, the old lady didn’t attempt to harm him.
She tucked Xia Yu into her coat and exited the cat shop the same way she came, quickly walking past two streets before taking Xia Yu out again.
As the old lady hurried along, Xia Yu wondered what she was planning to do.
His anxiety had disappeared the moment the old lady picked him up, so apparently nothing dangerous was going to happen.
So this old lady just wanted to steal a cat?
But judging from her appearance and dress, she didn’t seem like someone who couldn’t afford to buy a cat.
Could it be a special fetish? Only stolen cats give satisfaction?
Xia Yu overlooked the possibility that appearances can be deceiving. After walking five blocks with the old lady and arriving at a remote, rundown residential area, he realized his previous assumption was wrong.
The walls of the buildings were cracked and stained, the streets dirty and messy.
So the old lady had come to steal him—her neat appearance was just a disguise.
She was actually poor and couldn’t afford to buy a cat.
Xia Yu felt he couldn’t be this careless. He wasn’t just an ordinary black cat anymore—he was a Persian white cat, an elegant noble among cats.
Taking advantage of her distraction, he should run back to the pet store.
After entering the old lady’s home, Xia Yu became even more determined to escape. The house was small and run-down. The only decent thing about it was its cleanliness.
Living here, he would have to say goodbye to delicious cat food and canned treats, surviving only on leftovers.
“Tina, Tina!” The old lady held up Xia Yu and whispered.
“Grandma.” A little girl sat up from a nearby bed, rubbing her sleepy eyes.
“Look what I found for you?” The old lady handed Xia Yu to the girl.
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