Chapter 6: Clues Begin to Surface

Jiang Xiaoyu originally thought this person lived a life of luxury and fine dining, with only the rarest delicacies on the table. Unexpectedly, the food was quite simple-looking. It was a typical Western-style meal: a pile of colorful vegetables, a perfectly seared steak with a beautiful golden-brown crust, and a glass of red wine. Nothing else.

Jiang Xiaoyu didn’t know that what he considered simple was actually worth its weight in gold. Just that pinch of spices on the steak alone could cover half a month’s wages for him.

“The table’s too high. Put the little cat’s lunch on the chair,” Ye Lian instructed the maid.

Jiang Xiaoyu lifted his head to observe him. During his time at the welfare institute, he’d encountered some rich people, all of whom had that arrogant, holier-than-thou air of charity. Someone as mild and polite as Ye Lian was truly rare.

The maid replied, “Got it.” After setting out the food, she laid a napkin on the chair. Just as she bent down to pick up the black cat, it jumped up on its own. She let out a small gasp. “So clever!”

Ye Lian propped his cheek on one hand and said, “Is it because it’s a stray cat? Smart like a person.”

Jiang Xiaoyu’s heart skipped a beat, and one paw slipped, nearly sending him tumbling.

Ye Lian chuckled. “I just praised how smart you are, and now you’re making a fool of yourself?”

Jiang Xiaoyu sneaked a glance up at him and saw that he was just speaking casually, so he relaxed. He lowered his head, sniffed the steak on the plate, and tentatively licked it with his tongue.

Seeing the cat unsure how to tackle the whole steak, Ye Lian set down his wine glass after a sip. “Is it too big to eat?” He slightly raised his chin toward the maid. “Cut it into small pieces for the little cat.”

The maid was young and had been delighted to see Jiang Xiaoyu. Now, following her master’s orders, she squatted down with a smile, cut the steak for him, and even raised her fork as if to feed him.

Jiang Xiaoyu awkwardly shuffled his paws to the edge of the chair. He’d never been waited on like this in his life. He meowed at the maid, nodded, and pointed at the plate to indicate he could eat it himself. Unfortunately, not everyone was sharp enough to understand. Ordinary people would just think the gesture was adorable, cooing about how obedient Mimi was while reaching to pet his head.

Startled by her enthusiasm, Jiang Xiaoyu tucked his tail and squeezed back into the chair, nearly kicking the napkin and plate off with his paws. Watching his reaction, Ye Lian smiled and took another sip of wine before speaking. “You can go now. The little cat can eat on its own.”

Disappointed, the maid withdrew her hand, gave a slight bow, and left the dining room. Jiang Xiaoyu let out a breath of relief, shuffled forward a few steps, and started eating.

Ye Lian raised a brow. Eating so unguardedly? He had no idea if this little guy was just bold and friendly or exceptionally good at faking it. “Is it good?” he asked.

Jiang Xiaoyu swallowed a mouthful of meat, licked his lips, and meowed, “Delicious.” It really was—the juice was rich, the meat tender, completely different from the tough, tooth-sticking beef tendon he used to eat.

Ye Lian’s eyes curved slightly. He leisurely cut into his steak. As one man and one cat ate in silence, the old butler approached with a napkin draped over his arm and stood beside Ye Lian. “Young Master, Second Master called. He said he’ll come later to pick up the car.”

Who was Second Master? What car? Jiang Xiaoyu stopped chewing silently and pricked up his ears.

Ye Lian acknowledged with a hum and glanced at the black cat. “I remember Wangan borrowed that black Extended Phantom last time?”

“Yes,” the old butler replied. “The driver from the Ji Family cleaned it thoroughly a few days ago and sent it back.” Even so, when it entered the garage, they had washed it inside and out again.

By now, Jiang Xiaoyu was fully alert, eyes wide and narrowed into slits as he stared at their conversation.

The drowning suicide case had occurred nearly a month ago, and he’d only been staking out for a week. He hadn’t seen the car come or go during that time, so it must have been returned before he arrived. The question was, when was it borrowed? And was it by the butler-mentioned Second Master?

While Jiang Xiaoyu pondered, their talk had shifted from the car to him.

The old butler said, “Young Master, are you planning to adopt this cat?”

Ye Lian didn’t answer directly. His features were exceptionally handsome, always carrying a hint of smile, soft and curved. Now, he seemed a bit conflicted, fine lines appearing at the corners of his eyes. “He seems very well-behaved.”

Seeing the clue emerging, Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t drop the ball now. He straightened up, placed his front paws neatly in front, raised his head, and let out a thin, pleading meow.

“And very smart…” Ye Lian chuckled lightly. “He can even catch rats.”

“I can mop the floors too!” Jiang Xiaoyu nodded eagerly, his furry face full of expectation as he looked at the man.

But the man changed tack. “Though he does have a history of scratching people. I said it’s up to you.”

Seeing his master toss the question back to him again, Chen Yiqu stiffened. He turned and saw the cat standing upright, front paws clasped together at its chest, shaking up and down in a begging pose. That obedient, compliant look was worlds apart from when it first fought him.

He couldn’t point out how un-cat-like it was, so Chen Yiqu kept a straight face. “We already have a freeloading Husky at home…”

Jiang Xiaoyu’s furry face tensed, thinking he’d be rejected again.

“…Anyway, since we already have a dog, adding a cat to keep it company isn’t bad. If you like him, Young Master, just keep him.” Chen Yiqu thought to himself, Ancestor, if you want to play with him, just say so. Don’t make it hard on me. But keeping him under our noses is good—we can watch and see why he sneaked in.

Hearing this, Jiang Xiaoyu turned to look at Ye Lian, calculated the distance, and suddenly leapt into his lap.

Ye Lian looked down at the black cat on his legs, his gaze inscrutable—playful or not? So proactive, completely unlike the aloof loner described in the files.

Unaware of his thoughts, Jiang Xiaoyu used the snottiest voice of his life and meowed, “Just adopt me, meow~”

Ye Lian tapped his nose with a finger. “Alright, little biter cat.”

Jiang Xiaoyu’s heart leaped with joy, followed by an inexplicable chill. Before he could dwell on it, Ye Lian gently set him down. He instructed the butler, “I have a meeting soon. Handle things here.”

“Yes.” Chen Yiqu nodded.

After Ye Lian left, Jiang Xiaoyu didn’t dare roam the house. He obediently sat in place, waiting for arrangements.

“Now you’re acting with some propriety,” Chen Yiqu said. “The Husky isn’t back yet, so sleep in its dog bed for now. Tomorrow I’ll have someone set up a place for you.”

And so Jiang Xiaoyu crawled into the Husky’s luxury castle. With things settled for the moment, he relaxed a bit and realized he hadn’t seen the Husky these days. “Wonder where the Husky went. If I see it, maybe I can get some info from it…” After a full summer afternoon meal, drowsiness hit. Unable to resist, Jiang Xiaoyu curled up on the ground and dozed off.

He was startled awake by a man’s voice.

“Bro! I’m here!” The voice was loud but a bit roguish. Jiang Xiaoyu quietly slipped out and hid nearby to watch the newcomer.

He was fairly tall and handsome, though his posture wasn’t straight, and his demeanor lacked refinement.

“Second Master, you’ve arrived,” the old butler’s tone was respectful but not warm, unlike how he treated Ye Lian.

“Uncle Chen, how’ve you been? Busy?” Ji Wangan grinned and slung an arm around Chen Yiqu’s shoulders. “Where’s my bro?”

“Thanks to you, doing well. Young Master is still in a meeting. If Second Master isn’t in a rush, shall I brew some tea and bring snacks first?”

Ji Wangan waved exaggeratedly. “No, no, I can’t handle the Ye Residence formalities. I’ll just grab the car and come find him another day.”

Jiang Xiaoyu followed silently, pondering: This guy’s surname is Ji, casually calls it the Ye Residence but refers to Ye Lian as brother. Relative or what?

In the underground garage, as they passed the black Extended Phantom, Ji Wangan’s steps paused for an instant, his grin fading slightly.

Chen Yiqu called out beside him, “Second Master?”

“Ah? Oh…” Ji Wangan seemed dazed. He coughed, then smiled again. “Found the keys?”

He took the keys from the servant, headed straight for his favorite sports car, gave Chen Yiqu a quick greeting, and left—like he was afraid to linger.

“Please drive safely,” the old butler said.

After the group left, Jiang Xiaoyu slipped back from the corner to the underside of the Phantom for another close inspection. Same as before—too clean. During his rat-catching days, he’d mapped the garage’s scattered cameras. Finding no other leads or evidence, he planned to fetch something that night for a Luminol test.

The moon was bright, stars sparse, only insect chirps around. Back at the hillside, Jiang Xiaoyu considered shifting back to human form but deemed it unsafe and gave up. He hung the Luminol reagent around his neck and sneaked back to the garage.

The cameras rotated periodically. Jiang Xiaoyu timed a gap, dashed to the front of the car, and crawled underneath. Lying on his back, he clutched the reagent to his chest, pressed the nozzle with his paws, and sprayed the undercarriage.

The victim’s autopsy report had been destroyed in the archive room fire, leaving only a coroner’s supplementary note. Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t confirm if he was hit by the car then dumped in the reservoir, so he started from the front.

The claws were truly inconvenient to operate. Jiang Xiaoyu was drenched in sweat from exhaustion, but the results were far from satisfactory. The experiment showed no bloodstains remaining on the undercarriage or the front of the car. He recalled the photo of the deceased sitting in the car, kicked back with his hind legs to slide out from underneath, and sprayed twice toward the rear door area.

A few seconds later, speckles of blue-white fluorescence weakly lit up in the darkness. Although the car had been cleaned spotless, there were still blood traces invisible to the naked eye that had seeped into these tiny molecular crevices, leaving behind marks of the crime.

Such clues had come so easily, yet Jiang Xiaoyu felt no joy whatsoever. His chest felt heavy, as if weighed down by a stone. Wouldn’t the Criminal Investigation team have ways to collect evidence? Would they hold back from applying for a search warrant out of concern for affecting investment attraction? He had a strange intuition—it stemmed from the memory of that little dog that had died so miserably that day, the impotent rage he’d felt facing the abuser without being able to punish him. That feeling was so familiar it made him sick.

He slept groggily until just before dawn. As the sky began to lighten faintly, Jiang Xiaoyu heard a vigorous rooster crow.

“Where’s that rooster crowing from?” He yawned, thinking groggily that the Ye Residence didn’t even keep chickens… Having stayed up too late into the night, he was utterly exhausted. He draped his claws over his eyes, curled into a small ball, and drifted back to sleep.

In his half-dreaming, half-awake state, he dreamed of that white little dog that had taken care of him.