Chapter 188: Just Relying on This Guy?

Hearing Sha Jie's words, Er Mao frowned, inwardly cursing Qin Tao, this guy, for being incompetent, but still put on a smile and thanked Sha Jie, after all, Sha Jie doing this counts as a favor.

While walking toward the private room Qin Tao had booked, Er Mao said to Zheng Tan: "Hey, black coal, don't run around later; if things go wrong, we'll just leave, no getting involved with them."

In Er Mao's eyes, although Zheng Tan's intelligence had improved a bit, he was still just an ordinary cat; Sha Jie's mention of a "bigger cat" and "not to be provoked" made Er Mao wonder, as such big cats usually aren't easy to get along with and are quite wild.

The waiter led Er Mao toward the private room Qin Tao had booked, while Zheng Tan stood inside the bag, observing the surroundings. The floor of the club seemed to be all young people; the corridor lighting was dimmed to be somewhat ambiguous; Zheng Tan saw several couples openly making out there, passersby either whistled or acted as if they hadn't seen, walking past calmly. Obviously, they had long grown accustomed to this place's style.

Perhaps because of the lighting, many passersby didn't notice Zheng Tan's presence; besides, Zheng Tan staying in the bag only showed a cat's head, making his presence faint. Those young men and women were "busy"; if it were a hot-bodied beauty, she might draw some attention, but nobody would bother to notice a cat.

"This is the place." the waiter indicated.

Er Mao opened the door and went in; Zheng Tan was behind his back, so he couldn't see inside, but he could guess the situation from the sounds he heard.

Young people gathered together usually like to sing and dance, and are more uninhibited.

When Er Mao entered the door, the person sitting nearer the door glanced at him, guessing he didn't know him, and paid no attention.

The first thing Er Mao did upon entering wasn't to look for Qin Tao or check out the various styles of girls, but to find the big cat Sha Jie had mentioned. However, he didn't know whether the crowd blocked his view or the indoor lighting was the issue; Er Mao didn't spot that cat.

Qin Tao noticed the entrance; seeing Er Mao come in, he immediately ran over, put an arm around his shoulder, and said: "Come on, come on, let me introduce you to several talented female college students!"

Before Qin Tao could take two steps, Er Mao pulled him aside: "You even brought a big cat over?!"

"Ah? Oh. This matter—I only found out just now; it's a friend's pet cat, and I didn't know she would bring her cat."

Qin Tao and Er Mao were talking aside; the people inside also noticed Er Mao because of Qin Tao. Seeing them like that, one could tell their relationship was quite good—definitely not just casual acquaintances. Immediately, some people began to speculate in their minds.

And due to Er Mao's change of angle, Zheng Tan turned to face the group of people inside.

"Oh dear! Another cat!" someone exclaimed.

"Where?"

"In the backpack."

"Really..."

Bang!

The door was flung open forcefully, and a girl with hair dyed all sorts of colors walked in, wearing ripped jeans plus a biker outfit. Her face was made up with ghastly heavy makeup, forming a stark contrast with the other girls' attire here. However, everyone seemed quite familiar with this girl, said nothing, and even seemed to want to avoid her.

"Tang Cai, want to sing?" the girl who had just finished a song asked the newcomer.

Qin Tao's girlfriend is a student at the music institute; today some of her classmates also came, and they usually do the singing. The one who just spoke was Qin Tao's girlfriend. Needless to say, being formally trained, she sings more properly, Zheng Tan thought, no wonder that song just now sounded quite pleasant.

Qin Tao's girlfriend asking this was actually out of good intentions; if she stayed silent, Tang Cai would truly be marginalized. However, it's obvious Qin Tao's girlfriend doesn't yet understand Tang Cai well enough.

The girl named Tang Cai didn't appreciate it, swatting away the offered microphone: "Whether I sing or not is none of your business!"

As soon as she opened her mouth, it was like she had eaten gunpowder.

"That's my cousin, Tang Cai." Qin Tao whispered to Er Mao, then gestured for him to quickly hand over the cat: "Hurry up, didn't you see my girlfriend's expression has gone stiff?!"

Tang Cai was in a pretty bad mood today, sitting on the edge sofa, she lit up a cigarette for herself. Seeing a claw mark on her sleeve, she became even more irritable; if it weren't for the sleeve blocking it, her arm would surely have scratches.

Not many girls smoke, especially someone like Tang Cai, who at first glance looks ill-tempered; no wonder the few seats next to hers are empty—no one is stupid enough to come over here to get scolded.

"Hey, Tang Cai, I need your help with something." Qin Tao pulled Er Mao over to this side.

"No time!" Tang Cai didn't even glance at Qin Tao, continued smoking, lost in thought.

"I don't care; you have to help look after it. I'm bringing my brothers to meet some people." Saying this, Qin Tao snatched Er Mao's bag and tossed it toward Tang Cai.

"Are you deaf?! I said I don't——" Tang Cai's words cut off; having received the bag Qin Tao threw over, she was about to fling it back, but didn't expect to come face-to-face with a pair of cat eyes, which is also why she stopped speaking.

Cat?

Tang Cai immediately froze there.

Just being tossed over like this, Zheng Tan mentally cursed Qin Tao's ancestors a few times, then carefully observed the girl in front of him. Her makeup was too thick, obscuring her original features; her lips were painted deep purple, the fingers holding the cigarette had black nail polig……

Looking at her, she indeed didn't seem like a good girl.

But, as Qin Tao said, upon seeing a cat, Tang Cai's temper was suppressed, like a hedgehog covered in spikes that stabs anyone it meets; upon seeing Zheng Tan, she immediately retracted those spikes.

Zheng Tan sensed no malice from Tang Cai; although the girl before him looked like those "demon kings" on TV, his intuition wouldn't be wrong.

He unzipped the bag's zipper, Zheng Tan walked out of the bag; lifting his head, he could touch Tang Cai's chest. He sized her up—still quite sizable; if he lifted his paw and stepped on it, Tang Cai probably wouldn't mind, after all, he's just a cat now; who would quibble with a cat over such things?

However, just thinking about it; before figuring out this girl's temperament, Zheng Tan chose to stay behaved. He walked from her leg to the nearby sofa cushion, then squatted there, watching the other people in the room.

Qin Tao has good taste; there are plenty of beauties inside, both pure and seductive types. Moreover, it's interesting how their little thoughts show up in many small details amid the toasting and chatting; perhaps because an outside observer sees clearly, Zheng Tan found it quite interesting.

Tang Cai flicked the cigarette she was holding into the ashtray, then took out a wet tissue from her pocket to wipe her fingers that held the cigarette. And her every move now showed some caution, as if she feared startling the cat beside her into fleeing. Although five minutes earlier, Tang Cai had almost been scratched by that leopard-spotted cat in the washroom, and just now, upon seeing this black cat, she felt a moment of tension. But this didn't affect her fondness for cats.

Zheng Tan was watching the people inside interact when his ear suddenly felt itchy. He knew Tang Cai had lightly poked the fur on his ear, he twitched his ear, and didn't mind.

Not seeing Zheng Tan extend his claws, Tang Cai relaxed a bit, extended her finger to his chin, and began to scratch, also taking care not to let her long nails injure this black cat.

Zheng Tan glanced at Tang Cai, then turned back to continue watching the others; someone began probing Er Mao, obviously they didn't know Er Mao's identity or background, and Qin Tao hadn't told them either.

When Qin Tao introduced his friends to Er Mao, he glanced over at Tang Cai's side and saw she indeed had the look of a de-spiked hedgehog, and immediately felt that the ten thousand yuan wasn't wasted.

"Huh, what are you guys playing again?" a girl about seventeen or eighteen walked in.

Zheng Tan looked over, his gaze swept past, then settled on the leopard-spotted cat beside that girl.

Squinting his eyes, Zheng Tan stared intently at that leopard-spotted cat; when Sha Jie mentioned it earlier, he had wondered who it was—this guy… wasn't it the cat that attacked him when Fang San treated guests, which he ended up swatting away with a slap, only to be knocked over himself? Now it's acting all high and mighty again?

Looking at that little attitude, it's all cocky.

"Cocky my ass!"

Just based on this guy, could it pose a threat to me?

It's not Zheng Tan bragging; if he could swat that girl away once, he could do it a second time, a third time…

The girl who had just entered was showing off to someone how her cat could squat on the toilet; prompted by some people's subtle hints, she looked toward Tang Cai's side. Meanwhile, the leopard-spotted cat, which had originally wanted to snag a piece of dried meat from the tea table to eat, failed to grab it, but also noticed Zheng Tan.

For a moment the indoor atmosphere grew a bit strange; some people glanced at the leopard-spotted cat, then at the black cat calmly squatting beside Tang Cai. Their faces showed worry, but inside they were excited, just waiting to see a good show.

Both Er Mao and Qin Tao were ready to let that girl take the leopard-spotted cat away; this was what Er Mao and Qin Tao had agreed upon when they entered.

Tang Cai was also nervous; she had experienced the leopard-spotted cat's temper before—if she hadn't reacted a bit faster, her arm would surely have been cut.

But before they could speak, the leopard-spotted cat suddenly arched its body, ears flattened back, fur standing on end, opened its mouth and let out a low growl, as if warning of some danger, and did not immediately charge forward as others had expected.

The people around were dazed, wondering… how does this feel… this reaction… is it reversed?

Shouldn't it be that the black puffed-up one, and then this leopard-spotted big cat elegantly walks over and slaps?

Only Zheng Tan knows that this guy recognized himself.

Some people think cats have poor memory, but actually, in many cases, what they can easily forget are things they don't care about. Zheng Tan saw a related description in a magazine subscribed to by Jiao Ba. It said that cats not only have long-term memory, but also emotional imagery mapping. Like other mammals, cats gain experience through learning, and both good and bad memories come from various activities and experiences. A cat's short-term memory may be fleeting, but their long-term memory is quite astonishing.

Besides, this leopard-spotted cat is also a carefully bred breed, possibly possessing the 'hybrid vigor' spoken of in genetics, which could also give it strong memory.

Or perhaps the slap it received initially was too profound, and this leopard-spotted cat, whenever it fights other cats, recalls that slap that knocked it over, as well as that black cat that doesn't look too big.

Zheng Tan narrowed his eyes, watching the leopard-spotted cat puff up and growl low there, while he himself remained calmly squatting on the soft cushion of the sofa pad. Noticing Tang Cai's tension beside him, Zheng Tan lifted his chin, rubbed against Tang Cai's finger, signaling Tang Cai to keep scratching. He was enjoying himself, too lazy to bother with that guy.

Qin Tao jabbed his elbow into the side of Er Mao: 'I'm saying, brother, something's off—how does that big one seem so wary?'

Er Mao raised his hand and scratched at the corner of his twitching mouth: 'Maybe it got beaten up.' (To be continued..)

ps: (3.10)