Chapter 54
Side Story 1 (Part 1/2)
As the New Year approached, the streets were quiet, and pedestrians scarce. Either they were staying indoors to avoid the cold or had already begun their journeys home.
Hu Xia, having over twenty cats in his cafe, decided to stay put for the New Year.
“Buzz—”
While waiting for the blender, Hu Xia looked through the partition at the strange young man.
The young man had been here three times in a week, each time only interacting with He Yonggan, the cafe’s star attraction, following him around and talking to him, ignoring the other cats.
He Yonggan had also been acting strangely lately.
He was the star attraction precisely because of his friendly personality, loving to cuddle and often refusing to leave customers’ laps, making them linger, but he was very aloof towards this young man, barely acknowledging him.
“Your juice, sir.”
“Thank you.”
Seeing the cafe owner hadn’t left after serving the juice, Mimi asked hesitantly, “Anything else?”
Hu Xia hesitated, “Uh, I’ve seen you here several times looking for He Yonggan, are you thinking of adopting him?”
Mimi nodded eagerly, “I can give him a better life.”
Actually, my life isn’t bad either. Looking at Mimi’s sincere eyes, Hu Xia swallowed his words.
Hu Xia sat down and patted He Yonggan’s backside lightly, “He Yonggan actually enjoys being petted and cuddled, he’s not a homebody cat.”
Mimi wanted to say something, but he didn’t know how to put it.
Hu Xia spoke gently, trying to dissuade the young man, “He’s also afraid of being alone. I take him for walks every day after work, and after closing the cafe, he’ll jump to the top of the cat tree and stare out the window all night, motionless.”
Completely different from his lively and clingy demeanor during the day.
Mimi said, “I can’t tell.”
Hu Xia sighed, “If you can truly give him a better life, then I’m willing to let him go—ow!”
He Yonggan, who had been presenting his backside to them, suddenly turned around and punched Hu Xia, jumping off the table and running off.
“What was that about…” Hu Xia didn’t mind, continuing his interrupted sentence. “Unfortunately, He Yonggan is a high-maintenance cat, needs a lot of attention and affection, he wouldn’t be happy with an owner who’s at work during the day and asleep at night.”
Mimi said, “He Yonggan can decide what kind of life he wants.”
“This is the life he wants.” Hu Xia said, “I tried letting him stay at the cafe during the day and bringing him home at night, but he would get anxious and meow all night as soon as he got home.”
“So that’s why.” Mimi still wanted to try. “I’ll talk to him again.”
“Okay.”
Hu Xia found it amusing. Talking to a cat? Could they even understand each other?
Mimi chased after He Yonggan, stopping at the cat tree and poking his tail, “I apologize for lying when we first met. I’m sorry.”
He had been here for three days in a row. The first two days, he came in the afternoon when the cafe was crowded, and He Yonggan, ignoring him, would jump onto other customers’ laps. Mimi could only watch from the side, not daring to approach.
So today, Mimi was smarter, coming right when the cafe opened, no other customers, so he could follow He Yonggan around and talk to him.
He Yonggan, after dodging him for a while, was finally cornered, meowing impatiently, “What good is an apology? What are the police for? Lying at such a young age, is that how your owner taught you?”
“I, I was just too afraid of losing him.” Mimi lowered his head in shame. “I was afraid other cats would steal his affection, I want him to only have me.”
He Yonggan was triggered, “Do you think you can control a human’s fickle heart? You can’t! You don’t know how cruel humans are. Even Huahua, taken home by that woman, how long will his good life last? The same goes for you, being abandoned is just a matter of time!”
Mimi’s jaw dropped, “That’s not true…”
“You’re young and beautiful now, soft and energetic, so he likes you, but one day you’ll get old!” He Yonggan’s meows were sharp and piercing. “So what if he’s slept with you? He’s just enjoying your youth and your body, he won’t take responsibility, because we cat spirits only have human bodies, not human souls! No resources, no background, do you really think he’ll marry you and spend his life with you!? Dream on!”
Mimi refused to believe him, “My human is different from yours.”
“What’s the difference? Men are even more ruthless than women—” He Yonggan realized he had let something slip and abruptly stopped, then after a moment, said, “Just leave, I’m not interested in that association of yours.”
“Why? The association can help you with household registration, get you an ID card, then you’ll have a dual identity, you can be a cat or a human, play with your phone, watch videos, movies, eat human food.” Mimi took out his ID card and showed it to He Yonggan. “See, this is my new ID card.”
He Yonggan didn’t look at it, but still questioned: “You really think living with a human is that good?”
Mimi ignored him. Shao Sui said he was the most beautiful cat in the world.
He only listened to Shao Sui.
Mimi carefully wiped his ID card and continued confidently: “Even if my human abandons me it’s not a problem, I can rent my own place, find a job.”
He parroted what the teachers had said, although he didn’t quite understand them, but they might persuade He Yonggan.
“You seem to be living the good life, not working yet, right?” He Yonggan asked. “Heard there’s quite a high employment rate at that organization’s base.”
“I haven’t found a job yet.” Mimi admitted honestly. “Shao Sui said he can still afford me and told me to focus on studying, no rush to work.”
“…”
Mimi took a step back, He Yonggan looked like he was about to hit him.
He Yonggan meowed coldly, “Go buy me a can of food.”
Mimi hesitated, then seeing He Yonggan turn to leave, he reluctantly agreed, “Okay, I’ll buy you one can.”
He went to the counter and scanned the prices of the pet treats. Twenty yuan for one can, so expensive!
Hu Xia asked, “Can I help you with anything?”
Mimi said, “Can you give me a discount on that canned food?”
Hu Xia chuckled, “No discounts.”
Mimi: “Okay.”
He Yonggan, at his feet, meowed his instructions, “Pumpkin and beef flavor!”
Mimi reluctantly scanned the QR code and paid twenty yuan. Adding the taxi fare and the cat cafe entrance fee, he had already spent over a hundred yuan today.
After moving to the new apartment, Mimi’s allowance increased to two thousand yuan, a thousand through linked payment, and Shao Sui said he would transfer another thousand to him every month after getting paid.
But Mimi, remembering the mortgage, was reluctant to spend it, saving it for the day Shao Sui couldn’t afford the payments, then he could whip out his bank card and declare grandly, “I’ll take care of you!”
He Yonggan jumped onto a nearby table, urging Mimi to open the can. As soon as the lid was off, he started gobbling down the food, sauce splattering everywhere, quite messy.
Mimi, influenced by Shao Sui, had also become a clean freak and discreetly took a step back.
He waited patiently for ten minutes until He Yonggan finally finished. If he hadn’t finished by then, Mimi might have been tempted to buy another can for himself, it smelled so good.
“Is this association really as good as you say?” He Yonggan, full and satisfied, sprawled on the table, asking suspiciously, “They won’t restrict our freedom?”
Mimi said, “I’m right here, and I’m going home tonight to make dumplings with Shao Sui. If you like it here, you can come back after your social training.”
He Yonggan was very suspicious, “Are they being nice to us to lower our guard, so they can dissect us and do research?”
“I don’t think so, I’ve known them for over a month.” Mimi touched his head. “My brains are still intact, not eaten by humans, and my heart is still beating.”
“…She lied to me,” He Yonggan muttered.
“Who lied to you?”
“None of your business.” He Yonggan turned his head away. “Give me the address, I’ll go take a look when I have time.”
“It’s very far, a kitten’s legs would break before reaching there, you have to take a car.” Mimi said excitedly, “I’ll call them and ask them to come over, we can talk face to face.”
“Okay…” He Yonggan found it strange, “Why are you so enthusiastic?”
“Because I’m righteous.”
Mimi straightened his back, trying to look less suspicious.
After resolving He Yonggan’s issue, Mimi took a taxi back to the apartment complex. The snowman he and Shao Sui built was still there, although it had melted a little due to the sun today.
Mimi scooped up some snow and patched its ears.
The door lock of their new apartment was the smart lock from their previous rental, they brought it with them when they moved. Mimi’s face was already registered, the door unlocking automatically as he approached.
He didn’t rush in, peeking through the peephole.
Shao Sui didn’t seem to be home yet.
Just as Mimi breathed a sigh of relief, he heard a demonic voice, “Where did you go?”
Mimi became incredibly nervous, “N-nowhere…”
Shao Sui, holding his apron, was leaning against the kitchen doorframe.
“I’ll tie it for you.” Mimi rushed over, trying to sound nonchalant. “Why are you home so early?”
Shao Sui asked, “You don’t want me home early?”
Mimi quickly shifted the blame, “Of course not, don’t overthink things.”
Shao Sui had been going to the hospital every day because his father, Shi Yingjie, was hospitalized with a comminuted fracture. He had no one else, his mistress had left, and his parents were too old to travel.
So although Shao Sui saw Shi Yingjie as a stranger, he still spent some time with his cheap father out of a sense of obligation.
There wasn’t much to do at the hospital. Shi Yingjie had hired a caregiver, Shao Sui just helped with the paperwork and picking up medication.
When Shi Yingjie whined and complained, Shao Sui watched coldly, retorting with a sarcastic “serves you right.”
This was the price of neglecting his wife and child.
Strangely, Mimi didn’t seem to mind Shao Sui going out without him, very understanding.
Shao Sui felt uneasy. Yesterday, he couldn’t resist checking Mimi’s location on his phone and discovered that as soon as he left the apartment, Mimi took a taxi to the cat cafe.
Since Mimi was in heat again, Shao Sui suspected his boyfriend might be looking for a girlfriend.
Mimi fumbled with the apron strings, tying a messy knot, “Shall we start making dumplings?”
“Mm-hmm.” Shao Sui said seriously. “Do you remember our agreement?”
Mimi looked up, puzzled.
Shao Sui hinted, “A partner is exclusive, you can’t find other cats, or other humans.”
“I remember.” Mimi replied, then added, “My hands are cold.”
“…” Shao Sui held Mimi’s hands and placed them inside his shirt, against his abs, separated only by a thin layer of fabric.
“Didn’t I buy you gloves? Why aren’t you wearing them?”
Mimi, feigning clumsiness, poked Shao Sui’s belly button, “They’re prickly, I don’t like them.”
Shao Sui caught Mimi’s hand, “I’ll buy you leather gloves tomorrow.”
Mimi actually didn’t like gloves, they felt restrictive, limiting his finger dexterity. But it was his first winter as a human, without fur for protection, and he had developed chilblains on his hands, swollen and itchy.
Shao Sui asked, “How did you survive winter last year? Your paws have no fur either.”
“They’re thick, and I used my tail as a cushion when the ground was icy.” Mimi said, “And the Chinese medicine clinic made us a nest, a big communal one.”
Shao Sui couldn’t help but chuckle, “So cute—no scratching.”
Mimi said pitifully, “Rub them for me.”
Shao Sui gently caressed the back of Mimi’s hands with his fingertips.
“Your hands are this cold and you still went out?”
Mimi felt a warmth spread through him, “I had important matters to attend to.”
Shao Sui pressed, “What important matters?”
“Can I not tell you?”
“No.”
“Yes, I can.” Mimi protested, “Even partners should have their own space and privacy.”
Shao Sui narrowed his eyes, “Who said they had no secrets?”
Mimi choked, then after a while, said, “People change, and so do cats… haha, what are you doing!?”
The exasperated Teacher Shao scooped up the little cat spirit, “No more dumplings for now, let’s wrap you instead!”
Two minutes later, the apron had been transferred from Shao Sui to Mimi, their clothes scattered on the floor. Mimi, his legs spread in an M-shape, knelt on the rug, facing the new sofa.
Shao Sui turned up the thermostat, walked over, sat down, and said leisurely, “Eat.”
Mimi had already eaten once.
He had seen this scene in the movies he watched at the base, but Shao Sui had never done it with him, so on the first morning of his heat cycle, he curiously licked Shao Sui awake. The result was being thoroughly ravished until his legs trembled, leaving him bedridden for the entire day.
“The rug is prickly…” Mimi shifted his position and started… his task, first lowering his head and kissing Shao Sui. “Shao Sui, why isn’t my bank card sending me messages like yours?”
Shao Sui’s eyes darkened, his gaze fixed on Mimi’s hair. “You have to contact customer service to activate message notifications, it’s a paid service.”
“If I don’t have notifications, how will I know if there’s money in my account?”
“Download the banking app.”
“Okay.” Mimi continued diligently, as if it were some interesting toy, sucking and licking, then muttering, “It should be me… wrapping you…”
He took a bite, engulfing Shao Sui completely, and glanced up.
Shao Sui, holding his breath, pulled Mimi, who was only wearing an apron, into his arms, “I can also wrap you, but first, tell me why you went to the cat cafe these past few days.”
“I was just playing, I didn’t cheat on you with other cats!” Mimi, wary, defended himself, then realized something was off. “How did you know I went to the cat cafe?”
“Didn’t I tell you I have special powers?”
“I searched online, special powers are just made-up things for TV, still trying to trick me…” Mimi snuggled closer, demanding, “Tell me, how did you know?”
Shao Sui hugged him tightly, one hand slipping between his legs, “If you don’t tell me, I won’t tell you either.”
Mimi kissed Shao Sui’s neck, rubbing against his prickly stubble, then negotiated, “Tell me.”
Shao Sui said, “No, Mimi has secrets, I should also have secrets, it’s only fair.”
“Okay…” Mimi, distracted by Shao Sui’s hand, no longer pressed the issue. “Hurry up, we still have to make dumplings for New Year’s.”
