Chapter 85: Side Story 3 (2/6)
“Big Meow Lu, where are we going?”
“Big Meow Lu, the rain is getting heavier.”
“Big Meow Lu, my scruff hurts, can I walk by myself?”
…
The Maine Coon’s large paws paused, and it gently put the kitten down.
The sky was dark, the alley deserted, a few dim streetlights in the distance, the sound of barking dogs echoing intermittently.
Little Jiang Heng, chilled by the cold rain on his fur, raised his head and looked up.
Above him, the Maine Coon’s smoky gray eyes looked down at him.
“Why don’t you talk?”
The Maine Coon narrowed its eyes and glanced at the wall nearby. A black cat was perched there, and seeing it look over, hesitated, then jumped down and disappeared in the other direction.
It nudged Little Jiang Heng gently, urging him forward.
“My name is Lu Yichuan.”
It emphasized.
“Oh,” Little Jiang Heng said. “I know, Big Meow Lu.”
“…”
Big Meow Lu gave up.
Little Jiang Heng was small, his legs short, and Big Meow Lu’s one step was equivalent to his two. He waddled forward, then, seemingly realizing he was too slow, started running, his small body swaying, his head bobbing.
Big Meow Lu followed behind him, a smile in his eyes as he watched the kitten’s head bobbing with each wobbly step.
Just before the heavy rain started, Little Jiang Heng and Big Meow Lu finally reached their destination.
It was an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the urban village. It used to store grain, but many years had passed, and the surrounding fields had been replaced by factories, a small, polluted river flowing quietly in front of them.
The warehouse was deserted, filled with discarded junk, a perfect hiding place for cats.
A window at the back of the warehouse was broken. Big Meow Lu, carrying Little Jiang Heng in his mouth, jumped through the opening.
He went to the innermost corner, where a nest had been made, albeit from discarded clothing, but it was clean and looked warm in the chilly, rainy weather.
He placed Little Jiang Heng in the nest, his oval eyes, narrow and sharp, gleaming coldly in the darkness.
“Open your mouth and show me your teeth,” he said to the kitten.
Little Jiang Heng, confused, but obedient, opened his mouth and bared his teeth.
He was super fierce!
The Maine Coon glanced at his teeth. “No wonder you couldn’t even bite through that meat.”
Little Jiang Heng: “…”
The big cat said, “Stay here and don’t move. No one should come here tonight. I’ll go find some food for you.”
The clothes beneath his paws were soft, and Little Jiang Heng kneaded them contentedly, purring softly.
“Are you going alone? Is it safe? Actually, you shouldn’t have thrown that meat away, I could have eaten it… Ow! My paw is stuck!”
Little Jiang Heng tried to pull his paw free, but the thin thread was wrapped tightly around it.
Big Meow Lu gently bit his leg and freed his paw.
“You can’t eat that meat. I’m safe on my own. I’ll be back in two hours.”
Little Jiang Heng watched as he jumped out the window. The soft nest sheltered him from the wind and rain, the cold and hunger momentarily forgotten.
He thought, he was so lucky to have met such a nice cat like Big Meow Lu.
Kittens his age needed a lot of sleep. Little Jiang Heng, exhausted from his day’s adventure, despite the rumbling in his stomach and the unfamiliar surroundings, curled up and fell asleep.
He was awakened by Big Meow Lu.
Little Jiang Heng opened his eyes blearily and saw a carton of milk in front of him. He pushed the straw down with his paw, tore open the packaging, then bit the straw and stuck it into the carton.
“Hold it with your mouth and…suck.”
Little Jiang Heng stood up, looked at the milk carton almost as tall as himself, and took a sip, then saw two sausages in Big Meow Lu’s paws.
“Where did you get those?”
Big Meow Lu tore open the packaging. “Stole them from the store. They were about to expire. The owner would have either thrown them away or sold them to someone.”
“Oh…” Little Jiang Heng paused in his milk-drinking. “Is that…okay?”
Big Meow Lu placed the opened sausage beside him. “You can’t eat anything else. If I don’t steal, you’ll starve.”
Its pupils narrowed, gleaming in the dim light. “As the bottom of the food chain, we don’t need such a strong moral compass. Survival is our priority.”
The aroma of sausage filled the air, and Little Jiang Heng’s stomach growled, reminding him of its emptiness.
He finally took a bite of the sausage.
Big Meow Lu watched him finish one sausage, drink half the carton of milk, and lick his rain-dampened fur clean before entering the nest.
The nest, which had seemed so spacious to Little Jiang Heng, was now cramped with the large cat inside. The Maine Coon’s thick, long fur completely covered Little Jiang Heng.
The big cat curled up gracefully, its warm body a comforting presence.
Little Jiang Heng burped and placed his paws on the Maine Coon’s chest, instinctively kneading.
Purr…purr…
“Big Meow Lu…pretty…are you a stray cat too?”
“I don’t know. I was already here when I woke up. I don’t remember anything.”
Only…
Big Meow Lu paused, as if suppressing something, then, unable to resist any longer, bent down and started licking Little Jiang Heng.
Having broken the ice, it now had no qualms about grooming him.
The Maine Coon was probably new to this. Its rough tongue scraped against Little Jiang Heng’s face, its strength uncontrolled, and he felt like he was being scrubbed with a brush.
He endured the prickly affection, his face squished and distorted by the big cat’s tongue.
Later that night, the rain intensified, the sound of the nearby river mingling with the cat’s purrs, like a small engine.
Little Jiang Heng, drowsy from being licked, but not wanting to fall asleep yet, turned over and started a conversation.
“Why did you save me?”
Big Meow Lu didn’t say it had come looking for him specifically. It said, “I happened to be passing by and saw them bullying you, so I helped.”
“You’re so kind.” Little Jiang Heng praised him. “Those kids were so mean! I could hear them even when I was hiding! They said they were going to kick me around like a ball!”
Big Meow Lu narrowed its eyes, licked the kitten’s ear, and reassured him, “I won’t let them.”
Little Jiang Heng purred happily, then sighed. “Why were they so mean? I didn’t do anything to them.”
The big cat pulled him closer, its thick fur incredibly warm.
“Human nature is complex. Some people are aware of their own cruelty, some are not, especially children. Perhaps they come from a bad home, perhaps their parents are like that, so they don’t see anything wrong with their behavior. They’re…innocently cruel.”
The Maine Coon’s long fur covered the kitten, their body heat mingling.
Little Jiang Heng said, “I don’t think the people here like cats very much.”
Big Meow Lu said, “There are bad people everywhere. But the poor management and lack of development in the urban village have created an environment…detached from the outside world. The people here generally have low incomes, and they work in those polluting factories with terrible working conditions.”
“There are a lot of stray cats in this area, and with no one spaying or neutering them, their numbers keep increasing. The buildings are mostly dilapidated, and cats, unable to find food, will sneak into houses, following the scent.”
“Kindness requires…a certain level of economic stability. When people are struggling to survive, these cats, yowling all night during mating season, only become a nuisance.”
“The strong prey on the weak, and the weak prey on the even weaker. Their economic hardship and lack of power make them target those even more vulnerable, like animals.”
“Of course, this doesn’t apply to everyone. Don’t judge an entire area based on a few individuals.”
Little Jiang Heng, half-understanding, asked, “So if everyone were rich, no one would abuse animals?”
A low chuckle came from beside his ear.
“No.”
“The strong preying on the weak isn’t about…satisfaction, it’s about…seeking greater stimulation. Perhaps other animals, perhaps even humans.”
Little Jiang Heng seemed to understand, or perhaps not. He offered a heartfelt compliment. “Big Meow Lu, you’re so smart! You’re like…a scholar cat!”
Big Meow Lu didn’t respond, its tail covering the kitten’s head. “Go to sleep.”
…
After raining all night, the weather cleared the next day.
Little Jiang Heng stretched languidly, arching his back and wiggling his butt before getting up.
Big Meow Lu jumped onto the windowsill, seemingly returning from a hunt, the scent of blood clinging to its mouth, its belly slightly distended.
Sunlight streamed in through the broken window, casting a golden halo on the large Maine Coon.
It jumped down, looked at the stretching kitten, walked over, sniffed him, then retrieved the uneaten sausage from yesterday, tore open the package, and placed it in front of him.
“Eat.”
Little Jiang Heng, smelling the blood on its mouth, took a large bite of the sausage and asked, “What did you eat?”
Big Meow Lu’s answer was succinct. “Bird.”
Wow! So cool!
The half-carton of milk from last night had gone bad, and Big Meow Lu wouldn’t let him drink it. He watched as Little Jiang Heng finished the sausage. “Want to go bask in the sun?”
“Meow!”
Yes!
The area around the abandoned warehouse was deserted, overgrown with weeds. A polluted river flowed past a derelict factory, the dry, brown grass from winter now showing hints of new green.
Little Jiang Heng peered into the murky water but saw no fish, only a pungent smell that made him slightly nauseous.
He moved away from the riverbank, found a deserted path, and collapsed onto the pavement, spreading his limbs and his round belly, a furry pancake basking in the sun.
The elegant silver tabby Maine Coon sat on a higher vantage point nearby, observing their surroundings.
After Jingzhe, the solar term marking the awakening of insects, insects gradually emerged from the ground, and today, with the warm sunlight, a butterfly flitted past.
Little Jiang Heng watched as the butterfly flew closer and closer, its wings fluttering, seemingly oblivious to the cat lying on the ground, and landed on a blade of withered grass above Jiang Heng’s head.
Big Meow Lu had closed his eyes for a nap when he heard soft pawsteps and a faint meow behind him.
He opened his eyes and turned around.
Little Jiang Heng, a butterfly in his mouth, his tail wagging like a puppy, ran towards him.
“Big Meow Lu! I caught a butterfly for you! A super big one!”
Surprise!
