“Ahhhhh, Sui Sui!” Shen Huan scooped up the little kitten and planted a big kiss on its forehead. “The name my cousin gave you is so cute. One more kiss—mua~!”
Jian Xun couldn’t handle the affection and covered his head with his paws.
“Meow?”
Wh-why is it you?
Where’s Shang Xuci?
As if she could read the kitten’s mind, Shen Huan smiled and said, “My cousin had something to do and won’t be back today, so he asked me to take care of you for a bit.”
Upon hearing this, a flicker of disappointment flashed in Jian Xun’s beautiful cat eyes. The intimacy level that usually increased by a single digit each day was going to be zero today. He kneaded the floor with his paws, then stood up with his head held high and chest puffed out.
It’s okay. He’d wait for him to come back! There would be plenty of time to spend together in the future.
Shen Huan changed into slippers and went to check the cat’s food and water bowls—both still full.
The living room was spotless, a clear sign the little kitty hadn’t caused any trouble.
Shen Huan was so jealous. Why didn’t she have such a well-behaved cat at home?
Thinking of her own little troublemakers, she sighed.
No matter. Since she had this good kitty today, she was going to go big.
Shen Huan was a pet content creator on a small video platform. Because her five cats were constantly fighting, she had started filming their antics and sharing cute, funny moments online. She had a modest following of tens of thousands. Due to school, she had only been posting about once a week, but now that the college entrance exams were over, she was updating more frequently. Unfortunately, her unruly cats weren’t cooperative—always rejecting her, either attacking the camera or hiding whenever it appeared.
But everything depended on the cat’s willingness.
If the cat resisted, she would never make it uncomfortable just for a few clicks.
Since it wasn’t time to record yet, Shen Huan picked up the remote from the coffee table and turned on the TV. As she flipped through channels, Jian Xun quietly watched her.
He had zero resistance to button-type things. He really wanted to play with the remote too.
Shen Huan ended up watching Tom and Jerry with him, and Jian Xun didn’t blink the entire time.
She even switched to a super melodramatic soap opera partway through—and to her surprise, the kitten was watching even more intently than she was.
For dinner, Shen Huan ordered takeout. Worried that Sui Sui would get bored, she pulled out a tablet and opened a game for the cat to play.
Completely unaware that when she entered her four-digit password, Sui Sui secretly memorized it.
After dinner, Shen Huan took some streaming equipment out of her bag and found a spot in the living room with decent lighting. She waved at Sui Sui to come over.
Jian Xun was fully absorbed in pawing at the tablet, pretending not to hear her and continuing to play.
Turning into the Big Bad Wolf trying to coax a child, Shen Huan lured him with a soft voice, “Sui Sui, auntie’s going to show you something even more fun.”
With that, she pointed at the phone mounted on her streaming stand.
The livestream had already started due to Shen Huan accidentally touching the screen, but she was completely unaware and still busy coaxing the little kitten.
The lion cat’s stunning appearance instantly captured the hearts of the viewers who had just entered the stream.
[“Wow, is this a new kitty? So cute!”]
[“Why’s the camera so far away? Bring it closer—I want to see the cat!”]
[“Isn’t this supposed to be a home stream? I don’t see the other cats. Did Huan Huan go and snatch someone else’s kitten?”]
[“With that angle, that action, that setup… did the streamer forget she’s live?”]
Since the stream had just started, there were only a little over a hundred viewers, all loyal fans of the five cats at Shen Huan’s home.
Jian Xun glanced at the camera, tucked his paws in, turned his back to Shen Huan, and started digging into the couch cushions—trying to squeeze himself in and hide.
Unfortunately, he was no match for human reflexes. Shen Huan scooped him up and brought him in front of the camera to say hello.
“Oh, the stream’s already on?” Shen Huan exclaimed, then quickly shifted gears and lifted the kitten with one hand, waving to the viewers with the other. “Hey everyone, this is your lazy salted-fish Huan Huan! I’m at a relative’s house right now, and this beautiful kitten you’re seeing is called Sui Sui. He’s a lion cat, almost five months old.”
She turned the kitten toward the camera and said, “Sui Sui, say hi to all your aunties. There are five hundred aunties watching you right now, sweetheart.”
Jian Xun was startled—five hundred people?! Even though it was just through the screen, he wriggled slightly, his little cat head frantically trying to turn away.
“Scared of the camera? All your aunties are saying how pretty you are.” Shen Huan decided to give it another try—if Sui Sui didn’t like it, she’d let him go.
It was the first time Jian Xun had ever been complimented—by five hundred people, no less. His ocean-blue eyes lit up, and he turned to face the camera.
“Meow.”
Really?
Do that many people actually like me?
As a human, Jian Xun had never been liked. Even as a cat, he’d always felt unwanted. Not only was he disabled, but he never considered himself good-looking among cats either. The cooler cats didn’t even want to cuddle with him.
Seeing him respond, Shen Huan beamed with joy and immediately pulled out a bag of dried fish treats for him.
Jian Xun cautiously moved closer to the camera. When he saw the screen flooded with scrolling comments floating from right to left, he let out a soft little “mua” toward the lens.
The lion cat is a native breed, often known for having heterochromatic eyes and a fierce, striking appearance. Although this particular kitten was still small, his entire coat was snow-white and fluffy, and his round, oversized eyes were spotless—clear and bright, like the deep blue sky.
Testing the waters, he gave a little greeting to the camera. After staring too long, he couldn’t help blinking once—and that unintentional wink absolutely melted the viewers in the stream.
[“Ahhh—I’m dead! Too cute to handle!”]
[“Sorry, middle-part kitty, I’ve fallen for someone else now.”]
[“Oh my god, someone hurry up and give him dried fish! He winked! And he meowed like a baby too! I’m losing it!!”]
[“So freaking adorable! Here—take a pack of spicy strips as tribute!”]
[“Sending flowers ×40”]
More and more people were entering the stream. Meanwhile, Jian Xun stared blankly into the camera, completely unaware that his adorably dazed expression was killing off waves of cat-loving netizens.
His fluffy little head moved back and forth with the scrolling comments. As a cat, reading words was still a bit of a challenge. For the longer ones, he had to slowly follow them from right to left until they disappeared.
His concentrated, clueless look made viewers squeal—it didn’t matter if the kitten couldn’t talk. Just staring into the camera like this, he could entertain them all night long.
Jian Xun read a lot of the comments—and they were all compliments!
He was so happy.
“Meow!”
He let out a sweet chirp at the camera.
Which only brought in even more scrolling messages.
Shen Huan was the happiest of all. She’d originally planned to hold the kitten and perform a viral dance for the audience, but clearly, there was no need for that now. She could just film a proper video later.
As a reward, she gave Sui Sui lots of dried fish treats.
Then, she left the livestream to him, sprawled on the couch like a total slacker, and started scrolling on her phone.
Being able to slack off—what a dream.
Shen Huan took many photos of Sui Sui diligently and seriously “working” in front of the camera, capturing him from all different angles.
Jian Xun didn’t dare move much either. He obediently sat on the chair, eyes fixed on the camera, his tail curled around and covering his bandaged left paw.
Since he wasn’t her own cat, Shen Huan didn’t keep the stream going too long. After about half an hour, she picked up the little kitten and fed him some treats.
Jian Xun ate happily.
It was his first livestream—and people had complimented him. It was a strange, wonderful experience.
The next afternoon, Shen Huan left, and the now-empty apartment was once again just Jian Xun alone.
According to Shen Huan, Shang Xuci would likely return that night or the next morning. Feeling more at ease, he meowed softly at the door.
I’ll wait for you to come back.
Then he turned and trotted cheerfully into the cardboard box, tugged on the shirt left inside by the big boss, and buried himself in the fabric, paws wrapped around a small button.
It felt just like being held by him.
The little kitten drifted off into a deep sleep.
…
Another day passed.
Jian Xun was especially excited—today the big boss was coming back!
He had been sitting at the entryway since morning, soft fuzzy ears twitching as he stared intently at the door. Every little sound or movement instantly caught his attention.
From sitting upright with perfect posture to elegantly lying flat on the floor, he waited.
But the first sound he heard didn’t come from the front door.
It came from the balcony window—a tapping sound on the glass.
Jian Xun turned and ran over to check.
A familiar fur pattern instantly made him light up with excitement.
“Meow!”
It was Big Brother!
The tabby cat from the Huapai Tree.
But why was Big Brother here? How did he even find this place? Could it be… he came looking just for him?
Grabbing onto the curtain, Jian Xun jumped up onto the balcony in one swift motion.
Clearly shocked, the tabby cat blinked in disbelief—he hadn’t expected the cat inside to be Jian Xun. He tapped on the glass to signal him to open the window.
They lived on the third floor, not too high up. Shang Xuci hadn’t locked the window completely, and he would never have guessed his cat could open it. Even fully pushed open, the gap was far too small for a human—but for a cat, slipping in and out was easy.
Once the window was cracked open, the tabby climbed in.
He was about to jump down to the floor when Jian Xun stopped him: “You can’t! The floor’s dirty. If the big boss sees it, he’ll get mad. You’re not allowed down.”
The tabby cat wanted to say something sarcastic about being whipped, but realizing he had a favor to ask, he hesitated and said, “Fine. I won’t go down for now.”
“Did you come here looking for me?” Jian Xun asked.
The tabby shook his head. “I didn’t know you lived here.”
A few days ago, after Jian Xun was taken away, some stray animal rescue volunteers had discovered the cats living near the Huapai Tree and began rounding them up for neutering. Since the community was nearby, he had managed to escape. Now, he was just trying to grab some dry food and get as far away as possible.
Gurgle.
The tabby cat’s stomach let out a loud grumble.
“I’ll go get you some dried fish!” Jian Xun said immediately.
He carried the packets of dried fish Shen Huan had left over to the balcony. After a moment’s thought, he also fetched a small vacuum-sealed bag of kibble from the box next to the automatic feeder.
Several trips later, he was panting from exhaustion.
“You really need more exercise,” said the tabby cat.
It hadn’t even been that long, and this white kitten had already become a completely harmless, domesticated pet. If he got abandoned, wouldn’t that basically be a death sentence?
The tabby munched a few tasty fish snacks and asked, “Your human isn’t home?”
“You mean the big boss? He left two days ago and hasn’t come back yet.”
“Tch. Leaving a tiny kitten home alone—unbelievable!”
“That’s not true! He just had something important to do, it’s not like he meant to. I can take good care of myself, even as a cat!” Jian Xun quickly defended him and began telling the tabby all about life with the big boss, trying to prove how well Shang Xuci treated him.
The tabby cat scoffed. “He’s already thinking about handing you off to someone else, and you’re still defending him? Two-legged beasts are all the same—selfish, arrogant, dumb, and totally clueless about what cats actually need!”
Jian Xun didn’t like that one bit. He stomped his right paw on the kibble bag and snapped, “Don’t you talk about him like that! All this food you’re eating—he’s the one who bought it! How can you be like this?! I’m not giving you any more!”
“…Fine, fine. I take it back. I was talking about some two-legged beasts, not all of them. Some are decent,” the tabby cat said, realizing that Jian Xun was fiercely protective of his “owner.”
Jian Xun let go of the food with his paw.
Then the tabby started explaining his situation. He told Jian Xun that there really were supernatural beings in the world—and that there was even an official agency that managed them, called the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. Cats like them, who could understand human speech, sometimes had the chance to transform into humans.
As for how that chance came—it all depended on the individual animal.
“Though honestly, being human isn’t all that great,” the tabby said as he chewed another dried fish. “I used to have a human follower. He treated me really well—I got so sick of these dried fish snacks, I had them every day. But after I turned into a human… he didn’t want me anymore. I had no choice but to wander the streets.”
“Turned into a human?” Jian Xun latched onto the key point. “Can you still transform now?”
“Mm. That depends on fate. I can’t really control it, and for now, I don’t want to become human again,” the tabby replied, narrowing his eyes at him. “Why? You want to become human?”
Jian Xun liked being a cat, but he also wanted to be human. If he became human, he could actually help the big boss. Right now, there was very little he could do. He even needed Shang Xuci to throw away his litter bag for him.
Seeing the kitten’s expression, the tabby said, “This kind of thing’s all about fate. I wouldn’t even know how to teach another cat to become human.”
He picked up another dried fish and chewed it. “But are you sure you want to turn into a human? From a two-legged beast’s perspective, it’s downright horrifying. Some of them can’t even handle it.”
Hearing that the tabby didn’t know how to transform, Jian Xun’s hopes dimmed.
Well… it made sense. He was just a cat. The big boss didn’t even particularly like him now. If he turned into a human…
He’d probably be kicked out for real.
Jian Xun immediately pushed the idea out of his mind and shook his head quickly.
“That’s more like it.”
The tabby cat rolled onto his back and showed Jian Xun a patch of scarred skin on his belly where fur no longer grew. “See this? After I lost my follower, life got really hard. But I made it through—step by step.”
He told Jian Xun all of this to warn the poor little kitten not to become too trusting or dependent on humans. A cat needed to have a sense of danger and maintain its instincts.
Jian Xun knew the tabby was just looking out for him and nodded obediently.
“You really won’t let me in for a look? I’d actually like to meet your litter-scooper and see if he’s really as good as you say,” the tabby said. “Might not get another chance.”
Jian Xun looked at the clean floor, then at his big brother. He felt a little guilty for not letting a friend inside the house.
“…Alright, you can come in.” Worst case, he’d clean up afterward.
Only then did the tabby nod in satisfaction.
The moment he stepped into the living room, a muddy paw print bloomed on the pristine floor.
Jian Xun: !!!
Clearly, it had been a long time since the tabby had lived this kind of life. While inspecting Jian Xun’s territory, he couldn’t help but paw at everything.
“Where do you sleep?”
Even at the worst, a home should at least have a cat tree or scratching board. But he didn’t see many cat things around.
“I sleep here!!!” Jian Xun perked up his tail and patted a cardboard box with his paw, beaming with pride. “Big Boss bought me toys too—they’re all inside!”
The tabby cat glanced at the worn box with a corner shredded by clawing and exclaimed, “He took you home and lets you sleep in this piece of junk?!”
“N-no, that’s not it!” Jian Xun rushed to defend Shang Xuci. “I like it!”
He’d heard at Yuan Yuan’s place that good cat food was expensive. As long as he didn’t have to worry about food and water, that was enough—he didn’t want Big Boss to spend more money on him!
“Alright, alright.” Some cats did have a thing for cardboard boxes. The tabby didn’t argue. Judging from the place, it didn’t seem like a rich household anyway. As long as the dried fish was plentiful, he was content.
Big Brother the tabby turned out to be even more curious than Jian Xun himself. He darted here and there like he was about to take off flying, dragging Jian Xun along and teaching him a few new tricks.
By the end of it all, the place was a total mess.
Fur everywhere.
Before leaving, Jian Xun packed up some dried fish for his big brother and even took out a can of premium wet food he’d been saving for himself. He carried it all to the window and pushed it down into the grass below. The tabby planned to take it away in batches.
“Big Brother, my name is Sui Sui—Shang Sui Sui. Do you have a name?” Jian Xun asked.
The tabby cat turned his head back from the window and replied, “Xu Tu.”
Actually, his full name was Xu Tutu. His litter-scooper used to call him “Tut= ?u,” but he thought that sounded too soft and un-cool. He’d seen on TV that doubling syllables made names sound cute, so he dropped the second character and just went with “Xu Tu.”
Jian Xun looked like he suddenly understood everything.
Ohhh. With Big Brother’s size and personality, he thought for sure it’d be something like “Scarface” or “Killer Claw.”
“If fate allows, we’ll meet again.”
With that, the tabby grabbed the bag of kibble, gave a suave leap, landed effortlessly on the ground, and disappeared into the bushes outside the apartment complex.
So cool!
Jian Xun lay on the balcony, his little face pressed against the glass, eyes sparkling with admiration.
Suddenly, the sound of the door handle turning echoed through the room.
Jian Xun had no time to clean up. No time to greet him. He could only watch—frozen—as the Big Boss walked through the door.
It’s over.
He didn’t dare look at the expression on Shang Xuci’s face.
The moment Shang Xuci stepped inside, he was greeted by a headache-inducing scene:
Sofa cover—messy.
Floor—dirty.
Toys—scattered everywhere.
Little kitten—sitting there dumb and dazed.