Chapter 391

Zheng Tan kicked Huang Laoban, then stood on the counter watching the person who almost toppled from the chair.

Although Er Mao had already told Huang Laoban not to use such petty tricks on Zheng Tan, Zheng Tan remained wary of Huang Laoban, who possessed some special abilities. He wasn't familiar with Huang Laoban; their first meeting was due to the weather, when Huang Laoban let them in to take shelter from the rain, for which Zheng Tan expressed gratitude. But once he learned that this person was acquainted with Er Mao, he knew he couldn't be an honest man, otherwise he wouldn't be hanging out with Er Mao. As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together.

Thus, even though he knew this person wouldn't truly harbor ill intent, Zheng Tan stayed alert, guarding against pranks, never expecting the incident to happen now.

When Huang Laoban produced the coin just now, Zheng Tan felt a strange sensation, the same odd feeling he had that night when Huang Laoban messed with Yu Ge, so Zheng Tan stayed on guard.

Because Huang Laoban treated Zheng Tan as an ordinary cat, he wasn't very cautious, and moreover he misjudged the force of Zheng Tan's kick, then went to grab the cat's tail like a brat—wasn't that asking for trouble? That's why he got kicked straight away.

Zheng Tan watched the wide-eyed Huang Laoban, lifted his paw and stepped on the coin lying flat on the counter. He gave it a hard flick. The coin shot out, striking the wall behind the cash register with a clear "ding", then bounced off and fell onto Huang Laoban's head, sliding down his hair.

Huang Laoban caught the coin. After all, he was an experienced person, so he quickly calmed down; aside from the earlier shock, he now felt mainly curious.

Huang Laoban caught the coin. After all, he was an experienced person, and he quickly calmed down; besides the earlier shock, now his heart was filled more with curiosity.

He had long been adept at using those tricks on small animals like cats and dogs, and had never before encountered this situation.

Huang Laoban had just taken a kick to the face; fortunately he dodged quickly, blocking some of the force with his hand, and his nose wasn't hit. Otherwise he'd be bleeding now. It seems this cat's strength is considerable—no wonder Er Mao warned not to provoke it.

Huang Laoban rose and walked over to a shelf displaying mirrors of various sizes. He picked one up and checked his facial injury. Seeing it wasn't serious, he didn't worry further; the minor wound would heal soon.

Huang Laoban got up and walked to a shelf, where mirrors of various sizes were displayed. He picked one up and glanced at it, checking his facial injury. Seeing it was nothing serious, he stopped worrying; the small wound on his face would heal quickly.

Zheng Tan kept paying attention to Huang Laoban's movements, from when this person walked to the shelf, picked up the mirror, walked to one side to get a cup, put in tea leaves, poured water, and so on; Zheng Tan felt that strange sensation at least three times. The first time, Huang Laoban even turned his head and looked at Zheng Tan for a few seconds; the second time, he only glanced at Zheng Tan twice; the third time he didn't look over, but his peripheral vision still noticed Zheng Tan's side.

After that, Zheng Tan no longer felt that sensation; seeing that the time was about right, he left the grocery store and went home.

In the evening, after finishing dinner, Er Mao ran to the grocery store again to chat with Huang Laoban, hearing Huang Laoban talk about what happened with Zheng Tan today.

"I told you not to provoke that cat if there's no problem, didn't I?" Er Mao frowned.

"I just had a sudden idea, I didn't plan to do anything to it; I just wanted to see whether it was male or female, but I didn't expect to end up getting kicked." Huang Laoban sighed, "Speaking of which, that cat is really strange."

Er Mao knew what Huang Laoban was thinking now; this person, thanks to some inherited 'folk arts', usually succeeded whenever he used them, but today he hit a hard snag with Zheng Tan.

Huang Laoban's perception is very keen; wherever he focuses his attention on a target, he strikes from there, impossible to guard against—whether it's a person, a cat, or any other animal, he has succeeded before, and Zheng Tan's behavior today undoubtedly gave Huang Laoban a blatant slap.

Of course, Huang Laoban is not some petty person who must retaliate for every grudge; he feels that if he can't get a hold on it, it's either because his skills haven't reached the required level, or because his tricks are utterly useless against the opponent. In the former case, wanting to make further progress now is certainly not something that can be achieved overnight; short-term success is impossible. As for the latter case, that's not something Huang Laoban can decide—no matter how much effort he puts in, it would be wasted, because it's absolute immunity.

Huang Laoban was relieved that it was just a cat, not someone he had a grudge with. Having figured that out, after trying a few times he stopped testing Zheng Tan, and Zheng Tan no longer felt that strange sensation.

"Sometimes I really feel that cat isn't actually a cat, just looks like one… well, we're not superstitious, but using the academic explanations of those old-timers who study the occult, it would probably be called a supernatural phenomenon."

"What do you think?" Er Mao asked.

Huang Laoban spread his hands, picked up a cigarette, lit it, took a few puffs, and said, "No particular thoughts; even if it's a supernatural phenomenon, just seeing it once is enough—I'm too lazy to research it, I still have to go restock."

"Cough cough!" Huang Laoban was choked by Er Mao's remark, "And then?"

"I almost had my handsome face ruined." Every time Er Mao recalls that time, he feels he's quite a goofball; fortunately he had covered his head with his jacket then, so he wasn't hit.

Huang Laoban just smiled. Instantly he felt his mind balanced.

Over the next few days, Zheng Tan didn't go that way; he only ran into Er Mao while strolling around school and heard a few words from him.

Er Mao said Huang Laoban's tricks don't work on Zheng Tan; Zheng Tan believes that, but he also can't help thinking further: why do those tricks work on other people and animals, yet have no effect on him? Er Mao and the others not being affected could be said to be due to their own abilities, but as for Zheng Tan himself, he knows his own limits; among the explanations he can think of, the most likely is that it's his own biggest secret.

After all, he's not really a cat, nor is he really a human. Whether using methods meant for people or those meant for animals, they don't work on Zheng Tan.

After hearing Er Mao's words, Zheng Tan noticed Er Mao's expression, which was no different from usual; the next day he ran over to the grocery store again to have a look, and Huang Laoban showed no surprise, his reaction still fairly normal. This also let Zheng Tan breathe a sigh of relief.

After summer vacation comes a new semester's start-of-school season.

Every year the start-of-school season brings in a tidy profit; for Huang Laoban, the most important thing now is to ensure sufficient stock, because by then there won't be much time left to run off and restock. Thanks to last year's experience, Huang Laoban knows exactly how much goods to bring in and what kinds of goods; as for other matters, he doesn't bother with them, as he would say, 'Making money without taking it is foolish'—haven't you seen those nearby shops busy dealing with the start-of-school rush?

Huang Laoban owns a used pickup truck. As a hybrid between a sedan and a cargo vehicle, this passenger-cargo dual-purpose model is very practical for someone like him.

Er Mao has nothing going on at home; his wife stays home to look after the kids, there's also a nanny, and he's usually fairly idle. Knowing that Huang Laoban was going to restock, Er Mao thought of going along for a drive.

When Er Mao told Huang Laoban about this, Zheng Tan was also listening nearby; Er Mao's intention to accompany him on the restocking trip was just to add a bit of novelty, and also he wanted to follow Huang Laoban to see a few of the 'folk arts' practitioners Huang Laoban knew.

Are there really many of these 'folk arts' practitioners? Zheng Tan usually doesn't stray far from this area; even when he goes out, he merely glances at the outside scenery through the car window, never examining anything in detail; his understanding of many places exists only online and on maps. Although he's lived in Chu Hua Shi for six years, the places he's actually visited are really limited.

Remember when Zheng Tan first moved to Dongqu Dayuan, he used to tag along with the delivery truck from Dongyuan Supermarket to go farther out and play; after the driver changed, he stopped going along, because the new driver was too sly and Zheng Tan didn't really trust him.

Er Mao told Huang Laoban about wanting to accompany him on the restocking run, glanced at Zheng Tan nearby, and asked whether Zheng Tan wanted to go. Zheng Tan certainly wanted to, but he still needed to inform Jiao Ba first, so he left the task to Er Mao.

Jiao Ba didn't object either; Zheng Tan wasn't doing this for the first time, and his only requirement for Zheng Tan was one sentence—don't stir up trouble.

It seems that in many people's eyes, Zheng Tan is a trouble magnet—wherever he goes he runs into something; it's unclear whether it's because of Zheng Tan that so many incidents happen, or whether it's just coincidence that lets Zheng Tan encounter so many things; either way, the Jiao family's unease centers on this.

The grocery store's boss, Jiao Ba, had met Zheng Tan once before; now Zheng Tan wants to go out with someone again, so he specially visited the grocery store once more. Given Jiao Ba's understanding of Zheng Tan, he knows that once there's a first time, there will be a second, a third, and maybe every time Huang Laoban goes to restock, his own cat will tag along for a run.

The owner of the grocery store, Jiao Ba, had met once before; now Zheng Tan was going to follow someone out for a run, so he specially went to visit the grocery store again. Given Jiao Ba's understanding of Zheng Tan, Jiao Ba knew that once there was a first time, there would be a second, a third, and perhaps every time Huang Laoban went to restock, his own cat would follow along for a run.

That day, having agreed on the date for restocking, Er Mao went to the fifth floor to find Zheng Tan, and they headed to the grocery store together.

When they arrived, Huang Laoban was helping to look at the list, which contained the types and quantities of goods to be purchased, compiled by him and the staff; it had been checked yesterday, and he was reviewing it once more before departure.

"Mattresses, cooling mats, electric fans, flashlights, cloth wardrobes, shoe racks, hooks, bedside tables…" Huang Laoban went through them one by one; the list was still quite long, and Er Mao didn't go over to disturb him.

"Alright, that's it." Huang Laoban folded the list, slipped it into his pocket, and called Er Mao and Zheng Tan to get in the car.

This pickup has double rows of seats; Er Mao sits in the front passenger seat, while Zheng Tan stays in the back. For now, going out is still relatively spacious, but once they return with the cargo, the back seat will probably be piled full of goods.

This pickup is a double‑cab; Er Mao sits in the passenger seat, while Zheng Tan stays in the back. For now there's still some room when we go out, but once we bring the cargo back I expect the rear seat will be piled full of goods.

「Life is like a heavenly book, hey hey, where should I start turning pages? My soul doesn't know where it's going, hey hey, where is the road home~」

Huang Laoban likes to sing as soon as he drives, but Zheng Tan has never heard this song before and always finds it weird and off‑key. Still, compared to the general, it's bearable.

"Old Huang, change to something more uplifting—this song makes me feel weak all over." Er Mao said.

Huang Laoban thought for a moment, then continued singing: "The big river flows eastward, wow the stars in the sky…… that shake wow~"

Zheng Tan, Er Mao: "……"

The white cat in the shop was squatting on the shelf, with no intention of following along; it usually doesn't go out much, just watching Huang Laoban get into the car, then its gaze closely followed the vehicle until it could no longer see the car's shadow before turning back. It glanced at the clerk who, after Huang Laoban left, plopped down eagerly in the boss's seat, and the white cat flicked something from its paw toward the clerk.

The clerk, who was sitting upright on the chair behind the counter with legs crossed, picking up a newspaper to read, only felt a dark, blobby object drop down and land on the newspaper.

"Fuck!"

The clerk was so startled they almost jumped up, and after seeing clearly, they said to the white cat with a stern face on the shelf: "Mimi, you've thrown mice around again!" (To be continued..)

ps: Some girls said let Chen Ci recommend something that's not a stallion‑type story. I flipped through the bookshelf and recommended 《Chief Imperial Physician》—Chen Ci has followed it, personally I think it's pretty good, enough for everyone to read for a long while; after finishing it, maybe the Returning Cat will have been raised for a dozen chapters.