Chapter 370: Causing Trouble

It was a winter afternoon, and the sunlight was just right.

Along the withered, yellow grass of Dongqu Dayuan, four cats lay side by side on a wooden bench.

All four cats were in the same posture, tucking their paws, squinting, facing outward, basking on the wooden chair.

At first, Zheng Tan wouldn't tuck his paws like that, because it looked plainly cat‑like and he felt a bit uneasy. But when he saw the surrounding cats doing it, he unconsciously started tucking his paws as well; besides, tucking the paws kept him warm, wasn't tiring, and suited the weather. Habit is a frightening thing; once formed, things become taken for granted. Now Zheng Tan often imitates them, folding his front paws inward and tucking them.

People passed through the courtyard from time to time, and seeing the four cats on the wooden bench never surprised them; they just smiled. Anyone who had lived in the courtyard for a while knew these four cats, and for the elders here, they had become an inseparably familiar sight. Perhaps one day this scene vanished, people would still reminisce about it.

Although the four cats shared the same posture, looking as if they were all dozing, even the slightest sound made their ears twitch in unison on the bench.

Zheng Tan didn't know what the other three cats were thinking; he himself just felt the sunlight too glaring, squinting as he pondered.

Zheng Tan hadn't opened his phone for a week; the phone Liuba gave him was locked away in a drawer of an old wooden table inside the ramshackle house and hadn't been touched since, and he decided that for a long while, unless something special arose, he wouldn't touch either phone, even though he wanted to text the Jiao Family. But for now, he would leave them alone.

The old ramshackle district wouldn't be demolished anytime soon; if demolition were planned, a notice would be posted in advance. Zheng Tan wasn't worried about it being torn down; even if he didn't go there daily, as long as he took a walk and glanced over to confirm the phones were still there, that would suffice. As for everything else, Zheng Tan chose not to worry about it for now.

Collaboration?

We'll talk about it when we actually want to collaborate.

Zheng Tan had long ago deleted all messages and call logs from the old phone, though he knew professionals could still extract a lot of data. There was nothing he could do about it. Fortunately, the chance of a professional discovering anything was low; if discovered, he could only turn to Liuba and the others for help, provided Liuba kept quiet. Who would know that the phone's true owner was actually a cat?

The reason Zheng Tan didn't immediately reject Liuba's suggestion and kept the phone was that he feared something might happen; having a fallback, a way to solve problems, and being able to use the phone to seek help. He still trusted Liuba's capability. Over the past week, Liuba hadn't shown up again, and Zheng Tan wasn't sure if he was busy with new work.

Just as he was thinking, Zheng Tan heard the owner of Sahala on the family building start shouting again.

He opened his eyes, and soon saw Sahala burst out like a wild horse unbridled, running faster as the people behind shouted.

As the dog sprinted out of the courtyard gate, its owner Ruan Ying, panting, stopped running, saw the four cats lying on the wooden bench, and walked over slowly, complaining as he went.

"Damn, it's just a bath. It's like treating a class enemy."

Sahala wasn't much averse to baths in summer—sometimes even loved the water hose—but in winter it was a different story; the moment it heard the words "bath," it would bolt. When at home, Ruan Ying could corner it in a corner and drag it to the bathroom, but today luck was bad, and the creature escaped.

That afternoon Ruan Ying had nothing to do, and upon returning home saw that Sahala hadn't bathed in ages, so he planned to give the creature a wash. At that moment Sahala was happily gnawing dog food from a bowl, oblivious to Ruan Ying's movements with shampoo and bathing tools. Unfortunately, Ruan Ying's grandfather arrived, accompanied by an elderly professor who was on good terms with Professor Ruan, and upon seeing Ruan Ying's gloves and tools said, "Ruan Ying, are you going to bathe Sahala?"

Almost instantly, Sahala slipped out like a gust of wind through the still‑ajar door crack, abandoning the unfinished dog food. Meanwhile, a teacher downstairs had just returned from outside, opened the access control, and inadvertently let Sahala escape.

Because he knew Sahala hated baths when it was cold, Ruan Ying moved silently, fearing any premature noise would alert the creature. Many cats and dogs react to certain sounds and words; in the courtyard, a Pekingese that despises baths year‑round would, at the sound of its special bathtub, immediately tuck its tail and hide in its nest, refusing any coaxing, and only ever being forced out of its nest into the tub for washing.

Once Sahala ran off, it wouldn't be caught for a while, so Ruan Ying didn't intend to chase it directly—that would be exhausting. When the stupid dog got hungry it would naturally return; under normal circumstances Sahala wouldn't leave the school, staying hidden on campus, so there was no need to worry.

Ruan Ying glanced at the four cats on the bench, thought that Sahala still didn't obey the other cats, and finally fixed his gaze on Zheng Tan, saying, "Hei Tan, if you see Sahala while you're out, give it two slaps for me; it's getting more disobedient! Damn, it's so hard to deal with!"

When Ruan Ying said that, he didn't expect Zheng Tan to understand; many pet owners speak to their animals like that out of habit, not believing the pets truly comprehend, just as many elders in the courtyard tease Zheng Tan's cats as if they were children.

After Ruan Ying left, Zheng Tan lay on the bench for a while; by three or four o'clock, the sun was weak, and continuing to squat felt a bit cold. A Huang and Jingzhang also planned to go into the woods to look for something fun.

Also short‑haired, but Da Pang, the chubby one with a layer of fat, was more cold‑tolerant; he could stay in the same crouch until sunset, enduring the north wind without wavering. That endurance seemed forged from squatting over instant noodles.

Thus, Da Pang kept napping on the bench, A Huang and Jingzhang went off to find fun, and Zheng Tan left the courtyard for a walk.

During his walk, Zheng Tan spotted Sahala, which was sniffing back and forth near a row of parked bicycles, then looked around, walked to a bicycle, lifted a hind leg, and began urinating on it.

Zheng Tan: "…"

After finishing, Sahala scratched its leg twice, seeming pleased and proud, but its triumph was short‑lived; two male students walked over, and one instantly wore an angry expression.

"Damn! That dog is peeing again!! It's staring at me, right?"

"Again?"

Zheng Tan was puzzled; although Sahala had a mischievous streak and liked pranks, it rarely urinated indiscriminately when out, and it seldom ran out on its own—most of the time it was led out by someone. How could it now urinate on a car right in front of Ruan Ying and the others? Looking for a fight? No wonder Ruan Ying said the creature was getting more disobedient. When he said that, Ruan Ying looked clenched‑tooth.

The bicycle's owner ran over, and Sahala, upon seeing a person, fled quickly, but unlike its usual habit of sprinting away after mischief, this time it ran a few steps, turned back, and growled at the two people a few times. When they chased, it ran again, and after a short distance it growled again.

Is this a grudge now?

Otherwise Sahala wouldn't start a pointless feud like this, right?

Zheng Tan perched on a tree, watching the two men cursing and failing to catch Sahala, then glancing at Sahala, which stayed about a hundred meters away, watching but not running. Zheng Tan wondered if they had taken Sahala away earlier, when he heard the two men speak softly.

"Hey, do you think we were seen by it last time, so it's been staring at us?" one said.

"No way, it's just a dog. How could it know anything? Besides, the bike we took wasn't its, what business does it have?" The other pulled out a pack of tissues to wipe, but after looking at the wet wheels and even the footboard splashed, he frowned in disgust, put the tissues back, kicked the bike, and said, "I don't want this bike! We'll just sell it later; it's worthless anyway."

Zheng Tan listened to their conversation; they fell silent when someone passed, then resumed after the person left. Though they spoke softly, Zheng Tan's hearing still caught it.

Turns out they were bike thieves; they probably got spotted by Sahala earlier, which is why they complained about its attitude. But how did these two thieves get linked to Sahala? Did they steal it to Sahala's home? Zheng Tan recalled that Sahala's owner Ruan Ying owned a four‑door car, and nobody in Ruan Ying's family seemed to ride bicycles.

Puzzled, Zheng Tan looked at Sahala, and saw it had its sights on a person again—a seemingly refined female student riding a bike. Sahala rushed over, knocked both the girl and the bike down, causing the girl to scream.

The two men, who had been discussing when to sell the bike, heard the commotion, cursed, and ran over, while nearby enthusiastic students who passed by began comforting the fallen female student and seemed intent on confronting Sahala.

Zheng Tan, seeing something amiss, hurried over.

Sahala, being clever, turned and fled as soon as more people gathered, not stopping at all this time.

The surrounding students shouted about finding the dog's owner to hold them accountable; many echoed the sentiment, saying they'd post the incident on the school forum so everyone would beware of the dog, maybe it had rabies or something.

Some students seemed to recognize Sahala; after more than five years at the school, its presence was as familiar to Zheng Tan as his own stay. Regular passers could identify it as a teacher's pet, though they weren't sure whose. Perhaps someone knew, as those people were still debating when Zheng Tan left.

Zheng Tan chased Sahala up to the courtyard corner, where Sahala hid behind a few trees; as Zheng Tan approached, the creature peeked out, and seeing only Zheng Tan, its courage returned instantly, its tail wagging exuberantly, unclear whether it was happy to see Zheng Tan or proud of its recent deed.

Zheng Tan saw the dog's face and wanted to slap it a few times.

Hiding there's no use!

This thing caused trouble for its owner and doesn't even know it.

But thinking back, the female student Sahala knocked down earlier—was she part of that duo? They surely knew each other, though it's unclear if they took part in the crime. If the student was innocent and the other side still seeks accountability, Sahala will probably be in trouble this time. (To be continued…)