Chapter 40

It was New Year's Eve.

Jiao Ba was in the bedroom organizing some papers and documents on the computer, and at the same time he was emailing and chatting with his friends both overseas and domestically.

Yuanzi went back to his hometown in another province for the New Year; his mother was alone at the old home, and this year he had to accompany the elderly lady and also go to pay respects to the elderly gentleman. At the company side, Fei Hang and Wei Leng were helping to look after things, and Jiao Ba sometimes lent a hand.

However, when Zheng Tan went out for a stroll a few days earlier, he overheard Old Man Lan downstairs and his friends talking about Jiao Ba; this group of retired professors, whose influence remained strong, always got more reliable information than others, so that day Zheng Tan unusually hid nearby to eavesdrop.

Jiao Ba's reputation in the institute was rising, mainly because he had produced an outstanding graduate student. At the institute's academic annual meeting before the year, Yi Xin's performance was outstanding; his high-impact-factor paper already published in overseas journals directly made him the undisputed first place at the meeting, and few in the whole school could match him, which caused the other two students who were also rated first in the institute to lose their luster.

Nowadays, whenever people mention Yi Xin, they definitely also mention Associate Professor Jiao; without Associate Professor Jiao, there would be no current Yi Xin, and everyone knows this. Therefore, Associate Professor Jiao's momentum is now approaching that of the two young overseas-return professors recently recruited by the institute.

Thus, some people in the institute began to speculate when Associate Professor Jiao's 'associate' title would be dropped. After all, if he continues this brilliant state, the school might very well promote him exceptionally. Besides publications, Chu Hua University has an important hard requirement for promotion to professor: one must have overseas experience.

After graduation, Jiao Ba went directly to Chu Hua University with Jiao Ma, where he has been teaching ever since, without any overseas research experience. Jiao Ba's recent long hours in front of the computer are probably due to this. He is preparing for that 'overseas experience'. After all, a full professor enjoys far greater benefits in every respect than an associate professor, and can act more freely.

Zheng Tan curled up on the edge of the sofa, rolled over, changed his position, and continued lying down.

Because cat-disappearance incidents kept being reported in the surrounding area, Zheng Tan did not go out at night these few days; as soon as the sun set, he curled up on the sofa with Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi to watch 'Super Robot Warriors'. Although it was rather boring for Zheng Tan, it was not hard to endure. Lying on the sofa, he would think things over, sleep when tired, and get ready to eat upon waking.

After a few episodes, Jiao Yuan went to change the disc; Zheng Tan had no interest in the content being shown in the cartoon, having seen it before and not wanting to rewatch it, and looking at it with the eyes of an adult ten years later, the show seemed childish. What Zheng Tan was now pondering was: if Jiao Ba went abroad for a year or two, how would the household manage? Jiao Ma's burden would surely increase greatly… no, wait, there's still Yi Xin, and the new graduate students to be recruited after the New Year could also help…

The yellow leopard on TV suddenly sprang up while running, transformed into a robot state, and shouted loudly, 'Yellow Leopard Warrior, transform!'

Zheng Tan was lost in thought when Jiao Yuan suddenly dragged him up from beside him.

'Black Cat Warrior, transform!' Jiao Yuan shouted.

Zheng Tan: '…' Screw you! Damn kid!

Shoving Jiao Yuan's hand aside, Zheng Tan stepped on his trousers, hopped over him, and lay down beside Xiao Youzi, ignoring the excited Jiao Yuan; while Xiao Youzi watched TV, he also helped Zheng Tan scratch his chin and comb his fur, etc.

Due to the city's fireworks ban, firecrackers are rarely heard in the urban area; without firecrackers there is no festive flavor, as bland as cooking without salt. However, policies have relaxed somewhat in recent years, and sometimes there are organized limited displays. Some commercial plazas and the like will apply to set off fireworks—for example, on the sixth day of the first lunar month the central department store will host a merchant-organized fireworks display, and Jiao Ba said he would take the two kids to have a look. As for the days before the sixth, Jiao Yuan could not get enough of firecrackers, both visually and manually.

Next door's Qu Xiangyang went to his parents' place for the New Year; he probably won't come back after this year's celebrations, and when he left he took several boxes of stuff, all computer-related.

General had long ago followed its owner to the south; the damp, cold winter here is not to its liking, so it likely will not return until spring.

Da Pang and that elderly lady were not spending the New Year here either; the elderly couple Lan on the third floor, however, remained in the staff quarters, with Lan Tianzhu's parents present, and they would leave after finishing the New Year's Eve meal.

Zheng Tan hardly has any impression of the New Year; trying to recall how he spent previous years yields nothing—maybe he was at a bar, or maybe he was going crazy outside with a bunch of lonely friends and dog buddies. Now, when he tries to remember again, he suddenly feels unreal, as if it's not real.

Who would have thought that waking up one morning would turn a person into a cat?

After finishing the New Year's Eve meal, not long later, Wei Leng, who was staying at the company, called to offer New Year greetings; Jiao Ba took the call, and after their conversation ended, he had Zheng Tan come over to listen to the phone.

Zheng Tan dubiously jumped onto the nearby desk; Jiao Ba placed the receiver beside Zheng Tan's feet, Zheng Tan leaned in to listen, and from it came Wei Leng's voice: 'Hei Tan, Senior Brother Hetao asks me to convey his blessings—Happy New Year!'

Zheng Tan tugged at his ears, then forcefully exhaled through his nose to indicate he understood.

'You could at least make a sound—on such a big New Year's, you're just brushing me off?' Wei Leng said from the other end, 'My comrades are all listening nearby; otherwise I'd lose face.'

After a pause, Zheng Tan finally gave face and let out a cry: 'Ao wu!'

'Hahaha, Wei Leng, it sounds like you're talking to a dog—I thought it was Professor Jiao's kid! But this dog reminds me of the telephone-answering wolfdog we had in the unit before.'

From the receiver came the voice of Wei Leng's comrade.

"Not a dog, I'm talking to a cat." Wei Leng explained, then spoke into the microphone: "Hei Tan, they don't believe it; why don't you meow?"

"Aooow!" Meow!

Zheng Tan directly lifted his paw and pressed the hang-up key, then went back to the sofa to wait for the Spring Festival Gala with Jiao Ma and the two kids.

At the company's side, Wei Leng listened to the beeping sound coming from the phone, then laughed and cursed: "Damn, this temper is still as foul as ever!"

Beside him, Wei Leng's comrade thought for a moment and asked: "Was that sound really a cat?"

"Really, if you don't believe me, go ask my senior brother." Wei Leng handed the phone to the other comrades who hadn't made a call yet.

They still had a landline here, but too many people wanted to make calls, so they were queuing up; Wei Leng didn't mind the call charges and contributed his own phone for those without mobile phones.

Here, Zheng Tan kept them company while they watched a bit of the Spring Festival Gala; when Xiao Youzi went back to her room to sleep, he followed her there. For a cat, spending most of the twenty-four-hour day sleeping is perfectly normal, so Zheng Tan felt no psychological burden.

……

During the New Year, visiting relatives for greetings had nothing to do with Zheng Tan; however, as a cat, what he hated most were those ill-mannered kids who came over to pull his tail. To avoid trouble, whenever there were guests at home, Zheng Tan would run outside to play.

That day was the same; Zheng Tan didn't wander around the campus for long before heading toward Xiao Guo's pet center. Xiao Guo and the others stayed here for the New Year, and the pet center also had some employees who didn't go home, eating the New Year's Eve dinner together, and on the first day of the lunar month they continued to take turns looking after the boarded pets. The pet center's business this year was booming; perhaps the expanded scale made it feel more trustworthy, and its grade rose significantly.

Especially the advertising effect—many people from other provinces know the Chu Hua Shi shop called "Mingming Ruci", know that its cat food is quite good, and those ads are extremely eye-catching. But so far, no one knows what the identity of the black cat named "blackc" featured in the ads is; the shop owner Xiao Guo says it's a hired, trained cat, some believe it, others remain skeptical.

Zheng Tan didn't go straight into the pet center; he just strolled along a few streets between the school and the pet center. While strolling, he overheard some people talking, the gist being: Over the past couple days, several families' cats have gone missing. This includes the black cat that used to fight with Zheng Tan all the time.

Without the cats, plus the holiday-closed shops, the street looked rather desolate, too lifeless and gloomy.

While wandering, Zheng Tan ran into Li Yuanba again, who was patrolling the streets with Peanut Candy. Yanzi definitely wasn't spending New Year at the pet center, but Li Yuanba was still staying there; anyway, Yanzi would be back in a few days, so there was no need to move the nest back and forth.

Upon seeing Zheng Tan, Peanut Candy, who usually wore a solemn face beside Li Yuanba, rare-ly let out a "meow" to greet him.

Xiao Guo once joked that Zheng Tan was like Peanut Candy's godfather, otherwise why would Peanut Candy be cold toward the other cats in the shop, yet every time he sees Zheng Tan he meows a few times, and occasionally even rolls around in front of him.

These things wouldn't even happen in front of the swallow, so the swallow sometimes feels quite envious of Zheng Tan—just who is raising them!

Zheng Tan doesn't even lick his own fur, so he certainly wouldn't lick Peanut Candy's fur, nor would he "meow"; he dislikes making noise because each vocalization stimulates his brain nerves, reminding him that he has gone from a speaking human to a mere earth cat. However, to show affection for his juniors, Zheng Tan will raise his paw and gently pat Peanut Candy's head.

As for Peanut Candy, he's already used to Zheng Tan's way of greeting, so when Zheng Tan approaches, he presses his ears back, stretches his neck forward to let Zheng Tan pat him.

"What a teachable youngster!" Zheng Tan sighed. What an obedient little kitten—far more likable than those brats who only know how to pull his tail.

However, when Peanut Candy meowed, Zheng Tan noticed that this little guy's two canine teeth had grown noticeably longer—usually hard to see, only visible when he opens his mouth. Having collaborated on an ad with a kitten, Zheng Tan knows how big and long the canines of such kittens normally are; compared to them, Peanut Candy's teeth are especially numerous.

After exchanging greetings, Li Yuanba continued to patrol the streets with Peanut Candy, and Zheng Tan went his separate way. Zheng Tan wasn't worried that Li Yuanba would be snatched by cat traffickers, and with him around, Peanut Candy would be fine.

Upon reaching a little lane in the old residential area, Zheng Tan heard a commotion ahead, with many people discussing something. He had originally planned to detour, but his ears suddenly caught words like "animal abuse", "kittens", "how pitiful".

Over there, a crowd had gathered, making it hard for Zheng Tan to get close. He looked around, then climbed up a broken wooden ladder propped against the wall, jumped from the ladder onto the surrounding wall, and as he approached the scene, leapt onto a resident's balcony inside the wall—where he wouldn't easily be spotted and could observe the situation well.

The balcony's door was also tightly locked, with a layer of dust on the floor. The owners were likely out of town for the New Year, and the house seemed unoccupied for days—this was also a major reason Zheng Tan chose this place.

Zheng Tan stood on a flowerpot containing only soil, no plants, and looked through the gap between two rags drying there toward the scene.

Many people surrounded the area, almost completely blocking the center of the incident; from Zheng Tan's angle he couldn't see much, but when the crowd started shoving, he caught glimpses of the ground through the occasional gaps.

On the ground lay three small spotted cats, less than a month old, their bodies stained with blood, lying motionless on the cold pavement. Beside them crouched a white, long-haired large cat, which from time to time would come over to sniff the three kittens, touching them with its nose, then call out twice toward a young man leaning against the wall two steps away, smoking and looking carefree; to Zheng Tan, the sound sounded like crying, each note drawn out long, like a wail.

The smoking young man tossed his jacket aside, revealing arms tattooed with a dragon pattern, which looked intimidating—perhaps that's why some of the bystanders dared not speak up too much.

Earlier, someone had spoken too harshly, and this dragon-tattooed young man punched him twice hard; if not for bystanders pulling him apart, he might have beaten him even worse. Several somewhat older people standing nearby were also kicked twice by him and helped away.

From the clamor of these people, Zheng Tan got a rough idea. This cat lived next door, but its owner's family moved away the previous year, didn't take it, because it was too troublesome, and moreover there was still a litter of unweaned kittens. The dragon‑tattooed neighbor said he would take in these cats; the family was in a hurry to leave, although they knew this fierce and evil‑looking neighbor was hard to get along with, and the cats following him would surely suffer, but in the end they didn't say much, picked up their luggage and left.

The tattooed man took in these cats, planning to sell them later for money; as for daily care, he fed the cats perfunctorily, giving them whatever he happened to eat when he remembered, and if he forgot, he just let it be.

Not every cat has a stomach as strong as Zheng Tan's. Unable to eat that food, the female cat had to go out to forage, and when she returned she happened to see the tattooed man throwing the kittens.

The tattooed man was simply taking out his anger from outside on the cats; the nearby residents who saw it came to reprimand him, but were each beaten away, and calling the police did no good.

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