Yun Mian watched the housekeeper enter and head straight for the cat house.

The housekeeper seemed to be in a hurry. Carrying her bag, she came in, refilled the empty food dish with beef jerky and fish cakes, changed the water, and was about to leave.

When she reached the living room, she glanced at Yun Mian.

Yun Mian ignored her and just flicked her tail, lacking energy.

Aunt Liu saw the kitten with her head raised toward the door and said, “Kitty, your owner’s not coming back today. Be good at home.”

Aunt Liu didn’t care whether the cat could understand her. She was paid to do a job. Since Mr. Shen asked her to help take care of the kitten, apart from feeding and giving water, she didn’t know what else to do.

Mumbling a few words to the cat felt like she’d done her part.

This cat looked like a valuable breed and was obedient. It stayed in the room when she came at noon, and now in the evening, it was still on the sofa. It looked quite pitiful and lovable. No wonder Mr. Shen was concerned.

Aunt Liu shook her head, packed up her things, and left.

Shen Zhixing isn’t coming back today?

Yun Mian was stunned for a moment before realizing what the housekeeper had said.

She had just wanted to chase after her, but the aunt had already closed the door with a “bang.”

Yun Mian was a little angry. Even if she were just an ordinary cat, Shen Zhixing taking her in for a few days and then leaving her with the housekeeper like this was still too much!

Usually, he acted like he really loved cats and did everything himself. But when it really mattered, he went off to enjoy himself and didn’t care about her at all.

He must’ve gone to meet that Fang Shuyu or whoever.

The more Yun Mian thought about it, the more depressed she felt.

Being stuck in this thirty-second floor high-rise apartment, she couldn’t even go out for fresh air.

She found the remote and turned on the TV.

But the shows she had enjoyed watching a few days ago no longer interested her. She didn’t want to eat either—no appetite.

The already empty and cold house now seemed even more desolate.

Yun Mian walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked at the night view of the opposite building, the neon lights, and the bustling traffic.

The glass reflected her image—a white, sleek, and fluffy forest cat, with green glowing eyes.

Compared to this vast world, she was like an insignificant speck, a grain of dust that could be ignored.

She didn’t want to look anymore. Her mood was wrapped in an unprecedented sense of torment and anxiety.

…

Yun Mian originally wanted to go back to the study room and use the iPad to pass the time, but the iPad’s battery was almost dead after she had played with it yesterday, and Shen Zhixing hadn’t charged it before leaving.

There was a charger in the study. She managed to drag the iPad to the charging spot with her two paws, but after struggling for a long time, her paws still couldn’t plug in the charging cable.

Just when she was about to succeed, the metal back of the iPad slipped from her paws and fell to the ground with a “bang.” With the battery already at one percent, it now completely shut down.

Yun Mian: “…”

She could drag a six to seven-hundred-gram object from left to right, but she couldn’t lift it back onto the table from the floor.

She stood beside the desk, looking at the iPad that had fallen to the floor, feeling like crying but without tears.

So the whole night, Yun Mian could only curl up in the corner of the sofa, staring at the flashing TV screen, until she finally closed her eyes in the middle of the night.

At dawn, she suddenly woke up.

She had figured it out. Wherever Shen Zhixing went and whatever he did, that was his business and his freedom. He had no obligation to consider her feelings.

Then, accordingly, wherever she wanted to go, she didn’t need to tell Shen Zhixing.

Now she was going to leave.

Her mother was sick, and she wanted to go visit her. Her father was at the company; she could go find him too. And there was Xu Yizheng—even if they couldn’t be lovers, at least they had grown up together. He would definitely be willing to help her!

Yun Mian was instantly energized and filled with strength.

She looked at the entrance. The door was too high for her to reach, but she could try pushing a dining chair over to step on it!

She acted immediately, running over and using her body to push the dining chair.

But the chair was made of solid wood, far too heavy. No matter how hard she pushed, it didn’t budge.

Her strength was too little—not enough. Yun Mian then remembered she hadn’t eaten anything since last night. Where would the strength come from?

She ate all the beef and fish snacks in the food bowl in one go, drank some water, and then, with all her strength, pushed the chair forward again.

The chair finally moved.

After great effort, she finally pushed the chair to the back of the door. But when she stood on tiptoe on it, she was still a little short of the doorknob.

In a moment of desperation, Yun Mian thought of using the sofa cushions to build up the height, so she ran back and carried the cushions one by one in her mouth.

By the time she finally reached the doorknob, she found that no matter how she tried, it wouldn’t turn—the door had been locked from the outside by the housekeeper when she left.

“…”

Yun Mian felt her vision going black again and again.

She was so angry that she fell backward from the top of the chair. The chair also tilted back with a bang and hit her foot. Three or four cushions were scattered and rolled all over the floor.

“Aaaaaargh, I’m so mad!”

Yun Mian looked at the result of her efforts being completely ruined, so angry that tears almost came out. Her foot hurt too. Wuwuwu.

She limped back to the living room.

She reached out her paw to grab the tissue box, but the more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. She pulled out all the tissues in frustration. She also scratched up the velvet cushion on the sofa and even stepped on it a few times out of spite.

The cat toys in her cat house were also used as outlets for her anger—ripped and bitten. The cat bed was even flipped over by her.

She was mad at herself for being useless!

She couldn’t do anything right; everything ended in failure.

After exhausting herself, Yun Mian finally lay on the floor, sobbing with tears falling.

At that moment, the door suddenly went “beep beep.”

Someone pushed the door open from the outside.

Shen Zhixing had taken the earliest flight back.

As soon as he entered, he saw the mess in the house and was momentarily stunned.

“Xiaobai? Xiaobai?”

Shen Zhixing’s expression tightened, and he immediately went inside to look for the cat.

Zuo Yao followed in behind and was shocked when he saw the chaos in the house. “Whoa! Boss, was there a break-in?”

The chair was lying on the ground, the tablecloth on the dining table was messy, the sofa cushions were scattered on the floor, tissues flew everywhere in the living room, the cat food bowls were randomly placed—most importantly, the TV was still on, but the remote was on the floor…

“Impossible. The neighborhood has such strict security. Who would still dare to commit burglary these days? Damn, could it be a sasaeng fan?”

Just yesterday in City C, he had encountered a crowd of fans blocking his way. Zuo Yao immediately associated it with this extreme possibility, and his expression changed.

…

“Xiaobai?”

Shen Zhixing anxiously searched the house for the cat’s figure.

Finally, he saw it under the climbing frame of the cat house. Its small body was curled up, its head drooping between the branches, with a listless expression on its face.

Shen Zhixing called it twice, squatted down, and reached out to pick it up.

Unexpectedly, Xiaobai reacted abnormally when it saw him. Its entire body suddenly arched up, staring at him with round eyes, hissing and baring its teeth.

“Awoo~~ awoo~~”

“Alright, it’s okay now. Xiaobai, be good, come out,” Shen Zhixing lowered his voice and gently coaxed.

Yun Mian was feeling very annoyed at the moment. Seeing Shen Zhixing, but unable to express her grievances through words, she could only voice her discontent with increasingly shrill howls.

Shen Zhixing listened to her cries, somewhat puzzled, not understanding why Xiaobai’s mood had suddenly become so sensitive and irritable.

He reached into the gap, intending to pull Xiaobai out.

But he was scratched on the back of his hand by the kitten’s paw.

Shen Zhixing was a little helpless, “What’s wrong, Xiaobai?”

Yun Mian turned her back to him, not wanting to pay him any attention.

“Come out. It’s uncomfortable being stuck in there. Be good, be obedient.” Shen Zhixing didn’t care about the wound on his hand and continued reaching in to pull her out.

Yun Mian swatted his hand away with her paw and said, “Go away, don’t bother me!”

But in Shen Zhixing’s ears, it was still just a few angry “awoo” sounds.

The man and the cat faced off for a while.

Shen Zhixing stared at her, falling into deep thought.

Xiaobai was…

Just then, the phone in Shen Zhixing’s pocket rang.

He took it out and glanced at it, frowning—it was a voice message from Fang Shuyu on WeChat.

As soon as he tapped the button, Fang Shuyu’s soft voice sounded in the room, “Zhixing, are you home? I have something I want to talk to you about. Can we meet today?”

Shen Zhixing lowered his gaze and replied concisely, “If you’re talking about the trending topic from the day before yesterday, I didn’t take it seriously. You don’t need to worry about it either.”

He replied by typing, so Yun Mian didn’t know what he had said.

But she glanced at him and thought, Hmph, I knew it. Last night, you were out on a date with Fang Shuyu.

Shen Zhixing put the phone back in his pocket, reached out his arm, and pulled the kitten huddled in the corner out. He helplessly tapped her nose, “Look at what you’ve done to the house. Tell me, shouldn’t you be punished?”

Yun Mian wrinkled her nose, unwilling to let him touch her.

Shen Zhixing carried the kitten into the living room. Upon seeing him, Zuo Yao immediately said nervously, “Boss, someone broke into the house. Should we call the police?”

Shen Zhixing glanced at him, “Call the police for what? Can’t you see it was Xiaobai who did this?”

“Xiaobai?” Zuo Yao was incredulous, “A single cat could cause this much damage?”

Just look at the house—it was nearly turned upside down.

“It is a bit unusual,” Shen Zhixing observed the kitten in his arms and said thoughtfully, “It looks like Xiaobai’s paw is injured. I need to take her to the hospital again. It might be that she’s in heat.”

Yun Mian: “…”

You’re the one in heat!

Who was the one who locked her at home for a whole day and night while going out on a date with his rumored girlfriend? And now he even has the nerve to turn it around on her!

Yun Mian was so angry, she really wanted to scratch him again!

But Zuo Yao on the side nodded, “I’ll go get the car and drive you over.”

…

When they got down to the garage and were about to get in the car, Zuo Yao suddenly remembered something and hesitated, “…Boss, what if we run into Fang Shuyu again when we get there?”

Shen Zhixing’s tone was calm, “When He Guang calls later, just don’t tell him we went out.”

“Oh.” Zuo Yao instinctively nodded, not understanding what that had to do with running into Fang Shuyu.

They got in the car and went to the same private pet hospital as last time.

It was still the same Dr. Zhao with a gentle smile.

Shen Zhixing didn’t waste words and went straight to the point, “Xiaobai’s mood has been a bit off these past two days, constantly wailing. Please check if she’s in heat. If so, should we consider neutering her?”

“Alright.” Dr. Zhao nodded, “Bring her to the exam room.”

When Yun Mian heard that—What? They want to neuter her?!

Shen Zhixing, are you even human?!

She struggled desperately in the hands of the two men.

Ahhh no!!!

Who gave you the right to make decisions about someone else’s life, you stinking men!

Take your hands off me ahhh!

She was furious!

At this moment, Yun Mian couldn’t care less about the manners and poise of a noble lady. She directly used both claws and teeth—whoever tried to restrain her, she would bite them. She didn’t care if she hurt someone; her life was at stake!

Shen Zhixing saw Xiaobai resisting fiercely and refusing to yield.

He couldn’t bear it and sighed, saying to Dr. Zhao, “Forget it, she doesn’t want to.”

Dr. Zhao thoroughly examined the kitten, then said thoughtfully, “Doesn’t look like she’s in heat.”

“Based on your description, it seems more like a response to anxiety and stress. Forest cats are very intelligent—they have strong curiosity, high learning and memory ability, about the level of a seven- or eight-year-old child. Also, they prefer independence, exploration, and hunting. They’re not suited for being kept in a closed environment. You said you left her alone at home yesterday—she probably experienced anxiety, which led to this behavior.”

Shen Zhixing nodded with understanding, “I see.”

He lowered his head and looked at Xiaobai’s tearful, indignant eyes.

…The intelligence of a seven- or eight-year-old child?

Why did it feel like Xiaobai often seemed more like a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old girl?

Just like now.

He could see an emotion in her eyes—

As if she was saying to him, “Shen Zhixing, you big jerk, I’m never speaking to you again!”