Chapter 114: The Cat Treats and the Chase

“The world where only Li Jianren gets hurt is complete!”

“Li Jianren Hachiman Hikigaya said?”

“Oh, Qiaoqiao, you actually know the origin of that meme!” Jiang Nanjin exclaimed, leaning closer in surprise. “You’re a veteran otaku!”

“I wouldn’t say veteran… I just watch occasionally…”

“Hey, then let’s add each other on WeChat, since we’re fellow fans.”

“I swear, your topics jump around so quickly…”

Zheng Qiao didn’t seem particularly adept at handling Jiang Nanjin’s overly familiar personality. With a hint of reluctance, she took out her phone and added the contact.

“Hurry, we’re going to lose them!”

“We won’t lose them… Don’t we already know their destination?”

“Oh, right.”

“……”

****

Li Jianren and Bai Ruijin were walking side by side.

“Xiao Bai, are the cats at that café friendly?” Li Jianren asked, striking up a conversation with her quite naturally. “You might not believe this, but I’ve never encountered a friendly cat my entire life…”

“Huh?”

“The cats I’ve met usually walk around me. They take a step back for every step I take towards them, and I have no idea what it is about me they dislike…”

“Um… Li Jianren, don’t worry. The cats there really enjoy interacting with guests. They should, probably, take a liking to you…”

“That’s good then.” Li Jianren nodded. “However, this time I’ve come fully prepared. Even the unfriendly cats will have to submit to me!”

Li Jianren reached into his pockets and swiftly pulled out several stick-like objects.

“Cat treats?”

Holding three cat treats in each hand, much like Izayoi Sakuya wielding her throwing knives, Li Jianren spread his arms and struck an elegant pose.

“Hmph hmph, with these, won’t the cats be easily captured?”

“So, you rushed back to the dorm just now to get cat treats?”

“Yes, and I brought along a pair of glasses too.”

Li Jianren used a cat treat to push up his gold-rimmed glasses, which had no lenses.

“Are you nearsighted, Li Jianren?”

“No, no, this thing is just for decoration.” Li Jianren threaded a cat treat through the empty frame. “See? No lenses.”

“Oh, I see…”

“Here, have a few cat treats.”

“Alright…”

****

“What did Li Jianren give Xiao Bai?”

“I don’t know, it looks like instant coffee…”

“It couldn’t be instant coffee, could it?”

“It sure looks like it.”

Jiang Nanjin and Zheng Qiao walked ahead, discussing as they went.

“It’s probably cat treats.”

Zhong Tian remarked.

“Oh, cat treats. That makes sense then.”

“Li Jianren is quite considerate, isn’t he?”

The two people in front reached a bus stop outside the school and began waiting for a bus.

“Bus number five is the one we need to take,” Bai Ruijin said, pointing at the bus stop sign. “We’ll get off at Taisugi Pedestrian Street, and then we can walk together from there.”

“Oh, I understand.”

“……They’re taking the bus, what should we do?” Jiang Nanjin, who was leading the way, turned back to ask. “We can’t possibly get on the same bus as them, can we?”

“Once their bus arrives, we’ll call a taxi.”

This was a situation Zhong Tian had anticipated. Having already made plans, he took out his phone and waited for the opportune moment.

“The bus is here.”

“Mm,” Zhong Tian confirmed with a tap on his phone. “My ride-share is also on its way.”

****

Zhong Tian and the other three boarded their ride-share and arrived at Taisugi Commercial Street shortly after the bus carrying Li Jianren and Bai Ruijin.

“I’ll lead the way.”

Zheng Qiao walked ahead, guiding the trio towards the “Cat’s Paw Café.”

Taisugi Commercial Street…

She hadn’t had a proper chance to explore this place in this lifetime.

Su Linxi walked along, observing her surroundings without betraying any emotion.

She was searching for differences between this commercial street and the one in her previous life, yet everywhere she looked, the scenery was familiar.

The greenery, the shops—all were exactly as she remembered them.

Even their current act of trailing Li Jianren and Bai Ruijin was something that had transpired in her previous life.

The only difference…

She glanced at the three people walking ahead of her.

A sense of melancholy, a feeling she knew well, welled up within Su Linxi, and her pace slowed even further.

“Qiaoqiao, how long do you think it’ll take for them to get together?”

“I can’t really say… Half a year…?”

“Half a year? That’s far too long!”

“Is it long…? I think a six-month ‘getting to know you’ phase is pretty normal, isn’t it?”

“If it were our parents’ generation, then yes, it might be considered normal,” Jiang Nanjin said, wagging a finger. “But in this day and age, in half a year, some people might have already gone through several relationships.”

“I don’t know about Li Jianren,” Zheng Qiao stated, “but Xiao Bai clearly isn’t one of ‘those people,’ is she?”

“No, no, I wasn’t implying they treat love like fast food. I just wanted to emphasize that in this era of increasingly shorter courting periods, half a year seems almost fantastical…”

“…Then let me ask you, how long do you think it’ll take for them to get together?”

“I’d guess a month!”

“…Based on what?”

“I said it was just a guess!”

Zheng Qiao was once again stumped by Jiang Nanjin’s words. Unable to find a retort, she simply closed her mouth and refocused her gaze on the two people ahead, who were nearing their destination.

“…!” Zheng Qiao suddenly whispered, “Li Jianren looked over!”

Hearing this, everyone quickly found nearby cover.

Zheng Qiao pulled Jiang Nanjin behind the same tree.

With unspoken understanding, they both peeked out cautiously, half their heads visible, to observe the situation.

****

“What’s wrong?”

Seeing Li Jianren glance back, Bai Ruijin asked curiously.

“Hmm… nothing,” Li Jianren said, shaking his head. “Let’s go, let’s head inside.”

“Oh…”

****

“It’s fine now, it’s fine. You can come out.”

“Hmm… actually, a question just occurred to me,” Zheng Qiao posed to Zhong Tian. “What do we do after they go in to eat? Do we follow them inside?”

“We can’t, can we? If we follow them in, we’ll be exposed.”

Jiang Nanjin commented.

“But if we don’t go in, we won’t hear their conversation, and that would be no fun…”

“That’s true…”

The two of them grew troubled and looked towards Zhong Tian.

Zhong Tian didn’t have any good ideas either, as he hadn’t initially considered sneaking into the café to eavesdrop. So, he shook his head and said,

“Let’s just head over there first and see…”

****

Su Linxi looked up at the question, softly replying, “Within a week.”

If things progressed as they had in her previous life, Bai Ruijin would confess to him on the last day of the school sports festival next Friday, and then they would become a couple…

However, with so many changes in this lifetime, Su Linxi felt that their relationship probably wouldn’t unfold in the same way as before.

Therefore, by giving the timeframe from her previous life as her answer, Su Linxi was also hoping they could get together just as they had before, ultimately tying the knot.

****

“Wow, who would’ve thought Linxi would be the one with the most confidence in them?”

“What does this have to do with confidence…? It’s completely baseless…”

“Well, with these kinds of things, the sooner the better, right?” Jiang Nanjin chuckled. “I’m practically wishing they’d get together today!”

“I think so too, but how could that possibly happen…?”

“Anything is possible, you know.”

Zheng Qiao was once again stumped by Jiang Nanjin’s words. Unable to find a retort, she simply closed her mouth and refocused her gaze on the two people ahead, who were nearing their destination.

“…!” Zheng Qiao suddenly whispered, “Li Jianren looked over!”

Hearing this, everyone quickly found nearby cover.

Zheng Qiao pulled Jiang Nanjin behind the same tree.

With unspoken understanding, they both peeked out cautiously, half their heads visible, to observe the situation.

****

“What’s wrong?”

Seeing Li Jianren glance back, Bai Ruijin asked curiously.

“Hmm… nothing,” Li Jianren said, shaking his head. “Let’s go, let’s head inside.”

“Oh…”

****

“It’s fine now, it’s fine. You can come out.”

“Hmm… actually, a question just occurred to me,” Zheng Qiao posed to Zhong Tian. “What do we do after they go in to eat? Do we follow them inside?”

“We can’t, can we? If we follow them in, we’ll be exposed.”

Jiang Nanjin commented.

“But if we don’t go in, we won’t hear their conversation, and that would be no fun…”

“That’s true…”

The two of them grew troubled and looked towards Zhong Tian.

Zhong Tian didn’t have any good ideas either, as he hadn’t initially considered sneaking into the café to eavesdrop. So, he shook his head and said,

“Let’s just head over there first and see…”