Chapter 17
The kitten absolutely refused to be called Programmer, and it wasn’t a bald kitten anymore!
Wei Yuan held its chin high, its little face clearly conveying a message to Lu Dingyun: Kiss me!
Movie Emperor Lu, never one to deny himself, promptly picked up the kitten, showered its face with kisses, then quickly placed it back on the table, giving it no time to react.
Wei Yuan: “???”
Wait, did Lu Dingyun just kiss it again?
Where were his manners? Didn’t he know about interspecies boundaries?
The kitten bristled, glaring at its owner.
The owner, however, was perfectly content, picking up his camera and snapping photos of the kitten.
The kitten’s angry expression was so cute, and it looked adorable in its little outfit.
“Meow!” Wei Yuan was furious.
What was wrong with Lu? It was trying to discuss a serious matter, and he responded with kisses. What was this?
A honey trap?
It wouldn’t work on a cat!
It was determined to change its name today!
The kitten, its body burning with shame, still refused to admit it was affected by the movie emperor’s beauty.
It patted the table, trying to steer the conversation back on track.
Change the kitten’s name!
Lu Dingyun adored the kitten’s table-patting, but he gently caught its paw. “Dear, don’t hurt your paw.”
Wei Yuan: “…”
The audience: “…”
The viewers, witnessing everything, were speechless, filling the screen with ellipses.
Who would have thought that the aloof and reticent Movie Emperor Lu would forcefully kiss a kitten and then worry about it hurting its paw?
Unbelievable!
Lu Dingyun petted the kitten’s head, finally remembering the matter at hand after taking enough photos.
He looked at the camera, puzzled by the ellipses flooding the screen.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
The comments instantly returned to normal.
[Nothing, nothing, Teacher Lu, please change the kitten’s name.]
[Raises hand! Teacher Lu, you could write a few cute names on pieces of paper and let the kitten choose.]
Leather Jacket appeared again, her comment highlighted with special effects, displayed in the center of the screen: [Teacher Lu, look at me! We also want to participate in the kitten’s naming ceremony. Could you choose a few names from the ones we suggest? It’s okay if you don’t want to, we’re still your loyal fans!]
Lu Dingyun had disabled donations in his livestream, so no one had special privileges.
But viewers who had spent over one million on the platform had special effects accompanying their comments.
Leather Jacket’s comment being highlighted meant she had spent one million on the platform within the past ten minutes or so.
Neither Wei Yuan nor Lu Dingyun knew about this rule, but the other viewers did.
After reading the explanations in the comments, Wei Yuan couldn’t help but marvel at its Sister Cotton Jacket.
It instinctively glanced at Lu Dingyun, who, for some reason, also looked at the kitten.
The man and cat met each other’s gaze, both momentarily stunned.
A strange feeling washed over Wei Yuan. It suddenly realized it and Lu Dingyun seemed to have developed some inexplicable connection.
Lu Dingyun, looking into the kitten’s eyes, was also momentarily lost in thought.
Was it an illusion?
For a split second, he had seen a human-like expression on the kitten’s face and had the thought, “We’re so in sync.”
Humans often felt uneasy when encountering non-human entities that closely resembled them, known as the uncanny valley effect.
But Lu Dingyun hadn’t felt fear or unease, but rather a sense of delight.
Well, for a cat lover, being in sync with their kitten was a wonderful thing.
The viewers also noticed their shared gaze, commenting, “Haha, what a cute moment.”
Lu Dingyun dismissed his thoughts and looked at the screen. “Then everyone, please suggest some nice names, and I’ll choose a few for Xiao Yuan to pick from.”
The comments exploded with various cute and funny names.
Several wealthy fans, following Leather Jacket’s example, also spent money to have their comments highlighted.
Leather Jacket was lying in her home theater, cuddling a fluffy Ragdoll cat, while a masseuse gave her a foot massage.
She petted the cat, watching the movie emperor’s livestream on the giant screen.
The high-quality sound system filled the room with the movie emperor’s magnetic voice and the kitten’s soft meows. It was pure bliss.
Amidst the surround sound, she suddenly heard the movie emperor’s deep, gentle voice say “Xiao Yuan”!
She immediately sat up.
Xiao Yuan!
Or Xiao Yuan, as in Wei Yuan?!
For someone who had written “Xiao Yuan” countless times in her fan fiction, this nickname hit her right in the feels.
But she quickly realized he was probably referring to the “Yuan” in “Programmer.”
But wasn’t this the perfect opportunity to change the kitten’s name?!
Wei Yuan sat on the table, staring intently at the names suggested by the fans.
It naturally wanted to be called “Wei Yuan” again, but that was impossible.
So, it had to find a name it liked.
Lu Dingyun was also reading the suggestions, occasionally reading some aloud and observing the kitten’s reaction.
If the kitten meowed, he would write the name down. If not, it meant the kitten didn’t like it.
Wei Yuan, realizing what he was doing, played along.
Cat owners who understood their cats were rare these days.
The viewers found this amusing.
[Is Teacher Lu a comedian? Haha, as if the kitten can understand.]
[I think the kitten can actually understand. It didn’t react when Teacher Lu read “Equation” and “Telescope.”]
Lu Dingyun believed his kitten understood human language, but he didn’t want others to know.
He saw an interesting suggestion and smiled. “Baby, someone suggested Niu Niu, because you’re a cow cat.”
Wei Yuan chuckled internally.
Why not just call it Granny then?
Suddenly, Leather Jacket appeared again.
[Teacher Lu and kitten, look at me! How about Gui Yuan? Little Gui Yuan is so cute!]
She strongly recommended the name, posting multiple comments, even playing the victim card, claiming her recent emotional trauma required the movie emperor’s acceptance of her suggestion to heal.
Lu Dingyun had started the livestream because he saw this fan’s distress and because he hadn’t interacted with his fans publicly in a while.
He naturally wouldn’t refuse her suggestion, and he also found the name Gui Yuan quite cute, sweet and bouncy, just like his kitten.
Wei Yuan’s heart skipped a beat upon seeing the name.
Sister, you’re dancing right in front of the subject!
Its real name was Wei Yuan, and his family had always called him “Gui Yuan” as a term of endearment!
And because the two names sounded similar, although his fans mostly called him “Yuan Ge,” some occasionally called him “Gui Yuan.”
It was a nickname used only within a small circle, never widely known.
So, Leather Jacket’s intentions were glaringly obvious.
Unfortunately, there weren’t many Wei Yuan fans in Lu Dingyun’s livestream, so no one objected.
Lu Dingyun looked down at the kitten. “Baby, do you like the name Gui Yuan?”
Wei Yuan should have remained silent, but its mouth was faster than its brain, meowing before it could make a decision.
“Good.” Lu Dingyun wrote the name down, then looked at the screen. “It seems the kitten likes this name too.”
Sister Cotton Jacket, watching the livestream, was ecstatic. Her Ragdoll cat, disgruntled, jumped to another seat, grooming itself leisurely.
Soon, they chose ten names.
Lu Dingyun tore the paper with the names into small pieces, placing them on the table, then held the kitten. “Baby, pat the paper with the name you like, okay?”
Wei Yuan, finally about to shed its “Programmer” identity, eagerly jumped onto the table.
It wanted to choose a cool name, like “Cat King,” but its gaze kept drifting towards the paper with “Gui Yuan” written on it.
After two minutes of agonizing, the kitten closed its eyes and patted a piece of paper.
Lu Dingyun picked it up, looked at it, then showed it to the camera.
He picked up the kitten, smiling gently. “Then from now on, you’re Baby Gui Yuan.”
The kitten’s tail twitched.
An hour and a half later, Lu Dingyun finished organizing the cat clothes and ended the livestream.
They returned to the bedroom.
Wei Yuan noticed that Lu Dingyun seemed to intend to sleep with it on the bed, as there was a green cat bed placed beside his pillow.
The kitten’s heart pounded.
Although it had its own bed, this was practically the same as sharing a bed.
When staying in hotels, Lu Dingyun always wore pajamas, just in case.
But at home, he was used to sleeping in only his underwear.
He placed the kitten on the bed, and it immediately went to its bed, lying down obediently with its head on the small pillow.
Lu Dingyun chuckled, covering the kitten’s belly with a thin blanket.
The kitten blinked at him, but Lu Dingyun had already stood up, taking off his shirt.
Wei Yuan: “!!!”
Then, Movie Emperor Lu smoothly removed his pants.
Wei Yuan gasped, quickly closing its eyes.
The lights went out, and Lu Dingyun climbed into bed, petting the kitten’s head. “Xiao Gui Yuan, good night.”
Wei Yuan’s heart pounded. It waited a long time before daring to open its eyes.
It found that the room wasn’t completely dark. There was a faint light beside it.
Was Lu Dingyun using his phone?
It cautiously turned over, peeking over the edge of its bed.
Lu Dingyun was wearing headphones, watching short videos.
He scrolled quickly, pausing only when he saw entertainment gossip or cute animal videos.
Suddenly, a familiar video appeared, and Wei Yuan’s eyes widened.
The young man on stage, wearing cat ear headbands and dancing, who else could it be but “Wei Yuan”?!
Fortunately, Lu Dingyun wasn’t interested and quickly scrolled past. If Wei Yuan hadn’t been so familiar with its own stage outfits, it wouldn’t have recognized itself.
Wei Yuan relaxed. The headband had been a gift from a fan. They hadn’t known it was afraid of cats, so they had dressed it up as cutely as possible.
It hadn’t been afraid of a mere headband, so it had worn it.
And that performance had been on the day of its car accident, at its birthday fan meeting.
Wei Yuan was relieved but also a little annoyed.
It always watched Lu Dingyun’s videos when they appeared on its feed. Why didn’t Lu Dingyun watch its videos?!
Just then, Lu Dingyun, after scrolling past a few videos, suddenly scrolled back.
Wei Yuan: “?”
The young man with the cat ear headband reappeared on the screen, and Lu Dingyun stopped scrolling.
In the video, the human Wei Yuan exuded charisma.
His slightly long black hair was messy, the black and white cat ear headband perched on his head. His light makeup accentuated his already delicate and handsome features.
He was wearing form-fitting dress pants and a white shirt, the top three buttons undone, revealing glimpses of his pale chest as he danced.
His feet, in black shoes with red soles, moved with casual grace.
Because Lu Dingyun was wearing headphones, the kitten couldn’t hear the music.
So, watching itself singing and dancing on stage, swaying its hips, Wei Yuan felt, for the first time, that it was… incredibly seductive!
But it didn’t know how impactful its performance was to the introverted and reserved Lu Dingyun, especially with the sexy vocals and dynamic music playing through his headphones, late at night, watched by a sexually repressed movie emperor.
Wei Yuan, the narcissistic kitten, felt a twinge of embarrassment watching its own performance.
It had just complained about Lu Dingyun not watching its videos, but now that he was, it felt ashamed, kneading its paws instinctively.
Thankfully, the video was only thirty seconds long.
Wei Yuan was relieved when it ended, but ten seconds later, the video restarted, and Lu Dingyun was still watching.
Wei Yuan: “?”
It looked at Lu Dingyun, puzzled.
Had he fallen asleep?
But he looked wide awake, his deep gaze focused.
What was he doing?
Did he want to learn the dance?
Time ticked by. After watching the video seven times, Lu Dingyun finally turned off his phone, rolled over, and went to sleep.
The room plunged into darkness, the kitten’s eyes glowing faintly like tiny nightlights, full of confusion.
