Chapter 44: Whimsical Fantasy

Previous Chapter ± Table of Content ± Next Chapter

Chapter 44: Whimsical Fantasy

Prompted by his boss, Mu Five finally managed to buy five large bags of dried fish just before Lin You, the lynx, arrived with his little squad of cats.

A cat’s sense of smell was absolutely formidable. The moment Young Master Lin You caught the particularly tempting fishy scent, the other six cats had already impatiently leaped beneath the Hummer, meowing loudly at the three people sitting inside.

They sat there with their tails raised and their heads held high, acting coquettishly. They weren’t the least bit afraid of strangers, and their haughty cuteness was simply irresistible.

Seeing this, Young Master Lin You inexplicably felt his paws itch. Were these six fellows lining up on the ground just to steal his blind owner’s attention? Look at Mu Five and Mu Three. Their eyes were practically turning into red hearts! Damn it! They were even feeding them dried fish themselves!

Hey, you two subordinates, don’t you know that this lord is the rightful owner of those bags of dried fish? Do you want this lord to scratch up your faces or what?!

Just as Lin You, the big-cat lynx, was inexplicably getting jealous and pawing furiously at the ground, Mu Yanxiao straightened up in his seat and asked, “Linlin? Why aren’t you coming over?”

By May, it was already practically summer. Lin You glanced at the ground beneath the shade of the tree, then at the Hummer’s luxurious “human-leg seat,” and ultimately succumbed to the temptation. With a soft meow, he gracefully leaped onto the vehicle, then hopped straight onto his blind owner’s lap.

Sure enough, it felt absolutely wonderful. And being a lynx couldn’t be better! He could jump right up in a single leap! Back then… Well, actually, just the other day, he had spent ages climbing up the tire! It was a tearful memory best left unmentioned.

“You look like you had quite a good time?” Mu Yanxiao stroked his sleek fur, then playfully tugged at the little tuft of fur at the tip of his ear, making the lynx lord twitch his ears several times. “I never imagined you were so good at tormenting people. In your family, did you deal with anyone who upset you the same way?”

Lin You bared his teeth, then started scratching at the seat. Although his blind owner had bought him a scratching post, they weren’t at home right now, were they?

“Hmph. Who would dare upset me?” Since he was out, Lin You hadn’t brought along the voice-modulating device he used to tease people. He had simply adjusted his voice to a gentle, clear tone. But that was only for today. From now on, Young Master Lin You had decided to use a different voice every day to tease his blind owner. For example, he could wake up every morning and ask, “Guess who I am?”

Of course, Lin You was the only one who would ever do something like that, but the guy still enjoyed himself immensely every single day.

“Is that so? Then that’s good.” Mu Yanxiao smiled faintly. His mood had been getting better lately, and even the icy, expressionless look on his face showed faint signs of thawing. “I’d certainly rather hear about you bullying others than hear that someone bullied you.”

Hearing this, Lin You coughed, then pawed at his ear before finally resting his head against his blind owner’s chest. He couldn’t help grinning foolishly as he did so. His blind owner really was considerate.

In truth, Lin You hadn’t really been bullied when he was young. At most, he had been ostracized. Being ostracized might have been difficult for an ordinary child, but for someone as emotionally detached as Lin You, such distress could be ignored in an instant.

And so, at that moment, Mu Yanxiao gently stroked his beloved pet with a faint smile at the corners of his lips, while Lin You happily nuzzled against his master. Neither of them realized that whenever they faced one another, whenever they were by each other’s side, the coldness and ruthlessness they had once possessed were rapidly melting away, like snow beneath the warm sun.

“Meow~ Anyway, we’ve already seen the excitement over at Zhang Ya’s place. Shall we head back now? The rats from Zhang Shan’s side are coming back to report tonight! And I need to remind them that although they encountered almost no resistance during today’s surprise attack, they absolutely can’t do things the same way tomorrow and the day after. Otherwise, they might all end up dead.”

Boss Mu wholeheartedly agreed with his Linlin and couldn’t help marveling at how clever his little one was. Hmm, his way of thinking and his intelligence really were remarkably human-like. If… if he could actually transform into a human…

As Mu Yanxiao thought this, he suddenly realized that he was becoming excited and expectant. He pressed a hand against his chest in confusion, then smiled helplessly. He was actually looking forward to Linlin truly becoming human. When had the idle chatter of Mu One, Mu Two, and the others started affecting him as well?

“Hey, hey! Blind master, what are you thinking about? I said these guys are my new underlings! The dried fish are for them!”

Mu Yanxiao was lightly scratched and finally came back to his senses. After clearing his throat, he nodded. “Do whatever you like. They’re yours, anyway.”

Those words made Lord Meow Lin You’s heart soar with delight. The six feline underlings watching from the sidelines were also utterly impressed.

Meow-ow~ This boss was amazing! He could actually make humans do whatever he said!

If only I had an owner who listened to me like that!

By: The Six Feline Underlings.

“Hehe, at least you know how to behave!” Young Master Lin You held his head high, then said to his feline underlings, “Keep an eye on those rats at the hospital for me, okay? They won’t be staying there much longer. I’ll bring you more dried fish next time I come!”

The response was several excited meows. Although this boss had appeared out of nowhere, the fact that his arrival meant getting dried fish was simply wonderful.

On the way back, Mu Yanxiao kept his brows furrowed in deep thought, seemingly pondering something extremely important. He was so lost in thought that even after Mu Three reported several matters to him, he failed to respond.

In the end, frustrated, aggrieved, and indignant, Mu Three turned to Young Master Lin You with a pleading look.

Of course, Young Master Lin You had originally been curled up into a big ball, resting with his eyes closed. But he wasn’t pondering any “matters of lifelong importance,” so he quickly noticed Mu Three’s silent plea for help.

With a soft tsk, Lin You swatted at him again. His sharp claws were retracted, so all that landed on Young Master Mu’s hand was his soft paw pad.

The effect, however, was immediate.

“Linlin?” Mu Yanxiao looked at him in confusion.

“Blind master. That’s the second time already! What kind of ‘lifelong matter’ are you thinking about? Come on, out with it!”

Lin You stared at his blind owner with his amber cat eyes. He also felt that something wasn’t quite right. What kind of difficult problem could his usually brilliant blind owner have encountered to leave him this tangled up?

For some reason, Lin You’s question seemed to make something short-circuit in Mu Yanxiao’s mind. Before he knew it, he found himself saying aloud what he had been thinking about all this time.

“I was wondering when you’ll take human form.”

Lin You’s eyes widened.

“And if you really can take human form… well, I specifically found some novels about it and listened to them. I’ve been wondering what you’d look like.” Mu Yanxiao spoke in a low voice, almost as though he were talking to himself. “Would you turn into a particularly alluring fox spirit, like they describe in the books?” He chuckled. “Of course not. I’ve heard that only fox spirits become especially beautiful when they take human form. You’re a parrot spirit. Hmm, although you might not be able to compare with a fox spirit, Mu Two says your feathers are very beautiful, so you’d definitely look good too… right?”

In response to his blind owner’s wild flights of imagination, Young Master Lin You offered the ultimate retort, “Hehe.”

Could you please not let your imagination run quite so wild? Sure, this lord had tacitly accepted your ridiculous theory that he was a parrot spirit, but that didn’t mean this lord actually was one! And as for taking human form, how was he supposed to do that? If he could really transform at will, he wouldn’t still be living as an animal. He would’ve transformed back into human form and gone home to live as a shut-in ages ago. That would have been absolute bliss.

Young Master Mu, having just been “hehe-ed” at, “…”

He knew his Linlin wasn’t going to be that cute. Still, he didn’t really mind. “Actually, I was just thinking. If you can possess the bodies of animals… what about humans?”

Young Master Lin You instantly stiffened and jerked his head up.

Mu Yanxiao continued, “If… and I mean if… I found someone who was on the verge of death and placed them beside you, then, when your current body was dying, I brought the two of you together, would you… become that person… uh?!”

This time, Young Master Mu was scratched by a cat paw armed with sharp claws. Lin You leaped out of Mu Yanxiao’s arms and landed on all fours, his gaze clear and stern. The lazy cat lord from moments ago had disappeared completely, replaced by an aloof, unapproachable air that made him look like some sort of mystical sage.

“Here’s a piece of advice if you want to live a long life: don’t try to change anyone’s life or death through your own efforts. No matter how justifiable your reasons might seem, defying the will of Heaven is absolutely unforgivable in the eyes of the Heavenly Dao.”

Was his blind master out of his mind? How could he come up with such a terrible way to damage his karmic merit?! Humans and animals might both be animals by nature, but a human’s karmic ties were far greater than an animal’s!

Lin You’s voice carried a cool, detached edge. Hearing it, Mu Yanxiao’s heart tightened. He immediately reached out, grabbed the big cat by the foreleg, and pulled him back into his arms.

“As I said, I was only giving an example.” He knew that the origins of his parrot spirit were certainly extraordinary. By now, even someone as slow to catch on as Mu Yanxiao could sense that Linlin’s arrival had not been a coincidence.

After Linlin had died twice, only to return to his side both times, Mu Yanxiao had begun to wonder if this was perhaps something fated. And he was incredibly grateful for that fate. If his own desires would end up breaking it, then he would rather remain exactly as they were and never take another step forward.

The rest of the journey passed in an unusually heavy silence. Lying in his blind owner’s arms, Lin You suddenly couldn’t help wondering when he would finally be able to return to his own body and, as a human, find a way to cause trouble for his blind owner. After all, the man still owed him compensation for that hit-and-run.

Half an hour later, with the setting sun in the sky, the car pulled into the garage of the Mu Family’s garden villa.

But the moment he got out of the car, Lin You, who had been somewhat melancholy and conflicted just moments earlier, was instantly blinded by the glare from the garden. It was enough to dazzle even his “titanium-alloy” cat eyes!

Holy cat! Someone tell this lord, what on earth is all that gold and diamond scattered across the ground?!

Previous Chapter ± Table of Content ± Next Chapter