After Transmigrating As The Female Lead Of A Cruel Novel, I Raised a Big Shot Cat - Chapter 5

The sudden cessation of the intimidation only made Ji Qingyue more anxious. She pulled out her phone and turned on the flashlight, immediately spotting the cat staring at her from a short distance away.

It was a black cat with its fur standing on end. Ji Qingyue’s fingers trembled at the sight of the blood continuously seeping from its front paw.

How much pain must it be in?

The darkness of the night masked the emotions on people’s faces, but Bo Shuhan was a cat, she had night vision. Gazing at Ji Qingyue’s sadness, shock, and the tears shed out of heartache, she felt a sense of daze.

She had known of Ji Qingyue for two years, but they had only truly met a year ago.

In a foreign country, a beautiful Eastern woman had been living a very difficult life, especially since she had entered the notoriously exclusionary fashion industry. During that time, she had been framed, her work had been plagiarized, and she had even nearly been assaulted by a female superior. Yet, Ji Qingyue was never afraid and never cried.

If she was framed, she fought back if she was plagiarized, she sued if she was harassed, she threw punches.

Bo Shuhan remembered a winter a year ago. As snowflakes fluttered down, the woman had placed her white down jacket on the ground. Wearing a black sweater, she moved like a swift tiger, landing punch after punch on that old woman’s face until the woman knelt and begged for mercy, never daring to cross her again.

The Ji Qingyue she knew was full of integrity, cold and unyielding, she had never seen her cry.

So, is she crying out of heartache for this cat?

The black cat began to approach Ji Qingyue, even rubbing against her hand.

The light from the phone was dim. Ji Qingyue couldn’t clearly see the cat’s condition, but she could smell the thick scent of blood. However, what her fingertips felt was warm, soft fur.

For some reason, she thought of the black cat she had raised in her past life. That cat also loved to fight, every time she returned, she would “report the good news but hide the bad,” always offering the spots without wounds for Ji Qingyue to pet.

After a brief moment of distraction, Ji Qingyue regained her composure and tried to pick up the cat. To her surprise, she succeeded instantly.

Though she didn’t know why it was so cooperative, she cradled the black cat carefully in her arms and took out her phone to find the nearest pet hospital. Fortunately, Shanghai was bustling, there was a pet hospital just 500 meters away.

Without thinking much, Ji Qingyue followed the route into a dark alley. Before she could even feel nervous, the cat in her arms had already grown tense.

The cat raised its head and pricked up its ears. Its green eyes, identical to Bo Shuhan’s, flashed with an eerie light. There were stray dogs nearby, but when the cat looked up, the dogs immediately abandoned their half-eaten food and fled with their tails between their legs.

“Meow-ow-ow~~” This place looks too unsafe.

Bo Shuhan issued a frantic warning, but it came out as nothing but cat cries.

Ji Qingyue thought the cat was in pain, so she quickly stroked its head to comfort it. Finally, at the very end of the alley, she found the pet hospital.

The shop was small but looked very cozy because it was painted pink. The bright white lights inside displayed the interior to passersby. In the northeast corner of the clinic were numerous cages housing many sickly cats and dogs.

A doctor with a “meatball” hair bun, wearing a white coat, was observing a cat in a cage. Her hands were occupied with two cat teasers, which a large orange cat and a calico cat were joyfully playing with.

Ji Qingyue’s heart, which had been racing due to the remote location, immediately settled. A hospital with such a lovely doctor was bound to be a place that truly loved animals.

As the wind chime on the glass door rang, Zhou Ruotong turned around. Before she could even offer a greeting, she was stunned by the visitor’s beauty.

Ji Qingyue also saw the doctor clearly. She was a cute girl in her twenties, but her chubby face and youthful features made her look like a teenager. At the moment, her eyes were wide with shock.

One couldn’t blame Zhou Ruotong. The woman before her had dark hair and fair skin, her features were vivid yet possessed the unique cold, elegant, and striking beauty of an Eastern woman. Just by standing there, she made the small shop feel like a palace.

While Zhou Ruotong was still dazed, Ji Qingyue set down her suitcase and rushed toward her anxiously.

“Doctor, please, look at the cat in my arms.”

At the word “cat,” Zhou Ruotong snapped out of it. With professional instinct, she quickly looked at the black cat with squinted eyes in Ji Qingyue’s arms.

The streetlights had been too dim to see the cat’s condition, but now that it was under the bright white lights of the hospital, the cat’s tragic state was fully exposed to Ji Qingyue.

The cat’s right paw could no longer be described as “bloody mess”; someone had literally carved a piece of flesh off it. Seeing the white bone connected to flesh and tendons made Ji Qingyue’s stomach churn.

Furthermore, although the fur hid much of the blood, under the stark lights, one could clearly see long, bloody gashes all over its body.

Ji Qingyue’s new clothes, which she had changed into after getting off the plane, were now mottled with blood. Zhou Ruotong’s fingers were trembling.

Even though she frequently rescued stray or abused cats, she couldn’t help but feel a surge of rage upon seeing this one. After the anger came heartache, how had this cat even survived?

Taking a deep breath, Zhou Ruotong led Ji Qingyue toward the operating room while quickly calling the on-duty nurse.

Placing the cat on a pee pad, Zhou Ruotong examined the wounds that had already stopped bleeding. The situation was grim. Although it was October, the lingering heat from the previous days had caused the wounds to become inflamed. To clean the wounds, the currently clotted areas would inevitably tear open again. A cat only has so much blood, it looked like a transfusion would be necessary.

While planning the treatment, Zhou Ruotong asked about the cat’s background. Upon hearing it was a stray, she wasn’t surprised. The nurse arrived just in time, and with the extra help, Zhou Ruotong devoted herself entirely to the work.

Ji Qingyue was asked to wait outside.

The wounds were terrifying even with fur, once the fur was shaved, it would surely be even more heart-wrenching. Zhou Ruotong and the nurse were used to such grisly scenes, but Ji Qingyue looked like a sheltered princess, they didn’t have the energy to care for her if she fainted from the sight.

Fortunately, it was already 11:00 PM. Nearby shops were closing one by one, and pedestrians were sparse. No one else entered the brightly lit pet hospital.

Standing outside the operating room, Ji Qingyue hugged her arms, listening to the cries of the animals, unable to calm her mind.

Will the black cat survive?

Though she trusted the doctor, those injuries were so heavy, there was so much blood, and that gouged flesh on the paw… Whenever she closed her eyes, she saw the cat’s miserable state. Beyond heartache, Ji Qingyue felt a sense of profound exhaustion.

Troubles were coming one after another, and all of them were bad news.

After a bitter laugh, she forced herself to stay alert and began using her phone to gather information. She hadn’t forgotten that she was still being hunted.

After browsing through various news outlets, she saw that the incident where Ye Sishen caused a scene at the airport had not been reported by a single media company. Even private discussions online were being suppressed.

Though she had expected this, seeing the power of capital still made her feel a sense of helplessness.

However, Ji Qingyue wasn’t without her own cards to play.

Just as she finished that thought, she felt a vibration from her suitcase, it was the ringtone of her third phone. She pulled the phone out from a hidden compartment in the back of the suitcase.

Seeing the string of English on the screen, Ji Qingyue was instantly excited.

The Ye family was powerful domestically, so she had never planned to settle down peacefully within the country. Whether it was Hangzhou or Shanghai, they were just temporary stops. What she truly wanted was to go abroad.

Although she was penniless, in her past life, she had been a fashion designer before becoming an editor-in-chief. She had observed the fashion world in this universe and noticed that, for some reason, the international fashion scene seemed to completely ignore the Chinese market.

A month ago, Ji Qingyue had sent a proposal and several design sketches to the head of PG. Calculating the time, it was indeed time for a reply.

Sure enough, when she answered the call, the voice on the other end spoke French.

“Hello, is this Miss Ji Qingyue?”

“It is. And you are?”

“Hello, I am the recruitment manager for PG. Your proposal and sketches are outstanding. Our editor-in-chief would like you to come to Paris for an interview. Naturally, we will cover your round-trip airfare. If the collaboration goes well, we will immediately arrange your position and housing.”

Ji Qingyue had no intention of refusing. She was even a bit giddy. A leap to the top, the chance to leave Ye Sishen was right in front of her!

By now, the sky was starting to brighten. Looking at the rising sun, Ji Qingyue felt the light was beautiful. The sun was truly magnificent.

Just as Ji Qingyue was about to agree, Zhou Ruotong opened the door to the operating room and said with a weary expression, “The cat is out of danger, but someone needs to provide around the clock care for the first month.”

Ji Qingyue’s smile stiffened, and she subconsciously gripped her phone tighter. “If I pay… fifty thousand… no, sixty thousand! Could your clinic treat her until she’s recovered and then find an adopter?”

Zhou Ruotong shook her head. Looking at Ji Qingyue, she said responsibly, “Setting aside the money for a moment, you’ve seen how many staff we have here. Our clinic frequently rescues sick or abused animals; we truly don’t have the energy to dedicate ourselves entirely to looking after her.”

Perhaps sensing Ji Qingyue’s urgency, Zhou Ruotong hesitated for a moment. “Actually, you don’t necessarily have to wait until she’s fully recovered, but the first ten days will be quite hard for you.”

As she said this, Zhou Ruotong felt a bit helpless, knowing she was bordering on “moral kidnapping.” But she was truly at her wits’ end. Although her clinic had a decent reputation, the monthly cost of rescuing animals was a massive expense. She only had two nurses, and the only two doctors in the clinic were herself and her father.

The black cat was severely anemic and had widespread inflammation. The most troublesome part was the front paw, the carved-out flesh, visible bone, and exposed blood vessels were extremely dangerous without the protection of muscle. One slip-up could lead to a ruptured vessel and massive hemorrhaging or a fracture. Once she, her father, and the nurses got busy, it was non-stop, they simply couldn’t keep a constant eye on her.

Sensing the girl’s predicament, Ji Qingyue whispered into the phone to the person on the other end. “Hello, I have a very important matter here in China. Can I postpone my arrival by ten days?”

“Of course not. Ms. Ji, you must understand how lucky a person from Dragon Country is to have the chance to work at PG. Countless people beg for this, what could possibly be more important than your future?”

The response was cold. While Ji Qingyue’s designs were brilliant, what they truly valued was her proposal, which aligned perfectly with their upcoming plans.

In the last century, Dragon Country looked down on Western clothing that “exposed breasts and legs,” while foreign countries dismissed Dragon Country as being “unpresentable.” This mutual disdain resulted in a rift between Dragon Country and the international fashion world. But now, Dragon Country was wealthy and powerful.

Foreigners wanted to make money in the Chinese market, which led to plans for expansion. However, these plans were conceived by foreigners, after being implemented in some major cities, they proved completely unworkable. At this moment, Ji Qingyue’s proposal was like a godsend.

However, because of previous failures, many other conglomerates knew of their intent to enter the Chinese market, leading many companies to try and stick their oars in recently. That was why the people at PG were in such a hurry.

Ji Qingyue wanted to negotiate further, but the person on the other end gave her no opportunity. “I hope to see you standing before me on October 11th.”

Then, she was met with a long silence.

The operating room doors swung open. The cat, covered in surgical sutures with its right front paw secured by a metal frame, was wheeled out on the surgical bed. At this moment, the cat looked hideous, hairless and covered in stitches, it looked like a reassembled corpse, ghastly and eerie.

“Hello? Are you listening to me?”

Looking at the cat, Ji Qingyue decided to give up this opportunity to go abroad. Opportunities come every year, but there was only one cat.

“I’m sorry, I decline.”

“What? Decline? Young lady! This is the closest you will ever get to high fashion in your life! If you give this up, you will regret it for the rest of your life!”

Ji Qingyue hung up the phone immediately, ignoring the roaring on the other end.

The anesthetized cat seemed to be asleep. Ji Qingyue watched from a distance, not daring to touch her.

Bo Shuhan’s mind was in a state of chaos. After Ji Qingyue carried her into the hospital, she felt something was wrong. If Ji Qingyue was escaping for the second time, it was impossible for her to save a cat so openly.

The current Ji Qingyue was not the unknown person she had been two years ago.

Although Ji Qingyue had faced many difficulties abroad, her first proposal regarding international fashion entering Dragon Country had been a massive success. It received unanimous praise in the industry, and because it focused on Chinese style, the sets of clothes she designed became instant bestsellers.

Since rare things are more valuable, and PG always favored scarcity marketing, the value of genuine second-hand items continued to rise. Subsequently, PG released Ji Qingyue’s photo, which completely set the internet in Dragon Country ablaze. After all, who wouldn’t want clothes designed by a “fairy sister”?

It was because of this that Ji Qingyue became completely estranged from Dragon Country. She didn’t dare return home. Ye Sishen, however, was like a shark scenting blood, he began directing the Ye family’s industries to expand abroad. For some reason, Ye Sishen’s development was incredibly rapid.

That speed of expansion alarmed Bo Shuhan. To slow down Ye Sishen, Bo Shuhan used her own backing forces to struggle against him. Among the industries Ye Sishen seized the fastest was fashion.

It was through this opportunity that Bo Shuhan and Ji Qingyue met. She was drawn to Ji Qingyue’s resilience and pride. She didn’t know if Ji Qingyue liked her, but she adored her.

But in the end, she failed to protect her.

The cat let out a pained moan. Ji Qingyue carefully stroked the cat’s head until she was no longer in pain. Then, Ji Qingyue saw Zhou Ruotong approaching with a stack of medical bills.

Patting the fifty thousand yuan in her small bag, Ji Qingyue felt a bit more confident.

Meanwhile, Ye Sishen’s eyes were bloodshot as he looked at the report from his subordinates.

“You didn’t find her?”

The subordinate couldn’t read Ye Sishen’s emotions, but he knew how much manpower and resources Ye Sishen had mobilized to find Ji Qingyue. Yet, they had failed. Thinking of the boss’s impending thunderous rage, the subordinate felt cold sweat break out on his forehead.

But to his surprise, Ye Sishen wasn’t angry. Instead, he looked at a video on his computer screen with a look of pleasure. The video showed Ji Qingyue withdrawing money at a bank.

“I will give you a list of serial numbers in a moment. Go to the police and report those as stolen money. Contact them and have them track where that money is being used.”

The subordinate nodded hurriedly. Ye Sishen thought of the message the butler had sent him, none of the things Ji Qingyue had bought for the house were missing, meaning she hadn’t liquidated any designer bags for cash.

In other words, Ji Qingyue only had that fifty thousand yuan she withdrew from the bank. If it were anywhere else, it would be hard to track, but banks kept records of serial numbers. Ye Sishen had used some “minor means” to obtain those numbers. Now, he just had to wait for Ji Qingyue to spend the money, and he would know exactly where she was.

Thinking of Ji Qingyue’s shock when she saw him, the corners of Ye Sishen’s mouth curled up. You cannot escape my grasp.

Back at the clinic, Ji Qingyue was stunned after hearing the price.

“Five thousand? So cheap? Are you sure?” Looking at the neat sutures on the cat and then at the bill which included blood transfusions, anesthesia, and various tests, she found it hard to believe.

Gazing at the woman’s face, which was as radiant as peach blossoms, Zhou Ruotong rubbed her nose and nodded. She added seriously, “Of course, this is just today’s fee. If there are any emergencies tomorrow, there will be more charges, and the daily anti-inflammatories and such all cost money.”

Ji Qingyue nodded thoughtfully and paid decisively. Seeing that Zhou Ruotong didn’t even count the money after receiving it, Ji Qingyue was stunned again.

“Doctor, aren’t you going to check it?”

“Ah,” Zhou Ruotong’s face turned slightly red. “I’m dazed from lack of sleep, just dazed.” She quickly put the money into the bill counter. As the machine whirred, the serial numbers on the bills were rapidly logged into the police database.

At the Hangzhou Police Station, an officer who was constantly refreshing his computer suddenly shouted, “Found it!”