Chapter 45: Golden Little Cat

Ye Xiuxiu stood silently in the Jinhua Spring,

Let the warm spring water submerge her whole body.

She closed her eyes tightly, feeling the warmth and comfort brought by the Jinhua Spring water,

From time to time she spat out strings of crystal-clear tiny bubbles from her mouth,

Suddenly, a strange sensation came from beneath her feet,

As if something was gently stroking her soles.

Ye Xiuxiu's heart jumped, and she quickly opened her eyes,

She widened her eyes and lowered her head to look down into the water.

(Note: One can keep eyes open underwater, as when swimming—if the eyes are fully submerged it's fine; but if merely touching the water, the eyes will be irritated.)

She saw a small, exquisite creature resembling a kitten happily swimming near her feet.

This mysterious little creature glittered all over with a dazzling golden light,

Like a beautiful work of art.

Astonishingly, it could breathe freely in the water without any hindrance.

At that moment, the golden little kitten extended its pink tongue and gently licked Ye Xiuxiu's fair soles,

It seemed full of curiosity and affection for her. Gazing at the utterly adorable little creature before her, Ye Xiuxiu felt a surge of joy well up in her heart.

Almost instinctively,

she swiftly reached out with both hands,

as if catching a butterfly, she lunged to grab the little kitten.

Unexpectedly, the little kitten did not dodge or flee,

but instead stayed put obediently, allowing Ye Xiuxiu to lift it gently.

Just as Ye Xiuxiu's fingertips touched the kitten's soft fur,

a faint golden light suddenly flared,

like a thin veil wrapping her entire body.

Immediately afterward, a miraculous thing happened,

Ye Xiuxiu actually felt she could breathe freely in the water like a fish,

with no sense of suffocation whatsoever!

Ye Xiuxiu, like a nimble mermaid,

popped out of the water with a splash,

she opened her mouth wide and greedily breathed in the fresh, pleasant air.

Water droplets slid down her fair cheeks, like flawless pearls rolling off a jade plate.

Meanwhile, Ye Xiuxiu was still happily playing in the water with an adorable golden little kitten.

Li Dongxia beside her couldn't help but wonder:

"How can Xiuxiu be so amazing, able to hold her breath for such a long time?"

"Just now, Ruyan held her breath for nearly a minute in one go, which already surprised her greatly,

but Xiuxiu in the water remained completely still."

At that moment, Ruyan suddenly turned her head to look at Li Dongxia,

and said in a sweet voice:

"Grandma, could you help me find a reed tube? With it, I won't have to strain to hold my breath when I go into the water anymore!"

Hearing this, Li Dongxia was first startled, then her eyes lit up instantly,

and she praised with a face full of delight:

"Oh dear, my clever and obedient granddaughter! You actually thought of this good idea."

Having said that, she hurried off to look for a reed tube.

Not long after, Li Dongxia returned holding a long reed tube.

Ruyan happily took the reed tube,

then lightly bit it in her mouth, made a graceful turn,

and dove once more into the sparkling Jinhua Pond.

However, after a while, Ye Xiuxiu still had not surfaced.

Li Dongxia began to feel a little anxious,

she stared intently at the situation underwater,

as time passed second by second,

her worry grew stronger and stronger,

Suddenly, Li Dongxia seemed to have discovered something and let out a soft "Huh?"

Immediately, she widened her eyes in disbelief and stared down into the water,

She saw that Ye Xiuxiu, who should have been there, had now vanished without a trace,

In the large pool, only Ruyan's solitary figure remained.

Ye Xiuxiu was gone!

At this very moment, Ye Xiuxiu was carefully following the small, adorable golden kitten, step by step, slowly advancing deeper into the Jinhua Spring.

She harbored no suspicion toward this mysterious and charming golden little creature,

and willingly let the kitten guide her onward in continuous exploration.

"Little kitten, where exactly are you taking me?"

Ye Xiuxiu asked, full of curiosity, but the little cat never spoke

It simply led Ye Xiuxiu wholeheartedly onward into the depths

Along the way, they twisted and turned, winding about

Finally, they arrived at a place filled with wondrous sights

This was as if they had entered the deepest part of the Jinhua Spring

Although the surroundings still radiated a dazzling golden light

but the upper and lower ends were already covered with thick soil

Ye Xiuxiu widened her eyes, carefully observing the scene before her

She saw before her thick objects glowing with gold light

which looked like vines, winding and extending, connecting the upper and lower parts

"Could this really be the root of some kind of plant?"

Ye Xiuxiu's heart jolted, and a thought suddenly flashed in her mind

"Could these be the roots of the Jinhua Peach Tree?"

Thinking this

she couldn't help but feel more and more that what she saw before her was exactly that

Just then, the golden little cat lightly extended its paw

and made a light scratch on those roots that appeared extremely tough

and a surprising scene occurred

a complete root system was easily severed just like that

The upper and lower parts of the roots swayed gently with the spring water

Upon close inspection

there were many such severed root sections

The little cat gently grabbed the root emitting a mysterious golden light with its two front paws

and carefully delivered it into Ye Xiuxiu's fair, tender palm

It lifted its head, its lively big eyes fixed on Ye Xiuxiu

then extended a delicate little paw

slowly pointing at Ye Xiuxiu's rosy lips

as if indicating she should quickly taste this wonderful thing

"Little cat, are you wanting me to eat this?"

Ye Xiuxiu looked at the adorable little creature before her, full of doubt

she lowered her gaze to the root in her hand that appeared ordinary

She saw that the root was entirely golden, faintly emitting a light fragrance

which made her unable to resist feeling curious

However, Ye Xiuxiu still had some doubts in her heart

after all, who would casually try eating something that looks like a root?

But when she saw the little cat's expectant gaze

she ultimately couldn't bear to refuse

Ye Xiuxiu hesitated repeatedly

finally mustered the courage to slowly send that root into her mouth

Just as her teeth touched the root

she heard a crisp "click" sound

an unprecedented sense of freshness burst in her mouth

This wonderful taste completely exceeded Ye Xiuxiu's expectations; it was nothing like chewing a root

but rather like enjoying the finest Jinhua Peach

that sweet, juicy, delicate feeling left her intoxicated

(End of chapter)