Chapter 440

Zheng Tan didn't expect that after leaving the pet center studio he would still become popular, although not as explosively as when Jingzhang was around, but every time he goes out he still hears students pointing at him and gossiping.

Regarding this, Zheng Tan didn't feel much about it, and the Jiao Family didn't deliberately do anything either, after all the impact wasn't big, nor did it directly cause any trouble, at most just a few more photos taken of him.

Zheng Tan still goes to the school bus stop when he goes out, then continues to cooperate with the bald driver in playing games; as a result, the bus he's on always fills up instantly, and if the school's contract with these drivers didn't stipulate fines for overloading, the bald driver would probably overload every time.

Sometimes Zheng Tan doesn't go there, but the students who often take the school bus already know the bald driver; if they have a choice and aren't in a hurry, among the several buses parked there they prefer his, and some outgoing students even chat with the driver, like 'Did you break the game record?', 'Add a friend in the game to compare scores', 'Did that black cat come today?', etc., then they pull out their phones to scroll Weibo: 'Look, bro, I'm on this bus again today,' only regretting they didn't see that black cat.

The bald driver's good business makes the other drivers in the fleet envious, but what can be done? It's their fault they don't have a cat to draw crowds.

When Zheng Tan is in a good mood, he rides the bald driver's school bus around the campus; during breaks the bald driver shares the bread he keeps in his bag, after chewing it he drinks some water, then the bald driver continues driving and Zheng Tan keeps sitting in the bus watching the scenery.

When Zheng Tan is present, the students intentionally vacate the front passenger seat; if someone clueless tries to take it, they'll get glared at by others. Unless Zheng Tan voluntarily gets up from the front passenger seat, hardly anyone else dares to grab it.

However, during a few peak times Zheng Tan won't go join the crowd; that would just be asking for discomfort.

Usually wandering around campus on foot feels different from circling the campus in a school bus; when Zheng Tan doesn't feel like moving himself, sitting in the bus to watch the scenery is also nice.

Zheng Tan got off at an intersection. This area is rather remote. Usually no one gets on or off here, but today an elderly lady with a little grandson was waiting nearby, waving; the bus was already full, so Zheng Tan got off directly. He gave up his seat to the grandmother and grandson. Moreover, Zheng Tan also thought of going to the old tile house area to have a look.

His phone is still hidden here. The old tile house area has gained a few more buildings marked with danger signs, but the school still hasn't made any major moves on these buildings. There are rumors that the school is planning to demolish and rebuild the whole area, but it's estimated to be delayed another one or two years, possibly longer.

Anyway, before this area is demolished, Zheng Tan still keeps his phone hidden in the old spot.

Liuba and Golden Turtle took on a big order, partnered to do a mission, and for these two months there's been no news. Before leaving, Liuba changed Zheng Tan's phone to a new one; mobile equipment updates are so fast that when Liuba upgraded his own equipment he also swapped Zheng Tan's, and he even helped top up the phone credit and get a plan; Zheng Tan finds it easy to use, with nothing to worry about.

He climbed in through the window, pulled open the drawer and took out his phone, then Zheng Tan started scrolling Weibo. He knows he's been relatively popular on Weibo lately; each time he opens his phone to look, he feels smug, then he comments a few times on the shooting angles of the new photos students took, picks out a few where he looks good and reposts them; since registering his account until now, Zheng Tan has posted quite a few Weibo entries.

Scrolling through Weibo, Zheng Tan sees a student promoting apocalypse theories; indeed, this year rumors of the apocalypse have been circulating, especially toward year-end when all kinds of rumors fly everywhere, with some people arguing and jumping on the bandwagon, even taking the chance to sell 'apocalypse survival kits'.

Forget the rest; Zheng Tan notices a netizen with the ID 'Dou Ni Wan Er Mu Ha Ha', whose recent Weibo posts are basically all about the apocalypse, such as 'The apocalypse is coming soon, how to spend money', 'If you don't go crazy now, it's over', 'Discussing the n ways to die in the apocalypse', etc.

After scrolling a few posts, Zheng Tan felt an urge to reply, and under that newly posted Weibo he left a comment: 'fool'.

The other party replied quickly as well; at first they argued with Zheng Tan about the possibility of the December 21, 2012 apocalypse, but seeing Zheng Tan still insist it was completely fake, they grew impatient, the debate turned into a quarrel; the other party is indeed a firm believer in the apocalypse, but Zheng Tan, who personally experienced that day, knows that life went on as usual afterward.

Because Zheng Tan's reposts of some of his own Weibo attracted quite a few fans, the other side's ID 'Dou Ni Wan Er Mu Ha Ha' also had many followers; when Zheng Tan and the other party got into this argument, both sides' followers came to watch.

Moreover, those who fear the world not being chaotic enough chimed in: 'What if nothing happens on the 21st? What then?'

'Dou Ni Wan Er Mu Ha Ha' replied: 'If this is fake, I'll livestream cutting off my penis!'

More people joined in the uproar.

If you can fool people, you're right. Obviously, before the 21st, this 'Dou Ni Wan Er Mu Ha Ha' netizen indeed managed to fool quite a few people; look at that tone, firm without a hint of hesitation. Of course, some people think this guarantee is as unreliable as Taobao's 'fake one, pay with your life'.

Afterward, that 'Dou Ni Wan Er Mu Ha Ha' netizen alone posted another Weibo: 'If the 22nd comes just as usual, with no apocalypse, I'll curse myself to become a cat; if the apocalypse really happens, Zheng Tan, you'll turn into a cat like the black one in your avatar—dare to take the bet?!'

As soon as this Weibo, full of provocative challenge, was posted, some of the people who had been silently watching also jumped into the fray.

Zheng Tan was originally fumbling with his paws to type with difficulty, but who knew that before he could finish typing a sentence he saw this Weibo and instantly felt like smashing his phone.

Turn into a cat?

Turn into your grandpa's cat, damn it!!

Although such jokes are all over the internet, and to others it seems just a joking wager—if curses actually worked, why would we need police? But Zheng Tan is just pissed off, feeling as if countless knives are stuck in his body.

For Zheng Tan, his personal apocalypse was the day he opened his eyes and found himself turned into a cat; he truly feels this world is full of malice. Utterly absurd.

Zheng Tan really wanted to reply, 'If the apocalypse doesn't come, just let me turn back into a human,' but if he said that nobody would believe him; they'd say, 'If you're not human now, what are you?'

Even if separated by a great distance, everyone looking at their small phone screens wouldn't believe Zheng Tan's statement; instead, more people would jeer, saying Zheng Tan doesn't dare to take the bet.

Damn it!

He typed, deleted, retyped. Not satisfied. He deleted again, and finally Zheng Tan took a deep breath and shut down the machine.

Forget it, out of sight, out of mind. No matter what you say, it won't change reality.

He put the phone back in the drawer, Zheng Tan climbed out through the window. He glanced at the somewhat gray sky outside, squatted beside the flowerbed and thought carefully, recalling whether he had ever made a similar bet with someone—lose and turn into a cat or something. His memory is a bit fuzzy, but Zheng Tan still firmly believes he never made such a bet; the question is, why did he turn into a cat then?

This is something Zheng Tan has been unable to figure out for all these years.

While Zheng Tan was squatting beside the round flowerbed, deep in thought, an old man came out walking his big dog—it was Old Man Li and Xiao Hua. Xiao Hua should now be called Old Hua; although his body used to look somewhat clumsy, after losing weight compared to his peak, he actually feels more clumsy when he walks. The man and dog's pace isn't fast; they stroll along slowly, like two elderly fellows leaning on each other.

Large dogs show old age more easily than small ones, and their average lifespan isn't an advantage, so whenever Xiao Hua gets sick, Old Man Li gets nervous and also provides timely treatment; if the weather is good, he takes Xiao Hua out for a walk, which is beneficial activity for these two old fellows. Old Man Li also pays close attention to feeding Xiao Hua; after consulting at the pet center, he prepares dog food himself based on Xiao Hua's constitution, and he doesn't dare to feed him by starving one meal and overfeeding the next.

Not long ago, Old Man Li took Xiao Hua to the pet center for a checkup; the people there said Xiao Hua should live over fifteen years without problems. Whether the staff at the pet center said that out of respect for Old Man Li's face or based on Xiao Hua's health examination report inferring theoretical results, Old Man Li has consistently followed Xiao Guo and the others' advice these past years, doing it consistently and persistently; even though Xiao Hua isn't like Niu Zhuangzhuang, who can catch mice and chase thieves, this white‑haired old man still treats the dog—larger and gentler than the other dogs in the compound—like a family member.

Watching those two old fellows walk away, Zheng Tan jumped down from the flowerbed. A wind picked up; the dry yellow leaves still clinging to the branches were pulled off, fell onto the concrete, and made a hissing sound when blown.

He stepped on the fallen leaves, making them crackle, then Zheng Tan walked along the path toward the compound; after just a few steps and a turn, he saw Sahala lying on the ground ahead, humming with his nose, making an 'ah-oo ah-oo' sound.

Ruan Ying stood a few steps in front of it, looking helpless.

'Just two more steps. Come on, be good, just two steps,' Ruan Ying said to Sahala.

'Ah-oo-ah~' Sahala still didn't move.

'Lazy bum!' Ruan Ying angrily paced in place.

Like Old Man Li and his dog, Ruan Ying also takes time each day to walk Sahala, but unlike Xiao Hua who is cooperative, Sahala seems innately rebellious; even at his age he still plays little tricks—you want him to do something, he won't, and if you stop him from doing it he instead gets all excited and playful.

This fellow is also lazy; at home he's constantly moving, like he has ADHD, but once outside he gets lazy, lying down after walking a short stretch; Ruan Ying doesn't want to yank the leash like he did a few years ago, fearing to cause injury, and even though the pet center's health check came back good, he still can't bring himself to do it.

Zheng Tan saw this and smirked inwardly: Sahala now loves to act weak, when just yesterday he chased off a little Pekingese that tried to steal his bone, running him all over the compound, and today he's pretending to be frail again, as if he's sure Ruan Ying can't do anything to him.

Sure enough, in the end Ruan Ying still ended up holding Sahala.

'Hold you for a bit, then you walk on your own—heard that?' Ruan Ying scolded.

'Ah-oo ah-oo——' Even while being held, Sahala wasn't still, wriggling about; he found this hold less comfortable than before and voiced his protest.

Ruan Ying, who has raised Sahala for many years, is obviously very familiar with every one of his calls and movements.

'Be still, don't move around—you just pooped, and I'm not going to hold your butt!'

'Ah-oo ah-oo ah-oo~'

'Damn, I've raised an ancestor?!' Ruan Ying muttered.

Stuck with such a dog, and having raised him for so many years, Ruan Ying accepted his bad nature; he changed his holding posture, and Sahala indeed became much more obedient, stopped calling, then glanced back at Zheng Tan behind him and wagged his tail triumphantly.

Zheng Tan thought to himself: 'Pathetic!'

Beep beep——

At the intersection ahead, Jiao Ba was riding his electric scooter, looking in Zheng Tan's direction and honking the horn.

Zheng Tan chuckled, hurried over and jumped onto the car seat, then, when Ruan Ying wasn't paying attention, he gave Sahala the middle finger. (To be continued...)