Chapter 242

This is an anti‑theft chapter — subscription not enough, cutie~

The car jerked to a halt, and the driver's voice came from the front seat: "Boss, the road ahead is a narrow alley; our car is too big to get in — what should we do?"

Zhao Lin's words got stuck: "... What else can we do? Just toss it cold!"

Ling Yue let out a "pfft" laugh, waved her hand and pressed the car door: "No need, no need!"

"This is an old residential area; there are plenty of narrower roads inside, and it's not that troublesome — I can get home after walking a few steps."

She finished speaking, pushed the door open and walked out in one smooth motion, meeting Zhao Lin's hopeful gaze, and said tactfully: "I'm not sure whether this will work, but if I get any news I'll contact you."

Zhao Lin was overjoyed, but to avoid putting too much pressure on Ling Yue, he suppressed his expression and said repeatedly: "I believe you! I believe you! I believe you!"

Whether he was panicking or not, he definitely was — what clues could a young girl possibly find? It might just be a futile effort. But for Zhao Lin at this moment, he had exhausted all his options; trying a dead horse as if it were alive — maybe, just maybe, he could stumble upon a miracle.

He himself didn't even notice, the hope and anticipation in his eyes shining as brightly as a 500‑watt bulb.

Ling Yue walked all the way home, passing old houses scattered like a spiderweb, their quality varying greatly; her home was in one of several adjacent old residential areas, actually the newest in terms of construction age, and the estate was in decent shape.

Pink roses bloomed profusely in the flowerbed; in the pavilion, the elders gathered to play chess. When Ling Yue approached with her bag, the spectator, Elder Jin, exclaimed in surprise: "Eh, off work already? Why so early today?"

Ling Yue gave a light smile: "I've resigned."

As soon as she said that, the noisy chess area fell silent for a moment; the elders stared at Ling Yue in shock, having resigned without a word?

Some still wanted to persuade her, after all she was a child they had watched grow up; besides, these days college graduates are worth less and less, and jobs are hard to come by.

Who would have thought Ling Yue showed no sign of dejection — her smile deepened, two dimples blossomed on her cheeks, and she politely declined their good intentions, sounding even happier.

She carried her bag into the apartment building; on the mottled, peeling exterior wall beside her climbed a lush green ivy, stretching upward like a verdant waterfall hanging from the wall, like a vivid, lively scroll.

Ling Yue lowered her head and climbed the stairs, deliberately presenting an aloof, socially anxious demeanor — as for why she did that —

After just a few steps up the stairs, the aunt in a floral shirt pursed her lips, shook her fan, and called out to her: "Hey, the college student from our building is back? How's work today? That fancy car outside is blocking the entrance!"

That shout made Ling Yue roll her eyes; she instantly understood the aunt's meaning, and with the malicious descriptors "middle‑aged man", "luxury car clearing the way", "could even be her dad", the aunt was implicitly saying she was being kept.

At the mention of gossip, many heads poked out from the hallway, and some stepped forward, glaring at Aunt Wang — longtime neighbors who knew her temperament well; they saw this as bullying a helpless girl.

Who would have thought Ling Yue, as if just waking from a dream, looked at Aunt Wang and said: "Wasn't there just an earthquake?"

"Auntie, I don't understand what you're saying. As for setting me up on a blind date, your son is in his thirties, divorced twice, and has two kids over ten — I really wouldn't be a suitable stepmother."

While the neighbors in the estate are generally decent, a big forest attracts all kinds of birds; Ling Yue had previously been arranging funeral matters at home when, for some reason, Aunt Wang latched onto her.

At first she could keep up a facade, pretending to help while actually telling her, both openly and covertly, that a woman always needs to rely on someone; someone like her, without parents, is an orphan who will be bullied down to nothing.

Ling Yue didn't even get a chance to speak before they brought up their precious son.

To put it in an online phrase: he's obviously ordinary, yet incredibly confident.

Aunt Wang has only one son, whom she dotes on endlessly; in her eyes her son is perfect in every way, and if it weren't for his insistence on marrying Ling Yue, she wouldn't bother saying another word.

Now that her precious son is being slandered like this, her face turned from blue to red to purple, and she wanted to tear apart the mouth of that lowly wretch: "You're talking nonsense! My son is a civil servant — a Jing Shi civil servant! What does age matter? Older people are more caring, and plenty of people are after him — you're not even worthy of a glance!"

Ling Yue clapped her hands: "Well said — plenty of people want your loving old baby, so don't bully a little girl like me. Our homes are two buildings apart; you're standing guard in the hallway, surely not waiting for me, right?"

"Pfft——"

Nobody knows who laughed, but the sound seemed contagious; the shrew who'd caused trouble all her life felt a lump in her throat and lost face!

She immediately launched into a tirade, cursing the whole building; everyone else instantly became unhappy — who was she scolding? Is it justified to bully a little girl?

A chorus of voices shouted back at her; Aunt Wang, outnumbered, scurried away like a rat. Before leaving, she gave Ling Yue a venomous glare.

Ling Yue gave a cold smile and shut the door.

It's a simple two‑bedroom, one‑living‑room apartment of about a hundred square meters; the furnishings are old but clean and tidy, and with only one occupant it feels a bit austere.

Ling Yue first went to the kitchen, took out the seldom‑used small bowls and plates, and walked to the balcony to look outside.

"Caw caw."

The few crows circling above suddenly halted, flapped their wings and landed on the balcony, as if absentmindedly tilting their heads; a pair of soybean‑sized eyes swiveled to look inside.

Anyway, by now there's nothing left to fear. Xu Ruyi held her breath inside, clearly speaking the truth, yet no one would believe her.

Recalling the manager's earlier laugh, Xu Ruyi couldn't help but shiver, clenched her fists, and asked: "But how are you going to prove it?"

She had produced all her evidence, yet the other side dismissed it with a few words, leaving her efforts in tatters.

What good could she do?

Hearing that, Ling Yue gave a gentle smile: "Hello, Miss Xu — I forgot to introduce myself earlier. I'm the owner of a pet consultancy, and I have a special ability that happens to be able to help you."

"As for proof, I don't need to prove it — let it speak for itself."

Ling Yue pointed at the stuffed cat, bent slightly, keeping her eyes level with the cat's: "Are you called Sweetie? Could you say again how they abused you?"

As soon as she finished speaking, an uproar broke out.

The onlookers almost dropped their melons in shock, staring at Ling Yue: "Holy crap, they're not hallucinating, are they? She's talking to the cat?"

How can a person talk to a cat?!

Such a pretty young lady — how could she… just… be like that?

The manager's complexion shifted wildly, as if he'd suffered a grave insult: "Is this what you call proof?"

"How could a cat understand human speech, and what testimony could a single cat give? Miss Ling, please don't fool everyone."

The crowd murmured, thinking Ling Yue was just playing a prank — little did they know she was serious. Many quietly stepped back a few paces, afraid of getting burned.

Ling Yue glanced at the manager; though it was just a casual flick, it made the man's heart pound, his palms sweating involuntarily as he clenched them, only to find them slick with sweat.

Impossible, absolutely impossible!

He tried to convince himself, forcing a calm expression while wanting to say more, but Ling Yue had already turned to Xu Ruyi: "Miss Xu, please put the cat down."

The little cat in her arms rubbed against her affectionately — whether coincidence or something else, Xu Ruyi had seen that pose countless times at home.

It wanted to get down.

By some strange twist of fate, she really let go.

The kitten landed lightly, meowed a few times at Ling Yue, flicked its fluffy tail, and strolled slowly toward the shop, glancing back now and then.

Someone noticed that the one it was looking at was none other than Ling Yue.

Sweet Sweet: "Thank you."

Ling Yue's eyebrows and eyes curved: "You're welcome. Quickly bring us to find evidence."

Someone rubbed their eyes in disbelief, it really looked like they were communicating.

Such a rare thing quickly drew a crowd of onlookers; at this moment the shop owner finally reacted, it was already too late to do anything, he could only tell himself, "How could this be!"

This must all be a coincidence!

How could anyone possibly understand what the beasts say!

As for what he really thinks in his heart, one can see a bit from his staggering steps.

Inside the PetLove store, many employees nervously watched the cat, watching it move further forward, that direction! That isn't—

Xiao Qi really wanted to slap herself, she isn't dreaming, right?

The shop owner stared wide-eyed, as if holding a lively jumping rabbit, impossible, he had hidden things very well, they definitely wouldn't be discovered.

The next moment, a crackling sound burst open beside his ear; in the shop owner's eyes, it was nothing less than a bolt from the blue.

Only see that on one side of the merchandise shelf holding cat and dog food, it's already a mess.

The little kitten weakly supported its body, canine teeth biting the milk powder lid; Xu Ruoyi rushed over like a small cannonball, hugging her treasure: "Sweet Sweet, my Sweet Sweet, are you okay?"

She was about to die of fright, yet she still noticed the treasure desperately chewing something: "Could it be that you, treasure, really like this brand of milk powder? When you get better, Mom will buy you a bunch!"

Ling Yue: "..."

She really wanted to roll her eyes.

The Ragdoll cat Sweet Sweet explained: "Mommy is just like that, silly but she treats me really well; I'm happier than my other siblings."

Ling Yue: as if being shown off.

She bent over to pick up the milk powder can; as soon as she took it in hand she sensed something odd, this weight... too light.

This is also why Sweet Sweet could easily knock it over.

As for the shop owner, when he saw her take the can, his heart leapt to his throat, he almost couldn't hold back a shout, but it was already too late.

Only heard a "pop".

The lid opened, revealing the intact pills stored inside.

A chill shot straight from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, his limbs immersed in icy cold water, he opened his mouth like a dying fish.

Ling Yue translated Sweet Sweet's earlier words: "This is the medicine you prepared for your weak pets; Sweet Sweet told me that whenever customers come, you feed it to them, Miss Xu, I suggest you take it for testing."

The shop owner shrank his head, not saying anything slanderous; he deeply knew he couldn't deny it, only hating one person, Ling Yue!

If it weren't for her meddling, this would have ended long ago!

But now, there might still be a chance to salvage.

The shop owner immediately spoke: "This is my dereliction of duty; I failed to supervise the staff well, never expecting they'd be bewitched and pull off such a despicable trick!"

He turned, his angry gaze shooting at Xiao Qi: "Xiao Qi, you're also a veteran employee of the store; didn't I teach you before? How could you forget, how could you treat animals so cruelly!"

"You're fired! Not only that, you must apologize to this customer!"

After speaking, the shop owner obsequiously looked at Xu Ruoyi: "Miss Xu, is this handling plan satisfactory to you?"

Ling Yue gave him a deep look: "Really only she is negligent; how could a lowly employee have the connections to get these special medicines? Aren't you all in cahoots?"

Ling Yue's words hit the nail on the head.

The shop owner immediately turned pale; Ling Yue then examined these pets, some seemed already numb, many more full of hatred; the animals' gazes all focused on the shop owner and these employees, believing that if not for the cages restraining them, they could jump out and tear them apart alive.

Xu Ruoyi also didn't believe it. Although she's slow-witted but not stupid, the dosage of these medicines used couldn't be just the amount for her little cat Sweet Sweet in her arms; who knows how many victims there were before this!

She angrily glared at the shop owner: "I'm not satisfied with this result!"

"I'm not short of money; who would care about your compensation? I will definitely investigate thoroughly!"

"Forgot to say, I'm not afraid of your PetLove behind you; if you trap me, you're doomed!"

The shop owner originally harbored a sense of luck, thinking these cats and dogs are just small animals, lacking legal protection, his behavior at most is fraud; suddenly hearing this young lady's words, his whole body jolted.

Xu Ruoyi no longer paid him any mind, holding Sweet Sweet she thanked Ling Yue profusely, her gaze like a hungry wolf, truly such a mighty master! She actually encountered her!

"Master, uh, boss, you really just thanked me!" She then whispered: "Boss, you say our family's Sweet Sweet, can it still be cured?"

Ling Yue seemed to sense something, she opened Sweet Sweet's attribute panel, and underneath actually appeared a line of progress bar, precisely speaking, it's the life bar.:,,.