Xu Ye was so engrossed in David’s post that she couldn’t pull herself away. When the driver announced, “Please make sure to take all your belongings with you when getting off,” she glanced around, confirmed she hadn’t left anything behind, and then closed the car door while scrolling on her phone.
After walking a few steps and spotting the sign with the golden words “Fuli Mingcheng,” Xu Ye sighed and put away her phone.[mfn]Tl’s note: Fuli Mingcheng – Fuli Mansion[/mfn]
She had been so focused on browsing posts that she failed to notice she had set her destination to the residential area entrance instead of the pet store.
Slipping her phone into her crossbody bag, Xu Ye started walking toward the pet store. After a few minutes, her gaze caught a flash of pink amidst the sea of cars, and her brow twitched ominously.
Huo Shuyan had changed into a beige trench coat, which paired with his electric scooter and cat-ear helmet, gave off an oddly mismatched vibe, like a man in a suit performing folk dances.
He obeyed traffic rules diligently, checking for cars as he turned, giving way to pedestrians at the zebra crossing, and finally pulling up beside Xu Ye. With a solemn expression, he offered her a helmet.
Xu Ye felt her entire being was numbed by the absurdity of the moment. She blankly put on the helmet.
An older security guard nearby, who was acquainted with Xu Ye, came over and asked, “Little Xu, is that your boyfriend?”
Xu Ye gazed into the distance with empty eyes and shook her head. “He’s my strategic partner.”
The guard didn’t quite understand what “strategic partner” meant, but with Huo Shuyan sitting upright in front and Xu Ye exuding an aura of righteousness, the two of them felt less like a couple and more like they were about to form a brotherhood pact.
Muttering something about “a rare and precious bond,” the guard returned to his post.
After putting on the cat-ear helmet, Xu Ye scooted back slightly on the scooter to maintain a safe distance. Using an “OK” hand gesture, she pinched a button on Huo Shuyan’s coat for balance. She finally couldn’t help but ask, “Junior Huo, this electric scooter of yours…”
“Liu Shuo has two scooters. He told me to pick whichever I liked,” Huo Shuyan replied matter-of-factly after a brief pause. “The other one is apple green with a frog helmet.”
Xu Ye imagined the apple-green scooter for a moment and decided the garish pink one wasn’t so bad. Relaxing her previously stiff posture, she said with subtle sarcasm, “Liu Shuo’s sense of aesthetics is truly ahead of its time.”
The pet store wasn’t busy today, but the staff remained bustling—preparing dog food, changing pee pads, and a groomer trimming a dog’s fur while waving at Xu Ye and Huo Shuyan. Liu Shuo wasn’t in; the receptionist mentioned that the owner had taken a dog out for a walk and hadn’t returned yet.
Xu Ye scanned the store for Dai Dai. She first internally scolded herself for thinking of plucking cat fur, then rationalized that it was just a harmless pat or two—not outright pulling fur from the cat.
But Dai Dai was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Xiao Hei, the Bombay cat, poked its head out from the second floor. As soon as it spotted Xu Ye, it arched its body and leaped gracefully like a panther toward its prey.
The black cat traced a perfect arc in midair. Xu Ye instinctively reached out to catch it, but Huo Shuyan intercepted it first, grabbing Xiao Hei by the scruff and scolding, “Don’t pounce from so far away. Do you think you’re that light?”
Xiao Hei drooped its eyes in dejection, turning its head away while casting pitiful glances at Xu Ye.
Huo Shuyan retrieved a sanitized chair and placed Xiao Hei on it.
“Can it understand human language?” Xu Ye was surprised by the human-like expressions on the cat’s face. She gave its head a quick rub.
Huo Shuyan crossed his arms, exchanged a look with Xiao Hei, and replied, “How could a dumb cat understand human speech? The chair is sanitized, so you can sit without worry.”
At this, Xiao Hei seemed to genuinely understand and protested with a loud “meow.”
Xu Ye perched on the edge of the chair and quietly stroked its sleek black fur. However, disappointingly, not a single strand of fur came off in her hand.
Last night, she had searched online and found that Bombay cats, though short-haired, were known to shed significantly. So why wasn’t this one losing any fur?
Refusing to give up, she petted it a few more times but still found her hand cleaner than after brushing her own hair.
Before she could stroke Xiao Hei further, Dai Dai emerged from the stairwell, stretching luxuriously before trotting downstairs.
Instead of settling beside Xu Ye, Dai Dai gave her a coquettish glance, then provocatively tilted its chin at Xiao Hei. Without warning, it climbed on top of Xiao Hei, flattening the unsuspecting black cat into a “cat pancake.”
“Mom, today I witnessed real-life stacked cats,” Xu Ye murmured, tilting her head back as if to stop a nonexistent nosebleed.
She quickly reached into her bag for her camera. Xiao Hei, initially displeased with being squashed, was about to shake Dai Dai off, but upon seeing the camera, it froze.
Dai Dai comfortably rested its head on Xiao Hei’s, and the two cats’ gazes followed Xu Ye’s lens in perfect synchronization.
Xu Ye snapped countless photos from various angles. The elegant contrast of the black and white cats made them look particularly charming together.
“They actually look pretty compatible,” she said.
“They’ll never end up together,” Huo Shuyan said with a laugh, promptly ending Xu Ye’s whimsical matchmaking.
“Oh, they’re both girls,” Xu Ye muttered.
Just as she closed her camera, Xiao Hei shook itself, dislodging Dai Dai onto the other side of the chair. Dai Dai sprawled there for a moment before angrily getting up and swiping at Xiao Hei twice.
At that moment, Xu Ye’s attention was drawn to a woman entering the store—more specifically, to the cat she was holding.
The woman cradled a chubby, perfectly round kitten with orange and white fur.
Xu Ye swore she had never seen such a flawless circle before. She finally understood that Doraemon wasn’t abstract art but realism. The other customers were also drawn to the kitten, and several approached out of curiosity.
Even Xiao Hei and Dai Dai turned their heads, displeased at losing Xu Ye’s attention.
The woman spoke proudly, “My Da Bai was born this round. Isn’t it adorable?”
Da Bai!
Huo Shuyan and Xu Ye exchanged a glance, both seeing the shock mirrored in the other’s eyes.
Da Bai, the mysterious cat that only lived in Snowball’s forum posts, had always been a topic of intrigue. Even on the day photo-sharing was enabled, while the entire forum was abuzz, Da Bai and David remained stoically unmoved, like old-timers in a group of excitable children.
“That’s probably a golden shaded British Shorthair,” Huo Shuyan murmured.
Xu Ye felt that the fur color didn’t quite match the name “Da Bai” but hesitated before asking, “Is this the round cat Snowball mentioned?”
“Probably… I’ve never seen a cat this round before,” Huo Shuyan replied after some thought.
The woman seemed to be shopping for a cat toy. As she followed the staff to the product section, Xu Ye watched the golden British Shorthair waddle away, commenting sincerely, “I thought Snowball was round enough, but this one takes the crown.”
When Da Bai’s owner returned to pay, Xu Ye couldn’t resist asking if she could take a few photos of Da Bai.
The woman readily agreed, and Xu Ye snapped numerous shots from different angles, including a few of the woman and Da Bai together.
Glancing at the photos, the woman froze for a moment before pulling out her phone and saying earnestly, “Miss, can I add you on Feixin? These photos are stunning. Could you share them with me?”
Xu Ye scanned the woman’s QR code, marveling at her deep affection for her cat. But then she saw the note the woman added next to her contact—
“The girl who makes my face look slim and beautiful in photos.”
Xu Ye: …
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