Chapter 16: Your cat is with me

Huo Jingcheng watched as Su Ruoyun carried the cat carrier in one hand and pushed open the main gate, walking out of the pet hospital.

When he turned back, his peripheral vision caught a bag of items on the sofa. Without him needing to remind her, the nurse standing at the front desk had already noticed it; she hurriedly grabbed the bag of cat treats and walked out quickly to deliver it to Su Ruoyun.

Huo Jingcheng left about ten minutes later than Su Ruoyun. He pulled open the car door, and Lego, having finished its bath, lifted its front paws and hopped onto the passenger seat.

With its front paws standing and hind legs bent, it sat on the leather seat, panting with its tongue out, looking foolishly happy. Huo Jingcheng sat in the driver's seat, seeing a bit of its owner's likeness in Lego's dazed, happy expression.

He couldn't help but smile, reached out to pat the dog's head, fastened the seatbelt for Lego, and drove toward Huadu Imperial Garden, intending to return the dog to Chen Zheyan.

As soon as they entered the villa, Lego saw its owner through the floor-to-ceiling windows and immediately trotted all the way to Chen Zheyan's feet, wagging its tail enthusiastically and barking twice.

At that moment, Chen Zheyan was sitting at the dining table enjoying lunch. When he caught sight of Huo Jingcheng, he froze, his spoon suspended in mid-air.

The French cream of mushroom soup dripped back into the blue-and-white porcelain bowl from the spoon.

"You sent the dog back so quickly? I thought..."

Huo Jingcheng didn't stand on ceremony with his friend; he pulled out a chair and sat down, leaning lazily against the backrest with his long legs crossed. "Thought what?"

"I thought you were going to treat my dog-son to a feast to reward him." Chen Zheyan drawled, scooping up a small bowl of soup.

After he finished speaking, Lego cooperated with its owner's words, lifting its front paws and tentatively trying to claw at the beef on the dining table, as if to indicate it was hungry.

Huo Jingcheng only said, "Are you so poor now that you can't even afford a meal for your dog?"

The man's tone was idle, yet carried a hint of sarcasm.

Chen Zheyan gritted his teeth in anger, but didn't forget to pick up a piece of beef to feed the dog, retorting, "You're the poor one; I have plenty of money."

Huo Jingcheng's lips curled slightly, and he said leisurely, "That settles it then. Take your son back and fulfill your duties as a father properly."

"..."

Chen Zheyan rolled his eyes, but despite his reluctance, he still had the housekeeper set a pair of chopsticks and a bowl for Huo Jingcheng.

After lunch, the two had a golf match in the afternoon.

The Cullinan drove into the club without obstruction. As soon as Huo Jingcheng got out of the car, a valet greeted him, took the keys, and drove the car to the parking lot.

Several business friends had already arrived and were sitting under a parasol in the lounge area. Huo Jingcheng and Chen Zheyan walked over leisurely.

After a few pleasantries, one of the golfers smiled and said, "I also invited President Su today. You two don't mind, do you?"

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear.

Before Huo Jingcheng or Chen Zheyan could express their opinions, they suddenly heard a light laugh from behind them.

"Even if Huozong minded, I've already arrived; I suppose I can't just turn back now."

Hearing this voice, Huo Jingcheng and Chen Zheyan looked back instinctively. When Chen Zheyan saw who it was, he glanced at Huo Jingcheng, only to find his third brother's expression completely unchanged.

Dressed in black casual sportswear, with his left hand in his pocket and a golf club in his right, his features were heroic and profound, his silhouette sharp and angular, and a faint smile played on his face. It was none other than Su Mingyan.

Meeting those deep, dark eyes, Huo Jingcheng let out a hum of laughter that was impossible to decipher.

Someone nearby stepped in to smooth things over.

Everyone in the circle knew that the few crown princes at the top of the Beijing hierarchy were close friends, but the relationship between these two had a distinct sense of "two tigers cannot share the same mountain."

Su Mingyan had come to find Huo Jingcheng today, so he naturally wouldn't act as he usually did.

The golf match reached the halfway point.

Those with a keen eye could see Su Mingyan's intent and deliberately gave them space.

On the lush green lawn, the two walked side by side.

"I heard that Huozong visited the 'One River Tobacco' tea house a while ago?"

"Yes, I heard it was opened by someone close to President Su, so I wanted to go and show my support."

Huo Jingcheng deliberately emphasized the word "someone," intending to probe.

Su Mingyan smiled but did not refute it.

It wasn't until 10:30 PM that the social engagement ended. Huo Jingcheng carried his sports bag from the passenger seat and got out of the car. As he closed the door, he heard a faint meow.

He paused in the act of closing the door, his hand gripping the handle, his brow furrowed. He thought he had misheard, but as he was about to shut it, a clearer "Meow~" reached his ears.

He followed the sound, pulled open the rear door, and the dim light from the pillar lamp cast a pool of light into the cabin. A white cat was lying on the leather seat. Hearing the noise, it tilted its head and let out a wronged "Meow~".

At a single glance, Huo Jingcheng recognized whose cat it was, but...

Why was this cat in his car?

Su Ruoyun and the kitten had left before him, and he had personally watched Su Ruoyun hold the cat and place it into her car.

Before Huo Jingcheng could figure out how it got there, the cat changed its posture. It walked lightly and silently toward him, tilting its head and waiting for the man to reach out and hold it.

But after waiting for a while without being held, it let out a reminder-like "Meow~".

Su Ruoyun had lost her beloved cat. From the moment she discovered it in the parking garage that afternoon, she had been searching until late at night, not resting for even a moment.

Because all the car windows were tightly shut on the drive home, 'Panda' couldn't have run out; the only possibility was at the pet hospital.

Recalling what had happened, it wasn't hard for Su Ruoyun to piece together. When the female nurse called out to her, she had forgotten to close the door behind her; it must have been then that Panda escaped.

She returned to the pet hospital immediately, but the surveillance camera at the entrance didn't cover the parking space, so she couldn't see where the kitten had run off to. She asked around, but no one in the nearby alleys had seen a small cat.

Late at night, at 10:30 PM, the roads of the Third Ring Road were still brightly lit and bustling, with traffic weaving like golden threads.

After several hours of searching, Su Ruoyun felt exhausted and distressed. She rested her hands on the steering wheel, tapping her long fingers impatiently, wandering back and forth between the Third and Fourth Ring Roads like a headless fly.

Beijing was so vast that the chances of finding a small cat were slim to none, but she was unwilling to go home, especially when she thought about how it had just undergone a neutering surgery.

Just as she was about to make another loop, the phone on the center console vibrated, and the screen lit up, casting a harsh light in the dark cabin.

Su Ruoyun glanced sideways, saw it was a text message, slowed down the car, and picked up the phone with her right hand.

Before she even clicked to read it, a message popped up on the screen.

—【Your cat is with me】