The next day, the weather was clear and bright, with warm sunlight chasing away the chill of the dropping temperature—a perfect time for a leisurely stroll outside.
Just as Lin Youyu was about to head downstairs to open his shop, he spotted his daughter dressed in light, casual sportswear, carrying a backpack. She was busily stuffing it with cans of cat food and snacks.
“Aren’t you supposed to be sleeping these days? What are you up to now?” Seeing Lin Lan nearly half-empty a whole box of cat food without a second thought, the old father quickly stopped her. “These are treats for Snowflake and Blue Gem. Which one are you taking them to?”
“I was just about to tell you,” Lin Lan replied after stuffing the backpack to the brim and zipping it closed. “Snowflake said it wants to take me out for a walk, so I thought, why not? I’m taking some cans with me.”
As she spoke, the big white cat at her feet meowed softly.
“What? What did you say?” Lin Youyu thought he must have misheard. “Snowflake’s taking you out to play?”
“Yeah.” Lin Lan slung the backpack over her shoulders and tested its weight. It was a bit heavy but still manageable. “It also said it wants to introduce me to some kittens it met outside. I figured there’s no harm in it, so I grabbed some cans to share. Don’t wait for lunch—I’m off to hang out with the cats.”
With that, the pair stepped out the door together. The door closed softly behind them, leaving Lin Youyu standing there, mouth agape, gradually coming back to his senses with a puzzled look.
“Hmm…” He scratched the back of his head and stared at the doorway in bewilderment. “I’ve heard of dogs walking their owners, but never cats walking people.”
Since his daughter quit her job and came back home, she had certainly broadened his horizons.
Lin Youyu’s little grumble was completely unknown to Lin Lan, who was already cheerfully heading downstairs. Following Snowflake’s lead, she turned left and walked straight ahead.
The white cat leading the way held its tail high like an antenna—a clear sign of its joyful and excited mood, something Lin Youyu often noticed when feeding the cats. Ever since Lin Lan learned to communicate with the cats and truly understood Snowflake’s wishes, the cat had been lifting its tail like this more often.
Snowflake trotted along with light, graceful steps, occasionally glancing back at Lin Lan. “Meow—” (Lan Lan, hurry up!)
Lin Lan quickened her pace, but the white cat had already leapt up onto the wall on their left, continuing its casual trot.
For humans, the wall was quite high, but for a cat, it was just a few easy jumps. Walking on top was smooth and safe, with no worries about running into people.
Judging by how familiar Snowflake was with this route, it was clear this was a well-trodden path.
Lin Lan followed the cat along the wall until they reached a small green park. But instead of taking the usual human walkway, Snowflake led her along a narrow ledge hugging the side of a building.
The building’s edge had been cleared by workers to form a cement strip about ten centimeters wide. Perfect for a cat to walk on, but for a human, it was like navigating a treacherous cliff path—steep and narrow.
Could this be the legendary “catwalk”?
This “cat path” isn’t some fancy technical term used for building bridges—it’s literally just the “path that cats walk.” After all, compared to humans, cats face a lot more dangers—both accidental and intentional—when they roam the streets.
The routes that Xuehua takes are all side alleys and back ways that no human would ever dare to walk. If you were to embellish it in an anime style, it would almost have a fairy-tale-like adventurous charm. Walking through them naturally stirs up the excitement and heartbeat of a child playing hide-and-seek, searching for the perfect hiding spot.
But the protagonist is no longer a child—she’s an adult woman who can’t squeeze through holes in walls or burrow through bushes anymore.
If it were someone else being led this way, they’d surely lose their way sooner or later, but Lin Lan didn’t have that worry.
“Xuehua, this ditch is too wide—I can’t jump over it.”
“Xuehua, this pipe is too slippery, I’m going to fall.”
“Xuehua, can we go around this way instead?”
Though the difference between humans and cats (in reality, Lin Lan was the one slowing things down) meant it took longer than usual to reach the destination, at least Xuehua successfully led Lin Lan to a place it often played.
“Meow—” (Here it is!) The white cat flicked its tail and softly called to Lin Lan.
Finally able to catch her breath, Lin Lan looked around at her surroundings. Ever since following Xuehua, she had been calculating the distance back to her small house. She couldn’t help but admire the cat’s patience on this little outing—it had already covered at least four kilometers. That’s quite a run.
Before her stood an old, dilapidated house long abandoned by humans. Though overgrown with weeds, it was quiet with hardly anyone passing by. The sunlight was good, and on the low-tiled roof, several stray cats lay lazily basking in the sun.
One, two, three… counting roughly, there were at least a dozen cats here. Could this be a gathering spot for stray cats?
Unlike dogs, cats don’t become timid or miserable even when they’re strays. Unless they’re sick and can’t take care of themselves, most people see stray cats as calm and leisurely. They’re always clean, lounging or sitting on high places out of human reach, watching the busy passersby below.
Lin Lan stood there watching them, a faint hint of envy flickering in her eyes—but what exactly she envied was hard to say.
Maybe because she stared too long, the cats sunbathing quietly on the roof began to stir once they noticed her. But due to the distance and terrain, some of the startled cats stood up but didn’t immediately leap away.
In front of her, Xuehua nimbly stepped onto the piled-up broken bricks and, in just a few bounds, was on the roof of the house. The cat called out to the group.
Though Lin Lan was a little far away and couldn’t hear clearly, she could still make out that Xuehua was introducing her to the cats—explaining that she was her human caretaker and that she could understand and talk to cats.
For a moment, all the cats on the roof turned to look at her in unison, their glassy eyes full of curiosity.
"Hello, everyone!" She waved cheerfully at the cluster of cats. "I'm Snowflake's mom. I came by this time to bring you some food. Thank you all for taking such good care of Snowflake!"
Food!!
The group of cats, who had been curious about whether they could really understand this human, immediately shifted their attention the moment they heard that word.
A black-and-white cow-patterned cat was the first to leap down from the rooftop to the ground, excitedly meowing as it dashed toward Lin Lan like a little calf. "Meow!" (Food! Where’s the food? I want food!)
It circled around Lin Lan’s feet, its tail wagging happily, showing none of the usual wariness expected from stray cats.
"It's in the bag." Lin Lan took off her backpack, pulled out a can of cat food, and peeled back the tin lid to reveal the fish-based meal inside.
"Meow!" (Food!)
The cow-patterned cat’s tail straightened with joy as it pawed at Lin Lan’s leg, standing upright and meowing insistently for the food.
But when Lin Lan finally placed the can on the ground, the cat didn’t eat. Instead, it looked up longingly at the rooftop.
At first, Lin Lan was puzzled. If it wanted the food so badly, why hold back? Then she noticed it wasn’t just this cat—several others on the rooftop were also restless at the sight of the food, yet none of them rushed down to the can. Suddenly, she recalled something.
The hierarchy of wild animals. Among stray cats, there is always a leader.
Lin Lan looked up and scanned the cats on the rooftop carefully. She finally spotted an adult tabby with white “gloves” on its paws. The big tabby sat straight and poised. Though just an ordinary feral cat, Lin Lan could sense the commanding presence of a leader in this cat.
At that moment, the cat’s golden, vertical pupils fixed on her gaze. Lin Lan met its stare without flinching. She knew the cat was sizing her up, deciding whether this human posed a threat or could be trusted.
After a while, the big tabby’s mouth moved slightly, uttering a faint sound that Lin Lan on the ground couldn’t hear. But the cow-patterned cat at her feet immediately dove into the can, munching away eagerly. That action told Lin Lan everything she needed to know.
With the leader’s permission granted, the other cats on the rooftop couldn’t sit still anymore. They all meowed and jumped down one by one, gathering around Lin Lan, their tails held higher and higher.
Food, food—it really was food!
In an instant, Lin Lan became the official can opener. One after another, she popped open the cans she had brought. The kittens lined up as well, burying their heads in their meals. Occasionally, the growling sounds of territorial warning could be heard—an instinctual defense of their food.
Though the sounds were just “grrrs” and “hisses,” in Lin Lan’s mind they translated to something like, “Mess with my food and you’re dead,” or “Come any closer and I’ll scratch you to pieces,” echoing back and forth.
She couldn’t help but smile at the scene.
Thanks to this bounty of canned food, nearly all the cats on the rooftop jumped down to scramble for a bite. But not quite all of them.
At home, everyone was already full and had agreed not to ask for any more food. Snowflake, the white cat, didn’t bring it up, and neither did the tabby cat known as the “Cat Boss” sitting beside her. The Cat Boss hadn’t moved either, seemingly still wary of Lin Lan. At the slightest movement from her, it would lead the other cats to flee at any moment.
What a stark contrast to the first greedy foodie—the dairy cow-patterned cat—this one combined an unyielding refusal to give up food with an equally unrelenting cautiousness. Coupled with the tabby’s excellent health and its natural prowess in hunting mice, it was no wonder it had become the leader of the cat clan.
But a cat with this kind of personality was destined never to enter any human household and become a house cat.
The wild was its true home, the environment it loved most, even if it meant braving the wind and rain, hunger and cold.
Once the little cats had eaten their fill, Snowflake and the Cat Boss jumped down from the rooftop.
“Meow, meoww—” (Lan Lan, this is the Cat Boss. It’s the most formidable cat I know! All the cats around here listen to it!)
Snowflake wagged her tail proudly, introducing the tabby cat to Lin Lan with great admiration.
And indeed, admiration was well-deserved. A cat that could lead others to find food certainly earned the right to be called the Cat Boss.
As for her own cat son recognizing a different cat as the leader, Lin Lan didn’t feel any frustration or surprise. Expecting a house cat, raised from kittenhood, to outshine a wild cat leader was just wishful thinking. The fierce determination wild cats showed in fighting for food and territory was something well-fed house cats could never possess.
The Cat Boss was noticeably less fearful of humans than the other stray cats. Instead of landing on the ground after leaping from the roof, it jumped onto a broken wall edge, bringing its gaze level with Lin Lan’s for a close inspection.
“Want some canned food?” Lin Lan asked gently, looking at the tabby. Judging from its behavior, this cat was probably no younger than seven or eight years old, having seen much of the good and bad in humans. It was cautious but not completely rejecting help. “If you don’t like canned food, I also brought some cat treats—Snowflake and Blue Treasure’s usual snacks.”
“Meow!” (Delicious! Cat Boss, this is for you!)
Snowflake chimed in with a meow in agreement.
At last, the tabby cat spoke its first meow, a hoarse sound that many people might find unpleasant—more like a baby’s cry.
“Woomiao, woomiaowoo—” (I’ve heard about you from Snowflake. You’re the two-legged beast that takes care of her. You’re the only two-legged beast I’ve ever met who can understand us, and whom we can understand in return. Recently, you even took in a sick little cat that was about to die and nursed it back to health.)
Lin Lan frowned when she heard it call her “two-legged beast.” “Could you please stop calling me that all the time? Call me human, or just Lin Lan—that works too.”
The more she interacted with these little cats, the more Lin Lan discovered a certain rule: pure stray cats would call humans “two-legged beasts,” while only house cats or stray cats that had been cared for by humans would call humans “people.” What a clever way to tell if a cat was truly wild or not.
The tabby cat ignored Lin Lan’s protests and instead meowed at her again. Just then, Lin Lan received the message “Follow me” clearly in her mind. The big cat had already jumped down from the low wall, looking like it was leading the way.
Watching the tabby cat hop and skip effortlessly over countless obstacles, Lin Lan felt a chill run down her spine—a bad feeling rising in her heart.
They were going to take the cat paths again, weren’t they!?
Sure enough, no sooner had Lin Lan thought this than the feline leader began its “walking human” routine. Fortunately, Snowflake was following behind, helping her navigate the twists and turns, so Lin Lan didn’t really end up participating in some kind of obstacle course show like those on TV.
After moving forward about half a kilometer, the tabby cat stopped in a rundown alley filled with what looked like piles of garbage and motioned for her to come closer.
Lin Lan barely had to lean in to hear the sound of kittens mewing from inside the alley—and it wasn’t just one. Her expression immediately changed.
This cat leader wasn’t hoping that because Snowflake told her she’d rescued Blue Sapphire, she’d now take in a whole litter of kittens too. And judging by the sounds, it was a whole litter.
Seeing her hesitate, the tabby cat seemed to understand that this two-legged beast wasn’t willing. It meowed loudly toward the alley entrance.
Suddenly, the alley filled with the rustling of discarded items and a chorus of meows. One by one, a litter of pitch-black kittens and a large black cat emerged from the shadows into the sunlight.
One, two, three... good, five little black kittens and one big one—six in total, all black cats.
Under the sunlight, their black fur stood out vividly.
“Meoww—” the tabby cat called to Lin Lan again. “Meow—” (They and their kittens are all healthy, none are sick, so raising them won’t be as exhausting as the one you rescued before.)
Lin Lan’s face was expressionless. “Cat leader, let me ask you something: are these your wife and children?”
“Waa-oo—” (No, that tomcat who was caught stealing food from humans was killed.)
The answer was unexpectedly grim. So this was the cat leader’s way of finding a way out for his younger brothers? He really was a responsible and serious leader.
Lin Lan understood now. Because she could communicate with cats, they fully understood her words, unlike others who could only guess through body language and tone. Plus, she herself had two cats at home. That was why the cat leader had decided to entrust the kittens to her.
But even so, there was no way she could just say yes and take in a whole litter of black kittens.
Although she had the golden ability to understand cat language, Lin Lan never intended to become the savior of all cats. She was just an ordinary person, with her own selfishness and considerations like everyone else. Even if she sometimes softened or acted on impulse, it was only occasional—not a constant outpouring of goodwill.
Lin Lan was never the type to be a saint—she was just an ordinary little citizen with no grand responsibilities, thank you very much.
As she was trying to organize her words, figuring out how to politely refuse the tabby cat’s attempt to be adopted, the cat suddenly darted headfirst into the alley. Lin Lan didn’t follow, so all she could hear were the faint sounds of cat claws scratching through discarded junk in the dim alley. After a short while, the cat came back out.
In its mouth was a black leather wallet, which it dropped right in front of Lin Lan.
The wallet was plump, its clasp undone, revealing a thick stack of cash inside along with various cards—bank cards, ID cards, and the like—clipped in place. The tabby’s white-gloved paw rested on top, and it let out a meow as if to say something to the stunned Lin Lan.
“Meow, meow meow meow—” (I know a lot of two-legged creatures like these things. You take care of them; this is for you.)
The sun climbed higher, and before long, it was noon.
Just as mealtime approached, the Lin family finally saw their daughter return from her “cat walk.”
“You’re back! Then hurry up and wash your hands so we can eat,” Wang Xiuzhi said, setting down the ragdoll cat she’d been holding onto Grandma Lin’s lap before heading to serve the meal.
Grandma Lin happily stroked the ragdoll’s head, admiring the kitten’s beautiful eyes. “Luxury cats are luxury for a reason. They really are pretty and have good temperaments. Though this one’s head is bigger than usual—most three-month-old kittens aren’t as big as Lan Bao.” Then she looked at her granddaughter. “Lan Lan, why did you come back so late? If you’d been a few minutes later, I would have had your dad call to check on you.”
“Yeah, I’m starving,” Lin Youyu chimed in. He’d been restocking the convenience store all morning, doing plenty of heavy lifting.
“I ran into a bit of trouble,” Lin Lan said, her expression hard to read. She held up a hand to stop Wang Xiuzhi, who was about to enter the kitchen. “Mom, don’t rush off. I wanted to tell you about it first.”
The older Lin family members looked puzzled as Lin Lan brought her backpack forward and opened the zipper. A whole litter of tiny black kittens popped their heads out.
A few minutes later.
“You just rescued Lan Bao not long ago, and now you’re out picking up more cats!” Wang Xiuzhi scolded, clearly exasperated. “And so many at once! Do you think cat food grows on trees?”
Sitting quietly across from her, Lin Lan felt a bit deflated but carefully replied, “That’s why someone gave me this…”
She pointed to the thick wallet on the table. The wallet alone looked expensive, and anyone familiar with luxury goods could tell it was a Hermes. Its market value was probably higher than the cash inside, not to mention the stack of cards on top.
“I think you did the right thing, honey,” Lin Youyu said, frowning as he looked at the large wallet. “With so much money and IDs and bank cards inside, the owner must be frantic. Lan Lan did a good deed—this money should go straight to the police station.”
“Doing a good deed doesn’t mean you have to bring home a whole litter of black cats, does it?” Wang Xiuzhi looked up and glared at her husband. “Couldn’t she have just grabbed the wallet and run? She’s a grown woman—how could she lose to a cat?”
“You’re thinking too simply!” Lin Youyu immediately objected. “What if that cat scratched Lanlan, or worse, left a scar on her face? You haven’t seen many cats before, but when Mom and I were in the village, we came across some fierce big cats. Fierce enough that even the village dogs wouldn’t dare mess with them! The cat Lanlan ran into is clever and a little mischievous. Do you realize what could happen if it turned on her? Think about our Xuehua—so smart that even people only treat her like a little underling. Don’t you get it?”
Wang Xiuzhi hesitated under her husband’s words but stubbornly muttered, “It can’t be that fierce…” She didn’t give in even when Lin Lan spoke. “I don’t mind if you want to take the wallet to the police. We’re not short on money, after all. But this litter of black cats? I’m not okay with that…”
“Keep them!” Before she could finish, Grandma Lin slapped her thigh and said loudly, “Lanlan, you keep them. Grandma supports you!”
“Mom!?” Wang Xiuzhi looked at her mother-in-law in shock.
“Black cats are great. They ward off evil and remember kindness. Actually, black cats are my favorite,” Grandma Lin said as she walked over and gently picked up one of the little kittens that had jumped out of the bag and was running around, cradling it in her arms and softly stroking its fur. “When your grandfather and I first got married, the country was very poor. The village even exaggerated grain production to save face, so everyone had to tighten their belts and almost starved. Our Lin family was no exception. Just when things were about to get really bad, a black cat we’d raised caught snakes and rats up in the mountains and brought them back to feed us. That’s how we barely made it through. But that cat wouldn’t eat much of the meat we brought back—it sacrificed itself for us and soon after fell ill and passed away. Ah…”
This untold story suddenly fell over the room like a quiet shadow. Grandma Lin’s eyes reddened and glistened with moisture as she turned to her daughter-in-law. “Xiuzhi, this time I’m being a little stubborn as the elder. Let Lanlan keep them.”
With her mother-in-law’s approval, Wang Xiuzhi had no heart left to argue.
But still…
Looking around the living and dining room, aside from the dining table and sofa set, since they started raising Xuehua, there had been a cat bed, a cat tree, a water dispenser, and feeding bowls. After bringing home Lanlan’s blue gem, they added a heated incubator, an isolation cage, an automatic warm water dispenser… and so on. The once spacious room now felt terribly cramped.
And now, six more cats were being added all at once.
Wang Xiuzhi really felt overwhelmed. “We just can’t keep so many cats in the house.”
Lin Lan quietly raised her hand to answer, “I already thought about this on the way home. I’ll move all the cats to my apartment. That way, the house can stay neat and tidy.”
“That won’t do!” Wang Xiuzhi suddenly raised her voice. “That apartment is supposed to be your wedding home! You can’t just let cats live there without anyone ever having lived in it!”
“What does it matter? The place hasn’t even been renovated yet,” Lin Lan said, clearly not bothered by it. As an heiress who had inherited an entire building and with a good-looking appearance to boot, she never thought she’d be short of admirers. “Too many cats in one house will make it smell bad. It’s better to move them all somewhere else.”
“That sounds good!” Lin Youyu agreed immediately, sharing the same idea as his daughter. “After dinner, I’ll help you move the cats. Once the cats are settled inside, what else could we possibly add? We can always get more.”
As a descendant of the Lin family, hearing his mother recount this little family story, Lin Youyu looked affectionately at the litter of black cats. Strictly speaking, those black cats had saved his parents once—so in a way, they saved him before he was even born. What’s a few more cats? The Lin family could easily afford it!
“By the way, Lan Lan, have you given the black cats names yet?”
“Not yet. First, I want to sort out the wallet and moving the cats, then I’ll think about names.”
Father and daughter had already started discussing the logistics of cat care, while Wang Xiuzhi, standing nearby, completely lost her temper. She stomped her foot and stepped over the cats scattered all over the floor, heading straight to the kitchen. “I don’t care anymore! Dinner’s ready!”
Because she had been warned by the cat leader beforehand, Lin Lan knew that if she wanted to successfully latch onto a long-term provider, she had to behave. The mother cat was obedient and kept her kittens in line as well. These little cats were already over five months old, lively and healthy, which truly eased Lin Lan’s worries.
She asked her father to take the entire litter to the vet for a checkup and vaccinations, while she took the wallet, given by the cat leader, to the nearby Public Security Bureau.
Although she had adopted a whole bunch of black cats, Lin Lan had no intention of keeping the wallet for herself.
Of course, if the owner came back and voluntarily offered a reward out of gratitude, she wouldn’t refuse.
Riding her little electric scooter, Lin Lan never imagined that such a kind-hearted act of returning a wallet would almost land her in big trouble.
Inside the city’s Public Security Bureau.
Li He’an rubbed his temples, feeling headache creeping in. A criminal case he was in charge of had suddenly hit a dead end. The victim had been killed in a deserted alley half a month ago—one clean, fatal blow with no obvious struggle. The area was poorly equipped with no surveillance cameras, and the killer had left no trace. The entire team was at their wit’s end.
Dinner time was fast approaching, but Li He’an had no appetite. He sat alone, sifting through piles of case files and crime scene photos, scrutinizing every detail.
Just then, a junior officer burst in, excitement written all over his face.
“Captain Li! Captain Li! There’s a new lead!” He slammed both hands heavily on the desk, shaking it slightly as he spoke. “A citizen just came in to return a wallet—and it turns out it’s the victim’s!”
“What did you say!?” Li He’an jumped up in an instant, hurriedly weaving around the desk and rushing out.
At the reception desk of the Public Security Bureau, Lin Lan, seeing the growing crowd of officers, was on the verge of tears. “I—I really didn’t know the wallet’s owner was in trouble!”
She originally just wanted to be a good Samaritan and return a lost wallet. Who would have thought it would drag her into a murder case? She was practically being wrongfully accused!
“We know, we know,” the police, led by Li He'an and An, quickly reassured her, trying to lighten the mood with a joking tone. “After all, no killer would be stupid enough to bring the wallet straight to the police station.”
Lin Lan nodded vigorously—she certainly wasn’t foolish. She had wanted to avoid trouble by not getting involved with the wallet’s owner, trying to prevent the kind of online drama where people claim, “My wallet had ten thousand yuan, why is there only two thousand left?” But instead, she had stumbled into something far worse than a money dispute—a murder investigation. What a huge misstep!
“Miss Lin, please try not to be nervous,” Li He'an said gently. “We just want to understand why the owner, who was murdered half a month ago, would have their wallet found intact with you after all this time. You know as well as we do, wallets found after so many days are usually emptied.”
That’s true—how could a wallet that went missing for two weeks suddenly appear in her hands, completely untouched? That was the biggest red flag.
Lin Lan clenched her fingers tightly. Facing the police, who had vast intelligence networks ready to uncover the truth at any moment, she didn’t dare make anything up. She stammered out, “I-it was a cat who gave it to me…”
The officers across from her were utterly baffled.
Just as they were about to ask more questions, a cheerful voice came from the doorway: “Brother-in-law, I’m delivering lunch on behalf of my sister!”
Cheng Fengyang stepped into the police station, carrying a lunchbox filled with his sister’s lovingly prepared food. He immediately noticed the unusual atmosphere inside. Turning around, he saw a group of police officers, led by his brother-in-law, gathered around a young woman.
And this woman looked familiar.
“Hey, it’s you! The one who found a sick little stray cat and ended up raising a Ragdoll!” Cheng Fengyang pointed at Lin Lan and blurted out, “I’ve heard about you when I went to buy some fur-growing powder for my Star. You’re kind of famous!”
“It’s you!” Lin Lan recognized Cheng Fengyang right away too. Seeing a familiar face, especially someone who had unintentionally helped her once before, she relaxed a little.
“Brother-in-law, what’s with you guys surrounding a girl like this?” Cheng Fengyang looked up at the familiar faces across from him and spoke without hesitation, “Don’t tell me she’s in trouble.”
“You’re the one in trouble!” Li He'an shot a glare at him, clearly annoyed. “Go on, don’t get in the way. Put down the food and scram!”
Cheng Fengyang wasn’t about to leave just like that. Bold as ever, he stayed and listened in on their conversation. When he realized what they were talking about, he was shocked and exclaimed, “You can’t seriously think this girl is the murderer, right? No way! When the victim was killed, this girl was at the vet’s holding her little Ragdoll. Even if she had two more legs, she couldn’t have done something like that!”
“You know that too?” Li He'an glared at him again.
“I was definitely there at the time. If you don’t believe me, you can check the surveillance footage from the hallway of my building and the pet clinic!” Lin Lan quickly chimed in. “During that period, I was so focused on treating my cat that I didn’t even step outside except to go to the pet clinic. After my kitten got better, I just went out today to take it for a walk. Unexpectedly, a stray cat led me to adopt a whole litter of black kittens. That wallet was actually given to me by the cat when I picked up the black kittens!”
No one would believe that a cat understood her words and willingly gave her the wallet, so Lin Lan had to tweak the story with a bit of truth and a bit of fabrication.
Everything she said could be backed up by surveillance footage or eyewitnesses, and since there was a convenient “witness” standing right nearby, the police didn’t really intend to keep pressing her. The matter was quickly dropped.
Once outside the police station, Lin Lan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Scared you, huh?” Cheng Fengyang, who had come out with her, said, “Don’t worry. The police were just going through the motions. Without solid evidence, they wouldn’t just arrest someone on a whim.”
“I knew I wouldn’t be taken in, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t scared.” Patting her chest to calm herself, Lin Lan turned to the young man and smiled. “Thank you for speaking up for me just now. I’m Lin Lan. We met at the pet clinic last time, but I never got your name.”
“I’m Cheng Fengyang.” The young man smiled and readily gave his name. “That police officer who was grilling you just now is my brother-in-law, Li He’an. He’s a good guy, so don’t let this incident give you a bad impression of him.”
“No way.” Lin Lan shook her head. “You and your brother-in-law are both good people.”
After saying this, she waved goodbye to Cheng Fengyang, hopped on her electric scooter, and rode off, leaving him with a puzzled look. “Both my brother-in-law and I are good people?”
He found himself unconsciously staring at the figure on the scooter as she rode farther and farther away, the more he looked, the more familiar she seemed. Suddenly, it clicked.
She was the girl he’d met that night!
She recognized him as the one who had shone his scooter’s light to illuminate her path, which explained her words.
“Kind of embarrassing,” Cheng Fengyang thought, feeling like he had intended to be an anonymous good Samaritan but had unknowingly revealed his identity. His face flushed as he scratched his head.
When Lin Lan left, she felt nothing unusual. But when she came back and got off her scooter, her legs trembled slightly—who wouldn’t shake after nearly being mistaken for a murderer?
She’d never been to a police station except to handle her household registration, let alone been questioned by the police!
Feeling down, she parked her scooter in the underground garage and trudged upstairs, her gloomy expression making her realize she couldn’t let her family worry. After a moment’s thought, she decided not to go home but instead headed to the new room she had prepared for her cats.
Using her key, she opened the door. The freshly painted white walls of the new room came into view, and the cats, sensing her arrival, immediately meowed and rushed over.
“Meow!” (Lan Lan!)
“Meow meow!” (Lan Lan, you’re back! We’ve been so good!)
The little black furballs tumbled over each other to greet her, their adorable, soft voices instantly soothing her shaken spirit.
“Are you getting used to the new environment?” Lin Lan crouched down, gathering a few kittens into her arms. “The new cat bed still needs to be washed before you can use it, so for today, you’ll have to make do with Snowflake’s old bed, okay?”
The little kittens all chimed in excitedly, one eagerly declaring that this place was so much better than where they lived before—there were toys to play with and food to eat.
(Grandpa just fed us something delicious!)
(We want to stay here forever and play with Grandpa and everyone!)
Such easily coaxed little kittens, Lin Lan shook her head helplessly. As she set them down, she caught sight of the black mother cat quietly watching her with those emerald green eyes.
Lin Lan couldn’t help but reach out her hand. “Welcome to your new home. Let’s start with a hug.”
The black cat slowly approached and finally obediently gave Lin Lan a gentle embrace.
The mother cat’s voice was sharp: “Meow—” (I can catch mice too, I’m not just here doing nothing.)
Having experienced life as a stray, the adult mother cat understood the harshness of the world better. After finding a home, to avoid being abandoned, she was willing to put aside a cat’s natural pride and try to please, just like these black cats were doing now. Hearing this, Lin Lan felt a pang of sadness.
Black cats, also known as “mystic cats,” are loved by some but considered bad luck by others. Their jet-black fur naturally makes them less appealing than cats with other colors. In fact, as pets, they don’t really have the same competitive edge.
Raising so many cats at once—surely conflicts would arise over time?
Thinking of her mother’s previous attitude, Lin Lan sighed inwardly. Two cats were already her mother’s limit; adding six more was really pushing it. Even with Grandma’s face to save the situation, sooner or later, a blowup was bound to happen.
Lin Lan didn’t want to give up these cats, nor did she want to upset her mother and cause family strife. She had to come up with a good solution.
But how?
Worry etched on her face, she left the new house and headed back to her own. Just as she was about to open the door, it swung open from the inside first. A stylishly dressed middle-aged woman was being sent out by her parents.
Wasn’t that Sister Yang from the clothing store downstairs? Why was she here all of a sudden?
“I really feel terrible, Brother Lin, Sister Lin. I have no other choice,” Sister Yang said, still unaware that Lin Lan was standing nearby, as she greeted her parents. “My husband suddenly got sick and needs a large sum of money. I just can’t afford to renew the lease on the shop. I’m so sorry.”
