Translator: Sy
Editor: SipsTea
Chapter 24: The Kitty has an Owner
A few days had passed since the incident, but the internet was far from settling down.
Zhang Yiming’s fans – who called themselves the Mingscriptions – couldn’t care less about Lin Ning’s debt anymore. The penalties Fei Hao issued for broken contracts were always unreasonably scary, after all. What mattered now… how dare Scouts Entertainment act as if nothing happened after releasing that picture to the dogs?! After all they did to Zhang Yiming! They camped out at Scouts’ comment section for days, demanding the company take the article down and to issue the Film King a public apology. But the company remained silent.
t/n: Scouts Entertainment was previously known as Spy Search. Sorry for the confusion!
Besides that, the Film King fans also had another huge task ahead: to fight the Jiang Feng fans. Even if they’d proved their King innocent, the Jiang Feng fans were making a point to ignore them. The Film King never screwed up — he was flawless, so they weren’t about to let go of this scandal that easily now that they finally had dirt on him. They lurked in the trending tag’s comment section, hinting that these were the words of someone vying ofr attention.
Good thing Lin Ning was a has-been. As they bickered, Lin Ning’s role inthe scandal was gradually pushed aside. Zhang Yiming and Jiang Feng’s fans tore at each other. At least some people were keeping themselves entertained at a time like this.
The Lemon Kitchen fanpage and community page Fat_bunny kickstarted was officially opn for business. Lemon Kitchen hadn’t been livestreaming the past few days, and the people waiting in front of their photon tablets were beginning to worry. All they could do was munch on the virtual food he’d made in his past livestreams and hope for his return. Anyone who knew Lemon Kitchen knew Fat_bunny was filthy rich. Her name stood proudly on the Rewarder’s List, the sheer amount of Stars she’d spent on him a pain to their eyes. She’d even hinted at hiring professionals to moderate the fan and community pages.
Wow. A big-shot fan leading the people to build and develop a community at this caliber was synonymous with resource and capability. The moment she called out, hundreds responded, flooding into the Lemon Kitchen fanpage. Technology now was so advanced that the old and young alike were technology whizzes, so the moment someone beckoned, an entire family could follow suit.
Rong Xinxineyed the growing numbers giddily.
“You’re the best, Mu Mu! Hiring you was the right choice! Don’t worry, I’ve spoken to dad… your monthly salary’s doubling from now on!”
The young man donning a pair of light-coloured glasses let out a professional smile. On the surface, he seemed calm and collected, but on the inside… Well, it was a whole tsunami.
!!!
When CEO Rong called him to the office today, he was flabbergasted. Pack your things and come with me, CEO Rong had said — who wouldn’t freeze up? The first thought that came into mind? That CEO wanted to start an affair with him. He genuinely wondered how the hell had he managed to somehow beat Madam Rong, who was drop-dead gorgeous.
What actually happened consisted of him being mercilessly plopped off at the mansion’s entrance before the CEO and Madam Rong left the house, arms linked, for a vacay.
And so he walked, confused, into CEO Rong’s legendary mansion, and ran, confused, into CEO Rong’s princess, then got dragged, confused, into starting up Lemon Kitchen’s fanpage… and was caught off guard by the fact that Rong Xinxin was the fat_bunny.
The young man’s face cramped up. For a moment, he wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be happy he’d caught CEO Rong’s eye and won himself a raise, or be shocked by the sheer level of obsession Rong Xinxin was at towards Lemon Kitchen, or be puzzled by how CEO Rong just tossed him aside and left him alone with his precious daughter, or…
Veryconfused.jpg
It was a good thing his boyfriend wasn’t an overly sensitive person because chances were he was going to work very closely with Princess Rong for some time. But… Mu Mu… that nickname gave him goosebumps…
*
Lin Ning was also feeling very confused today. In the morning there came a visitor. He was a handsome young man named Liu Yue — the very same guy who drove Lin Ning to the hospital. Li Chengyan’s colleague.
He froze as the door swung open. Honestly? He thought they’d never meet again. But given that Li Chengyan brought him upstairs while he was asleep, and that Liu Yue drove him all the way home, Lin Ning invited the man in.
For some reason, the kitty crawled out of its bed and padded over. When Lin Ning brought the kitty to his chest, Xizai looked exceptionally stiff, and Liu Yue looked so nervous, he squirmed.
“Have a seat.” Lin Ning plopped the kitty onto the sofa, then brought two cups of tea over.
“Thank you.” Liu Yue stood up to accept a cup.
Even though he already knew a lot about Lin Ning’s identity through his investigation, watching the little green leaves float in his cup with his own two eyes was still a shock big enough to slash through his heart— he swore this had nothing to do with watching his superior getting squished by that young man, who still smiled like a… ????
A few pieces of small, tender green leaves drifted in the pale green tea. What a beautiful, precious thing. He swore if the National Plant Breeding Center saw this, it’d be a fight to the death to see who could bring this back to their labs — drinking this was such a waste! The faint scent of tea in the air made him gulp. He peeked at the marshal. The marshal was staring at him. A tremor ran through his heart.
“Ahem— I wonder if you still remember me, Mr Lin. My name’s Liu Yue. We’ve met before.” Liu Yuen decided to get straight to the point.
“Yes. Thank you both for that day. My cat came back, too! Isn’t he the cutest…” Lin Ning grabbed Xizai, holding out his little front paws so that they waved.
Xizai: “…”
Liu Yue turned away. His superior— his superior— was horrifyingly adorable, and now he was in danger. “T-the cu-t-t-test…”
Ohshitohshitohshit. Goodbye, world. The marshal was so going to put him through hell the next time they met.
“So is there anything you came to me for?” Li Ning asked. Something wasn’t adding up. His grip on the kitty’s paw tightened.
Liu Yue got down to business. “Here’s the thing: the truth is…” cough “…I know this cat.”
IT’S LI CHENGYAN! AAAAGGGHH!!! THAT’S OUR MARSHAL! YOU’RE HUGGING THE INTERSTELLERLY-KNOW MARSHAL! He screamed internally.
Lin Ning’s face changed instantly. His heart tightened. So… Xizai actually has an owner? Is he taking Xizai away now? He bit his lip, uneasy.
“You… Are you saying you want to take Xizai home?” Lin Ning asked slowly. “I didn’t mean to take over Xizai or anything. I- I really thought he was a stray cat…”
“No,” Liu Yue explained, breaking into a cold sweat thanks to the cat glaring daggers at him. “I’m just saying that you seem to be taking very good care of it, and it seems to like you a lot, too. So I was meaning to ask you to take good care of it from now on. I’m even willing to pay for its expenses… And, uh, sometimes I might need to take it out for a bit. But that’s just from time to time! I’ll return it real soon.”
Lin Ning asked, “Is Xizai Mr. Li Chengyan’s cat?”
Liu Yue nodded stiffly. Well, it wasn’t exactly a lie. The cat the marshal turned into was technically a part of the marshal. Then he pulled out some pictures of the cat as a kitten as evidence.
Cat: “…” Stupid adjutant.
Lin Nin opened and closed his mouth like a gaping fish. The young Xizai in the photos seemed much more at ease. Its fur was silky, its body tiny, though it still had that grumbly look on its face. It was adorable. Behind the kitty was a minimalist study room painted in dark colors. The only thing that seemed lively there was a bookshelf filled with rows and rows of colorfully-binded books.
His owner looks rich, Lin Ning thought sourly. If Li Changyan was this wealthy, to the point where even his cat’s picture looked this professionally done, that meant Xizai’s life before leaving must’ve been comfortable. So…
Lin Ning asked, curious, “When I first picked up Xizai, Xizai had wounds all over his body. Do you know what happened?” If Li Chengyan was the reason Xizai got injured, there was no way he could forgive him.
“It was our fault for not taking proper care of it. I think this is something we can explain to you next time. Right now there are many things I can’t tell you… After all, you’ve probably guessed Mr. Li Chengyan and my identities, and there are a lot of things we can’t be transparent about. I can promise you this, though: it was not our hand that harmed the cat.”
Judging from how calm Xizai appeared, Lin Ning knew Liu Yue was telling the truth. He held onto Xizai’s soft paws, reassuring himself that Xizai was only going to be taken away from time to time, which wouldn’t be an issue. In his misery, something soft and warm suddenly curled around his elbow. He glanced downwards.
It was Xizai’s fluffy tail. Its bright eyes were unwavering, as if it was telling him not to be afraid.
“…” Lin Ning’s heart warmed, which made him feel worse.
Liu Yue thought not to cut into the atmosphere surrounding the human and the cat. He lifted the teacup to his lips silently. Tea washed over his mouth in a current of aroma, and he couldn’t help but sigh: this was something that should belong in heaven! To be able to taste something like this in the human realm… before he could finish his thought, the television caught his attention.
It was a snippet from the National Plant Breeding Center. The news anchor announced:
“The National Plant Breeding Center reports having recently received an anonymously sent package of living plants. According to paleontological research specialists, the Dean of the Plant Cultivation Center, and many plant research specialists, these plants share all similar characteristics to that of a real plant. What could not be achieved by research centers has been achieved by an unknown person.
“The dean of the research center states that these plants are currently under heavy protection. He predicts that these plants will become a fundamental pillar in the reconstruction and cultivation of plants from ancient Earth,
“The dean also states that all those involved in the replication of these real plants should be nation-protected, and he highly admires the fruit of this anonymous sender’s lab work. He hopes that this person will reach out to the research center so that both parties may compare research notes and discuss future collaborations. The country will provide liberal remuneration…”
Liu Yue’s hands trembled. Glancing at the quietly floating green leaves in his teacup, he felt as if he’d just swallowed a mountain of gold and an entire Interstellar Science and Technology Award…
The author has something to say:
[A small play]
Cat, rigidly: Not happy letting the wife see my childhood pictures…
Lin Ning: How cute~ QAQ
Kitty Marshall so cute