Mid-lick, the palm-sized fluffy ball paused its movements: “Meow?”
This scene felt somewhat familiar. On his blank, round little cat face, it was as if a “Loading…” symbol was spinning.
Three differently colored cat heads pressed together, aligned in a row, lowered close to the ground, ears specifically flattened back in airplane mode, piously offered up to King Misu, awaiting his favor.
The big orange tabby was the first to lift its head, meowing to ask, “What’s wrong, boss?”
Little Misu quickly finished the post-meal ritual, giving each cat a lick: “It’s nothing, meow. Just suddenly remembered that the Sea Urchin Prince has been acting a bit strange lately.”
The Maine Coon cats tilted their little heads, exchanging glances.
“Strange?”
They didn’t have owners themselves, and their contact with humans was usually limited to brief feedings and playtime. But the little chubby cats knew that Boss Sushi belonged to a human and often worried about that dreadful human.
The three cats gathered around Little Misu. The smallest cat sat at their center, nodding.
“Before, the Sea Urchin Prince used to stand guard at my door. When I asked about it, he’d stubbornly claim he was just standing in the hallway for some air.”
“But recently, when I asked again, his expression became very smug! He just kept staring at me and smiling, saying nothing!”
“Even during meals, when Mom praised caramel crème brûlée as the softest, most delicious food in the world, he would suddenly sneer and say, ‘That’s debatable!’ What’s wrong with humans?!”
At this point, the little furball’s front paws paced back and forth anxiously. His fluffy little body puffed up slightly, resembling a brown dandelion.
The four little cats huddled together, discussing it all afternoon.
“That human simply needs a good beating, boss. You just need to—” The orange-and-white cat offered a simple, brutal suggestion. He stood up chubbily, repeatedly throwing out small, sandbag-sized cat punches. “—Hit him in the face!”
The little cow-patterned cat thought violence was inadvisable. He leaned close to Little Misu’s cat ear and whispered something, rustling and murmuring.
“…Boss, I’ll teach you, meow meow meow &%…!”
That very night, when Ji Yanxing lifted the covers, a fresh, fragrant scent greeted him. A bundle of fresh pomelo leaves for warding off evil spirits was prominently placed on his pillow.
Ji Yanxing: “?”
…
Overcast and rainy weekend. The Meow-nifique Cat Café had few customers. The little cat still stood as straight as if in military training, his fluffy chest held high, face full of determination.
“Oh my god, I never knew Ah-Xing could be so clingy! He’s just too persistent!”
Xiao Yu, curled up in a beanbag chair playing games, looked utterly helpless, too worried to even play on his phone. Frustrated, he ruffled his curly hair.
The diligent, hardworking little cat, hearing a familiar name, turned to look at him. His clear, glass-like eyes were full of confusion: “Meow?”
After this period of interaction, Xiao Yu could roughly manage simple communication with the little working cat.
Poor little cat.
Still unaware that an obsessive stalker had set his sights on him.
Xiao Yu gazed pityingly at this cat whose looks spelled trouble. Just as he was about to say something, someone pulled open the shop door. The cat-paw wind chimes tinkled, and a man whose presence starkly contrasted with the cute cat-petting shop walked in. Outside stood bodyguards and assistants.
A cold, severe aura instantly scared away several enthusiastic little cats.
The handsome-looking alpha cast a slight, arrogant glance. Several bodyguards immediately filed in.
Before any clearing-out could occur, the customers inside petting cats grew restless, fearfully muttering things like “The owner must have offended someone,” “The owner’s in trouble,” “How can petting cats lead to a raid?” They quickly fled the scene.
Young Master Ji nodded in satisfaction. Stepping forward, he displayed a QR code, adopting a very rule-abiding, humble posture—
“Group discount purchase.”
“Also, today’s lost business revenue, I’ll compensate tenfold.”
…What a performance of force first, courtesy second.
All the shop assistants were stunned, also thinking the owner must have committed some major offense, provoked someone they shouldn’t have.
Xiao Yu’s mouth twitched. He honestly followed the group-discount single-person cat-petting package to make Ji Yanxing a cup of coffee—though he used instant coffee powder.
He thought bitterly: The grudge of cat-snatching is irreconcilable!
The moment Ji Yanxing entered, his eyes landed on the chocolate-colored little meatball cosplaying as a lucky cat. He stepped forward, about to pick him up, when a shop assistant immediately stopped him: “This one is our front desk attendant! Not for sale!”
“I’m his daddy. I can afford whatever he’s selling.” The man’s voice was icy.
Little Misu, as dumbfounded as the assistant, was just scooped up by the man with one hand. Like a little doll, he sat in the man’s palm, his little paws raised innocently in front of his chest.
Why is he here…?
Misu had been working diligently all this time, keeping his little “cat identity” tightly under wraps, afraid Ji Yanxing would discover his true feline nature. But this person was always pestering the cat. Could it be that the pomelo leaves the cat found weren’t enough?
“Meow.”
A pure black little cat paw rose, pressing against the man’s forehead.
No fever, meow!
The little cat abruptly turned its head to look at him, eyes widening in terror, ears flattened against its head like a little seal.
Or… had he noticed something off?
The alpha, dressed in restrained, cool black, walked into the dopamine-toned, fairytale-like inner area and found a spot to sit down.
His long, bony fingers kept fiddling with the cat’s primordial pouch, his brow slightly furrowed: “Baby, are you sick? There’s something growing here.”
The little cat: “…”
This utterly clueless human.
A cat’s primordial pouch is a key protective feature when being attacked!
Besides, the cat is here to earn money, not for you, this subordinate-overstepping human, to casually pet as you please.
The soft, fluid little cat began to struggle fiercely, emitting low, rumbling growls to threaten him, occasionally giving a light nip as punishment.
Clearly only the size of a palm, an even more delicate little ball in Ji Yanxing’s hands, yet when throwing a tantrum, it actually felt like a big carp, impossible to hold onto firmly.
The alpha clicked his tongue, loosening his inhibitor bracelet by one setting.
The clean, dry scent of silver vine wafted out. On the adorable little cat’s face, a brief look of intoxication appeared. He didn’t even manage to kick the man with a single chicken drumstick leg, still pawing at the air.
It looked like trying to start a motorcycle.
A flicker of interest appeared on Ji Yanxing’s usually indifferent face. He caught hold of the little paw.
“You little stinky cat, this part is quite like your little dad.” He took the opportunity to lay the little creature flat on his palm. The fluffy little meatball, lying on its back, let him handle it as he pleased.
The man bent down, his tall, straight nose bridge like a ridge, using the tip of his nose to nuzzle the little cat’s belly, now soft as a puddle of water.
He smelled a faint scent of sunshine, fluffy and comforting.
He’d never had a pet. He never imagined his germaphobe self would be so affectionate with a little kitten. He murmured softly, “Come home with daddy? Your little dad is already completely in love with daddy. All that’s left is for our family of three to reunite.”
Whether this little cat had an owner remained a mystery.
Ji Yanxing, Xiao Yu, and Xiao Qiong had even created a small group chat.
Each claimed they wanted to ensure the little cat’s safety, but undercurrents surged; all wanted to claim it for themselves. The competition was as fierce as spring recruitment.
Ji Yanxing’s pheromones were just too unfair.
The little kitten, eyes narrowed to slits, was rubbed and rolled around by him, emitting contented purrs. The little head that usually had to consider so much was now completely empty.
So comfortable…
“Meow~ So comfortable!” Numerous meows rang in his ears. “Such a fragrant human! Want to nibble!”
Little Misu suddenly woke up. Flipping over, he saw all the other cats from the café had gathered around, eager and ready, as if Ji Yanxing were a walking, giant silver vine chew toy.
So many little cat mouths.
They might nibble the delicate Sea Urchin Prince to pieces.
“Hiss—!”
Instinctively, the little cat patted Ji Yanxing’s leg, shooing away the cat that was about to rub its face against the man: “All of you, scram! Don’t you see who this person is under? Meow!”
Little Misu puffed out his little round mouth commandingly, ordering, “Meow-woo, meow-woo!”
From now on, I’m the boss. You can just call him Sea Urchin Bro!
The other cats fearfully narrowed their eyes, submitting with respectful meows of “Hello, Sea Urchin Bro!” before awkwardly slinking away.
It couldn’t be helped.
Humans might not see the difference between a feral beast-cat and a domestic cat, but among animals, this kind of dominance is innate.
The little tiramisu-colored ball flicked its tail in displeasure.
Even though the sharp claws had snagged threads on the man’s pants, the cat had once again bravely protected the fragile human. As for how many decimal points this valuable pair of pants was worth, the cat wouldn’t bother counting.
“Hm? Knows how to be jealous too?” The alpha raised an eyebrow in surprise, the corner of his mouth twitching. He said to Xiao Yu, who had just walked in, “See? I’m the little cat’s favorite.”
He even inexplicably started competing: “My pheromones aren’t just silver vine. When fully released, there’s catnip too.”
What that means in terms of value—no need to explain further.
“…You’re cheating!”