【Guys, was it just me, or did the kitten just roll her eyes?】
【Wanwan’s expressions are really so rich…】
【It doesn’t look like a kitten at all, she’s so smart.】
【See, see, like owner like cat. It’s just as rude as its owner.】
【LOL, who’s really the rude one? Look at Fu Shilin’s face, he looks like he wants to fight our Brother Chi.】
【Who gets it, guys. A’Lin only came to this variety show for Qingqing, they’re true love!!】
【True love my ass, true my f***ing ass. Our Qingqing has never shown the slightest interest in Fu Shilin, what’s with this shameless clout-chasing.】
The director noticed that most of the live comments were revolving around Fu Shilin, Chi Yan, and Du Qingqing, so he deliberately kept the camera on them a bit longer.
Then he began announcing the first task after the show officially started:
“Teachers, you’ve all been with your pets for a week already. Our first task is to test the closeness between each of you and your pets.
“This will be a small competition. We’ll put the animals inside cages, then have the staff and all of you stand together to lure them in different ways.
“We’ll record how long it takes for each animal to run over to its owner. At the end, we’ll rank everyone according to time. And of course, since it’s a competition, there will be rewards and punishments.
The director smiled, “The production has prepared five lodging rooms. During filming, all Teachers will be staying here. The conditions vary, better rankings get first pick.”
After he finished laying out the rules, the guests all showed different expressions.
Li Wan tilted her head to observe. The female lead Du Qingqing and the popular young actress Li Xiaoyun looked the most relaxed.
Especially Li Xiaoyun, who flashed a bright smile right away. She patted her dog Dahuang’s head, bumped fists with him, and said, “Dahuang! Do your best!!”
Her Dahuang was super supportive too, barking a few times in response and wagging his tail like a helicopter propeller.
The one who looked the most miserable was idol Zhou Jia. Hugging his rabbit Yueya, he seemed completely hopeless, resting his chin on the rabbit’s head, “Yueya, Yueya… Papa hasn’t treated you badly, don’t let Papa lose too shamefully, wuwuwu!”
Beside him, Li Xiaoyun almost laughed out loud and teased him on purpose:
“Brother Zhou Jia, don’t worry, it’s not that Yueya dislikes you, it just… doesn’t really understand what you’re saying~”
Everyone laughed. Zhou Jia slumped back against the sofa, making a surrender gesture: “Brothers, Sisters, please let me off, I’m begging you.”
More laughter followed.
Li Wan flicked her ears, and looked toward the one person whose expression was stiff.
Fu Shilin.
His Akita dog, Qiutian1, stood silently beside him. He still held the leash, but the dog was already straining to stand as far away as the leash allowed.
When Fu Shilin’s gaze landed on it, Qiutian’s tail didn’t wag at all. It even deliberately turned its head away, ignoring him.
Fu Shilin’s face froze, a flicker of displeasure flashing quickly in his eyes. He tugged the leash hard, and Qiutian reluctantly shuffled a few steps closer.
Eh?
Li Wan blinked, puzzled.
In the original plot, Fu Shilin actually got along pretty well with Qiutian.
Even though later in the story, after he got together with the female lead Du Qingqing, he sent Qiutian away so it wouldn’t fight with Du Qingqing’s cat Xixi2, he was still good to Qiutian.
So why did it look like…
Fu Shilin and Qiutian’s relationship was even stiffer than Zhou Jia’s with Yueya.
【Guys, I say Zhou Jia’s the most tragic one this round, no objections, right?】
【Hahahahaha, if he comes in last place, that’s the most understandable thing. Rabbits are cute, but compared to cats and dogs, their intelligence is just a little lower.】
【Wuwuwu, my Qingqing and Xixi together are such a perfect match!! Beautiful woman and handsome cat!!】
【And our Brother Chi and Wanwan are handsome guy + beautiful kitten!!】
【Hahaha, Li Xiaoyun and Dahuang look so close! As expected of a Chinese rural dog! I say Dahuang’s the smartest of all the pets here, who’s going to argue?】
【…Uh, can Dahuang open doors? Can he invite guests to sit down and pour them water?】
【Can Dahuang find medicine for his owner?】
【???? What are you guys even saying? Are these things pets are supposed to do?】
【If they could, they’d already be sent off to school, don’t you think?】
After the guests digested the rules, the director quickly announced the start of the competition.
The order was decided by drawing lots. The first pair drawn was Du Qingqing and her cat Xixi.
Xixi was clearly very attached to her, clutching at Du Qingqing’s clothes with all four paws as it was pried away.
Du Qingqing also looked reluctant, watching as it was locked into the cage.
After the director announced the start of the competition, the staff brought out all sorts of things cats love—cat treats, freeze-dried snacks, teaser wands, even catnip.
Du Qingqing was stunned. She hadn’t expected the production team to prepare so thoroughly. Still, she wasn’t too worried. She’d spent the whole week with Xixi, and Xixi trusted her the most.
Li Wan was equally surprised.
Although she had once been human, she was now a bona fide kitten. She never imagined that humans could control cats this easily!!
Especially with freeze-dried snacks!!!
Just looking at them, she could practically feel the crunch and savoriness, that rich meaty aroma, so delicious a kitty might want to swallow her tongue along with it.
Unable to help herself, Li Wan padded forward two steps, only to suddenly realize she’d been scooped up by a long-fingered hand.
“……”
Meow? Meow??
She blinked her heterochromatic eyes in a daze, tilting her head to see which scoundrel had grabbed her. Before she saw anything, she already heard Li Xiaoyun and Zhou Jia laughing.
Li Xiaoyun was practically in stitches. “Brother Chi, your cat seems a little… hungry.”
“Hahahahahahaha!!!”
“It’s fine, Brother Chi, don’t worry. I’ll take last place, you can take second to last!”
Zhou Jia slapped his thigh laughing. His rabbit, Yueya, startled by the vibrations in his chest, perked its ears and craned its neck to look around. Finding nothing amiss, it slowly curled back up and closed its eyes again.
Chi Yan : “…Greedy cat.”
Only then did Li Wan realize what had happened. She blinked her heterochromatic eyes, feeling her ears flush bright red.
How awful!!
How could this happen!!
She gave a sharp “Meow!” and used her little mangosteen-like paws to cover her face.
【Hahahahaha, even the little kitty knows how to be shy!!】
【Hahahahaha, Wanwan really is a meme factory!!】
【?? How can you laugh? Cats aren’t like humans. Their actions are all instinct!】
【Xixi hasn’t even reacted to the bait yet, but she already wanted to go forward, why is she so hungry?!!!】
【I told you Chi Yan doesn’t actually like cats! He must not be feeding Wanwan enough! Poor Wanwan, treated like this!!】
【He’s an animal abuser!!】
【Stop making up rumors! Wanwan wasn’t excited about regular cat food at all, it was clearly the freeze-dried snack that got her going!】
Li Wan, of course, had no idea what was being said on the livestream comments. After being set down, she just curled into herself again.
The competition on Du Qingqing’s side officially began, drawing everyone’s attention. Li Wan secretly lifted her head for a peek.
Just then, she heard a faint chuckle.
Hm?
The kitten blinked and looked up, straight into a pair of dark peach-blossom eyes, gleaming with laughter.
To be fair, for someone who could serve as the male lead Fu Shilin’s foil in the original plot, her own two-legger was undoubtedly strikingly handsome.
Especially when those peach-blossom eyes carried a smile, as if the clouds had parted after a storm and sunlight spilled over blooming petals.
Even Li Wan was a little dazed.
When she realized it, she quickly shook her head, turned away with her face burning red.
Damn it.
The human was using his looks to attack her!!
At the same time, she felt even more regretful.
Right now the two-legger still seemed fine, able to smile, but in the original plot, this pet-variety reality show marked a turning point. After joining, his reputation nosedived, and under multiple pressures, Chi Yan’s condition worsened. He grew darker and gloomier.
But now she was here!
This little kitty would protect her useless butler!!
The director said this competition would affect the room assignments. Chi Yan, that finicky neat-freak, would care deeply about where he slept. What could a kitten do? A kitten could only try hard to help her owner sleep better!!
Charge!!!
Meanwhile, Du Qingqing’s competition was in full swing.
The staff were brandishing their props, trying to lure Xixi. Though they lowered their voices so as not to scare it, to Li Wan—all too aware as a fellow feline—every single item looked irresistibly tempting.
But though the contest had been going for some time and everyone expected Xixi to come out quickly and head for Du Qingqing, in reality it stayed crouched in the cage, trembling and refusing to emerge no matter how Du Qingqing called.
- 秋天 (qiū tiān) literally means autumn. ↩︎
- 熙熙 (xī xī). 熙 (xī) is a Chinese character generally referring to brightness, prosperity, and harmony. ↩︎