Chapter 15: The Promise

“We won’t give up.

Please do everything you can to save it.”

Mu Jingyi signed the treatment plan and paid the enormous fee.

In all his past rescue efforts, he had never been this resolute.

Thanks to Ning Jiu, he had this rare opportunity to ask what the little black cat wanted.

The pet hospital went to great lengths to finally stabilize the little black cat’s condition and send it into the operating room.

They too had never before had the chance to save a small life with such complete support.

Ning Jiu sat outside the operating room.

His cold hadn’t fully cleared, and he was running a low-grade fever.

He wore a medical mask that covered most of his face, leaving only a pair of dazed eyes exposed.

The little bit of weight he had managed to gain under the meticulous care of Aunt Chen and Mu Jingyi had vanished completely due to this major illness.

Ning Jiu’s thin frame seemed to swim in his form-fitting T-shirt.

He covered his mouth and coughed a few times.

The effort made him see stars, and he swayed in his chair.

Mu Jingyi, sitting beside him, caught his teetering body and wrapped an arm around his waist.

The already significant size difference between them was even more pronounced now that Ning Jiu was gaunt from his illness.

Mu Jingyi could circle his waist with one hand, his palm resting on his lower abdomen.

The coughing made Ning Jiu dizzy, and reflexive tears reddened his dazed, unfocused eyes.

He leaned limply against Mu Jingy’s shoulder, rubbing his cat ears against the man’s neck.

Originally, Mu Jingyi had not wanted him to come.

A cat with a severe cold couldn’t bear the cold wind on his face; now, who knew how long it would take for him to recover.

But Ning Jiu had insisted, saying stubbornly, “The little black cat is the kitty I saved, not Sir’s!”

He had to be there to receive the cat he had rescued.

Mu Jingyi couldn’t win against him and had personally driven Ning Jiu over.

A doctor walked out of the operating room, but the red “In Surgery” light above the doorframe remained lit.

His expression was a bit stiff, but his excellent medical professionalism allowed him to maintain a basic level of calm.

The surgery had run into a new problem.

He walked out holding a pen.

He went to Mu Jingyi’s side and shook his head slightly.

“We still have to operate; minimally invasive surgery isn’t an option.

There’s only one veterinary surgeon in the entire city who can perform this procedure.

This is a kitten, after all, not a person.

President Mu, do you want to ask someone to call him now?”

“Yes.

I’ll arrange it.”

In all his years as a veterinarian, he had never seen an owner willing to spend such an exorbitant amount on a small kitten.

The cost even surpassed that of major human illnesses and was not something an ordinary family could afford.

Fortunately, the little black cat had met Mu Jingyi.

This president could provide sufficient financial security.

Even if he spent a fortune here, it wouldn’t even remove a zero from his bank account.

“Doctor, please spare no effort.

Don’t consider anything other than saving it.

Funds, manpower, or resources, just tell me what you need.”

Mu Jingyi was unruffled, as calm as if there were no emotional fluctuations at all.

He calmly scrolled through his contact list and, just as he had faced countless business risks in his life, he coolly assigned tasks one by one.

His cold eyes and swift, decisive manner of giving orders were a bit intimidating, the pressure of his suppressed emotions palpable.

It was a side he had never shown in front of Ning Jiu, but Mu Jingyi’s assistants were long accustomed to seeing their president this way.

The pet hospital had never been so busy, nor had any little kitten ever received such treatment.

The sound of hurried footsteps gradually drowned out Mu Jingyi’s voice on the phone, and a cacophony of voices echoed in the corridor.

There was order amidst the chaos; many people were working hard for one small life.

Ning Jiu sat quietly on the chair, his recurring fever leaving his mind in a fog.

He had never seen a scene like this.

At the very least, his stubbornness and persistence had never been taken so seriously.

He had begged Sir not to give up on the little black cat, and his Sir had agreed and was now doing everything in his power to fulfill that promise.

Ning Jiu huddled in the chair.

His feverish body felt cold; even wrapped in clothes as thick as a quilt, his hands and feet were still ice-cold.

The cat sat there quietly, feeling a bit faint from the heat trapped by his mask.

He let his cat ears droop, not wanting to disturb the slightly chaotic situation.

‘Was he being too willful?’

“Kitty, are you okay?”

Amidst the orderly chaos, the president still remembered to take a moment to soothe his cat.

Ning Jiu looked up at the sound of his voice, blinked his tired eyes, and nodded bravely.

“I’m fine, Sir… Is there anything I can do to help…?”

“Don’t worry about it.

The most important thing is to rest well.

You’re still sick.”

The corridor had quieted down.

The red light above the operating room door was still on.

Those who had finished their tasks sat quietly on the chairs on either side to rest.

Those who couldn’t find a seat either stood against the wall with their eyes closed or sat in a corner to rest.

“It will be alright.”

Mu Jingyi comfortingly stroked the cat’s hot ears and motioned for the nearest assistant to pour a glass of warm water.

“Sir, was my request very unreasonable?”

“What are you referring to?”

Ning Jiu pointed to the group of people crowded in the pet hospital corridor and the operating room with its red light on.

“They’re all here for the little black cat.

A young, critically ill black kitten… I really want to save it, but… so many people, so much money…”

Ning Jiu, who had barely survived in the factory, had witnessed countless deaths: hybrid omegas, various small animals from failed gene extractions…

The basement of the factory was a crude morgue, constantly shipping out dead little animals.

Ning Jiu had scraped by in the factory, never even feeling that his own life was valuable.

“In the end, it’s just a little black cat… So many people abandon their cats, and there are so many weak stray cats in the world.”

Ning Jiu said with his head lowered.

It was just as the factory staff had conditioned him to believe: Number 09 was just a commodity with a cheap price tag, just the most insignificant of lives.

And he was nothing more than a cat rescued and brought home by Sir.

The red “In Surgery” light above the operating room was particularly glaring.

Mu Jingyi stroked the cat’s hair, pressing down the hot ears, then watched them perk up again.

“No, kitty.

From the moment you picked it up and brought it home, from the moment you gave it a new meaning, it was no longer just a little black cat.”

“Then what is it…?”

Ning Jiu asked.

Countless past memories flashed through Mu Jingyi’s mind for a moment.

The stray cats he had successfully saved, the ones he hadn’t, their clear faces, and the ones that had faded with time—all were unearthed from the depths of his memory.

In the end, all the figures merged into a familiar shadow—

That little white cat named Yin Shuang, and his hybrid omega father who had passed away many years ago.

Mu Jingyi took Ning Jiu’s hand, holding the back of it, and intertwined their fingers.

“It is our family member.

It is always worth it to exhaust everything, to spend everything for the life of a family member.

People will do everything to save their family, sometimes even risking their own lives.”

Mu Jingyi paused, then curved his lips into a faint, reassuring smile.

“As long as there is a chance to save a family member’s life, no matter the cost, it’s worth it.”

Ning Jiu squeezed Sir’s fingers back, pressing the human’s fingertips into his own palm.

“What about when you saved me?”

“You are my family, kitty.”

Ning Jiu turned his head away, not letting Mu Jingyi see his hot, reddened eyes.

He had no concept of family.

At first, he had only thought of it as a house that could shelter him from the wind and rain.

It wasn’t until the little black cat said “Maou” in kitty language, the word for “home” in human language, that he began to feel the meaning of the word.

House, home, family.

Even though the little black cat was just a weak little life, so insignificant that countless passersby wouldn’t even spare it a glance.

But Ning Jiu had taken the little black cat home.

He had given the little black cat a house to shelter it from the wind and rain; he had given it a home.

The top edge of his mask was soaked with Ning Jiu’s tears, leaving darker blue water stains on the light blue fabric.

He still kept his back to Mu Jingyi, not letting him see his teary, red eyes.

Tears were truly unreliable.

Ning Jiu felt like he was always crying, yet he couldn’t stop them.

Mu Jingyi did not rush to turn him around.

Instead, he hugged him from behind, his arms circling his waist.

He rested his chin on the cat’s shoulder, the light pressure becoming a part of the sense of security.

“Kitty, I will protect you with everything I have, too.”

“Kitty is my family.”

Ning Jiu leaned back a little, his back pressing against Mu Jingyi’s chest.

He could almost feel Sir’s heartbeat, transmitted through the human’s chest to his back.

For a moment, the cat couldn’t find the words to respond.

A thousand words turned into hot tears, nearly soaking his entire mask.

A nurse suddenly rushed out of the operating room, the door slamming shut loudly behind her.

She pushed through the crowd near the entrance and found the conspicuous white figure.

“President Mu, the little black cat’s physical condition is too poor.

It can’t withstand general anesthesia.

We can use a local anesthetic for the operation, but it’s having a conditioned stress response to the sight of needles.

The doctor said you might have a way…”

“I’ll persuade it!

Cough, cough…”

Ning Jiu scrambled to his feet from the chair, saw stars, and nearly fell back down.

Fortunately, Mu Jingyi quickly supported him from behind, letting him lean against him.

“This way, please.”

Ning Jiu had a severe cold and could not enter the sterile operating room.

He could only watch from afar through the thick glass of the preparation area.

He was practically pressed against the glass, his warm breath fogging up the heavy pane.

A nurse brought out a recorder and played the little black cat’s meows for Ning Jiu to hear.

“Ma’a, Ma’a…” (Help, help…)

“Ma’ao Wii Miao (Don’t hit me)… Ma Miao, Ma’u mou (I’m a good cat, I didn’t steal food).”

What memories was it confusing this with?

The weak meows grew fainter and fainter, the sounds almost breaking apart.

Ning Jiu anxiously held the phone, speaking kitty language in an urgent, high-pitched tone.

“Ma wuii (The human is a good cat), Miu wuii (Trust the human).”

Ning Jiu paused, then added another sentence:

“Miu wau, Miu Maou.” (Trust the boss, trust family.)