DA chapter 37

 

Seeing Lin Jia’s expression slowly darken, the cat belatedly reacted.

It quickly explained, “This gesture means I want you to groom me, not that I’m asking you to lick my butt. It’s just a way for cats to show affection to their owner…”

Fearing that Lin Jia wouldn’t believe it, the cat fiddled with the smartwatch around its neck, activated the voice assistant, and had it read the explanation to Lin Jia.

“When a cat points its butt at a person, it may be asking the poop scooper to help lick its butt. This is one way cats express trust and affection.”

The cat felt a little wronged. “Didn’t you tell me to learn about cat habits?”

The cat searched for information about expressing affection to the owner.

Lin Jia continued changing clothes. The cat secretly observed Lin Jia’s expression, waiting until Lin Jia appeared no longer angry to continue asking: “Was my performance okay?”

Lin Jia didn’t understand cat habits and had no idea how well the cat performed.

He fastened his cufflinks and said, “Keep practicing.”

After speaking, Lin Jia, now properly dressed, prepared to go out.

The cat chased him for two steps and then stopped. “Not taking me?”

Lin Jia: “Taking you would be too much of a cover-up.”

The door locked with a click, leaving the cat alone in the room.

The room was very quiet. It was the first time the cat had been alone since entering the Underwater Wold.

Though somewhat unaccustomed, the cat still remembered to practice, repeating the three actions of lying down, rubbing its legs, and raising its butt.

Suddenly—

Ring, ring, ring… ring, ring, ring… ring, ring, ring…
The cat froze for a moment, then realized that the smartwatch around its neck was ringing.

Lin Jia had previously posted the cat’s phone number on the forum, so someone was calling the cat!

The cat cleared its throat and quickly answered. “Hello.”

The person on the other end said: “I saw the post you made on the forum.”

This was the first inquiry call. The cat was nervous, afraid of messing things up for Lin Jia. “Ye… yes.”

“Can any dish be made?”

The cat had no idea what dishes the mother Lin Jia had once helped could cook, but not wanting to lose this customer, it replied vaguely, “The basics, I guess.”

Thinking of the few replies in the forum, all of which assumed cooking would be free, the cat quickly clarified in advance, “We do charge a fee.”

The caller said, “Mm.”

Then silence.

The cat figured the customer was waiting for a price quote. However, the cat had no idea how Lin Jia priced “mother’s cooking.”

Afraid of losing the customer and remembering Lin Jia’s flexible pricing, the cat said, “May I ask your ranking?”

Everyone in the Underwater Wold had an identity and a ranking. Rankings were sorted according to account balance. In the Underwater Wold, the richer a person was, the more outstanding their ability.

“Is that question meaningful?”

The caller was obviously guarded and beginning to suspect their real intention. “Who exactly are you people?”

Bad, bad.

Even if this customer failed and smashed Lin Jia’s reputation, the cat felt its death would not be far away.

Suddenly inspired, the cat said: “I need to confirm whether you have funds.”

Customer: “If that’s the case, I can pay a deposit.”

While the cat considered the feasibility, the overbearing customer said, “Account.”

—

Lin Jia arrived at the hotel restaurant. The restaurant was divided into Chinese and Western sections, occupying the left and right sides of the floor.

A hotel manager stood at the dividing line and, upon seeing Lin Jia, invited him in. “Mr. Lin, please follow me.”

Yan Xu had chosen Western food.

When Lin Jia entered the restaurant, he saw Yan Xu sitting bored at a table. There was a floor-to-ceiling window beside him overlooking the night view of the Underwater Wold, but he showed no interest in it. Instead, he played with the rose petals decorating the table, stacked the plates, and folded a piece of paper into an airplane.

The paper airplane was just about to fly, its nose aimed at Lin Jia, who had arrived late.

Yan Xu paused. Lin Jia was wearing a Scottish plaid suit with layered stripes in black and white, which made him look three-dimensional and vivid.

Yan Xu involuntarily looked at his own clothes and hesitated—was he dressed too casually? Should he go back and change now?

As Lin Jia approached, Yan Xu smelled a faint fragrance.

The hotel manager pulled out a chair for Lin Jia. Lin Jia sat down and looked at Yan Xu.

Yan Xu put everything aside and pushed the menu toward Lin Jia.

Lin Jia was not polite either. He opened the menu and ordered.

The waiter recorded the dishes.

Lin Jia pushed the menu back. “I only ordered for myself. See for yourself what you want.”

Yan Xu didn’t open the menu and told the waiter: “Same as him.”

Waiter: “Okay.”

Lemon water was added to the glass. Lin Jia took a light sip and waited for Yan Xu to speak.

Sure enough, Yan Xu asked, “Why didn’t you bring the cat?”

Lin Jia put down the glass and calmly replied, “It’s just a pet. You can’t bring it everywhere with you.”

Yan Xu smiled. “Really? But you brought it into the Fish Belly.”

Lin Jia: “Who can guarantee coming out alive after entering the Fish Belly? If I don’t bring my cat, who in the Underwater Wold will take care of it for me?”

Lin Jia’s answer was flawless. Yan Xu said again, “True, pets are a kind of emotional support. They also help people eliminate fear to some extent. Actually, I also want to raise a cat. Any suggestions?”

Lin Jia said lightly, “Captain Yan is usually too busy with work. Forget it. Without companionship, pets won’t be affectionate.”

Yan Xu smiled and looked Lin Jia up and down: “You don’t look like someone with time to take care of a pet either.”

Lin Jia admitted openly, “Yes, I have little time, but my assistant helps feed it.”

Yan Xu continued probing. “Can I understand that as meaning you don’t spend much time with it either? Cats aren’t easy to tame. For Toast to be this close to you is quite unexpected.”

At that moment, the dishes were served. After the waiter left, Lin Jia said, “The assistant does the dirty and tiring work. Work that cultivates feelings, like feeding, is left to me.”

Yan Xu suddenly understood: “No wonder.”

Lin Jia picked up a knife and fork and slowly cut his steak. “Captain Yan, just say what you want.”

Yan Xu denied it immediately. “What could I have? I’m just treating you to dinner. If you don’t want to talk about cats, we can talk about something else.”

Lin Jia said softly: “Mm.”

Yan Xu also picked up a knife and fork, but his movements were much rougher than Lin Jia’s. He cut the entire steak into small pieces in three quick movements, solving the problem of how to eat it all at once. Afterward, he only needed a fork.

“Getting used to the Underwater Wold?” Yan Xu asked.

Lin Jia: “I just arrived, and I don’t understand the Underwater Wold yet. There’s no such thing as adapting or not adapting; just live in the present.”

Wiping his mouth with a napkin, Lin Jia looked up at Yan Xu. “Captain Yan has been in the Underwater Wold for a long time. Has he adapted?”

Yan Xu smiled: “Do I look like I haven’t adapted?”

Lin Jia lowered his eyes and cut his steak. After two seconds of silence, he said, “At least on the surface, it looks that way. As for what Captain Yan thinks inside, who knows?”

If Yan Xu had truly adapted, why would there be self-destructive tendencies in the Fish Belly?

The cat’s analysis was not bad — familiarity with Deputy Chen could be based on seeing him day and night. To find the cat’s true self, one should naturally start with those around Deputy Chen.

Although the cat ruled out Yan Xu directly, given Lin Jia’s personality, he wouldn’t overlook any possibility.

This dinner was not only Yan Xu testing Lin Jia, but also Lin Jia testing Yan Xu.

The difference was that Lin Jia knew Yan Xu’s purpose, but Yan Xu did not know Lin Jia’s.

Before Yan Xu could speak, Lin Jia said, “Captain Yan, I agreed to your invitation not only to prove that my cat and I have no problem, but also because I have a question I want to ask you.”

Lin Jia was too frank, which surprised Yan Xu. Based on his impression of Lin Jia, Yan Xu did not think Lin Jia would openly reveal those tests.

Since Lin Jia had spoken openly, however, Yan Xu also stopped hiding. He usually hated speaking in roundabout ways. A real smile briefly appeared on Yan Xu’s face as he said, “Fine, ask. I’ll answer depending on the situation.”

Lin Jia stopped his movements and raised his eyes: “As Captain Yan said, he has both fame and profit in the Underwater Wold. If there were a chance to leave the Underwater Wold, would Captain Yan leave?”

The cat represented the idea of leaving the Underwater Wold, so Lin Jia asked this question.

‘If there were a chance to leave the Underwater Wold, would Captain Yan leave?’

Although a negative answer could not directly prove Yan Xu was related to the cat, a positive answer would basically rule Yan Xu out.

Yan Xu was somewhat surprised, seemingly not expecting Lin Jia to ask this question. The silver fork pierced the steak. Yan Xu chewed the tender beef, his gaze always fixed on Lin Jia.

Compared to Yan Xu, Lin Jia was elegant, like a white egret with a slender neck and balanced figure, but with extremely sharp eyes.

On the surface, he did not pay much attention, but in reality, he had taken in every move of the others. If the white egret surnamed Lin found an opportunity, Yan Xu was sure that this person would immediately stir up the calm water and elegantly take away his prey.

After swallowing, Yan Xu threw the fork onto the plate and leaned boldly back in the chair. “You told me to speak directly, yet you beat around the bush. Mr. Lin, you are a white egret with two sets of behavioral standards.”

Lin Jia paused slightly, raising his eyes. He did not know how Yan Xu’s suspicious personality had constructed him internally. He corrected: “Just a simple question.”

But Yan Xu said, “You want to know if there’s a way to leave the Underwater Wold.”

Twisting a simple question into this was still acceptable. However, the cat knew how to leave the Underwater Wold; otherwise, it would not have appeared in the real world and brought him here.

Lin Jia simply admitted it, continuing the test invisibly. “So, is there a way to leave?”

Yan Xu: “No.”

Lin Jia showed no regret, instead asked: “Why are you so certain, Captain Yan?”

Yan Xu shrugged: “Since I came to the Underwater Wold, I’ve never heard of anyone leaving.”

He looked at Lin Jia and smiled as he offered some advice: “It’s best not to expect anything. Then, facts won’t crush you so easily.”

It sounded somewhat reasonable. Lin Jia lifted the water glass and drank.

Before he put the glass down, he heard Yan Xu’s voice again. Yan Xu said, “There are many lonely people in the Underwater Wold. Grab a handful, and you’ll get plenty. Compared to them, you’re lucky.”

Lin Jia knew Yan Xu was laying groundwork for his own probing, so he did not speak.

Yan Xu did not need a response and continued: “At least you have a cat with you.”

As expected.

Yan Xu called the waiter over to refill his water. After the cup was full, and considering that Lin Jia had told him to speak directly, Yan Xu said, “Tsk, I always feel like you and your cat have problems.”

Lin Jia showed an attitude of actively solving the issue. “For example?”

Yan Xu thought for a moment: “Is it really your cat?”

As he spoke, he looked Lin Jia over again. “Someone like you doesn’t seem like the type to keep pets.”

As the captain of the inspection team, Yan Xu had met many people, and his ability to judge others had been honed through his daily work. He could tell that Lin Jia was cold on the outside and on the inside. Such people could not be trusted with sincerity or emotion and were better suited to solitude. Forget cats—Yan Xu thought Lin Jia probably didn’t even have a lover.

Lin Jia: “A relative gave it to me. It was hard to refuse, so I kept it.”

Yan Xu was surprised. “I thought you picked it out with your lover.”

Lin Jia responded calmly, “The cat came first. It was also because of the cat that I met him.”

Without any embarrassed expression, Yan Xu said: “Forgive me for asking, but…”

Lin Jia knew what Yan Xu wanted to ask and said directly: “He’s a pet doctor.”

Yan Xu leaned closer. “The cat got sick, and you took it for treatment. That makes sense, but…”

He reached out and pulled off a rose petal that he had made shaky earlier. Looking at Lin Jia, he said, “You said you’re busy. Where did you find the time to take the cat to the doctor?”

Lin Jia: “The assistant handled the minor illness, but I still had to go for the surgery.”

“Cat surgery?” Yan Xu repeated, looking deeply at Lin Jia. “Your assistant doesn’t seem attentive enough.”

Hiring an irresponsible assistant to care for the cat did not seem like something Lin Jia would do.

Lin Jia met Yan Xu’s gaze. “Neutering surgery.”

Yan Xu: “… Oh.”

“How old is the cat?”

“Three years old.”

“Male or female?”

“Male.”

“What does it usually eat?”

“Cat food, and sometimes snacks. Recently, it’s been eating toast and things like that.”

“Is the cat really a cat?”

“No, on full moon nights, the cat turns into a human and helps me clean the house and watch the stock market. Some of the stocks the cat recommended were pretty good. It also helps analyze companies’ strategic goals and often gives valuable suggestions.”

“…You’re teasing me.”

“Captain Yan started joking first.”

Lin Jia had finished eating. He put down his knife and fork and lightly pressed the napkin to his lips. “What else does Captain Yan want to ask?”

Yan Xu curled his lips. “What else can I ask? Whatever I ask, you can block it.”

Lin Jia: “Then pay the bill.”

The waiter came with the bill and looked first at Yan Xu, then at Lin Jia. Lin Jia lifted a hand, signaling to the waiter that Yan Xu was the one hosting and paying.

Yan Xu took the bill and glanced at the price.

He swiped the card and signed.

“Thanks for the invitation. If there’s nothing else, then I’ll leave first.” Lin Jia prepared to stand up.

Yan Xu stood up too, one step behind Lin Jia. One second after Lin Jia entered the elevator, Yan Xu followed.

Lin Jia pressed the floor button, but Yan Xu did not move.

He didn’t ask either, knowing Yan Xu definitely wanted to see the cat.

Suddenly, Yan Xu spoke: “Your cat won’t scratch people, right?”

Since only the two of them were in the elevator, Yan Xu’s voice seemed noise-filtered, clearly falling into Lin Jia’s ears.

Lin Jia: “Hard to say.”

Yan Xu: “Alright.”

Ding—

The elevator door opened and Yan Xu gestured for Lin Jia to go first.

Lin Jia did not stand on ceremony, leaving the elevator first and heading toward the hotel room. Yan Xu listened to the footsteps behind him, but his face remained expressionless.

Room 1703.

Lin Jia’s expressionless face turned into a frown. Yan Xu followed and saw the crack in the door, big enough for a cat to enter and exit.

Lin Jia pushed open the door and called “Toast” twice, but the room was quiet and there was no response.

Lin Jia searched the room but did not see the cat anywhere. When he returned to the entrance hall, Yan Xu, who had been leaning in the doorway without entering, said, “Your cat ran out.”

Lin Jia looked at him silently.

Yan Xu said, “Just checking the floor surveillance.”

As the captain of the inspection team, Yan Xu could find out that Lin Jia was staying here and have the hotel provide surveillance footage. This was the kind of authority Yan Xu possessed in Underwater Wold.

While Lin Jia searched for the cat inside, Yan Xu had the hotel management check the surveillance footage. In the footage, the cat ran out of the room not long after Lin Jia left.

However, due to the angle of the surveillance camera, it was impossible to tell if Lin Jia had forgotten to close the door when he left or if the cat had opened the door itself.

Lin Jia: “Where did the cat run?”

That stupid cat better not have taken the elevator. Don’t let the elevator surveillance capture the cat conveniently pressing floor buttons.

“From the surveillance footage, it appears the cat went toward the fire escape.” Yan Xu said, “I had the hotel management go look.”

Lin Jia: “Thank you.”

Lin Jia did not wait idly. He came out of the room and acted like he was going to search for the cat. Although Lin Jia didn’t care about the cat, this matched the owner’s behavioral logic after losing a pet.

From the fire escape on the current floor all the way to the hotel lobby on the first floor, there was no trace of the cat. The hotel management also replied to Yan Xu that they had not found the cat.

Lin Jia frowned.

The front desk clerk pulled up the entrance surveillance and saw a black cat run out.

The front desk said: “The cat ran out two hours ago.”

Lin Jia took a deep breath, looking as if he were struggling with anxiety. “Thank you.”

He prepared to leave the hotel and search for the cat.

“Hey, Lin Jia.”

Yan Xu called to him from behind.

Lin Jia stopped at the entrance and turned around.

Yan Xu asked, “Need my help?”

Lin Jia: “If possible, thank you.”

Yan Xu stepped forward to the entrance as well. According to the surveillance from the entrance, the cat went right after leaving the hotel, so the two followed the cat’s path.

After about fifty meters, they reached a street fork.

Unlike the hotel surveillance, the street surveillance in Underwater Wold could not be casually pulled with one sentence; there was a process. Although Yan Xu had never cared about Management Office rules, he still had to go to the corresponding management department, even if he wanted to pull it.

A phone call alone, without proper procedures, the department did not dare give it to Yan Xu. The department could only avoid upper-level accountability by being innocent victims if Yan Xu forcibly took the surveillance.

Yan Xu: “You search first. I’ll go get the road surveillance.”

Lin Jia: “Thank you.”

Lin Jia randomly picked a path and continued walking. Engine noise sounded beside him. He turned his head and saw a black motorcycle pass by. The rider’s back and waist were straight. He was wearing a helmet the same color as the bike. The motorcycle tore through the air, causing his coat to flap loudly and exposing a silver revolver behind his waist.

Yan Xu drove all the way to the department that managed the surveillance of Underwater Wold. The department manager’s face changed when he saw Yan Xu again. “Captain…Captain Yan.”

“Second district, Jialing Road. Surveillance at nine tonight.”

“Do you have the procedures?”

“What do you think?” Yan Xu walked straight in. “Hurry.”

This was not the first time that Yan Xu had taken surveillance by force. Once the great Buddha arrived, management asked about procedures, then adjusted the surveillance according to Yan Xu’s instructions.

Yan Xu watched while also having inspectors search for the cat.

Soon after, Yan Xu received word that the cat had been found.

A subordinate asked what to do next. Yan Xu was about to report Lin Jia’s hotel address when he suddenly changed his mind. “Wait.”

Night was deep. After passing several streets where the clouds had rolled in, Yan Xu arrived at the location where the inspection team had found the cat.

The sixth district of Underwater Wold was where the wealthiest people lived.

Yan Xu looked at the cat in the cage and asked, “How was it found?”

The subordinate replied: “The cat was just lying on a wall.”

Yan Xu reached out to tease the cat but then remembered that Lin Jia was unsure whether the cat scratched people, so he withdrew his hand.

The inspection vehicle was parked on the side of the road. Yan Xu left his motorcycle and got into the inspection team car.

The others carried the cage with the cat and got into the car.

Yan Xu said to the driver, “Jialing Hotel.”

The car started and headed toward the hotel.

Yan Xu’s gaze fell on the seat beside him where the cage was placed, and he saw the cat curled up inside, trembling.

“Have you got anything to eat?” Yan Xu asked.

“Biscuits.”

Yan Xu held out his hand, tore open the package, and handed the cat a biscuit.

The cat did not eat.

After some thought, Yan Xu opened the cage.

The cat was so timid that, even with the cage door open, it did not run out.

Yan Xu pulled the cat out and placed it on his lap. Only then did Yan Xu get a close look at the cat.

It had to be said that it was raised quite well, and the cat was pretty cute.

He poked a biscuit to the cat’s mouth. The cat raised its head to look at Yan Xu and tentatively stuck out its tongue to lick the biscuit once.

The Underwater Wold had every kind of shop except pet shops. Pets were sometimes caught in Fish Belly, too, but they didn’t know how to find the Soup Base after being caught. There was basically no way for them to survive.

The subordinate said: “It ate, it ate!”

Seeing these people so excited, the cat ingratiatingly took another small bite of the biscuit.

It chewed twice with crunching sounds and swallowed it.

Yan Xu smiled a little. The cat owner was bold, but the cat he raised was timid.

Yan Xu asked the subordinate, “Is anything unusual?”

The subordinate did not understand, so Yan Xu clarified: “The cat.”

The subordinate thought for a moment and shook his head.

Yan Xu said nothing more, staring at the cat lying on his lap.

The cat pretended to continue eating biscuits but was panicking inside, its heart rising to its throat. The cat knew clearly that Yan Xu suspected that it was not really a cat.

So Yan Xu had come to the hotel to set a trap for Lin Jia. Now, he was here to catch the cat and send it back personally.

Lin Jia’s words echoed in its mind: My suggestion is to check the cat’s habits and act like a good cat to dispel his suspicion. Otherwise, with Yan Xu’s personality, he’ll keep staring at you.

Thinking this, the cat swallowed, lay down on Yan Xu’s lap, exposing its belly.

The subordinate who had been staring at the cat said, feeling curious: “Captain Yan, the cat really likes you.”

Yan Xu raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

The subordinate replied, “The belly is the softest place. When a cat exposes its belly, it means that it trusts you and treats you as one of its own.”

Yan Xu looked at the cat.

The owner had over eight hundred schemes, but one biscuit won the cat over.

He said, “Give me another biscuit.”

The subordinate quickly handed him one.

Yan Xu continued to feed the cat. The biscuit was hard. The cat had lost one tooth in Fish Belly, other teeth were loose too, actually did not want hard food, but endured tooth pain and finished another piece.

While eating, it cursed. After finishing, despite its dislike for Yan Xu, it rubbed against his leg.

The world is declining, forcing a cat into prostitution.

Yan Xu said to his subordinate, “It rubbed against me.”

The subordinate said: “That also means it likes you.”

Yan Xu: “Any more biscuits?”

The subordinate handed him another piece.

Yan Xu opened the package and fed the cat.

The cat’s teeth hurt and its head throbbed with pain, but it endured and ate.

After eating, it raised its butt.

Yan Xu: “Need to poop?”

The subordinate said: “No, it means asking for butt licking, also one action cats use to express liking.”

As they approached their destination, Yan Xu put the cat back in the cage.

After the car stopped, Yan Xu said, “1703.”

The subordinate got out to return the cat. Yan Xu leaned against the seat back. He did not notice anything unusual about the cat but felt a sense of emptiness, as if he were reluctant to return the cat to Lin Jia.

In Room 1703, Lin Jia thanked the inspector. After the inspector left, he closed the door.

When he turned around, his face changed in an instant.

He walked toward the cat step by step, half-squatted, and opened the cage door.

The cat waited for Lin Jia to let it out. Meanwhile, it talked about what had happened in the car with Yan Xu: “Yan Xu should believe that I’m just a cat now. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have sent me back, right?”

Lin Jia reached his hand into the cage, pinched the cat’s neck, and dragged it out. “You think I can repeatedly tolerate your stupidity, so you keep acting stupidly.”

The cat paused, realizing it had finally angered Lin Jia. Only then did it try to run, but it was too late; Lin Jia had already gripped its throat.

The cat was scared: “Lin… Lin Jia… don’t be angry, listen to my excuse… no, listen to my explanation…”

The night was deep.

The inspection team had finished working and returned.

Suddenly, Yan Xu broke the quiet in the car. “If there were a chance to leave the Underwater Wold, would you leave?”

The subordinates paused, unsure of why Yan Xu had suddenly asked this question.

Yan Xu: “Why are you so nervous? I’m just asking casually. Answer casually.”

“If there’s a chance, I’d definitely still want to leave.”

“Yeah, here you don’t know if there’s a tomorrow.”

“Although we don’t need to enter Fish Belly, this place still isn’t our home.”

Underwater Wold was not home. Yan Xu’s question stirred up emotions in the car.

“No idea how things are at home now. If there’s a chance to leave, I’d definitely leave. Even if in the end I still come back to Underwater Wold, I want to go home and take a look.”

After a few more sentences, someone suddenly asked, “Captain Yan, would you leave?”

Yan Xu looked at the night scenery flashing past outside the window. After a while, he smiled. “Why leave?”

 

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