Chapter 111: The Kitten
In the early autumn, the leaves suddenly turned golden. A bird on the window, flapping its wings, touched the branch with its thin claws, and the leaves rustled down.
Gu Ze had been thinking for more than an hour during his nap. Looking at the falling leaves from the window, he propped his chin on his hands and let out a long sigh.
The nap bell rang with a ding-dong. Nuonuo’s originally neatly covered little blanket was now like a silkworm cocoon, wrapping him in layers, with only a few of his little tufts of hair peeking out from the top opening.
Nuonuo dazedly heard the bell, but he was trapped in the blanket. He used all his might with his little hands and feet, but still couldn’t see the light again. “Is anyone there? I… I can’t get out!”
After wriggling in the blanket for a long while, Nuonuo still asked for help embarrassedly.
Gu Ze was putting on his socks. Hearing Nuonuo’s muffled voice from under the blanket, he stopped halfway and quickly walked over. “I’m coming.”
Gu Ze peeled off the blanket on Nuonuo’s head like peeling an onion.
Nuonuo poked his little head out from under the blanket, his hair messy and standing up, his whole person looking at the outside world in a daze, as if he hadn’t reacted yet. “Thank you, Gu Ze.”
Nuonuo crawled out from under the blanket on all fours, wiped the sweat from his little forehead, and let out a long breath.
Gu Ze walked back with his half-on socks, a shy smile on his face, and shook his head, saying it was nothing.
Having used up all his strength to crawl out of the blanket, Nuonuo now sat on the small bed, his mind blank. It wasn’t until Teacher Xiao Ran came over, clapped her hands, and said to get dressed quickly that Nuonuo slowly picked up his school uniform and put it on.
Gu Ze on the side had already put on his shoes. After neatly folding his little blanket, he ran over to help Nuonuo get dressed.
Nuonuo pulled at his clothes with all his might, trying to get his little head out of the hole in the clothes.
Gu Ze also helped Nuonuo with all his might. By the time Nuonuo finally poked his head out of the clothes, a red mark from being squeezed was on his little forehead.
But Nuonuo was too dazed to care. He huffed and puffed as he bent down to put on his own shoes.
After more than two months of kindergarten, Nuonuo had already learned to distinguish between his left and right shoes and would no longer run around all day with his shoes on the wrong feet, only to be discovered by his papa when it was time to sleep.
The classroom after the nap was in a state of chaos. By the time the little friends were all dressed and ready, it was almost time for school to be over.
Teacher Xiao Ran was busy tidying up the blankets in the room, while another male teacher took the little friends to the lawn to play.
Lei Xiaoyan’s clothes were wrinkled, but he didn’t care. He let out a loud shout and shot out, running to occupy the most popular slide.
Nuonuo also ran after him, but halfway there, he saw a black shadow flash across the top of the wall.
He stopped his steps, his entire attention captivated by the black cat that had jumped over the wall.
Gu Ze, behind him, also stopped. He followed Nuonuo’s gaze and, thinking of something, suddenly said, “We’ve seen this black cat before. It seems to have gotten a little bigger.”
Nuonuo also remembered. He had even fed Mimi a little sandwich cookie!
And so, Nuonuo naturally followed the black cat, running forward along the withered rose bushes.
The black cat also seemed to have sensed that there was a human behind it. It bared its teeth warily and let out a “meow” at the back. When it saw clearly that it was a child, its voice instantly softened by eight degrees.
The sharp claws it had originally shown were also promptly retracted when Nuonuo reached out his little hand to touch him.
“Little kitty, where are you going?”
Nuonuo tilted his little head up and stretched his little arms to touch its head.
The little black cat seemed to still have an impression of Nuonuo. It stretched its body into a long cat strip, let out a lazy yawn, and then slowly turned around. With its food in its mouth, it walked forward with light steps.
Nuonuo followed it around a corner and, with a turn, saw a nest made of cotton blankets in the corner of a wall.
A pile of small kittens was squeezed inside the nest. Some hadn’t even opened their eyes yet and were meowing in their milky voices.
Nuonuo couldn’t help but stop his steps. He let out a small “wow,” crouched down, and held his little face as he looked at the thin and small little kittens inside.
“Little kitty, did you have babies? There are so many!”
Nuonuo pointed at the little kittens’ heads and counted, “one, two, three.”
After counting, he opened his little mouth in disbelief, thinking to himself that little kitty was so amazing, giving birth to so many at once!
Papa only had one little fish cub, Nuonuo!
Gu Ze, who had followed behind, also saw the little cats. He took Nuonuo’s hand, wanting to take him back first. “The little cats are so dirty. Nuonuo, let’s go.”
Gu Ze, who was not particularly fond of small animals, heard the cats’ meows one after another and only felt his head buzzing.
But Nuonuo, seeing so many little kittens, was a little reluctant. He stood up slowly and, wringing his little hands, said, “Then… then I’ll give my little cookies to little kitty to eat.”
Taking out the little cookies from his pocket, Nuonuo placed them by the side of little kitty’s nest.
The black cat sniffed with its nose, bit it with its teeth, and then swallowed the cookie with its tongue.
Nuonuo was very happy. The little steps he took as he walked back were full of a cheerful energy.
At the arrival of dusk, the warm orange light of the sunset filled the sky. Teacher Xiao Ran clapped her hands and gathered the messy little friends in the classroom, distributing the pop quizzes they had written in the morning to them.
“There are a total of five questions. Only Gu Ze and Bai Xin got them right, so the little red flowers can only be given to these two students.”
Teacher Xiao Ran was very fair when it came to learning. She took out two little red flowers and placed them in Gu Ze’s and Bai Xin’s hands.
Nuonuo stared at the little red flower in Gu Ze’s hand without blinking, his little eyes filled with an unstoppable envy. He lowered his head and looked at his own paper, only to find two big red crosses on it.
And Lei Xiaoyan on the side had completely broken down.
On his test paper, there were four big red crosses!
“Wuuu-ah!”
Tears couldn’t help but stream down. Lei Xiaoyan wiped his tears with his chubby little arms, crying as he lined up to go out.
By the time they reached the school gate, Lei’s mother, who had a rare free time to pick up her child, saw the four crosses on Lei Xiaoyan’s paper with her sharp eyes. A wave of anger rose in her heart, and she almost fainted, holding her head. “You! You stand right there!”
After recovering, Lei’s mother directly picked up a wooden stick from the side of the road and chased after Lei Xiaoyan, who had seen the situation was not right and had run away, so angry she wanted to beat him.
And Nuonuo, on the side, watching, was completely stunned. He foolishly held his test paper, lifted his little face, and looked at his papa who had come to pick him up.
As if he had sensed something, Nuonuo quickly showed a soft smile and stretched out his little arms. “Papa, let’s go home, ya!”
Fei Zhiyan would not let Nuonuo get away with it. After picking him up, he flicked the little clever one on the forehead and took his test paper to look at.
Seeing the two crosses on Nuonuo’s paper, Fei Zhiyan also felt his heart stop for a moment and instantly empathized with Lei’s mother next to him, who wanted to beat her child.
With a lump in his throat, Fei Zhiyan swallowed hard, calmed himself down, and then met the gaze of Nuonuo, who was clingily hugging him. “Forget it. Let’s go home.”
Fei Zhiyan rubbed his forehead with a headache. He couldn’t bear to say any harsh words to Nuonuo, so he could only rub his little head and comfort himself. “It’s okay. It’s already very good. You got three questions right, which is sixty points.”
At least he’s at the passing line, Fei Zhiyan thought. Compared to Lei Xiaoyan’s four crosses, it’s already quite gratifying.
After a horizontal comparison, Fei Zhiyan’s mood instantly lightened a lot. He glanced at the spanking Lei’s mother, picked up Nuonuo, and got in the car to go home.
Having escaped a disaster, Nuonuo also quietly breathed a sigh of relief, swung his little feet, and told his papa about the little kitty giving birth.
By the time the vehicle entered the villa courtyard, Nuonuo was still chattering about the little kittens, not even noticing that he was being carried into the living room by his papa.
006, who had taken a long nap on the living room sofa, stretched lazily, stood up on its padded paws, and walked towards Nuonuo with a slight wobble.
“Woof!”
Nuonuo, you’re back!
With an ordinary person like Auntie Wu around, 006 usually wouldn’t speak directly.
But he was also very satisfied with his little puppy body now, able to run freely.
Ever since his survival crisis was resolved and the several villains of the Fei family had tacitly agreed not to touch it, 006 had been rushing out every day, often leaving early and coming back late, even busier than the school-going Nuonuo.
He had recently been fighting with a few other dogs for territory. Today, he had a rare free time and had slept for so long at home.
But when he walked to Nuonuo’s leg, 006 did not hear Nuonuo respond to him. Instead, he heard Nuonuo talking about some little kittens.
“The wittle kitty is so small. One is just like little kitty, all black…”
Hearing this, 006 couldn’t help but shake its head, its mind instantly clearing up.
“Woof!”
006, with a strong sense of crisis, barked at Nuonuo again.
Unfortunately, Nuonuo was busy telling his third brother about the little kittens. He just crouched down and rubbed Liuliu’s little body, saying, “Liuliu, you go and play by yourself first. I still have things to talk to my brother about.”
Hearing Nuonuo’s words, 006 widened its beady eyes in complete disbelief. It was both wronged, stuffy, and shocked. Its wagging tail drooped, and it stood there stunned for a full ten seconds.
“Woof!”
006 looked at Nuonuo, who was walking away with his brother, and let out an extremely desolate bark, feeling as if it had been abandoned, unable to come back to its senses for a long time.
But soon, it adjusted its mood, put on a straight little doggy face, and paced anxiously in place.
No, this house can only have one dog!
What cats and kittens? Can they be as cute, well-behaved, and smart as him, 006?!
006 thought and thought, walked out the main gate, looked at the orange-red sun that had not yet completely set on the horizon, and secretly made up its mind.
I’m going to scout out the enemy. See if that bad kitty took advantage of him and deliberately seduced Nuonuo!
Thinking this, 006 took off with its four short little legs and quickly ran out.
Auntie Wu, who saw this, didn’t pay much attention. This little dog often ran out by itself, and when it got dark, it would come back on its own.
But by the time the moon was hanging on the treetops, there was still no sign of 006 returning home.