Chapter 104

After Fang San Ye left, Zheng Tan lay on the balcony staring downstairs; when a car came in, he stretched his neck to look.

When Xiao Youzi and the others finished school, Zheng Tan still hadn't seen the expected car; with no choice, he first went to the affiliated primary school to pick up the child.

At noon, Jiao Ba had already called the small restaurant, saying they wouldn't come to eat; Zheng Tan guessed Jiao Ba was still busy with the car matter. But it was also hard on Associate Professor Jiao, who ran out during work hours to look at the car, likely dumping his current tasks onto Yi Xin or Su Qu.

Although he hadn't waited in the morning, Zheng Tan didn't go out in the afternoon either; he just climbed and played on a few trees in the compound for a while, then found a tree and lay down on it to sleep.

It wasn't until nearly five o'clock that he finally saw Jiao Ba return, but Jiao Ba came alone into the compound; Zheng Tan looked behind Jiao Ba and saw no car, then glanced at Jiao Ba doubtfully.

Where's the car?

Unfortunately, he didn't wait for Jiao Ba's explanation, so Zheng Tan decided to eavesdrop on the wall tonight; usually after the two children fall asleep at night, Jiao Ba and Jiao Ma discuss some matters.

After dinner, he accompanied the two children watching TV until nine o'clock; when the two children went to bed, Zheng Tan jumped off the bed preparing to eavesdrop.

The light in Xiao Youzi's room was off, but Xiao Youzi wasn't asleep yet; hearing Zheng Tan's movement beside her, Xiao Youzi pulled a small flashlight from under the pillow: "Hei Tan, what are you up to?"

Zheng Tan flicked his tail and looked at the door lock.

Xiao Youzi got up, slipped on her slippers, came over to open the door for Zheng Tan, moving lightly and trying not to let the lock make a sound; she opened the door a crack, just enough for Zheng Tan to slip out. Such cooperation had happened many times before.

Zheng Tan came to the bedroom door, crouched, tilted his head. He pressed his ear against the bedroom door, while Xiao Youzi lay back down on the bed. Ten or so minutes later, Zheng Tan slipped back under the covers. He was in a good mood.

Jiao Ba had indeed bought a car; he would pick it up tomorrow, and there were still some paperwork to handle. Besides the car matter, Jiao Ba and Jiao Ma mainly discussed the National Day holiday; Jiao Ba's sister's child's tenth birthday banquet had already received an invitation, so when the time came the couple would take the children there in their new car, and bring Zheng Tan along as well.

At their place, the child's tenth birthday banquet is also a major event. Parents usually place great importance on it; since it falls during the holiday, Jiao Ba and Jiao Ma certainly won't refuse, and it's also a good opportunity to return to their hometown for a visit.

Aside from the car matter, the rest was just gossip about relatives' petty affairs; Zheng Tan had no interest in listening. Once he heard the information he wanted, he returned happily.

But precisely because of that, Zheng Tan missed the more crucial part of Jiao Ba and Jiao Ma's conversation, which was relatively important to him.

Many people, when they need to go away, board their pets at a pet center; the National Day holiday lasts only a few days, so boarding there is actually fine, and everyone does it that way.

But Zheng Tan is somewhat special; Jiao Ma couldn't bear to let him be locked alone in a pet center, nor did she feel comfortable asking Xiao Guo and others to look after him, in case he got lost—so she decided to bring him along anyway, since their cat is obedient.

But another matter was troublesome.

Jiao Ba's sister lives in the urban district of the county town in their hometown, in a private three-story house with relatively spacious space; when the time comes, the number of guests invited is expected to be fairly large. Although the banquet will be held at a hotel, besides the banquet time, some relatives and friends will also stay at the house to rest. There will be many people, and many children as well.

Those clueless, destructive little brats are the nemesis of pets. So Jiao Ma worries that if some conflict arises, it won't be good; although their cat hasn't scratched people much, what if one of those brats provokes the cat and gets scratched? Would they end up arguing?

"It's fine; they have a pet dog and also keep a cat, and they usually get along well with the kids. Besides, there are adults supervising, and our cat is smart, so it won't cause any conflict," said Jiao Ba.

"I still don't feel at ease."

"Let Hei Tan follow Xiao Youzi then, and I'll just say hello to the people over there."

……

The next day, Jiao Ba finally drove the car back before dinner.

Silver-gray, quite an ordinary family car—not as imposing as Yuan Zhiyi's car, nor even close to Fang San Ye's four-ring car, but Zheng Tan and the two children were very happy.

No matter how high-end the car, it's still someone else's, just like no matter how magnificent a palace, it's not one's own home, lacking that feeling.

As the boss, Yuan Zhiyi certainly ought to have a better car to save face, and Fang San Ye even more so—his four-ring car is already the most low-key among his vehicles. However, for the Jiao family, such a fairly ordinary family car is already sufficient.

Zheng Tan knew that although Jiao Ba's finances had loosened somewhat, there still wasn't much spare money to spend. The reason he was busy buying a car was that driving their own car would be more convenient when returning to their hometown, and also he wanted Jiao Ma to get familiar with it quickly, so that if he went abroad, Jiao Ma could use it here as well—no need to ride a small electric scooter, taking two children plus a cat could be risky, whereas driving would save a lot of hassle and be convenient even on rainy days.

If it were the former Zheng Tan evaluating this car, he'd probably disdain it, but now Zheng Tan is quite pleased; after jumping in through the car window, he started looking left and right, feeling that the new car's smell was not quite right, too unfamiliar. Suddenly he recalled what A Huang and the police chief had done when marking their territory—using urine to mark would definitely be impossible, otherwise Zheng Tan would never think of getting in the car again.

Besides urine marking, there's also rubbing to leave scent. Cats have scent-secreting glands near their whiskers and ears; by rubbing back and forth, they spread their scent onto surrounding objects via friction.

So Zheng Tan imitated A Huang and the others, rubbing on the car seat and such, then sniffed; the effect seemed not obvious, so he rubbed again and again…

In a familiar scent environment, a person feels more at ease; even if the room always has smelly socks or a pile of unwashed clothes, as long as one can tolerate and get used to it, it's fine—but if suddenly placed in a very clean room with no other odors at all, he would feel restrained for a while.

Long-term exposure leading to not noticing one's own odor is physiologically termed "olfactory adaptation." On the other hand, it also illustrates the philosophical issue of "my territory, my smell."

Thus, Zheng Tan rubbed with great focus, rubbing until he felt at ease.

Jiao Ba watched his cat rubbing all over inside, thought about it, and still let him be. He estimated that besides their own family, no one would allow a pet to rub randomly on a newly bought car.

The car's interior had no other decorations, being rather plain. When buying the car, they were given a pendant said to have been consecrated; Jiao Ba found it an eyesore, so he took it off, planning to find that old lady again when returning to their hometown to get another one. Jiao Ba does not trust such items given from outside.

However, after Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi returned, the car changed. Jiao Ma also embroidered a "peace" cross-stitch pendant, and Xiao Youzi and Jiao Yuan placed several small dolls in the car, making it look more lively.

After Zheng Tan finished rubbing the car, he felt it was about right, then rolled around on the car seat once more before getting out.

Precisely because they now had a car, Zheng Tan especially looked forward to the National Day trip; no matter where they went, it would also be a new experience.

Because many people travel on the first day of the National Day holiday, Jiao Ba decided to depart on September 30; having started preparations several days earlier, the departure did not feel rushed. After the two children finished school and Jiao Ma and Jiao Ba had returned, they ate a meal and set off at seven o'clock.

Their destination this time was Rangyang, which is where their hometown is. From Chu Hua Shi to Rangyang, taking the highway takes about two hours by car. They had already informed the two elders; Jiao Lao Yezi had come from the village to the town house yesterday to clean. Although there is housing in town, the two Jiao elders still prefer to stay in the village, where it's familiar—from the east end to the west end, everyone knows them, they can play mahjong on call and not get bored. Only occasionally do they stay in town for a while, visiting relatives who have moved there.

It was not until after nine o'clock that they arrived at their lodging; the two elders were already standing at the door waiting, with the outside lights also turned on.

Jiao Lao Yezi happily came over to greet the grandson he hadn't seen in a long time, but the first thing to dart out was a black cat.

"Why did you bring it along?!"

Jiao Lao Yezi stared at Zheng Tan. (To be continued…)