Chapter 52: Hei Tan Was Really Captured

Word that someone was stealing cats spread through the Eastern District family compound without a trace.

No one expected that there would be a cat trapper on a university campus, and that it happened at ** o'clock in the evening, not in the middle of the night.

One has to admit, the cat thief is really bold this time.

For a while, within Chu Hua University campus, including the West Family Compound and other cat‑keeping households, as soon as night fell they tied their cats inside the house; even if the cats screamed their lungs out, they would not be let out. If they became truly troublesome, the owners would send them to Xiao Guo's place for neutering, as it is said neutered cats are less noisy. In any case, that's better than letting them run out and be trapped, because being trapped would likely make them someone else's meal.

So these past two days, the pet center run by Xiao Guo has been especially busy; even people who don't have their cats neutered will go over to ask if there are other ways to keep their cats quietly confined at home.

As for the cat‑stealing thief who was caught, the security office had a motorcycle parked at the wall of the Eastern District compound, with several large woven bags on it; one bag contained a few live sparrows, and there were also some cat‑luring foods, etc. From these items it's clear the person has done this many times.

According to his confession, he only came to set a cat trap here out of momentary interest after hearing a cat cry; his original plan was to go to a nearby residential complex, which was his main target.

Zheng Tan heard all this while Jiao Ba and Jiao Ma were talking, but he didn't believe any of the thief's statements at all; he thought the person was after him.

What a coincidence. To monitor a cat so carefully, and right after that someone comes to steal cats? And they come to the Eastern District family compound. Compared to other places, the Eastern District compound doesn't have many cats—far fewer than the cat‑keeping households in some dedicated residential complexes. Why would that person risk coming here at ** o'clock to set a trap? The timing also coincides exactly with his usual outing time.

In the bedroom, Jiao Ba held a textbook in his hand, but his attention wasn't on the book. He felt something was off, an inexplicable unease. In any case, he decided not to let his cat go out.

Zheng Tan shared Jiao Ba's thinking: since many things were uncertain and doubtful, he might as well stay quietly at home. Moreover, these past few days, not only Zheng Tan, but even Da Pang was locked inside, not even allowed on the balcony. The old lady cherished Da Pang, fearing that the cat she had raised, fed, and grown attached to would be stolen.

After staying at home for a week like that, Zheng Tan began to feel restless again. So, one morning, when Jiao Ma sent Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi out, Zheng Tan followed them out.

To be safe, Jiao Ma had Zheng Tan follow her; after she dropped the two children off at the Attached Elementary School, Jiao Ma went to the market. Zheng Tan certainly wouldn't go with her, but Jiao Ma, uneasy about Zheng Tan wandering, instructed him to wait on a patch of grass in front of the elementary school.

The morning sun had just risen, temperatures were beginning to climb, many flowers on campus had bloomed, and the chirping birds were noisy everywhere, pooping.

The class bell rang; whether at the elementary school or among university students, those with classes began their lessons, and the road fell quiet again.

Zheng Tan lay on a decorative stone, yawned, and indeed needed to breathe fresh air now and then.

Before he finished the yawn, Zheng Tan sensed a sudden wave of danger. Similar to the earlier surveillance incident, but now with a strong sense of peril; it was the first time Zheng Tan felt this since becoming a cat.

He looked around warily, and his gaze finally landed on a youth in a gray tracksuit; the youth wore a backpack, a mask, hands in his pockets, looking like an ordinary student.

Because of last year's ** incident, many people went out wearing masks; now fewer wear them, but some still do, even those riding small electric scooters to the city for work sometimes wear masks. The air in Chu Hua City's downtown isn't great; many areas are under construction, dusty, so wearing a mask doesn't draw extra attention.

Although the person wore a mask, Zheng Tan still recognized him.

It's that kid who was watching me a while ago!

Since he recognized him, Zheng Tan certainly had to stay alert; seeing the other walk toward him, Zheng Tan didn't intend to confront directly—there were few people around, which wasn't favorable for him.

But just as Zheng Tan was about to run, he felt a sharp pain in his back.

Aaa—

He couldn't finish the cry.

Numbness began spreading rapidly through his body, vision blurred, consciousness gradually slipping from his control.

Zheng Tan rolled off the decorative stone, landing on the side opposite the man; he struggled to pull the pet tag off his neck, and at that moment he was extremely grateful that his cat‑tag leash was elastic.

Even if captured, Zheng Tan wanted Jiao Ba and the others to know that he met his fate here!

He tossed the cat tag into the corner at the base of the decorative stone, then forced himself to crawl into the shrubbery on the other side. However, the anesthesia was too strong; his limbs were already limp, and after only a few steps he collapsed, a needle still embedded in his back.

Damn it! They used a tranquilizer gun on a cat!

In his daze, Zheng Tan sensed someone approaching, then had a leg grabbed and shoved into a bag, and after that, darkness enveloped him…

The youth seemed nervous and hurried; when he saw someone riding a bicycle pass by, he quickly ran over, stuffed the cat into his backpack, and left in a hurry, never noticing the cat tag in the corner beneath the decorative stone.

After grocery shopping, Jiao Ma carried several large bags, including pork ribs, planning to make a big meal for everyone today. But when she returned, the cat was no longer on the lawn. It had been lying on the stone before she left—had it gone to play?

"Hei Tan—"

She called twice; searching around the lawn, when she reached behind the decorative stone, she found the cat tag that had fallen there.

Jiao Ma asked the people nearby, but none had noticed anything; however, a teacher from the Attached Elementary School building said that when leaving the office they saw a masked person go toward the lawn. From her viewpoint, she couldn't see clearly what was happening on the lawn.

She set aside the groceries, quickly took out her phone and called Jiao Ba. Knowing her cat well, if she left it waiting here it wouldn't leave without reason, especially since the cat tag was left there. Her cat was that smart…

Recalling the recent cat‑capture incident, Jiao Ma was very worried: could it really have been taken away?!

In the teaching building, Jiao Ba was teaching when he felt his pocket phone vibrate; he glanced at the screen, frowned, took out the phone and stepped out of the classroom.

Normally teachers aren't allowed to answer calls during class, except for emergencies. When Jiao Ba saw Jiao Ma's number, he knew it must be urgent; otherwise she wouldn't have called knowing he had two morning classes.

The students in the classroom saw Associate Professor Jiao step out to take a call; a short while later he returned with a serious expression, turned off the projector, let everyone study on their own, and then hurried away.

After the young man who captured Zheng Tan rushed out of Chu Hua University's campus, intending to find a place to deal with the cat, his pocket phone rang.

"Uncle, what's up?"

"I'll be leaving in an hour; if you're going to leave, come quickly!" The other sounded a bit uneasy.

Why the rush? Didn't you say we were leaving only tonight?

"No, it's urgent, you must come quickly!" He hung up after saying that.

The young man hesitated, then gritted his teeth and decided to leave first; a cat can always be dealt with later! It's just that getting money might be a bit troublesome.

An hour later, the young man appeared at a warehouse on the outskirts; a small truck was parked in front, and a man in his forties or fifties stood nearby smoking.

Seeing the young man, the older man said impatiently, "Why did you just get here!"

"Just finished a job," the young man replied, pulling out his backpack to show the man.

The man took a deep drag, flicked the butt, opened the backpack zipper, and saw a black cat inside. He lifted the cat by its leg, looked at it, "Not bad, could fetch a good price. The fur's fine too; when we process it…"

"What to do with this cat? The client told me to kill it; I was planning to just toss it into the river, Uncle, and then you called."

"Why throw it away!" The man glared at the young man, "If the cat's been well‑fed and lucky, the meat plus that glossy fur could fetch a few hundred bucks. Pure black fur like this isn't common."

"Alright then," the young man agreed, "who wouldn't want to make money?"

The man lifted the cat into the truck and placed it in a cage.

The cargo area of this medium‑sized truck was filled with cages of cats, sorted into several grades according to appearance and price, each in different cages. Outside the cargo area were large cardboard boxes containing assorted junk; they handled those as side jobs to make extra cash.

After tossing the cat into an upper‑level cage, the man shut the cargo door, climbed into the driver's seat, and drove away.

The young man sat in the passenger seat; some questions he hadn't had time to ask before were finally brought up today.

"Uncle, why such a hurry?"

"These past two days, I don't know what's going on; inspections have caught several cat‑trading colleagues with fake permits, even the whole vehicle was impounded. I'm scared if we dig deeper, we'll get into trouble, so I fled first. We didn't catch many cats this time; the cargo cages aren't full yet. If the situation weren't urgent, I'd stay a few more days. Even without cat catches, we could still deal with some dogs; yesterday we saw a few big, fat dogs."

Check deeper? No way? Nothing like this has ever happened before. The young man expressed surprise.

Anyway, we're not planning to come to Chu Hua Shi these past few months; the situation here is tense. Damn it, so unlucky—we've never seen this before; those people used to just turn a blind eye, so why are they suddenly getting serious? That person complained while driving.

The young man in sportswear ignored his relative's complaint, took out his phone and started making a call. He had never met that employer, but as long as he got the job and got paid, it didn't matter whether they met.

The cat's taken care of—when will you send the money? the sportswear-clad youth asked.

Is the cat dead? the other side asked.

Hit with an anesthetic gun, if he can't hold out he'll probably die; even if he survives it's useless—my uncle's taking him south to sell to that market, where he'll end up as a dish on a plate. You don't need to worry about that.

The person on the other end of the phone fell silent, saying nothing.

The youth thought the other side didn't want to pay, and grew anxious: "Recently Chu Hua Shi has been tense, you're also urging me urgently—I've been risking exposure to help you, the anesthetic gun cost several thousand, your advance deposit is all sunk here—you can't let people feel bitter."

... Rest assured, the agreed 30,000 yuan—I'll transfer it to you shortly, and also, don't contact me again from now on.

After saying that, the other end hung up the phone.

The youth listened to the dial tone on the phone and cursed.

What? That guy wants to welch on the payment? the driver asked.

Who knows! the young man scoffed.

You're catching a cat and buying an anesthetic gun? What nonsense, the driver said dismissively.

I've inquired—I heard that cat has been trained, and the employer said the cat is sharp, so I've been careful even while watching it. The young man said, gradually changing the subject, and didn't mention how much the employer had paid him in total. Actually, his anesthetic gun was a secondhand purchase from a friend for just a few hundred yuan; even if the employer didn't pay, he'd still profit.

The person who went to Dongqu Dayuan to trap the cat was the one Zheng Tan contacted; he used that person to test things—if he managed to trap the cat, that would be even better, and Zheng Tan could send him away for just a few dozen yuan. But the result showed the cat was indeed hard to catch. Coincidentally, a friend had an anesthetic gun, so Zheng Tan bought it. However, over the next few days the cat never appeared, and he found no chance to act. Time dragged on too long, forcing him to take more drastic measures. He didn't know whether there were cameras around; if there were, he'd best lay low in the south for a while.

Using an anesthetic gun to catch a cat—something the young man himself had never imagined.

And in the cargo compartment of that medium-sized truck, in the cage placed on top, Zheng Tan and several cats were crowded together.

Many of the cats in the cage had been drugged, dazed and silent; even the awake ones only occasionally mewed once or twice, presumably lacking the strength to cry out.

Unconscious, Zheng Tan was unaware that, due to his disappearance, Chu Hua Shi had been hit by a "typhoon"—a large number of cat traffickers were arrested, and that night several trucks loaded with live cats and dogs were detained.

Jiao Ba used connections to check a camera installed at the affiliated primary school; he could vaguely see the lawn beyond, and though the image was blurry, it was enough to confirm his own cat had been taken away.

Jiao Ba called in some friends, plus Wei Leng and He Tao and their group to help; they searched everywhere for cats, inspected the seized trucks and several cat dealers' locations, and whenever they spotted a black cat they sent it to a certain place for Jiao Ba and the others to identify.

Unfortunately, none of those cats were Zheng Tan.

That night, many people couldn't sleep.

At the same time, this incident sparked some conflicts of interest, with open and covert struggles continuing nonstop—all of which Zheng Tan was unaware of.

The anesthetic the young man used was relatively strong; for an ordinary cat it would likely not survive and die outright, and even if it did it would stay unconscious for several days—but Zheng Tan was somewhat special.

Zheng Tan woke up after a few hours of unconsciousness, but even awake he had no strength whatsoever.

Around him were unfamiliar scents, unfamiliar cats; Zheng Tan could sense their fear and bewilderment. Hungry and thirsty, he had to endure it. A few cats whimpered softly, as if sobbing.

Zheng Tan glanced at the dark cargo compartment; his cage was relatively close to the truck door, and a breeze seeped in through the door gap, clearing his mind a little.

Outside the gap was pure darkness.

How much longer would the night last?

Zheng Tan lay in the cage, pondering how to respond next—but as he pondered, he drifted off to sleep again.

In his dream, Zheng Tan saw the city where he had lived for nearly twenty years, and saw his former self……

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Thanks to Lezi Xiao, the drowned fish 123, Mimi Huhuhu, Ophimis, damn naming is hard, Super Za Horsepower, Glass of Water Speaks, Quiet Corner, 0773, Pu Ning Que Wu Lan, Fa Ai Hou Guo, Drinking Bug, Huangquan Ghost Phoenix, Piaomiao's Worry, Lianyue Qingqing, Liu Yan, Gu She Wu Ren, Yue's Dream, Xiao Bai's Helplessness, E Yao Yan Hun Zhong, lazyorange, Mùtiān Xìdì, Violent for a Moment, dear·Mo Yuan, Su He, Cola Storm, gogoshan22, reward for using dreams to sacrifice to Rui Meng! Thanks to the ferryman of the other shore, the fragrance of tea and books adds fragrance to the red sleeves, gogoshan22, Quiet Corner, Lianyue Qingqing, and the book friends who couldn't see the records for their rating votes! Thanks to every silent recommender and supporter of the book friends!