Chapter 9: Kitty’s Little Rubs

Li You slept well, aside from that disturbance last night; otherwise, he rested very comfortably.

Early in the morning, he woke up, closed his eyes, yawned, stretched his front and back paws, then curled up again and smacked his lips lightly, nearly falling asleep once more.

Suddenly, the body beneath him jolted. The cat’s paws slipped, and he tilted sideways, only to be immediately steadied by a large hand that scooped him up by the belly.

Li You’s paws scrabbled at Li Ye’s arm, his hind legs kicking tensely at the air as he tilted his head up to look at his brother: “Meow~”

His first meow of the morning rang out crisp and clear.

After getting up, Li Ye placed the cat back on the bed, fetched some cat food and water and set them nearby, then turned toward the bathroom.

Li You glanced at Li Ye walking away, his gaze slowly shifting to his own breakfast. A few seconds later, he padded over with dainty cat steps.

Li You ate very elegantly; he didn’t really resemble a cat at mealtime. He paid close attention to his image, even retaining his human habit of chewing slowly. If he got a bit choked, he would take a sip of water to ease it, so he ate very slowly.

When Li Ye emerged, he saw the ragdoll cat sitting primly in front of his cat bowl, taking a small bite before sitting up straight to chew leisurely.

Unhurried, it even looked somewhat refined.

Li You had eaten half when he suddenly felt his back growing strangely hot. He turned his head and startled at his brother’s gaze.

The paw pressed against the cat bowl hesitated and withdrew. He lowered his head and glanced left and right, muttering inwardly.

He hadn’t spilled any on the floor, so why was he staring?

The cat felt a bit puzzled. He lifted his head and meowed “Mrr?” at Li Ye, nudging his cat bowl toward him a little.

Here, have a taste.

Li Ye remained silent. After a long moment, he walked over, squatted down, and peered across the cat bowl at the ragdoll cat sitting ramrod straight opposite.

“…”

Li You grew nervous under the scrutiny, licking his lips nonstop. His pink tongue darted out and retracted. After a while, he stood up, turned around with his paws, and presented his fluffy back to Li Ye, pretending to lick at the water bowl behind him.

He hadn’t lapped at it twice when he noticed the water was nearly gone. At that moment, a hand reached over and took away the water bowl that had been covering his embarrassment.

He looked up in bewilderment at Li Ye, who had snatched his bowl.

“I’ll add some for you. Water or milk?” Li Ye asked, staring into the cat’s eyes. He didn’t expect an answer from a cat; he just inexplicably wanted to try.

Li You’s eyes brightened a little. Remembering that cats shouldn’t drink too much milk for their health, he placed a paw on Li Ye’s shoe and patted it lightly: “Meow!”

“Water?” Li Ye asked patiently, attempting to communicate with a cat.

“Meow!”

“No milk?”

“Meowr—”

Li Ye fell silent. He looked into the ragdoll cat’s eyes again and said, “It’s lactose-free milk. You can drink it.”

“…” Li You’s paw, which had been patting his brother’s shoe, froze abruptly. The cat went still, smacked his lips, and let out a low, engine-like rumbling “Mrrrow” from his throat.

Li Ye waited a moment before asking again, “Milk?”

The cat tilted his head up: “Meow—”

Mm, looks like he wanted milk after all. Li Ye calmly treated this smooth exchange as perfectly ordinary. He stood and went to the counter to prepare the cat’s special lactose-free milk. Moments later, he returned to squat beside the ragdoll cat, still not leaving as he watched the cat eat.

Li You lapped at the milk once, then looked up at his brother.

“…………”

Hey, brother, could you not watch me eat? Don’t you have your own food?

Li You stared reproachfully into Li Ye’s eyes. A few seconds later, an incoming comm call drew Li Ye away.

Watching Li Ye step to the wardrobe area to take the call, Li You perked up his ears, set down his breakfast, and padded over on cat steps to squat beside Li Ye, his tail swishing left and right behind him.

The comm content had nothing to do with the case in Sunrise Village; it was work from another planet. Li You half-understood it. After his brother ended the call, he casually returned to his cat bowl as if nothing had happened.

Li Ye had seen all the ragdoll cat’s little movements. He withdrew his gaze, donned his light brain, changed into his military uniform, and prepared to leave. Only after the cat finished eating did he scoop it up with one arm and depart Sunlight Palace.

Li You sat quietly in his brother’s hand. After leaving Sunlight Palace, they returned to the Imperial Military base. There, Li You saw Little Wan Sis again, but he didn’t return to her side. Her checkup now included many more tests and wouldn’t finish that day.

During their brief encounter, Li You caught two faint scents on Little Wan Sis.

Tulips.

And the smell of rot.

The scents were very faint, almost nonexistent, easily scattered by the wind, but Li You had detected them.

He could even confirm they emanated from Little Wan Sis herself—a faint trace where the rotting smell nearly overpowered the tulip fragrance.

He hadn’t smelled these scents on Little Wan Sis before. Li You glanced at her face. She looked full of vigor, her eyes smiling, no different from usual.

How strange.

Li You twitched his nose and sniffed carefully; the two scents persisted.

The ragdoll cat’s actions drew the attention of several officers present. Peisengke poked at him with a finger: “Little guy, we know your pink nose is cute, but if you keep that up, you’ll end up with bald patches, you know?”

Li You shuddered, clutching tighter with the paws on Li Ye’s arm as he eyed Peisengke nervously.

“I’m just joking.” Peisengke laughed heartily and stopped teasing the cat. He turned to the other officers: “Alright, guys, let’s get everyone through the final checks. Remember to be polite.”

Then he addressed the villagers there for testing: “Thank you all so much for your cooperation. Please go home and rest well afterward.”

The villagers cooperated fully with the Imperial Military’s routine checks. Little Wan Sis left with the group. Before going, she waved at the ragdoll cat: “Have fun, little kitty. Little Wan Sis will pick you up later.”

Then she nodded apologetically to Li Ye: “Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness.”

“Mrrrow…” Li You watched Little Wan Sis leave. Once she was out of sight, he sniffed carefully again.

That rotting smell, which had nearly masked the tulip scent, was gone.

He glanced at the surrounding officers; everyone looked normal, apparently unaware of the odd scents.

Li You had no choice but to tilt his head up at Li Ye. His brother was listening to reports from other officers, his face expressionless, seemingly oblivious to anything.

The next moment, Li You spotted a black shadow flashing across the skin of Li Ye’s wrist—the little black snake.

Before he could react, the snake vanished into the sleeve. He stared intently at Li Ye’s wrist, but instead of the snake, a large hand covered his head.

Li Ye didn’t lower his eyes to the cat; he simply ruffled its head. His attention remained on work, yet the next instant, he felt the paw rubbing the cat enveloped by soft paws. He looked down to see the cat nuzzling his hand.

Li You didn’t know why he had chosen this way to get his brother’s attention. After rubbing, even he froze for several seconds, then awkwardly but politely released his paws and let out a soft “Meow.”

“…” Li Ye looked at him. Moments later, he raised his eyes to the officer before him: “Continue.”

The officer cleared his throat lightly, shifted his attention from the cat, and resumed the report.

Li You lowered his eyes to lick his paws, his face heating up. He saw his brother place that hand in front of him.

No glove on the right hand today. The little black snake coiled around the index finger, poking out a round, smooth head to stare at Li You.

Li You focused intently, cupping it with both paws to grab hold. The little black snake wriggled twice for show, then deftly escaped and darted back into his brother’s sleeve.

Li You looked at his own paws, then at his brother’s sleeve, delighted.

He had won this round!

Total victory!!

Cats were the best!!

Li You battled the little black snake for three hundred more rounds and won plenty. By then, his brother had nearly finished handling work matters.

Only then did he start fretting over that earlier issue again.

The strange rotting smell on Little Wan Sis made him very uneasy; it felt very bad.

Cats couldn’t convey messages to humans; opening their mouths only produced meows. Li You couldn’t rely on humans understanding cat-speak, so he needed another way to get this across to Li Ye.

That morning, Li Ye took Li You back to the pet shop. Little Wan Sis had asked an acquaintance to feed the cats, and officers were investigating nearby. Li You nearly got placed back in the cat room. Thanks to wrapping all four legs around Li Ye’s arm and refusing to let go, he bought himself more time outside to gather information.

With a murder in town, far fewer people were on the streets, visible to the naked eye, and officers patrolled everywhere.

Li You didn’t stay long in his brother’s arms; later, he hopped down to walk himself.

The cat held his tail upright, exuding a majestic air. With him in front and his brother behind, it almost seemed like he was the one inspecting.

Approaching noon, Li Ye brought the cat back to Sunlight Palace. Li You received a serving of cat food personally cooked by an Imperial Military mess officer. He politely rubbed against the officer delivering it, then sat primly and tilted his head up: “Meow—”

The little cat’s way of expressing thanks was super simple: a rub and nuzzle, a meow, then watching the officer leave. He turned to Li Ye in the wardrobe area, who had set the hot meal on the counter but left it untouched, then looked down at his own appetizing cat food in the bowl, huffing inwardly.

Stinky Li Ye, so rude—not even thanking that guy.

Cats were much better.

Li You contentedly ate his cat food.

The room was very quiet. The vast lounge lit only by a single lamp at the counter, casting a hazy glow that diffused outward, growing dimmer toward the edges.

The soft couch sat in the corner, the headboard against a full wall of floor-to-ceiling glass windows, with bookshelves lining the side. The floor-to-ceiling windows had light-blocking curtains drawn, leaving only a slit through which light peeked in. A thin beam fell precisely on the cat squatting by the window, eating lunch.

Bathed in light, the cat’s fur gleamed golden, like ripened wheat.

Li Ye’s lunch remained untouched. The antique wooden clock on the wall ticked steadily, crisp and slow, as if stretching time even further.

The hands moved, clicking as the hour and minute overlapped at an integer mark. The clock chimed. The sound wasn’t loud, but it startled Li You, who had been eating intently.

He looked up at the clock on the wall.

Noon.

The ticking continued. Li You lowered his head to resume eating. Far off, the lounge door—slightly ajar—was pressed by a hand with distinct knuckles and slowly opened. Someone walked in.

With someone entering the room, both the cat and Li Ye noticed. They turned toward the entrance simultaneously.

Li Ye even spared a glance at the cat eating in the corner before looking up again. In the dim corridor at the entrance appeared a familiar figure, followed by a pair of bare feet at the boundary of light and shadow.

Li Ye’s gaze settled quietly on those feet.

Li You blinked and looked at the feet too. His cat eyes narrowed as he muttered inwardly.

These feet… why do they look so familiar?

“Brother.”

The figure still shrouded in darkness spoke. The voice was soft, fluffy, carrying a youthful tone.

Li You froze on the spot. The bit of dried meat in his mouth dropped with a plop. Incredulously, he stared at the shadow, and the next moment, he saw himself—barefoot, dressed in a little formal suit and suspender pants—step into the light.

The boy entered the light, his pretty blue eyes fixed on distant Li Ye. His hands clenched nervously together, his voice pitiable: “I’ve been looking for you for so long…”

Li Ye watched that face silently, saying nothing.

Meanwhile, Li You—shocked into arching his back with all four paws splayed tensely—stared warily at this guy identical to himself. He whipped his head to look at his brother, then back at the impostor, and hissed fiercely with his head raised.

The boy, about to approach, halted immediately. He looked fearfully at the cat, then at Li Ye: “Bro…”

“Meow—!!”

Don’t call him brother!! Who are you to call him that!!

The cat was furious, his back fur nearly bristling into flight. Li You glared murderously at this guy identical to himself—even the mole on his neck in the exact spot—and meowed aggressively at him. Then he leaped toward Li Ye, clawing at his brother’s pant leg.

This guy’s suspicious! This guy definitely has issues!!

Li Ye looked down at the somewhat triggered ragdoll cat and scooped him up with one arm. He raised his eyes to the boy in the distant dim area, his gaze still serene but now tinged with gray shadows: “Li You?”

The cat in his arms jolted at that. He patted his brother’s chest with his paws: “Meow—!”

That’s not me! Not Li You!!

The distant boy clenched his reddening hands, his voice timid: “Brother…”

Li Ye’s brow furrowed. The black snake emerged, slithering irritably across his skin. He saw the boy take a step forward and was about to speak when a voice, nearly accusatory, rang in his ear.

【Stinky Li Ye!】

【That’s not me!!】

Li Ye’s furrowed brow relaxed a little. His gaze fixed on the distance for a long time without moving. Those two voices flashed by, so quickly that they seemed like false illusions.

No, in fact, they were illusions. It was just that the voices in the illusions sounded more like Li You than the liar in front of him.

Li Ye’s hand gently stroked the cat in his arms. He said coldly to the “person” in the distance, “You are not him.”

That “person’s” figure stiffened.

Li Ye pinched and rubbed the cat’s ears. “Li You would not fear me.”

The bristling Li You in his arms froze upon hearing this. He guiltily shifted his cat butt a little and let out a low “meow.”

He was actually afraid, but it was just an act…

Li You nuzzled closer to his brother. In his heart, he thought, ‘I’m really not afraid now, and I will always believe that my brother won’t hurt me.’

Li Ye felt a wave of warm softness in his arms. He looked down and saw the cat rubbing against him, gradually becoming a bit lost in thought.

Meanwhile, the “person” standing in the dim shadows laughed, a strange and eerie laugh.

“You haven’t forgotten him.” That “person” said, “No one can forget Your Highness Youyou, especially you.”

“Li Ye, you are the least qualified to forget Little Highness. If one day you no longer remember him, you should just die.”

Li Ye looked up at him. After the youth used Li You’s face to say such vicious words, he retreated a step and vanished into the darkness, silently, without a trace.

This was very similar to the illusions created by Mito. It was not a real person; the culprit behind it was not even nearby, and his senses could not detect it.

Li You stared in shock as the “person” disappeared. He looked up at Li Ye and noticed that something was off in the other’s eyes.

Li You had once loved observing his brother’s eyes because they were truly beautiful. His brother often had no expression, with extremely subtle emotional fluctuations—even his rare smiles were just a few pixel points at the corner of his lips.

Because he frequently observed his brother’s eyes, Li You had a unique skill: he could keenly detect his brother’s emotional changes, provided he could see them.

Just like now, he noticed a faint trace of sadness in Li Ye’s eyes that was hard to detect.

The kitty quietly gazed at Li Ye, gradually feeling a bit sad himself. Moments later, he placed his two front paws on Li Ye’s chest and climbed up, lightly rubbing his head against Li Ye’s face. His pink nose pressed against his brother’s face and nudged gently a few times.

Li Ye lowered his head, his gaze dropping. For a long time, he could not say a word.