Chapter 10
It was already three in the afternoon when Lu Yichuan finished his group meeting.
Turning right outside the tutor’s office led to a long corridor. Branches of cherry blossoms reached in, displaying a string of buds, and several students were taking pictures with their phones.
It was a sunny day, and he wore a simple white T-shirt, silver-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, a university-issued notebook in his hand, and the watch on his left wrist glittering in the sunlight.
Zhao Shuo caught up to him from behind. “Congratulations! I heard the paper you co-authored with your tutor got published in a C-ranked journal.”
Lu Yichuan stood in the corridor, turned slightly, looked at the brilliant sunshine outside, and gave a faint smile. “That’s all thanks to Professor Li. I’m just following in his footsteps, getting a taste of the benefits.”
Zhao Shuo clicked his tongue. “Come on, Professor Li was singing your praises when you weren’t here. You’re not just getting a taste; Professor Li said he just put his name on it, and you wrote the whole thing yourself. He even wants you to continue your doctoral studies under him.”
Lu Yichuan started down the stairs. “Is that so…”
Zhao Shuo followed behind him. “Do you have any thoughts about that?”
It was just after class, and students were milling about. Lu Yichuan walked among them, his expression still gentle.
“I’ll think about it.”
Zhao Shuo didn’t press the matter. They passed under the cherry trees. After a few steps, Zhao Shuo seemed to remember something and suddenly said, “By the way, where were you last night? I came to look for you twice, but you weren’t in the dormitory.”
Lu Yichuan replied softly, “I went out with a friend, had some drinks, and came back late.”
Zhao Shuo didn’t doubt him and gave him a thumbs-up. “Just like you, coming back so late, yet still going to the library like clockwork this morning.”
The man rubbed his temples and sighed softly. “I’m not made of iron. I’m planning to go back and catch up on sleep.”
“Aren’t you going to the cafeteria? Gao Zhilan said she’s treating us to dinner.”
“No, those Student Union people are too noisy.”
Seeing the faint dark circles under his eyes, Zhao Shuo didn’t insist and said goodbye to him at the intersection, turning towards the cafeteria.
Lu Yichuan watched him leave and turned towards the dormitory.
The afternoon temperature was just right. People were taking pictures under the cherry trees and by the willow trees near the lake. He paused under a cherry tree for a few seconds, then, for some reason, shifted his gaze to the flower bed beside it.
A couple was sitting on the grass in the flower bed, and not far away, by some low bushes, two girls were squatting and whispering.
He took a couple of steps closer and overheard their conversation.
“I clearly saw it here just now. Where did it go after I went to buy something?”
“Maybe it got scared and hid in the bushes?”
The two circled the bushes again, as if searching for something. One of the girls rustled the bag in her hand, making a loud noise, and called out in a coaxing voice, “Kitty…come here! Look what delicious food I brought you…”
Lu Yichuan looked away, unconsciously tapping his fingers on the black cover of his notebook.
So it was a cat.
He thought.
Before he could move, he saw a small head hesitantly poking out from the bushes, so small it was almost invisible.
The little head looked at the cat food in the girl’s hand and meowed softly.
“Meow~”
The girl’s eyes lit up. Before she could react, a flash of orange darted out and pounced on the little head.
“Meow!”
The sudden yowl startled Lu Yichuan. Before he could react, the small head quickly retreated, and an orange tabby landed where the head had just been, scattering fallen leaves.
The orange cat immediately got up, bared its teeth fiercely at the bushes, its fur bristling, and then disappeared into the bushes in the blink of an eye.
Lu Yichuan instinctively took a step forward. Before his foot landed on the grass, a shadow darted out and collided directly with his shoe.
A thud echoed as the small head hit his shoe, a heavy sound that indicated a solid impact.
Both the man and the cat froze.
Lu Yichuan reacted first and looked down.
A tiny, skinny cat, smaller than his palm, covered in dirt. From that single collision, a dark smudge appeared on his white shoes.
The kitten seemed dazed by the impact and looked up groggily after a moment.
The man’s refined, indifferent face came into view.
Looking down, the kitten saw dark marks all over the pristine white shoes and clean jeans.
“…”
The kitten took two steps back, obediently tucking its tailless rear end underneath itself.
My…my deepest a…apologies…
…
Big Yellow also emerged from the bushes. It looked at the kitten lying at Lu Yichuan’s feet, then at the tall man, and silently retreated.
The girl holding the cat food finally reacted. She froze when she saw Lu Yichuan’s handsome face. “Excuse me, this cat is a stray we just found. We haven’t seen it on campus before, so we wanted to lure it out for a check-up.”
A University had a dedicated stray cat rescue association, and all the stray cats on campus were tagged. Two girls had reported seeing an unfamiliar stray cat near the university entrance today. They kept an eye out and indeed found it in the flower bed.
The cat didn’t look right. Not only was it small and thin, but it also had ringworm and a distended belly, likely sick.
The two girls wanted to lure it out for an examination, which led to the incident just now.
Lu Yichuan looked down, meeting the kitten’s glassy eyes.
They were beautiful eyes, their beauty undiminished even by the inflammation around them. Round, reflecting his image in their pupils, the sunlight warming them with a soft glow.
His left hand, hanging at his side, suddenly twitched. A sharp, unexpected pain shot through it, spreading like wildfire and making his heart clench.
The girl was still talking. “Just stand there and don’t move. I’ll come and take the cat…”
As if understanding her words, the kitten on the ground scrambled to its feet and hid behind Lu Yichuan.
Lu Yichuan felt a slight tug on his pants leg. Looking down, he saw a dirty paw clinging to it, leaving several dark marks.
Seeing him looking, the kitten retracted its paw and nervously rubbed at the marks, only making them worse, leaving long, dark streaks.
Kitten: “…”
It sat at Lu Yichuan’s feet, its posture straight, its tailless rear hidden beneath it, looking up at him with bright eyes.
“Meow…”
I really didn’t mean to.
Looking into those eyes, Lu Yichuan had the illusion of seeing a certain face.
He took a deep breath, turned his head, and coughed. The all-nighter had drained the color from his already pale face.
The girl tentatively approached Lu Yichuan. After a few steps, she saw the previously indifferent man suddenly turn and shield the kitten.
“It doesn’t seem like it wants to go with you.”
The girl didn’t understand his sudden protectiveness and explained, “The kitten is probably scared of strangers, it’s normal that it doesn’t want to come with me. But it looks sick, and if we delay any longer, it might die.”
Lu Yichuan stiffened and looked again at the kitten hiding behind him.
The cat was still looking at him, its gaze fixed on him since it had bumped into him.
It didn’t seem to care whether it lived or died; its eyes held only him.
As if it had come here just to see him.
That strange feeling crept into Lu Yichuan’s heart again. He frowned and discreetly took a step back, away from the clinging kitten.
The kitten froze, seemingly surprised by his rejection.
The girl approached again. Just as she reached out to grab the kitten, the man who had just seemed to be rejecting it suddenly stepped forward again, blocking her.
Girl: “??”
Lu Yichuan said, “I’ll take it to the hospital.”
The girl hesitated. “This cat looks quite serious. If it’s really sick, the treatment costs…”
“I’ll cover all the expenses.” Lu Yichuan interrupted her, took out a pen, and wrote his name and contact information in his notebook. “This is my name and phone number. You can contact me anytime if you’re worried.”
The girl took the torn piece of paper and looked at it. “You’re Lu-xuechang from the philosophy department? No wonder you looked familiar.”
The corner of Lu Yichuan’s mouth twitched. “Can I take it with me now?”
“Yes, of course. I trust your character, Xuechang. But why did you suddenly decide to help this stray cat? Are you going to adopt it?”
Lu Yichuan looked at the kitten’s round eyes, then looked away. “It looks pitiful, and I guess we have some sort of connection.”
The girl looked at the dirty marks on his shoes and chuckled.
Then she heard the man speak again. “As for adoption… I’ll see.”
Lu Yichuan squatted down, looked at the dirty kitten, tapped its head with his long fingers, and said gently, “Do you want to come with me?”
The kitten froze, then, as if making a decision, flopped onto his palm, its intention to latch onto him clear.
Lu Yichuan arrived at the parking lot carrying a cardboard box. His black notebook was at the bottom of the box, and on top lay a cat so dirty it was almost unrecognizable.
The kitten was well-behaved, nestled quietly in the box, only occasionally glancing at Lu Yichuan with its glassy eyes.
After saying goodbye to the two girls, the smile on Lu Yichuan’s face faded. His narrow glasses concealed his emotions, and behind them, only a faint coldness could be glimpsed.
He placed the box in the back seat and got into the driver’s seat.
The car was his, and it carried a faint scent of jasmine, the same as his fingertips.
The kitten, unusually excited, looked around the car curiously.
Because of its limited view, it didn’t see the man in front of it bend down and pull out a disinfectant wipe, meticulously cleaning his fingertips with a blank expression.
He only threw the wipe into the trash bag after rubbing his fingertips red.
Lu Yichuan gripped the steering wheel and looked at the cat in the back seat through the rearview mirror.
The kitten, which had been so wary just moments before, was now curled up in a ball, sleeping soundly in his car.
