After Turning Into a Kitten, I Was Adopted by My Father-Figure Childhood Friend - Chapter 32

“Xiao Mi?”

A pitch-black cat sat politely by the window, letting out two low, worried meows that carried a sense of deep concern.

Through the transparent glass, Xiao Bai pressed its head forward, its two small ears flattening against the pane and drooping softly over its head.

“Xiao Mi, I heard you were sick, meow.”

Behind it, several pairs of pointed ears and focused cat eyes peeked out from the bushes. The members of the Cat Gang were scattered, tails twitching, unaware that their little paws were visible. They watched the kitten slumped in its nest with expressions of deep worry.

Song the cat had seen Lu Jingchuan off to work that morning. Now, he was lying belly-up in his nest by the window, soaking up the sun and contemplating how to reveal his human identity without losing his feline elegance.

The sun had warmed his snow-white fur until it glowed with a beautiful golden light. He was just getting comfortable, his eyes squinted in drowsiness, when the black cat suddenly appeared. He instantly caught sight of the twitching tails in the bushes.

His eyes lit up. He was thrilled to have visitors. The kitten, who had been sprawled out, scrambled to a sitting position.

“Xiao Bai, Sticky Rice, and Dafu, Dafa!” The little calico’s ears twitched with excitement. He pressed his pink paws against the French window, scratching at the glass as he called out each of their names.

Knowing the kitten could open windows, Lu Jingchuan had modified the latches before leaving. But that was no match for the clever Cat King. Song Xingyou hopped, scratched, pushed, and shoved until he managed to pry the reinforced window open just enough to leave a crack. “Quick, come in!”

As soon as the gap appeared, the little black cat slid inside like a fluid. It lowered its head in a friendly gesture, using its soft pink nose to nuzzle and sniff the kitten. Its emerald-green eyes were full of sincere worry. It kneaded the kitten’s head and back with its paws, performing its own version of a check-up.

Song Xingyou let out a cry and dove into the black cat’s embrace. The larger cat sat still, its soft chest indenting under the kitten’s weight. The two cats snuggled together affectionately, exchanging chirps and meows.

“Xiao Bai-mi, how did you know I was sick?”

“Dafu told me, meow. Dafu’s human repairs cats. Whenever a cat feels bad, they go to him to get fixed, meow.”

“Oh, a veterinarian.” Dafu and Dafa sure picked a good owner, Song Xingyou thought. He narrowed his eyes, rubbed his chin with a paw, and poked his charming cat face out of the window crack, waving a paw. “Fu-mi, Fa-mi! Come in!”

Dafu, the agile tabby, leaped into the yard and expertly scrambled over the wall, slipping through the window crack with ease. Its eyes were bright as it surveyed the room with its tail held high before pretending to be busy by licking its paw.

“You-mi, the cats have business with you.”

Despite its lame leg, Dafa was just as flexible. The clumsy yellowish cat followed its leader inside, meowing in agreement. “Business.”

What kind of business could a kitten have in a day? Song the cat scratched his ear. He timidly curled his tail around himself, resting his face on it as he replied with an innocent, cute meow.

“No way. I am sick. I cannot go fight with you. I cannot catch mice either.”

He blinked his amber-gold eyes, which looked like round, sparkling jewels set in his face, making him look even more irresistible. Huddled next to the black cat, he looked tiny, weak, and defenseless.

“Don’t worry, it is something very easy, meow.”

A shadow suddenly loomed over him. Song the cat looked up as Sticky Rice, the tortoiseshell, gave his head a doting lick. The beautiful tortoiseshell was covered in multicolored patches, though its chest and paws were white, making it look slightly similar to the little calico. It had been eating well lately; its cheeks were round, and its feline eyeliner curved into a sly smile.

“Youyou, you will help us, right?”

Four cats stared at Song Xingyou simultaneously. He stiffened his neck and cautiously retracted it, his paw secretly reaching behind him to feel for an escape route.

“I have my own problems to solve, meow.”

Song the cat tried to bolt, but Dafu lunged forward like a tiger, blocking his path. Its eyes were piercing. “Youyou.”

“Xiao Mi,” Xiao Bai chimed in, pressing its soft chest against him to block his retreat.

“You-meow,” the smiling tortoiseshell leaned in and gave him another lick.

Dafa looked left and right, then lowered its head, preparing to sniff the kitten’s backside. Song the cat let out a horrified shriek, whipping his tail around to tuck it tightly between his paws. “Are you guys trying to make me gay?”

Meow?

“What does gay mean?” Xiao Bai asked, twitching its ears in confusion.

Song the cat explained, “It is when two male cats…”

Halfway through his sentence, he narrowed his eyes and scanned the ears of the cats present. He then checked for his own precious “eggs” and breathed a sigh of relief. Among the five cats present, only two pairs could be found. If anything, he would be the one “gaying” them, not the other way around.

Wait—no, no, no! He would not do that to a cat, and certainly not to a person!

Song Xingyou’s mind was wandering when he heard Dafu speak. “First we solve Blueberry’s problem, then we help you solve yours.”

Dafu, the former street boss, was extremely organized and spoke with great confidence.

Cute Fu-mi. Song the cat could not help but wag his tail. His cat-servant personality kicked in as he looked at Dafu with doting eyes. In a soft, high-pitched voice, he asked, “What is wrong with Blueberry?”

Did he get beat up for flirting with a female cat again, only to be rejected for being a eunuch? Or is he being forced to diet by his owner and meowing from hunger? Just tell the Cat King!

The cats exchanged glances and meowed in unison. “We want to help Blueberry’s human find a man!”

Unlike Blueberry, the British Shorthair who was constantly frustrated because he had been snipped, Blueberry’s human was intact but could not find a partner. She spent every day face-down on her bed, wailing about how to meet a good man. Lately, she had seemed to lose her mind from loneliness. Every night, she would grab Blueberry and make strange noises, her hair disheveled and a wicked smile on her face.

Blueberry had endured this for a long time. Having been dragged out of hiding places and having his belly rubbed relentlessly for days, he finally made a decision. He was going to find his human a husband. But Blueberry only knew how to flirt with female cats, not male humans. So, the task was entrusted to the Cat Gang, and the Cat Gang turned to Song Xingyou.

Song Xingyou hissed. Asking a person who has been single since birth to find someone a boyfriend? Is something not right here?

Moreover, Song Xingyou scratched his ear in confusion. “Isn’t Blueberry’s owner very pretty? How does such a fashionable girl not have a boyfriend?”

He remembered her as a petite, stylish girl with a cheerful personality. Although she was small, she could lift a fifteen-pound cat with ease. She reminded him of the senior at his cat club who had neutered eighteen kittens.

The cats exchanged another look, all of them wearing mysterious smiles. Song Xingyou felt a jolt in his heart. “No way!”

“I will not allow it! I will not allow it!”

Realizing their goal, Song the cat began to wail. He shook his head frantically, his ears flattening against his skull. His long tail puffed up into a furry ball on the floor, his entire body radiating rejection.

“You-mi,” Sticky Rice pressed closer.

“Xiao Mi,” Xiao Bai pressed in from the left.

The two cats put on innocent expressions while baring their teeth in wicked cat grins, whispering into his ears.

“Your human has no partner. Blueberry’s human has no partner.”

“And Blueberry’s human really likes your human.”

“She likes that face.”

“Blueberry’s human is a very good person.”

Sticky Rice and Xiao Bai chirped and meowed. Song Xingyou covered his ears and crouched on the floor, shaking his head like a rattle.

Dafa was puzzled. “Do you not want your human to find a partner? Humans get lonely without one. Your human will find a partner for you, too.”

Dafu asked decisively, “Just say it: are you willing or not?”

Song Xingyou muttered quietly, “But finding a partner is a matter between two people. Are you sure Blueberry’s owner even knows about this?”

And… and…

Song Xingyou wanted to say that Lu Jingchuan already liked someone. Lu was being a secret simp. The other person did not even reply to him, yet he kept messaging them enthusiastically. He would not like anyone else.

Song Xingyou also wanted to say that Lu Jingchuan would not be with anyone else. He was a jerk and not likable at all. Blueberry’s owner would not like him. He had so much to say, his mind racing.

Xiao Bai spoke up, confused. “But it is the same when humans find partners for cats. They put two cats together, and if they hit it off, they stay together. They never ask the cat’s opinion!”

Everything got stuck in Song Xingyou’s throat. He could not swallow it and he could not spit it out. He thought anxiously: But I am not willing!

And why was he not willing?

Dafu, the tabby, lowered its head. Its sharp, bright eyes were incredibly perceptive. It stared into the kitten’s moist eyes and let out a long meow.

“I see.” Dafu narrowed its eyes, its face serious. It firmly pushed Xiao Bai’s face away, digging the little calico out from the circle.

“Youyou,” Dafu said seriously, “You like your human.”

It is perfectly normal for a cat to like a human. Cats like humans very much. And when you like someone, you want them all to yourself. You do not want other cats to share them. Dafu understood this feeling.

Song the cat’s gaze turned dazed for a moment. It was as if his weak spot had been poked. His expression instantly turned into one of extreme embarrassment and annoyance. He whipped his tail back and forth irritably, as if trying to sweep those words into a trash pile.

He meowed back loudly in protest. “No, that is not right! That is wrong!”

“I do not like him at all! I hate him most of all!”

“I hate him so, so much. I will hate him for the rest of my life. I have hated him since I was little. He is a jerk, my lifelong rival!”

He did not. He did not like Lu Jingchuan one bit.

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