Chapter 47: This is Not Scientific

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Chapter 47: This is Not Scientific

Amidst the loud barking of the German Shepherd, Young Master Lin You, clutching that antique-looking bag in his mouth, turned and sauntered away with an air of haughty nonchalance. Even though the butler and bodyguards rushed downstairs in hot pursuit, they couldn’t find a single trace of the big cat.

Left with no other choice, the butler led the bodyguards to the kennel and unleashed the three large dogs, hoping they would track down the cat that had run off with the bag. To their utter exasperation, however, the moment the dogs were let loose, they bolted in three completely different directions, charging off with such wild momentum that not even a team of eight horses could have held them back. And the ultimate targets they eventually led the men to were, frankly, baffling.

The dogs had indeed found cats, but among the half-dozen or so felines standing haughtily atop the wall—black, pure white, calico, and other varieties—there was simply no sign of the specific cat they were looking for: the one with a tuft of fur sticking up from each ear and a coat resembling a leopard’s.

In the end, the butler and the bodyguards had no choice but to return empty-handed, their spirits dampened. Although the butler didn’t know exactly what was in that bag, the fact that the cat had ignored the cash and jewelry, searched through seven wardrobes, and made off with that particular bag spoke volumes about the value of its contents.

Then again, given the Madam’s personality, anything kept in those wardrobes was bound to be valuable. Finding money or adult novelties inside wouldn’t have been surprising, but that old, worn bag stood out as something particularly special. He could almost imagine how furious the Madam would be when she returned and learned what had happened.

They might even get fired on the spot! It really was a sad story, the butler thought. Meanwhile, regardless of how the butler, bodyguards, maids, and gardeners at the Chen Family villa were lamenting the sudden appearance of that big cat, inside a modified Hummer parked in the shade not far away, Lin You, the lynx, flying thief, proudly placed the antique bag he had been carrying in his mouth onto his blind master’s lap. The twitching tuft of fur on his head and his wagging tail clearly showed how pleased he was.

“You’ve all worked hard, comrades! You did a fantastic job today! Everyone gets a bag of dried fish as a reward. We’ll escort you back shortly, and then this mission will be a complete success, meow~!”

Cat King Lin You turned to the six feline underlings sitting neatly beneath the car and watching him. He waved a paw to praise them for their excellent performance in luring the foolish dogs earlier that day. Hearing this, the underlings happily flicked their tails, feeling that their boss was actually a pretty great guy.

However, unlike Lin You’s underlings, who were happy to complete their task in exchange for a mere bag of dried fish, Garfield the fat cat’s three underlings were much harder to deal with. After all, they were aristocratic felines accustomed to eating fresh prawns and tuna every day. A bag of dried fish simply wouldn’t cut it. Their owner personally fed them such things on a regular basis, and even then, they would only deign to eat them when they were in the mood!

Garfield found himself in a bit of a bind. How was he supposed to handle his underlings? He tilted his broad, flat face up toward Young Master Lin You. After all, he had brought his crew along to help, so if he couldn’t manage them now, the least the young master could do was offer him some advice.

Upon catching the look from the chubby Garfield, Lin You, the lynx and Cat King, felt nothing but scorn. This guy couldn’t even handle his own underlings, yet he had the nerve to bring them out for a stroll? And he called that helping? Lin You seemed to recall that one of the aristocratic long-haired cats had nearly had his tail bitten by a stupid big dog because he was running too slowly. If his own underling Whitey hadn’t swooped in to help, that aristocratic cat wouldn’t be acting all haughty right now. He would be crying his eyes out!

However, although Cat King Linlin found these aristocratic cats a little exasperating, for the sake of harmony and stability among the feline community, those who needed soothing had to be soothed, and those who deserved rewards had to be rewarded. Sacrificing the big picture for the sake of a small matter was simply not something Cat King Linlin would do~

So Lin You turned to the three aristocratic cats, who were still holding their little heads high, and said, “Since you don’t want dried fish, just tell me what you want! Basically, as long as it’s not some outrageous request like killing the dogs or demanding a cartload of dead rats, I can make it happen for you.”

Upon hearing this, the three aristocratic cats huddled together and exchanged a flurry of meows. However, after their discussion, they regretfully realized that they all wanted different things. So the group decision was scrapped, and they would each ask for their own reward.

“Meow!!”

“Dried fish is much too strong for my taste. I, a noble cat, prefer a bag of dried squid. Not only is it chewier, but most importantly, my human won’t find out that I’m eating squid! I hate it when he forbids me from eating squid, saying that as an aristocratic cat, I absolutely mustn’t eat such cheap food. Doesn’t he know that before he adopted me, I used to wait at the squid-drying plant every day just to steal some squid to eat?”

Cat King Lin You was momentarily speechless. He had actually thought this fellow was a pampered, purebred aristocrat of a cat! What was this feeling of having his assumptions instantly overturned?! “Ahem. Alright, you want dried squid, right? I’ll have one of my underlings go buy some for you later. Just wait here.”

After voicing his request, the pure-white Persian cat hopped onto the car seat to await his dried squid. Following that, a Ragdoll cat with black ears shyly pawed at the ground. He glanced at Whitey, who was eating dried fish nearby, then quietly addressed Lin You.

“Meow~~”

“Um, could you introduce me to that handsome and majestic white cat? I feel like we could get to know each other better, and I’d also like to repay him for saving my life~”

Lin You was speechless. Cat-bro, are you sure that was a life-saving favor rather than a tail-saving favor? And just because your tail got rescued, you want to “get to know each other better”? Could you tone down those intentions, which are obvious enough for even a blind man to see?! But that’s not the important part. The important part is, unless I’m mistaken, you’re both males, right? Males! How are you supposed to date if you’re the same sex? Don’t you want kittens in the future?!

Perhaps Lin You’s gaze was too direct. The Ragdoll cat instantly understood what he meant and retorted in a rather haughty and disgruntled tone, “Meow-ow-ow!”

“So what if we’re the same gender? You and your owner are the same gender too! And you and Boss Garfield are the same gender too! What right do you have to criticize me? Hmph!”

Lin You bared his teeth at the Ragdoll cat right then and there. After he took a few timid steps back, he turned to Whitey, who was busy eating dried fish, and said, “Whitey, come here! This Ragdoll says he wants to repay you for saving his life. He’s going to invite you and your buddies to his place for a few days of fun, and there’ll be dried fish to eat every day!”

Whitey, who had been burying his face in his snack, stopped wolfing it down the moment he heard his new boss speak. With a slight flick of his tail, he lightly leaped in front of the Ragdoll cat. “Meow?”

“Meow-meow~~”

“Meow.”

“Meow-meow-meow~~”

Listening to the exchange between Whitey and the Ragdoll cat, with their completely different tones, Young Master Lin You couldn’t help but feel that his feline underlings were truly top-tier. Just look at Whitey’s domineering, cool, and dashing demeanor. If he were human, he’d be on the same level as that cool guy, Mu One!

After finally managing to win over the Ragdoll, only the British Shorthair remained among the three feline underlings. This fellow seemed different from the other two. He appeared to be someone even Garfield had a hard time keeping in check.

“Meow.”

Before Lin You could even speak, this fellow directly threw out his condition. Upon hearing it, Cat King Lin You vowed never to bring this fellow along on another mission! A hundred thousand yuan for a single operation? Was he trying to rob him? Sure, Lin You was wealthy, with real estate worth over a hundred million, but as a cat, what on earth did he need so much money for? Could he swipe a card like him? Bring out that little backpack of yours and let this lord take a look. If there’s a gold card in there, this lord will give it to you!!

As it turned out, the British Shorthair instantly understood the look Cat King Lin You gave him. Although he wasn’t carrying anything himself, after calling out several times toward the shade of the trees, Lin You saw two other British Shorthairs happily trotting over with little bags in their mouths. He didn’t even need to open the bags to guess that there had to be several gold cards inside.

“…Meow.”

“I’ll swipe my card for you later.”

Lin You the Cat King, whose own sense of grandeur had inexplicably been outdone, didn’t even want to speak human language to this cat anymore. His owner was definitely either a super profiteer or a super-rich tycoon. Otherwise, there was no way they could afford to keep such a money-loving cat.

Finally, Garfield’s three underlings were settled as well. Cat King Lin You declared that he absolutely wouldn’t bring Garfield along for a fun outing again. If Garfield insisted on participating in the future, then there was no way he would bring the Ragdoll and British Shorthair along with him, unless they wanted absolutely nothing!

At this point, Mu Yanxiao had Mu One and Mu Three examine the contents of the antique bag. To everyone’s delight, the bag indeed contained things related to Mu Yanxiao’s mother. Strictly speaking, however, they couldn’t really be considered keepsakes. There were over a dozen photographs of his mother that Zhang Ya had taken at some point, including two pictures of his mother and father together and four or five family portraits of Mu Yanxiao’s family.

Although Mu Yanxiao couldn’t see the photographs, simply holding them and slowly running his fingers over them seemed to let him feel some of the happiness and warmth of having a family. Besides the photographs, there were also several letters in the bag, presumably letters his mother had written to his maternal grandparents.

That was all there was in the bag, and it was incredibly light. Still, Mu Boss was clearly quite satisfied. In a somewhat happy mood, he signaled to Mu One, and the group, consisting of several people, several cats, and five rats, headed home. Naturally, Garfield and his underlings, along with the six underlings belonging to Cat King Lin You, all had to be taken back. This mission could be considered a complete success.

However, in a corner of the car where Mu Yanxiao couldn’t see, Young Master Lin You gazed at the four or five scratched-up photographs in Mu One’s hand, a sharp glint flashing through his amber cat eyes.

If Mu One hadn’t acted quickly and pulled those scratched-up photographs aside just now, his blind master’s mood certainly wouldn’t have been this cheerful. He might even have gotten so angry that his head hurt. After all, no one would be happy to discover that the faces in their parents’ photographs had been scratched up, let alone finding that his own face and his younger brother’s had also been scratched beyond recognition. Just how vicious and full of hatred did someone have to be to do something this crazy to her own older sister’s family?

Thinking of this, Young Master Lin You patted his blind master’s hand with his soft paw to comfort him, while narrowing his eyes and thinking that next time, he would have to go cause Zhang Ya some more trouble. Losing a few photographs was nothing to Zhang Ya, and a pile of rat droppings wouldn’t cause them much loss either. But considering that she had scratched up those photographs, it would be a disservice to his status as an all-purpose, er, pet cat if he didn’t strip her of all her wealth!

Still, looking at it this way, there were actually some advantages to his blind master being unable to see. Otherwise, how could there be that classic saying, “Out of sight, out of mind”?

Just as Young Master Lin You and his blind master were leaving triumphantly, Zhang Ya and her son at the private hospital also received the news from the butler. When Zhang Ya heard that her dressing room had been turned upside down, the hand holding the phone trembled with rage. Never mind the money and certain personal items that made her feel deeply humiliated. What she found most unacceptable was that the very thing she intended to use to threaten Mu Yanxiao tomorrow had actually been carried away by a cat!

Was this some kind of international-level joke? A mere cat had managed to ignore the dozen or so security guards at her house and the three large wolfhounds A’he raised, then carry off her things right under everyone’s noses! Zhang Ya was furious and unleashed a torrent of abuse at the butler. Once she’d vented a little, she turned to her son and said, “Didn’t you say those three dogs were all fierce, purebred breeds?! How could they not even catch a single cat?! We wasted so much money raising three useless things!! Once you’re better, we’ll give them all away or just kill them and eat them! Our Chen Family doesn’t keep useless trash like this!!”

Chen Yuhe looked thoroughly unimpressed by his mother’s words. He had spent a great deal of money buying those three dogs, and after raising them for so long, he had grown attached to them. He wouldn’t be willing to give them to anyone, let alone kill them.

“Mom, just think about it. That cat that stole the stuff was definitely sent by Mu Yanxiao! Didn’t Auntie call you yesterday to say that the jewelry at her house had been stolen by rats? First rats, then a cat. Sure, they’re different species, but both times animals were used to steal things. There’s no way the two incidents aren’t connected! Who else in all of City A could possibly be at odds with both Auntie and you besides Mu Yanxiao? It has to be him! No one else would have the guts!”

Zhang Ya’s expression changed slightly upon hearing her son’s words. Although it sounded a little far-fetched, when she thought about it carefully, it really did make sense. After all, given the influence of the Zheng and Chen families in City A, there truly weren’t many people with the guts to offend both families. What’s more, leaving aside her elder sister’s jewelry, the old bag she had contained the real thing she intended to use to threaten Mu Yanxiao. Aside from Mu Yanxiao, no one else would care about it.

“You little bastard! You’ve actually stooped to stealing like a common thief! Aren’t you afraid of bringing shame on the Mu and Zhang families?” The more Zhang Ya thought about it, the angrier she became. She spoke through gritted teeth, looking as though she wanted to tear Mu Yanxiao apart and eat him alive.

Chen Yuhe was somewhat speechless at his mother’s behavior, but compared to the anger over the stolen item, he was more concerned about the changes in Mu Yanxiao lately. He had always felt that his second cousin had become somewhat strange after the car accident.

Considering his usual demeanor, where he looked like he would slaughter your entire family if you crossed him, it was practically unheard of for him to suddenly start raising a parrot after the accident. Raising a pet to improve one’s mood wasn’t impossible, but the problem was that no matter how he looked at that parrot, he felt something was off. Perhaps he hadn’t noticed it at first, but ever since his eldest cousin’s subordinate, Ling You, pointed out what was different about the parrot, the more he looked at him, the stranger he seemed.

Later, when that parrot died saving his second cousin, his second cousin was hit so hard that even his condition deteriorated with it. He was on the verge of death when a rat suddenly appeared! When Chen Yuhe heard Lu Yuan say that he had been just one step away from taking control of Mu Yanxiao, only to be interrupted by a rat, his imagination immediately ran wild. Could that rat have been the parrot reincarnated?

But weren’t reincarnated creatures repaying a debt of gratitude supposed to be fox spirits? What was a rat doing here? In the end, the rat died too, and then his mother came home with her face scratched up by a cat and told him that after the parrot died, Mu Yanxiao had started raising a cat…

As Chen Yuhe thought about this, he suddenly felt that the greatest obstacle to their plans to kill Mu Yanxiao might not be Mu One through Mu Five, but a certain ghost capable of becoming all kinds of animals?!

What the fuck. This isn’t scientific at all! Isn’t this supposed to be a normal world?! Things like ghosts, spirits, and demons simply shouldn’t exist in this world at all!

Just as Chen Yuhe was thinking this, a sudden, violent gust of wind swept through the sky above the private hospital. High in the air, invisible to ordinary people’s eyes, a golden-winged Peng bird with a golden fish tail flew away at high speed, a pile of things strapped to its back.

“A’he? A’he, what are you thinking about? Why are you spacing out? Tonight, we’ll clean up and go to your eldest aunt’s house to discuss what we’re going to do tomorrow. Although he has already taken the stuff, no matter what, tomorrow we have to get back what that little bastard Mu Yanxiao stole from our two families. Your eldest cousin has the most ideas. He’ll definitely be able to come up with a good plan.”

Chen Yuhe was snapped out of his thoughts by his mother and nodded absently. He thought to himself that if his eldest cousin’s plan failed again because of some animal, then he would definitely go to Mount Wutai , Mount Wudang or somewhere like that to find an enlightened monk and have him subdue whatever spirit, demon, ghost, or monster was always helping Mu Yanxiao!

But then again… surely… something like that couldn’t possibly happen, right?

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