Chapter 8

The Maine Coon sighed with relief and followed behind Bai Chengcheng as the two cats arrived at the front desk. Normally, there was no one at the front desk, but today, to welcome these special “employees,” the Paw Paw Shop had arranged for a young lady to greet them.

“Good morning, Mr. Cats,” she said with a smile, extending her hand to shake paws with Bai Chengcheng and the Maine Coon.

Keen on making a good impression with potential ^[1]“Litter scoopers” refers to the people or tools responsible for cleaning a cat’s litter box. It’s used metaphorically to refer to the staff who might take care of the cats, … Continue reading“litter scoopers,” Bai Chengcheng eagerly responded. He meowed sweetly and extended his soft, fluffy paw to shake the staff member’s hand.

The staff member, who was also in her beast form as a cat, could not resist the adorable onslaught from the Cotton Ball. Her heart fluttered, and she was instantly starry-eyed, holding her chest: “Wow, this Mr. Cat is so cute! May I personally put your work uniform on for you?”

Bai Chengcheng tilted his head: “Work uniform?”

The Maine Coon’s eyes widened in horror: “Work uniform???”

Then, the two cats saw the staff member holding up two pink aprons—one large and one small, both with the Paw Paw Shop logo. She immediately tied the small one around Bai Chengcheng’s neck.

The Maine Coon breathed a sigh of relief. Just an apron, that’s fine. It was something commonly worn in beast form during meals to avoid messing up their fur.

After they were dressed in their aprons, the staff member gave them their sales target for the day: “Your sales goal today is 100,000 star coins. You can choose to complete it together or split the goal—50,000 each. There will be rewards if you succeed, but penalties if you fail.”

Bai Chengcheng understood “task,” but he didn’t quite care about the 100,000 or 50,000. He looked at the exhausted Maine Coon and thought, of course, they couldn’t split it. Who would help the Maine Coon?

He flicked his tail a few times, turned around, and raised his paw to signal the Maine Coon to follow.

The Maine Coon, who had just considered splitting the task: “……”

Looking at the clingy and mischievous Cotton Ball, who even seemed a bit prone to causing trouble, the Maine Coon hesitated for a moment but ultimately followed behind. The two cats stopped in front of a shelf.

Bai Chengcheng had already made up his mind. If they reached the sales target early, they could clock out sooner. Besides, selling 100,000 star coins in one day? That seemed a bit outrageous.

He clearly saw that the items here were priced in the hundreds!

It seemed like they had to actually start working.

Bai Chengcheng walked to a shelf stacked with various cat headbands.

He glanced around, then suddenly stopped. He thrust his backside toward the shelf, jumped onto it, and when he came back out, he was wearing a white tiger headband on his head.

The headband had two white tiger ears on the sides, and a black “king” character on the forehead. Bai Chengcheng’s small round face peered through the hole, his slightly upward-turned eyes nearly covered by the headband.

The Maine Coon: “？？？”

The Maine Coon didn’t understand Bai Chengcheng’s behavior, but he suddenly had a bad feeling. When Bai Chengcheng started walking toward him, he immediately took two steps back and was about to run.

Bai Chengcheng, with his mischievous demeanor, meowed in a “feisty” way, as if he predicted the Maine Coon’s actions. He swiftly darted forward and grabbed onto the Maine Coon’s front legs.

Bai Chengcheng’s four paws clung tightly to the fur on the Maine Coon’s legs, and he hugged tightly, his buttocks firmly planted on the ground. His tail swished around on the floor as he lifted his head and buried it in the Maine Coon’s fluffy collar, inhaling a mouthful of fur.

The Maine Coon froze instantly: “……”

Help, is this cat a little crazy…

Does he really not care about the upcoming human reveal segment of the show?

Isn’t he worried about completely embarrassing himself in front of the entire audience later?

The Maine Coon was speechless and began to suspect that this clingy Cotton Ball was some kind of comedic influencer, completely unconcerned about his image.

The viewers in the livestream didn’t think Bai Chengcheng was lacking in dignity, in fact, they found it very entertaining.

【Hahahaha, this pair is just too funny. I love watching Maine Coon’s helplessness, and how he has no way to deal with the clingy Cotton Ball.】

【A tough guy like him should be tamed by a clingy one like Cotton Ball!】

【Cotton Ball’s just doing it for the sales, can’t Maine Coon cooperate a little? If it were the Lion Cat, he’d probably be so excited he’d lie down, no need for Cotton Ball to force him by hanging onto his legs!】

【By the way, over in the Lion Cat and Forest Cat’s livestream, it’s getting ridiculously lively. They’ve been guides for less than half an hour and have already gotten into three fights. I think they’re going to be booked for a countdown soon.】

【If only Cotton Ball were there, three cats together, Cotton Ball sandwiched in the middle—would look so good, hehe.】

【Sandwiched in the middle, tsk, report! This is getting inappropriate!】

—

The Maine Coon, who was being laughed at by the livestream viewers, was genuinely getting fed up with Bai Chengcheng’s clinginess.

Bai Chengcheng, much smaller than him, was tightly holding onto his front legs with all four paws. His sapphire eyes blinked and stared at Maine Coon as he tilted his head and meowed, “Meow~”

The Maine Coon remained expressionless, his body stiff. He stood still, afraid that if he moved, this annoying Cotton Ball would either fall off or crawl back up his leg.

Maine Coon didn’t respond, so Bai Chengcheng continued to act cute: “Meow~ Meow meow meow~”

“Meow~”

“Meow meow~”

The meowing was so sweet and soft that Maine Coon’s claws scratched at the ground uncomfortably. He had no way of dealing with the Cotton Ball.

Finally, the Maine Coon couldn’t take it anymore. He turned around, stiffened one leg, and slowly stepped back toward the shelf with the other three legs, crouched down, and helplessly stared at Bai Chengcheng.

Bai Chengcheng’s eyes lit up. He knew it! Acting cute and playing weak would definitely win over the Maine Coon!

He instantly slid off Maine Coon’s leg, then walked over to the shelf, pointing at one of the large lion headbands, signaling for Maine Coon to wear it.

Maine Coon: “???”

His face was serious. He looked at Bai Chengcheng, then glanced at the lion headband with its puffed-up mane, and then turned back to Bai Chengcheng.

Although Bai Chengcheng looked cute and soft in the white tiger headband, it didn’t mean that a strong, muscular cat like him would wear something like that.

If he wore the lion headband today, when his human identity was revealed, he would definitely trend on social media.

The people at home would laugh at him using pictures, and his subordinates would look at him with judgmental eyes.

No, absolutely not!

Maine Coon, who was determined to save face and prioritize his image, suddenly became anxious. He quickly sat down and, using his hind legs, rapidly pushed himself backward, sliding several meters away in the blink of an eye.

Bai Chengcheng: “???”

“Meow?”

Bai Chengcheng was stunned. This Maine Coon didn’t play by the rules. They’d agreed to wear the headbands together, but now he was going back on his word?

Bai Chengcheng pouted. From four or five meters away, he faced off with Maine Coon. Both cats stared seriously at each other. Maine Coon even slowly stood up, slightly bending his front legs, adopting a defensive posture, ready to fight if needed.

The viewers in the livestream were getting nervous:

【Ahhh, this is getting intense, are these two going to fight?】

【Oh my god, we came here to watch cats fall in love, not to watch them fight! The Lion Cat and Forest Cat next door have been fighting all morning!】

【I can understand the fighting with the other team, but this pair? I just don’t get it!】

【Cotton Ball is so cute, and he even has the natural, beast-attracting golden fox bloodline. Why does this Maine Coon want to fight him? Is he a devil?】

【I’ll say it again—no wonder he has no wife! No wonder he’s single!】

【If they really do fight, Cotton Ball definitely won’t stand a chance against Maine Coon. He’s so tiny, Maine Coon could just pin him down with one paw. @Cats also want to fall in love program team, please come out and do something! Go grab Maine Coon!】

—

The viewers were tense, but Bai Chengcheng wasn’t scared at all.

He and Maine Coon stared at each other from across the space for a few minutes, and then suddenly, Bai Chengcheng made his move.

Maine Coon’s pupils constricted, and his fur stood on end.

He was afraid that this Cotton Ball would do the same thing as before—cling to him and meow endlessly. So, he absolutely had to maintain a safe distance from this little flirt…

Hmm?

Maine Coon watched in disbelief as Cotton Ball suddenly turned around, quickly grabbed the lion headband with his mouth, and then charged toward him.

Maine Coon: “!!!”

Maine Coon’s reflexes kicked in immediately. The moment Cotton Ball grabbed the lion headband, he started running like mad.

The large lion headband was a bit too big, and as Bai Chengcheng bit onto it, the headband dragged on the ground. After running just a few steps, his front legs stepped on the headband, followed by his back legs, and with a loud “thud,” Bai Chengcheng’s face slammed into the ground. He let out a miserable “Ow!” and tumbled head over heels.

His body flipped completely over, his fluffy tail swiping through the air, and the livestream viewers watched in disbelief as he went from face-down to belly-up.

The viewers: “……”

Bai Chengcheng: “……”

Bai Chengcheng was completely dazed from the fall. His originally soft pink nose was now a deep peachy pink from the impact.

Bai Chengcheng was stunned for a full three seconds, and before his mind could catch up, tears had already started streaming from his eyes.

In the livestream:

【!!!】

【Ahhh, my wife is crying! What should I do?!】

【This Maine Coon is too much! It was just a headband, why go so far? Cotton Ball is crying now, he must be hurt.】

【Wife, don’t listen to those mean guys. It’s okay if you didn’t finish the task. Come to me, and I’ll comfort you.】

【Aww, poor Cotton Ball, why did he have to be paired with this Maine Coon? If it had been the Lion Cat, he would have been lifted up in celebration.】

—

After running a few steps, Maine Coon heard the pitiful scream. He immediately turned around and saw Cotton Ball doing a somersault in mid-air, with his nose red from the fall.

Maine Coon: “……”

Not only does this cat love tormenting others, but he also torments himself?

Maine Coon hesitated for a second, then turned around and trotted over to Cotton Ball, lowering his head, intending to check on Cotton Ball’s injuries.

However, when Bai Chengcheng saw Maine Coon, his lips immediately puckered, transforming into a teary-eyed, whiny little creature.

“Ying ying ying~”

It’s important to note that Bai Chengcheng wasn’t deliberately trying to be irritating, but at this moment, with his cat voice, the sound he made when crying was naturally a “ying ying” sound.

Cotton Ball’s voice, which had been previously soft and “meow meow,” turned even more pitiful, now tinged with a hint of sadness and grievance, becoming a “ying ying ying.” Maine Coon’s heart started racing.

His toes scratched the floor, and as Cotton Ball’s persistent “ying ying” continued, Maine Coon suddenly raised one of his front paws. His soft, black paw pads made a sharp “smack” sound as they landed on Cotton Ball’s mouth.

Maine Coon’s expression was complicated as he gave Cotton Ball a sharp look: Stop whining! Keep doing it, and I’ll let you whine to your heart’s content later!

Bai Chengcheng: “……”

Bai Chengcheng, miraculously, understood the meaning behind Maine Coon’s eyes. He obediently stopped whining.