Chapter 165

The reaction of the four cats was like telling the person who had just spoken in the car: we don't meow either, we just stare at you.

Perhaps due to some psychological effect, the person who had just said "cats are all a bunch of idiots" felt that the four cats' gazes shifted from three parts contempt and seven parts aloofness to three parts aloofness and seven parts contempt.

Actually, after he said "cats are all a bunch of idiots," there was still half a sentence left unsaid; after spitting out his chewing gum, he should have proudly added another half-sentence, "scold it and it won't even know," to finish, but the latter half couldn't be spoken and was choked back by the reaction of the four cats.

Wei Leng looked at the person whose face was not looking good from being choked, and laughed: "Er Mao, you say why you find every cat displeasing? They haven't provoked you."

Er Mao, that is, the person with a mohawk hairstyle sitting in the back seat, did not answer but pointed at the four cats in the tree and asked Wei Leng: "Are those four cats looking down on me? I feel like they're cursing me in their hearts."

"... You're overthinking it." Wei Leng knew this junior fellow well; this kid had a bit of persecution complex. But it's not his fault; he was forced into it, those unbearable past events.

Actually, all four cats were staring at this situation for no reason; it can only be called a coincidence, one that Zheng Tan hadn't anticipated either.

Among the four cats, Zheng Tan definitely understood Er Mao's words, no doubt. Da Pang probably could catch a few of those words; even if he didn't understand, he might have felt that Er Mao's recent chatter was all about them, too targeted, and Da Pang keenly noticed, so he also looked over. As for Huang Er Huo, this guy just glanced over curiously at the "puff" sound Er Mao made when spitting out his chewing gum. And the police cat just does whatever the others do. Thus, we have the current scene of all four cats staring at Er Mao simultaneously.

Overthinking?

Hearing Wei Leng's words, Er Mao scratched his head, probably realizing he had indeed overthought it. Thinking that, Er Mao glanced again at the tree and happened to see Zheng Tan looking over with an even more contemptuous gaze, which was far more obvious than the other cats'; the slightly doubtful Er Mao had no hesitation in concluding it was definitely not his imagination.

If Er Mao's expression earlier was like having eaten a mouthful of rice with mosquito legs, then his expression now is like having eaten shit.

Take a deep breath. Er Mao told himself: don't get angry with a bunch of idiot cats. I didn't come here to keep wrangling with these cats.

Not wanting to stay another second, Er Mao urged Wei Leng: "Hey, senior brother, who exactly are you picking up? Hurry up and get them so we can leave."

"All right." Wei Leng shouted toward Zheng Tan: "Hei Tan. Come over quickly. Let's go out and play!"

Before Wei Leng's car even arrived, Zheng Tan had noticed it. He just saw someone in the back seat, the same person he'd seen yesterday playing cards outside the school wall, so he didn't pay much attention. He continued watching people fly kites on the grass. Just a moment ago he had been watching two kids have a kite battle, and he hadn't expected to suddenly hear a sentence cursing cats—had he and his four companions provoked him? Obviously not! Is the person Wei Leng brought an idiot?

After hearing Wei Leng's call, Zheng Tan didn't immediately go over; he looked at the kid in the back seat and found him displeasing. At first glance he was a delinquent; Jiao Ma had said to stay away from delinquents.

That remark from Jiao Ma was directed at Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi; as for Zheng Tan, speaking of it, has he had little contact with delinquents? But at this moment Zheng Tan hadn't even considered that he might be wrong.

Seeing no response after one shout, Wei Leng continued yelling: "Let's go, let's have some fun at Ye Lou; I've already told your cat dad about it!"

Zheng Tan originally hadn't planned to go out and play, but then he thought, going to Ye Lou would also be good—he could see what Ye Hao and the others were up to.

Thinking that, Zheng Tan came down from the tree and walked toward Wei Leng.

Watching the black cat draw nearer, Er Mao suddenly felt uneasy; he had just been wondering who Wei Leng was talking to, but now it seemed to be just a cat? So his first reaction was to hurriedly roll up the car window, fearing the cat might jump inside.

However, the rear window was closed while the front one was open. Zheng Tan jumped in through the window beside Wei Leng; since someone was in the back seat, Zheng Tan simply stayed in the front passenger seat.

Er Mao regarded Zheng Tan like a plague, but the car's interior was only so large, making escape impossible, so Er Mao's complexion wasn't great. Meanwhile, Zheng Tan crouched in the front passenger seat, continually staring at Er Mao. The longer he looked, the more familiar it seemed—where had he seen him before? Zheng Tan really couldn't recall.

After Zheng Tan jumped into the car, Wei Leng drove off from Chu Hua Da Xue toward Ye Lou.

Wei Leng owned a house not far from Chu Hua Da Xue, in a recently built residential compound with elevator apartments. Usually he didn't stay much at home—being alone, staying home was boring—so most of the time he still lived at the company, where at least he had some comrades and other colleagues to play cards and chat with when bored. Each week he would go to Ye Lou to unwind, and his days were passing fine; moreover, he had recently gotten involved with an elementary school teacher, though Wei Leng hadn't told anyone about it.

After receiving Er Mao's call saying he would come to Chu Hua Shi, Wei Leng spent these days tidying up at home and prepared a room for Er Mao. Er Mao's parents live in Chu Hua Shi, but Er Mao absolutely would not stay with them; otherwise there would be petty quarrels daily and major fights every three days, disturbing the peace. After thinking it over, only this bachelor Wei Leng's place was convenient, so a single phone call notified Wei Leng to host him; as for how long the stay would be, that depended on Er Mao's mood.

All the way, Er Mao kept complaining to Wei Leng about why they had to bring a cat to Ye Lou for fun. Wei Leng simply mentioned a few things about Zheng Tan's past: "This cat is quite popular; not to mention Ye Hao and the others, even Core Nut Senior Brother owes this cat a favor."

Er Mao gave the black cat crouched in the front passenger seat an incredulous look—making even Core Nut Senior Brother owe it a favor, this cat really is capable. However, the more so, the more it highlights the cat's uncanny nature; if it were an ordinary cat, that would be fine, but for this rather special kind, Er Mao felt such cats should be kept at a distance.

"Cats are quite annoying; they just like to mess with people." Er Mao sighed.

While Wei Leng and Er Mao were chatting, Zheng Tan also observed them, knowing they were fellow disciples; he was also quite curious about what their master did, since the three brothers' professions differed, and he didn't know whether there were any other fellow disciples besides these three.

Besides that, Zheng Tan's main attention was drawn to the term Wei Leng used.

Er Mao?

That name sounds very familiar.

Zheng Tan racked his brain and finally recalled: this name had been mentioned by Wei Leng and Core Nut Senior Brother, as well as Zhao Le and the guy named Wang Bin.

Wang Bin?!

Zheng Tan lifted his head and stared at Er Mao, while recalling the young man named Wang Bin he had seen at Master Fang San's banquet.

No wonder he looked familiar; Er Mao and Wang Bin look too much alike—just judging by the face, they're practically identical, only their temperaments are completely different. One is mature and steady, looking like an elite, while this guy before us… calling him a rascal wouldn't be doubted, so at a glance, even if Wang Bin stood beside him, few would notice.

If Lazio's fans were to learn that these two were actually twin brothers, Er Mao's background wouldn't be simple either—but why does he seem to be doing so poorly? Compared to Wang Bin, it's literally heaven and earth.

Zheng Tan thought of Zhong Yan; could Er Mao's situation be similar to Zhong Yan's? Perhaps not to the extent of having a stepfather and stepmother, but he's probably also unloved by his parents—truly pitiful.

Meanwhile, Er Mao in the back seat, although he kept chatting with Wei Leng and glanced at the scenery outside the window, his peripheral vision continually noted the black cat crouched in the front passenger seat; when he couldn't stand being stared at any longer, he patted the driver's seat and said, "Senior brother, could you get this cat to stop staring at me? It's creepy."

Wei Leng resignedly said, "Hei Tan, just stop staring at him all the time."

Having finished studying Er Mao, Zheng Tan lowered his head, closed his eyes, and began to doze. The trip from here to Ye Lou should take about half an hour, depending on traffic; this period was just right for Zheng Tan to take a little nap.

After arriving at Ye Lou, Ye Hao brought Er Mao in through the side door, went straight upstairs to the private room Wei Leng often used; Zheng Tan followed them up, and the person guarding the side door was already used to this black cat. Er Mao, however, was curious about these people's reactions—upon seeing the black cat, they actually had no reaction at all.

During this time Ye Hao's side was very busy; Wei Leng wouldn't disturb them, he brought Er Mao into the private room, where they drank a little liquor, chatted, and in the evening listened to the performance of "Dong Gong."

Ye Hao's affairs, Wei Leng wasn't keen to tell Er Mao about, and what Ye Hao is currently busy with also requires high secrecy; this time Ye Hao really ought to thank Zheng Tan. Why is that thing called the "Golden Compass" by Lord Tang Qi? Because it concerns gold.

Lai Er's underlings were fighting bloody battles there, and others were taking the opportunity to rectify admixtures, causing great chaos; meanwhile, Ye Hao and his crew were silently making a fortune.

Zheng Tan jumped up and occupied the sofa. Seeing that, Er Mao also didn't sit on the sofa, dragged over a chair and said to Wei Leng: "When did the status of cats become so high? This is just a stray cat, right? Your friend actually agreed to let you bring this cat in? Aren't you afraid of scratching these sofas worth tens of thousands? Even if your friend doesn't care about tens of thousands, this is too indulgent."

Wei Leng spread his hands, "There's nothing I can do, I said this cat is rather special. Actually, someone gave this cat a nickname, called 'Lucky Cat'."

Er Mao paused, then burst out laughing "hahaha" so hard he almost fell off his chair.

"With that, still calling it a Lucky Cat? In some small-town villages, you can buy a cat like this for ten or so yuan. What wealth could it possibly bring…" Er Mao had been about to say more, but seeing Wei Leng's solemn expression, he immediately stifled his laughter, "Senior brother, are you serious?"

"Mm, I'm not joking." Wei Leng nodded, "So I suggest you, when you have nothing to do, spend more time with this cat—for example, when it goes for a stroll, you can tag along; anyway, you're bored."

Zheng Tan, upon hearing that, pulled his ears back and gave Er Mao a sideways glance: "Do I need someone to accompany me on a stroll?! What kind of idiot is this?!" (To be continued…)

ps: (2.17)