Chapter 69: Hard to Chase

“Isn’t it obvious?” Ming Can paced around her bedroom with her phone in hand. “Who else would cook besides you?”

After a pause, she added slyly, “So, I’ll order food from outside.”

After she finished speaking, instead of hearing gratitude from the other end, she was met with a deliberately exaggerated tone—

“Afraid I’ll get tired?” The man’s laughter carried a hint of smugness. “Miaomiao’s Mom is so thoughtful.”

Ming Can’s eye twitched: “You’re insane.”

With that, she hung up the phone.

Ming Can tossed her phone aside, rubbing both ears with her hands, and sat at the table, staring at the violin.

She had always thought she preferred steady, reliable guys. But now, Chi Xiao was becoming more and more unrestrained in front of her, and yet, she couldn’t bring herself to dislike it.

In fact, she even preferred seeing him so relaxed and carefree.

A couple of days later, Ming Can’s family moved out of Jingyu Garden and returned to their house in the city.

This year, the Spring Festival came late, and the Lantern Festival fell in early March. Most universities in Beicheng started before the Lantern Festival, including A University and B University.

In the days leading up to the start of the semester, Ming Can and Chi Xiao took turns looking after Miaomiao without hiring a nanny. They planned to arrange for a part-time nanny based on their class schedules after the semester started. The nanny would only need to pick up Miaomiao from school and take care of him for a few hours in the afternoon when neither of them could make it, unlike last semester when they needed a nanny to come every day.

Over the past week, Ming Can had spent far more time with Miaomiao than Chi Xiao.

“Your dad’s been really busy lately,” Ming Can said as she watered the plants on the balcony with Miaomiao, her tone tinged with a hint of complaint. “Being the crown prince with an official position at the group headquarters is really something else.”

Miaomiao, even with his superpowers, couldn’t quite understand what his mom was saying. He could only nod seriously at her.

As March approached, everything was coming back to life. A pot of withered roses had sprouted new buds. Miaomiao leaned in close, staring intently at the soil in the pot, his little fists clenched tightly as if he were channeling some kind of energy.

“What are you doing?” Ming Can leaned over to ask.

“Huff…” Miaomiao exhaled, wiping the sweat from his forehead. “I’m observing the bugs in the soil.”

Actually, he was trying to understand what the bugs were saying.

Recently, Miaomiao’s superpower had improved. Previously, he could only translate the sounds of larger animals, but now his hearing seemed to have gotten much sharper. He could clearly hear the chirps of bugs and even attempt to translate them into human language—though it was quite draining.

The unnamed little caterpillar in the rose pot: [Spring… is… here… I… am… alive… again…]

“Bugs? Where are the bugs?” Ming Can squatted down and spotted a caterpillar that had just emerged from the soil, wriggling around. Without a second thought, she grabbed a pebble and smashed it down. “This bug will ruin the flowers.”

Miaomiao: “Nooo!”

The unnamed little caterpillar, now flattened under the stone: [I… am… dead… again…]

Ming Can tossed the stone aside, stood up, and clapped her hands clean. She looked down to see Miaomiao trembling, his little fists clenched, as if he were deeply upset.

“Wuwuwu, I just met it.”

“Sorry,” Ming Can said, belatedly realizing she had done something very cruel in front of a child. “Mom didn’t know it was your friend.”

“I won’t forgive you!” Miaomiao said angrily. “Unless you buy me a new furry friend, preferably a puppy.”

Ming Can: “…”

Miaomiao loved animals. Ever since they first found him, the child had been hinting—sometimes not so subtly—about wanting a pet, but Ming Can had always refused for various reasons.

It wasn’t that Ming Can didn’t like animals, but their current situation really wasn’t suitable for a dog. A dog needed to be walked at least three times a day, and if not trained properly, it could destroy the house. As a college student, raising a child was already exhausting enough—adding a dog to the mix would be too much.

However, with Chi Xiao now sharing the responsibilities, Ming Can had started considering the possibility of getting a pet. Both of them had heavy academic workloads, so a dog still wasn’t practical, but settling for a cat might be manageable.

Since Miaomiao had brought it up today, Ming Can decided to share her thoughts with him: “Mom knows you had a puppy in the future, but in the future, there were people specifically taking care of it. Right now, both Mom and Dad are in school, and it’s not convenient to hire someone to take care of a dog at home. So, could we not get a puppy and instead get a cat? How does that sound?”

Miaomiao hadn’t expected his mom to agree so readily. He loved both cats and dogs, so he immediately jumped up with joy: “Yay! I’m getting a kitty!”

Ming Can patted his head and said, “Don’t get too excited yet. We still need to ask your dad about this.”

“Dad definitely won’t mind,” Miaomiao said confidently. “Dad likes cats and dogs too!”

“Really?” Ming Can blinked, thinking to herself, He doesn’t seem like the type to like cats and dogs at all.

Back inside, Ming Can immediately called Chi Xiao.

When she mentioned buying a kitten for Miaomiao, Chi Xiao fell silent for a moment.

“Can’t we get a dog?” he asked.

“Dogs are too much trouble. Imagine us having to take care of Miaomiao, get him ready for school, and walk the dog before our morning classes. Do you think you can handle that?” Ming Can said. “Do you not like cats?”

Chi Xiao was silent for another moment before asking her, “Do you like cats?”

“Mom loves cats the most!” Miaomiao, who was listening on speakerphone, chimed in. “Mom usually doesn’t let Xiao Er into the room, but Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai are allowed. Mom even cuddles with Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai when she sleeps at night!”

Xiao Er, Xiao Hei, and Xiao Bai were the pets Miaomiao had in the future. Xiao Er was a Corgi, while Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai were a black and a white cat, both living with Ming Can.

“I do like cats,” Ming Can said. “Cats are so cute and not annoying. They have their own little world, unlike dogs, who don’t seem to have independent thoughts.”

Miaomiao: “Mom, don’t put one down to praise the other!”

Ming Can: “Where did you learn that phrase? Kids shouldn’t be on the internet all the time.”

Miaomiao: “Hmph.”

If Ming Can were to be compared to an animal, she would most resemble a cat.

And not just any cat—a fluffy, majestic long-haired cat with gem-like eyes that surveyed the world with an air of arrogance, utterly disdainful of human behavior. If she deigned to stop and rub against you as she passed, the human on the receiving end would practically kneel in gratitude.

—This was the image that flashed through Chi Xiao’s mind.

“Why are you so quiet?” Ming Can asked. “If you don’t have any objections, I’ll take Miaomiao to pick out a kitten before school starts.”

“Mm,” Chi Xiao’s voice sounded slightly delayed. “Go ahead. I have to go abroad for something recently.”

Ming Can was stunned.

He had changed the topic way too quickly.

“To the U.S.?” Ming Can asked. “How many days?”

“Three days if it goes quickly,” Chi Xiao said. “I’ll be back before the Lantern Festival.”

“Alright,” Ming Can guessed it was something related to his family, so she didn’t press further.

After the call ended, Miaomiao happily ran off to play, while Ming Can sat on the sofa, lost in thought.

She couldn’t shake the feeling that Chi Xiao had been acting strange during the call.

She couldn’t quite put her finger on what exactly was off.

Was it that he didn’t want a cat but didn’t say so outright to save face?

Ming Can walked over to Miaomiao’s toy pile, pulled up a small stool, and sat down beside him. “Miaomiao, think carefully. Does your dad not like cats?”

“He definitely likes them,” Miaomiao said without hesitation. “Once, when I stayed at Dad’s place with Xiao Hei, he spent the whole night cuddling and petting Xiao Hei. He wouldn’t let go.”

“Really?” Ming Can nodded, finally feeling reassured.

The next day, Ming Can took Miaomiao to visit several nearby pet stores. After careful comparison and consideration, they finally settled on a six-month-old, beautiful, and healthy seal bicolor Ragdoll cat.

“It’s so pretty,” Miaomiao said, holding the cat lovingly after bringing it home. “It looks like a princess. Let’s call it Xiao Gong!”

Ming Can: “…”

This kid really picks names casually.

“It’s a girl. Calling it Xiao Gong sounds so awkward,” Ming Can said. “Why not just call it Princess?”

Miaomiao insisted on following the naming convention of their other pets, giving it a “Xiao [something]” name: “Then let’s call it Xiao Zhu.”

“…” Ming Can sighed. “Fine.”

By this time, Chi Xiao had already arrived in the U.S. Ming Can took a few photos of the beautiful cat and sent them in the group chat, tagging Chi Xiao to get his opinion.

A little over an hour later.

cx: 【[Thumbs up][Thumbs up][Thumbs up]】

Men are truly the most perfunctory creatures in the world.

Ming Can replied with a 【[Smile]】 emoji, set her phone aside, rolled up her sleeves, and started organizing the pile of pet supplies they had just bought.

Three days passed, and B University started its new semester.

Ming Can went to school in the morning to check in and returned home in the afternoon.

She had moved back into the apartment she rented near the school. Since Chi Xiao had been abroad these past few days, they hadn’t met, and his room remained exactly as it was.

Ming Can hadn’t yet decided whether to continue living with him or to ask him to move out.

Due to the time difference, they hadn’t spoken on the phone these past few days. Chi Xiao had only sent her a message early today to let her know he had taken off, and then there was no further news.

The day after tomorrow was the Lantern Festival. For some reason, Ming Can had a strong premonition that this guy was going to stand her up.

Another day passed, and A University also started its new semester.

After the morning classes, Ming Can and Xu Jiayun went to the cafeteria for lunch together.

The spring chill was still biting, and students on the campus paths were all bundled up in coats, hurrying along.

As the two walked through the crowd, Xu Jiayun clung tightly to Ming Can’s arm, her gossip-loving soul burning brightly. She couldn’t wait to ask, “Volcano, quick, share with me your progress on chasing Senior Chi Xiao!”

Ming Can turned her head expressionlessly, glancing toward the east where A University was located.

That guy surnamed Chi should have gone to school today, right?

It had been four days since she last saw him, and even though he landed last night, he hadn’t come to see Miaomiao.

He’d better remember he has a son.

“No progress,” Ming Can clenched her fist. “You were right. That guy is really hard to chase.”

“O-oh, I see…”

Xu Jiayun looked at her, feeling an inexplicable illusion that Ming Can wasn’t chasing someone but rather hunting them down.

“Don’t rush it,” Xu Jiayun comforted her in a low voice. “You’re so beautiful and talented. As long as you stay steady and take it slow, you’ll definitely catch him!”

Ming Can noticed Xu Jiayun’s cautious expression and suddenly laughed. “I’m fine.”

For a long time before this, Ming Can had been taking care of Miaomiao alone.

After Chi Xiao came into the picture, she had indeed felt much lighter. She no longer had to shoulder everything herself, and both physically and mentally, she had a solid support system to rely on.

It hadn’t taken long for her to get used to this kind of life.

And now.

After just a short time apart.

She was already starting to feel like she couldn’t handle it.