Chapter 18

——a "big orange".

This was Ling Yue's first reaction.

As the distance closed, everyone realized it was an orange cat lounging on the car roof basking in the sun, its whole body golden yellow; curled up, it looked just like a big orange.

【What is this? A big orange?】

【Whoa, that guy up front has a nasty look—this is clearly an orange pig!】

【Who's so heartless, how could they starve an orange pig this thin?】

【The kitty is so cute, mwah!】

【It's fluffy and soft, quick, rua it ah ah ah!!!】

【But seriously, this cat is a bit chubby—really a stray?】

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi saw the question on the barrage, blinked, and said: "Of course it's true. Streamer, it's our neighborhood's fixed stray cat; I've lived here over a year, and Jiao Jiao has always been here. By the way, Jiao Jiao is the name I gave the kitty—it's really good at acting cute, I really want to hug it home and keep it."

"Streamer, please please, could you ask it for me?"

Ling Yue hadn't spoken yet when a bunch of viewers were already melted by the cute pretty girl.

Ling Yue: "Then point your phone at it, and I'll ask for you."

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi stomped her feet excitedly: "Great!"

She's an especially emotional girl, with a carefree personality; after those movements, she directly startled the orange cat, but it glanced twice and then lay back down.

She went all-in on slacking off, emitting a gurgling sound.

"Mmm, so comfortable—another poop-scooper has come to bring food, but I already ate at Xiao Mei's place, so I'll just have a couple bites."

"Huh, what are you looking at me for? Where's the food?"

Ling Yue: "No food. She wants to adopt you—are you willing?"

"Who—who's speaking?" The orange cat jumped up, its fluffy big tail swishing, then realized it was the person on the phone, eyes widening: "Is it you?"

Ling Yue: "Answer my question first."

The orange cat Jiao Jiao meowed a few times: "Of course I'm willing—the owner treats me well, but could you tell her to bring more dried fish next time? I love it."

Ling Yue's gaze lingered; after she translated the cat's reply, Feng Xiao Xiao Xi jumped up happily: "Really? Did it really say that? Jiao Jiao's long thought I was its owner—what's there to agonize over?"

"Hehehe." She laughed, wanting to scoop up Daju: "I'll take Daju home, then head to the hospital—uh!"

Seeing her head toward the stairwell, the orange cat began to struggle; Feng Xiao Xiao Xi froze for a moment, the cat slipped from her grasp, landed lightly, and ran a few meters away.

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi: "Streamer, what's going on here?"

The viewers in the live stream were all stunned, many beginning to doubt.

【Streamer, is this what you called willingness? Why does it look totally unwilling? It was fine before, but as soon as the caller hugged it home, it started struggling!】

【It's certain, Daju really isn't willing, but streamer you clearly said earlier……】

【Could there be a misunderstanding? It seemed pleasant just before.】

【Duped, duped—we've capsized!】

Most people still trusted Ling Yue quite a bit, only a small minority didn't; still, this has already affected the comment section—if it were a previous streamer, they'd surely be worried.

Ling Yue wasn't panicking at all—Daju was still here, right?

She looked at Daju: "Why not go home with it? Didn't you agree to recognize her as your owner?"

The orange cat: "Huh?"

The orange cat glanced left and right, guilty: "What's recognizing an owner got to do with going home? I, the kitty, sell my talent, not my body."

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi crouched down worriedly, looking at the cat: "Jiao Jiao, what's wrong with you?"

Before she could say a few words, a voice rang out— the neighbor holding vegetables smiled gently: "Orange! Coming to pick up Mom home again? So good, so great!"

Saying that, she rubbed the cat's head, the motion affectionate and natural.

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi stared blankly at her, and Mrs. Xia couldn't help but glance again: "You are

, living opposite, that little girl? You also like the orange, huh?"

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi's brain froze on the spot, she stammered with difficulty: "You—you're Jiao Jiao's owner?"

The other party looked at her suspiciously: "What's up? Though this orange of mine often roams the neighborhood, basically it's never home except at mealtimes."

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi: "But, it just recognized me as its owner……"

Her voice grew lower and lower; she herself didn't know what to do, when her calf suddenly bumped into a warm mass—turns out Jiao Jiao was rubbing against her. This gave her endless courage, and Feng Xiao Xiao Xi said: "I'm also Jiao Jiao's owner."

"I've been feeding it this whole time; it just acknowledged that."

As if understanding her words, Daju called out cutely.

The sound fell into Ling Yue's ears, instantly making her frown.

The orange cat squatted between the two: "Stop arguing, stop arguing—I'm not your most beloved little kitty? For me, can't you compromise a bit?"

Ling Yue: "……"

"Don't judge a cat by its looks, nor measure the sea with a bucket."

Because of Feng Xiao Xiao Xi's earlier explanation, the atmosphere is now strange.

Anyway, Daju couldn't hold back any longer, patting its belly and licking its paws: "Today's Saturday; Zhou Zhou in Building 3 surely made my favorite tuna—I'm going to chow down first."

Saying that, it turned in a flash and vanished without a trace.

A sudden development made the originally pent-up Feng Xiao Xiao Xi panic all at once; Ling Yue suddenly spoke up: "Go to Building 3. Once you get there, everything will be revealed."

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi nodded; unexpectedly, neighbor Mrs. Xia also followed after her, still a bit dazed: "Isn't the orange my cat? How did it suddenly become yours?"

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi: "But the streamer I'm linked with told me Jiao Jiao has already recognized me as its owner—she can understand animal speech."

"Never mind, let's first go find the orange."

The viewers had already been stunned by this turn of events; seeing Ling Yue's solemn expression, they all began to speculate.

【Jiao Jiao and the orange, which do you think is its real name?】

I bet a spicy strip, Jiao Jiao! Our host personally verified it—it's definitely Jiao Jiao!

Maybe it's an orange, after all that owner looks so gentle.

No, shouldn't we be worried about the orange pig? How did it suddenly run away?

How does the host know it's in Building Three? That's nonsense—such a big residential complex, why would that orange cat have to go to Building Three?

The comment had just been posted, and they arrived at Building Three.

In half of the livestream screen, one could clearly see a casually dressed young lady half‑crouching by the flowerbed, a blob of yellow‑orange fluff burying its head in eating—surely that's Daju that just ran away!

"Orange/Jiao Jiao!"

Zhou Zhou froze, looking at the two people with flushed faces: "Who are you?"

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi: "We came to look for the cat—it's this one."

Zhou Zhou smiled gently: "Oh, I see. It seems my Yuanbao is quite popular, but if you're looking for it, wait until he finishes dinner."

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi and neighbor Mrs. Xia stared at each other, then in unison said: "Yuanbao?"

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi directly asked Ling Yue for help: "Host, help me—Jiao Jiao promised to acknowledge me as her owner, so why are there other people?"

"Host, help me ask—who exactly does it want as its owner?"

Before Ling Yue could speak, the cat, taking a break from licking water, sniffled and said: "Owner? Is it strange for a cat to have several names and several owners? Am I not cute? Am I not spoiled? I can even do the cute voice that young ladies love!"

The viewers were already getting anxious.

Host, quickly translate—what did the cat say, what's going on?

Is the cat stupid, not realizing it's unintentionally being treated as someone's own cat?

It looks a bit silly, but why would so many people want to fight over it? It's just a little cute,

, will act cute and coquettish TVT

Ling Yue gave a light cough, hadn't spoken yet, when a shout came from afar, seemingly calling 'Little Yellow.' Soon after, an elderly woman with white hair and elegant demeanor walked over from a distance; upon seeing the orange cat, her face lit with surprise: "Hey, it's really you, little guy—I've been looking for you!"

The viewers were numb, and the pressure instantly fell on Ling Yue.

Host? Host? Host, say something~

Ling Yue fell silent for a moment: "It looks like it doesn't have just one owner."

She directly asked the cat: "How many owners do you still have?"

The orange cat stretched: "Huh, why ask that? Weren't we happy together before? Zhou Zhou always says I'm her happy fruit; I'm just spreading happiness to everyone, keeping the meat for myself." As it spoke, it wiggled its belly, its soft meat wobbling wobble‑wobble: "Don't thank me—I'm just doing what I should."

After saying that, the orange cat stretched again, completely unaware.

Ling Yue repeated those words, and several people stared at the cat in shock. Feng Xiao Xiao Xi felt as if an arrow had pierced her chest, she clutched her heart and strained: "All I know is that every morning after I go to work, I feed it cat food at the flowerbed downstairs."

Mrs. Xia: "I'm at noon, with homemade cat food."

Zhou Zhou: "I occasionally feed it seven or eight times a week; Yuanbao always eats dinner."

Aunt Cai: "My family has prepared lots of cat cans and treats; Little Yellow appears at irregular times, I give it whenever it shows." She pushed up her old glasses, revealing a kind smile: "But Little Yellow comes every day."

The viewers were like fish in a pond, all blown up by blasts; the comment section was intensely heated.

Eye-opening! Eye-opening! This isn't a cat at all—it's clearly a time‑management master of the sea king!

May I ask, Great Cat, when will you publish a book? I'll buy it out!

In the world there exists such a shameless, silver‑tongued cat; as a human I'm still a single dog, yet it's already living the life of being embraced on both sides!

Honestly, if I were to be reborn as a cat now, would it still be possible?

Your little calculations upstairs, I can hear them even in Hainan!

What is this? Humans not as good as cats? 【tears】【tears】

Meow, me—I, every bit of flesh isn't grown for nothing!

By now, the truth has finally come to light.

This orange cat looks cute and simple, but actually possesses extremely strong time‑management skills, having directly acknowledged seven or eight owners. Hearing this, not only Feng Xiao Xiao Xi but even others were dumbfounded—how could that be!

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi couldn't help but say: "Is this an orange cat? Are you sure it's not a reincarnated octopus? Does our residential complex have enough trouble for it?"

The orange cat nodded seriously on the side; hearing the last sentence, it was quite surprised, blinked its cat eyes: "How do you know? Besides Xiao Mei from Building Two, Zhou Zhou from Building Three, Aunt Cai from Building Eight, Mrs. Xia from Building Twelve, and Uncle Wang and Aunt Zhao from the neighboring complex… that's five, six, seven, eight… individuals?"

This remark made Ling Yue involuntarily twitch the corner of her mouth; after translating it, not only the victims but even the viewers went numb.

Many strongly condemned the cat's fickleness, calling it utterly disloyal, and because it was too 'outstanding,' everyone paid special attention to the final outcome.

Ling Yue asked Feng Xiao Xiao Xi: "Do you still want to raise it?"

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi couldn't help but glance at the cat, leisurely and unflustered, even actively rubbing against it; the flickering flame in her heart puffed out and died.

She actively rubbed the cat's head, hearing its contented purr, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously rose.

The nearby owners, seeing this, simultaneously smiled. The viewers didn't know how things had come to this, and the chubby orange cat was surrounded in the middle, squinting as it enjoyed the owners' caresses.

The orange cat hummed a few times: "In my heart I merely have a few more people living with me than other cats—what could possibly be wrong with me?"

Ling Yue followed suit, dazed for a moment, then looked at the screen beside her and froze.

Master‑slave, group that p, share, hehehe~

Already screenshotted, how could the cat

made this oily scene so incredibly captivating!

What did the cat do wrong? Although the cat is a bit fickle, a bit of a sea king, but it's cute and adorable!

I also want to rub the little cat!

Ah, the little cat looks like it's in pain, being touched up and down by so many people—I'm angry and worried, I have a bold idea……

I also have……

Release that cat, let me come!

Ling Yue couldn't help but shake her hand and cut off the livestream.

Feng Xiao Xiao Xi was addicted to sniffing the cat—let her handle this. She gave a light cough, the addicted viewers snapped back to attention; even knowing the host couldn't see, they each sat up straight and composed.

Ahahaha, let's continue, please welcome the next fated pet!

Host, hurry up and connect, I can't wait any longer!

A new round of tips begins, this time finally without lag. Ling Yue asks the other party: "Xingkonghai, may I ask what you'd like to consult?"

Under the gaze of all, the video connects; at a glance, everything is deep blue seawater, the low-hanging blue sky and sea surface merge into one, and occasionally water vapor disperses in the air with a puff.

Wine-red long hair, the beautiful-faced woman laughs out loud; as the camera moves down, behind her, a medium-sized speedboat reveals a faint outline.

Xingkonghai: "I was just playing around, didn't expect to win."

The stream's viewers fell silent for a moment, almost uttering a sound.

Play, playing? 【dull】【dull】

Wow wow wow wow wow, at sea, or a speedboat! Wearing a branded haute couture, this outfit costs hundreds of thousands; most importantly, who doesn't know that haute couture, besides being ridiculously expensive, is especially poor in quality—once you get this outfit, you can't want it.

Only I noticed? Sis's neck wears what looks like a Victorian-era Heart of the Sea necklace from an auction, worth over ten million!

!!!

Confirmed, sis is a rich lady, absolutely a rich lady!

The comment section hasn't been led astray yet; even if there are a few remarks about a mistress, they're directly shouted down.

A necklace worth over ten million given to a mistress—do you think their sponsor is an idiot!

Mainly because sis's aura is too noble and grand; even if her looks are a bit flamboyant, it completely prevents that feeling. She is absolutely not a parasitic vine living by clinging, but an independent tree in the wind.

As for the pet consultation, she actually finds it a bit difficult: "My Daisy is fine, has no problems, and it's not even with me right now."

Ling Yue is straightforward: "Give me an account; before the stream ends I'll refund the tips."

She glanced at the backend; others are just tossing in a few to join the fun, but this person directly tipped hundreds, throwing money?

"That's not needed." Xingkonghai suddenly claps, as if recalling something: "I'm a bit curious, host, can you really look at any animal?"

Ling Yue nods.

Then, in that case, could I ask you to look at these?

Suddenly a pile of sea clams appears in the video; Xingkonghai: "My boyfriend and I just went out to sea, we caught a pile of sea clams; can you tell me which of these have pearls?"

The stream's viewers are all dazed.

Nice partner, open the blind box!

Looking like this, still wild, my goodness, did you ransack someone's sea clams?

Goodbye Mom, tonight I'm going to set sail!

Ling Yue holds back from laughing; as for this pile of sea clams, before she could speak, Xingkonghai already skillfully aimed the camera at the clam pile.

Ling Yue raises her eyebrows; it's clear she hasn't spent little time lurking in the stream, or watching streams, very savvy.

Around, the sea wind is noisy; occasionally the seagulls' cries ring out, and even noisier than them are the sea clams on the ground.

Ah, so uncomfortable, so big, so hard, I'm about to be burst!

Honey, what's wrong? Your stomach hurts again? What to do?

Hubby, my old ailment acted up again, my tummy hurts so much!

Good heavens, look at this couple, the wife has put a green hat on it, the husband even indulges! This all

How many years has it been, still pregnant? The baby in the belly is definitely someone else's illegitimate child!

Come on, stop saying that, how about you? I heard from other clams that your husband's stomach has been hurting lately too!

What? Which family's slut dares to get my husband pregnant, shameless!

Ling Yue: "……"

She suddenly feels like washing her ears; this bunch of sea clams' life is too damn colorful!

Moreover, this gossip, hearing it is a bit captivating, wasting a lot of time; Ling Yue also figured out that besides pearls, nothing else makes the sea clams uncomfortable.

She had identified a few pearl-bearing clams; just as she finished speaking, Xingkonghai seemed to see something: "Host, please wait a moment, my boyfriend is coming. Because I previously promised him we'd have some alone time, can't let him discover the stream, and his identity is also quite special, sorry."

Ling Yue furrowed her brows, said nothing.

The stream's netizens looking at the black screen were all stunned.

Ah, I still have to wait a bit; I really want to jump into the sea and swim over, opening blind boxes would be great, or sea clams!

Hahahaha, upstairs, if you're not watching the Olympics this year, I won't watch either!

Open blind boxes, open blind boxes, I super love big pearls! Just too expensive, can't afford QAQ

Only I envy the rich lady's boyfriend? This is too pampering!

But his voice sounds kinda familiar, I feel like I've heard it somewhere.

But soon the stream's viewers discovered, they just can't see them, but can still hear them.

The rich lady's boyfriend's voice is quite pleasant; in a moment, he asks after her warmth and coldness over a dozen times, truly meticulous.

Xingkonghai acts a bit spoiled: "Ah Yi, will you accompany me to open sea clams?"

The boyfriend's side seemed to hesitate a moment, then said: "Okay."

While the boyfriend was preparing stuff, she took out her phone, thought a bit, placed it elsewhere, and pressed the camera down onto the operating table.

Xingkonghai apologetically said: "Many people like opening blind boxes, I do too; can't let everyone see the boyfriend, but can show the footage of me opening sea clams."

"Shh, he's here." The last sentence and the previous are two extremes, purely a coquettish little woman.

The stream is in an uproar.

Many people learned for the first time that opening a sea clam shell requires such care; but when that lustrous smooth pearl detaches from the flesh sac, they were all breathless at its beauty.

The stream's comments all froze.

Ling Yue listens to the sea clams' cries of pain, silently blushing; this hasn't even reached the most delicate and difficult clam, this is too erotic!

At this moment, in places the camera can't capture, Xingkonghai is being lovey-dovey with her boyfriend, occasionally exchanging kisses. The man is handsome and sunny, a tall guy around 1.8 meters, slender like a pine, easily able to encircle her in his arms, his demeanor also outstanding.

Unlike Xingkonghai, who has been like this since childhood, this is tempered later under countless spotlights in front of the camera, the star aura nourished by fans.

If anyone else were here, they'd realize this isn't the recently popular idol drama male lead, actor Chen Yu!

This is also the fundamental reason why Xingkonghai is concealing it.

She was very happy. Because during the previous period, Chen Yu, in order to become famous, had been staying on the set; even though she was the biggest investor in the crew, he had no time to accompany her.

Speaking of which, she is also the only daughter of the boss of Chen Yu's company. Xingkonghai's family has many businesses, entertainment being just a part. She has always been cultivated by her family as an heir, and early on took charge of part of the businesses.

What she loves most is pearls.

Thinking of the host's earlier words, she immediately excitedly told her boyfriend, and of course also changed her excuse: 'The fortune-teller said my luck has been great lately; look, didn't just a pearl come out?'

Her boyfriend looked at her and smiled: 'Really? I don't believe it.'

Xingkonghai: 'Then let you have a look!'

Actually, she wasn't sure either in her heart, but it should probably be better than this pearl, right?

Ling Yue saw that she was holding exactly the most delicate one; the sea clam, frightened, kept calling 'husband' until it was pried open, and it let out a sound: 'Ah, how comfortable.'

When seeing the pearl, Xingkonghai's face smiled

She held her breath, carefully separated the flesh, held her breath and gently picked it up; the next moment, the pearl fell into the porcelain bowl, making a 'crack' sound.

A large golden pearl, like solidified gold, fell into the bowl; its color rich and the pearl round, as it rolled the olive-green halo shifted, the edge a faint ripple of color, like a rainbow.

At this moment, the netizens in the live-stream room had gone completely crazy.

【Gold, golden legend!】

【Holy shit holy shit holy shit! What did I see? Is this TM a pearl? This is longan!】

【So big, no wonder I felt these sea clams looked familiar; turns out they're South Sea gold pearls! This one isn't as good as the Pearl King, but it's not bad.】

【So beautiful! It looks like a gold nugget, yet even more attractive than gold, making one think of a foreign blonde dancer, exuding a hot charm, radiant, not at all tacky!】

【Of course, such a pearl must be worth at least a few hundred thousand, right?】

【Covering mouth, a rich woman tearfully rakes in over a million!】

Xingkonghai was very happy; although she wasn't short of money, this pearl was something she herself had opened, a rare find, but her boyfriend's side, she furrowed her brows: 'Huh? What's wrong with you? You seem distracted.'

The man chuckled and rubbed her head: 'I'm just thinking that the anniversary of when I met my sister has arrived; what surprise should I give you?'

【Damn it!】

The man said, not noticing, a white seabird stood on the yacht behind him, staring at him: 'Old lady, I've seen enough of your scumbag type on the sea; what gift, you were just on the phone with your little lover!'

You white-eyed wolf! Pale face! Are you trying to push someone into the sea, leaving no evidence?

The sound was so loud that Ling Yue heard it too, and clearly, her expression suddenly turned solemn.

Many people, upon seeing it, felt a heavy jolt in their hearts; even after a week passed, they hadn't forgotten that incident, and afterward it ended up in social news!

【What did the host hear?】

【Just after looking at the pearl, they saw the host's expression—what happened?】