After Transmigrating As The Female Lead Of A Cruel Novel, I Raised a Big Shot Cat - Chapter 18

Ji Qingyue moved again, changing cities in the process.

Compared to her previous financial struggles, this time, under the company’s arrangements, she rented a small villa in a community with decent security.

The villa wasn’t massive, two stories high with a very airy living room but what satisfied Ji Qingyue most were the front and back gardens. It was a perfect spot for letting the cat roam and admiring flowers, it was truly wonderful.

Unfortunately, the previous owner clearly wasn’t a fan of greenery. Every spot intended for planting had been stripped bare, leaving the gardens desolate, save for a single winter sweet tree by the gate that drooped its head listlessly.

Ji Qingyue adjusted her straw hat, grabbed a small watering can, and began nourishing the tree while cross-referencing a plant care book.

“Miss Ji, haven’t you installed security cameras yet?” A crisp, girlish voice suddenly chirped.

Busy tidying the yard, Ji Qingyue looked toward the source of the sound. It was a girl with twin ponytails wearing a pink Lolita style dress. Her hands gripped the small wooden gate as she poked her round little head through, seemingly standing on her tiptoes to make herself just a bit taller than the gate.

Ji Qingyue found her adorable and teased with a smile, “Is Little Flower out shopping today? Do you want big sister to hold your hand? It would be bad if you got lost.”

“Little Flower” real name Qiao Hua’en was Ji Qingyue’s neighbor. She was an atypical “road blind” person, she was great at remembering things around her home, but the moment the surroundings changed, she could no longer recognize her own house.

When Ji Qingyue first arrived at the new house carrying her cat, she had seen the girl standing confused at her gate, looking left and right. The girl had double-checked the address with Ji Qingyue twice before being certain that her house was actually hers.

“I don’t need that! I know the way,” Qiao Hua’en said, looking slightly embarrassed and huffing to show her annoyance.

If she had known better, she wouldn’t have used “getting lost” as a silly excuse to start a conversation that day. However, looking at the smile on the face of the woman in the straw hat and dark grey wool dress, Qiao Hua’en huffed again. For the sake of that smile you give me every time we meet, this young lady forgives you.

Ji Qingyue wiped the dust off her hands, preparing to open the gate to let the girl in for a rest, but Qiao Hua’en shook her head. “I won’t come in; I have to go to work soon.” As she spoke, her youthful face clouded with grievance.

“I have a loooooong shift for the next three days. I have to work from 12 noon until 3 AM.” Her voice carried a hint of a sob, causing Ji Qingyue to frown.

“What kind of job makes you work 18 hours?” Even though she knew the girl was an adult, Ji Qingyue always felt like her boss was exploiting child labor.

Qiao Hua’en acted a bit guilty and brushed it off with a few laughs without revealing her profession. However, before leaving, she urged again, “Make sure you get those cameras installed soon.”

Ji Qingyue nodded and didn’t press further about the job. Just then, Bo Shuhan walked over, grumbling.

“What’s wrong, my baby?” Ji Qingyue expertly scooped up the cat and, despite the cat’s resistance, gave her a kiss.

Bo Shuhan had a cold expression and let out a few “meows.” Ji Qingyue couldn’t understand her, but she got the feeling the cat was cursing.

“Are you jealous?” Ji Qingyue hit the nail on the head. Bo Shuhan immediately meowed back in protest, her upward-glancing eyes screaming, “Who do you think you are? You’re not worthy of my jealousy!”

Ji Qingyue laughed and patted the cat’s head. After setting Bo Shuhan down, she carefully watered the plants and returned to her book, but her thoughts began to drift.

It had been a month since she saw Ye Sishen through the crack of a restaurant door. In that month, her life had changed drastically. Ji Qingyue eventually signed a contract with Lele’s parents.

As they had predicted, “The Boss” (Bo Shuhan in cat form) became an internet sensation. Between her famous “double standard” high-pitched meows, her “never lose an argument but lose every fight” persona, and her hilarious contrast of being a keyboard warrior but a coward in reality, she captured the hearts of countless netizens.

She was known as the “King of Trash Talk,” the “Garbage of Combat,” the “Noisy Neighbor of Building 3,” and “The Master’s Little Simp.”

Consequently, every time Bo Shuhan turned into a cat, the first thing she faced was pure humiliation. But after a while, she got used to it, the hell she did!

Is filming a cat using the litter box something a human being does?! Bo Shuhan thought. Running away! I must run away from home!

She expertly opened the window and jumped out, it was just the garden, anyway.

Normally, Ji Qingyue would have gone to coax her back, but this time she didn’t. She decided to use it as content instead. Her last theme was “How to PUA (manipulate) a kitten,” so a change of pace was good.

Through these months of living together, Ji Qingyue noticed her cat seemed to have two personalities. One was a “clinger,” and the other was an “avoider.” One loved kisses and being held, the other rejected everything. One was a king of arguing and fighting, the other took insults and beatings in silence.

This was a major reason why the cat went viral, especially since Ji Qingyue loved teasing the “avoider” version. Thus, whenever “The Boss” (the soul in the other body) was with Ji Qingyue, it was sweet; but when Bo Shuhan was in the cat body, she suffered constant public humiliation.

Bo Shuhan sat outside for a while until she felt her butt go numb from the cold. At first, she thought it was just the temperature, but when she tried to move, she realized she was stuck. She looked down, when did she sit on a puddle of water?

And her butt was actually frozen to the ground.

“MEOW!” With a piercing shriek!

The “Big Boss” (in the other body) saw the video Ji Qingyue posted on Douyin titled “Cat’s Butt Frozen” and couldn’t stop laughing for ages. Isn’t it nice to just be a double-standard kitty? You keep insisting on avoiding humiliation, yet you get humiliated every day.

The next second, a video call flashed through. Upon answering, a black cat’s head appeared abruptly.

“Meow meow meow!” (When are we switching back?!)

The Big Boss held back her laughter. “No rush, two more days. Why are you so anxious to switch? Did something happen?”

Bo Shuhan’s cat face went silent. “Can we switch back early this time?”

“It’s not impossible,” the Big Boss pondered, stroking her chin. Bo Shuhan’s eyes lit up with anticipation. Then she heard: “But we have to wait until Little Qingyue stops paying attention to your frozen butt.”

Bo Shuhan: ???!!!

The call ended; CEO Bo was in despair. Her lifelong reputation for making others feel awkward had been destroyed by her own paws. It was a total breakdown!

The Big Boss wasn’t surprised by the hang-up, but she uncomfortably touched her chest. Their soul-swapping was starting to have an effect, the Bo Shuhan of this world was much more lively than before. This hadn’t happened in the previous timeline. In that timeline, Bo Shuhan should still be a cold, humorless boss.

A simple cat changed so much. Indeed, to overthrew the world, external forces are essential, she thought.

As her thoughts shifted, the Big Boss finished her day’s work and returned to her castle. She wasn’t in the country, she was abroad dealing with some restless fools.

Back home, Ji Qingyue frowned as she looked at the comments under the viral video. One comment said: There wasn’t any water there originally, how did the cat’s butt get frozen? Did the cat lose control of its bladder?

Of course, some said Ji Qingyue staged it for views, while others wondered if it was a prank. The word “prank” made Ji Qingyue uneasy. After asking around in private messages, her expression darkened.

The next day, she installed the cameras and chatted more with that netizen about prank-related details.

On the third day, Bo Shuhan woke up early because today was the day she would finally switch back with the Big Boss. It wasn’t that Ji Qingyue’s place was bad, but as a cat, she had zero freedom. Especially if a human decided to mess with her, she had no way to fight back. This was the most unacceptable part for Bo Shuhan.

Waking up at 1 PM, she expertly ate some kibble to tide her over and headed toward her usual spot to sit. Suddenly, Ji Qingyue said, “Boss, don’t sit there.”

Bo Shuhan tilted her head, a look of feline confusion on her face.

Ji Qingyue quickly stepped forward and placed her hand on the spot where the cat most loved to sit.

When she first laid her palm down, she felt nothing, but after three seconds, tiny water droplets suddenly appeared, which then rapidly condensed into ice.

Ji Qingyue pulled her hand back, feeling a wave of resistance.

Although she managed to pull her hand away without much effort in the end, that level of force would have been extremely troublesome for a small cat.

Moreover, this area was small, just enough to stick to a cat’s bottom but what if the paws and tail were stuck as well? Or what if the cat was lying down halfway to sleep and couldn’t get up at all after being frozen?

In this kind of weather, if one were truly frozen to the ground and unable to move, even a human would struggle to endure it, let alone a cat.

At this thought, Ji Qingyue’s expression darkened, a rare sight.

After confirming that the spot had been tampered with, Ji Qingyue checked the newly installed security cameras and pulled up the footage.

As time sped by on the playback, around 3:00 AM, a nimble figure suddenly appeared. It was small and waddled as it walked, looking quite adorable.

However, in its hands, it held something resembling a blue ice pad, a square object about 40 centimeters long.

It placed the ice-pad like object on the “Boss’s” favorite sitting spot, inspected it carefully, smoothed out all the wrinkles, and finally nodded with satisfaction.

Having finished its task, it wandered around the yard for a bit before strolling away with its hands behind its back.

Bo Shuhan, of course, saw it too. She stared at the screen in silence. If she wasn’t mistaken, was that… a raccoon?

And based on its actions, one could conclude this was a pet raccoon. However, keeping raccoons as pets was not permitted domestically.

After some thought, Ji Qingyue chose to call the police.

The police took the matter very seriously.

While a single raccoon might not cause a biological invasion, raccoons are highly aggressive and carry numerous pathogens and rabies, making them a definite danger to the neighborhood residents.

The police knocked on doors one by one. Soon, Ji Qingyue heard a woman’s shrill shouting coming from two houses down.

“What do you think you’re doing!”

Cradling the cat, Ji Qingyue stood at her door and looked toward the commotion. It was a woman with sweet makeup but revealing clothes, despite the freezing December weather, she was wearing a pink, tight-fitting bodycon camisole dress. Her pale legs and arms were completely exposed. Ji Qingyue felt cold just looking at her.

The leading officer looked like a cold, sophisticated “alpha” woman, followed by a cute young female officer who held a body camera and seemed a bit intimidated, constantly shrinking back.

The woman kept clutching the little raccoon to her chest while hurling abuse, which was indeed quite intimidating.

Perhaps annoyed by the woman’s irrationality, the lead officer took handcuffs from her belt and snapped them onto the woman’s wrists with a loud clack.

“Madam, you are under arrest for keeping an illegal animal and refusing to cooperate with police duty.”

The moment the handcuffs clicked, the woman finally quieted down. She cringed and immediately shoved the raccoon into the officer’s arms.

“Officer, I didn’t do it on purpose. You want to take it away, right? Just take it. Can you please not arrest me? I was just scared just now.”

The woman began to sob quietly, but the officer showed no pity as she escorted her to the police car.

Ji Qingyue thought the matter was over, but a second before entering the patrol car, the woman spotted Ji Qingyue and suddenly screamed.

“Is it you?! Did you call the police?! I knew it was you, you bitch! You just wait… wait until I get out of there!”

Ji Qingyue was stunned. The officer frowned and shut the car door on the woman.

The officer then walked toward Ji Qingyue, allowing her to see the woman’s face clearly.

If Ji Qingyue’s beauty was ethereal and agile, and Bo Shuhan’s was cold and heroic, this officer’s beauty was “standard” the quintessential sophisticated, mature look.

“Do you know that person?” The woman’s voice matched her face perfectly, very deep and cool.

The combination gave Ji Qingyue an indefinable sense of mystery, but she remained cooperative.

“I moved here recently and don’t know her. If there’s any connection, it’s my suspicion that she ordered her raccoon to come to my house and place something where my cat usually sleeps.”

Ji Qingyue pulled up the surveillance footage. The officer looked at the object in the raccoon’s hands with curiosity.

“May I come inside to take a look?”

Ji Qingyue naturally didn’t refuse. If the police could handle this, she truly didn’t want to take matters into her own hands.

The officer was clearly very professional. Ji Qingyue didn’t quite understand why someone catching an animal would carry cotton swabs for sampling and other small tools. Regardless, the officer worked on the floor for a good while before nodding to Ji Qingyue and turning to leave.

Watching the officer’s gallant and spirited back, Ji Qingyue felt a touch of envy. “That police sister is so cool.”

After saying that, Ji Qingyue lifted the cat and gave it a kiss. “I kind of regret not asking for her WeChat.”

Bo Shuhan glanced at Ji Qingyue and decisively turned her head away, refusing to look at her.

Ji Qingyue didn’t notice that the officer, who had already reached the gate, suddenly paused. A blush quickly crept up her ears, and her pace toward the patrol car quickened.

The December air outside was quite chilly, so Ji Qingyue returned indoors.

In the center of the living room was a very large table covered with blueprints and various fabric scraps.

Ji Qingyue hadn’t been eligible for the November fashion show, but she intended to participate in the one coming up in March.

After discussing with MC Company, she decided that besides posting the cat’s embarrassing moments, she would start integrating the cat’s antics with her own clothing designs. She planned to film videos that were humorous yet highlighted the features of her garments.

As Grandpa Jin said: once the popularity is there, even if there are slight flaws, the organizers are very likely to accept the designs.

Ji Qingyue knew that the “flaws” Grandpa Jin referred to were her slightly too advanced vision and designs, so she didn’t resist the suggestion. In this era, even the finest wine fears a hidden alley.

As for the style of the clothes for the March selection, Ji Qingyue already had a plan. She intended to create some “National Style” (Guofeng) pieces that combined practicality with fashion after all, domestic buyers preferred practical items.

Ji Qingyue stood by the table for another full day, but looking at the fabric she had cut, she raised her eyebrows happily.

By this time, Bo Shuhan had long since curled up on the sofa and fallen asleep. She was dreaming of tomorrow, when she would turn back into a human and leave these embarrassing times behind.

Checking the time, it was already past 11:00 PM.

Ji Qingyue patted the cat’s head and prepared to go to bed.

But in the next second, her front door was slammed with a loud bang bang bang.

The massive noise jolted Bo Shuhan awake and startled Ji Qingyue.

“I know you’re in there! Get out here right now! You bitch, you’re the one who got my daughter sent to the police station! I’m going to skin you alive today!”

A middle-aged woman’s coarse voice exploded at the door.

Through the monitor, Ji Qingyue saw a short, stout woman relentlessly pounding on the door.

Initially, Ji Qingyue was going to open the door to explain, but Bo Shuhan lightly bit her hand.

Ji Qingyue looked at the cat, puzzled. Bo Shuhan extended a paw and pointed toward a blind spot in the monitor’s view.

There, two shadows of tall, burly men were starkly visible.

A shiver immediately ran down Ji Qingyue’s spine.

Without any hesitation, she decisively dialed the police.

The voice of the dispatcher sounded familiar, it seemed to be the same young woman from that afternoon.

“Hello, ma’am. How can I help you?”

Ji Qingyue suppressed the tremor in her voice. “Hello, officer. A woman is pounding on my door late at night, and through the monitor, I can see the shadows of two men in the camera’s blind spot.”

As she spoke, she hugged her cat tightly in fear. If the cat hadn’t warned her just now, she couldn’t imagine what would have happened if she had opened that door.

The officer recognized Ji Qingyue’s voice. Her tone turned cold. “Ma’am, please do not open the door. We will be there immediately.”