Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

  Liu Wenying stared at the urn, and the bat fell to the ground with a clang as tears swirled in her eyes.

  A Hui hurriedly asked, “Big Sister Wenying, what’s wrong?”


  “No, I’m okay…” Liu Wenying wiped the corner of her eyes and said with a forced smile, “Xiao Zhang, I’m really sorry to have you come all the way here… You’re already busy enough taking care of the two stores. You could’ve just given me a call or sent me a message, and I would have gone down myself. Why did you have to send it in person…?”


  Zhang Zian said, “I sent you a message, but you didn’t reply. Since I was passing by the neighborhood, it was just on the way.”


  “Right, I haven’t returned the money to you yet…” Liu Wenying subconsciously touched her pocket. “Ah, I forgot to bring my phone out… I’m sorry for bothering you.”


  “It’s okay, don’t worry about that. It was just on the way… You don’t look too well, why don’t I send you back home?” Zhang Zian observed.

  “Cough, okay then. I live in the unit just beside us.” Liu Wenying raised her hand and pointed.

  Zhang Zian picked up the bat from the ground and turned back to smile at A Hui. He followed Liu Wenying into the corridor and took the elevator.

  Liu Wenying opened the door with her key and said, “I didn’t know that there would be guests coming, so the house is very messy. I’m sorry for that… please come in.”


  Zhang Zian replied with a few words of pleasantries and followed her into the house. He then leaned the bat against the wall by the door.

  In fact, the house was not messy at all. Some of Yue Yue’s toys were scattered on the ground and had not been cleaned up, but all families with children were basically all like that. Even if they were cleaned up, they would soon be thrown around again, so it didn’t make a difference.

  Aside from that, everything was well organized and it was clear that she was a diligent housewife.

  “Take a seat anywhere. I don’t have much to offer you, but let me make you a cup of tea…” Liu Wenying hurried into the kitchen.

  “It’s okay, there’s no need to trouble you. I’ll be leaving after a while,” Zhang Zian said, but she still insisted on making the tea.

  No one else was at home, but looking at the toys on the ground, he could almost see Yue Yue playing in the house.

  Zhang Zian noticed the cat food bowl, water bowl, litter tray, and cat nest still placed in the corner. Liu Wenying seemed to have not accepted the fact that her cat had died.

  Liu Wenying came out with a tray and tea. On the tray was a bag of children’s snacks. She said with an apology, “There’s nothing prepared in the house… We don’t even have fruit. Please drink some water and have some snacks instead.”


  Her eyes glanced over at the urn in Zhang Zian’s hands as she spoke. When she saw it, her face looked even worse.

  Zhang Zian solemnly handed the urn and cremation documents to her.

  Her fingers trembled slightly as she held the urn in her arms like how she used to hold her cat. She stared at it blankly.

  Zhang Zian silently took the tea and had a sip after blowing away the floating tea leaves.

  Moments later, Liu Wenying slowly opened the urn.

  There weren’t many ashes in the urn, only a thin layer––cat’s bones were not that big.

  Something in the ashes shimmered.

  She gently brushed the ashes at the surface with her fingers, revealing a thin collar with the metal nameplate that shimmered with a faint glow.

  After she saw the collar and the nameplate, she finally couldn’t hold it in anymore. She held the nameplate tightly in her hands and cried while hugging the urn. Her tears fell like rain.

  In his heart, Zhang Zian sympathized with Sun Xiaomeng. She must have seen too many of such scenes.

  Zian did not comfort Liu Wenying, because she really needed the chance to cry and vent her inner sorrow. She would definitely break if she kept it all in.

  Aside from venting her emotions, Liu Wenying also needed to use the chance to recognize the fact that her cat was dead. One needed to look forward in life and not remain immersed in past memories.

  When the tea became warm, she gradually stopped crying.

  Zhang Zian handed the tissue box on the table to her.

  “Thank you…” she sniffed and said, “I’ve made a fool out of myself in front of you… crying like a kid at such an age…”


  “What are you talking about? Anyone who loses a pet feels sad, too.” Zhang Zian saw that she had calmed down, so he got up and said his goodbyes. “Please get a good rest. I’ll be off.”


  “Wait a minute, let me return your money to you. Thank you for helping me pay.” Liu Wenying placed the urn on the table and fumbled around for her phone to transfer the money to Zhang Zian.

  After the transaction was completed, Zhang Zian asked, “Does Yue Yue know about the cat’s death?”


  “Not yet.” She sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know how to break the news to her yet…”


  “I’d suggest that you get another pet to raise, be it a cat or a dog. Of course, this is not a sales promotion––you don’t have to buy the pet from my shop––but… only raising a new pet can wash off the sadness from losing a pet,” Zhang Zian seriously suggested.

  Liu Wenying looked at the pet supplies in the corner and said, “I’ve actually thought about it… But when I think of raising a pet, I remember that it will still die. Whether through an accident or old age, I… I really can’t stand it…”


  The Siamese cat had become a member of her family and losing it had a similar pain to losing a family member. She was worried that she could no longer bear such a pain again.

  Zhang Zian nodded and expressed that he understood. Such a choice was also very common––no longer raising pets in order to avoid suffering from the pain again.

  “Then I’ll take my leave. Have a good rest and lock the door.”


  “Be careful on the road.”


  Liu Wenying wanted to send him down, but returned to the house after Zian’s repeated persuasion.

  There was no trace of A Hui downstairs. He might’ve gone home for lunch, or maybe out to continue his search for the stray cats.

  Zhang Zian started the car and carefully drove out of the estate.

  In the community, there were old people walking with crutches, some young parents pushing a stroller, and there were also children chasing one another.

  If he also lived in that community, he would probably not dare to oppose the decision of the old people to exterminate the stray cats, because no one could afford the responsibility of being infected by stray cats.

  With the intensification of the cat abuse incident, and now the stray cats, it was hard to not think of the Holy Cat statue again. He was afraid that everything happening would help with the recovery of the Holy Cat statue.

  Zian could only hope that, as time went by, the incident would calm down. After all, people were good at forgetting.

  Thinking of the series of cat abuse incidents, Zian thought of Sheng Ke and felt a little strange. The last time he saw him, he had asked if he had received any alerts on cat abuse incidents… Why had Sheng Ke not gotten back to him yet?

  He had dealt with Sheng Ke many times and was aware that Sheng Ke was a very passionate person. If one required his help in normal circumstances, he would get back to you very quickly. What was going on this time? Was it because of some sudden case that caused a delay? That seemed plausible.

  Zhang Zian decided to put the matter aside for now. He took a look at the address on his phone and drove to Welder Zhao’s place.