Chapter 142

()"What are you all blocking the door for?"

A voice came over.

Zheng Tan's ears twitched—hey, another acquaintance.

Coming out today was indeed the right choice; maybe in the future, coming here won't require scouting for observation points or constantly guarding against those scheming workers on the site.

"「Hey, Baizi, you came too? 」 said the smiling middle-aged man who had been leading the way."

Many people here know Longqi, but most don't know Baizi, since Baizi doesn't come often; Longqi is mainly in charge of managing this place.

"「What's going on? 」 Baizi asked."

Baizi's expressionless face made the people around nervous; those who had been following and crowding near the door all stepped back, leaving only Longqi standing in the middle of the doorway.

Without waiting for that person to explain, Baizi strode inside; as soon as he entered, he saw the black cat standing on the central table.

"「Hei Tan? What are you doing here? 」 Baizi looked around, didn't see Wei Leng's shadow, and according to usual routine, Wei Leng should be unavailable today."

"「Brother Baizi, do you know this cat? 」 the middle-aged man who had been leading the way asked doubtfully."

"「Yeah. 」 Baizi didn't elaborate further."

Baizi also came on a whim today; they don't know much about construction, but Ye Hao said that nowadays amateurs lead professionals—you just need to make a round to supervise; understanding the work is one thing, actually inspecting is another; it's a matter of attitude.

So, the clueless Longqi and Baizi, who happened to be free today, came around for a stroll, unexpectedly running into Zheng Tan.

There are many people jīng around; even without knowing the details, one could guess roughly from Baizi's attitude—Baizi was expressionless just now, but now he's smiling.

Others don't know, but Baizi and Longqi, who follow Ye Hao, are aware that being able to contact Master Fang is thanks to this black cat; although its contribution to the project isn't major, socially it's truly thanks to the cat's favor. Even Master Tang spoke up, saying back then, 'You all need to pay more attention to that black cat—who knows, we might still need its help later.'

Baizi doesn't really understand how much help this cat could provide; even a cat's great influence wouldn't affect such a huge project, but since Master Tang has spoken, Baizi just needs to obey; Master Tang and Ye Hao share this attitude, so following their words is definitely correct.

Zheng Tan ignored Baizi and Longqi, just stared at Li Gong with a cold gaze; Baizi, who knew a little about this cat, could see the cat wasn't in a good mood, glanced at the pale-faced Li Gong, said nothing else, merely had the surrounding workers step back—it was time to work, and Zhong Yan was also pulled away by Ning Ge.

Only those who had accompanied Longqi inside remained, plus Ning Ge, who had gone out to give the work assignments.

The person who had been leading the way recounted what had just happened; Ning Ge added a few sentences, not exaggerating, just speaking the truth.

Longqi kept a frown, sitting farthest from Zheng Tan.

Baizi now feels indifferent; although he used to think this cat was eerie, as long as it helps his own people, why worry about anything else?

After learning the full story, Baizi said nothing; the person mainly responsible here is Longqi, and even if Longqi is taboo about cats, there's nothing to say about handling the matter.

After staying a few minutes, Longqi and Baizi went to look at other places, with Zheng Tan following; after the inspection, Baizi bought Zheng Tan a roasted chicken, and Zheng Tan ate only a bit of the drumstick meat.

Although he was in a bad mood, a roasted chicken wouldn't bribe Zheng Tan; but Zheng Tan knew Longqi and Baizi would settle things, so he didn't make a scene—everyone benefits mutually, no need to fuss over a small matter, and Zheng Tan understands this clearly.

Baizi sometimes still chats with Zheng Tan a few sentences, thanks to Wei Leng's influence; Wei Leng had told Ye Hao, 'When dealing with this cat, you must speak like a person, not treat it as a clueless pet to brush off.' At that time Longqi and Baizi were nearby and heard this, but one never puts it into practice while the other does for the first time.

Can cats understand human speech? Baizi used to not think so, but now he's hesitant.

Having eaten and drunk his fill, Zheng Tan went home to sleep; meanwhile, Longqi and Baizi, after finishing their site inspection, returned to report the day's events to Ye Hao.

"「That cat's shadow is everywhere. 」 Ye Hao rubbed his forehead.

Two days later, Wei Leng brought Baizi to Dongqu Dayuan; the Little New Year was approaching, and although it means little to city folk, it also gave some people an excuse to settle some interpersonal relations.

Baizi came simply on Ye Hao's orders to have a look; with Wei Leng present, it's also more convenient.

However, as Wei Leng's car just entered the compound, he saw a four-wheeled vehicle parked below Building B.

And Master Fang was standing there, speaking proudly.

Early this morning, Jiao Ba received a call from Master Fang, saying he would come over.

Looking at the calendar, tomorrow is indeed the Little New Year—right on schedule.

When Master Fang arrived in that four-wheeled vehicle, he didn't go upstairs but had Zheng Tan come down directly. When Master Fang smugly opened the car door, Zheng Tan saw a small car.

It was smaller than a child's car, designed like an off-road vehicle, open-top, with a very large steering wheel—no idea how it would feel to drive.

Zheng Tan felt happy, suddenly thinking Master Fang was also quite nice, thoughtful enough; no wonder Tong Qing appeared where Jiao Wei and his sports car crew were—it was made because someone knew Zheng Tan liked cars.

"「How is it? Not bad, right? Want to take it out for a spin? 」"

Master Fang leaned on the car door, jiggling his leg, as smug as could be; the sight made Baizi and Wei Leng, sitting in the car, almost drop their jaws.

Is this Master Fang? Really Master Fang?

Fang Shaokang caught sight of Wei Leng's car but didn't intend to acknowledge it; instead he told Zheng Tan, 'The weather's nice today—go for a drive, but I also said you'd have to do me a favor.'

Zheng Tan was pleased with the car in front of him; the small car was placed on the back seat, but the space was too cramped, so he perched on it to get a feel—it wouldn't move, he felt an itch, and besides, he was genuinely grateful to Fang Shaokang; since he could help, he'd do it, as long as it didn't endanger his life or require doing something perverse.

Wei Leng and Baizi stood with their mouths open, watching the four-wheeled vehicle drive off; as for Zheng Tan, he didn't even notice Wei Leng and Baizi—Tong Qing had blocked that side earlier, and after getting in the car he only looked at the vehicle, completely ignoring Wei Leng.

"「That penny-pinching, wealth-chasing little bastard! 」 Wei Leng laughed and cursed."

Wei Leng was just joking, but Baizi was provoked; he never knew Master Fang had this side—it's like how he treats familiar people and friends in daily life, rather than the usual social niceties with business partners.

Fang Shaokang sat in the passenger seat and midway told Zheng Tan what they needed to do today.

Nothing else; in short, 'go for a drive and keep the child company.'

The destination was Old Liu's home; Old Liu's house has a large villa, with a yard big enough for Zheng Tan to drive around, and young Liu Yao has recently been not doing well. Old Liu was worried, so it was convenient that Fang Shaokang said he'd bring the cat over to play; Old Liu deliberately pushed aside some work and waited at home.

Upon arrival, Old Liu and Liu Yao came out to greet them, with Mantou following behind; after not seeing each other for so long, Mantou had grown a lot, but Zheng Tan saw that the guy still looked somewhat simple-minded.

Upon seeing Zheng Tan, Liu Yao's eyes lit up; his dad had told him the black cat would come to play with him, so early this morning he brought out his favorite toy car, big enough for two cats to sit on and run.

However, when Tong Qing dragged the specially made small car out of the vehicle, Liu Yao's expression turned to surprise; he looked at the small car, then at the black cat eagerly jumping onto it.

Is this going to be a race?

Zheng Tan didn't think that much; the car's operation is actually simple, not complicated, and since he used to play with cars, even driving a 'toy car' now he could manage.

Two paws rested on the steering wheel; the brake was just a button, the rest didn't require legs—it's an electric car.

After pressing the start button, the car began to move; Zheng Tan gripped the steering wheel, feeling excited, driving this first-ever cat-exclusive vehicle since he became a cat.

Liu Yao snapped out of his surprise, immediately controlling the remote to make his toy car chase after it; as for Mantou, he happily ran back and forth between the two cars.

Tong Qing followed behind them, just in case. He had previously doubted whether a cat could drive such a vehicle; now it seems he underestimated a cat's capability—not just the first time handling it, but the first time putting a paw on it and the car moves—indeed, this cat is impressive. However, this cat is inherently special, cannot be judged by ordinary standards.

Fang Shaokang and Old Liu sat nearby; since someone would be in charge, they just needed to sit and watch, while also chatting about some business.

At first Old Liu was a bit absent-minded, his attention mostly on Liu Yao; he felt sorry for his son, breaking into a sweat, worrying whether he'd get sick or tire out—but when he saw Liu Yao laugh out loud, his heart eased, feeling greatly relieved.

People always complain about mischievous kids in words, but deep down they still feel that kids this age should be running and jumping, a bit rough‑and‑tumble, but healthy.

Instead, it's the overly obedient kind that makes people uneasy, especially like Liu Yao before—silent, not speaking, carrying a yin gloom, completely unlike a child.

Kids, how could they have such an expression?

Now, Liu Yao was running, just like any other normal, ordinary little kid—running back, jumping back, laughing—and seeing Liu Yao like this almost brought Old Liu to tears.

Too bad they didn't know that Zheng Tan had no sympathy for Liu Yao's small frame at all; as soon as he started the car, he became overly absorbed, and by the time he came to, Liu Yao behind him was drenched in sweat. Seeing that the child was laughing sincerely, Zheng Tan thought, this kid wasn't bad either.