Chapter 48
Guan Jiu said, “Whether his socialization is up to par isn’t for me to decide.”
Mimi, realizing they might actually be separated, became increasingly anxious, calling out helplessly, “Shao Sui…”
Shao Sui held Mimi’s hand, “If it’s just that, I can also teach him.”
Guan Jiu said pointedly, “After all this time, do you think your teaching has been adequate?”
Shao Sui’s heart clenched.
Initially, he did think Mimi’s behavior wasn’t appropriate. Since he was human now, he should behave accordingly. But as his selfish desires grew, he also started enjoying Mimi’s affection and dependence.
Shao Sui knew it was despicable, but he wasn’t a saint, he often lost control.
Guan Jiu said frankly, “We advocate freedom of love, but the prerequisite is that both parties are independent individuals.”
A cat, becoming a member of human society, gained responsibilities and obligations, it could no longer be just a pet, acting spoiled and letting its owner do whatever they pleased.
And wild cat spirits, lacking in relevant education, often couldn’t break free from their feline mindset after transforming, making them vulnerable.
The same applied to humans. Most pet owners loved their cats, but they didn’t necessarily respect them, let alone a cat spirit who could turn into a human.
There had been cases of cats, after transforming, being kept as sex slaves by their owners, deprived of dignity and freedom. Without contact with the outside world, they might never understand why their owners were doing those things to them, remaining ignorant even after being abandoned in their old age, their lives ending in confusion and misery.
“We don’t want such tragedies to happen, so all discovered cat spirits must undergo social training, it’s the organization’s policy.” Guan Jiu said seriously. “It’s also to ensure you can communicate as equals after a month, truly respecting each other, so even if you have disagreements in the future, it won’t end badly.”
Mimi panicked, “Shao Sui can do whatever he wants to me, I won’t leave him!”
Guan Jiu spread her hands at Shao Sui, a “See?” expression on her face.
Shao Sui sighed internally. He knew that as long as he wanted to, Mimi would let him do anything. He was just a kitten, easily coaxed.
But he didn’t want a sex toy, he wanted a life partner, a cat spirit who understood what being a partner meant.
And this cat spirit had a specific name, Mimi.
“Can I take him there?”
Mimi looked at him incredulously, his eyes reddening, “I don’t want to be separated from you…”
Shao Sui patted Mimi’s hand reassuringly, waiting for Guan Jiu’s answer.
“Of course.” Guan Jiu said, “You’ll also have to come a few times for some… educational sessions.”
Educating cat spirits to be independent was important, educating humans to respect cat spirits was also important.
James and Tian Miao stood up, “We’ll leave you two alone to pack, we’ll wait for you at the elevator.”
“Okay.”
As soon as the Cat Spirit Mutual Aid Association members left, Mimi clung to Shao Sui, “Don’t you want me anymore?”
Shao Sui hugged Mimi’s thin frame, his heart aching, “How could that be?”
“But you’ve been acting strange these past few days.” Mimi was on the verge of tears. “You don’t stick your tongue in my mouth during kisses anymore, and you don’t call me ‘baby’… didn’t I agree to be your partner? Did I do something wrong?”
Shao Sui’s heart ached. He wished Mimi was just a kitten, always arrogant and proud, not asking so desperately where he had gone wrong.
Shao Sui carried Mimi back to the bedroom, placed him on the bed, knelt beside him, held his hand, and said carefully, “I was just joking that day, I didn’t mean to force you to be my partner.”
Mimi paused, “Don’t you like me anymore?”
“Of course I do.” Shao Sui said without hesitation. “But that doesn’t mean you have to go against your wishes and be my partner.”
Mimi didn’t know how to respond, “I didn’t go against…”
Shao Sui wasn’t reassured by his words, “Because you don’t understand, Mimi, you don’t know what being a partner entails, it’s not just about sleeping together.”
Mimi said stubbornly, “I do! It’s like…”
Shao Sui said, “Like male and female cats during their heat cycle? It’s different, human relationships are more complex.”
Tears welled up in Mimi’s eyes, “You just want to abandon me.”
“I swear, I’ve never thought about abandoning you.” Shao Sui stood up, knelt on one knee between Mimi’s legs, and pulled him into his arms, “There are some things I can’t teach you, perhaps they can.”
The weight in his arms suddenly disappeared, replaced by a fluffy calico cat on the bed.
Mimi seemed to be telling Shao Sui he would rather not be human than be separated from him.
“I don’t want to be separated either.” It had been a while since Shao Sui had seen Mimi like this. He leaned down and held the cat’s furry face in his hands. “But they’ve already found you, they won’t change their minds just because you’re a cat now.”
Mimi let out a soft, sad meow.
For a moment, Shao Sui felt like it wasn’t just a month-long separation, but a permanent goodbye.
“Baby, just one month.” Shao Sui kissed the kitten’s nose. “You might even make new friends there, and you can also think about whether you want to be my partner.”
“No matter what you decide, you’re still my little cat spirit, I’ll never abandon you, okay?”
Guan Jiu didn’t know how Shao Sui convinced Mimi, but in the end, he carried the clearly separation-anxious cat spirit out, along with a suitcase filled with Mimi’s clothes, favorite snacks, and some cat toys.
The organization’s base was quite far, in the mountains on the outskirts of the city. After a long drive, they finally reached a heavy iron gate, surrounded by high walls.
Guan Jiu said, “Although it looks like a prison, it’s fundamentally different. It’s built like this to avoid attracting attention.”
Shao Sui said simply, “I understand.”
Mimi, nestled in Shao Sui’s lap, didn’t make a sound.
“Don’t be so dramatic, it’s just one month, lighten up.”
James reached out to pet the cat, but Mimi hissed at him, baring his teeth, as if ready to bite if he got any closer.
Shao Sui covered Mimi’s face, “Don’t bite everything, it’s unhygienic.”
“…” James retracted his hand resentfully. “Nice teeth, very straight.”
Mimi turned around, buried his face in Shao Sui’s shirt, and wrapped his tail around Shao Sui’s wrist, pulling his hand towards his backside.
Shao Sui finally smiled faintly.
Whether human or cat, Mimi was always adorable.
Tian Miao said, “We’re here, this is the dormitory building.”
Shao Sui carried the tense cat out of the car, and Guan Jiu led them inside. “Since Mimi is a wild cat spirit, the organization is worried he might have strong territorial instincts, so he’ll have a private room and bathroom.”
It sounded like the other cat spirits here had backgrounds, raised at the base since they were young.
Shao Sui was worried, “Are the other cat spirits friendly? They won’t bully him, will they?”
Guan Jiu said, “Don’t worry, we’re very strict about that.”
Tian Miao scratched his bald head, “Usually, it’s the wild cat spirits who bully us, because of their territorial instincts. We have group lessons here, the smells are mixed.”
Shao Sui understood. The other cat spirits, having grown up here, didn’t have strong territorial instincts and were relatively docile. Wild cat spirits were different, like bringing a fierce stray cat into a multi-cat household.
“Mimi won’t cause trouble, as long as other cats don’t bully him.” Shao Sui was still concerned. “You don’t have corporal punishment here, do you?”
Guan Jiu turned a corner on the third floor and opened the second dorm room, “We’re as cautious with cat spirits as teachers are with their students these days.”
The dorm room was quite spacious, about twenty square meters, with a whole wall dedicated to a cat tree and transparent tunnels on the ceiling, much more luxurious than Shao Sui’s apartment.
Guan Jiu glanced at her watch, “Our base closes at 10:30 PM, so…”
Shao Sui: “I understand.”
Guan Jiu considerately closed the door, giving them some private time.
Shao Sui placed the cat on the bed, opened the suitcase, hung up the clothes, and neatly arranged the snacks and toys.
“It’s getting colder, remember to put on your thermal underwear after waking up. You can share these snacks you don’t like with your new friends. You can wash your hair like I taught you, bending over the sink…”
Shao Sui arranged everything while giving instructions, then squatted down and comforted the little cat on the bed, “I’ll be back to get you in a month, okay?”
After a moment of staring at each other, Mimi turned around, presenting his backside to Shao Sui.
Shao Sui chuckled helplessly, “Baby… will you miss me?”
Mimi didn’t reply.
Guan Jiu knocked on the door.
Shao Sui stood up, “I have to go now.”
Just as he turned to leave, he felt a tug on his shirt. Looking back, he saw Mimi holding onto the corner of his shirt with his teeth, his round eyes fixed on him.
…
“Do you need a jacket?”
“No, thank you.”
Guan Jiu led him to a place that looked like an administrative office, taking a form from the counter. “Fill this out, and we’ll arrange your educational sessions, mostly on weekends, so it won’t affect your work.”
“Will I be able to…”
“No.” Guan Jiu said sternly. “During the social training period, cat spirits and their ‘owners’ must be completely separated. Some cats are incredibly lovesick, they can’t think straight when they see their owners.”
“Okay.” Shao Sui filled out the form while saying, “Mimi was abused before, he’s very sensitive, please be careful, don’t be too harsh on him.”
Guan Jiu said, “Don’t worry, we’re aware of Mimi’s situation—sign here in the bottom right corner.”
Shao Sui signed his name and took a deep breath, “Then I’ll leave Mimi in your care for now.”
Guan Jiu, rarely offering comfort, said, “Normally, newly discovered wild cat spirits require at least three months of social training, but since you’ve already taught Mimi basic life skills, even how to read and use a phone, we’ve shortened it to one month.”
Three months…
In total, Shao Sui and Mimi had only known each other for less than four months.
Shao Sui responded with an “mm-hmm”: “Let’s go.”
Guan Jiu checked her watch and gestured towards the distance, “I’m off duty, Tian Miao and James will take you back. They’ll also pick you up for your classes.”
“Okay, goodbye.”
It was probably late, Shao Sui didn’t see anyone else, just two yawning receptionists, whose subtle movements suggested they were also cat spirits.
James and Tian Miao were standing in front of a “wanted” wall, talking animatedly.
Shao Sui asked politely, “Can we leave now?”
“Yes.” James said, “But since you’re here, you might as well take a look at our wanted list. Let us know if you have any leads, there are rewards.”
Shao Sui scanned the wall and saw two familiar cats.
He asked, “Is this tabby the one from the news?”
Beside the cat’s picture was its human form, a teenager with auburn hair, looking about Mimi’s age.
“Exactly.” Tian Miao said, his tone disapproving, “This guy is from our base, but he didn’t learn his lesson, always causing trouble, tricking kind people into taking him home, then stealing their belongings.”
James stroked his chin, “He even unlocks their phones and transfers money to his own account after gaining their trust.”
After all, no human would guard their phone’s password against a harmless-looking kitten.
Shao Sui asked, “What happens after you catch them?”
Tian Miao said, “Same as humans, jail time.”
Shao Sui said he understood, then asked, “Why is He Yonggan on the wanted list?”
There were brief descriptions under the other wanted cats, explaining their crimes, but not under He Yonggan’s picture, and the reward was only twenty thousand yuan, it couldn’t be anything serious.
“His situation is special.” James started walking towards the exit. “Remember when we were at your apartment, we mentioned humans keeping cat spirits as sex toys?”
Shao Sui, of course, remembered, feeling a chill down his spine at the time.
“He Yonggan is one such pitiful wild cat spirit. He was taken in by a rich woman when he was still a cat. After he transformed into a human, the woman’s mentality changed, and she started… playing with him, and he, thinking it was just normal interaction between owner and pet, just endured the occasional pain.”
“In the end, when He Yonggan got older and lost his looks, the rich woman cruelly abandoned him.”
“We found He Yonggan, but he refused to believe his owner would abandon him and ran away on his way back to the base, probably wanting to go back to his owner.”
There was also a picture of He Yonggan’s human form, looking about forty, but his eyes were more innocent than a teenager’s, evoking pity.
The cat didn’t understand anything, only that his owner had suddenly abandoned him.
“That’s so cruel.”
“It is.” James said, “We haven’t seen him since, he might be dead, or so heartbroken that he never transformed back into a human again.”
Tian Miao said, “If He Yonggan had undergone social training, perhaps this tragedy wouldn’t have happened.”
James hinted, “Besides being able to transform into humans, we cat spirits are no different from ordinary cats, we also get old and die, you have to accept that.”
As they walked out of the base, it started snowing heavily. When he first met Mimi, it was warm enough for short sleeves, now they needed down jackets.
The gate closed behind them, separating the two worlds. With a loud bang, Shao Sui’s heart felt empty.
He suddenly felt afraid, afraid the cat spirit organization wouldn’t release Mimi, afraid that after a month, Mimi wouldn’t be as affectionate as before, forgetting everything between them.
Wasn’t it often said online? Dogs remembered people, cats remembered places. Wherever they stayed the longest, that was home.
One month, almost a third of the time they had known each other.
James said, “Let’s go, don’t catch a cold.”
Shao Sui closed his eyes, exhaling a puff of warm air, then got into the car and closed the door.
In the dormitory building, Mimi, wrapped in Shao Sui’s jacket, huddled on the bed, writing in his notebook under the moonlight: Mimi misses Shao Sui, day one, heavy snow.
