Chapter 112: When in a Bad Mood, You Need to Vent

() After returning to Dongqu Dayuan for the first week, Zheng Tan didn't go out at all.

After the National Day holiday, Jiao Wei's courses also started. At noon, after Jiao Wei picked up Xiao Youzi to eat lunch at the small restaurant, he brought a portion back for Zheng Tan.

After the holiday, when Jiao Wei saw Zheng Tan, he didn't know what to say. If it had been an ordinary cat all along, he might have smiled a little, but facing this black cat, he couldn't bring himself to laugh, nor dare to laugh randomly.

Before, he didn't believe a cat could have that much ability, but now Jiao Wei was shaken. In October, indeed no one came to his family's small restaurant demanding 'sanitation fees' or anything like that, and no troublemakers showed up. His dad said maybe the time hadn't come yet, but Jiao Wei felt it wasn't that reason, especially after having been to Ye Lou.

Opening the door, he placed the lunch box on the chair; the black cat lounging on the sofa gave a lazy yawn, stretched, and then began eating his lunch.

The cat's whiskers had grown a bit over this week, better than right after the trim, but Zheng Tan still thought it too slow; at this rate, he estimated it would take another week and a half before people couldn't tell, and to truly be as before would take even longer.

However, after this whisker-trimming incident, Zheng Tan felt that the newly grown whiskers were much more sensitive than before; he wasn't sure whether it was due to his deliberate training during this period.

After returning, when Zheng Tan was bored at home alone, he would flip through the magazines subscribed to by Jiao Ba; once, by chance, he saw an article in a not-so-proper magazine, whose general meaning was as follows:

Scientists have conducted such an experiment: they kept cats with their eyes covered for a period of time, then compared them to normal cats without covered eyes; the former grew more whiskers, and the average whisker length was also 5 millimeters longer than that of normal cats.

So some people jokingly said that to help a whisker-trimmed cat recover faster, you could cover its eyes.

Zheng Tan didn't want to cover his eyes, but after careful consideration he thought he could give it a try. Sometimes Zheng Tan would close his eyes and judge what was happening around him and the objects he touched through the whiskers' tactile sense.

The article also said that in darkness, a cat's whiskers have extremely sensitive and rapid tactile function, allowing the cat to identify things it cannot see.

Zheng Tan tried it, but he didn't know whether it was because he himself was too slow or because the whiskers hadn't grown properly; it wasn't as useful as the article claimed. Still, this didn't diminish his desire to try.

As a cat with only half its whiskers, a cat that could only stay home amusing itself, this was the pleasure he had difficulty finding after being bored stiff.

Anyway, during most of the daytime the house is empty, so Zheng Tan can boldly try; even if he makes a fool of himself, no one will see.

For example, in the afternoon after lunch break, Jiao Wei would take Xiao Youzi to school, then himself go to class or to the library to study; Zheng Tan would jump down from the sofa, close his eyes, and try to mobilize his senses to the fullest to perceive surrounding things and the sensations aroused by slight movements and sounds.

The wind blowing in from the balcony allowed Zheng Tan to judge roughly what obstacles lay ahead from the surrounding airflow.

Besides the whiskers, Zheng Tan also felt that his forepaws had some special spots; vibrations on the ground could be felt through the tactile hairs there. Previously Zheng Tan hadn't paid attention, but now it seemed that cats could be so alert— a slight movement would make them react quickly—not just due to experience, but more because of functions they have evolved.

Zheng Tan now hopes to enhance the utility of these discovered functions, so that when he goes out in the future, they can also be put to use.

Since his whiskers were cut, Zheng Tan's advertisement with Xiao Guo has also stopped; Xiao Guo calls every few days to inquire about the situation, even more anxiously than Zheng Tan.

But it's impossible to put a cat with missing whiskers in an ad, right? That would make people laugh their heads off, and might even link the whisker issue to cat food; there are plenty of people who seize any opportunity to throw dirt on you. So even if he's anxious, Xiao Guo has to endure it.

Therefore, Xiao Guo also sought many people for a 'secret recipe' to make the cat's whiskers grow quickly; Zheng Tan ignored him, and now he happened to have come up with the whisker game and doesn't want to try other uncertain methods—if something went wrong, it could cause all the whiskers to fall out, and then playing would be pointless, even bumping into a wall wouldn't help.

Every morning upon waking, the first thing is to touch the whiskers twice, then look in the mirror; Xiao Youzi also measures Zheng Tan's whiskers each day, recording each one, using a dedicated notebook to track the growth; seeing the numbers increase, everyone feels relieved. Knowing that cat whiskers will grow is one thing, actually seeing them grow is another. Once confirmed, there's no need to worry further.

After playing with the whisker game, Zheng Tan came to the balcony, leaning against that pot of orchid grass, squinting his eyes to sunbathe.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sound of paws stepping on the metal net rang out.

Zheng Tan twitched his ears, paying no attention.

During the National Day holiday, many people travel, but 'General's' family is not— although many people travel during the holiday, its owner does not, instead bringing 'General' back to school. However, calculating it, 'General' spends most of the year outdoors playing, wandering through various nature reserves, and his play doesn't cost money.

Seeing Zheng Tan ignore it, but not long after he narrowed his eyes, he heard from the southwest fourth-floor balcony that long-lost **** sound.

"Why are the flowers so red~ why so red~ ah, red like~ red like burning fire~~"

Red your granddad ah!

Zheng Tan tugged his ears, turned around preparing to go, but before leaving he glanced downstairs; originally just idly looking, he discovered a familiar vehicle driving in.

Damn it, how does Fang San Ye, this fellow who supposedly handles ten thousand affairs, come again?

Fang Shaokang had called Associate Professor Jiao Ba earlier; today he had just driven from the capital to Chu Hua Shi, originally intending only to bring some seafood for the Jiao family, and if no one was home he would go straight to Associate Professor Jiao's office; but knowing the cat was at home, he came directly to Dongqu Dayuan to have a look. However, in the phone call, Associate Professor Jiao's tone had a hint of oddness, which made Fang San Ye more interested—over this holiday they hadn't met, and now what mischief had that cat gotten up to?

After parking, Fang San Ye looked up at the fifth floor; his eyesight was excellent, and he happened to spot the tip of those black ears.

"Hei Tan, come down and open the door!" Fang San Ye shouted from below.

Zheng Tan dawdled a bit, but still opened the door and went downstairs to swipe the access card.

"Hey, I'm asking why you're holed up at home? Normally at this time you'd be out wandering around…" Fang San Ye hadn't finished speaking when he saw the black cat in front of him with half its whiskers missing; he fell silent for a moment, then squatted down and laughed for a long while.

Laugh my ass!

Zheng Tan ignored him, and after swiping the card he went straight upstairs.

"Wait a minute, let me catch my breath!" Fang San Ye stood up, picked up a bag and walked up, 'I also brought you some seafood as a snack.'

Panting, he arrived at the fifth floor, set the bag down, Fang San Ye stood before Zheng Tan, examined his half‑length whiskers closely, then took out his phone, preparing to take a photo.

Nowadays only people like Fang San Ye use high‑end phones with good photo quality. But Zheng Tan was annoyed— it's just that his whiskers are half‑short; what's so special about that?!

"Don't move, don't move, I'm taking a photo to show my daughter; hey, don't move, turn around and look…"

Zheng Tan directly flung Fang San Ye's phone away.

After retrieving his phone, he tried dialing two numbers; it still worked, he slipped it into his pocket, Fang San Ye went to the water dispenser, took out a paper cup, poured some water to drink, then sat on the sofa to rest a while and said to Zheng Tan, 'Next month your whiskers should have grown out, right?'

Without waiting for Zheng Tan's reply, Fang San Ye continued, 'It should grow back; when I was young I saw a big spotted cat whose whiskers were singed curled, and they grew back in three weeks— yours should be about the same.'

Zheng Tan: '……' My whiskers' singeing is even worse!

'Like this, next month whenever you have time I'll take you out to play; that place has lots of people bringing pets, so when I come to find you you can also help me with socializing— I happen to have a few clients who like cats, and with you present the business talks will go more smoothly. Uh, I'll let your cat dad know first and set a time.'

Fang San Ye's pattern of self‑question and self‑answer lasted two minutes, then he took a call and hurried off; presumably his affairs in Chu Hua Shi aren't finished yet, otherwise he wouldn't be running around everywhere.

Even someone of his stature as a wealthy magnate has worries; socializing is an indispensable part, whether you're a low‑level office worker or a boss with vast wealth— behind the halo each has their own troubles.

After Fang San Ye left, Zheng Tan glanced at the wall calendar; one month's time, his whiskers should grow back properly.

In the evening Wei Leng came over once; after the National Day holiday ended, the Jiao family returned the next day and Wei Leng came over then too, but seeing Zheng Tan with half his whiskers and not wanting to go out, he didn't take him out to play; today Wei Leng actually didn't hold much hope of getting Zheng Tan to go to Ye Lou together, but he didn't expect that Zheng Tan really did want to go out for a trip today.

When one's mood is bad, one needs **; Zheng Tan was feeling depressed in his heart, and Wei Leng's arrival was timely.

In the car, Wei Leng looked at the cat in the back seat; its whiskers had grown a bit, but it was clearly only half, and he heard that recently its mood had been bad?

Suddenly he felt a chill, and Wei Leng had a bad premonition.

At night, Ye Hao, Long Qi, and Baizi came to 'Ye Lou' to relax; his holdings weren't limited to Ye Lou alone— he was also busy outside, and only in his free time did he come to Ye Lou to listen to the Donggong performance and relax his mood.

Before arriving, Ye Hao received a report from his subordinates knowing that Wei Leng had also come, but he didn't know that Wei Leng had brought the cat along, because Zheng Tan had been staying hidden in the backpack, unseen; he thought it would be embarrassing for people to see him with half his whiskers missing.

Ye Hao and his two companions arrived at the third floor, at the door of Wei Leng's private room, and saw Wei Leng squatting there smoking.

"What's up? Why are you squatting here?"

Ye Hao said, opening the door of the private room, and then, after a long time not hearing that piercing "demonic sound", it again echoed throughout the entire third floor. (To be continued.)