"I've told you three hundred times, no peeing in front of my bedroom door!" Pàng Zǐ was furious as he grabbed a bck cat and tossed it onto the yard.

  "Be polite to the disabled," the bck cat shot him a gnce and pointed to its chest and belly, still wrapped in bandages.

  I put down the magazine I was holding and sized up the bck cat. "You're healing pretty well. In a few days, you'll be back to catching mice for me. Lately, I don't know why, but the mice keep sneaking into the shop."

  "Is there a paycheck?" The bck cat zily strolled over to my feet.

  I scowled, hands on my hips, and said, "I saved your life, helped you guide that arrogant brat, and even saved that 'Wang Xing' fish. And now you're asking for money?"

  "I was just asking..." The bck cat lowered its head, falling into a mencholic silence.

  I couldn't help but soften. After some thought, I grandly announced, "No paycheck, but I'll make sure there's plenty of cat food for you."

  The bck cat sighed and remained silent.

  The afternoon sun warmed me and the cat, making the atmosphere so comfortable it almost made me want to nap. I zily sank into the wicker chair, sipping on the grapefruit juice that Shòu Zi had just made, savoring the taste. After a moment, I casually asked, "So, when are you pnning on going back to be with Cang Tongkai? If you want to take human form again, it'll probably take at least twenty years."

  "Then I'll return after twenty years," the bck cat y down, its tone casual. "My inner core can at least ensure that he won't turn into that bloodthirsty yaokai after midnight for the next twenty years."

  "Cang Tongkai's father originally just wanted you to be his bodyguard and pymate, not for you to make such a big sacrifice." I took a sip of the sweet grapefruit juice, though there was a slight bitterness lingering in my mouth. "If it weren't for your luck, being able to crawl to me with your st breath, you'd already be a dead cat by now."

  "Exactly," the bck cat looked at me with a smirk on its feline face. "Having connections with you really is quite the stroke of luck."

  I gave the bck cat a sharp look. "Don't let it happen again. If you want to bring trouble to yourself, that's one thing. But if you ever try to disguise yourself as some wise sage and write letters asking others to come to me for help, I'll send you straight to the underworld as a borer."

  The bck cat only flicked its tail in acknowledgment, not looking the least bit intimidated. I continued, "You and TuTu both know that Cang Tongkai is the descendant of the Cat Yaokai King. The people of the Cang family, once they pass the age of seventeen, turn into cats after midnight, becoming bloodthirsty and merciless, especially when it comes to fish. They devour them without hesitation". I pulled out the straw, staring intently at the bck cat. "Over the years, TuTu has had countless opportunities to leave, and so have you."

  The bck cat's gaze softened. "If we leave, Kai will be alone again. He doesn’t even know about his true heritage, nor does he know what he's done during those dark nights. Both TuTu and I want him to be happy, even if it′s for just a little longer. He′s just a child. What he wants is simply a warm family, real care. Even if it′s just a conversation around the dinner table after school, or a gentle reminder to take care and not catch a cold."

  The bck cat paused, its eyes narrowing as it looked at the sunlight pouring in. "TuTu isn't a very clever yaokai. Though she′s no longer young, she doesn′t know much. The one thing she understands is keeping promises. She promised to stay by Kai's side, even if it means giving up her life. I didn't understand her at first. I thought her choice of a life where she's normal by day and running for her life by night was madness. But I understand now."

  I lowered my eyes and smiled. "Because you've fallen in love with a fish."

  The bck cat awkwardly rested its chin on the ground, giving an embarrassed grin. "But she fell in love with another cat."

  "Ugh, it's unfair," I sighed dramatically. "Even someone as arrogant as Cang Tongkai has someone who loves him." I shook my head. "Love really is a nonsensical, illogical thing."

  The bck cat looked up, its ears twitching in worry. "TuTu won’t be in any danger, will she?"

  I paused, my expression growing more serious. "Cat yaokais and fish yaokais are natural enemies. The wounds that Cang Tongkai left on TuTu can only be healed by his tears." I took a deep breath and added, "But TuTu's situation is even worse."

  The bck cat immediately sat up, its body stiffening in concern.

  "The inner core you gave to Cang Tongkai was pced inside him by TuTu," I continued, watching the bck cat's expression carefully.

  "The power of a cat yaokai's core is the most damaging to a fish yaokai like her. That's why her body has been shrinking, unable to transform into a human, unable to speak, and even unable to recognize Cang Tongkai. The only solution is to release her back into the wild, away from the cat yaokai aura that clings to him. It will take her at least a hundred or two hundred years to recover." I shrugged.

  "Now it′s up to Cang Tongkai whether or not he′ll understand the word I gave him. If not, I′ll have to swallow my pride and help you steal the fish to release it. Sigh, the love of a fish is such a hassle."

  "Thank you, really." The bck cat nuzzled its head against my leg. "I'll work hard to catch mice for you! No need for any payment!"

  A week ter, I received a package. Inside, there was a USB drive and a check.

  Opening the video file on the USB drive, the monitor immediately shook with a light blue sea.

  The video continued, the image of the white fish swimming gracefully through the clear blue waters, its tail and fins flowing like ce. It seemed free, unburdened by any injury. After swimming a short distance, the white fish suddenly stopped, turned its head, and stared at the camera with its round, glistening eyes. as if it knew the significance of this moment.

  The voice, the voice of a young man, echoed through the video, calm and almost regretful, "Go ahead; I should have let you go sooner."

  But the white fish just kept staring, staring...

  In the frame, there was only the sound of water.

  There might have been other sounds, but they were beyond our hearing.

  After a long time, the white fish flicked its tail, turned around, and gradually swam away, finally disappearing into a vast expanse of blue.

  I pulled out the USB drive and thought to myself, in ten or twenty years, if that kid Cang Tongkai really becomes a mature man, he should be quite a charming guy. I was pnning to verify my guess at some point in the future.

  Of course, another thing that made me ecstatic was the zeros on this check, so many that I could hardly count them!!! However, I definitely won't let Pàng Zǐ and Shòu Zi know; otherwise, they would definitely revolt and force me to give them a raise!!

  I hid the check well and swaggered into the house. It was dinner time, and Pàng Zǐ and Shòu Zi had been busy in the kitchen for most of the day. The delicious aroma made my life so wonderful!

  Additionally, Pàng Zǐ originally said he would make braised fish, but I refused.

  I never liked eating fish anyway, and I definitely won't eat it in the future, hehe...