When Niuniu was placed into the small transparent enclosure specially designated for boarding cats at the tea house, Wang Jiayi, who was always the first guest to arrive every day, showed up shortly after.
"Silver, my good baby, I'm here!" The moment she entered, she made a beeline for the Chinchilla cat among the feline crowd.
She scooped up the pure white Persian cat, which had been lounging by the food bowl just moments before. As it was pressed into her embrace, it instinctively flattened its ears into 'airplane ears,' only to have its fluffy little head showered with several loud kisses the very next second.
It wasn't until it grew impatient with the affection that the Chinchilla pressed a soft paw against Wang Jiayi's still-puckered lips: "Meow!" (That's quite enough now, servant!)
The rejecting body language was clear even without translation.
"Alright, no more kisses then." The young mistress, always naive and self-centered, had absolutely no temper when it came to this little cat. Holding it, she walked further inside, her tone indulgent and doting. "I'll brush your fur!"
After brushing Silver's fur for so many days, Miss Wang had become quite skilled in grooming and styling long-haired cats. She had even intuitively mastered a few cat-petting techniques, a far cry from her clumsy handling of the brush on the first day.
Song Xinmin, who had witnessed the entire scene: "..."
Although he had been working at this cat tea house for a while now, he still couldn't quite understand the mentality of cat devotees. He always felt that the patrons, including Miss Wang, seemed to be under a spell whenever they saw a cat. Regardless of their usual temperament, their demeanor would drastically change upon contact with a feline, and all principles flew out the window.
Every time he saw them act like this, he mused that the online jokes about cat aliens planning to conquer Earth through humans weren't entirely unfounded.
Of course, these were just thoughts in his head, never to be spoken aloud.
Perhaps because he stared a bit too long, Wang Jiayi, sensing his gaze, turned her head to look at him while still holding the cat. Her previously sweetly smiling face immediately puckered into a displeased pout. "I think you're thinking something bad about me in your head."
"Nope," Song Xinmin denied instantly, picking up his mop and resuming his cleaning with a serious air.
The young mistress frowned, about to say something more, when Lin Lan emerged from the boarding enclosure. Seeing Wang Jiayi, she casually handed her a silicone grooming brush. "A little kitten has been boarded in the small enclosure today, Miss Wang. Just be a bit mindful, that's all."
Yes, the boarding enclosure was also the usual dedicated spot for grooming cats. It was still manageable in winter, but come the shedding seasons of spring and autumn, not isolating the grooming process was unthinkable—the dozen or so cats would create a flying fur disaster in the tea house. Seeing Miss Wang begin her routine pampering of her beloved, Lin Lan offered a gentle reminder, after all, Niuniu was safely in a cage, so nothing serious should happen.
But she forgot to consider the possibility of two pampered cats sharing a space leading to some situation.
Inside the small enclosure, the British Shorthair Niuniu had already been transferred by Lin Lan from its cramped carrier into a comfortable, two-story large cat cage.
Having just learned from the human who could communicate with cats that her servant was going on a long-distance, dangerous hunting trip and wouldn't be home for three days, Niuniu was still in a state of shock and disbelief.
Three days. She and the servant at home had never been apart for so long.
It felt so wrong. So unsettling.
Servant, come back, okay? I promise I won't bite anymore even when you stick your hand under my belly to warm it up, alright?
Or... maybe I won't deliberately knock things off the edge of the table next time?
And when you call me, I won't pretend not to hear you and ignore you, okay?
Learning that Qian Xuan was embarking on this perilous long-distance hunt, Niuniu, a rarity, felt panicked. If Lin Lan hadn't firmly assured her that Qian Xuan would definitely return in three days, this blue cat would have been anxiously pacing its cage and attempting a jailbreak, instead of lying listlessly in the cage's cat bed as it was now, feebly swishing its tail.
The simple little kitten didn't know that its pitiful state had already been secretly recorded by a cunning human with a phone and sent to its servant. In the midst of its sulking, it saw a strange human enter the room holding another unfamiliar cat.
Through the gaps in the cage, Niuniu clearly saw that fellow feline being placed on a soft pad by the human, and then... it flopped over, submitting to being brushed.
Wang Jiayi's movements were gentle and skilled; her cat-pampering techniques were far beyond the novice level of her first appearance. Silver was so thoroughly enjoyed being brushed that it lay there letting itself be positioned, belly and tail freely petted, even sprawling out into a flat cat-pancake shape for a full-body stroking session.
"Purrrrrr..." Contented, bubbling purrs had already started rumbling.
When Wang Jiayi paused her actions, the Persian cat even reached out a little paw to rest on her hand, meowing sweetly at her: "Mew!" (Servant, don't stop, do it again.)
"Okay, okay, I'll brush my good baby again." Miss Wang agreed without any hesitation, the little willful arrogance she sometimes showed towards people completely absent now.
The spell was cast deep indeed.
Outside the cage, one human and one cat were thoroughly enjoying the brushing session. Inside the cage, Niuniu, who had just been separated from her servant, found this scene extremely irritating.
"Meow!" It stood up and called out towards the outside of the cage.
Only then did Wang Jiayi, who had been happily brushing the cat, remember Shopkeeper Lin's earlier mention that there was another cat in the enclosure. It wasn't until she spotted the blue cat inside that she realized the several empty cages in the room weren't just for show.
"It's a British Shorthair..." she murmured offhandedly.
"Meow!" The blue cat in the cage was still calling out towards them, one paw even hooked through the gaps in the cage bars. (Such lousy technique, it can't even compare to how my servant attends to me!)
Wang Jiayi didn't know what this cat was saying. She only sensed from its condescending, disdainful look that its meows weren't anything nice. But, just like with Song Xinmin's earlier act, she had no solid evidence. Just as she was looking bewildered, Silver, who had been lying obediently in front of her, suddenly rolled over and stood up, lifting its head to yowl back at the blue cat.
At first, the two cats were just yowling and growling at each other, but soon their voices grew increasingly heated, escalating into threatening hisses and spits.
Miss Wang, who had never encountered such a situation, was at a loss. Seeing the two cats now fully engaged in their argument, she hurriedly got up, pushed the door open, and ran out of the enclosure to fetch help.
"Something's wrong, something's wrong!" Lin Lan, who was inside the water bar prepping the day's allotted pastries, heard the commotion. "Silver and the boarded blue cat in the room are having a fight!"
Lin Lan immediately took off her gloves. Stepping out from behind the water bar, she saw the young mistress's panicked face, stammering out a plea for help: "I-I don't know why, but the two cats suddenly started arguing." She had no doubt that if it weren't for the cage separating them, the two cats would be fighting by now.
Moving past Wang Jiayi, Lin Lan hurried over. The cats she raised were always well-behaved; it was unlikely they would start trouble. So, the remaining possibility pointed to Niuniu. Was it acting out because it was anxious knowing Qian Xuan would be gone for three days? Or was it something else...
"Meow, aowu——!" (My servant not only brushes my fur, but also offers me all kinds of fish jerky and treats. I broke her favorite cup and she still couldn't bear to hit me!)
"Wu, aowu——!" (My servant not only combs my fur but also holds me and feeds me every day. Even when I ride on her head, she's only worried I might fall. She buys me whatever I want!)
"Hiss——" (My servant warms my bed in winter!)
"Hah——" (My servant acts as my human cushion every day!)
Before even pushing the door open, Lin Lan heard the quarreling sounds coming from inside—two cats with flattened ears, locked in a tense standoff. Their drawn-out, pre-fight vocalizations were sharp and, to human ears, particularly intimidating, as if a fierce battle could erupt at any moment.
But Lin Lan, who could understand cat language, could only express her feelings with a mental string of ellipses.
Should she step in and interrupt this war of words where the feline masters were defending the honor of their respective servants, or just let it be?
After thinking for less than a second, Shopkeeper Lin pushed the door open and entered. She didn't bother to quiet her movements, intentionally startling the two cats as she stepped inside.
"Alright, alright, stop arguing." Scooping up the Chinchilla from the floor, Lin Lan said helplessly to the two cats, "You've both chosen excellent poop-scoopers. Their love for you is equal; there's no need to rank it."
The Chinchilla in her arms immediately started complaining pitifully, its voice instantly turning back to a cooing whine: "Mew!" (Lan Lan, this stinky cat said my personal servant's grooming skills aren't as good as its servant's! It makes me so mad!)
"Then just keep teaching her. She comes every day; she'll quickly learn how to take care of you," Lin Lan soothed it, then looked up at the British Shorthair in the cage. "Niu Niu, don't throw a tantrum either. I know you miss Qian Xuan. I'll video call her during lunch and let you see her then."
With just a few words, both cats calmed down. Lin Lan then walked out of the compartment and handed the Persian cat to Wang Jiayi, who had been waiting anxiously.
"You really scared me," the young lady said fondly, hugging the cat and rubbing her face against it. As she walked away, she spoke to the cat, "Let's not argue with it, okay? That's barbaric behavior. We won't learn that; we must be elegant..."
Leaving aside for now whether the young lady's theory of elegance could be instilled in the Persian cat, Lin Lan, who had stayed behind, glanced at their retreating figures, then looked back at the compartment, and couldn't help but chuckle and shake her head.
These two spoiled cats, who usually always referred to humans as "servants" and seemed to look down on them, she never expected they'd have a day where they'd be so stubbornly defending their respective "servants," refusing to yield to each other.
It was just... too adorable.
Ever since she gained the ability to understand cat language, Lin Lan had truly discovered many hidden truths about little cats—they may seem aloof and neurotic on the surface, but are actually overwhelmingly cute.
"Little Song, I'll leave greeting the guests to you. I'm going back to make the cake," Lin Lan instructed Song Xinmin before returning to the inner side of the water bar to continue her work.
"Okay, Shopkeeper," Song Xinmin responded promptly. He was holding his phone, the screen displaying several photos he had just taken.
In the frame was the scene of the British Shorthair and the Chinchilla confronting each other inside the transparent compartment. Both cats were arched, fur puffed out. One above, one below; one gray, one white. The tension as they faced off through the cage was palpable.
Song Xinmin stared at the screen for a while, and finally couldn't resist turning back towards the water bar: "Shopkeeper, can I bring my camera to the shop to take pictures of the cats?"
Lin Lan, who was just placing egg mixture under the food processor, was taken aback by the request for a second before blurting out, "Of course you can! If you take any nice photos of the cats, remember to send them to me so I can put them up in the photo section on the shop wall!" She was smiling by the end.
She had almost forgotten that this long-term employee's main profession was photography. Since he was offering, why wouldn't she agree?
Comrade Little Song, having received permission, went back to work satisfied, but his eyes were already darting around the shop, observing the cats, occasionally simulating and searching for the best shooting angles.
In a corner that neither of them noticed, an orange tabby cat and a tuxedo cat, also caged but placed in the main hall for learning how to act cute, had witnessed everything that just happened.
The tuxedo cat didn't react much; it even yawned, complaining to the orange tabby in the next cage that some cats were causing a ruckus early in the morning, disturbing its sleep.
But the orange tabby Gentleman, his pointed ears twitching, gave no feedback. Although he was also lying there in a "loaf" position, his eyes were wide open, alert and cleverly observing the people and cats, as if gathering some kind of intelligence.
Lin Lan had originally thought the little episode in the morning would be the day's main highlight, but she didn't expect to receive another boarding request in the afternoon.
"Lan Lan Jie, I'm on holiday now!" When the middle schooler Yu Lingling, who lived on the second floor, ran into the shop grinning, Lin Lan hadn't yet remembered a certain matter. It wasn't until the young girl spoke up: "In three days, we'll go back to our hometown for the New Year. Little Kui will be entrusted to you again this year!"
