Chapter 29: Cat Ears

Whether they were classmates or friends, almost everyone who had been invited showed up at the first possible moment.

This far exceeded Yu Xi’s expectations. Even the cat café’s manager and staff were stunned, working until they were drenched in sweat.

“Even our grand opening events weren’t as lively as today. It’s all thanks to you, Xiao Xi,” the manager said, exhausted but beaming. “Everyone, keep up the good work. There will be bonuses at the end of the month.”

The other two employees felt a surge of motivation and came over to thank Yu Xi.

Yu Xi was somewhat flattered. “No need to thank me. Everyone is working hard today.”

Seeing so many people arrive, Yu Xi felt a mix of gratitude and pressure. He was worried about causing trouble for the shop or providing poor service, so he didn’t dare daze off any longer and hurried to help greet the guests.

Fortunately, the shop was spacious enough, with plenty of cats and two private rooms, which was just enough to accommodate the crowd.

Sheng Yunshu and his other close friends were naturally among the first to know about his part-time job and had immediately reserved a private room. The room featured tatami mats and four or five kittens providing “exclusive service.” Usually, guests reserved it for a quiet space to study or play while petting cats; it was large enough to seat five or six people.

Yu Xi went to the private room first to take his friends’ orders. Despite it being his first day, he didn’t forget his training; he knocked seriously on the wooden sliding door and greeted them upon entering.

“Hello, may I take your order? You can scan the code on the mini-program or let me take it manually.” Yu Xi handed over the menu. Catching his friends’ gazes, he felt like they were playing house as children and couldn’t help but smile.

Sheng Yunjuan immediately pointed at the menu. “I want this, this, this, and this…”

Zhang Xingkuo remarked, “Why don’t you just order the whole book?”

Sheng Yunjuan rolled her eyes. “I’m happy today and can’t be bothered to argue with you.”

“Does Xiao Xi get a commission if we order a lot?” asked Lin Shuhuai, who was lounging lazily on a beanbag.

This question hit the mark. Zhang Xingkuo went silent instantly and looked up at Yu Xi.

Yu Xi smiled and said, “No, I don’t.”

“Just order normally,” Sheng Yunshu said calmly while browsing the bookshelf in the room. “Don’t cause trouble for Xiao Xi.”

“Oh…” Sheng Yunjuan revised her order seriously.

The others followed suit. Yu Xi collected the menus and stepped out first, as he still had other customers to serve; he would return once the drinks and desserts were ready.

While Sheng Yunshu read quietly, the others slid the door open just a crack, crowding together to peek outside.

Yu Xi was currently handing a cat teaser to a guest and teaching another how to hold a kitten. Although it was his first day, he was a quick study, always meeting the guests’ needs as he moved between people and cats.

He maintained a gentle smile throughout, his peach-blossom eyes curving into crescents and the red mole sinking into his dimple—he was eye-catchingly beautiful. The orange cat-ear headband suited him perfectly, making him look even younger. Wearing a cherry-blossom pink frilled apron, he radiated a soft, comfortable aura that was hard not to love.

Lin Shuhuai tapped his chin. “Actually, Xiao Xi is the real ‘top star’ of this shop.”

Zhang Xingkuo’s tone was displeased. “What’s with that guy? He actually tried to touch his cat ears.”

Sheng Yunjuan elbowed him. “Don’t be impulsive. Xiao Xi is the one leaning down to let him. Can’t you be more rational?”

Zhang Xingkuo was about to retort when he noticed Meng Shen was silently taking a rapid-fire series of photos with his phone. He blinked, forgot his annoyance, and immediately pulled out his own phone.

When Yu Xi finally returned to the private room with the drinks, he was met by the sight of several people crowded together, pointing their cameras at him.

“What are you all doing?”

“Recording a major milestone for our Xiao Xi,” Sheng Yunjuan said, putting her phone down.

Once inside, the tray in Yu Xi’s hands was taken by Meng Shen before he could do anything. Seeing Meng Shen help set out the drinks, Yu Xi gave a helpless “thank you” before addressing Sheng Yunjuan. “Is it really that major?”

Sheng Yunjuan replied, “Of course. It’s your first day of your first part-time job.”

“Well, thank you all for taking me so seriously.” Yu Xi smiled. In truth, his first job had been at a small grocery store in his third year of middle school; he had helped the owner move and sort stock, earning fifty dollars for the day. He had worked many jobs since then, hardly stopping except during his senior year of high school. Seeing his friends so happy, he didn’t want to spoil the mood.

They showed the photos to Yu Xi, insisting he pick who took the best one. Looking at just one gallery, Yu Xi was dizzy from the sheer number of nearly identical thumbnails. He looked through them generally and finally said, “They’re all quite good.”

This answer didn’t satisfy Sheng Yunjuan or Zhang Xingkuo, who insisted on a clear winner.

As Yu Xi stood caught in the middle, Lin Shuhuai came to his rescue. “Our Xiao Xi is beautiful, so he looks good no matter how you take the photo. You can’t pick a number one.”

At this, Sheng Yunjuan and Zhang Xingkuo finally stopped bickering.

“I’m going to send the photos to Gu Chuanzhou. Let him regret not coming,” Sheng Yunjuan said, tapping her phone. She found the chat and intentionally sent a photo of Yu Xi’s back—she wanted to annoy Gu Chuanzhou, but she didn’t actually want to show him the full photo.

Gu Chuanzhou had received word the night before. Although he felt it was a pity, there was nothing he could do about it.

Time passed quickly. Classmates and friends arrived and left in waves. As the sky grew dark, the bustling cat café gradually emptied out.

The manager was at the counter counting the day’s earnings, her smile widening as the numbers went up. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone push open the glass door and said without looking up, “I’m sorry, we’re already closed—”

Her voice trailed off as she saw the person clearly.

The man’s deep gaze bypassed her, landing directly on the figure doing the final cleaning in the shop. “I’m here for Yu Xi.”

“O-oh, okay,” the manager stuttered. “Yu Xi, your friend is here to pick you up.”

Yu Xi turned his head in confusion, but his eyes lit up when he saw who it was. He set down the mop and walked over to the man. “Brother Chuanzhou, why are you here?”

“I just finished work and figured I’d drop you off at your dorm since it’s on the way.” Gu Chuanzhou’s gaze followed the orange cat ears on Yu Xi’s head. His fingers felt an itch, so he simply reached out. He pinched one of the ears, gently rubbing the soft, plush texture.

Since it was the shop’s main feature, the manager had carefully selected high-quality cat ears rather than cheap ornaments. The headband was nearly invisible, making it look as if they grew naturally from Yu Xi’s head.

Yu Xi stood perfectly still, letting him pet them. The cat ears weren’t actually part of him, so he didn’t feel anything, but seeing Gu Chuanzhou so captivated, he felt a bit surprised. “Do you like these? I can buy you a pair.”

Gu Chuanzhou let out a low laugh. “I like seeing Xi Xi wearing them. They’re very cute.”

Yu Xi had heard many people say the cat ears were cute today, but hearing it from Gu Chuanzhou’s mouth somehow made him feel more embarrassed.

“I’m almost finished, wait for me.” He hurried back to finish his work, removed the cat ears and apron, and settled things with the manager.

Since the back gate of the school was very close to his dorm, the two walked back.

“I saw the photo Yunjuan sent me. I wanted to come see you immediately,” Gu Chuanzhou said as they walked under the streetlights. It was close to the university curfew, so the back gate was very quiet; only their voices could be heard. “But I was worried about causing you trouble. I guessed you would be very busy today and didn’t want you to have to split your energy to look after me, so I decided to come at this time instead.”

Yu Xi froze. He had assumed Gu Chuanzhou was simply too busy with work to make it; he hadn’t expected him to be so considerate.

Thinking a formal thank-you would be too distant, Yu Xi reached into his pocket and pulled out a free coffee voucher.

“Here.” Yu Xi placed it in Gu Chuanzhou’s palm, looking up with a beaming smile. “When you come back in a couple of days, I’ll have learned how to make coffee. I’ll make you the first cup.”

“Alright.” Gu Chuanzhou carefully tucked the thin slip of paper into his shirt pocket.

The two parted at the dorm building. Yu Xi went upstairs and was immediately asked about his first day by his roommates.

“Everything went well,” Yu Xi said.

Liu Yuan slammed the desk in frustration. “If only our group assignment hadn’t been rejected, we could have gone to see you!”

Zhou Anhe said, “You couldn’t have gone anyway even without the assignment. Aren’t you allergic to cat fur?”

“I could have taken medicine first!”

“…Sure.” Zhou Anhe gave a thumbs up.

Xiao Yang, leaning back in his gaming chair, interjected: “Don’t you get tired, packing your schedule so full every day?”

“It’s okay.” Yu Xi scratched his cheek; he was someone who couldn’t stand being idle. “I still have one day off a week.”

Xiao Yang frowned for a moment. “I happen to know a charity gala is looking for servers this Sunday. Five hundred dollars for the day. You going?”

A one-day job paying five hundred was rare. Yu Xi nodded quickly.

“Fine, I’ll put you in touch with the person in charge.” Xiao Yang took out his phone and made a quick call. He hung up and raised a hand to stop Yu Xi from speaking. “Don’t thank me. I just hope you spend less time with those people.”

Yu Xi was puzzled. “Those people?”

“Your so-called ‘good friends’.” Xiao Yang gave Yu Xi a meaningful look. “One of these days, you’re going to get eaten up by one of them—or all of them together.”

With that, Xiao Yang turned back to his game.

“?” Yu Xi was still completely baffled. He looked at his other two roommates, only to receive equally confused looks. Since Xiao Yang didn’t seem inclined to say more, Yu Xi didn’t pester him and went to shower.

After finishing and getting into bed, he checked his phone and saw the manager had sent an $88 red envelope to the staff group chat, with a share for everyone.

After accepting it and saying thanks, Yu Xi followed his routine of opening a certain video platform and going to Meng Shen’s profile through his “Most Watched” list. Meng Shen always streamed at night, finishing just before the lights went out at midnight. Checking in every night to renew a ten-cent fan badge had become Yu Xi’s little nightly habit.

Today was strange. Meng Shen wasn’t streaming, and there was no notice on his profile. Having watched him for a while now, Yu Xi had never seen this happen. He went straight to WeChat to ask Meng Shen if everything was okay. He didn’t receive a reply immediately; as he waited, he fell asleep.

When he woke up the next morning, he saw a reply sent by Meng Shen at 1:00 AM.

[I’m fine. I was called back to the Meng house for a bit.]

Yu Xi grew more worried. He wanted to call but feared disturbing Meng Shen, who hadn’t slept until the early hours, so he just sent a message.

[Are they making things hard for you? You have to tell me.]

The message arrived on another phone, the lit-up screen illuminating a dark corner.

Meng Shen was sitting on the floor in a corner behind the curtains. He clearly couldn’t hear the phone, yet he looked up as if sensing something. He picked up the phone by his feet. His dull eyes were lit by the text, showing a hint of human emotion. Instinctively, he tightened his grip on the object in his other hand.

His finger hovered over the keyboard, but he didn’t type. As time passed, the screen timed out, and he was swallowed by darkness once more.

In this room at the end of the first-floor hallway, right next to the servants’ quarters, the windows were closed and the curtains drawn year-round. There were very few belongings. If a guest accidentally walked in, they would never guess this was the room of one of the Meng family’s children. The rest of the family rarely set foot here, considering it bad luck.

But today, there was a noise at the door.

Thump, thump, thump. Someone was kicking the door.

Meng Shen’s eyelids didn’t even twitch. He lit up the screen again, staring at the chat interface marked with a “Little Sun” icon.

The person outside was persistent. After kicking for a while, they raised their voice: “I know you’re not asleep. Get out here!”

These sounds failed to elicit a reaction from Meng Shen. He was still struggling to think of how to reply.

The kicking stopped. A moment later, there was a sound in the lock. The person outside used a key to open the door, kicking it wide so it slammed against the doorstop. As they prepared to step in, they pulled back as if afraid of dirtying their shoes, covering their nose and mouth.

“This room of yours really is a rat’s nest as always.” Meng Liang’s disgusted gaze swept the room. Seeing Meng Shen huddled in the corner, he let out a cold laugh. “You don’t actually think you can stay hidden here and everything will be fine, do you? You were naive as a kid, but after ten years, your brain hasn’t grown at all.”

Meng Shen gave no response, not even a glance, as if the other person didn’t exist.

Meng Liang continued: “Father told me to notify you. If you don’t listen to him and go to the meeting, don’t even think about entering the Meng house again.”

Seeing Meng Shen still unresponsive, the ignored Meng Liang finally laughed in anger.

“Can’t you f***ing understand human speech? Don’t think playing deaf and dumb will let you reject Father’s arrangements. The Meng family has raised you for so many years; your only use is a marriage alliance. You don’t know what’s good for you. Do you really want to be kicked out of—”

Suddenly, the person in the corner stood up and walked over. His tall frame, radiating a gloomy aura, closed in abruptly. Meng Liang’s arrogance stalled mid-air.

However, Meng Shen didn’t even spare him a glance. He was simply annoyed by the noise and wanted to find a quiet place.

This total disregard completely ignited Meng Liang’s rage. His sharp eyes caught sight of the straw-woven grasshopper in Meng Shen’s hand, and he sneered: “You’re not still hoping that you can be with Yu Xi one day, are you?”

Meng Shen stopped in his tracks. A cold gaze fell upon Meng Liang.

Meng Liang’s momentum returned. “Are you really planning to be his dog for the rest of your life? I really can’t figure it out. Why on earth did he choose someone like you to be friends with… oh, I know. He thinks you’re pitiful. It’s like throwing a scrap to a beggar or a stray dog. He gives you something he doesn’t want, and you’re filled with gratitude, pathetically thinking you carry some weight with him. It’s hilarious.”

After the tirade, Meng Shen’s expression didn’t change. He never said a single word to Meng Liang and walked away without looking back.

A beggar, a stray dog—it didn’t matter. Even if it was a scrap given out of pity, he would fight for it and hold onto it.

As long as Yu Xi cared about him, that was enough.