Chapter 27

027.

Qi Shuyang, who had been lounging lazily on the sofa, slowly straightened up from the waist until he was sitting at a right angle, draping his long legs over the sofa. He wasn't buying it and tapped on Bai Yu's profile picture, zooming in. Then, he nudged Lu Yan's calf with his foot and, in the face of the latter's glare, extended his hand: "Lend me your phone."

Lu Yan wasn't having it: "What for?"

"Oh, just hand it over and you'll see." He shot Lu Yan a look and pressed, "Come on, come on. It's not like I'm gonna do anything shady—I just wanna peek at your Moments."

His Moments? What's so interesting about that?

Lu Yan gave him a suspicious look, but before he could speak, Qi Shuyang, tired of his dawdling, went for the kill and asked in a low, drawn-out voice: "Can't even let me see your Moments? Got something shady hidden in there?"

Lu Yan: "..."

He cursed under his breath and said, "That's a pretty lame attempt at baiting me."

Lame as it was, it worked. He tossed his phone to Qi Shuyang and casually rattled off a four-digit code. Qi Shuyang unlocked the screen without issue and tapped into Lu Yan's WeChat Moments, while the latter, curious despite himself, scooted over and squeezed onto the same couch.

Lu Yan craned his neck: "So mysterious—what's the deal?"

Qi Shuyang held up both phones side by side and gestured with his chin toward the screens: "Look at these two photos. Notice anything different about them?"

The Maine Coon kitten sat upright on the small balcony of the cat tree, all proper and serious—but it was that seriousness that made it extra adorable.

Lu Yan had no clue what Qi Shuyang was getting at, but he looked left, right, up, down, and even at an angle. After all that looking, wasn't this just the cat he'd sent over to Songlan Mansion?

"What's different? Aren't they the exact same?" Lu Yan frowned and shot back. "See, even the angle of that little tuft of fur sticking up on its forehead is the same."

"They're the same—that's exactly the point." Qi Shuyang paused after speaking, then immediately shook his head. "No, no—being the same is exactly the problem."

Lu Yan was about done: "Can you say something a normal person can understand?"

"Look, this one—Brother Yu's new profile pic. And this one—your A Yuan's Moments photo!" Qi Shuyang looked like he'd just uncovered some huge secret and nearly jumped out of his seat. "We both confirmed it: these two photos are identical! What does that mean!"

"It means Brother Yu and A Yuan both really like the cat I gave 'em."

"?"

"Am I right or what?" Lu Yan rubbed his chin and clicked his tongue approvingly. "Brother Yu hasn't changed that crappy profile pic in years, and the second I send the cat over, he switches it to a cat. Isn't that proof he's totally in love with the cat I gave him?"

The more he thought about it, the more stoked he got.

He felt a surge of pride from being validated!

"As for A Yuan, no need to even say it—his Moments background is literally a cat. Back when my dad and the others were digging into A Yuan, the files said he even feeds stray cats in his spare time. He's gotta like the cat I gave him too."

Qi Shuyang: "..."

He was quiet for a long moment, then said in a low, drawn-out voice: "Is the cat the point? The point is they used the same damn photo!"

Lu Yan: "What do you mean the cat isn't the point? Without this cat, they could never have used the same photo! So the cat IS the point!"

Qi Shuyang: "..."

Damn, he was actually kind of convinced.

Lu Yan got more and more fired up as he went: "Besides, the cat belongs to Brother Yu now. It's only natural for him to grab a photo of his own cat from A Yuan's Moments and use it as his profile pic!"

Qi Shuyang: "..."

Lu Yan: "Do you honestly think Brother Yu, with his personality, would squat in front of the cat snapping photos himself, or would he rather just grab one straight from A Yuan's Moments?"

Qi Shuyang couldn't picture his brother crouching down with a goofy smile, frantically snapping pics of the cat—the mental image was about as scary as running into a ghost on a dark road.

Fully convinced, Qi Shuyang sighed: "If I'd known Brother Yu liked cats this much, I'd have gotten him a cat for his birthday this year too."

Maybe then his brother would've given him a few more kind looks.

*

Songlan Mansion, Villa No. 1.

The good kid's fascination with the cat tree showed no signs of wearing off—it kept climbing up and pausing, climbing up and pausing. Lu Yuan let it play on its own and sat on the floor, scrolling through the comments on his Moments.

Few people could resist such an adorable cat—plenty of Lu Yuan's classmates, even his professors, had liked and commented.

Lu Yuan replied to each one, then went back to the chat window. The system showed the images had all been sent, but Bai Yu still hadn't replied. He frowned and was just silently wondering why the guy was so quiet when his gaze landed on Bai Yu's profile pic—it was the good kid!

Oh, so Chairman Bai was one of those people who said one thing but did the opposite.

Outwardly cold and indifferent, not saying a word, but the second he turned around, he'd already set the good kid's photo as his profile pic.

Not a bad dad, honestly.

He sent a message of praise: Mr. Bai's profile pic looks great [cat giving a thumbs-up.jpg]

This time, Bai Yu replied right away: All thanks to Young Master Lu for taking such a good photo.

Flattered, Lu Yuan cupped his face in his hands and gave a little hum to himself—his photography skills had been put to the test at last year's school photography competition, and even a senior from the photography major had praised his talent.

Ending the conversation, Lu Yuan tossed his phone aside and headed to the bathroom to shower. Afterward, he changed into clean, thin pajamas and climbed into bed. Meanwhile, the good kid, now fully familiar with the cat tree, didn't sleep in the little wooden bed Lu Yuan had specially prepared for it. Instead, it struggled its way onto the big bed, pressed up against Lu Yuan's pillow, and started kneading.

Its little purrs were rumbling like thunder.

Lu Yuan shot a video and sent it to Bai Yu.

The reply he got back had nothing to do with the cat.

Bai Yu asked: Your back still hurt?

Lu Yuan: "..."

Chairman Bai was really serious about making it up to him.

Thinking about how much of Chairman Bai's time he'd taken up and how long the guy had spent building the cat tree, Lu Yuan decided to show some consideration. Ignoring the faint ache in his back, he replied considerately: It's fine, no need for a cold compress today. You get some rest early /cute

Y: .

That night, Lu Yuan didn't get much sleep. He never would've dreamed that the kitten, which looked so sweet and angelic during the day, would be taken over by its mischievous cat personality the second night fell. One second it was bouncing around on the bed, the next it was nibbling his ear, then it was lying on his pillow snoring, its two back paws pressed right up against his face.

Lu Yuan silently pulled the blanket up as high as it would go and tough it out until around six in the morning.

When Bai Yu pushed open the door to head to the gym, as per his daily routine, his gaze landed on a green dinosaur. The dinosaur was crouched on the floor, its short raised tail pressed flat behind it as it looked up, and from the gaping jaws of the dino hood peeked a face full of exhaustion.

Lu Yuan said weakly: "You're finally up."

He reached behind him, fished out an extremely lively cat, and gave the Maine Coon's butt a push as he complained to Bai Yu: "Your son kept me up all night. Please, take him away."

The little Maine Coon had no idea it was being rejected. Lu Yuan pushed it a couple of times, and it twisted its little butt and ran right back, nuzzling up against his fingers.

Unaware that at this moment, Lu Yuan was looking at it the same way one might look at a little demon.

Lu Yuan rubbed his eyes, standing up while muttering, "This time, staying up late wasn't my choice, so don't make me memorize another paper as punishment."

If he had to memorize another one, he'd actually lose it... Well, wait.

Lu Yuan's vision suddenly went black, his ears ringing, and his head felt like it was shrouded in fog. His mind went blank, leaving only a vague awareness that his whole body was going weak. His legs, already half-bent, gave out, and he pitched forward, completely off balance.

Thud.

His forehead slammed hard into Bai Yu's collarbone. The man let out an involuntary grunt of pain and instinctively stepped back a pace. But thankfully, his reflexes were quick—his left palm steadied Lu Yuan's shoulder, and his right hand lifted his face. Seeing the dazed look on his face, his expression darkened, brows knitting together.

"Lu Yuan."

A low, taut voice sounded close to his ear. As he leaned in, that crisp, familiar woody scent filled Lu Yuan's nostrils, gradually clearing the dizziness and calming his nerves. His head cleared for a second, and he realized he'd almost passed out from standing too long. He felt a flush of embarrassment.

His hand resting on the man's arm, he quickly said, "I'm fine, just stood up too fast and got dizzy."

Bai Yu's frown didn't ease at his explanation. Glancing at the culprit—completely oblivious, thinking they were playing, hopping in place as if desperate to squeeze between them—Bai Yu said coldly, "I'll have Charlie make you something. Eat a bit before you sleep."

"Okay, and good kid—"

"You're coming with me to work out."

"..." Fully recovered, Lu Yuan looked at the tiny cat and twitched the corner of his mouth. "Fine."

Declining Bai Yu's offer, which seemed about to turn into a princess carry, Lu Yuan shuffled on unsteady feet to the elevator and headed to the dining room. Charlie, having gotten the boss's message, greeted him cheerfully: "Hey, young master, want a hot cocoa first?"

"Mm, sure."

Sipping the hot cocoa and eating blueberry cheesecake scones, Lu Yuan's foggy, sleep-deprived head finally cleared up a bit, though his forehead still throbbed where he'd hit it. But... if his thick skull hurt this much, was Bai Yu's collarbone okay?

His expression turned a bit odd. He set down the empty cocoa cup and got up, heading toward the basement gym.

This was the first time Lu Yuan had set foot on the basement level of Bai Yu's villa. Nothing looked particularly special. The gym door wasn't fully closed, leaving a crack. Lu Yuan knocked twice symbolically to get the attention of whoever was inside, then poked his head in.

Rather than Bai Yu's black tee swapped for a training tank top, what immediately caught Lu Yuan's attention was the Maine Coon sprinting up the treadmill on all fours.

Lu Yuan: "..."

He pushed the door open and walked in, wanting to crouch in front of the treadmill for a closer look. But remembering what had happened at the bedroom door, he was a bit wary. Looking around and finding no stool, he simply sat cross-legged on the floor, pointing at something hanging from the console, and asked, "What's that?"

Bai Yu pressed down on the swaying sandbag, glancing at the treadmill: "Dried fish."

Lu Yuan: "..."

Well, you're honest.

The smell of the dried fish kept teasing the little one. It kept reaching out its paw, trying to pull it down, but the height Bai Yu had set it at was deliberately tricky. After all that effort, with drool nearly dripping, it still hadn't succeeded.

It was equal parts exercise and punishment.

Lu Yuan poked the Maine Coon kitten's soft belly with a finger, shaking his head and murmuring, "Your dad's really mean."

Caught red-handed talking smack, Bai Yu shot him a sidelong glance. "Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

Lu Yuan waved a hand. "I'll watch the cat for a bit, then sleep."

That said, he casually shifted his angle so that with one glance up, he could see both the kitten and Chairman Bai's impressive muscle definition.

Yeah, watch a bit, then sleep.