Strange Life of a Cat

The man was full of disbelief. He had just verified there was no one in the car and the door seemed to be unlocked; the cat wearing the vest had been completely overlooked by him. He’d done this sort of thing many times, and the whole act normally didn’t take long at all—just open the door, grab the bag, and go. Even if the car was locked, he had his ways, but he never imagined that what he thought would be an easy job would turn out to be so drastically different from what he had expected.

Touching his nose, the man looked at the blood on his hand and then his gaze shifted to Zheng Tan.

Zheng Tan narrowed his eyes. Was this guy still not giving up? Did he have a death wish?!

With a leap, another kick followed.

The man raised his arm to block, but he misjudged Zheng Tan’s strength. Although he quickly raised his forearm to fend off Zheng Tan’s kick, the force sent him staggering backward, banging his head against a nearby private car with a thud. At the same time, Zheng Tan’s claws tore through the man’s down jacket, and with the breeze, duck down flew all over the place.

The man, wearing a branded down jacket but engaging in petty theft, was puzzling to Zheng Tan. However, there were many such people out there. Just a few days ago, he had seen someone posting complaints about it online, never thinking he would encounter one today.

The driver of the private car on the right heard the commotion, rolled down the window, glanced at the person on the ground, then at Zheng Tan and said, “Hey, what’s going on here?”

Before he could finish, the rear window also rolled down and two teenagers looked out. The little girl said, “Uncle, that guy must be a thief!”

“Definitely a thief!” the little boy added. “The cat in the vest is teaching the thief a lesson!”

The man on the ground looked rather disheveled, with blood on his face from his nose to his mouth, smeared a bit with his hand, and his clothing had a long tear in the front, from which duck down was being blown out by the wind.

Seeing his predicament, the man didn’t care about his bloody nose and torn down jacket anymore. Before anyone else had a chance to notice, he scrambled up and ran off. In his haste, he slipped on something, fell again, and, ignoring the pain, got up and continued running.

By the time Mr. Jiao came back, the man was long gone. Listening to the driver on the right recount the incident, Mr. Jiao simply smiled in response to the various questions posed, offering no detailed explanations.

“I must say, your cat seems quite something. Is it a male or female?” the other driver inquired.

“Male.”

“Ah, that’s perfect. I’ve got a female at home, a fold-ear, no less. How about setting them up?”

A spasm crossed Zheng Tan’s face. Set up your great uncle!

Seeing Zheng Tan turn around and get into the car, Mr. Jiao smiled at the man, “This cat of mine is just a mixed breed.”

“No problem, I don’t mind,” the man gestured with a wave of his hand, indicating he wasn’t bothered.

Mr. Jiao: “…”

Fortunately, the traffic soon cleared up, and the column of cars began to slowly move. Mr. Jiao exchanged a few words and then got into his car.

As for Zheng Tan’s recent episode, Mr. Jiao said nothing, only smiling and giving Zheng Tan a thumbs-up.

Although the first half of their return journey was quite bumpy, encountering several traffic jams, things went much smoother afterward. With lots of vehicles on the road and no snowfall, the temperature had risen slightly during the day, and there was hardly any ice on the surface, so the second half of the trip went fairly well.

As usual, Mr. Jiao first stopped in the county town, had a meal, took a rest, called to confirm his safety, and then continued on to his ancestral home.

There were a few rough patches on the road near Mr. Jiao’s ancestral home, but once slowly navigated, it was much better. Old Sir Jiao was already waiting at the entrance to the village. Knowing that Mr. Jiao was driving alone, he didn’t dare to call and inquire repeatedly, afraid it might distract him. However, as soon as he saw Mr. Jiao’s car, a smile immediately spread across his face.

For many people, the journey home for the New Year’s is arduous and unforgettable. Comparatively, Zheng Tan and his companions had it pretty good. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)