The golden light did not have any particular temperature, but Da Ju… no, that was not right. Now he should be called Zhao Jin. Zhao Jin’s paw, when touched, actually felt quite comfortable.
Just like before, it was fluffy and warm. Lu Ran held it, unable to resist pausing for a few seconds before letting go.
“Then it’s settled,” Lu Ran said in a very good mood. “Tomorrow morning is a holiday. Zhao Jin, you’ll come home with us.”
According to Zhao Jin’s own thinking, he knew the address of the Lu residence. He could have gone there by himself, without needing to accompany Lu Luoluo and Lu Ran. But right now, Lu Ran believed him to be “Da Ju,” and so he ought to think of himself as “Da Ju” as well.
“Da Ju” was not very good at refusing Lu Ran’s requests.
So Zhao Jin nodded his head and withdrew the intimidating golden light around his body.
Just as he was about to leave this place to find somewhere to spend the night, Zhao Jin saw Lu Ran take a pillow out of the wardrobe and then push the original quilt and pillow further toward the inside of the bed.
Only after finishing this series of actions did Lu Ran blink and, in the darkness, invite him, “Zhao Jin, want to sleep with me?” It was already very late, and there was no way to find another room on short notice. Besides, in the past, whenever he woke up from sleep, Da Ju was either by his pillow or by his mom’s pillow. He probably would not be resistant to sleeping with a person.
Zhao Jin moved his fluffy paw. With a light leap, he landed on the warm, soft, and comfortable bed. He padded forward on tiptoe for a few steps, adjusted himself into a comfortable position on the pillow, and lay down.
Where you slept was still sleeping, wasn’t it?
Human pillows were actually quite comfortable.
Lu Ran smiled, then followed suit and lay down gently and quietly.
For a time, one person and one cat said nothing.
Ten minutes later, Lu Ran thought of something and spoke softly, “Zhao Jin. Are you asleep?”
Zhao Jin’s fluffy tail brushed across the back of Lu Ran’s hand, which had not been tucked under the blanket, signaling that he was still awake.
Once he was sure Zhao Jin had not fallen asleep, Lu Ran said, “Then Zhao Jin, I want to ask you to help me keep a secret. Is that okay?”
“My wish…” Lu Ran’s voice came from beside him, sounding a little low. “Mom and Grandma can’t know about it.”
Zhao Jin thought to himself that Lu Ran had just told him anyway, then remembered that he had already seen Lu Ran’s investigation report. In a situation like this, admitting it to “Da Ju” was indeed the best choice.
The tip of Zhao Jin’s tail lightly tapped the back of Lu Ran’s hand, indicating his agreement.
He had no intention of meddling.
The corner of Lu Ran’s mouth relaxed into a small curve.
One person and one cat soon fell asleep one after the other.
…
The next day, the day of returning home, 7:30 in the morning.
Lu Luoluo was wrapped in a green plaid duffle coat, wearing a khaki beret, with a thick cashmere scarf looped around her neck. Her gaze swept over the temporary parking spaces, and she quickly found the familiar black sedan among them, striding over.
Winter mornings were always cold. Today, a north wind was blowing, adding several more degrees of chill.
Lu Luoluo opened the car door and, as expected, saw her son Lu Ran, who had arrived early. Unexpectedly, she also discovered an orange kitten beside him.
The kitten looked extremely familiar, with amber-colored eyes, sitting upright between the two back seats.
“Why is there a cat here?” Lu Luoluo asked as she climbed into the back seat, closed the door, and sat down next to the kitten. She added casually, “It even looks a bit like the one at school.”
The car’s heating was turned up high. On top of that, Lu Luoluo had stayed up late the night before puzzling over a problem, and with insufficient sleep after getting up early, her mind felt somewhat muddled. Once the warm air blew over her, she grew drowsy again and could not help yawning, a hint of rouge coloring her fair cheeks.
There was already a Da Ju at home, so Lu Luoluo did not think of this cat in that direction. She only felt that perhaps it was too cold in winter and the cat was small, and that Lu Ran had happened to see it and wanted to help.
“It’s Zhao Jin. The name is taken from the two characters in ‘illuminating five-colored brocade.’ He really was staying at the school before. You might have seen him,” Lu Ran said with a smile.
There was still a driver in the car, so Lu Ran could not directly call her “Mom,” nor was it convenient to introduce the origin of the orange kitten. He only mentioned Zhao Jin’s name.
“Zhao Jin?” He had even given it a name. Did that mean he was planning to keep it long-term?
Would it fight with the one at home?
It was so small. Would it get bullied?
Lu Luoluo turned her head, her pitch-black, bright eyes sweeping over the orange kitten. She thought it was probably the one from the school. Its fur looked very clean, truly with a sheen like brocade.
The kitten’s amber eyes met Lu Luoluo’s gaze. Lu Luoluo was surprised to see a hint of seriousness in the cat’s expression. Rarely able to resist the itch in her hands, she reached out and stroked the kitten.
From its head down its spine and all the way to its tail, Lu Luoluo spoke in praise, “Nice coat.” The feel was also extremely comfortable.
Zhao Jin’s entire cat body stiffened… Lu Ran had not expected his mother to reach out so directly. Mainly because Lu Luoluo did not seem particularly interested in furry creatures. After bringing the orange cat home before, she had not picked it up again to hold it, partly because the orange cat was always hovering around Madam Lu Mingzhu. Lu Ran had thought that his mother’s bond with Da Ju had gradually formed later on. He had not expected that the moment Lu Luoluo saw the real Da Ju, she would feel close to it.
Lu Ran stole a glance at the orange kitten’s expression.
The orange kitten did not move at all. Even its amber eyes stopped shifting.
Having never once been groomed by a human, this was a first in his life. Zhao Jin only felt that everything from his ears to his paws had gone numb.
The other party thought he was an ordinary cat, not an intentional offense… why was this car still not moving?
He himself had secretly watched the other party make a fool of herself before, so that should count as even… why was this car still not moving?
Actually, it was not especially strange, and it was even a little comfortable… why was this car still not moving?
Driver Old Zhang glanced at the rearview mirror and asked, “Are we going straight home, or are we going to a pet hospital?”
Another stray cat? Thinking of what had happened last time, Old Zhang muttered inwardly. He did not understand the mentality of rich people. Maybe they just liked native Chinese rural cats and did not care for foreign golden shaded British Shorthairs or American Shorthairs and the like.
Lu Luoluo yawned again, turned her head, and asked Lu Ran, “Go to the hospital?”
Lu Ran shook his head and smiled. “No need.”
Lu Luoluo assumed that Lu Ran meant all the examinations had already been done and there was no need to repeat them. She then had Driver Old Zhang drive in the direction of the Lu residence and shifted her gaze back to the orange kitten beside her.
No wonder it looked so clean. It must have just had a bath as well… thinking this, Lu Luoluo reached out again and touched the orange kitten’s fluffy head. Seeing that the kitten was docile and showed no sign of resistance, she simply went ahead and lifted it onto her lap.
Zhao Jin’s entire cat body was still stiff. He did not even have time to voice a protest before Lu Luoluo gathered him into her arms and began smoothing his fur, stroke after stroke…
Lu Ran turned his head and saw this scene. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but then saw his mother holding the orange kitten while smoothing its fur, her eyelids slowly closing, clearly getting sleepy. He silently turned his head back again.
Since Zhao Jin did not object, he was probably willing as well.
…
“So it’s the one that’s Da Ju?”
Lu Luoluo’s drowsiness vanished without a trace.
She looked at Zhao Jin, who was sitting upright with perfect seriousness on a wooden stool, then swept a glance at the orange cat sprawled into a limp heap by Madam Lu Mingzhu’s leg, purring uncontrollably under her touch, its eyes constantly darting toward the orange kitten. Three seconds later, she decisively chose to believe this explanation.
A divine cat should look like a divine cat. Sure enough, it did not fit her stereotypical impression.
Madam Lu Mingzhu was still absentmindedly stroking the orange cat’s head. After spacing out for a moment, she lowered her head to look beside her, then after another pause said, “Then… Da Ju, I mean, this one that was mistaken for Da Ju, is just an ordinary cat, right?”
On the wooden stool, the orange kitten politely nodded its head and said, “Yes.”
That single response drew the attention of both Lu Luoluo and Madam Lu Mingzhu. A cat that could speak was something the Lu family mother and daughter were seeing for the first time.
Lu Ran skipped over the parts about the Investigation Notes and his true wish, and told his mother and grandmother, step by step and in full detail, about the process by which he and Zhao Jin had recognized each other.
Madam Lu Mingzhu’s expression gradually shifted from surprise to understanding.
As for Lu Luoluo, for some reason, her expression slowly took on a hint of gravity, along with a touch of unease.
“Mom?” Noticing Lu Luoluo’s expression, Lu Ran felt a bit puzzled. Was there some kind of problem?
Lu Luoluo’s changing expression was not for any other reason. She was recalling her two encounters with Zhao Jin at school, one on the rooftop and one in the classroom. That meant the secret she had worked so hard to keep hidden was perfectly clear to the little cat in front of her.
Not only was it clear, it could even speak.
When her son asked, Lu Luoluo’s smile turned a little awkward.
Of course she could not tell the truth. Out of the corner of her eye, Lu Luoluo glanced at the ordinary orange cat beside Madam Lu Mingzhu and said slowly, “I was just thinking, since Xiao Huang is an ordinary cat, then once spring comes, it will need to be neutered. After all, spring is mating season for small animals. It’s not very convenient, and it’s not good for its health either.”
She casually gave the ordinary orange cat a new name, calling it Xiao Huang. This showed that when Lu Ran had spontaneously named the Da Ju cat Da Ju in his childhood, it had not come from nowhere.
Lu Ran was momentarily stunned but did not think too deeply about it, only assuming that his mother was particularly persistent about having cats neutered.
Zhao Jin, on the other hand, felt a slight sense of danger. Just a little bit, after all, he was not an ordinary cat.
Madam Lu Mingzhu looked at the orange cat sprawled into a limp strip by her side, letting out purring sounds, and nodded in agreement. “Luoluo is right. The name is pretty good too. Plain on the surface, yet elegant at heart.”
And so the orange cat gained a new name, called Xiao Huang.
The orange cat was still squinting its eyes and purring. It was just an ordinary cat and could not understand human language. Naturally, it did not know it had acquired a new name, nor did it know that once spring arrived, it would lose a certain organ.
All it knew was that life at the Lu residence was truly comfortable, and that the godson it had taken a liking to had come to keep it company as well. Cat life was simply too blissful.
“Then, Zhao Jin, welcome to our family.” Madam Lu Mingzhu put on a warm smile, stepped forward, and extended her hand toward the orange kitten sitting upright on the wooden stool.
Lu Luoluo followed right after.
Zhao Jin extended a paw and shook hands with Madam Lu Mingzhu, then placed his paw onto Lu Luoluo’s hand as well, thinking to himself that human etiquette was really troublesome. Not transforming into human form had been the correct choice.
…
“Zhao Jin, about that matter, you didn’t tell Lu Ran, did you?” After lunch, Lu Luoluo crouched in a corner of the living room, her gaze uneasy. In front of her sat an orange kitten.
Zhao Jin’s tail gently curled once. He shook his head. “I didn’t.”
Zhao Jin loved liveliness, but he considered himself a good cat with moral integrity and was very good at keeping secrets.
With the exception of school bullying incidents, the exception of a male teacher cheating during his wife’s pregnancy, and the exception of school administrators accepting bribes… thinking about it, that was quite a lot. Still, Zhao Jin firmly believed he was a good cat who was good at keeping secrets.
As a cat with special abilities, he simply knew far too many secrets.
Lu Luoluo’s eyes lit up.
“Then… can you help me keep a secret as well?” Lu Luoluo clasped her hands together and said, “You see, the one who let the lie slip out wasn’t the me of now, but the me of the future. If the future me could know the consequences of lying, she surely wouldn’t speak so recklessly. People often say parents are a child’s best example. If Lu Ran were to learn that his mother deceived him, the consistent image of his mother in his heart would collapse, and then… Zhao Jin, you agreed?”
Zhao Jin nodded his head.
He was, after all, a good cat who was good at keeping secrets.
“So then, how did you do on your final exams?” The good cat who was good at keeping secrets wore a dignified expression and asked politely.
Lu Luoluo said, “…Pretty good. Ninth in the grade. Enough to muddle through.” She reached out and smoothed the fur along Zhao Jin’s spine as a gesture of thanks.
He had not objected in the car, so he probably liked this.
A divine cat was still a cat after all. What cat wouldn’t enjoy a massage? Lu Luoluo thought.
Zhao Jin stiffened again. He had originally wanted to ask the young woman in front of him about the specific scores for each subject, but in the end, he did not open his mouth.
Fortunately, Lu Luoluo only smoothed his fur twice before blinking, then bid him farewell with an expression that carried a bit of haste and a bit of delight.
Lu Luoluo heard footsteps on the stairs that belonged to Lu Ran.
Lu Ran planned to go out and bask in the sun. Although his room faced the sunlight, it always felt less pleasant than being under the sun outdoors.
“Getting some sun is good, but I’m a little sleepy and want to take a nap, so I won’t go with you,” Lu Luoluo said to Lu Ran with a touch of guilt, fluttering her eyelashes.
“Okay, Mom, go ahead. I’ll walk around the neighborhood for a bit,” Lu Ran said with a smile, then looked toward the orange kitten at the side. “Zhao Jin, want to come with me?”
Zhao Jin nodded his head. Sunlight was one of his sources of power, so of course he liked basking in the sun as well.
Moving his fluffy orange paw, Zhao Jin thought to himself that it was fortunate he had used a soundproofing technique the moment Lu Luoluo spoke earlier. Otherwise, with Lu Ran’s current level of perception, he probably would have been able to hear their conversation.
Occasionally, just occasionally, his techniques would fail to work on Lu Ran… but it should not be such a coincidence, right?