Chapter 23: The Cat’s Exposure

Li You opened his mouth, then slowly closed it again, turning his head away. “What did you say? I don’t understand.”

Li Ye said, “That means I’ve gone mad.”

“No.” Li You turned back to gaze at Li Ye. “You haven’t gone mad.”

“Then what’s going on with you?”

“…” Li You closed his mouth again, and finally muttered, “I don’t care. Anyway, you’re not allowed to go mad.”

“Li Ye, you can’t do this.” He took a deep breath, his heart aching terribly. “You have to be okay.”

Li Ye’s brows slowly furrowed. His voice remained calm, but his words were filled with restless agitation. “Why?”

“Do you think I can be okay?” Li Ye stared straight at him. “Do you think I can be okay while alive?”

“You can!” Li You clenched his fists. “I…”

‘I spent so much effort saving you. I want you to live well.’

Li You bit back those words without saying them out loud. His eyes reddened as he stared at Li Ye, then lowered his head to stare at his shoe tips, his voice trembling slightly. “Haven’t we already gotten through it?”

“How do you know I didn’t want to die?”

“No way!” Li You jerked his head up, his face stiffening.

“You say you’re not Li You, yet you won’t let me go mad or die.” Li Ye pressed step by step, his words leading. “You sure like to meddle.”

“Who casually hangs such ominous words on their lips!” Li You glared at Li Ye. “Can’t you think more about getting better yourself?”

“No.” Li Ye gazed into the teenager’s angry eyes, his voice lowering. “The one who should’ve died was me to begin with.”

His very existence was a mistake.

It was all because of him that Li You was gone.

Li You’s hands at his sides suddenly clenched tight. He could no longer hold back. He raised both hands and clapped them hard on Li Ye’s face.

He hadn’t held back at all; the slap rang out with a crisp Pa!

Li You’s hands tightly cupped Li Ye’s face. He tilted his head up and had to tiptoe slightly to meet the gaze of Li Ye, who now stood over 1.9 meters tall.

Li You’s lips were pressed tight. Beneath the mask, those beautiful blue eyes brimmed with a layer of hot mist, the corners red.

“No…”

His voice was very soft, thick with nasal tones. “Stinky Li Ye, if you keep this up, I’m going to get mad.”

Li Ye’s furrowed brows were forcibly smoothed by the hands on his face. He pressed his lips straight and lowered his eyes to look at the teenager who was on the verge of tears, completely yielding.

“If you’re not Li You,” Li Ye closed his eyes, “then I’ll pretend today never happened. Don’t use his appearance in the future, or I really will track you down and kill you.”

“If you’ve lied to me.” Li Ye opened his eyes and stared into those blue ones, enunciating each word. “Once I confirm it’s you, Li You, don’t think about abandoning me again.”

He still clung to a sliver of hope, hoping that Li You was still alive.

Li You said nothing. He withdrew his hands, took a step back, lowered his head, and rubbed his eyes with his arm. In a muffled, stiff voice, he changed the subject. “I’m hungry.”

Li Ye watched him.

“…” Li You turned around. “I’m going to eat. Let’s go our separate ways.”

The music had already changed songs several times, and the dances had gone through a few rounds. Amid the swaying crowd, the small teenager walked against the flow. He slowly left the throng, peeling away from the liveliness and clamor that didn’t belong to him.

Li Ye watched that lonely, slender figure recede into the distance. After a long while, he slowly followed.

In a corner, Li You found a plate of mousse cake and turned his back to the crowd, spooning it into his mouth bite by bite.

Blue moonlight flowed in like liquid from the window, sprinkling over the teenager and plating him in a faint crystalline sheen.

Li Ye stopped a few steps away. He looked at the teenager’s back and saw a few teardrops slide down from beneath the strands of hair covering his face, dripping onto the plate of cake.

The teenager’s movements paused. He set down the spoon, rubbed his face with his hand, buried his head even lower, and stuffed more cake into his mouth while holding back the increasingly uncontrollable tears.

The cake had no flavor—or perhaps it did, but Li You couldn’t taste it. He only tasted saltiness, mixed with a bit of bitterness.

When Li You woke, he was still sprawled on the soft cushion. The light outside the window was no longer daylight; the sky was dim, and Li Ye hadn’t come home yet.

He sat up in a daze, blankly staring at the moon outside the window.

Suddenly, a warship streaked by outside the window, leaving a long gray trail in the night sky.

Li You recognized it as Li Ye’s warship. He got up from the cushion, picked it up in his mouth, and carried it back to its original spot. Then he padded along the path back to the front hall.

The passage door was still open, unobstructed. He left the front hall and went outside, winding his way to the docking platform after several turns.

On the vast docking platform stood only that solitary warship. Li You walked over and gazed up at the tall flight craft. He climbed up with difficulty, squeezed into the pilot’s seat with effort, but didn’t see his brother.

Exhausted, Li You slumped into the leg recess below the seat, not wanting to move a muscle. He squinted, yawned, rested his head on his tail, closed his eyes, and waited for his brother.

The cramped space of the flight craft carried Li Ye’s scent, so Li You slept very soundly.

About half an hour later, Li Ye returned. He entered the cockpit, activated the starship’s autopilot mode, and opened his light brain.

There were quite a few messages piled up from Peisengke. Li Ye skimmed through the documents about Kailenoa District in one go, then replied with a simple “Mm.”

The other side immediately asked:

-I’m all prepared. When do we set off for Kailenoa?

Li Ye replied:

-You’re not going. Stay behind and handle imperial affairs while I’m away.

Peisengke was instantly displeased.

-Good heavens, Your Highness, you know I hate paperwork the most. You should find someone else to cover for you.

-I’m a rough man; I just like fighting. You have to take me.

Li Ye’s expression remained impassive.

-Do I need to repeat myself?

The other side instantly calmed down.

-Got it, I understand.

After exiting the chat with Peisengke, Li Ye went to the starship teleportation station network and applied for a “teleport in half an hour.” Once done, he messaged Kairien to watch the cat.

Then Li Ye tossed the light brain onto the co-pilot seat, took over from autopilot, and piloted the starship at high speed toward the space teleport station.

The destination for this teleport was Anjiel Planet, a fringe world over light-years from Prime Star.

It was already the empire’s outermost planet, only brought under imperial control two years ago. Currently, the planet had only one teleportation station, and it was one-way.

Due to the extreme distance, within half a month, the space teleport station could only send from Prime Star to Anjiel; to return, one had to wait another half month.

Anjiel Planet was currently the closest planet to Kailenoa District.

After a space teleport lasting a full ten minutes, Li Ye and his warship finally arrived at the Anjiel teleportation station.

He glanced out the window at the desert outside, but didn’t exit the warship or fly it away.

Two minutes later, a work request was submitted to his account.

Li Ye approved it, and immediately a video call came through.

Once connected, a man in military uniform appeared on the video, standing ramrod straight. He had a buzz cut, wheat-colored skin, and a scar on the left side of his face.

“Good evening, Your Highness. I’m Bryce Jason. You were looking for me?”

The man was clearly a bit nervous. His voice was strong and resonant, but he didn’t dare look straight at the camera.

“Do you remember Kailenoa?” Li Ye asked.

Jason on the video paused.

“Over ten years ago, Li You took you there,” Li Ye reminded him.

Jason’s eyes lit up; he obviously remembered. “Yes, that did happen.”

“Was there anyone else besides Li You and you at the time?”

“There was one more.” Jason spilled everything. “My good friend Lude. Perhaps because our majors were related to interstellar exploration, Your Highness Youyou secretly found us back then and said he hoped we’d accompany him to investigate a place called Kailenoa.”

“What were the investigation results?”

“Not good.” Jason recalled. “Back then, abyss pollutants were rampant within imperial borders. We got close to Kailenoa and discovered it was a high-density abyss pollutant zone; we couldn’t approach any further. Your Highness Youyou at the time…”

Li Ye’s brows furrowed slightly. “Just say it.”

“I could tell he didn’t want Lude and me to follow him into danger, yet he wasn’t willing to turn back just like that. Your Highness Youyou suggested we two leave first while he stayed to observe a bit more.” Jason said, “Lude and I insisted on not leaving. We finally persuaded him, and the three of us returned together.”

Li Ye fell silent. Suddenly, his calf brushed something soft. He looked down to see a clean cat face appear between his legs.

The ragdoll cat tilted its head, its clear, bright eyes staring unblinkingly at the light brain’s projection screen.

Li Ye: “…”

He slowly narrowed his eyes and switched the light screen to message Kairien back on Prime Star.

-The cat’s where?

A voice reply came quickly.

“Good evening, Your Highness. You mean the little cutie? It should be sleeping in its cat bed.”

Li Ye’s expression darkened. “You’re sure?”

“…” Kairien paused for a few seconds. “Please wait a moment.”

A clatter of noises followed, then an exclamation from the other end. “Good heavens, little cutie! Where did you run off to?!!”

Li Ye frowned and shifted his gaze from the light brain to the ragdoll cat sprawled on his lap.

The cat had probably just woken up; the fur on the left side of its face was flattened, while a tuft on the right stuck up high, giving it a slightly disheveled look overall.

Li Ye stopped Kairien’s search. “Stop looking. The cat’s with me.”

Kairien sounded surprised. “How did that happen?”

Li Ye wanted to know too. He fell silent, staring at the cat, ended the call with Kairien, suppressed his inner irritation for the moment, and returned to the previous topic. “Does anyone else know about the three of you going to Kailenoa?”

“I guarantee you, including yourself now, absolutely no fifth person knows.” Jason said, “Your Highness Youyou specifically mentioned back then that this matter had to be kept secret.”

Li Ye lightly tapped the top of the ragdoll cat’s head twice with his finger. “You can guarantee it. What about your partner Lude?”

“I believe he can too!” Jason’s emotions intensified a bit. “We’re all loyal followers of Your Highness Youyou! We’d never betray him.”

“Verbal promises don’t mean much.” Li Ye said unhurriedly. “Jason, you’re currently posted at Prime Star Military Academy. I’ve seen your record; I can trust your word, but your friend isn’t trustworthy.”

“Lude, he…” Jason’s face grew a bit heavy. “I know his character; he’s a principled man.”

“You haven’t seen each other in seven years. Are you sure he hasn’t changed all this time?”

Jason fell silent.

“Do you know where Lude is now?” Li Ye asked again.

The officer in the video couldn’t answer and finally nodded. “Sorry, I don’t know.”

Li Ye didn’t press further. He glanced at the cat pressing its head against his knee and gently scratched under its chin. “One last question.”

Jason looked up.

“Do you remember Li You’s state back then?” Li Ye asked. “Tell me what you saw, the honest truth.”

Li You, being scratched comfortably, tilted his head up and blinked in confusion. Just as he pondered what this odd question was about, Jason on the call spoke after some deliberation.

“Actually, from departure to return, you could tell throughout that Your Highness Youyou was very afraid.” Jason glanced at Li Ye’s reaction and carefully chose his words. “Your Highness, you know, back then people’s views on Your Highness Youyou were quite radical…”

He sighed silently. “Lude and I heard plenty of gossip about Your Highness Youyou, even worse stuff. But after that trip, the impression Your Highness Youyou gave us was nothing like the rumors.”

“He was afraid, but forced himself to do it.” Jason took a deep breath. “I don’t know his exact purpose for investigating Kailenoa, but after that great catastrophe, seeing some of his choices and experiences over the decade, we could guess it was for the empire… Looking back now, it all seems so…”

Jason choked up a little and didn’t continue.

Li Ye lowered his eyelids. “Don’t say anything extra.”

“Sorry.”

After the call ended, Li Ye put away the light brain and met the cat’s gaze.

The cat blinked slowly, its paws on Li Ye’s knees kneading gently.

“Why are you here?” Li Ye pinched the cat’s face.

The cat let out a soft “Meow,” its voice thin and delicate.

Li Ye gripped the cat under its armpits, lifted it onto his lap, and smoothed out the messy fur on its face.

Li You stared straight into Li Ye’s eyes and saw a faint trace of sorrow there.

The little cat racked its brains, then lifted its head, rubbed its pink nose against Li Ye’s face, and stuck out a bit of tongue to give a gentle lick.

“Meow~”

【Brother.】

Li Ye’s gaze shifted slightly.

“Meow——”

【Li Ye.】

“Meow meow—” The kitty raised its head and mewled, kneading rhythmically with its paws.

【Don’t be downhearted. Cheer up a bit.】

Li Ye’s lips pressed into a straight line. His gaze fixed intently on the cat. After a long while, he tentatively took out that bottle of medicine and unscrewed the cap right in front of the cat.

The next moment, a white cat paw pressed down on the back of his hand. The cat meowed even louder with a “meow”.

【Don’t take it!】

The cat thrust its head forward to nuzzle his hand, knocking the bottle out of his palm. It snatched the bottle in its mouth and flung it to the back seat. Then, in a very domineering manner, it rubbed its head against his hand again.

【Pet me!】

Li Ye’s expression froze in astonishment. He tried once more, reaching for the medicine bottle in the back seat, but the cat chomped down on his hand with its mouth.

The kitty let out fierce “grrr” growls from its mouth, flattening its ears, but it actually didn’t bite down hard at all.

【No medicine!】

【Pet me! Pet me now!!】

Li Ye stared at the cat. It felt as if a whole century had passed before he suddenly let out a low chuckle.

“I won’t take it.” He put away the medicine bottle and gazed at the ragdoll cat gnawing on his hand. He turned his head to look out the window. His other hand, dangling at his side, trembled uncontrollably.

After a long while, he turned back. His eyes were bloodshot, his pupils burning with intense fervor. “Little deceiver.”