Chapter 15: The Cat Is Missing?!

Still that Boss Lady?

Chen Zheyan sighed repeatedly, his tone carrying a lax Beijing accent, "Lao San'er, no way, like this, no way, you're going further and further down the road of moral decay; someday you'll be scum, society's trash, brothers, later on in the circle, you'll be too embarrassed to mention your name."

"……" Huo Jingcheng.

——

Time flew, and it was Saturday again.

Su Ruoyun had already made an appointment with the pet clinic for eleven in the morning.

Around ten-thirty, she arrived at the pet clinic; inside, a strong smell of disinfectant and hypochlorous acid mingled, pungent and unpleasant.

The Panda, held by Su Ruoyun, began to grow restless, its tiny paws frantically scratching the wooden tabletop; Su Ruoyun lowered her voice to soothe it, and also used some small toys to entertain it.

After a few minutes, possibly having adapted to the environment, the kitten began to return to normal.

Su Ruoyun, bored, glanced around and met that pair of deep black eyes outside the glass door, and for a moment she was stunned.

The man gripped the door handle and pushed the door open.

She immediately stood up, her skirt gathering at her sides, and greeted: "Mr. Huo."

I never expected to meet Huo Jingcheng here.

Her gaze fell on the casually dressed man, who didn't wear the usual businesslike attire; his casual outfit made him appear tall and broad, with broad shoulders and narrow waist, giving him a mature man's ease beyond that of a twenty-something boy.

"Yun Lao ban."

Huo Jingcheng's gaze fell on Su Ruoyun; today it was hot, and she wore a light yellow dress, the pale tones making her skin look smooth and fair, like smooth white porcelain.

Su Ruoyun's gaze didn't linger on Huo Jingcheng; it moved downward to the German Shepherd standing at his feet, sturdy and handsome, and she asked directly, "Is this dog yours?"

"No, it's a friend's dog; he doesn't have time, so he asked me to bring it here for a bath."

The pet clinic also offers animal bathing; Su Ruoyun didn't suspect anything, she just felt that lately she and Huo Jingcheng had been meeting frequently.

A soft "meow" drew Su Ruoyun's attention back.

By the time she turned her head to look at the kitten on the table, the Panda had already jumped onto the nearby climbing frame, moving silently along the pole, step by step toward Huo Jingcheng.

Before she could call out "Panda" to try to summon the kitten back, the Little Panda lifted its front paws and leapt into Huo Jingcheng's arms.

Huo Jingcheng likewise loosened his grip on the leash of the black-backed wolf dog, caught the little fat cat, a heavy lump that settled in his arms; a fifteen‑pound cat plus its full coat of fur was just like a little mountain statue.

Meanwhile the black-backed wolf dog took a few steps forward, stopped in front of Su Ruoyun, lowered its head to nudge her ankle with its nose, then opened its mouth to bite her skirt, pulling her toward Huo Jingcheng.

Afraid her skirt would be torn, and wanting to retrieve her cat, she went along with its pull and walked forward to stand before Huo Jingcheng.

"Come over."

Even the kitten wasn't so disloyal; hearing Su Ruoyun's call, it lifted its head obediently and made a motion to leave.

Seeing this, Huo Jingcheng, with one hand, placed the cat into Su Ruoyun's arms, hands in his pockets, and casually asked, "What's its name?"

"Panda."

Huo Jingcheng had only glanced at it briefly on his phone before; now seeing it in person, the cat truly lived up to its name—this milk‑white kitten looked exactly like a little panda, all snowy white save for two black eye patches.

He gave a faint smile.

Perhaps Su Ruoyun saw why he smiled; she tightened her hold on the cat, then caught sight of a white cat hair stuck to Huo Jingcheng's shoulder out of the corner of her eye, raised her hand and pointed, indicating, "You have a cat hair here."

Her tone naturally carried a hint of a Beijing accent.

Huo Jingcheng tilted his head, unsure whether he truly hadn't seen it or was pretending not to; his gaze toward the girl in front of him held a hint of inquiry.

Su Ruoyun stood on tiptoe; though she ought to have quickly removed the cat hair from Huo Jingcheng, her mind instead flashed with an oddly familiar feeling.

She inexplicably felt as if she had done this motion before.

She gathered her focus, pinched the cat hair between her fingertips, and pulled it off.

A fine cat hair fell into Su Ruoyun's palm; she casually blew on it, and it floated away.

The result……

It floated again onto Huo Jingcheng's chest.

Su Ruoyun: "Why don't you… do it again yourself?"

She didn't expect such a coincidence; the white hair ended up back on Huo Jingcheng's clothing.

Huo Jingcheng looked at the girl's slightly embarrassed face, raised his hand and casually brushed it off.

Only when the white hair fell to the ground did Su Ruoyun let out a breath of relief.

At that moment, a doctor came over from the next room, easing her embarrassment, and gestured that she could bring the cat over for an examination.

Su Ruoyun's mind flashed with various online rumors; she paused mid‑step, turned to look at Huo Jingcheng, and said, "Mr. Huo, could you do me a favor?"

……

Afraid the kitten would resent her, Su Ruoyun stayed in the lobby, didn't go into the examination room, and let Huo Jingcheng help.

By the time the neutering procedure was finished, half an hour later, the man emerged from the surgery room holding the listless kitten.

Just after the surgery, the kitten wasn't as clingy as before; it felt wronged, withdrawn, and lay low‑like a consort on the small table.

"Thank you, Mr. Huo."

"You're welcome," came the man's steady voice.

Huo Jingcheng's gaze fell on the kitten inside the carrier, and he asked, "How much does it weigh?"

"About fifteen catties."

"……"

After the person and cat waited together at the pet clinic for observation for several more minutes, Su Ruoyun finally left with her cat.

After saying goodbye to Huo Jingcheng, she carried the cat bag in both hands and walked out of the pet clinic's doors.

Worried the kitten would be uncomfortable in the carrier, Su Ruoyun didn't zip it up and simply placed it on the rear seat of the car.

As she was about to close the car door, a voice called out, "Miss, the cat treats you bought."

Su Ruoyun turned her head, realized she had forgotten to pick up the treats she'd bought for the Panda, released her grip on the door handle, strode forward, took a large bag from the nurse's hand, and said, "Thank you."

Nurse smiled and said: "You're welcome."

Su Ruoyun carried the plastic bag back to the car, raised her hand to close the car door, placed the bag on the passenger seat, walked around the front of the car to the driver's seat.

The pet hospital and the apartment are not far away; moreover, it's not rush hour now, so after more than half an hour, Su Ruoyun arrived at the entrance of the residential complex.

The Mercedes-Benz was parked in the underground garage; Su Ruoyun got out of the car, opened the rear door, took a close look, the cat carrier was empty inside, a sudden uneasy feeling welled up in her heart; after looking more carefully, there was no trace of the kitten inside the cabin.

……